Hey! I'm boring.

Oh, how boring

2009-08-17T23:04:00.006-04:00

See, I'm a tad bit anal. But only about certain things. I don't need things to be clean in my home or in my office, but I do need them to be put in the correct place. I think this skill (oh, and it IS a skill) comes from growing up in a tiny house with a mother who couldn't throw anything away (cough, still can't, cough).

Organization. It gives me a freakish high. I love moving into a new place. Why? Because I get to figure out where to put a million little things! What's better than that? I hate to lift boxes, but put them in a room and I'll put everything away for you. I love helping friends move for this very reason. The kitchen is my favorite part. Figuring out what's used frequently and what's not and determining what cabinet will fit all the plates, spices, fancy glasses, pots and pans, and pantry items. My little slice of heaven.

Ok, I swear this is one of my only quirks. For your boredom, allow me to show you an example of my organizational skills.

Spice drawer after my husband has messied it up for a couple of months.

Spice drawer after my beautiful touch.

"A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING AND EVERYTHING IN IT'S PLACE" - Some guy who probably didn't want to be known for that quote. No, I take that back. It was definitely a woman.

A summer love

2009-08-04T22:27:00.000-04:00

Basil. This little guy is wonderful.

I have no green thumb. J has a small green thumb (giggle giggle, I love you). I'm pleased to announce that we've kept this basil plant alive for over 2 months now. We...ok, J...picks the leaves a couple of times a week.

It's provided us with some kick to a couple of delish dishes. And a quick go-to for pesto.

And, caprese style: Tomato, mozzarella, basil leaves, a dash of balsamic. Mmmmm

Note to self: a Mexican cheese block looks like a mozzarella block.
Reminder to self: Tell J not to keep blocks of different cheeses in the same tupperware.

Gnocchi in Fontina cream sauce

2009-08-04T01:30:00.002-04:00

When we went out for our anniversary dinner a couple of weeks ago, J had a tasty dish that he couldn't forget. So he searched high and low and found a recipe that is pretty darn close. We tried it out Saturday evening and it was fabulous!

Gnocchi in Fontina cream sauce

1 pound gnocchi
6 T butter
2 T shallots
8 ounces Fontina
2/3 C cream
3 T parmesan
1 T fresh basil

Directions:

First, melt the butter with shallots (or substitute onion and add some garlic like we did)

Then add the cream. We like rich and we like extra sauce, so we added a bit extra cream. Bring the mixture to light boil. Add the Fontina & parmesan. Stir until melted.

Cook and drain the gnocchi (or make your own).

Add the pasta to your sauce. Serve and top with fresh basil. Voila!

NADIA!

2009-08-01T15:22:00.001-04:00

Something you may not know about me: I'm a gymnastics freak.

Was I ever a gymnast? No. I'd like to attribute that to growing up in smalltown Illinois. There's not a whole lot of opportunity for such activities. I could have been great. Sigh.

Anyway, growing up, I loved gymnastics. My absolute favorite movie was Nadia, the biographical movie of Nadia Comaneci. I watched it at least once a day. You know how every parent has to hide a movie/toy/snack because their kid can't get enough of it? Yeah, that was mine. My mom bought me a leotard. My dad built me a balance beam. I was in heaven.

I still love the Summer Olympics for this reason. Gymnastic world championships and exhibition meets, while entertaining, just do not compare.

So you can imagine how excited I was to start attending a university that had a successful gymnastics team. Last fall, I only made it to one meet. It was heaven.

But who went with me? My husband. Bad idea. But he owed me. I can't remember why, but he definitely owed me. It was so exhilirating to watch. It was also entertaining to hear J's commentary:

Me: Ooooh! Will you get me a snocone?
J: No. We're in a recession.

J: I feel like I'm in Limited Too. (in regards to all the girls cheering and chanting)

J: I've seen at least 6 or 7 guys that would qualify for pedophile status.

J: Look at how ugly that girl is. Her nose is gigantic...Man, I should be a commentator.

J: I'd like gymnastics a whole lot more if they didn't work with mats. Be confident. Only have concrete underneath you. I think I'll suggest that for the Xgames next year.

J: The floor routine would be ten times better if they required them to do the worm across the mat.

J: Why was her score so low?
Me: Her legs came apart at least 3 times.
J: Well, that's not very ladylike, is it?

(After a girl NAILED this floor routine and everyone started cheering)
J: Shit's weak.

I was amused. Needless to say, I'm excited for the season to start this fall. If you live in Lexington, I will be hounding you to go with me. Be prepared.

What's your childhood-but-never-developed passion?

May I direct your attention

2009-07-30T13:01:00.003-04:00

Allow me to direct your attention today to my good friend LBD's blog post . I just loved the story.

Banana Bread

2009-07-25T21:20:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, my friend Smartass came over. We had some down time between laying out at the pool and going to listen to a "band," so I used up some old bananas to make bread.

Banana Bread

Sift together:
1 3/4 cups flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking soda

In a separate bowl, mix:
2/3 cup of shortening or margarine
2/3 cup of sugar

Mix, then add:

2 eggs (one at a time)

(I forgot the picture of this mixture, but you can figure it out - it looks like eggy butter...with sugar granules, duh.)

In a separate bowl, mash:
1 cup banana

Alternate adding and mixing 1/4 the mashed bananas and 1/4 the sifted mixture (repeat, repeat, repeat) to the shortening/sugar mixture. Pour into a greased bread pan.

Bake at 300 for about 1 hour or until a toothpick in the middle comes clean. Makes 1 large loaf or three small.

Because we were starving, we also experimented with a dip. Cream cheese, cocktail sauce, crab meat, shredded cheddar cheese. In oven until the cheese melts. Serve with crackers. YUM.

"Tommy Lee Jones isn't made for high def"

2009-07-24T23:48:00.000-04:00

An example of something I love about my husband - his sometimes inappropriate sense of humor.

Sunday was our anniversary. The big one-oh. Wait, that's 10. The big wu-un. 1. We made it to one year. That's a success in itself, right?

We celebrated this past weekend. What did we do for our anniversary? We celebrated in a way that we love - low key.

Friday, we made dinner together (which actually turned out to be a big fat fail) and watched some STUPID movie that he got through Netflix. Electric Mist? Bad choice, husband, bad choice.

On Saturday, we started by sleeping in. Ahhhhhh.

Then we went to the pool for the afternoon. Sunnnnnnn.

Then we went to dinner at Giuseppe's, a nice little Italian restaurant in Lexington. Yummmmmm. The appetizers were delish - crabcakes with aioli and scallops over risotto. Salads & portobello cream soup. Chicken and ricotta stuffed shells & gnocchi with Fontina cream sauce.

We came home and had some raspberry cobblers. Mmmmmmmm. No wait, that's what we were going to have if I wasn't lazy. Instead, we went to KROGER after dinner and picked up one of those frozen desserts that you always see at the grocer's but you never know if they're any good? We grabbed a cookies & cream pie and it was good.

Then we watched an incredibly romantic movie.

"The Dark Knight." Wait, what's that you say? It's NOT a romantic movie? Oh, oops.

And we drank our bottle of anniversary wine - Thanks Mikey & Amanda!

Thus ended the night. Please people, we're keeping this PG.

What? That's it, you ask?

Where are the gifts? We're lazy.

Where are the corny letters and cliche sayings? We don't do that.

Where is the wedding cake top? Well...ummm, we didn't have cake at our wedding. True story. I'm surprised our marriage has even lasted this long without a wedding cake.

Grumpy

2009-07-22T23:31:00.010-04:00

I'm grumpy today. I bet you want to know why, right? Well, I'll tell you.

First of all, this is what the weather has been like. ALL DAY. Rain, rain, go away.

So then I wore these shoes today. Cute, casual, comfy right? NOT COMFY. Note to self: Test out shoes that you have only worn with socks before wearing them for hours without socks.

And the sink. The sink makes me grumpy every time I look at it. See how the stopper dohicky isn't stuck to the little stick that you can pull up? Yeah. Now I freak out about dropping things down the sink. And I have a screwdriver next to it so that I can pry up the stopper when it gets stuck down there.

This is why I'm grumpy.

tear

2009-07-21T03:25:00.001-04:00

My baby is growing up :(

Puppy Max is now 10 months old. And today, I scheduled his appointment to become a man. Wait, maybe that's not right. Anyway, he's getting neutered next week.

Let's take a look at how Max has become a mandog:

As a baby, Max slept with his stuffed animals.

And needed to wear sweaters for warmth.

And of course, he fit in a shoe.

Now, Max likes to listen to music.

He helps pay bills around the house, stamping the envelopes for us.

He helps with the chores, like folding laundry.

Corresponds via email.

And gives his own tribute to deceased pop idols.

Yeah, he's a cool cat. Er, dog.

Macaroni & corn casserole

2009-07-19T23:28:00.000-04:00

Mmmmmmm, sound gross? Well, it's not dang it!

This recipe came to me from a family friend at a church potluck. It quickly became a favorite and I've passed it on to many others. It's a great side dish for any meal, but especially great for a cookout.

Recipe:
1 can corn, undrained
1 can creamed corn
1 cup macaroni, raw
1/4 stick butter (2 T), chopped for better melting
Cheese*
Breadcrumbs (optional)

*Cheese? Cheese, you ask? Ok, you can use any type of cheese you want. Me, I'm no cheese snob. I usually use good ole processed Velveeta. A 2 inch block, cubed. But for you snobs, do what you want :)

Pour everything into a greased casserole dish. Cover & bake at 350 for about 45 minutes (until the macaroni is cooked), stirring occasionally. Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs if desired.

Precooked:

Cooked:

"Say hello to your friends...Babysitter's Club"...Another weekend recap

2009-07-18T12:44:00.008-04:00

This is my own personal Babysitter's Club:

circa 2002

Ok, we're not really babysitters (yikes!). And we're not really a club. We're just a group of friends from high school who spent ridiculous amounts of time together. But we do have a catchy nickname. The BEATR's (pronounced beaters) - acronym of our first names. Yeah, we're totally cool like that.

So anyway, last weekend, E married her high school sweetheart, C. It was a great reunion for the five of us - lots of laughing.

J and I started off the evening by going to prom. Not really, I just made him pose for a silly picture. He was not amused (running theme, right?):

The bride & groom wanted to keep the ceremony very small, so it was only family and a few special friends. I'm special! E was gorgeous. What a wonderful photographer I am!

The reception was fabulous. Awesome cupcakes. Lots of dancing.

Sometimes embarrassing dancing:

We also played with flowers.

Caught up with old friends.

And had an overall great time.

Sometimes we get so bogged down in our busy lives, our troubles, and the constant changes that occur - we forget how much we enjoy one another. I'm glad we had this weekend to remind us. "Here's to you...here's to me..."

BEATRs, 2009

Happy wedding E & C.

Pooooooor neglected blog

2009-07-17T18:33:00.009-04:00

Hey, give me a break! I've been busy! I promise you pictures, recipes, cute pictures of Max, and at least 1 funny story in the upcoming weeks. I'll start with a couple of recaps.

My 4th of July weekend was wonderful! It started off being sad because I had to miss my friend Erica's bachelorette party back in Illinois. Booooo! But then my friend Sarah decided to come brighten my holiday.

In typical Sarah fashion, she brought the contents of her liquor cabinet:

We went to the Cards/Reds game in Cincy. Guess who we were cheering for?

Pujols hit a grand slam! We won!

Ok, notice no one else is cheering? This is actually a reenactment of our reaction. Hey, we were too busy cheering when it happened.

J was not impressed. He's an icky Cubs fan.

Even though it rained most of the 4th, we had a great time back at home. We shopped, cooked, played games, and of course, took shots.

But at least we got to see some fireworks on the 3rd. Best seat in the house = bridge over Ohio River:

Oh, and we sang, "On a Boat" more times than I'd like to count. Thanks Sarah for coming to visit!

EDIT: I would like for everyone to know that Sarah forgot the tickets and we had to turn around to go get them. I know she would REALLY want me to tell everyone that she forgot the tickets. :)

Cheers!

2009-07-06T12:08:00.004-04:00

I love my STL friends! They've recently been sharing some thoughts and pictures with me that make me realize how much I miss them and how much I enjoy their company.

And my good friends Ang & Jess sent me this pic:
They remember me! What makes me even more excited is that I might get to see them this week! Crossing my fingers.

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-04T12:11:00.002-04:00

I hope everyone has a great day, even if Mother Nature doesn't cooperate!

In honor of my desire to be on water today, I'll provide you with this lovely SNL clip, courtesy of hulu.com (unedited version can be found on Youtube).

The weekend RECAP

2009-07-02T19:19:00.007-04:00

As promised, I'll review the weekend with J's mom visiting.

On Friday, we drove to campus and ran into the bookstore, where I picked up a nice little gift for a certain friend in Minnesota. Then, we went grocery shopping because I was too lazy to do so before she arrived.

That evening we ate at Bella Notte, a Lexington favorite. I had chicken picatta, J had a wood-fired sirloin, and J's mom had ravioli with tomato basil cream and tomato meat sauce. The spicy tomato soup is absolutely wonderful. Not only did we have great food & service, but they offered us a free dessert because J's steak took a little long. So we shared a slice of cheesecake and a tiramisu. Heaven.

On Saturday, we tried to go to the flea market. Whoops. Couldn't find it. Next time, I'll call the phone number first to get the details. We stopped by the small Farmer's Market where we picked up some delicious blueberries and then to Fresh Market (are you noticing a food theme for the weekend?). J's mom bought us these beautiful flowers:

J had enough quality time together, so we dropped him off and headed to a few shopping spots - Steinmart & Michael's. We of course had to stop by Liquor Barn on the way home. Saturday evening, we snacked around and enjoyed pomegranate martinis and wildberry fruity drink thingys.

Sunday, we had brunch at Doodles. Mmmmm! One of my favorite places to go with my KY girlfriends. Dirty shrimp & grits, meat omelet, cajun omelet, and warm beignets. YUM! We had to wait a bit, but they were super busy. The food was worth it though.

J's mom headed home shortly after. :( It was a nice relaxing weekend!

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

2009-06-30T20:34:00.006-04:00

This weekend, I had 2 half empty containers of cream cheese frosting in the fridge. Why? Who knows. I thought about making some pumpkin bars, but it just doesn't seem natural to eat pumpkin anything in the summer. So I made red velvet sandwich cookies/whoopie pies/whatever you want to call them. I prefer the word whoopie.

I found the recipe in this post from Bakerella (who has some other awesome treats - check it out). Shout out to Stefi for her find. Because I knew they were just for J, me, and J's mom, I didn't take the time to make them pretty.

Tip: Keep them refrigerated, but before you serve/eat, let them sit out for 10 minutes or so to soften. Also, don't worry about making them all the same size - you can match up the similar sized ones later.

Say Cheese!

2009-06-29T22:54:00.005-04:00

I'm in the market for a new digital camera. My old Canon Powershot A540 has served me well over the years, but it's time to retire it.

So what camera should I get? I want something smaller, to fit in a purse. I want a point & shoot, but maybe with some manual options. I need a self-timer (I just figured out how to use my a year ago and I love it.)

I'm considering the Canon PowerShot SX110 IS. I've heard good things about it and it seems to have the specs I want. I think it would probably be an easy transition from my current camera.

All of my preferences could be moot though. J gets electronics for free through work, so I may be limited to certain options.

Anybody want to share their comments & recommendations?

I'm glad to see I'm living up to my blog title.

The weekend

2009-06-25T22:33:00.005-04:00

I don't really distinguish between weekdays and weekends anymore. It's partly the nature of the job (more about that later), partly because of a lack of routine.

But this weekend, my mother-in-law is coming to visit! I know what you're thinking - You feel sorry for me. Well, don't! I love my MIL! She had a free weekend, which worked out perfectly since I had absolutely nothing to do this weekend. So she's driving down today (Friday) and staying until Sunday.

SO...what do we have planned?

Well, nothing really. But tentatively, here are some things we might do:
- drive around town and see campus (this sounds much more boring than it actually is)

http://www.uky.edu

- go to antique shops and/or flea markets

- go out to eat
Possibilities

And my new favorite place

http://www.drakeslansdowne.com/

- go see a big old estate

http://www.henryclay.org/

- go to the farmer's market

- go to the winery

- lay out by the pool (probably)

It should be a good weekend! I'll update with reviews.

Bugs...A hate story.

2009-06-25T21:53:00.004-04:00

Bugs. They're ugly. And crawly. And creepy.

Don't get me wrong - I enjoy neat bugs. I enjoy them at the zoo. Behind glass cases.

When we moved to Kentucky last summer, I suppose it was just too late in the summer (mid-August) for the bugs to...bug me. Because over the past month, I've had a few too many run-ins with bugs.

This little guy seems harmless. My friends in the Entymology Department at UK (website) confirm this. But he's scary. He's scary when he shows up on the wall. He's scary when Max chases him. He's also scary when he shows up IN THE SHOWER. I'm sure Max & J were both wondering what the heck was going on when I dripped all over the bathroom screaming (yes, now you're thinking about me in the shower).

I also had the scariest encounter I've ever had with ants a few nights ago. It was late (those of you who know me know my nocturnal hours) and I took Max out for a bathroom break before bed. I was outside a total of 45 seconds. When I walked back into the apartment, I felt something on my foot. I looked down and I had about 50 ants crawling on my ankles and feet. Of course, I screamed, shook, stomped, and slapped the crap out of my legs. J thought I was on fire. I still have no idea how that happened.

My last negative encounter with bugs came when I went to refill Max's food bowl and noticed a trail of tiny ants. Yes, I realize ants are generally tiny. But these were super tiny. Maybe baby ants like puppy food? So of course, I had to wash down the area (tip: vinegar worked!) and move Max's dining room to the other side of the kitchen.

When did I become so squeamish about insects? I used to pride myself on being the girl who would bravely grab that crawler and place it outside. Or, walk over and stomp that cockroach with a flimsy flipflop.

Every time I scream, a little piece of my tomboy childhood dies. Every time I call for my husband, a little piece of my feminist, independent spirit dies.

But this story has a happy ending. Earlier this week, I was driving to school and noticed that a spider had built a little web from my rearview mirror to my driver side door. Spidey was quickly trying to make it back to the little gap between the mirror and the plastic doohicky that surrounds the mirror. I found myself picturing Spidey as Charlotte, desperate to save herself and her eggs as the 40 mph winds whipped by. So I slowed down. And Charlotte made it back into her cave. EB White saved your life bug. Now make a web that says, "MERCIFUL" and dedicate it to me.

Who could have thought that I could spend this much time writing a boring post about bugs?

A happy thought

2009-06-24T00:19:00.006-04:00

This is a picture that I received from my friend A last week. A will probably be annoyed that I posted this picture, but I had to share it. Isn't she cute?

A is using a coozie (also known to some as koozie, huggie, coolie). This particular coozie was one of our wedding favors! I actually didn't meet A until after our wedding, but I wanted her to have something to remind her of me. I'm self-centered like that.

Anyway, A sent me this picture and it brightened my day. Thanks A!

PS: A, I saw Cats cutoffs last weekend. I'll send you a pair if I remember.

Introducing.....us.

2009-06-22T21:17:00.001-04:00

This is me. I'm what I call a forever student - in actuality, I'm just working on my doctorate in communication studies. I was raised in a rural area in Illinois but moved away for college and different opportunities.

J, my husband. J is...self-employed currently. He quit his job to move with me - I'm forever grateful for that. He was raised in Illinois as well.

J and I met our first weekend at college. I had met some of his friends in the dorm. Later that evening, we ended up going to "this guy's apartment" (which ended up being J's best friend & roommate). We kindasortanotreally dated all freshman year and by the time that summer was up, we returned sophomore year and started dating.

And Max, our Westiepoo. Max is about 9 months old. He enjoys sleeping on the fuzzy blanket, playing tug of war, and barking at the birds.

Our families:

My parents, brother, and sister-in-law. My dad is a retired from teaching and still pastors a small church. My mom teaches 3rd grade. My brother is in finance and my SIL is in nursing school.

J's mom and brother. J's mom is a nurse and his brother is in college.

J's dad, stepmom, and stepsis. J's dad works for the city water company and his stepmom works in insurance.

His stepsis works in community health. I stole this picture from her - shhhhh!

I'm sure there will be many more players, but this will get us started.

Famous by the second

2009-06-21T14:44:00.000-04:00

I have a follower! And a comment!

Thanks to NC & Jill for your superb loyalty. I promise to be more interesting in the future.

I blog.

2009-06-20T00:38:00.000-04:00

Now I'm a blogger. I'm cool. Right? Right!?!?

For pooper:
Sarcasm, fantasy, randomness.

More to come. When = depending on the pool weather the next few days.