josh & annie

blizzard...not reese's

2009-03-27T17:10:00.003-06:00

Only in Colorado. Most of our snow is now melted. But you can see the nice mountain we had in front and behind our house this morning! Charlie has been loving the snow. I have been doing puzzles, sewing, eating ice cream and wishing Josh was off today to enjoy this "snow day" with me!

pizza rolls

2009-03-23T21:11:00.003-06:00

Another recipe for you...this one is REALLY good.
I modified it from a once a month cooking cookbook. You can bake these up and then freeze them and then just reheat them in the oven when you are ready to eat them. We thought they were better with ranch but pizza sauce is a good dip too.

Pizza Rolls
1 Pizza crust rolled out to 14x24 inches
1 pound ground turkey or other meat
1 can mushrooms, chopped finely
3 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese
2 tsp each of pizza seasoning, basil, oregano

You can use pre made pizza dough/crust or you can make your own. Roll it to a 14x24 rectangle. Brown your ground turkey and add the herbs to flavor it. Next add in mushrooms and remove from heat. Spray pizza crust with olive oil, cover with meat and mushroom mixture. Top with shredded cheese. Push toppings slightly into the dough. You will be rolling the dough up jelly roll style so if you don't do this step you will have toppings all over the place.
So next, roll up the dough from the 24 inch side. Pinch the last edge in so that it stays rolled up. Cut roll into 24 1-inch slices. Place on jelly roll pan and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes or until the dough starts to get golden brown. Remove from oven and top rolls with Parmesan or Romano. Another thing you can do that I didn't do the first time is to brush them with olive oil or garlic butter after you bake them.
If you want to freeze any of them just let them cool and then place in a freezer bag until you are ready to use.

Very tasty little treats!! :)

woops!

2009-03-16T10:23:00.003-06:00

I seem to have forgotten about this blog. Sorry! So here is a little treat to tide you over...
A delicious recipe:
Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts-cooked and shredded or chopped
2 packages of Spanish rice
2 1/2 cups of Co-Jack shredded cheese
1 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
1 small can of diced green chiles
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of Southwest style tomatoes, with juices
1 can of corn

Begin by preparing the Spanish rice according to the box. When rice is beginning to cook but still has a decent amount of liquid in the pan, add your tomatoes, black beans, corn and chiles. Give it a good stir and then put the lid on and let the juices disappear as they normally do when you prepare rice. :) After rice has finished cooking (the liquid should be gone now), stir in plain yogurt, 2 cups of cheese, and all of the prepared chicken. Pour into casserole dish and top with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.
Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-25 minutes. Serve with a side of tortilla chips.
This makes a pretty big casserole but you can easily reduce the size with reducing your ingredients!

Enjoy!

Weekend getaway!

2009-01-22T09:03:00.001-07:00

This past weekend we had the great opportunity to go to Estes Park for a weekend of hiking, snowshoeing, and spending time with friends. We were so blessed when we got the invite and looked at our calendar and saw that Josh had the whole weekend off! Since Monday was a holiday I had the day off of work and although Josh was scheduled to work he was able to get a sub for the first half of the day.

We went with our friends the Short's and Nordgren's and we were able to bring our dogs thanks to a pet friendly cabin rental. This was also a blessing to not have to find a dog sitter. We also got a pass to Rocky Mountain National Park and although dogs are not allowed in the park they are allowed in the National Forest which is right near the park. We arrived on Friday night and went straight to bed. We took the dogs hiking on Saturday and then spent Sunday snowshoeing through RMNP. Monday we got up and around and checked out and then drove home. There was also a hot tub at the cabin so that made it even better!

If you want to see pictures, please visit our Picasa album. There is a separate album for each day.

Have a great day!

good stuff

2009-01-05T20:45:00.004-07:00

Well we had a great Christmas and New Year. We are excited at what 2009 will be bringing us!
Our favorite Christmas gift is a Macbook Pro. I won't tell you how much time we spent on the computer during our time off together.
Sometimes Josh worries about what I eat while he is at work...but he shouldn't, here is the kind of stuff I have been eating. I have been mastering the grill pan and sirloin deal. The potatoes are Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes.

Next up, we have the cutest little red chair that was a hand-me-down. It was missing a chunk out of the arm and most people think that Charlie did it but seriously she is not that destructive. So I have been threatening to make arm covers for the chair but I just never got around to it. Finally I did!

The tan microsuede matches the back pillows on our couch so it does all work together.

That is about all we have been up to. I have been working on sewing diapers for the baby and on Thursday we will find out if it is a boy or girl.

twilight

2008-12-15T16:25:00.002-07:00

We are hooked.

We have seen the movie twice now and borrowed the book from a friend. After both racing through it we went to the store and bought Twilight and New Moon because we just wanted to read them again and again. Upon checking out at Barnes & Noble, the cashier said to me, "I took the liberty of including a gift receipt for both books."

HAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Apparently young adults are not supposed to be devouring reading these books.

Also, we were trying to use cash this weekend so when we went to buy the books I used a big stack of one dollar bills and a few stacks of quarters to pay. And he still thought I needed a gift receipt?!

HAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

new

2008-12-04T13:21:00.001-07:00

Hey if you would like to see what we have really been up to lately, check this out.
Have a great day!

snow dog

2008-11-30T12:48:00.002-07:00

So this was yesterday—Charlie and her cute little scarf. My MIL, Linda, showed me this great idea and Charlie loved it.

And this is today, she loved it so much, the scarf is now missing. It is missing some pieces that ended up in her belly so it doesn't quite fit now! We WILL make another one because that scarf was just so adorable!

We have gotten a lot more snow today! And Josh is working so I am most definitely stuck at home NOT shoveling the driveway like he did this morning. Sorry dude, your work is now all covered with about 6 more inches of snow. Dad, can you come shovel the driveway? I'll make you chocolate chip cookies!!

changeling

2008-11-18T13:01:00.004-07:00

Well this is our 100th post and I am going to blow it on a quick movie review. Not a big deal. :)
This weekend we saw the movie Changeling. Since we no longer have a TV and don't see all the previews we really didn't know too much about the movie before going to see it. Based on a true story, the movie was very touching. Angelina Jolie did a fantastic job and although I am not usually a fan of her and her lips I thought she was great in this role. At the end of the movie most everyone in the theatre stayed seated for a little longer than they would after a comedy or lighter content movie.
If you are not familiar with the story, a woman, Christine Collins leaves her son at home on a Saturday while she goes to work as a manager at a telephone operator company. In the movie she tells him they will go see a movie on Sunday but in another description of the actual story I read that she left him with a dime to go see a movie. This happened in the late 20's. So, Christine returns home from work later that day to an empty house. Her sweet son has disappeared. She calls the LA Police and they tell her they won't take a missing person report until the person has been missing for 24 hours so she calls back as soon as she can the next day. Time goes by and eventually the police return her "son" who has been "found" in Illinois. At first glance Christine says it is not her son and thus begins the meat of the story. Through the process of trying to prove that this boy is not her son it becomes evident to Christine how corrupt the LAPD is and a local pastor enlisted his time to help her. It is a very frustrating story as you watch this mother be so committed to finding her son and be shut down time after time.
I have been reflecting on the movie since we saw it and I just can't imagine dealing with something like that but I know it happens every day. Innocent people are put in jail to serve time for someone else's bad actions, innocent people lose their lives, and innocent people are forced to suffer through horrible circumstances. It has forced me to think and to wonder if I am doing all that I can to help innocent people. Could we sponsor another child? Could we fill more than 2 shoe boxes this Christmas? Could we bring more than a few cans to the canned food drive? To me, those are just little things compared to the injustice that so many people are faced with every day. I'm not going to go on with this thought but I am sure you can think of many of the injustices in our world today.
If you need a movie to see I would recommend Changeling but be aware, this story could move your soul.

tag

2008-11-13T09:18:00.001-07:00

Ok I've been tagged at 2 different blogs now and one was for 6 random facts and the other was for 7 random facts so I'll do 7 just to keep it real. Here are the rules…

1. I was tagged by sarahbee and amber.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog - some random, some weird.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blog.

4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

5. If you don't have 7 blog friends, or if someone else already took dibs, then tag some unsuspecting strangers.

I'm not going to tag anyone else but if you would like to do this on your blog leave me a comment saying you have done this and I will definitely check out your blog and your random facts!

Fact: I had a very strange feeling that Josh and I would be together for quite a while the very first time we went out.

Fact: He had a similarly strange feeling as well. I don't know why it took us so long to figure it out. HA! Just kidding, it didn't take that long.

Fact: I love to watch football and baseball.

Fact: I would love to open a little bakery/café/shop some day and sell sweet treats and yarn.

Fact: I gagged 3 times this morning while trying to brush my teeth, my front teeth, not anything in the back or my tongue or what have you but the front of my mouth. And still I gagged.

Fact: Favorite hobbies would be knitting, reading, playing games, baking or cooking, and shopping.

Fact: I have been working on a very special new blog which I will soon be giving you a link to!

Have a blessed day!

Guest Blogger, Beware, Guest Blogger

2008-11-12T08:38:00.004-07:00

A special thank you to my mom who has so graciously provided text as a guest blogger. Josh and I have been so busy lately working on many projects and one very big one that this blog has sadly taken a backseat. We do have some very, very exciting updates to come soon!

_________________________________________________________________

Hello all you readers and friends of Josh and Annies’ blog. I am a guest blogger who does read this space from time to time and I have noticed a shortage of reading material. So, rather then message them I have offered to fill a bit of this blog with some thoughts of my own! I am not quite ready to create my own blog so I’ll just try out this one and see how I do.

The young Easterling’s have been very busy lately. For the past month they have been working on home improvements. We have been fortunate to have been included in some of those improvements. We, being parents of Annie, in-laws to Josh, and “puppy-Grands” to Charlie, (probably one of the sweetest Labs in the State of Colorado) are Gary and Pam.

The improvements I am talking about have been putting in new windows for a nice tight home. Gary shared that this process was about blood, sweat and tears! We arrived in CoSP on Monday afternoon and the work began. The men put in one window and rested. Well, it was late, nearly supper and the sun had gone down! You could just see the wheels turning as they discussed the next window, how they would improve on the process, what supplies they would need to run to the store for etc. Ah, men on a mission. Then off to sleep and dreams of saws, trim, hammers and some special yellow foam insulation.

Tuesday was a new day and after a trip to H.D. (closer than Lowes) the windows were being re-placed and the home was shaping up nicely. Along the way Josh had to rescue Gary by replacing the end of his thumb….okay placing a bandage over a nice little gash! (Although there was enough blood loss to make you think the thumb was gone) The sweat part came in the afternoon. Even though the weather was cool, men at work just get sweaty! By the end of the day, towards evening, after sunset, the final window was secured for the night. What was planned to take 2-3 days was completed in about one and a half. Mission accomplished. (ah, yes, they are both that kind of man….one mind, one mission, “get ‘er done”)

Now what do two men with time on their hands do? Well, the guys found a few nice little jobs to fill in the remaining time of our visit. Gary purchased new carpet for the other daughter’s house on Villa and on Thursday what was put in. Josh and Gary were the movers of the huge couch, up and back down the stairs. Also several outlets replaced there and the lawn raked and mowed. Later they started an electrical project of hanging new lights on the Easterling’s garage. They put their heads together and even opened a book to help get the lights to work in harmony. Never happened, and that had them stymied, but eventually with the help of “Bo” the job is now completed. I would like to add that as we flew home, Gary was still trying to think of why the lights didn’t work as wired.

And that is where the tears come in. Yes, it is hard to leave your family, get on the plane and fly home. So much was accomplished on this “work and witness” trip. We did some work, we not only witnessed family love but were a part of if, but realized that being a part of your adult children’s life is such a gift. No matter the distance.

Pesto Cream Sauce

2008-10-08T08:49:00.001-06:00

I'm sorry there won't be any pictures of this but next time I make it I will try to remember to take some pictures.

This sauce is really very simple to make and is delicious to eat.

You start by making pesto or you can buy it if you are into wasting money like that (just kidding, kind of). Go to your local farmer's market and they will probably be selling basil for some absurdly low price like 2 bunches for $1. If you buy this much basil you will have like 3 batches of pesto. Pull the leaves off the basil and put them in your salad spinner. Fill up the bowl and cover the leaves with cold water. Shake off the water and pour it out of the bowl. If you don't have a salad spinner, put the leaves in a strainer and fill your sink with water, then drain the water. Rinse the leaves again and then spin them a few times to get all of the water off.

Now to make pesto, I use a very simple recipe….are you ready for this?

Get out your blender and load it full of basil leaves, pine nuts, and olive oil. Grind. Chop. Mix. Whatever you need to do. Make sure all the pine nuts and basil are chopped up to little tiny pieces. Oh, you want to know how much to use? Hmmm..

I use about 3-4 cups of basil leaves, 1 cup of olive oil, ½ cup of pine nuts and then I added a pinch of garlic and Kosher salt for some flavor. Add more olive oil as you see fit.

So you made your pesto, it is great to put on pizza or pasta or you can freeze it and save it for later.

Now let's say you want some pasta with pesto but you want it to have some depth to it and not just be plain pesto. Here is when you should make the pesto cream sauce!

To make the cream sauce:

You make a simple Bechamel sauce and then add pesto. Easy as 1-2-3.

To make a Bechamel sauce you do the following:

2 Tbsp Butter

2 Tbsp Flour

1 ¼ Cups Milk

Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and stir until the flour is dissolved to a paste. You want it to start bubbling but not change colors. This happens pretty quick. Next you add your milk and continue to stir. Let the milk boil. Lower the heat, add your pesto and cook. Stir the sauce for about 2-3 minutes. If you want it to be more like an alfredo sauce with the pesto, add some parmesan cheese. If you want it be cheesier, add some mozzarella cheese. Keep stirring until the cheese is melted. I usually add about ¼ to ½ cups pesto. It will turn a nice shade of green. Don't worry, it will taste so good you can overlook the color. Hope you try this, it is very tasty!

Back in the saddle again

2008-10-06T10:19:00.001-06:00

Hello, we are back. I had the flu last week and was pretty much lazy so that meant no blogging. I could hardly get enough energy to read all of the blogs that I like to read. So we are back and ready to post again. A forecast of what you can expect to see this week…pictures from Josh's birthday party (only 10 days late), a recipe for Creamy Pesto Sauce, a fun knitting project, something from Josh.

Ok that should do it. Just wanted to let you know we are still alive and kicking, just a little bit slow these days.

rockies game!

2008-09-23T14:36:00.002-06:00

We also went to a Rockies game on Saturday and here are a few pictures from that...

Pictures from the Rockies Game

They lost but we still had fun. And I got to eat nachos with extra jalapenos. YUM.
We rode the Light Rail to Denver from Orchard Station which I would definitely recommend doing if you are going to the game. It is so much easier to just park and ride the train than to go downtown and find parking and deal with traffic.

Puppy Party!

2008-09-22T09:44:00.001-06:00

Well, we survived the Puppy Party! On Sunday we had 11 dogs at our house, 9 of which were Labs. Charlie and Toby turned 1 so we thought it would be fun to have everybody over. Valeen (Toby's owner mom) and I made a ton of treats for dogs and humans. We had a great time watching all the dogs play. I don't think there is too much else to say. Probably the hit of the party was little miss Belle who is Daron and Rachael's new Golden Retriever puppy!

You can see pictures here…

Puppy Party 2009

Whole wheat Wednesday

2008-09-17T09:32:00.002-06:00

So the V is backwards. Now I'm trying to decide if I want to switch it around. I probably will but it will take some time to get that high on my list again. J

I've been doing a lot of baking lately and would you believe I didn't take any pictures to show you. We now have homemade biscuits, pita bread, and hamburger buns in the freezer. I can't believe how cheap it is to make this stuff. A note to any of you who would like to do your baking with whole wheat flour instead of white flour…it is very simple to make this switch you just need to buy yourself a little box of Vital Wheat Gluten. You may have tried using all whole wheat flour (wwf) in a previous recipe and it just didn't taste right nor did it have the correct texture. You may be using half white flour and half whole wheat flour to correct this. This is a fine set up but not my preferred way to work. Well my friends, the answer lies in this cute little box.

When you are baking your goods whether it is cookies, bread, biscuits, etc. and have used all wwf without adding gluten or using a high gluten flour, your goods will probably be bitter and very heavy. Almost like the texture and heaviness is too thick to eat. You will want to add in some gluten to give your product more chewiness and what gluten also does is holds together moisture so your baking will be more moist and fresh. The gluten won't add tons of extra carbs but it does add some. While most traditional recipes are created using All-Purpose Flour you can easily substitute wwf as you see fit when you understand how much gluten to add in. They do sell wwf with higher gluten content as well as ww pastry flour but if you are cheap like me you can do it this way.

From what I have been reading and trying to understand, gluten is the protein that works with yeast and helps it to stretch and rise. When you are making any kind of yeast bread adding some gluten to your wwf will make all the difference. In the hamburger bun recipe it uses 3 cups of flour and ¼ cup of gluten. The directions on the box say about 2-3 tsp of gluten to 1 cup of flour so the ¼ cup could probably be reduced a little bit. As you work with wwf and gluten you will see where you need to adjust. When I bake cookies using all wwf I will add just a little bit of gluten (maybe 1 tsp) because I don't want the cookies to be super airy but I also don't want them to be rock hard and a pain to eat. This seems to work well.

I have not yet tried wwf for things like gravy or cream sauces and I don't know if I will…I just always have some all-purpose flour on hand for those types of things. Maybe I will start with the half and half approach and just see what happens.

Do any of you use wwf? Do you use it only for baked goods or all sorts of stuff?

And because I kept using it...

weekend project

2008-09-15T14:50:00.003-06:00

Ok, here is the weekend project I worked on a few weeks ago. I started this project after I went to Hobby Lobby to get yarn for a little baby sweater. I grabbed my yarn and then decided to wander the store for some inspiration since Josh was at work. An hour later I left the store with two bags of goodies. OOPS! =) And I also told Josh he wouldn't be able to eat out for a few days.

So in my bag o' goods I had the following: 2 skeins of yarn (for above mentioned sweater), 2 cans of spray paint, 4 wooden letters, sewing machine thread for hemming my pants. I think that was it although now I can't figure out why it took two bags to carry all that few items.

Anyway, I got home and told Josh I would be knitting all night because I did fully intend to do that but then I got trapped in this fun project.

The 4 letters I grabbed at HL were: E, V, L, and O.

What does that spell?

LOVE!

Our bed is that nice shiny bright red so I decided to first give the letters a coat of red spray. After that dried I had also grabbed some metallic copper spray paint and gave them a light dusting with that. Then I nailed a hole through each letter, 2 holes on the V and strung some leftover hemp string through the holes. I knotted the hemp on each side of the hole so that the letters wouldn't slide all over the place and because I'm anal about things being spaced just so. Then I tied two loops at the end of the string and hung those on the wall with some upholstery tacks. I never asked permission to put these things straight into the wall but I figure they leave smaller holes than nails so, who care? As it turns out the paint job looks almost orange which is fine by me. The end goal is to now surround the letters with pictures representing love—most likely wedding pictures and maybe some with friends but it's our bedroom so it seems kind of weird to hang pictures of friends on the wall across from the bed...if you catch my drift.

Here is the almost finished product.

My only question, is the V backwards? I couldn't figure out if it really mattered what side the thick side was on.

biker boys

2008-09-12T08:55:00.002-06:00

Ok I got this picture from my mom today along with a few others and it just about killed me it was so cute. This is my nephews again posing with my dad and his bike. I love how Jackson (on the bike) is all squinty in that huge helment and Tucker (being held) seems to be looking for somewhere else to go. And the typical Dad smile just brings a smile to my face. Also notice the gloves that J is wearing. I bet they had fun trying on all their Grandpa's motorcycle gear. I am also about as excited as Jackson to finally see this motorcycle in person. My dad got it not too long ago so we haven't seen him since he got it. I don't know if he has started riding it to church yet but I know he and my mom have been using it and enjoying it quite a bit. I'm envious!

Happy Friday!

then & now

2008-09-10T13:59:00.006-06:00

I haven't had much to blog about lately and finally got some inspiration.

This weekend is Charlie's first birthday. Yeah for all you dog haters we are the kind of dog owners who celebrate these things. We will be having a birthday party the following weekend for Charlie and her brother Toby. So in honor of that I thought I would post some photos of Charlie and Toby when they were just little pups and then some of what they look like now. Obviously Charlie is the black lab. Look how stinking cute she is in that picture by herself. She was so TINY! These pictures were taken about 2 weeks before we got her. Toby is the very light yellow lab.

They have gotten much bigger! Toby is definitely bigger than Charlie now although the pictures don't show it very well.

it's a fiesta!

2008-09-05T09:00:00.004-06:00

We had our first dinner guests since receiving our fabulous Fiesta Ware so of course I took some pictures of the set up. I don't know what it is about the Fiesta line but I just love the splash of color it adds to a table. There are some times when I truly enjoy eating off of a plain white plate so that will probably be the next addition to our collection. But, the color combinations are so fun. I had to get flowers because my mom said so. :) She was right, they look nice!
To some of you it might be weird that I am so excited about a colorful dining table but Josh and I both just love hosting people and preparing food. With both of those things it is like 80% based on presentation (I think). SO the table and settings really complete the meal. And that, my friends, is why it excites me! Knowing that you prepared a delicious meal and then serving it on a pretty plate is so much fun.

the weekend

2008-09-02T09:59:00.002-06:00

We had a very full weekend but it was very fun.
On Friday night we had dinner and bowling with a bunch of friends. We ate dinner at one of our favorite places, had this TO.DIE.FOR. cake, and then went bowling. I got some nice gift cards too, thanks friends! Then on Saturday Josh had to work so I got up early and went to the balloon launch with Lacey and her roommate. Took lots of pictures. It was fun. But very early.
Then went to the farmer's market and got some smokin' deals on produce. So got busy making salsa and cleaning the house up. After I took a 4 hour nap...
Haven't done that in a very long time.
So Sunday we went to church and heard a great sermon. Then went to Josh's parent's house for some carrot cake and to receive my b-day gift from them. Totally cool gift, can't wait to use it. I got an AeroGarden. It is so cool. Put it together this morning though and pump does not work so have to exchange it.
Also, in other gifts I got 2 more place settings of Fiesta Ware and 1 set of fruit dishes. Also, got the towels I was hoping for and a gift card to Target. WooWOoO!
Never have I received this many gifts for my birthday. It was crazy. I am feeling quite overwhelmed today.
So moving on, Sunday after church and gifts we went and played some baseball with Lacey and then napped. Lots of naps this weekend, I enjoyed it. After the nap, anniversary celebration!! We go out for hot wings each month to celebrate so this time was no different. We went to Rock Bottom and watched the CU vs. CSU game while enjoying some wings and Titan Toothpicks. Good stuff, too much grease though.

All in all it was a great weekend!

gifts

2008-08-29T13:51:00.002-06:00

Last weekend we celebrated our anniversary because this weekend we will be celebrating my birthday.

Well actually we will be going out for our traditional HOT WINGS dinner on our anniversary day but the main celebrating will be my b-day. We have done the hot wings thing each month on the last day to have some sort of celebration. Josh and I both LOVE wings and we try our best to not eat them throughout the month so that they are special on the last day. Usually it works out this way but sometimes we just can't resist and have to have them a few times.

Since we designated last weekend as the anniversary celebration Josh presented me with a very special surprise gift.

This fantastic ring that you see...he worked extra shifts at work and did some projects for his mom to save up his very own money to pay for this. I love it and I love his efforts to do something this special for me. I never thought I would have jewelery this nice let alone rings on each hand now and the necklace and earrings he bought for me in the past. He truly is such a gracious guy.

Isn't this ring amazing? It is *I think* 1 carat total weight on the diamonds and then has little sapphires in between the bands (as you can see). =)

I was trying to take the photos with my left hand so it's hard to get the full effect...

anniversary

2008-08-28T09:16:00.003-06:00

Well this weekend is the 1-year anniversary of our wedding. The year has surely flown by for us. God has blessed us immensely throughout this year. We are thankful for the things he has gifted us with and the ways he has guided our lives together. This last weekend we had the great privilege of going to stay the night at The Castle at Glen Eyrie. It was amazing! We also got to hike to the Punch Bowls. I had a few falls on the rocks and got pretty banged up but it was a lot of fun. It was one of the more challenging hikes we have done together and Josh did an amazing job as my leader. That is an area where we have seen some growth. Not so much a problem with Josh leading but with me following. :) In the past when we would do tough hikes like this it would be quite difficult to work together and trust each other but this time we did a great job communicating and helping each other out. Well, mainly Josh helped me but it was a lot of fun! And no arguments or raised voices (except for my screaming as I fell) made for a very, very enjoyable time together enjoying God's creation. **I am adding clarification here to let you all know that I tend to get a little cranky when we hike and a certain man enjoys pushing me to go harder when I would just prefer to sit down so that is where the "raised voices" come in..mainly from my whining!)**

Another great event coming up is my birthday. I don't need to say anything else about this, you know what to do. ;)

To see the pictures of our trip, click the picture below...

anniversary getaway

Making the Cut

2008-08-26T10:51:00.001-06:00

Some of you more dedicated readers may remember when I started posting my fitness accomplishments a few months ago. By fitness accomplishments I mean that I got up and went to the gym in the morning before going to work. Well Lacey and I have still been keeping this schedule as time allows and it has been going well. Lately though we have been getting very bored with the same old exercises and running on the treadmill. Not surprising! And we haven't been watching our food intake very closely so all the working out for me tends to get cancelled out by my late evening Sonic run for ice cream or a slush.

We were faced with the wonderful fitness frustration: PLATEAU. Neither of us had enough excitement about working out to push up the intensity of our workouts. We tried but it was too hard. J So we thought about challenging ourselves by training for a race. We also noticed this girl who is always at the gym the same time as us and she was using this book called Making the Cut. We talked about checking out that book to see what it would be like and I just went ahead and bought it. We both skimmed through it and decided it would be a good thing to try. The author is a trainer from the show, The Biggest Loser and she seems to have her stuff together.

The book consists of meal plans and menus along with fitness plans to reveal the strongest, sexiest you in just 30 days. We are just going to track our calorie intake and follow the workout plan exactly. We just completed Day 2 of the workout and I think it's going to kick our butts. Each daily workout has 5 circuits to complete and each circuit has 4-6 exercises. You do a variety of different exercises and I think this will give us the switch we need to keep our excitement going. I'll keep you posted every once in a while on how it's going.

little charlie sue

2008-08-23T15:27:00.000-06:00

Here is Charlie showing her excitement about the fiestaware as well as begging to get up on the guest bed. I don't know where she learned how to beg. I do know where she learned her love for dishes though. You can tell lay down is her favorite command. HA!

more projects

2008-08-22T14:22:00.001-06:00

Here is what we have been working on...rearranging furniture, painting furniture, and trading beds. The dressers were a natural wood looking laminate finish. So we marched on over to HD and bought us some spray paint. And bam, Josh made them espresso brown and fossil. Also painted the handles that were originally shiny silver. We love them now! The bed has been moved to be catty corner. Need some suggestions for what to do in that corner behind the bed. Well maybe not do so much as what to decorate with. =)
Guest bed is now a queen size bed. A few weeks ago Josh found us a king size bed for that room at a yard sale for way cheap and it was just too big. So he posted on Craig's List to see if anyone would trade a queen size for king size and sure enough, a few days later we got a queen size! And that is my gigantic memo board fully installed now. I just need to put some memos on it.

window coverings

2008-08-21T22:06:00.000-06:00

Here is the first of a few posts regarding all the fun house projects we have been doing. We have installed all new faux wood blinds through the house. It totally changes the whole look of the house. Not to mention how much light it blocks out! We can actually sleep in now! Well until 6:30 or so. :) Along with the blinds we have installed curtains in all the rooms and worked to actually decorate and stock the rooms with good stuff. I have been pretty frugal with the window coverings. Some are reruns or hand-me-downs and others are clearance fabric from Jo-Ann's, our bedroom curtains are from Big Lots. We really haven't spent nearly as much as you could when doing blinds and curtains.

look what we got!!!

2008-08-21T21:22:00.000-06:00

SO I pulled in the driveway after work and noticed a big box sitting outside our door. That's strange, I thought. I didn't order anything. Maybe Josh has ordered me a surprise and I can open it while he's at work, I thought next. The box was addressed to me so I called Josh and made sure I could open it...drum roll please...and open it I did. And look what I found!!! FIESTAWARE!! In my top 3 colors! From our buddies who just came and stayed with us, Sarah & Steve. It is a wedding/anniversary gift and I absolutely love it! Thank you guys! You rock! Now who can guess what the next color I recieve will be....

childhood memories

2008-08-21T11:05:00.005-06:00

Some of my greatest childhood memories are from this place right here:Can you see it? It is the Cabin on Sugar Island. My family vacationed here every summer for probably 6-8 years. This place has a huge spot in my heart. Now that I live in Colorado I don't get to go to Northern Michigan very often well I haven't been to Sugar since I moved here. When we do go to Michigan it is to visit my family and they all live in the lower peninsula. Josh and I had hoped to go there this summer/fall but it just isn't going to work out so my parents went a few weeks ago and here are some of the pictures my mom sent. I am now craving a visit to Sugar more than the Milka that sits in my bottom left drawer here. A great fishing spot...or a great place to watch the freighters come into the Soo Locks!

That's my dad walking from the boat up to the cabin. The water looks a little low this year!

I remember the first time we went and I had never seen anything like this. We drove over the Mackinac Bridge and into Sault Ste. Marie to board a ferry that took us over to Sugar Island. There was a greasy hamburger joint on the Sault side of the ferry and we would sometimes stop and get a milkshake and fries. I remember watching fireworks on July 1 from Canada and on July 4 from the US. I remember playing horseshoes on the beach and cooking meals over the campfire. I remember riding in the boat in calm waters and stormy too. I remember my "surprise" birthday party there but I can't remember which age it was...maybe 16! I remember my dad and brothers playing guitar around the fire until it was too dark to see the words.

Do you have a favorite vacation spot that just brings a smile to your face? This would be mine!

I think this thing is a first...catching a fish!

My mom and dad trolling along.

Ugh.

2008-08-20T08:00:00.001-06:00

So…trying to post pictures to blogger is proving to be difficult these days. As soon as I can we have a ton of pictures to put up.

Thank you for your patience. Thank you to blogger for making our lives difficult. J

We just had our first house guests and it was quite fun. Josh & I could really see ourselves opening a B&B someday. We both just love hosting and being hospitable to people.

readers

2008-08-18T12:57:00.002-06:00

hello all, we have been tracking who is checking us out and there are quite a few of you. we are quite surprised!
Thank you for caring about us and what we are doing.
I'll be posting a ton of photos later tonight because we have been doing some major decorating at our house! And we are doing it frugally too! I don't want to say cheap for what that could convey but I will say we have been quite frugal. Do you know why we are being frugal? Because we want to save our money and pay down some debt that we have! Do you know why we want to do that? Because we don't want to be tied down and enslaved to debt. It is almost 1 year since we signed the mortgage on our house and in that time we have not created any new debt! We have simply made payments on things to pay them off. God has blessed us through this time! With each month that goes by we are closer to being debt free and we feel a little less pinching by those payments.
So hopefully the decorations we have made will be inspiring to you or at least impressive. :)

bye for now, see you later.

ae

a cute photo

2008-08-15T08:59:00.003-06:00

Here are my nephews. Not sure what they are doing but it looks like they could be reaching for the stars. Keep it going boys, you'll get there someday!

My aunt in Michigan is their babysitter so we randomly get pictures this way. Jackson (in blue) looks a lot like my brother, moreso his uncle instead of his dad. And Tucker (in orange) looks a lot like his mom's family but I can also see a little bit of our genes in him. They are such cute little guys and are growing up so quickly! I don't know when we'll get to see them again but I hope it is soon!

Well, have a good weekend! Josh is off the whole weekend so we are planning lots of NOTHING! :) On Saturday we hope to go watch our friends who are running the Pikes Peak Ascent. And that is really all we have planned!

birthday party

2008-08-14T11:55:00.001-06:00

Last night we went to a surprise birthday party for a friend. It was fun and he was very surprised. The best part is that his parents flew in to surprise him and he had no idea. His wife took him out for a picnic while his parents arrived at their house and set everything up for the party. The look on his face when he saw his mom was priceless. He looked at her for probably 15-20 seconds and said hello and then it was like the light clicked on and I think there was a response that went something like oh my gosh what are you doing here?!

I had originally asked Josh to plan a surprise party for my birthday that is quickly approaching (September 1 in case you forgot, Mom) and then last night I told him I didn't need a surprise party so who knows what will happen.

The only thing I do know is that I want this cake. Or this one. I could go all day with this. And if you remember I also want these.

So hold the date for September 1, there may be a shindig of sorts.

my boss just left

2008-08-12T14:27:00.000-06:00

So I did this test... =)84 words

Speed test

what? 2 in the same day?

2008-08-11T13:38:00.005-06:00

Ok. Somehow I've gone from blogging once a year to doing two in the same day. Josh, meet blog world. Blog world, meet Josh.

I actually have nothing to do today, so I gave myself a free day. I got hungry, and was too lazy to go to the store, so I decided to cook. We have a lot of stuff that needs to be eaten quickly, so I decided to throw something together that I would like to pass on for you to try, laugh at, rave about, whatever. I made an oriental chicken salad the other day at work that was, don't mind if I say, awesome..and wanted it again. Problem is, I didn't have half the ingredients I needed and once again was too lazy to go to the store to buy them. It's a co-workers recipe that I borrowed, so he can have the credit.

Here's the original recipe: (serves about 12...or 8 *1o House* firefighters)

Here's what your going to need...

- 4 pounds of chicken

- A grill

- 8 bags of oriental flavored ramen

- 4 bags of cabbage

- Almonds

- Green onions

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 3/4 cup OLIVE oil

- 1/2 cup rice vinegar

- Sweet Thai Chili sauce

What's what your going to want to do...

1. Marinate chicken in Thai chili sauce, grill, let chill (or warm, whichever)

2. Mix shredded cabbage, cruched up ramen noodles (raw), almonds, and cut up green onions

3. Make sauce: Sugar, olive oil, rice vinegar, 4 packets of seasoning from ramen...mix until blended

4. Dice up chicken, mix it in, drizzle with sauce.

Let it set for atleast a couple hours...the flavor really penetrates everything and the ramen noodles soften up just a bit.

Anyways, back to today. That's what I wanted. But couldn't have it. So I improvised.

We had some carrots, half of a green cabbage head, half of a red cabbage head, left over edemame (shelled), 4x6 oz of natural chicken breast, and whatever is in our seasoning cabinet.

Here's what I came up with...

Salad:

- Shredded cabbage

- Diced carrots (7)

- Couple hand fulls of craisins

- Dash of sesame seeds

- Chopped up pecans (about 12)

- 1/2 cup edemame

Mix this together

Sauce:

Adjust amounts to quantity and flavor

- Teriyaki sauce

- Soy sauce

- Sriracha hot chili sauce

- Apple cider vinegar

- White sugar

- Olive oil (EVOO)

- Sesame seeds

- Orange juice

- Lemon juice

Meat:

- I just boiled the chicken

Once this is all done, chop the chicken and submerge it in some sauce, place chicken over salad, then drizzle some more sauce over it to taste.

After-thoughts:

- I could have doubled the chicken and sauce for the amount of salad I came up with

- Grilling the chicken would have provided a little more flavor

- Next time I think I will try chopping up some mandarin oranges, or serving them on the side

What I think:

It came out nice! It's a very crisp, zesty, colorful and light salad that's perfect a summer day. The cool veges and warm chicken make a nice combo and the sauce adds a nice kick (you can adjust for desired spice and zest). Plus, it's healthy and probably low in calories. The edemame and chicken will give you a lot of protein and vegetables and craisins are a good source of vitamins. If you're able, try using fresh local produce for much needed active bacteria. Be creative!

Let me know what you think and if you think of something I can add for next time.

Enjoy!

tips, tricks, and the olympics

2008-08-11T10:26:00.004-06:00

First of all, WAY TO GO AMERICAN SWIMMERS!!!! Two of our ladies took silvers, and the mens team relay took GOLD over the French. If you weren't following, one of the guys from France was quoted something like, "We came to smash the Americans." Well, it just so happens that we have the likely most-gold-medals-in-ALL-OLYMPIC-HISTORY Michael Phelps. Who listens to music and yawns all the way until the word GO.

So, during the relay, the French almost won, the Capt. of the team Lezak blasted by the French to win!

During the interview after the win, one of the Americans was quoted saying something like, "Yeah, we heard the Frenchies were talking stuff..." Eat it Frenchies.

Phelps celebrating their victory (for the ladies)

And the women's gymnastics is not so bueno right now for Americans. And the Chinese are 12.

I've been busy doing some stuff around the house and have come across a couple things I would like to pass along.

When changing out the electrical receptacles, make sure you pay attention to 15Amp vs 20Amp. I didn't mix any of them up, but it could lead to disaster. The easiest way to tell is the 20A will have a little slit off of one of the prong inserts and/or will say 20A on the face under the plate.

Also, when changing over a non-protected cicuit to a GFCI, have a plan first, then start cutting wires.

When cutting ANY wires, ALWAYS check for power. I had the power shut off to all boxes but the garage, I thought, and luckily checked the power before I poked around any of the boxes because I found two very random boxes that were still hot.

Lastly, invest in good tools. To do this you only need a couple testers, side cutters, flat and phillips screw drivers, wire strippers, needle nose pliers, and wire nuts. Quality tools keep you from fraying wires and stripping screws.

If you're doing any work under the sink that requires a pipe wrench...it's a good idea to have two. One will only get you so far.

Also, TAKE YOUR TIME and tape every connection with pipe tape (the thin white stuff). You probably only get under there every so often, so retaping and checking your seals will save you the hassle of finding a waterlogged cabinet over time.

This stuff is probably very common knowledge, but if you're like and just learn as you go and from your mistakes, maybe these can save you some time and trips to Home Depot.

On a cooking note, Annie and I had some very good friends over the other night for steaks and games. This is mainly from the Pioneer Woman, but a great way to prepare steak is...

1. Dry rub of only season salt (we like Lawry's) and lemon pepper. Not too much...
2. Wait until they are room temperature before throwing them on
3. Grill on high (400F) for 5 minutes a side (for medium/medium rare)
4. Baste melted butter and chopped fresh garlic, let set for a couple minutes (steaks are much juicier if you let them set for about 5 minutes before serving...allows the juice to soak back in)

This doesn't need A1, Sweet Baby Ray's, or any other delicious sauce.

This goes very good with fresh veggies (support your local farmers!), warm bread, fried potatoes, and grilled corn on the cob.

Depending on your mood, you could crack open some Cabernet/Merlot or Bud Lite Lime for a relaxing meal.

Speaking of drinks...

A nice refreshing drink I've picked up from the firehouse is:

1. 2 liter of Fresca
2. 2 frozen cans of limeaid
3. 1 can of Monster energy drink
4. Chopped up fruit of your choice (oranges or strawberries are good)

Mix it all together until the frozen limeaid dissolves.

It's a nice tart drink that's slightly caffeinated for a quick pick-me-up.

*For parties, try adding 1oz of Coconut Rum for every 8-10 oz of juice. ALOHA!

Happy Monday

Josh

it's not that bad, really

2008-08-10T15:09:00.002-06:00

Yesterday Josh and I rearranged a bit of furniture and made a lot more attractive space just using things we already had. We purchased a few items at Big Lots for super cheap and all is good. After moving some things around we decided we wanted to get a new dresser (finally) so the old dresser was moved to the guest room and my task today while Josh is working was to go to the furniture store and get a dresser, we knew exactly which one we wanted because we already have one that matches it.
I go to the furniture store where you can typically expect to be hounded as soon as you walk in the door and do you think I could get a single person to wait on me? NO! Maybe it is because I was doing my weekend, no makeup look but seriously. Not a soul approached me. I found the item we wanted to buy and waited near it for 10 minutes thinking a salesperson would surely walk by soon. Finally I went to a different department and found someone...here is where the story I really want to share comes in.
I ask the sweet lady if there are any in stock because we need it like now. She looks it up on the computer and there is 1 left, we have to walk over to a different computer station for her to take payment and collect all my information, not a big deal.
Here is the conversation that came next:

Sweet Sales Lady (SSL): "We can have the dresser here for you to pick up on Tuesday."
Me: "Ok, do we have to pick it up on Tuesday?"
SSL: "Well..."
Me: "The only reason I ask is that my husband has to work on Tuesday so we won't be able to pick it up until Wednesday, would that be a problem?"
SSL: "Well the warehouse is open for pick-ups until 9:30 PM..."
Me: "My husband works 24-hour shifts so..."
SSL: "Oh, I'm sorry." Me: "...we really won't be able to come until Wednesday."

Ok, she is sorry that my husband works 24-hour shifts? I think that is actually the most common response we get when we talk with people about the FF schedule. So just a note to the SSL and all the others who take pity on our schedule, it is our way of life. It's not something we are stuck with, it is something we chose. No pity or apology needed. Simply know that our life has a different schedule than yours and that is all it is, different. It is not bad, sure there are times when we wish it were different but there are also times when we thoroughly enjoy it.

So the rest of the story is that by the time that conversation ended and the lady went to enter my payment information, someone else had bought the 1 dresser that was left. It is backordered now! ugh. Do I want to wait 2 weeks to get it? NO! We'll go tomorrow and look for something else together.

So just wanted to share a note with you all about our life because this conversation today showed me just how weird our schedule is to some people. =) Don't worry, we aren't offended that you think our schedule is bizarre. Just want you to know that we think it is what it is so let's just embrace it. There is no getting around it.

Oh and another note, this blogging thing is getting quite addictive. There are many times throughout the week where I say, "Oh wait I need to grab the camera in case I see something to put on the blog." Or, "Josh, remind me to blog about -----." Or, "Josh, can you cook dinner so I can write this blog post." HA!

Ok friends, I am going to go sit by myself for the next 16.5 hours until Josh comes home. And I think she should be thankful that he works 24-hour shifts because if she has an emergency there will be someone there to help her very soon after she calls for help...

080808

2008-08-08T13:30:00.002-06:00

Today is a very repetitious day.

HA.

Last night we made smoothies for dinner and we put frozen green beans in them. You couldn't even taste the beans.

Tonight we will be going to an Olympic party hosted by these people. It should be fun. We are wearing togas. That will make it even more fun.

Josh has, in the last week, become a plumber and an electrician! He fixed some leaks over at Lacey's house and is in the process of replacing all the electric receptacles at our house. In case you have never tried to plug in a lamp or run the vacuum at our house only about 2 of the many outlets will actually hold a plug. The rest were like stretched out or something so Josh is working his way through the house replacing them all. Here's to happy vacuuming! J

And today we are having an Ice Cream Sundae party at work. Delish. It will be the perfect mid-afternoon snack. I'll skip my handful of pretzels and graham crackers today!

Wish List

2008-08-07T09:58:00.001-06:00

In case you are planning to buy me a gift (or 2) in the next few months since I have some celebrations coming up I have decided to post my Wish List here for all to see. Well all 5 of you.

This is the item I will be asking for whenever someone asks for a gift idea this year and for the next few years. I have always wanted Fiesta Dinnerware and now is the time. At Dillard's they carry the 5-piece place setting for $24. I want one of every color. Well seriously I don't care what colors I get, that is the joy of Fiesta Dinnerware! I would like to have 8 place settings in all though. And of course all the serving ware too. That would be nice. You can also find smoking deals at Ebay.
The other item also falls under the home goods category. I need more color in my life!
And of course I will always take cash or gift cards. Actually I will take those at any time of year, not just birthday or holiday celebrations.

points

2008-08-06T10:24:00.001-06:00

I like how everything is turning to a point system. It seems that any store you go to wants to give you a reward card that you can earn points through to get free stuff or discounts or whatever. Actually it's really annoying because I have to keep buying a new wallet to hold all my freaking discount or reward cards or whatever they are.

I much prefer the stores who will just let you give them your phone number and track it that way. There are some programs that I am part of and every time I enter my phone number it gives some other random name. So some other person is accumulating points because of me but I don't care enough to have it corrected. I'm lazy. I don't want to have to dig through my wallet and find your card, I don't care if I give you the wrong phone number and someone else gets the points, I also don't care to come to your restaurant 10 times before I can get a discount. Airline points seem to be the hardest to accumulate because you just want to fly whatever is cheapest. It's hard to do this on the same airline every time you go somewhere. But right now I am pledging my allegiance to a certain company that I think will prove to be very rewarding.

The conference that I coordinated a few weeks ago was held at the Doubletree Hotel which is part of the Hilton family. With the Hilton HHonors program (I don't know why they use 2 H's but they do) they give event planners points based on your final bill. The great thing about HHonors is they allow you to do what they call 'Double Dip'®—you can also score airline miles. Now typically they give 10 points per dollar spent on a hotel stay for HHonors and then 1 mile per dollar spent to your participating airline frequent flyer program. For event planners you get 1 point per dollar + 1 airline mile per dollar…the conference bill came in at just over $80K…do you really think they will give me 80,000 airline miles??? There is always that small print that says, "Other restrictions may apply". But seriously if I do get this many miles as well as hotel points……Joshua, we are going on a nice trip soon!

It is 60,000 points to stay at a Waldorf-Astoria in high season and 40K in low. But it is only 7,500 to stay at a low scale Hilton such as a Hampton Inn. A "free" ticket on my airline starts at 25,000 miles.

So today I am praying that God chooses to bless us with this opportunity because we are trying to savesavesave and paypaypay off debt and a vacation isn't necessarily in the budget this year but we would really love one.

If it smells like funk it must be…

2008-08-04T16:29:00.001-06:00

Me.

I forgot to apply deodorant today. Now onto my daily hygiene habits, I typically apply deodorant a few times each week but this summer and especially with exercising so much I have been sweating so much more. Actually who am I trying to kid here? I sweat a lot. Always. Always have and probably always will.

I recently switched to aluminum free deodorant and it is so nice. Only problem, I think it is not as strong. And you know sometimes if you forget to apply it one day you will be fine because there is enough stuck in your pores from the day before? Not so much with this stuff.

Sorry to all I have tried to stay away from today. It was nothing personal, just afraid you would smell me and think I was weird.

Bye, off to drive home and put on some deodorant.

my Sunday crafting

2008-08-03T19:19:00.005-06:00

Well in keeping with my past few weekends I figured I should make some sort of craft this weekend while Josh is at work.
Last week I made this little wall hanging that basically a piece of scrapbook paper glued to a sheet of styrofoam to fill this empty space over our stove. It was ok but I wasn't totally into it and I didn't know the best way to keep the styrofoam on the wall so the next morning it was on the floor. I took that as an answer that I should not proceed with re-hanging the thing since I didn't really like it.

I wanted something a little brighter, more fun and useful. I didn't know what I would put there. I decided to go with something flammable. =)

So Josh is at work, I am bored and our house is 89 degrees (no joke, if you have A/C, invite us over please!) so I thought I would go wander BBB to see if I was missing any wonderful kitchen gadgets. Instead I found a 4-pack of cork board for 7.99 and a pack of 2-sided hanging tape for 3.99. I had some 20% off coupons too. As soon as I saw the cork board I knew what I wanted to do with it. Cork just screams kitchen. =)

So I purchased my items and off I went to Archiver's to see if there was some cooking-inspired paper...there was. But it was ugly. Well not ugly but not pretty enough to hang in my kitchen. So I found this paper that goes quite well with the curtains I made for the sliding door in the dining room. Not to mention how much I love the scrolly swirly things which I am pretty sure this guy invented for us.

So I used some rub-on letters and said, "What's Cooking?" and then glued on my paper to the cork board. After that I attached some raffia (used duct tape) and hooked some clips on it.

Now you see how functional this thing is????

GENIUS!
Yes, I am a genius.
I hope Josh likes it!

Happy Cooking! If you can see those recipes you should try them.

One is for whole wheat pita pockets and the other is for chicken flavored dog biscuits. Both are a hit with the humans and dogs. =)

If we have you over for dinner in the future, be sure to check out the board, then you can steal my recipes!

my wonderful husb

2008-08-01T19:49:00.000-06:00

So on Wednesday night I got home from work and when I opened the door there was a little trail of hershey kisses pointing me to the kitchen. I got to the kitchen and there was a little note taped to the refrigerator. Inside the refrigerator there was another note that said someone (not me) would be making dinner that night!
The note then directed me to the bedroom where I walked in and saw this beautiful outfit laid out on the bed. See exhibit A. =) Next a note directed me to another room where I found 2 great books, then another room where I found 2 new games, then another room where I found some de-stress mint body wash and foot soak along with a pumice stone. And last but certainly not least the final note directed me to find my flowers and I turned around and there was my love, holding a gorgeous bouquet of flowers, already arranged in a vase.
I have quite the guy here, I just have to say. The best part was that it was just something he wanted to do. It wasn't a necessarily special day for us but it showed how special I am to him. Ok that is the end of my sappy love story for today. =)
I really like this outfit that he got me, I am so impressed that he can pick out the clothes that I never seem to find and they fit like a glove. This is not the first time he's picked a winning outfit. I surely am blessed!

my favorite

2008-07-30T11:07:00.003-06:00

just chillin' at my new desk eating some of this...

remember how it is my favorite chocolate?

well recently these girls posted a blog about candy and I commented about my love for milka. a few days later I was chatting with them and they said, hey, would you like these 2 milka bars?

well, I said, I'm really trying to eat healthier so give them to me and I will [eat them in my car on my way home] take them home and share them.

the first one disappeared pretty quickly after I brought it home. josh ate some too so don't you dare think I ate it all myself! this is bar #2 and I brought it to keep in my new snack drawer, now that I have enough space for a snack drawer at my new desk.

Tuesday

2008-07-29T15:04:00.001-06:00

So it is Tuesday, right? I have been busy so far this week. I moved to my new desk at work. It is much bigger and more private (I think). I am excited to get into the work that this position will require. I also have kitchen duty at work. This is of course the highlight of my week. It is the thing that I will forget each day and by the time I remember and go to the kitchen someone will have already done my work for me. Hmmm….

Tonight we will be going to a Sky Sox game with Josh's crew from work. I am looking forward to getting to know them more and their spouses too! We went to a game on Saturday and the Sox totally blew it so hopefully they play better tonight. I'm going to have to get me a shirt if we keep this up.

Trust you are doing well and enjoying your day.

update #5

2008-07-27T10:02:00.001-06:00

We went to the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo with the Short's and Lacey and her friends who are also our friends. =)

update #4

2008-07-27T09:53:00.001-06:00

Then we went camping! We went to a campground near Rampart Reservoir and it was Charlie's first time camping. She loved it! Here are a few pictures and more are at our picasa site.

update #3

2008-07-27T09:51:00.000-06:00

I made this cute little sweater for Caleb who will be coming from Ethiopia to join our friend's family. This was the first time I made a hood for the BSJ and I was quite pleased with it. It was also the first time I did any striping and I enjoyed that too. Josh picked out the buttons and I think they are really cute and simple. We are excited to meet Caleb in a few months!

update #2

2008-07-27T09:41:00.001-06:00

Some of the things we've been making lately...
Delicious Salsa with veggies from the farmer's market-

Delicious Pita Bread housed in my recycled bread bag-

Turned these materials into...

this!

update #1

2008-07-27T09:36:00.000-06:00

Happy July 4 from Charlie. =)
and Josh.

and Annie.

new

2008-07-26T08:32:00.000-06:00

New blog coming soon! We have been keeping pretty busy so I have lots of pictures to post!
Stay tuned!
Well don't stay here and wait but check back in the next 24 hours or so!

Yes, I know how to type also

2008-07-17T19:47:00.002-06:00

Wow. I haven't posted since, I think, we were engaged....over a year ago.I actually had to ask Annie the other day HOW TO GET TO our blog. I'm a bad e-husband.
Tonight I have the evening to myself at our house, which is a first in a very long time. Annie is at the Leadership Academy doing her thAng and I had to come back to let the dog out and eat. I gotta say, I was bored in about seven minutes. I know a lot of guys talk about how nice it is to get away for a while, but I hate it. I just really like being with her.So I got on YouTube for awhile, played the guitar, ate, read blogs, and remembered we have a blog and here I am.

Speaking of YouTube, it's a pretty funny thing. Just yesterday we were at work looking up videos, honestly, for training purposes...smoke explosions to be exact. If you are interested, we can debate how this is different than a flashover, black fire, backdraft, and flame over. Anyways.
In little time, we went from those videos to stupid firefighter mishaps, which lead to car accidents, which lead to shark attacks, which lead to surfing accidents, which lead to drunk people, which lead to funny drunk stunts, which lead to college stunts,which lead to shooting bottle rockets out of your butt, which lead to the cinnamon challenge, which lead to vomiting, which lead back to training. If you ever just waste time on YouTube, you know exactly what I mean. It's a curse.
So I had to get out of there before I spent three hours looking at videos of russian cop fights, beat box contests, remixes of Crank That, and sports bloopers.

Also, I need to correct a post Annie put up. She stated recently that when Lacey was gone, she had to go to the gym BY HER SELF. I went to the gym AT 430 AM (AM) like two or three times. For the record.

What else do you blog about? Cooking?
Not very good. I need to cook tomorrow at work for my new crew for the first time and I'm nervous. I'm thinking wet burritos for lunch and bbq chicken for dinner.
I also attempted to make homemade ice cream for a little get together we had the other night and completly butchered it. I made everything correctly as far as ingredients and ratios go, but it never froze. Even after FIVE HOURS in the freezer, after 30 MINUTES of beating, after 50 MINUTES of churning in the automatic thing we have out back. Complete liquid. I also pushed the little speed control thing on the fancy KitchenAids thing we have and covered our counter in approx. 1.5 cups of whipping cream/milk/sugar/salt/vanilla extract/half and half.

Though I do have to admit I read a couple girly blogs, the Pioneer Woman (she's hilarious) and bye bye pie I'm going to regret having that on the internet.
Have a good night. Talk to you again in a year.

Josh

Independence

2008-07-07T12:20:00.001-06:00

Hello, hope you had a wonderful Independence Day. We celebrated on Saturday the 5^th because Josh had to work on the day of. Such is the story of our lives. According to his new schedule since he switched shifts he is working my birthday and Jesus' birthday this year. Oh so now you know what shift he works if you know anything about firefighter's schedules. Please do not come to my house when he is at work. We do have guns and I know how to use them.

On with the story, sorry folks. In case you did not cook yourself some good eats this weekend I would like to direct your attention to what I prepared. The people who love food will thank you for providing this for their enjoyment.

Main Dish: Loose Beef BBQ
recipe here. Also, Elaine (who wrote the recipe), you are a food genius. This is THE best BBQ I have ever made. I make it about 3 or 4 times per year and each time it gets better and better.
Second Main Dish when we decided we would have 5 people instead of 3 present: Chicken Salad (My own recipe, so easy…boil 4 BS chicken breasts, let cool, cut up into little pieces. Then finely chop 4-5 stalks of celery, dice up a Fuji apple, toast some pecans and chop them up real small. Mix it all together with about ¾ cup PLAIN yogurt and ¾ cup mayo. Drop in some lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Serve over lettuce or on a bun.)
Appetizer: Jalapeno Bacon Yummies
recipe here. In case you haven't figured out yet, The Pioneer Woman is an amazing cook. And seriously, anything you make will be a huge hit. These things were to DIE FOR. And I never thought I would say that about jalapenos but oh boy, were they good.
Then I made a simple little pound cake and served it with some homemade strawberry sauce. Don't have the recipe here at work with me but it is only like 4 or 5 ingredients.
I also made some raspberry simple syrup and mixed it with Pellegrino. My new favorite drink.

The rest of the food was brought by the guests and I was sad to see it go. Oh wait we have leftovers and all that good stuff.

Then on Sunday it was Josh's last day with his crew so I made some homemade ice cream and cookies for them. The ice cream was so good. I just adore homemade ice cream. It brings very fond memories of my dad mixing it in our garage in Hudson. Actually since I have now made it myself 2 times I realize that my mom had the harder job of preparing all the ingredients beforehand. He just had to layer ice and salt around the thing and push it down every so often. But all that to say, my dad makes a good homemade ice cream with the help of my mom. I miss that delicious fresh strawberry ice cream. Come visit so you can make me some. Please, come visit.

Oh and an announcement, I will now be the Executive Assistant Vice President. Oh sorry, pulled a Dwight Schrute there. For real now, I am going to be the Executive Assistant TO the Vice President of Academic Affairs. Long title, yes please. J Basically it is a little promotion for me and it is very nice. I am definitely looking forward to the change of pace and some new responsibilities. God has been very faithful this past year but it has been a very long year as far as work goes. There have been a few major challenges that created quite a bit of stress in my little world and just the thought of doing something else brings my heart rate down. God has really shown his grace to me in this time. He has supplied peace in my soul and gave me rest for my weary heart. Oh, woe is me. There were some weary times, not too many, but there were some and I have really found rest from that. So, thank you to all who know the details of this situation and have lifted me up in prayer. I have been blessed through your kindness. I am grateful for your wisdom and honest opinions that you shared as I considered this new job.

Now, off to the airport to pick up my little buddy, Lacey! I have my workout partner back after three long weeks of doing that blasted elliptical machine by myself I will now have someone to race again!! Wootwoot!

are you here?

2008-07-01T10:27:00.003-06:00

Dwelling in Beulah Land

I know it's got lots of "old" words but these words have been in my mind for the past weeks so I figured maybe I can pass them to someone else this way. =)

Far away the noise of strife upon my ear is falling.
Then I know the sins of earth beset on every hand.
Doubt and fear and things of earth in vain to me are calling.
None of these shall move me from Beulah Land.

I'm living on the mountain, underneath a cloudless sky.
I'm drinking at the fountain that never shall run dry.
O yes! I'm feasting on the manna from a bountiful supply,
For I am dwelling in Beulah Land.

Far below the storm of doubt upon the world is beating.
Sons of men in battle long the enemy withstand.
Safe am I within the castle of God's Word retreating.
Nothing then can reach me—'tis Beulah Land.

Let the stormy breezes blow, their cry cannot alarm me;
I am safely sheltered here, protected by God's hand.
Here the sun is always shining, here there's naught can harm me.
I am safe forever in Beulah Land.

Viewing here the works of God, I sink in contemplation.
Hearing now His blessèd voice, I see the way He planned.
Dwelling in the Spirit here I learn of full salvation.
Gladly I will tarry in Beulah Land.

Tuesday news

2008-07-01T10:23:00.001-06:00

Well I will soon have some exciting news to post here about my job. Things have been a bit stressful for the past year but they are working out very well. I am thankful that the Lord has provided and continually been my Guide through this time. At times the ambiguity of the situation seemed to be more than I could handle but I am happy to share that God gave me much grace during those times and I just needed to rely on him and I was filled with peace. There were a few meltdowns along the way but Josh was such a great supporter and encourager. He is such a wonderful man. I sometimes wonder how I made it this far without him but it is because God opened the spot in my heart for him at just the right time. My Beloved completed me in perfect timing. God saved me long ago at just the right time. God has supplied all my needs every single day of my life. He has not left me, or forsaken me. E-V-E-R.

Though hard things may be happening all around me, I rejoice in God my Savior today. I rejoice in God, my Strength. He has made my feet like the feet of a deer and enabled me to go on the heights. I exult in Him above all else. He is Provider. Giver. Sustainer. Carrier. Friend. Center. Surrounding. Enduring.

Though the fig tree should not blossom
And there be no fruit on the vines,
Though the yield of the olive should fail
And the fields produce no food,
Though the flock should be cut off from the fold
And there be no cattle in the stalls,
Yet I will exult in the LORD,
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.
The Lord GOD is my strength,
And He has made my feet like hinds' feet,
And makes me walk on my high places.

Habakkuk 3:17-19

Has God blessed you today? Give you his good word over your life? I hope he has! In light of the post a few days ago, I have really been trying to keep that thought present and it is changing my daily proceedings. It is influencing me and showing me to have joy in all situations. Now I am sure a few months down the road I could be singing a totally different tune but for today I am choosing to rejoice in the God of my salvation for all he has done—past, present, and future.

Another day another dollar

2008-06-30T11:44:00.001-06:00

Isn't that how the line goes?

So our weekend was good. We had planned to go on a bike ride on Saturday morning to ride some trails downtown. We had a coupon for a bagel place so of course my idea was to ride down there, eat breakfast, and then ride back home. Well, that is what we did! We made it there for brunch so I had a breakfast bagel and Josh had a sandwich and salad deal. All in all we thought we rode about 30-40 miles round trip but according to http://gmap-pedometer.com, we rode about 25 miles round trip. Not bad for my first ride of the season. Josh has been riding to work lately so he is in a little bit better shape than me on the biking skills right now. I would like to state for the record for all 5 of you that I did beat him on 1 hill.

And on Friday you saw my new yarn stash. I would like to share that I have now completed 50 rows of the BSJ for Caleb. I just went to town knitting that this weekend and I am quite pleased with the turnout so far. I am doing stripes and the pattern calls for them to be a little different than I would like so I'm just adjusting it as I go. I think it is going to be so cute. Also note, in the past I have been using just the cheap-o baby yarn I can get at Michael's or Jo-Ann's and this is the first one I have knit with a nicer (more expensive) yarn and it looks so much nicer. It is also easier to work with and the yarn is so soft and sweet. I think the baby is just going to love wearing it. I'm sizing it so he'll be able to wear it in the winter and on into the next Spring as a jacket if they want. I can't decide if I should add on a hood or knit a matching hat to go with it…

We also watched the movie Mama's Boy. It was actually pretty funny and Jeff Daniels just cracked me up. We laughed a lot at that movie. We also watched Fool's Gold a while back and that too was funny with a nice bit of action mixed in.

Sunday we went to church and then took it easy for most of the day.

FRIDAY NIGHT!

2008-06-27T18:42:00.004-06:00

Well it is Friday and Josh is at work so I have few things of excitement tonight.

1. I made a new recipe for dinner and it was D-lish. The recipe is so simple. I like waffles and I also really enjoy breakfast for dinner but Josh prefers a lighter breakfast and does not care for breakfast for dinner so lately I have been eating breakfast for dinner and it is great fun! =) Also, got the waffle maker for Christmas in 07, first time using it tonight.

2. Knit Picks stash has arrived. Now usually when people post their excitement about a stash they have received like a billion skeins. For those of us on a limited budget my stash is comprised of a few great picks from the clearance page. =) I got some Swish DK to make a BSJ for Caleb who will be coming from Ethiopia and I think the colors will just look great on his skin. Then I got some Twist for myself. It is a lighter yarn so I was thinking I might make a dressy scarf. For when I get a nice dress coat to wear in the winter. =) Probably wouldn't look too good with my North Face soft shell.

Pictures of all...enjoy!

Thirsty Thursday

2008-06-26T08:38:00.003-06:00

This morning in my reading I came across something that seemed like it could present quite the challenge if I thought about it for a few days…I will first give you the part of the quote that stuck out to me. I actually read it, kept reading, and then said, "Wait a second." And so I went back up to re-read this part:

"…if I believed always that all the past is forgiven, and all the present furnished with power, and all the future bright with hope…"

Well maybe that doesn't strike you as too crazy but as I was reading over it again I thought to myself, "Do I believe like that?"

Do I always believe that the past is forgiven? Not just some of the past but ALL the past. Do I leave those things in the past where they should be because they have been fully and completely forgiven?

Do I always believe that the present is furnished with power? Not just some of the present but ALL the present. Do I look at each day in a way that says, "This is going to be good, I have the power I need to get through." (Cue music: I've Got The Power) J

Do I always believe that the future is bright with hope? Not just some of the future but ALL the future. Do I look ahead past the present and see hope for the journey? Is it shining brightly in my life?

The sad answer that I came up with was no, not all the time. Not always as this quote says. And so I am challenged today and maybe you can be too to look at the way we live our lives and ask these questions. My outlook on today is already changing.

Now, the full quote so you can see if I have taken this out of context.

"I think that I can trace every scrap of sorrow in my life to simple unbelief. How could I be anything but quite happy if I believed always that all the past is forgiven, and all the present furnished with power, and all the future bright with hope because of the same abiding facts which do not change with my mood, do not stumble because I totter and stagger at the promise through unbelief, but stand firm and clear with their peaks of pearl cleaving the air of Eternity, and the bases of their hills rooted unfathomably in the Rock of God? Mont Blanc does not become a phantom or a mist because a climber grows dizzy on its side."
—James Smetham

There is a lot in this little quote but I will leave that to you to ponder on your own.

Also, I was curious who Mr. Smetham was and this is what I found…

James Smetham (1821-1889)
Smetham worked in a number of genres: landscapes, portraits, and literary and religious themes. He began his studies at the Royal Academy in 1843, but mental illness that fully manifested itself in the mid-1870s plagued his later career, and after 1869 he no longer exhibited at the Royal Academy. Smetham was also a critic and essayist. His article on William Blake in the Quarterly Review (1868) is one of the first evaluations to suggest the importance of Blake as an artist.
http://www.english.emory.edu/classes/Shakespeare_Illustrated/Smetham.html

It turns out that Mr. Smetham had written quite a few letters during his life and when he passed his wife and a close friend published the letters in a book called Letters of James Smetham. This quote comes from a letter written to a Mrs. Taylor at the beginning of 1861. For proper citation, it comes from page 105. If you click on that link of his name it appears that you can read the whole book. Note to self, must see what other books I could read this way.

Have a great day! I pray that the God of bright hope will be your guide today!

We did it!

2008-06-23T08:56:00.002-06:00

We had a very full weekend and it was quite enjoyable. Needless to say we slept very well because our time during the day was so full and busy.

Report on the race: Josh did an amazing job, finishing at 25:35. He hasn't run since our last race on St. Patrick's Day. I hate it when people are just always in shape. I finished at 33:44, this is my personal best and also I did fulfill my goal, I ran the whole race!!! I probably could have finished it faster but I am still not a good judge of distance so I am never quite sure when to turn it on for the end! I was so pleased that I ran the whole thing and I was also quite surprised that my time was decent too!
We helped some friends move this weekend and were filled with joy that we will not be moving any time soon and also that we didn't have to do any work to our house before we moved in. J I helped them paint a little bit last week and it seemed so stressful to have to do so much before you could move in.
Charlie went to the dog park again. She did great. She is such a friendly little dog. I think she drank about a gallon of water while we were there because we got home and hosed her down in the back yard and she relieved herself at least 5 times in 30 minutes. Then she lay down to go to sleep because she was so tired and we had to leave so we put her in her kennel and thought she would sleep the whole time. We got home a few hours later and upon walking in the door I said, "What is that smell?" We sniffed all around the house and couldn't find anything strange. It was a smell I had never smelled before. So we said forget about it and went to let Charlie out of her kennel and what do we see? The bottom of the kennel is covered with a clear-ish liquid. J That is what the smell was. She had been laying in it so Josh grabbed a towel so that we could dry her paws and walk her straight outside to be hosed down again. Good thing he had that towel because you know what she did as soon as she stepped out of the kennel…started SHAKING all that clear-ish liquid right off! AAAAAH! Josh was pretty quick though and managed to wrap her up before she shook too much of it off. Then we realized just how wet she was so it was: march straight into the bath tub little lady, you are getting a real bath with soap!
Josh also helped some friends with a framing project as they are working to finish their basement. He wanted to get some experience with this since we are preparing to put in a door where there is no door at our house in the next few weeks.
Sunday we got groceries and got some great deals on food. We are trying to make the switch to organic foods without adding too much extra to our grocery bill so we have been doing the multi-store grocery outing and it has been going very well!

I think that gives you the highlights of our weekend! Hope yours was great too and that you also had some time to relax and reflect! We did!

ps-Guess who joined me at the gym this morning?? My beloved, Mr. Joshua himself! It was quite a treat to be driven to the gym at such an early hour and not have to watch my step for bad guys along the way!

weekend

2008-06-20T10:05:00.001-06:00

It's Friday! Yeah!

We are looking ahead to a great weekend. Tomorrow Josh and I are running a 5K race downtown and then helping some friends move in the afternoon. Sunday I think is open so we will probably take Charlie to the dog park after church if it isn't too hot. It has been so hot lately she doesn't even want to be outside that much. This morning she was acting pretty crazy though so I was wondering if it was the dog version of cabin fever.

In other matters, some things I have been reflecting on this week…the first one is my new favorite.

Psalm 71:5
For you have been my hope, O sovereign LORD, my confidence since my youth.

Isaiah 30:21
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it."

Philippians 1:5-6
Because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

I completed week 7 of my working out life. Things are getting to be very rewarding. Now if I could just get back into those clothes that I have stashed away on the top shelf of the closet. My goal for the race tomorrow is: NO WALKING! I know my little legs can stay running for the whole time so now I just have to make them do it! I'm not setting a time goal for this one because I don't even wear a watch when I run and I think if I keep moving as I plan to do I will end up with a decent time! Maybe I will set a personal best!!

Ok, hugs to you all. Have a happy weekend!

tuesday

2008-06-17T08:21:00.005-06:00

I am still keeping up on my fitness routine. Lacey is out of town for 3 weeks so I am trying to talk Josh into going with me in the mornings. I think he is almost ready to give in. :) Running is becoming more fun each time.

A few weeks ago well probably more like a month or more I trimmed our rose bush quite a bit. I hoped I wouldn't kill it but it didn't have any buds on it at the time so I figured it would be fine. About half of the branches were dead and brown, mostly they were the bottom branches but some in the middle too. First of all, do you know how painful it is to trim a rose bush? I think the thorns get sharper as they dry out. So I had taken quite a bit out and after about 2 weeks I went to check on it to be sure I hadn't killed it. It was a lovely shade of bright green on the remaining branches and some little tiny buds were starting to appear. Yesterday I had to go by Lacey's house and I saw that her yellow roses had bloomed so I thought I better check mine when I get home. Sure enough, tons of dark pink roses have bloomed! It is beautiful! I think it is going to be in bloom for a while because there are tons more buds that are just appearing still too. I took quite a few photos so if you want to see more, click on one of the pictures and it will take you to the picasa album. After that I did a little photo shoot with Charlie. She still loves getting her picture taken. It is so bizarre! She saw me with the camera inside and immediately sat and looked at me. Then I took her outside and she started sprinting around the yard. There are quite a few funny pictures of her.

Here is the link for Charlie's photos. She is such a ham sometimes. She is getting pretty big. We are constantly loosening her collar because her neck is getting so thick.

From charlie

weekend

2008-06-16T09:37:00.001-06:00

Well, we are back from the weekend. Josh returned on Friday and we enjoyed some hot wings together and walked around the Promenade Shops for a while. We found a few good deals. He worked Saturday for a half shift and then we had a bowling get together with the old gang. There is a trophy that goes to the winner each time this group gets together and Josh had the high score this time so he got the trophy! After that we went to O'Malley's for more wings and karaoke. Sunday we went to church and then to lunch with the family for Father's Day. We took a poster of Josh's dad with us in honor of Father's Day since he is out of the country. It was fun!

After that we decided to shop around, we have been trying to find a lighter weight comforter for our bed for the summer months. Our duvet that we had been using was supposed to be good for all seasons but it was too warm for summer! So in the meantime we have been using a nice IAFF fleece blanket. Very classy, I know. J So we had looked at many stores…Bed, Bath and Beyond, Target, Wal-Mart, Linens & Things, TJ Maxx Home Goods, Ross, etc. and found nothing. We were about to head home and we thought let's look at World Market because they usually have things in the colors we like. We were looking for something blue, any shade really. So we looked around and saw that they had all the bedding on clearance at 50% off. This is looking good! We saw a sample (6x6 inch square)of exactly what we were looking for but they didn't have it in stock. Not so good! Then we saw a bed on display that had a blue quilt on it! We were looking at it and talking to each other saying, "Oh I wish they had one we could buy, this would be great!" "Oh, what a bummer that they don't have any more!" Then a sales person walked up to us and asked if we needed any help and we said well do you happen to have any more of these anywhere that we could buy? She said no, but you can buy that one. So it turns out we bought this wonderful quilt that would have been $99 for only $44 since it was the display. YEAH! I love a good deal! It looks great on our red bed!

Then we broke down and bought a little portable A/C unit because our house becomes a little oven in all this sunshine! Not on sale but we had a coupon and put it to work last night. It is very nice!

Happy Monday!

flash back

2008-06-13T11:47:00.002-06:00

Last summer around this time Josh and I were anxiously awaiting our wedding day! We decided to purchase a new camera as our wedding gift to each other so that we would have decent pictures from our honeymoon. We ended up taking 1000 pictures on that trip! And have taken many more since then. When we first got the camera we decided to go to the Botanic Gardens in Denver to practice using it and I just found some of those old pictures today.

Enjoy!

My parents

2008-06-12T09:30:00.001-06:00

So my parents were hit with that nasty weather that struck the Midwest last weekend. A huge tree fell on their house and they have been without power since Sunday evening. It is now Thursday… that is a very long time to be without electricity when you are not camping! Back in November their church had planned to have a spaghetti supper just to invite people to come and have a free meal. They had originally planned to do a bunch of promotion and mailings to the community but it never happened. So they were still planning the dinner but had no idea how many people would come. Wednesday came around and that was the day they were planning to have the dinner. There were still quite a few people without power (oh about 150,000 at that time) but one of their people called the local news and told them about the dinner and listed it on some community boards. They ended up having a good turnout, my dad said about 75 people came. I have been thinking about helping people this week and this was just another reminder of people who work to help other people. They also made it on the news for about 3 seconds if you want to see it. They are Union Lake Church of the Nazarene about halfway through the video. I've met the guy that they talk to but I cannot remember his name now. They still didn't have power at the church so they had lots of people helping out to prepare the food at their homes and transport it there to be warmed.

I love stories like this.

Josh gets home tomorrow. I don't know how he is going to reclaim his spot in the bed…Charlie has thoroughly enjoyed all the room this week. J

Psalm 57:9-11

I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples.
For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.

Lamentations 3:21-23

Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

God's love is so great. His song comes in the morning light. I just spoke with my dad and the tree that has been lying across their house since Sunday is finally being removed, as I type this. Oh, and the tree fell while they were at church so they were spared from even being near that. And their house will need some repairs where the tree hit it but it is livable for now.

Happy Thursday, it's almost Friday!

Mid-week

2008-06-11T09:38:00.001-06:00

This week I have been on my own again. Josh is volunteering as a counselor at MDA Summer Camp. He has one boy that he is helping out for the week. I think he is having fun. They have been playing games, singing camp songs, fishing, and having camp fires. How could he not have fun with that? They also do other activities like skits, soccer and kickball (this is a true group effort), and camping.

When he told me the level of care that some of the kids require I hoped that this week gives the parents a nice break. I am thankful that there are organizations that help people and make life just a little bit easier.

So in Josh's absence, Charlie and I have been playing a lot of fetch, catching up on some fun knitting projects, and listening to lots of music as well as cleaning the house and doing laundry. We are also looking forward to Josh's return on Friday! This has been a slow week! J

I have still been keeping up on my workout plan and last weekend I made some time to run outside. It was a nice switch after running on the treadmill for so many weeks. Nothing quite compares to having the sun shine on your back and feeling the fresh air rush through your lungs as you run down the street. I am still trying to get that "I love running" feeling back but it is coming slower than I hoped. I am sure I will get there soon enough.

So Josh returns on Friday and then works a half shift on Saturday. I wonder if I should take him to the circus this weekend.

Randomness

2008-06-03T14:39:00.001-06:00

A text message I received from my husband during today's thunder/rain storm: "I was taking the flag down and my hair all started standing up."
Note to self: remember to pray for our public servants who put themselves in harm's way every day or 10 days per month in his case. Well come to think of it, he is pretty dangerous even when he is not at work.
If you like potatoes like I do then you will L-O-V-E this recipe. You will also do yourself quite a humorous favor by clicking around the whole site.
The best steak marinade we have found: no marinade at all. Instead, simply rub the steak with a mixture of lemon-pepper seasoning and ye ol' standby Lawry's. Also, allow steak to come to room temperature before grilling. Your life will be changed.
It has now been 2 consecutive nights that our 60 pound dog has decided she must sleep on the bed…wait that is nothing new, let me clarify…in MY SPOT ON THE BED. Josh and I have both been edge of the bed sleepers and usually the big dumb dog will sleep at the foot of the bed and that is just fine. I like when she keeps my feet warm (in the winter). The past 2 nights however she thinks she has to sleep like a human. She waits until about oh hmm yes I looked at the clock both nights and it was exactly 12:55 AM when I awoke with a fright. And what to my wondering eyes should appear but a big dumb black Labrador leaping to bed. She puts her head by my pillow and pushes me out of the way. Because you know dogs don't curl up in a neat little ball, no they lay as stretched out as they possibly could be. So now I have to lay awake for hours sleep smashed up next to Josh when our house is 80 degrees. It is fine though. Being newlyweds we probably shouldn't keep to our own sides of the bed as much as we have been. Maybe the dog thought we needed to sleep closer. Let's see if it happens again tonight. I will say last night I didn't realize what was happening and woke Josh to say, "There's someone in our bed!" "No, really, someone is trying to get in the bed!"

Ok that's all from me today.

In case you were wondering…

2008-05-30T15:58:00.001-06:00

Yes, we completed another week of hurting ourselves working out. In other matters, last weekend we did quite a few fun things all without our camera so we will have to be old-fashioned on this blog and pretend that cameras do not exist. =)

Let's see, it was a holiday weekend and Josh and I were stoked to get some free time together! The fire danger here has been super high so Josh has been called in to work quite a few overtime shifts. When we realized that he would have the whole weekend (Saturday, Sunday, AND Monday) off as would I, well that was just the icing on the cake!

So on Saturday we did yard work and then went to the terrific Territory Days in Old Colorado City. We went with our friends the Dev's and Josh got to carry their little girl in her Baby Bjorn. So cute.

Then on Saturday night we went to a Skysox game and they had fireworks afterward. It was so cool! We went with our friends the Short's.

Sunday…we drove around and looked at houses. No, we are not looking for another house! We are looking for ideas of what color to paint our house! Josh will soon be painting our house. I think we have decided on a lighter brown color or reddish brown.

Monday, Memorial Day…went for a hike at The Crags with Lacey and the Short's. Charlie came too. She did a little bit off leash until she went a little crazy and ran about 200 yards ahead of us. Back on leash for her. She loved the hike and most of all loved the little stream that ran next to the trail. I was so surprised! She hates when we give her a bath or spray her with the hose. So I was even more surprised when there was a mini pond and Josh walked her up to the edge and she JUMPED IN! Not only did she jump right in, she started swimming! Now for someone like me who flunked out of swimming lessons as a 5-year old I was quite impressed that this little pup knew how to swim! She still needs some work on the whole breathing while in the water thing but she did great!

That's about it for now. Weekend plans….nothing!

Rock on

2008-05-23T11:10:00.001-06:00

Today marked the third completed week of working out. We decided to push reward ourselves just a little more than usual and ran a complete 5K this morning. Now when I say ran a complete 5K I do mean that we ran the whole time. That is the first time ever I have done that. And the first time for Lacey. And it was easier than we thought! We were both done in less than 37 minutes. This means we were keeping about a 12-minute pace. That is pretty good considering for me I have only been running again, for real now, for 2.5 weeks. This working out bit is really all that is new in my life right now so I am sorry to turn this into a health diary blog. But it is just so exciting to push yourself and see that you can do things that you didn't think possible!

Ok, end of health blog. Now I have a thought to write about.

I am the kind of person who just loves to see someone succeed. Now I am never surprised when I see someone else succeed at something I am just filled with joy! When I succeed at something I tend to get a little surprised, overwhelmed, scared, excited. Weird range of emotions, I know. Welcome to my crazy mind. I get surprised because I tend to want the easy way out sometimes and success does not always allow you to take the easy way out. I get overwhelmed because then I start thinking about what I did to get to this point and sometimes I am just overwhelmed at what God can do with me. Then I get scared because I start thinking, "Ok, well I made it here and now that means I have to either stay here in this success or keep moving forward." And that requires more work. Then eventually I do get excited about my success because I think, "Wow, God has brought me this far and he is going to keep bringing me this far, then a little bit more, then a little bit more." Because you know, He's cool like that; he gives us what we can handle and a desire to know Him more which in turn brings us to desire more, more, more of His plan! I really do believe that ALL things are possible through Christ. I also believe that He who started this great work called my life will be faithful to complete the work that He started. I will never be incomplete. I used to be very quick to believe this for other people but very slow to believe it for myself. So slow that I wouldn't believe it but you know what—one day, I don't remember when, it made sense to believe this for myself before I pushed someone else to believe it.

I hope that you have seen success in your life and most of all in your walk with God. I also challenge you to reflect this weekend on what God has done to bring you to this point in your life. If you're not able to think about that maybe you want to ask God to meet you here at this point in your life and see just what he has in plan for you. I am positive it includes great things.

Oops, I did it again…

2008-05-16T08:56:00.001-06:00

1 more week of working out is done!

Another one bites the dust…

Yesterday I had the wonderful privilege of getting my eyes dilated at my eye exam. I was out of commission for about 6 hours. It was horrible. I guess my eyes are extra sensitive to that or something because they are still a little sore today.

In other news, Charlie had a little play date with her brother Toby again. She is a good amount smaller than him but it was fun to watch them play. She slept for a long time after everybody left. Poor little girl.

Tonight we are going to see Beauty and the Beast at the Fine Arts Center. One of our friends is starring as Mrs. Potts. We are pretty excited to see it!

That's all for now, have a great weekend!

In case you were wondering...

2008-05-13T15:48:00.003-06:00

I am so glad that my iGoogle home page gave me this link today. My quick search did not reveal any mention of the word grace. Perhaps a quick rundown of what our Savior did to save us from our seemingly unforgivable deeds would be appropriate. Maybe. ;) Oh and you can also learn how to reupholster your dining room set or make a quilt. Fabulous!

ae

funny

2008-05-12T15:39:00.001-06:00

I would like to take a moment to sum this up for all to see regarding a few recent posts I have made to see if you find the humor in them as I have in my own recollection of posting them…

Quote from March 31, 2008 Post: "And, today marks my fourth day of not eating chocolate and only having minimal (1 or 2 per day) sweets."
Quote from May 7, 2008 Post: Well I don't even need to give a quote considering the post is titled, "Milka". In case you don't know, Milka is chocolate…yeah, enough said. But here is the quote that would probably work, "Anyway, I was munching on some [milka] that my sister was so gracious to share with me and I just wanted to share with you how much I enjoy it."
And quote from May 9, 2008 Post: "I decided it had gone too far, seriously, the waist line and the laziness…today marks the end of the first week that I have had a consistent gym schedule in about 252 days! We worked out 4 times this week and it has felt so good!"

Ok so obviously that no chocolate thing did not last and my tiny desire for chocolate has gotten me into some trouble. J

Part of the reason I go to the gym is so that I can enjoy little treats like Milka or nachos or pizza or Doritos or ice cream.

Oh please, as if the list can stop there, it really gets quite long…large popcorn at the movie theatre, licorice, Pepsi, cranberry-lime slushes at Sonic, chocolate chip cookies, Reese's PB cups or pieces, potato chips, French fries, bacon cheeseburgers, nachos, Oreo cookies, brownies, ice cream, milkshakes, cheesecake, hot wings, nachos, oh I should really stop or Josh is going to have to cook me quite the feast tonight!

Yes, I know I listed a few things multiple times.

I just thoroughly enjoy foods that are bad for me. I'm not going to lie. In the meantime, I will feel slightly less guilty for consuming these foods because I am working out and burning like 1/8 of the calories that I eat.

Oh and that large popcorn at the movie theatre, it's all mine. I am a glutton for popcorn. At home I am healthy and air pop it and use pretend butter and lightly salt it and all that wimpy stuff. But at the movie theatre, don't even think I won't order it. Even if we have eaten before we go. Large popcorn and medium cherry coke, please. I like me some popcorn. Sometimes I pop it at home and smuggle take it in my bag to the theatre. If I do make and take it then I will fill two 1-gallon bags and that is almost enough. Ok, I could have done the whole post on my enjoyment of popcorn. J I like me some popcorn! Maybe popcorn is what created my waist line problem.

The skinny [is] on, summer!

2008-05-09T09:52:00.001-06:00

Summer is coming. I really think it is just about here. And for that, I am mostly happy. =)

What scares me a little bit is that last summer I was at my slimmest weight and bought a ton of new clothes. Well the clothes were partly due to the smaller size and partly due to a very nice little trip we took called a honeymoon in Belize! Now, since we have been married (252 days) I have worked out very inconsistently. This is due to many different reasons but most of it is due to my own laziness and desire to eat lots of good foods that are very high in calories.

Pre-wedding, I was working out 4-5 days each week and was in a fit kind of shape that I have never been in. Post-wedding, not so much of that. I have been mostly fine with that. Until recently, when I got out some summer clothes that had been stored away and much to my chagrin, could not button the pants. TMI for the two of you, I know. Sorry!

So I decided it had gone too far, seriously, the waist line and the laziness. The hubs and I began by bumping up or daily intake of fruits and veggies, this alone helps tremendously and my ever-gracious workout partner/sister/friend forever (Lacey) said I could work out with her again. The only problem, she is now stronger than me, and faster, and pushes herself harder... Ugh. That is a total different story. So, keep in mind, for the past few months I have been slowly getting some exercise through sporadic gym visits, walking/jogging with Charlie and folding laundry and running the vacuum. =)

Now, today marks the end of the first week that I have had a consistent gym schedule in about 252 days! We worked out 4 times this week and it has felt so good! I am already noticing my big pants that were getting a bit snug were slightly easier to put on in the mornings.

So if you are thinking you'd like to be a teensy bit tinier by summer, go for it! The time is now! If you need an idea of where to start, we do simple weight training for muscle tone, think free weights (as heavy as you can manage) and a balance ball, pushups, and dips; core training for nice abs posture and balance, think all sorts of crazy crunches, lunges, and stabilization poses; and cardio, think bike, elliptical, or treadmill for at least 30 minutes each day. You can do all of this whether you have a gym membership or not.

And in case you were wondering how to fit a workout into your already busy schedule, go to bed a little bit earlier and go to the gym before work in the morning! We are those freakish gym people that go at 4:30 in the morning and I honestly think this is the best time to go to the gym. Especially if you are not interested in seeing half-naked women (and men) trying to attract those of the opposite sex.

Ok, that's all. Just wanted to share my little accomplishment with you and encourage you to start your own.

milka

2008-05-07T10:10:00.001-06:00

Have you ever had Milka? I thoroughly enjoy Milka. It is like no other. If you know someone going to Europe in the near future, have them bring you back some Milka. Surprisingly Milka is made by Kraft foods. Very surprising considering how good Milka is. I have now typed Milka 7 times.

Anyway, I was munching on some that my sister was so gracious to share with me and I just wanted to share with you how much I enjoy it. Now, in case you are still wondering what Milka is, let me tell you. Milka is some of the best chocolate you will ever taste. It is sold wherever you would find any old candy bar but I am surprised that they would even put this next to a Snickers bar. It is just so good. The worst part about it, not sold in the US. Well people in Europe will tell you that you can buy it here under a different name or even the same name since it is owned by Kraft. Unfortunately it is just not the same. So get some Milka today! =) It is creamy and tasty and just perfect.

New bed

2008-05-06T09:57:00.002-06:00

So we have been talking about getting a new bed for quite a while. We got a decent hand-me-down mattress set and the hand-me-down bed we had was huge and starting to get pretty squeaky. We also wanted to get something that matched our personalities more. So we began our hunt with a walk-through of Furniture Row, American Furniture Warehouse, Wal-Mart, and Target. We found some that we kind of liked but not really so we were back to square one. We started looking on the internet. Target.com had some good options as did walmart.com. Then we looked at Ikea.com and found a winner. Josh wanted to up and drive to Salt Lake City that night to buy it. We looked at purchasing it on their website and then after seeing what a simple design it was we were both struck with the thought, "Maybe we can make it ourselves!"

We immediately sat down and drew up a plan. We figured measurements and exactly how much wood we would need. After that, we went to Home Depot and priced the wood and found that it would only cost about $80-90 for all the wood. About half the cost of the bed on Ikea's website! Since it was late into the evening by then we decided that Josh would go back and buy the wood in the next few days now that we had a precise shopping list created. As it turned out he didn't get to build the bed until after our vacation due to being called for some hire-back shifts at work but that was just fine.

It was a pretty simple design, just a box frame on legs with a slat support inserted into the middle of the box. The box has a small edge around the bottom to hold the slats. The headboard itself weighs in at about 60 pounds. It is a very sturdy bed and no squeaks yet. Charlie is happy because now she can jump on the bed by herself. Great! J

For more pictures, click on the link.

From Bed

vacation

2008-05-05T11:54:00.002-06:00

Well our vacation got off to a great start. My sister picked us up at 0 dark thirty and took us to the Colorado Springs Airport. Frontier had just started flying from COS the previous week so check-in was a little slow although we had previously done it online we had to go through the whole process again. I don’t know. J
So we finally get checked in and get to security—one lane open. Our pilot and crew come up to the line asking people if they can go ahead because really we can’t go anywhere until they get through so of course everyone is fine with that. We get through with no problems…or so I think. I waltz through and get my carry-on bag and every personal item that has now been made public and hear the TSA person say wait bring that bag back. Thankfully they were talking about a bag that had just gone through the x-ray, not mine. But of course since Josh is a gentleman and I have gone through before him, the bag must belong to him. I sit down to put my clothes back on…excuse me, my shoes, belt and jacket. While 2 more TSA employees are called to look at the computer screen that is still examining Josh’s carry-on bag.

They finally release the bag from the machine and a man tells Josh not to touch the bag because they need to search it. Josh starts to look kind of interested. I am sitting watching this whole thing.

TSA Agent-“Do you have any sharp objects in here?”

Josh-“Um, no, not that I know of.”

TSA Agent-“Well it looks like you do.”

Josh-“Well….uh…uh…hmm…OH, maybe I left my Swiss Army Knife
on my key ring?”

TSA Agent-“Um no, it’s a little bigger than that sir.”

TSA Agent continues to search through the bag. I am thinking obviously he has searched the whole bag, there is really just one big opening where you throw everything in.

Josh’s face is continuing to turn a nice shade of red, as the TSA Agent continues rummaging through the bag. Now I am totally intrigued, the thoughts that are going through my head are things like oh my word is there a gun in there? Is he in trouble? What could possibly be in there?!

I am looking from the bag to Josh’s face to the TSA guy’s hands and eventually he finds it. Neatly hidden behind the back padded panel and the back side of the bag from the last time we went camping was a nice, shiny, black, recon hunting knife. This is not some little boy’s pocket knife, no, this is a 12-inch long hunting knife in a very nice shade of black with a fancy handle and sheath to hold it. The TSA Agent pulls the knife out ever so slowly and shows it to Josh who by now has covered his face with his hands and is saying, “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, oh my gosh, I am so sorry. I did not know that was in there. How did that get in there? Oh my word. Oh man!” I am still watching from the side and I am thinking, “Oh my word, he is going to get arrested and I’m going to go on vacation by myself. What should I do? Tell them his dad works for the president? Oh my life. This is bad.”

So they had to confiscate the knife which was a very nice knife and would cost you a pretty penny so I felt so bad for Josh but he just felt so bad for bringing that to the airport. Not to mention the hundreds of other places he then realized he had taken that bag in the past 8 months…think libraries, coffee shops, parks…oh my life. They let him go right through after that which I was kind of surprised by. There were uniformed police officers there and they didn’t even bat an eye.

That was the start of our vacation and the first thing Josh did when we got to Denver for our layover, buy a coffee. The napkin that came with the coffee said it best,

We finally arrived in Michigan and my mom had planned a get together with tons of people who wanted to meet Josh. That was a lot of fun because some of the people I had not seen in like 3 years! A few days later we drove to Ohio to see some of Josh’s relatives. It was really nice to meet them and his aunt cooked up an amazing dinner along with a wild turkey that his uncle
had shot recently. It was great for both of us to get to meet so many new people because we hear their names from each other but now we have faces with the names in our minds. Then we had some more time with my parents and we went to a Detroit Tigers’ game. That was a lot of fun! We then went to see one of my friends from college who lives in Traverse City, MI with her husband. Josh had never seen northern Michigan so he really enjoyed it. Then we came back to my parent’s house again and helped with a church workday to clean up the yard around their church and also went to a wedding for my friend Stephanie.

All in all it was a great trip; we did a lot of driving, but saw a lot of people and that was the reason we went. Our next trip will definitely be a relaxing vacation! Click on any of the pictures to see more of our travels!

Me and Chris From Traverse City

Joel & Josh From Traverse City

us-bowling From Traverse City

Chris & Joel From Traverse City

Old Mission Lighthouse From Traverse City

The Caldwells of Ohio! From Vacation

us-Tigers' Game From Vacation

Josh & my Dad From Vacation

me & my Mom From Vacation

Ok, that's all folks! Hope you enjoy our stories and photos. Tomorrow's post-the bed that Josh made for us!!

Where in the world have we been?

2008-05-02T10:54:00.001-06:00

Well it's been just about a year since we last posted. Not. By the end of this weekend we should have some new posts and pictures up for you to see. J

In the past month we have flown 2400 miles and driven 1300 miles to see family and friends (we called it vacation?), hauled lots of junk from our yard to the dump (3 truck loads), started planting the garden (some of which Charlie may have destroyed), designed/built/painted a bed (Josh is such a handyman), sold some stuff to the pawn shop (we almost have a guest room now), and attended 2 baseball games (Detroit Tigers and CS SkySox). We have been a little bit busy and it has taken its toll. We are tired but we are being renewed each day. Josh caught the crud that is going around but he is doing much better. I was blessed with just 1 night of some kind of sickness. All is well, God is good. We were able to take our vacation and not have the costs hit our budget thanks to a very nice thank you gift from my employer. God is very good.

Some inspiration today:

Pour Out by Shawn McDonald

Pour out your water
That I might take a sip
Your love consumes me
Every drip
It is like Honey
On my lips
Pour out your water
That I might take a sip
Your words
Are a lamp unto my feet
When I walk down these
Dark and Lonely streets
You are all I need
Pour out your mercy
And clear this busy mind
Your love is like Eden
A slice of apple pie
It is like sugar on my tongue
So pour out your mercy
Clear my busy mind
Your words
Are a lamp unto my feet
When I walk down these
Dark and Lonely streets
You are all I need
Your words
Are a lamp unto my feet
When I walk down these
Dark and Lonely streets
You are all I need

Thank you, Shawn, for being the 6^th song that my iPOD chose to play today. J As I said, pictures and all that fun stuff coming soon!

Grace to you,

Weekend projects

2008-03-31T12:16:00.002-06:00

This weekend we did a very fun project. We installed a new closet organizer in our bedroom closet. The stuff that was in there before as you will see in the pictures, soon to be posted, was all scraps of particle board and wooden rods that had obviously been repurposed for the closet. There was shelving behind all of the clothing rods so that you really couldn't get to it, even if you are tall. So being that it was so inconvenient we ended up not using a lot of the storage space and piling our clothes up outside the closet. This was very frustrating because we are both pretty neat&tidy kind of people.

So I had enough. I asked Josh if our next project could be fixing the closet. I originally had it all planned out and then we got to the store and they had even more options than I envisioned so it was kind of experimental but in the end we are really happy with it! We didn't create a lot more space but we created a more useable space that makes a lot more sense to us than what was there before.

And, today marks my fourth day of not eating chocolate and only having minimal (1 or 2 per day) sweets. I am trying to cut some addictions unhealthy things out of my diet. Honestly you would not believe the amount of sweets I was consuming in a day. And I have started running (foREAL) again. This makes me feel very good and I actually sleep through the night and wake up energized! I also got some new shoes because my old ones had a big hole in the toe and rocks were jumping under my toes while running. Also my old shoes were letting me get some horrible hip pain and the new shoes have helped to reduce that quite a bit. We ran the St. Patty's Day 5K here and that was kind of my "get up and go" race so now I am ready to get moving and get back in shape again. Eventually little miss Charlie will be my running partner but seeing as how she can barely walk a straight line on the leash it's going to be a while before she can run next to me.

Have a good day! Spring is coming! Which means, Summer is coming!! Yay for wearing Chaco's again.

coupons

2008-03-28T12:22:00.002-06:00

Lately I have really enjoyed using coupons. It feels so good to save money that way. I want to say thank you to those of you who go through the grocery store and leave coupons on all the items that I like to buy. Seriously, last night I was at Albertson's and just needed a few things. It turns out some random person had a coupon for some things that they weren't going to use so they just left the coupon on the shelf next to the box. Wouldn't you know, that same item was what I was buying and now I had a coupon. So please keep it up you random coupon droppers!
And I need to get the Sunday paper to get even more coupons.

2008-03-27T20:47:00.002-06:00

A few new pictures of Charlie have been posted. Josh was blowing bubbles and she was chasing them. Then I got her to pose for a few shots in the backyard.

bakeware

2008-03-26T14:30:00.004-06:00

So for Christmas, Josh's parents got us many things for our kitchen. All of which we have used except for the Lodge Cast Iron skillet and Belgian waffle maker. Now the skillet I have not used mainly because it is so heavy and I can barely lift it out of the cupboard. The waffle maker I have not used because it is stored so high above me that I tend to a.) forget we even have it or b.) want to use it when Josh is not there to get it down for me. I do have a fabulous step stool for getting those things that are out of my reach but the cupboard that fit the waffle maker...just TOO high.
So last night I was preparing some cornbread to take to a little c-group dinner and the recipe called to make it in a cast iron skillet. I decided to improvise and use a good-old 9x13 casserole because I didn't own a skillet. Then I remembered why the cupboard shelf is about to collapse...the Lodge Casserole/Skillet!!
I had doubled the recipe due to making it for a larger group and in a 9x13 and the thought did not even cross my mind until I turned on the oven light to check the progress and saw that the cornbread had expanded all the way to the top of the pan. I said a quick prayer and alas, the bread did not rise beyond its borders. I measured the lid and it was almost 12 inches across. The recipe called for a 10-inch skillet so I think that extra 2 inches saved my life, and my oven.

Anyway, I absolutely loved using my new skillet and can't wait to make something else in it. The only problem, it really is the heaviest cooking item I own, the website says it weighs 16 lbs!!! Oh, and the cornbread was delicious. If you want to try it yourself, here is the single recipe, double it for a large group or if you want a really thick cornbread and own the Lodge Enamel Casserole Skillet!

Cornbread

In a medium bowl combine dry ingredients:

1 cup flour

3/4 cup yellow cornmeal

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2-3 Tbsp sugar (use 3 if you like a sweeter cornbread)

Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl:

1 cup milk

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup canola oil or melted butter

Heat oven to 400F, once preheated, put 1 Tbsp butter in 10-inch cast-iron skillet and place in oven to melt butter, about 3 minutes. When butter is melted, swirl around in pan to coat bottom and edges. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients, stir until all combined. Pour into hot skillet and bake for 20-25 minutes or it passes the toothpick test.

Enjoy...I tried to remember this recipe off the cuff so there may be corrections posted. ;) I'll have a picture later today if I get home before Josh and can snap a shot of that last piece in the pan!

genius

2008-03-12T07:51:00.004-06:00

Imagine my delight when this arrived in the mail yesterday. I felt so good about myself. =)

ae

valentine's day

2008-03-05T09:41:00.003-07:00

This is totally overdue but I wanted to share it anyways. For Valentine's Day I had made a ton of cookies for Josh and I was going to decorate them all cute and pink. When it came down to it I felt bad for forcing him to eat 3 plates full of cookies so I decided to take them to him at work and let all the guys enjoy them.
Here are a few pictures, I even had a firetruck cutter so I made one of those! I made sure the driver ate that one. Sorry the color got kind of funny...I'm not a professional by any means!

Josh got me a little rosemary tree and that was really cute. :) Then I think I figured out that I am allergic to rosemary!

princess

2008-03-05T09:29:00.002-07:00

Some of you know how much I enjoy our dog. Some of you didn't know but now you do. I must confess I never was really into dogs but then Josh really wanted a dog and I finally gave in and I decided I wanted a black dog even though he wanted a yellow dog. For real. I like black more than yellow.

So I won out because when we finally decided it was the right time to get a pup and found the right one, the only one left from the litter was this beautiful black lab! Now, I can't believe I never wanted a dog before! I actually want another one when she gets a little older.

This past weekend Charlie got a bath. We re-installed the sprayer showerhead just for her. Actually it made our lives MUCH easier. After we got her all blow-dried I put on her little bandana and asked her if she wanted to get her picture taken. (Yes, I think it is totally fine to talk to dogs because sometimes they seem to understand you.) These are a few pictures from her photo shoot. I am not kidding you, I asked about the picture and then she sat like this. She did a couple other poses around the living room but I was too blasted shaky to capture them all in a decent manner.

funny sight

2008-02-25T08:46:00.005-07:00

So yesterday we were driving to church and we were stopped at a red light. We look up and there is the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile driving down the road so we immediately crack up. We watch as the Wienermobile turns into the Lexington/Research location of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints parking lot and proceeds to find a parking space. We wished we had a camera but had to settle for the good old camera phone. Hopefully you can see it well enough...it was a spectacular sight of the huge hot dog with the steeple behind it. Priceless? Yes.

Happy Monday!

telephone etiquette

2008-02-20T15:57:00.004-07:00

Well today I was struck again by how pleasant followers of Christ can be. Well, I am assuming the lady I was speaking with was a Christian because she was employed at a Christian school. So I will set up this story for you, hopefully it will make you laugh. After the shock wore off I laughed but at first I had to bite my tongue...

In case you don't know I work at a Christian organization, we provide services for Christian schools. I work with coordinating events and some of these events are hosted by our member schools.
Today I was trying to get in touch with one of our hosts, she had left a message, I had left a message, I never heard back. Then I got a message from her regional office saying she has not ever heard from me. So I was already a little put out because I had left a message and then she never called me back but called someone else to say I was not returning her call. So I decide to call her back, again.

A lady answers the phone and I am hoping it is her so I put my smile on and say, "Hello, is {lady's name} available?"

The lady on the phone responds, "*insert exasperated sigh here* Well if she was available she would have answered the phone... Give her 15 minutes and try again. *insert deep throaty sigh here*" I wish I could have recorded this so you could get the tone. It was scary.

That was it, that was all, I thought it was quite sweet, and professional I might add. She could have at least asked who was calling or if I wanted to leave a message. I was actually speechless for a second and then considered giving her Receptionist Etiquette 101 along with a big piece of my mind but thought better of it. Maybe she will do respond that way when her boss calls sometime. I hope.

Ok, just thought I would share that nice little part of my afternoon with you.

And for the record, I called back 12 minutes later and my lady answered the phone and I asked if she was available. She didn't say of course, duh, I answered the phone.

Have a great day!

ae

Charlie's First Hike

2008-02-13T09:45:00.002-07:00

Well, we should have posted this a few weeks ago but you know how it goes with leaving pictures on your camera forever...Charlie went on her first hike at Palmer Park. She also got to drink from her fancy new travel dish that she got for Christmas from my brother and sister-in-law (Rorick and Joyce).

Charlie is getting better on the leash. Of course she is still constantly panting. The chest harness has helped with that but she is so inquisitve and gets so excited she can hardly contain herself. Then she sounds like she is hyperventilating and about to throw up. It's nice. :) She can also shake and give high-5 now thanks to my dad. Next training item: staying down when people come to the door. :) A judo-knee to the chest doesn't seem to phase her...

Have a good day!

Charlie's First Hike!

Is there a dog in your family?

2008-02-11T11:41:00.001-07:00

If you have a dog in your family, well a canine to be exact, please consider visiting the website for the National Canine Weight Check. They have a simple quiz that you can take to determine if your canine is overweight and might need some help. For those of us with Labs, canine obesity is very common and also dangerous to their overall health. This website is a great resource if you are concerned about your dog's health. Just click on the photo...

er

2008-02-07T11:48:00.001-07:00

Have you ever been to the ER? Well in case you haven't, let me tell you, it is nothing like the TV show.
Last night we spent the evening in the ER with my sister. Everything ended up being fine. In the meantime, while Josh and I sat in the waiting room (almost 4 hours) I couldn't help but think about how fake that TV show now seems. :) Ok, I am sure some ER's are crazy with gun shot wounds coming in, screaming mothers with their unconscious babies, men collapsing as they fill out their paperwork, and of course people being brought in from the ambulance right through the main waiting area.
I learned (from my wonderful public servant husband) that there is actually a separate entrance for ambulances and those kind of urgent deals. I also learned that the majority of people who come in are mothers with their newborn or less than 2-years old children who have fevers or who have done things such as stick a screw up their nose.
A positive note from the evening, I have almost finished knitting the Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ). I have yet to determine what size baby it will fit when it is finished. All I know is it will be done in time for the shower this weekend!
Ok, have a great day and I hope you don't have to go to the ER anytime soon. If you do, be prepared , take some reading or something to do such as a knitting project!

Other fun things coming up: dog party! Charlie's siblings from her parent's previous litter will be turning 1. There will be a reunion of sorts with the 1-year olds, 5-month olds and I am sure many other non-related friendly dogs. I am sure there will be pictures.

ae

we are famous

2008-02-05T14:44:00.000-07:00

Well besides all (2 or 3) of you who read our blog, many other people will soon get to see us on the web too. Josh & Annie have made it on a professional portfolio!

In case you absolutely loved our wedding invitations and save the date cards you can now hire the fabulous designer to do some work you! Well you could have hired him a long time ago if you knew what was good for you. FYI: He designs anything you could imagine. All you have to do is tell him what you want and sha-zamm he will have many amazing designs for you to choose from. For instance, we met with Chris and the lovely Valeen shortly after we were engaged and told them we really didn't know what we wanted but here were a few things that we liked. We needed the whole deal from svae the dates to reception directions. Chris followed up and gave us like a thousand designs to choose from. We could not even contain our excitement when we saw them all, we grew ulcers trying to choose just the right one. Well, not quite ulcers but you know what we mean. He is a fantastically gifted man and is honoring God by using his talents, wouldn't you like to be a good steward and allow him to use those talents for your next birthday party or website or baby announcement???

tscha*ching Design, they will design your face off!

the way of the heart

2008-01-29T12:38:00.000-07:00

We are currently reading the book, The Way of the Heart by Henry Nouwen. The book is about connecting with God through solitude, silence, and prayer. Our small group is discussing 1 section per week. Last night we read the section on silence. It was very good. :)

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

doxology

2008-01-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

my doxology for today

Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye Heavenly Host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Amen.

for reasons I cannot mention here but so you know, today I must speak a word of glory for
my LORD, my Father, my Savior,
my Provider, my Constant,
my Blessing, my Rock, my Lover,
my Salvation, my Teacher,
my Refuge, my Guide, my ONE

I hope that you too in some way realize God's great provision and blessing today.

ae

new puppy!

2008-01-01T18:08:00.000-07:00

Here is our super cute new puppy! Her name is Charlie. She is a pure bred black lab. She is lots of fun! Visit our Picasa site (click the pic) to see more of her!

:: josh & annie ::

baby bunnie beanie

2008-01-01T18:05:00.000-07:00

Nope, not a baby Easterbunnie yet! But our good friends
the Devlin's are expecting their first and I made this adorable
little beanie for her! She will be born right before Easter too
so even better! Just thought I would share a pic of this
cute little thing. =)

ae

Christmas lights

2007-11-30T10:29:00.000-07:00

Ok, I just realized this morning that I haven't posted since we were planning for the wedding. I had to laugh, though. I read my last post about watching the sun set over the waters on the Belize beach...if I had taken the time to think about geography, I would have realized the beach is on the east side of the country. If you remember back to the third grade, you learned the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Ha. Oops. Needless to say, the sun never sat over those waters.

Anyways, I decided as a new husband, one of my first Christmas tasks must be the lights. I decided to consult my first life-line, Mr. Clark Griswold.

Note: I helped my Dad when I was like 10, but otherwise have no experience hanging lights from

a house.

TIMELINE

0845: Annie is at work and I decide today would be a good day to do this. Nice weather, plenty of energy, full pot of strong coffee.

1005: Decide I should probably do this. Pretty soon.

1105: Ok, ok, I'm dressed and ready.

1115: Make a stop at Big Lots for some supplies. Already have the lights, thankfully.

Supplies needed: Extension cords. Check.

Staple gun with 1,000 extra staples. Check.

Monster energy drink. Check.

1124: I think I'm ready. I remember watching my Dad sort out the miles of lights crammed into a bag, which last year seemed like a good idea. Same scenario. Except I have to sort out the lights he crammed into a bag last year. Or maybe it was the year before. Either way, it was a mess.

1127: Wow, I have way less lights than I thought.

1129: Wow, I have way less working lights than I thought.

1133: I have tried every combination known to man to find the bad bulb and replace it with the little bulb with the red tip. Nothing works. This is going to be a long day.

1134: Trash can full of tangled lights.

1136: I find new boxes of lights, they all work. I checked. Twice. Oh, and I found a box of gutter hanger things that I was trying to find at Big Lots. Wife will be happy to not have 30,000 staples in house.

1140: Fresh cup of coffee.

1141: The world is a better place.

1142: Ok, now time to get to work. I do a hot lap around my house and decide the best mode of attack. I decide people who put lights on the sides and back of their house are show-offs.

1150: Only doing the front. Our house is a rancher with a peaked garage, so I assumed I was going to be able to get all the gutter things up with a step ladder, but there are bushes in front of our living room, conveniently blocking step ladder access.

1153: Really thought jamming the ladder down into the bushes would work. Not so much. Neighbor's dog thought I was trying to break in, suddenly he really cares about the security of my house. I hate that dog.

1155: Make my way around back where I accessed the roof before.

Step 1: Line up 4' tall swamp cooler next to sliding glass door, close to picnic table.

Step 2: Place step ladder on exact center of swamp cooler. Literally, 1/2" to spare.

Step 3: Hop from picnic table to top of swamp cooler. PS it is on small wheels.

Step 4: Reconsider doing this with no one else home.

Step 5: Step carefully on center of ladder rungs.

Step 6: Panic a little as swamp cooler moves an inch to the left. Not much sick time left.

Step 7: Step from top of ladder to roof with no hand rails.

Step 8: Victory! Admire view. And manliness.

1200: So I'm on the roof scoping out my next move. I decide I have to hang a little over the edge of the front of the house and place gutter things without too much concern. Really wish I had some with me.

1202: Descend ladder, hop down to picnic table. I'm good.

1203: Return to ladder assembly with pocket full of gutter things.

1204: Ascend ladder. This time the other neighbor's (to the southwest) dog barks. Neighbor comes out to silence dog and looks at my assembly. "Oh gosh" is laughed from the other side of the fence.

1210: Figure out how these things work and place them equidistantly along roof line.

1220: Descend ladder again. This is getting old.

1230: Have the rest of the gutter things hung along roof line...ladder can't reach pitched garage roof line.

1233: Ascend ladder assembly with staple gun.

1234: Descend ladder. I'm an idiot. You need lights before you can staple them.

1235: Coffee break. I can't afford anymore careless mistakes if I'm going to have this done before that nasty looking snow storm rolls in. Consider moving to California. For two seconds.

1237: Back to work. I get a strand of lights and ascend ladder assemble. Try numerous ways to attach lights to gutter thing. This is a stupid invention. But whatever, I can make it work.

1243: Sneezing while leaning over roof line is fun.

1256: Have all lights routed tightly through gutter things to make a somewhat clean line. I wish I still had my staple gun.

1300: Grab staple gun, more lights, more coffee, extra staples.

1310: Roof line is done. Not bad, I must say.

1312: Plug in lights via a geniusly-hidden cord route. All of lights work. Except exactly half of pitched roof over garage.

1313: Cuss. A few times.

1314: Decide there must be something small wrong. I replace one light, miraculously, it was THE light that went out.

1315: Apologized to neighbor's dog for my language.

1317: Still admiring my accomplishment.

1318: I bet I have enough working lights to wrap windows and door.

Note: One door in the center of the house, small bedroom window to the left side. Large great window to the right side, above those ill-placed bushes.

1319: Measure and plan layout. Warm up and reload staple gun.

1320: Start placing lights around great window. This actually lines up perfectly to connect another line of lights to go around door and bushes make a come-back by providing effective cover for non-needed lights stretching from window to door. (You would think they would make lights where you can take out however many you don't want, and still complete the circuit. We have McDonald's that are run by robots, but this is still out of reach? Come on.)

1342: Decide that the ONE strand of colored lights (Crayola Pizazz Purple to be exact) we have should be centered. These go around the door.

1343: Also decide that the "hard" setting on the staple gun has enough force to penetrate a bullet-proof vest. Wonder what it would feel like for a little while.

1356: The other window is now complete but have two problems.

Problem 1: Once again, because of the design, there are little white and purple lights running along the ground to the window.

Problem 2: I have no idea where to plug everything in.

1403: Decide Problem 2 is of greater importance for the time. Wind is really starting to pick up.

1405: Scope out garage for closest outlet and longest extension cord. I found one that will work, but has to pass under a door.

1406: Try it a few times. I don't know. Looks like a bad idea.

1407: Wrap cord in black duct tape around contact points. I don't know. Looks like a bad idea.

1409: Decide since I own the house, I can make a minor adjustment to the door frame to allow cord access. I mean, I will probably be using this cord route forever, so it seems justifiable.

1412: Get out hack saw, flat head screwdriver, hammer, exacto-knife, sip of coffee.

1414: Start making small cuts to base board by the door in the interior of the garage, cut out more space in door keeper area, and more very careful cut around to exterior to garage.

Note: By cuts, I really mean linear lines of chunks removed. I actually had to go caveman. The hacksaw was too big, so I used the flathead screwdriver as a pick, and hammered out little sections.

1425: Genius!

1427: Take on Problem 1. I use a 3' decorative pine tree, place it by the small window, wrap the lights that would have gone straight up the wall around the tree to cleverly add more Christmas cheer to the front of our house, and wrap the rest of the lights around the window like normal. As for the lights running along the ground. Remember that black duct tape I used to protect the cord? It also doubles as a Christmas light hider. Since they haven't designed lights you can take out, I'm sticking one to them and making my own means of light-concealment. Ha!

1435: Look very carefully at every light, every cord, and every bend.

1436: I really think I smell smoke. Not normal fireplace smoke, an acrid, nasty plastic type of smoke. Great.

1437: Sniff around all the lights. Not all the lights, but enough to feel better.

1438: Go inside. Ok, nothing on fire. Go back outside.

1439: Ok, I visually see haze. Perfect. Trying to think how I'm going to explain this to the guys at work.

1445: Smoke has dissipated. Blame it on smoke conversion from the weather and someone else's house.

1645: Wife comes home. Victory! (after I take down the nice Christmas tree decorations from our little dead Aspen out front).

Pictures to follow.

josh

Christmas Decorations

2007-11-29T08:30:00.000-07:00

Here is me and my Christmas decorations at work. And my full trash can. :) We will soon post some photos of our Christmas decorations at home! Josh put lights up around the outside of the house and we have done a little bit inside. Hopefully we will cut our tree this weekend!

It is fun to decorate your own house for the holidays!

Love,

first thanksgiving

2007-11-26T10:13:00.000-07:00

We just celebrated our first Thanksgiving as a married couple. Nothing really changed. :)

Here are some pictures anyway...

Love,

::j&a::

The Lord's Prayer

2007-11-14T15:56:00.001-07:00

We were challenged this past Sunday at church to pray the Lord's Prayer each day this week.
Which version do you think of when you say The Lord's Prayer?

Matthew 6:9-13

New International Version (NIV)
9"This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11Give us today our daily bread. 12Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'

New King James Version (NKJV)
9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

New American Standard Bible (NASB)
9Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10'Your kingdom come Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11'Give us this day our daily bread. 12 'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13'And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]'

Luke 11:2-4

New International Version (NIV)
2He said to them, "When you pray, say: " 'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3Give us each day our daily bread. 4Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.' "

New King James Version (NKJV)
2 So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. 3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4 And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.”

New American Standard Bible (NASB)
2And He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. 3'Give us each day our daily bread. 4'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'"

Wedding Photos!

2007-11-09T10:11:00.000-07:00

Wedding Photos

Now we begin the oh-so-fun task of picking what pictures we want to print. =)

::j&a::

call me crazy...

2007-11-01T12:05:00.000-06:00

...or lazy. =) When someone calls me to register for one of the events I work with I direct them to our online registration instead of taking their information over the phone. It is just so much easier that way!

This world is becoming an interesting place when everything is so internet-focused.

PS-actual wedding photos are available, shoot us an email if you would like to see them. They are amazing!

Love,
Annie (& Josh)

photos

2007-10-25T11:52:00.000-06:00

Ok so we have some pictures from the honeymoon that you can see and also some pictures that our friends Sarah & Steve took at the wedding. The official wedding photos are almost done and we will give you information on that when the time comes.

Josh and Annie in Belize

Josh and Annie's Wedding