we made it to kinley's birthday party on saturday night - so fun! our friends lori and aaron came up a bit earlier in the afternoon and hung out at our house with us for a bit to catch up before the party. maura's sister brook and her family were there, as were mike's mom and step-dad, so it was a small party, but still a good time. we got to eat kinley's favorite foods, which consisted of macaroni and cheese, calzones, lil smokies in bbq sauce, and fresh fruits and veggies - very diverse, no? it is amazing to watch 2-year olds open presents, by the way. brook's oldest boy's bday is today so maura got him a few gifts to open while kinley opened her presents, and between the two toddlers, it was like a whirlwind of shredded paper and flying boxes and squeals of delight. sadly the two cute outfits we got kinley were nowhere near as big a hit with her as the giant legos and babydoll outfits she got from grandparents - alas. maura liked them, though, which counts for something!
also this weekend, i finally bought myself a food processor! i've been debating the purchase for approximately 3 years, and had purchased a small 1-2 cup food chopper at wal-mart a while back in an attempt to convince myself i didn't need an expensive kitchen appliance, but hated it and thus never used it. in reading reviews of food processors on consumer reports, though, i found that kitchen aid and cuisinart food processors are basically ranked the same - but bed bath and beyond has a $20 mail-in-rebate on their kitchen aid food processors! so between a b3's 20% off coupon (which doesn't exclude kitchen aid - i was surprised!), a $24 in-store credit leftover from christmas, and the $20 mail in rebate, i got this normally $200 food processor for $115 + tax, which is 44% off. awesome! i haven't used it yet (although i should have last night - i had to chop two onions and a bunch of celery and cilantro for the pioneer woman's thai chicken soup), but i'm very excited. homemade pesto here i come.
i've been fighting a cold for the past week, and apparently my body decided to add a stomach bug to that last night. i made dinner, started feeling gross and took my temperature to find it at 96.15*. what? i then spent the rest of the night curled up on the sofa under three blankets, with a bottle of pepto by my side, a packet of saltines on my lap, and watching my gilmore girls season 3 dvd. by the time i went to bed, my temperature was a normal (for me) 97.6*, but this morning as i was getting ready for work, it was up to 99.4*. i took some tylenol and headed to work anyway, and so far i'm surviving the day. i'm tired and my tummy still hurts, though, so i'm debating canceling tutoring for tonight ...
p-dub
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labels:
opinion
apparently the pioneer woman was on fox's morning show today - she just posted the video of it on facebook and seriously, how cute is she? i just watched the entire 8 minute video and had a smile on my face through all of it.
my friend anna asked me a few months ago why i (and people in general) like the pioneer woman so much when she writes all about country life and i am clearly a very suburban gal. i think it's because her blog is so optimistic and simple and homey and cheerful. it's light, it's humorous, it's about family and cooking and making memories, and that's something that pretty much anybody can relate to. plus, as we've clearly already established, i like happy endings - i know that bad stuff is out there and i can (and do) read about it and see it anywhere, but i don't want to dwell on it. the pioneer woman's blog is sort of like one big ongoing happy ending.
okay, i need to go finish up my grocery list so that i can get shopping done and hunker down on the couch in my snowflake covered flannel pj's and watch figure skating on tivo. i would put grocery shopping off until tomorrow, but that's been my philosophy since the beginning of the month and the pantry situation is getting a little desparate. plus sunflower has sirloin steaks on sale for $2.97/lb ending tonight, and i'd like to stock up while i can. mm, steak.
my friend anna asked me a few months ago why i (and people in general) like the pioneer woman so much when she writes all about country life and i am clearly a very suburban gal. i think it's because her blog is so optimistic and simple and homey and cheerful. it's light, it's humorous, it's about family and cooking and making memories, and that's something that pretty much anybody can relate to. plus, as we've clearly already established, i like happy endings - i know that bad stuff is out there and i can (and do) read about it and see it anywhere, but i don't want to dwell on it. the pioneer woman's blog is sort of like one big ongoing happy ending.
okay, i need to go finish up my grocery list so that i can get shopping done and hunker down on the couch in my snowflake covered flannel pj's and watch figure skating on tivo. i would put grocery shopping off until tomorrow, but that's been my philosophy since the beginning of the month and the pantry situation is getting a little desparate. plus sunflower has sirloin steaks on sale for $2.97/lb ending tonight, and i'd like to stock up while i can. mm, steak.
food brain
we went to our 5280 dinner at the restaurant kevin taylor on sunday night with our small group - so fun! the portions were a little on the small side (which is par for the course at a fancy restaurant), but oh so tasty. i got the asparagus and gnocchi in a truffle parmesan sauce for my appetizer, lamb loin and ravioli with artichoke and gouda for my entree, and for dessert a cookies and cream semifreddo (which is basically like a chilled cookies and cream mousse with an oreo crust on the bottom). yummm. i'm hungry just typing that out. the guys were all a little disappointed that the food didn't come in greater quantity and threatened to make us go to outback steakhouse (where you get four huge courses plus beverage) for 5280 dinner next year. it's entirely possible that they were just spoiled by rodizio's all you can eat meat last year, though. (personally, i'd rather take advantage of eating at amazing fancy restaurants that i would never go to normally when i have an opportunity like 5280 - dinner for two for $52.80 from a pre fixed menu. i think scott's of the same opinion, so we'll have to work on the rest of them.)
on a much less fancy-food note, i made my favorite cooking light baked potato soup last night and it was sooo good. if you haven't made it yet, please do so tonight - you will love it. i bake my potatoes in the microwave because it's way quicker than the oven, use the baggied 'real bacon' bits from the grocery so that my house doesn't smell like bacon for the next week, and skim milk because that's what we have - it is so quick and so easy. heat flour and milk, dump in potato, cheese, sour cream, seasoning, and green onion, and serve. mmm. i'm a little bit jealous because we had leftovers and i had scott take them for lunch today. yes, my job buys my lunch so i don't have to bring leftovers, but it's just that good. i basically keep sour cream and bacon bits in the fridge solely for the purpose of this soup.
let me see - non-food related things going on in my life ... i sent the check off to our mortgage company last week to have it endorsed and returned, but they just called and said that our adjuster stopped filling out the amount of the check midway through, so they have to send it back to us, have it finished, and then return it to them. sweet. it's fine, though, we're really not in any imminent rush on the roof thing - it's not like we have any leaks in the house. the gutter guy is coming out to revise his estimate on thursday (apparently the gutter industry is hard up for work - as soon as we mentioned getting a comparison bid, the gutter guy said he could drop his price for us). we'd rather use this guy since they work with our roofing company on a normal basis so we think communication would be easier, but we also want to make sure we're getting a good price. i feel guilty sometimes when people drop their prices for me because i know that they need the profit to make a living, but i have to be a wise consumer and trust that they're being a wise business person. if i only had unlimited cash, i'd happily be fleeced by every home repair person in the metro. oh, and we're having a house painter come out to give us an estimate on doing our trim on thursday. we really need to figure out colors.
and, unrelated to both food and my roof, i have a sore throat today. it's been building since sunday, but has definitely progressed to full on sore for today. i woke up a few times last night with a cramp in my forehead muscles because i was furrowing my brow so tightly because it hurt to swallow in my sleep. i took some advil and scott dug out the chloroseptic strips for me, and i'm pretty sure i'll survive. 95% chance, at least. hmm, maybe if i complain about my sore throat enough, scott will leave the baked potato soup for me and my achy throat to enjoy! mm, except that i had already planned to make this bacon and mushroom pasta for dinner tonight ... and, well, mushrooms and bacon and pasta just sounds so tasty.
(for the record, no, i do not cook like this all the time. last week on the menu: papa john's heart pizza, tuna casserole, smashburger/mcdonald's, and three nights where i assume we must have eaten leftovers because i cooked nothing.)
on a much less fancy-food note, i made my favorite cooking light baked potato soup last night and it was sooo good. if you haven't made it yet, please do so tonight - you will love it. i bake my potatoes in the microwave because it's way quicker than the oven, use the baggied 'real bacon' bits from the grocery so that my house doesn't smell like bacon for the next week, and skim milk because that's what we have - it is so quick and so easy. heat flour and milk, dump in potato, cheese, sour cream, seasoning, and green onion, and serve. mmm. i'm a little bit jealous because we had leftovers and i had scott take them for lunch today. yes, my job buys my lunch so i don't have to bring leftovers, but it's just that good. i basically keep sour cream and bacon bits in the fridge solely for the purpose of this soup.
let me see - non-food related things going on in my life ... i sent the check off to our mortgage company last week to have it endorsed and returned, but they just called and said that our adjuster stopped filling out the amount of the check midway through, so they have to send it back to us, have it finished, and then return it to them. sweet. it's fine, though, we're really not in any imminent rush on the roof thing - it's not like we have any leaks in the house. the gutter guy is coming out to revise his estimate on thursday (apparently the gutter industry is hard up for work - as soon as we mentioned getting a comparison bid, the gutter guy said he could drop his price for us). we'd rather use this guy since they work with our roofing company on a normal basis so we think communication would be easier, but we also want to make sure we're getting a good price. i feel guilty sometimes when people drop their prices for me because i know that they need the profit to make a living, but i have to be a wise consumer and trust that they're being a wise business person. if i only had unlimited cash, i'd happily be fleeced by every home repair person in the metro. oh, and we're having a house painter come out to give us an estimate on doing our trim on thursday. we really need to figure out colors.
and, unrelated to both food and my roof, i have a sore throat today. it's been building since sunday, but has definitely progressed to full on sore for today. i woke up a few times last night with a cramp in my forehead muscles because i was furrowing my brow so tightly because it hurt to swallow in my sleep. i took some advil and scott dug out the chloroseptic strips for me, and i'm pretty sure i'll survive. 95% chance, at least. hmm, maybe if i complain about my sore throat enough, scott will leave the baked potato soup for me and my achy throat to enjoy! mm, except that i had already planned to make this bacon and mushroom pasta for dinner tonight ... and, well, mushrooms and bacon and pasta just sounds so tasty.
(for the record, no, i do not cook like this all the time. last week on the menu: papa john's heart pizza, tuna casserole, smashburger/mcdonald's, and three nights where i assume we must have eaten leftovers because i cooked nothing.)
why i love kinley
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labels:
friends
kinley (mike and maura's little girl) turns two this next weekend - crazy! she is having a curious george themed party to which we are invited, which is very exciting as it is the first kids' birthday party i've been invited to since i was a kid. since she has taken to stripping off all of her clothes and her diaper whenever her diaper gets the least bit wet, they decided that they may as well start the potty training process. on saturday, they took her to target to get the cool sesame street potty insert (it sits on top of a normal seat so that the kid doesn't fall in) and some big girl undies. when we went over to their house on saturday night, kinley was happily running around the house at top speed wearing her undies and a t-shirt.
anyway, at some point maura took kinley back for a bathroom break, but kinley just stood in the hall waiting for me to join them - apparently her auntie m is special enough want to show off new tricks to! so cute, right? when she was getting ready for bed a little bit later, maura had her get out her jammies and diaper, but when kinley brought them back out to the living room to be changed, instead of taking them to maura, she set them down in front of me and sat in my lap so that i'd get her ready for bed! adorable and heart melting. you just can't say no to a request like that.
anyway, at some point maura took kinley back for a bathroom break, but kinley just stood in the hall waiting for me to join them - apparently her auntie m is special enough want to show off new tricks to! so cute, right? when she was getting ready for bed a little bit later, maura had her get out her jammies and diaper, but when kinley brought them back out to the living room to be changed, instead of taking them to maura, she set them down in front of me and sat in my lap so that i'd get her ready for bed! adorable and heart melting. you just can't say no to a request like that.
suspense
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labels:
date night,
house
so apparently i was wrong in my assumption that the present scott is going to get me was for valentine's day. i asked, and whatever it is is not for my birthday either - or for any other occasion. so i'm hanging in suspense until the right rainy day comes along! i'll keep you posted. (valentine's date was lovely, btw. we both really enjoyed "emma", i enjoyed my chianti while scott had a nice glass of mountain dew, and our pizza was heart shaped and covered in pepperoni. incidentally, i do not recommend papa john's heart pizza - it's thin crust, which is great with some toppings, but just doesn't cut it with pepperoni. mental note to stick to papa murphy's shaped pizzas.)
we had our roof adjustor out yesterday morning, finally. since scott and i both had to work and just had the roofer there on our behalf, the adjustor called me post-appointment with good news for us: he agreed that the roof was very hail damaged and worthy of full replacement! i believe that his full replacement price was $10,5xx - but they'll take our $1000 deductible and $28xx for depreciation out of that total, so we'll get a check for about $6700.
BUT, if we replace the roof with a comparable roofing material, we can send in proof (after the job is done, of course) to the insurance company and get the $28xx depreciation money refunded to us, so that we only have to pay our deductible out of pocket. i'm not sure if "comparable" means using a certain grade of asphalt shingles, or if it refers more to us not upgrading from asphalt shingles to, say, copper roofing or something, but trust me, we'll be making sure we use comparable materials. (try to picture our suburban 1970s trilevel in the midst of a jungle of asphalt roofs with a glowing copper roof - pretty funny!) anyway, his price was right on par with the estimate we got from our roofing company, which is good. also good is that, while i need to finalize our '09 taxes still, i think that our refund should cover the new roof and new gutters! now i just need to figure out what color i want everything to be ...
we had our roof adjustor out yesterday morning, finally. since scott and i both had to work and just had the roofer there on our behalf, the adjustor called me post-appointment with good news for us: he agreed that the roof was very hail damaged and worthy of full replacement! i believe that his full replacement price was $10,5xx - but they'll take our $1000 deductible and $28xx for depreciation out of that total, so we'll get a check for about $6700.
BUT, if we replace the roof with a comparable roofing material, we can send in proof (after the job is done, of course) to the insurance company and get the $28xx depreciation money refunded to us, so that we only have to pay our deductible out of pocket. i'm not sure if "comparable" means using a certain grade of asphalt shingles, or if it refers more to us not upgrading from asphalt shingles to, say, copper roofing or something, but trust me, we'll be making sure we use comparable materials. (try to picture our suburban 1970s trilevel in the midst of a jungle of asphalt roofs with a glowing copper roof - pretty funny!) anyway, his price was right on par with the estimate we got from our roofing company, which is good. also good is that, while i need to finalize our '09 taxes still, i think that our refund should cover the new roof and new gutters! now i just need to figure out what color i want everything to be ...
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