Blog Neglect

Woops. I haven't blogged in eleven days! And so much excitement has happened.

The rumors are true, I got UGGS for Christmas!

Oh, and I also got engaged. ;-)

More to come. Instead, I will use the holidays and my return to work post-Christmas as my excuse for failing to blog.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! We'll be celebrating the best way I can think of-with friends, at home, with games and lots of delicious bacon-based food dishes, complimented by Steve's fudge. Yay.

Yum.

May I recommend these cookies for your Christmas cookie baking? They are absolutely delicious and look beautiful on a cookie tray because they are all white-you don't use any brown sugar. So, they look very wintery. Oh, and they taste incredible. This is my Aunt Liz's recipe...she is very particular about her ingredients, but it makes a difference.

White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies

Ingredients

1 1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. sour cream

1/4 c. butter, softened

1/4 c. shortening (I use butter flavor Crisco)

1 t. vanilla (I use only the best Mexican vanilla such as Azteca)

1 egg

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 t. baking soda

1/4 t. salt

1 1/2 cup white chocolate chips (I use Ghirardelli)

1 cup roughly chopped macadamia nuts

 

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Beat sugar, sour cream, butter, shortening, vanilla, and egg in large bowl.  Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt.  Stir in chocolate chips and macadamia nuts.

 

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until set and just beginning to brown.  Cool 1 to 2 minutes;  remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

MORE IMPORTANTLY...Congratulations Jana and Justin! Thank you for letting us all celebrate with you on Friday night.

 

It takes a real man...

to go see The Nutcracker ballet with his girlfriend and not complain and gripe the entire time, or fall asleep.

Steve is a real man-not one complaint, and he even made me dinner beforehand. The Nutcracker was absolutely beautiful. Loved it.

Fi and the Tree

The first year I had Fi, we took a picture together in front of the fire and I actually used it in my Christmas card! Ha! It was hilarious. None of that this year, but I put on Fi's pretty Christmas bandana and thought she might like a little photo shoot in front of the tree. (Ok, truth be told, I was looking for ANYTHING to do but clean my bathroom...) 

Enjoy! You can click on the picture to enlarge.

*Note, clearly I am not a photographer and I am unable how to figure out how to photograph a Christmas tree without the subject in front being completely black!

More weird dreams.

Nothing too much new here. I had one more dream with Brandon in it. Then, last night, I had a dream that I gave birth to a dog. I mean, what? I didn't dream the actual "birth," but I had a dog that was like my child. I feel like I may need to schedule a mental check-up. Sometimes I go weeks at a time without remembering dreams and then WOW I'll have some real crazy ones.

Fiona was also having some crazy dreams. She woke me up at 3AM last night with muffled barks-I leaned over to tell her to shut her yap and saw she was sleeping. Interesting...

At about the same time, I checked my phone to learn the outcome of the Steelers' game. I then proceeded to lie awake for a half hour asking God "WHY?" I really felt sick about it. Hopefully 9 months will give the Steelers some time to get healed up from all the injuries. In the interim, I'm sure I will suffer all sorts of jabs and nasty remarks from "friends" and my boyfriend. Yay. GO VIKINGS!

What's in a dream?

The past two nights I've dreamt that I am in an episode of Beverly Hills 90210 and I am Brandon's girlfriend.

Does this mean I've been watching too many reruns after work in the evenings?

*I ALWAYS would pick Brandon over Dylan! I never understood why girls had crushes on Dylan. His life was a mess!

Check it out.

Have you seen this website? www.givesmehope.com

Read it. You will love it.

The Simple Things

We are officially in the Advent season-the season of waiting. But, it always ends up feeling like the season of rushing, doesn't it? Parties, shopping, cooking, decorating...and the list goes on. While those things can certainly feel burdensome at times, generally I really enjoy this time of year. I like participating in the season way more than some fancy gift under the tree.

On Friday, I strung the lights (all 1200 of them) on my parents' Christmas tree, and then as a family (with my Grandma there, too!), we put on all the ornaments, laughing and reminiscing as we went. My parents' tree is filled with ornaments they've collected over the years on travels or at important milestones, so it's really special to put up. It's certainly not a "decorative" tree, but it's sentimental, and those are the best kind. And yes, we could fill an entire tree with Outer Banks' ornaments!

Then, on Saturday, Steve and I went and picked out a tree for my house-my first real tree! It took me quite a while to string the lights on this one, and I was oh, slightly (read very) annoyed when we went to plug in the lights and half of one strand was completely out. Steve fiddled with the lights and even switched the fuse to no avail! But, with a fire blazing in the background, and Jingle All the Way on television (did you know there is a Christmas movie featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger? I didn't!), the ornaments were put on and now it's beautiful and smells incredible. We watched Love Actually first, but the process took so long we needed a second movie! Apparently Jingle All the Way is one of Steve's favorites.

Anyway, I was thinking yesterday that those are the things I love about Christmas. The little, simple things like putting up a Christmas tree, making Christmas cookies, watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer make this season magical. And no gift under the tree, no matter how sparkly, could replace the memories that come from the simple things at Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving!

*I'm really glad to see dogs were welcome at the first Thanksgiving table!

For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food, for love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

A long weekend and delicious food...what could be better?

I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving! I actually have work off on Friday (woohoo!) an am very excited to spend time with family and friends this weekend. Oh, and put up my first real Christmas tree! I have so much to be thankful for this year-I really have so much and am so blessed.

10 days

Wow, it's been 10 days since I've written a blog post. The two people who read have probably stopped. Last week was very busy and parts of it were kind of frustrating so I didn't really feel like blogging! 10 things that have happened since Nov. 12...

1. The Steelers lose again. Goodness. It'll be a miracle to make it to the playoffs.

2. New Moon = awesome! More awesome were the howling women when Jacob took off his shirt for the first time in the movie. Ha!

3. Christmas decorations are up...except of course for the Christmas tree. I just love this Christmasy time of year!

4. I made a delicious cranberry upside down cake. Yummy. I could've cooked it a bit longer, though. But, yum. 

5. I am almost done with my Christmas shopping. It feels great. I did most of it online, which is even better. Why are men so much harder to shop for than women? 

6. It's not Thanksgiving without a Turkey Trot in the morning. I've got a 5 miler on Thursday and I'm excited-like the 15th or 16th consecutive year of running one. The perfect excuse to pig out on Turkey day.

7. 3 day work week. Woohoo! And all casual days, too. Yay jeans.

8. My best friend from college had a baby this past week! She's about 8 weeks early, so she's a preemie, but she's doing much better now. 

9. A perfect Saturday night involves North & South on DVD, a fire in the fireplace and 11 hours of sleep! Love it.

10. I beat Steve at Jeopardy on Thursday. Don't let him tell you otherwise.

Ida

So hurricane Ida is wreaking havoc on my favorite place on the planet. Lots of rain, violent winds, and storms are hammering coastal Carolina and Virginia Beach. You know it's not good when the weather channel is broadcasting from Nags Head, NC.

Sadness. This precarious little piece of beach is so fragile being basically a strip of sand in between to bodies of water (and one being the Atlantic Ocean!). One day it will erode away (I know all about it-I did a huge project on beach erosion in the Outer Banks for my 5th grade science fair!). In fact, the lighthouse at Cape Hatteras (one of the most famous in America) has been moved back several times due to the beach eroding away. For many years you couldn't even climb it as a tourist because it was so dangerous.

I will say, though, it's always crazy to see the houses that get torn up in these storms. Some of them are literally steps away from curling waves on a calm day, so when the storms come and the waves are gigantic, these little cottages don't stand a chance. Several years ago after Hurricane Isabel, my family and I came upon a home that was missing the entire back wall! But, you could still see inside to the kitchen bedrooms, etc. Crazy.

The houses weren't originally built that close to the water, but over time, the hurricanes have brought the water that close to the houses.

This is the house from Nights in Rodanthe. Many people believe it will be one of the next ones to be demolished by storms.

I've always wanted to save up so that I could one day buy a house in the Outer Banks, but hurricane season is the reason I'll probably never be able to afford it-insurance!

Veterans Day

I remember one summer when my parents took my sister and I on a tour of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania on our way to the beach. I was absolutely mesmerized. I couldn't fathom how frightening it would be to engage in head-on combat, knowing odds are pretty good you might die. Of course, I've always been interested in history, but I couldn't believe so many men had died there-right in the field where I stood. I still would love to visit other Civil War battlefields, mostly because I am a huge dork.

As the saying goes "one death is a tragedy, one thousand deaths is a statistic," it's hard to grasp the real cost of our freedom in America. I rarely consider what a huge sacrifice veterans have made, whether or not they were injured or killed in a war. So, it's fitting to have a day to commemorate just that.

Though, I must say, it'd be much nicer to do this from the comfort of my home and not at work!

I guess I will be wearing a pants suit to court Friday.

I was nearly done with my 5 mile run this morning. Six houses away from my own where I could finally stop and stretch when BAM, I was on the ground. Ankle twisted. Knee and hip throbbing. Shorts torn at the hip (fabulous!). And of course, a gentleman was getting into his car for work and witnessed the entire thing.

Usually, I trip because I am clumsy. This morning, though, I tripped because of a huge pot hole. They cover my street. And the man who witnessed my fall said he has tripped over the exact same pot hole several times.

I realize the city of Cincinnati has some budgetary problems. But, fixing streets inundated with pot holes should be a priority. It's dangerous. I'm willing to bet the flat tire I had earlier this year is a result of the condition of my street.

You better believe I'm sending a letter. It's already drafted. :) (I did not take pictures of my hip bruise/cut as it would be highly inappropriate for the public. But, I assure you, it is worse than my knee.

At least the Steelers won last night.

Easy Peasy

This has just been "one of those weeks" where I find it hard to muster up the energy to cook dinner for myself. I bought all the ingredients to make this italian sausage soup I have made previously, but when I got home last night after 3 very long work days, the thought of chopping onions, garlic, carrots, celery, etc. was not too appetizing (no pun intended).

I will blame it on Daylight Savings Time because now when I leave work it's nearly dark, and completely dark by the time I pull in my driveway. Heck, I'm ready for bed!

Anyway, instead of picking up a frozen pizza or fast food, I decided to make something quicker than soup with the ingredients I had...and it was DELICIOUS. I must also add that I find something very de-stressing about cooking after work. So here's what I made, and I'm guessing you already have the ingredients on hand!

Easy Pasta Supper

2 Cups dried rotini (this is about half a regular box of pasta)
1 can cannelini beans (I always keep these on hand, delicious in soups, italian dishes and great for making hummus too!)-drained and rinsed
1 can diced italian style tomatoes
Some sweet italian sausage (I used 2 sweet italian turkey sausages from jennie-o I had leftover, just removed the casing)
1 tablespoon or so dried basil (if you have fresh, I'd use about 1/4 Cup)
Parmesan cheese

In medium pot, boil water and cook pasta according to directions on box. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium high heat, brown sausage, breaking into crumbles. Once browned, add in beans, basil and tomatoes, and heat over medium low heat until heated through. Drain pasta and add pasta in with sauce. Toss to coat. Serve with Parmesan cheese.

YUM.

Signs I am rapidly aging.

1. I am working on an appendix for a brief I need to file. I have to alphabetize the list of cases I used in the brief. Throughout the afternoon I've been repeating "a, b, c, d, e, f, g..." in a sing-song voice. Because sometimes I can't remember whether g comes before or after h.

2. I am 99% sure I spotted a gray hair today. I yanked it out and attempted to investigate it, but simultaneously I triggered the hand dryer and it blew away. I am crossing my fingers it was a fluke.

Yikes.

Happy Halloween!

I am looking forward to passing out candy and having a relaxing weekend with nothing really planned. Those are the best, right? I'm going to try really hard not to eat half of the candy that I pass out. I remember being a kid and trying to sneak candy out of the Halloween stash my parents would get for the trick-or-treaters...I always got caught!

My favorite Halloween costume growing up had to be the year I went as this space woman. I had this fantastic silver suit with a sparkly sequined belt and headband, plus glittery face powder. It was fabulous.

My least favorite Halloween costume had to be the year my mom dressed my sister and I as mimes when we were in kindergarten. I wanted to be a princess. My mom was quite the feminist...a princess costume would've gone against all that! :) My mom was in charge of the theater department where she taught school, and she just thought mimes were so cute and original. At our school Halloween Party, we had to tell everyone what our costumes were and I lied and said I was a princess. Ummmmmmmm... a princess with white face paint and black teardrops on her face. I still can't live that one down with my family.

What were your favorite/least favorite costumes growing up? Katy, I hope you share the story about the year you were a cave woman...just saying. ;)

Early bird gets the worm.

I heard Christmas music on the radio this morning. 93.3 FM. A little early, I'd say.

But, yes, I listened to it the entire drive to work.

Just like tv.

My favorite commercial as of late is the one with the terrier-looking dog who searches and searches for a place to safely keep his bone, finally getting insurance to keep it safe. I love that commercial.

My dog has always been quite the hoarder of bones. She will roam around the house with the bone in her mouth searching for that perfect spot to hide it. While she's searching, she usually whines a little, like she's all perplexed and concerned. The bone usually ends up some fantastic place-like in a basket of clean laundry, or wedged in the couch cushions.

Well, last night Fi was chewing for hours on this one bone. She carried it (unbeknownst to me) on our walk and finally up to bed. I wouldn't let her have it in the bed, so there it remained on the floor.

About 1 a.m., she grew restless in bed jumped down, and I heard her whining. I turned on the light and saw her searching for a place to hide that bone! Just like the commercial! Fi was dreaming of her bone being lost- he he. I opened my door and went back to bed. I have no idea where she hid it, but I'm sure I'll find it somewhere when I least expect it.

Funny stuff. :)

The Half Marathon

Well, it went great! I am still very sore, though, and my attempt to run this morning was very dumb. I ran for 12 minutes and my muscles felt terrible-bad idea! Hopefully the eliptical and/or stationary bike will help that lactic acid out of my muscles, I'm hobbling around like an old person. I love the 13.1 mile distance. I finished averaging a 8:45 minute/mile pace, which I was pleased with. It's long enough to feel hard, but short enough that you aren't literally crawling to the finish. I definitely anticipate many more of those races in my future.

Here we are starting off in the car. We had to wake up at 4:40 a.m.! Katy was very excited.

I look a little sleepy. And yes, I realize pink and red don't match.

Yay the starting line! More like starting bunch. There were approximately 20,000 people running the 1/2 and full marathon. It was a giant mass of people waiting to start. Took me 3 minutes just to get to the actual starting line once the gun went off! It was also very cold...32 degrees at the start!

Wow, me at the finish. So fast I just wizzed by Katy and the camera. He he.

Nothing better than a picture from behind while running. Oh wait.

I ran into a girl I ran cross-country with at Wooster at the finish line! How crazy is that?

Yay, I'm done! And really looking good. Yikes. And Fi was waiting the whole time, sporting her Bearcats' bandana and excited about that OSU loss.

I thought I lost my shoes.

I was wondering where all my shoes went this morning-oh, they are all under my desk at work! This is the problem when you wear black flats into work and switch to heels once in the office. The heels just sort of stay there and never make it home. That's 4 pair of shoes plus the flats I wore into the office and the black heels I carried with me today to wear.

Clearly I do not need more work shoes.

Did you hear that Massachusetts is planning to dole out the H1N1 vaccine to prisoners first? Interesting. I guess it's one less thing to worry about if you get attacked by a repeat offender when visiting Boston.