Today is John's 31st birthday! We celebrated with friends on Saturday night, and tonight I made him dinner, and at his request, banana pudding.Happy Birthday John!!!
Monday, August 24, 2009
A new door handle, German food, and a draft party
Whenever I post weekend recaps, I always feel like the posts should start with a “whew” as in “wow I’m exhausted” and that’s so wrong, aren’t weekends for relaxing? Anyway, I was very busy this past weekend, here is what we did.
My Saturday morning got off to an off start because I headed to my spin class like every Saturday, but this time the instructor did not show up so, no class. Bummer. I don’t mind working out without a class, but I did not bring my ipod and have a hard time doing cardio without that so, I headed home. Felt guilty since I was dressed for a workout, so decided to go for a run. I had a pretty packed morning, so after I got to check off “gym” from my list, I headed out to get John’s bday present. I had to borrow his truck because I did not have room for his gift in my car, so I borrowed that and headed out. Then planned my menu for the draft party which I was hosting the next day (ok, I had the menu planned for days, but I still needed to do go grocery shopping for it), and got to work cleaning the house. Went to take out the trash and I when I opened the door, I ended up with a little present in my hand.
That’s right, the knob came with me. Looks like John has a little project now! So he heads off to Home Depot and I clean the house. That night, I had planned a little birthday dinner with some friends for John, but it about half of the people were out of town, so we had a small group, but still fun. Here we are at the Waldhorn (John’s request), I am hiding behind Samantha.
And here was our entertainment.
Sugared and Spiced Pecans
Baked Brie with Raspberry Chutney and Walnuts
Fruit Skewers with Lemon Fruit Dip
Tara also brought some apps and Sam made an awesome ice cream dessert, so we ended up with a ton of food, wine, and mimosa’s. I was so frazzled getting all the food out and getting people drinks that I did not take any pictures of the food table, but here are a few of everyone getting ready for the draft.
My Saturday morning got off to an off start because I headed to my spin class like every Saturday, but this time the instructor did not show up so, no class. Bummer. I don’t mind working out without a class, but I did not bring my ipod and have a hard time doing cardio without that so, I headed home. Felt guilty since I was dressed for a workout, so decided to go for a run. I had a pretty packed morning, so after I got to check off “gym” from my list, I headed out to get John’s bday present. I had to borrow his truck because I did not have room for his gift in my car, so I borrowed that and headed out. Then planned my menu for the draft party which I was hosting the next day (ok, I had the menu planned for days, but I still needed to do go grocery shopping for it), and got to work cleaning the house. Went to take out the trash and I when I opened the door, I ended up with a little present in my hand.
That’s right, the knob came with me. Looks like John has a little project now! So he heads off to Home Depot and I clean the house. That night, I had planned a little birthday dinner with some friends for John, but it about half of the people were out of town, so we had a small group, but still fun. Here we are at the Waldhorn (John’s request), I am hiding behind Samantha.
And here was our entertainment.
Afterwords, everyone came over, John made cocktails, and we watched "Super Troopers."
Sunday, I hosted a girl’s fantasy football draft party which was a lot of fun. I spent the morning making the food and getting everything ready, including my team picks. Here was the menu:
Sunday, I hosted a girl’s fantasy football draft party which was a lot of fun. I spent the morning making the food and getting everything ready, including my team picks. Here was the menu:
Sugared and Spiced Pecans
Baked Brie with Raspberry Chutney and Walnuts
Fruit Skewers with Lemon Fruit Dip
Tara also brought some apps and Sam made an awesome ice cream dessert, so we ended up with a ton of food, wine, and mimosa’s. I was so frazzled getting all the food out and getting people drinks that I did not take any pictures of the food table, but here are a few of everyone getting ready for the draft.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
I {heart} cards
I love cards. I am thrilled when I find the perfect card for someone and love browsing in card shops for fun. I also save all my cards (well most of them anyway) and like looking back at cards I have received in the past. A few years ago, I gave John a little hint about how I like to receive cards. So since then, he has done a nice job always picking out cards for me. This year for my birthday, I got not one but two cards from him! The first one came with the flowers that he sent to my work and the second one was with my birthday gift. You can click on them for a bigger image. Good work John!
Monday, August 17, 2009
OMB, a Luau and a little leak
It was so nice to have a weekend back that did not have to be devoted to painting! So glad to have that project behind us and onto the next. Next up will be our backyard area which we have already decided is more John’s project that mine, but of course I will help out. That project deserves a post on its own but we did a little pre-planning this weekend to start prepping the soil, killing the weeds and determining how much this project is going to cost us. Originally, we planned on digging a fire pit into the ground and having some seating out there, but we looked up the fire code, and it is against the regulations to have open flames within 25 feet of a building, so we had to scratch that and come up with something else. More on that later.
On Friday night, we met Sam, Sam, Luke, Heather and their baby Abby at Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, Charlotte’s (first, only?) microbrewery. The space is pretty rustic and they have 2 beers on tap, but it is still a fun place to go hang out, and its smoke free. John bought a growler from there when they first opened for somewhere around $20, but you refill it for $8 so that is pretty popular.
Saturday night, we went to Lauren’s 30th birthday party luau which was really fun. John convinced me not to bring out my new camera since it is pretty big, but I really regretted it once we got to the party. They had rented out a space and deck on top of a condo building in uptown with great views of the city and stadium, so it would have been fun practice, but I ended up with my trusty point and shoot instead. These are the pics I took
.
Awesome cupcakes!
Me and the birthday girl
On Sunday, I turned into Martha and decided to make crackers from scratch. I made whole wheat crackers that were ok, then I made Morning Glory muffins from the King Arthur Whole Grain Baking cookbook and those were good. I was in a breakfast rut so I was excited when I woke up this morning and remembered my muffins, it’s the small things you know? Just as I had convinced myself to go to the gym, it started storming really bad. So, I decided to read magazines instead, and it’s actually a good thing I stayed in because as I was sitting there, I kept hearing water dropping from somewhere other than outside. Checked the sink and shower and realized water was coming in through our chimney. So, I grab some Rubbermaid containers and was able to catch the water. We probably got about 4 inches of rain so I was glad to be home, otherwise it could have been a big mess if I did not catch it. We are going to have to have someone come check it out, for now, I have food storage containers in the fireplace just in case.
On Friday night, we met Sam, Sam, Luke, Heather and their baby Abby at Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, Charlotte’s (first, only?) microbrewery. The space is pretty rustic and they have 2 beers on tap, but it is still a fun place to go hang out, and its smoke free. John bought a growler from there when they first opened for somewhere around $20, but you refill it for $8 so that is pretty popular.
Saturday night, we went to Lauren’s 30th birthday party luau which was really fun. John convinced me not to bring out my new camera since it is pretty big, but I really regretted it once we got to the party. They had rented out a space and deck on top of a condo building in uptown with great views of the city and stadium, so it would have been fun practice, but I ended up with my trusty point and shoot instead. These are the pics I took
.
Awesome cupcakes!
Me and the birthday girl
On Sunday, I turned into Martha and decided to make crackers from scratch. I made whole wheat crackers that were ok, then I made Morning Glory muffins from the King Arthur Whole Grain Baking cookbook and those were good. I was in a breakfast rut so I was excited when I woke up this morning and remembered my muffins, it’s the small things you know? Just as I had convinced myself to go to the gym, it started storming really bad. So, I decided to read magazines instead, and it’s actually a good thing I stayed in because as I was sitting there, I kept hearing water dropping from somewhere other than outside. Checked the sink and shower and realized water was coming in through our chimney. So, I grab some Rubbermaid containers and was able to catch the water. We probably got about 4 inches of rain so I was glad to be home, otherwise it could have been a big mess if I did not catch it. We are going to have to have someone come check it out, for now, I have food storage containers in the fireplace just in case.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
A roach
Aaah the joys of living in the South! Bugs. Since our house was built in 1941, it has its share of holes and gaps that little critters could slip though. So, it’s no surprise that from time to time, we see a bug. I’m ok with small bugs, but roaches really freak me out. I was listening to a segment on NPR the other day talking about how roaches can actually CRAWL IN YOUR EAR WHILE YOU ARE SLEEPING and they get stuck since roaches can only move one way. So, you can imagine my fright when I was just drifting off to sleep and I hear John say “don’t move.” That’s like saying, “don’t look” because of course I get up to see what he was talking about. Well this guy was on the wall right over the bed.
Of course I freaked out, which got Morgan all riled up. The disturbing thing was that up until this point, most of the roaches we have seen have been dead, but this guy was alive, crawling and around 2 inches long. He even fluttered his wings from time to time (I did not know roaches even had wings, but whatever). John finally captures the roach and Morgan turned into a little hunter wanting to find more. So, I thoroughly examined everything, took the sheets off and made sure my sleeping area was roach free. I kept feeling phantom roaches all night, I did not sleep well. So, the first thing when I got into work, I called the exterminator. She asked if I wanted the annual protection package which means they come out 4x a year and I said absolutely, sign us up. They are coming today at 4.
*Not the acutal roach, I did not have time to grab my camera
Photo from here
Of course I freaked out, which got Morgan all riled up. The disturbing thing was that up until this point, most of the roaches we have seen have been dead, but this guy was alive, crawling and around 2 inches long. He even fluttered his wings from time to time (I did not know roaches even had wings, but whatever). John finally captures the roach and Morgan turned into a little hunter wanting to find more. So, I thoroughly examined everything, took the sheets off and made sure my sleeping area was roach free. I kept feeling phantom roaches all night, I did not sleep well. So, the first thing when I got into work, I called the exterminator. She asked if I wanted the annual protection package which means they come out 4x a year and I said absolutely, sign us up. They are coming today at 4.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Weekend in review....
We had a nice but busy weekend! I experimented with 2 veggie recipes since we have been getting so many veggies from the farm and I thought both of them turned out really good. The first dish I made was “Cajun Okra and Tomatoes.” We have been getting okra for about 4 weeks now and every time, I struggle with what to do with it. I know you can fry it, but I don’t like to eat things that are breaded and it always looks slimy when it is just boiled. Now I have never attempted to cook okra before but here is what I made on Friday night and it was really good! I don’t follow recipes too well since I am such a picky eater so I usually find several recipes and pick bits and pieces from each one:
3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 Cup cooked shrimp
3/4 Cup onion, chopped
2 Tbsp Garlic, minced
4 Tbsp jalapeno peppers, minced
2 Cups Fresh Okra, cut into pieces
1 1/2 Cups Insanely Ripe Tomatoes, chopped
2 tsp Fresh Thyme, chopped
2 tsp Fresh Basil, chopped
Kosher salt, black pepper, cayenne, and Texas Pete Hot Sauce to taste
Melt the butter. Add the onions, garlic and peppers, and season with a little Kosher salt. Sweat until the onions are translucent. Add the Okra, season again with a little salt, and cook for about 5 minutes until okra is tender. Add the Tomatoes and Thyme, plus a little more Kosher salt to make the tomatoes break down.When the tomatoes break down and reduce slightly add the basil, shrimp, and salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste. I served over whole grain brown rice.
On Saturday, we painted all day. Finished the master bedroom, bathroom and upstairs hall. Still have the office and laundry room, plus all the touch-up on the baseboards to complete next weekend.
We celebrated my birthday on Saturday night since John was going to be gone for my real birthday which is today, August 3. I was so excited to open my present and find that, I had received the obsessed over camera I have been wanting for the past few months! My parents, sis and John went together on this and I can’t wait to get out and start shooting. I still have to learn how to use it since I have never shot with an SLR before.
For dinner, we went to 2 places… we started off at Nolan Kitchen for appetizers and drinks. I had a drink with fresh blueberries, blueberry stoli, and cranberry juice and it was good. John had an old fashioned and a dark and stormy. Then we ordered a cheese plate for an app.
While on the subject of food, here is the second veggie dish I made for us on Sunday. I got this recipe from Food and Wine and pretty much followed this recipe exact. John really liked it and I served it with Feta Turkey Burgers.
One last thing, I watched the most inspirational movie on Sunday afternoon: Blindsight. It is a documentary and here is the summary from Netflix:
Six blind Tibetan teenagers set off on a gripping adventure as they attempt to climb the 23,000-foot Lhakpa Ri on the north side of Mount Everest. Considered cursed in Tibetan culture, blind children are often hidden away to live as pariahs. Determined to challenge that perception, the kids gear up for a demanding expedition led by climber Erik Weihenmayer -- the first blind man to scale Everest -- and learn some lessons about life along the way.
Each blind child was sponsored by an American or European experienced mountain climber that helped guide them along the way. This made me think back a few years ago when we hiked Ben Nevis in Scotland and I was thinking that was the hardest climb I had done, these kids make me look like a big pansy considering they are blind and in some cases malnourished and still made it up 22,000 ft.
3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 Cup cooked shrimp
3/4 Cup onion, chopped
2 Tbsp Garlic, minced
4 Tbsp jalapeno peppers, minced
2 Cups Fresh Okra, cut into pieces
1 1/2 Cups Insanely Ripe Tomatoes, chopped
2 tsp Fresh Thyme, chopped
2 tsp Fresh Basil, chopped
Kosher salt, black pepper, cayenne, and Texas Pete Hot Sauce to taste
Melt the butter. Add the onions, garlic and peppers, and season with a little Kosher salt. Sweat until the onions are translucent. Add the Okra, season again with a little salt, and cook for about 5 minutes until okra is tender. Add the Tomatoes and Thyme, plus a little more Kosher salt to make the tomatoes break down.When the tomatoes break down and reduce slightly add the basil, shrimp, and salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste. I served over whole grain brown rice.
On Saturday, we painted all day. Finished the master bedroom, bathroom and upstairs hall. Still have the office and laundry room, plus all the touch-up on the baseboards to complete next weekend.
We celebrated my birthday on Saturday night since John was going to be gone for my real birthday which is today, August 3. I was so excited to open my present and find that, I had received the obsessed over camera I have been wanting for the past few months! My parents, sis and John went together on this and I can’t wait to get out and start shooting. I still have to learn how to use it since I have never shot with an SLR before.
For dinner, we went to 2 places… we started off at Nolan Kitchen for appetizers and drinks. I had a drink with fresh blueberries, blueberry stoli, and cranberry juice and it was good. John had an old fashioned and a dark and stormy. Then we ordered a cheese plate for an app.
For dinner, we headed to Ratcliffe on the Green which is a restaurant I have wanted to try for a while. Ever since I took a cooking class with the sous chef there and learned they are a restaurant featuring food from local farms, I was hooked. I had a steak and some vegetables and John had duck and pheasant pot pie with gruyere mac and cheese and an arugula salad. The service was wonderful and the food was good too. And yes, I am that cheesy that I took pictures of John and I with our food. Except I caught John after he had taken a bite...
While on the subject of food, here is the second veggie dish I made for us on Sunday. I got this recipe from Food and Wine and pretty much followed this recipe exact. John really liked it and I served it with Feta Turkey Burgers.
One last thing, I watched the most inspirational movie on Sunday afternoon: Blindsight. It is a documentary and here is the summary from Netflix:
Six blind Tibetan teenagers set off on a gripping adventure as they attempt to climb the 23,000-foot Lhakpa Ri on the north side of Mount Everest. Considered cursed in Tibetan culture, blind children are often hidden away to live as pariahs. Determined to challenge that perception, the kids gear up for a demanding expedition led by climber Erik Weihenmayer -- the first blind man to scale Everest -- and learn some lessons about life along the way.
Each blind child was sponsored by an American or European experienced mountain climber that helped guide them along the way. This made me think back a few years ago when we hiked Ben Nevis in Scotland and I was thinking that was the hardest climb I had done, these kids make me look like a big pansy considering they are blind and in some cases malnourished and still made it up 22,000 ft.
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