Priorities

Owning a new home with a deck like ours, its imperative to have a BBQ. So naturally, the first thing we did when the weather started getting nice in Minnesota is look at BBQ grills (ok, let's be honest, Ryan has been looking at them for the last 6 months). We were elated when we finally found "the one". Yes, it was love at first sight, and it's performance for our inaugural grill was superb. I would be a little concerned that Ryan has formed too close of an attachment with his new toy, but I think its a good sign that he hasn't named it yet.

Please, come out to visit us--- dinner will be on us!

Proud Papa --- err I mean Owner.


Master Griller in Action


The Spread. I made mom's home-made potato salad.


Check out that burger. The works.


We love spring!

APRIL FOOLS ... NOT!

Seriously, with all the April Fools engagements, pregnancies, etc on Facebook, that's all everyone is doing all day-- "APRIL FOOLS!"

So, naturally, when I leave a voice mail for Ryan with the following message:

"Hey babe, its me. Um, I hit my knee on the desk and ended up passing out, falling down and hitting my head on file cabinet. Can you call me? Love you, bye."

His response was:
"Hey Ky, I got your message. At first I was totally worried, but then I realized, APRIL FOOLS, good one!!"

Too bad at that point I had to tell him:
"No really baby, I passed out and hit my head. Can you come check on me?"

The best part is that Ryan had been trying to come up with a good April Fools joke all morning --- and then was a little bummed that I beat him too it. Sorry, baby. This is for real.

Wondering what really happened?

I was on the phone with my mom, I had her on speaker phone, while I was at my desk. I went to lift my leg up onto my chair, and I bumped my knee on the desk. It hurt pretty bad, but I didn't think I had hit it that hard. I guess I did because I started feeling dizzy, and the next thing I knew I was face down on the ground. I woke up really disoriented-- I thought I was dreaming or something, then thought I had fallen asleep at my desk! Then I realized I was on the floor! I heard my mom calling my name--- she had heard the fall. I told her I passed and she informed me I needed to call someone. Which is when I called Ryan.

I'm still not sure why this all happened, but it did. I'm feeling ok today, but have been taking it easy. I am super sore-- I think I jarred my neck when my head hit the file cabinet. I have a goose-egg bump on my forehead and I'm hoping it won't bruise too bad.

Anyone know a good physical therapist in Minnesota? Or Chiropractor? ...

Kids & Treats

Ryan and I team teach the 9-10 year old class at church. Our first few weeks I noticed our kids weren't bringing their scriptures on their own. We created an incentive plan, that if they brought their scriptures (or went and got some from the library) without us asking, for 4 weeks in a row, then they would get a treat. Seriously, this little idea worked like a charm. We are starting month 4, and all 9 of our kids bring their scriptures each week.

This week, I decided to make them sugar cookies. Don't ask me why I decided to embark on the most time-consuming treat in the world, but I was determined to make cute little eggs, bunnies and duckies to hand out to our kids. Needless to say that I ran out of time to really decorate them cute, but at least they were tasty and festive for the upcoming Easter Holiday.

As Ryan was eating the last of these delicious cookies last night, he mentioned he was sad there weren't a few more for him.

"They are just so good" he said.

I smiled and told him that I would gladly make him some more. His response? (Probably the most MBA-like thing I have ever heard)

"Well, I don't know. I think theses cookies get the least back on ROI".

He explained that he watched me work on these bad-boys for at least 5-hours (between mixing the dough, letting it get cold, rolling it out, baking them, and then frosting...). I guess he is right. They do take forever.

I said "they are such a great treat though, so good".

He said "Yes, but your peanut butter chocolate chip cookies definitely get a better return on investment. Less prep time and just as good".

Well there you have it, folks. Here, why don't I share my fabulous cookies electronically?



ps. I know I'm the worlds worst froster. I'm working on that.

I'm learning a lot from working from home.

1. I email my husband a lot. He is like my co-worker, but not. He is the one I can rant and rave to, because, most people have a co-worker bff that they can do all this complaining to, but I don't really have that luxury. I guess I could talk to Lily, my plant, but she doesn't always respond. Sorry, husband, I hope you don't mind.

2. I love that I get to watch the day happen. The sun wakes me up as it beams through my office window, and then in the afternoons I can take a little lunch break and sit in the sunlight that comes in through my bay window and watch all the little kiddos walk by my house. Some people are in office buildings and don't get to see the day at all. I am lucky.

3. I talk to myself a lot. This goes back to numero uno above. I don't have anyone else to talk to, so I talk to myself. They are mostly pep-talks. I forgot how hard it is to start a new job. Any new job. Its just hard to learn everything and not be hard on yourself when you make mistakes. Well maybe you don't make mistakes, but I do.

4. I need a better routine. Right now I just get up and get working. I'll wait to get ready till the end of the day. But then if I'm tired or have no reason to get dressed up, I won't. Sorry, husband, I hope you like me in my sweats.

5. Quick runs in the afternoon really get me going. Working through lunch so I can take 30 minutes to run around my cute little town is one of the best things about this work-at-home gig. I just have to make sure I take the time to leave my desk and go do it.

So, basically, I'm learning a lot on the job, and I'm learning a lot about myself. My body and brain get tired from all the learning. But when we learn we grow, and when we grow, we become better, right?

I hope so.

Ranunculus

I have these gorgeous flowers blooming on my dining room table right now. They make me smile every time I think about them. Love love love.

I don't usually like to get political on my blog-- but this is such a big deal and has such vast consequences, that I wanted to post something on the Healthcare bill. Its not even my own words, its good 'ol Mitt Romney, but I thought he put it well:


"America has just witnessed an unconscionable abuse of power. President Obama has betrayed his oath to the nation — rather than bringing us together, ushering in a new kind of politics, and rising above raw partisanship, he has succumbed to the lowest denominator of incumbent power: justifying the means by extolling the ends. He promised better; we deserved better.


He calls his accomplishment “historic” — in this he is correct, although not for the reason he intends. Rather, it is an historic usurpation of the legislative process — he unleashed the nuclear option, enlisted not a single Republican vote in either chamber, bribed reluctant members of his own party, paid-off his union backers, scapegoated insurers, and justified his act with patently fraudulent accounting. What Barack Obama has ushered into the American political landscape is not good for our country; in the words of an ancient maxim, “what starts twisted, ends twisted.”


His health-care bill is unhealthy for America. It raises taxes, slashes the more private side of Medicare, installs price controls, and puts a new federal bureaucracy in charge of health care. It will create a new entitlement even as the ones we already have are bankrupt. For these reasons and more, the act should be repealed. That campaign begins today."
Governor Romney 3.22.2010 on House passage of the healthcare bill.

HAPPY ST PATRICKS DAY!

Wow, I don't know if I have ever enjoyed St Patricks Day so much!! The weather was perfect for a spring day in Minnesota! 60 degrees, I laid out on my deck for a few minutes this afternoon and then headed downtown to Main Street for the St. Patrick's Day Parade So many people out wearing green and their top hats, and beads, it was so fun to see so many people celebrating! The parade was so much fun, I think I will make it an annual event to attend! If I do, I will have to be better prepared next year with green beads and maybe a top hat! With my green scarf I felt under-dressed for sure.

Downtown Hopkins Parade


Don't worry-- Hopkins has a mascot, the Raspberry!


What parade is complete without a fire engine?


And Miss Ireland, herself, was here!


Ok, so maybe not. But she sure was cute!


Just a shot of downtown



We considered going to get cornbeef and hash for dinner, but since Ryan had it for lunch we hit up LIONS TAP for dinner. The 2nd time around was even better than the first, I think we may have a new hamburger favorite for Minnesota!! For dessert, we're having Irish Soda Bread that I picked up at a local bakery :)



Isn't it fun to be festive?

I LOVE HOPKINS!

Why is it the coolest city in the world, you ask?

1. I can go for a quick run and hit up the Bank and the Post Office in one quick swoop.
2. The neighborhoods are just so dang cute.
3. I found a Mercado downtown that sells tacos...look for a future blog post to see if they are legit or not (at least the Mercado looks legit).
4. The Movie "The Convincer" is currently being filmed here.
5. St Patricks Day Parade downtown on Wednesday!!

Spring is upon us!!

Want to know how I know?? It's not the date, and I live in Minnesota so its definitely not the weather, its when Cadbury Mini Eggs come out onto the shelves!



Seriously, these things are my FAVORITE Easter candy. I swore I would only buy one bag this year (um yeah right!). Too bad I've already gotten through one bag (at least it took me a week or two to finish it off...) and I need to go get more, I think.

I forgot about adapting to a learning curve when you start a new job. Things are going good, but I am always so hard on myself for making even the smallest of mistakes. My answer for this? Eating more eggs. I know, I will probably gain weight and then have to lose it for Ashley's wedding in June, but that is still 3 months away, so I have time, right?

Ok, I need more eggs.

A Very Very Un-Iversary to me, to me.
181 days
25 weeks
4344 hours
260,640 minutes
15,638,400 seconds
Or... 6 months of marital bliss!!



Wow, I can hardly believe its been 6 whole months that I've been married. Time really does fly by when you're having fun!! It's been amazing -- I am the luckiest girl in the whole wide world to be married to such a smart, kind, patience, funny, incredible man.

Music

Isn't music such an amazing thing? With my new job, I think I need some new music to listen to and be inspired by ... but I need some tips. I am so out of touch with the music scene. I really do like all types and forms of musics, so lay it on me.

What are you favorite songs/artists you are listening to right now?

Saturday is a special day

After being on the road for 3 weeks, Ryan and I decided that we should probably get some things in order. So, we started our Saturday with a big bowl of oatmeal and then hit the gym to get pumped for the day.

We came back and decided on the divide and conquer on the house. It took us a while but we finally had our house spit-spot-clean. It felt so good! The sun was shining, our house is clean. What a great Saturday so far. We made lunch (yummy grilled chicken salad sandwiches) and then decided a nap was in order. After that, we got ready and went out to run some errands. Aren't Saturdays great?

After a busy day we decided to stay in and watch the Mens Volleyball game & this weeks' episode of PSYCH! Ryan made amazing chocolate oreo milkshakes to go along with our tv-watching.

Just another Saturday, getting lots done to prepare for Sunday and for this upcoming week. Although it seems pretty uneventful, sometimes these days are my favorite because its a full day spending time with my husband. These are the types of things we didn't get to do together when we were dating because of the whole Long-Distance thing, so I cherish every errand I get to run with him, holding his hand (and sometimes skipping) as we go!

Love letters & Lavendar

I went home to California a few weeks ago. My older sister, Tarin, and I, hosted a beautiful bridal shower for our little sister, Ashley. She is getting married in June to her high school sweetheart. Ashley's colors are an eggplant purple, gold and green. The couple is currently in a long distance relationship, and with their both serving full-time missions for our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; their relationship has been centered around a theme of writing letters, emails, etc. Between Ash's colors and this theme, her Bridal Shower theme became Love Letters & Lavender.

We had beautiful tulip arrangements and rosemary (fresh lavender was out of season) on the tables (lavender is out of season) and the gifts for the guests were letter openers with the Claddah on top (another tradition of the fiance's family). For a game, we had the guests team up and write love letters to/from the Bride and Groom-- they were so sweet and funny, I loved it!

Lunch was served with croissant sandwiches and an assortment of salads, and Tarin made a fabulous cake! It was such a fun shower with great company and a great reason to celebrate! I can't wait for the Wedding! June 5, 2010.



the tables


tables 2


the food.



beautiful cake



the beautiful cake-maker



The GURLS



Tri Fam


Gma & Favorite Aunt Jani


Besties


The Happy Bride to Be!!

Our First Merrill CRISIS

We learned a few things tonight:
5. Don't take a shower while running your washing machine.
4. Angie's list may have been a good investment.
3. The paint on our laundry room floor was is water resistant (why go cheap on something like that?)
2. We'll be needing to remodel our basement bathroom sometime soon. Marc & Tarin, feel like a trip to Minnesota?

and finally ...

1. Home-ownership is tough, but of course, worth it.

___________________________________________________

So, I totally would have documented this night with pictures, but Ryan seemed a little too stressed to appreciate that. Also, let's be honest, it was gross and not showing the best side of our cute little home, so why would I showcase that on my blog? I'll just post some after pictures when we scrounge up enough money to fix our basement. Until then, just trust me on this one.

Here's the Story
We were going about our day -- normal Saturday stuff. Gym, errands, laundry, showers. Well its the last 2 activities that really did us in. Apparently we clogged our main drain and ultimately flooded our basement-- the laundry room and bathroom, specifically. Ryan went to go change the wash and found 2 inches of water. It was awful. Luckily we hopped on Angie's list (click here), and pretty soon had someone here to fix the problem. A few hours later we found out all the carpet in the bathroom was soaked through, so we had to rip that up and then buy a dehumidifier to help get all the moister out ...

We're exhausted.

Hopefully we've taken care of the problem and it won't happen again. We definitely got a hard lesson in home-ownership after only 6 months of owning our own home. I had no idea. The bummer-side to this story is (a)we didn't get to go out on our group date with our friends (b)we dropped a few hundred bones (thank goodness for rainy day savings) and (c)our basement is kind of a mess.

So you might ask: What's the good in all of this? I got to solve a problem and spend the evening with my amazing husband, who, as always, takes care of me and our home.

My new job.

So, I have a new job. It takes me places like Florida in the middle of winter. I'm pretty jazzed about it.



Here's my morning run on the beach.



The jellyfish I saw on the beach. There were hundreds of these guys washed up on the sand. It was crazzzy.



Dinner at The Cuban Cafe = AMAZING. Seriously, so good. (You can see that I ate all the bread in the basket by myself).


While I was waiting for my check a random guy across from me asked "Do you always eat alone?" Is it weird to eat in restaurants alone? I don't think so, but maybe you have a different opinion.

SNOW

While in Sunny California, I can not tell you how many times I had to try and describe the current weather conditions in Minnesota. Most people I talked to couldn't really comprehend what it is like to have 5-6 foot piles of snow lining your driveway ... so I thought I would help you all out and show you a few pictures of our house in the middle of WINTER. Note: I also had to explain how, after 6 months of living in Minnesota, I already had an accent...

These were taken a couple of weeks ago after a small snowy storm--- and they really don't do it justice.



This is my cute new car.


The park across the street.




So there you have it. A little taste of our Minnesota Winter lives.

I love books.

I will be traveling these next few weeks so I am in desperate need of some book recommendations. The last few books I have read (and loved) include:

Same Kind of Different As Me
The Book Thief
Beautiful Boy

These are all non-fiction. Oh wait, The Book Thief is fiction. Why do I always confuse those descriptors? I like fictions, too. Can you help me??

If you don't, I will have to resort to an emotional-last-ditch-effort pick while I'm wandering around the MSP/FLL/SFO/DEN airport(s).

I feel like I am so behind. I had some posts planned out but I didn't bring the right cord to CA with me to upload pictures and be able to write my posts. and really, the posts revolve around the sweet pics, so those will have to wait. sorry to leave you all in anticipation of what is going on in our lives ... to sum it up: I am on Vacation (well kind of) -- I'm in CA visiting my family and am thrust in the middle of wedding fever over here. I'm enjoying the sunshine, and being able to wear skirts with no tights, open up the sunroof in the car and just have a little R&R with my momma.

Winter LOVE Party

To further embrace this winter season, we decided to throw a Winter LOVE Party. We invited some of our friends over from the singles ward we used to attend, and some couples from our new ward. I spent all day Friday and Saturday preparing (ie: shopping, cooking and baking) and I loved every second of it!! It was so great to see some of our friends we haven't seen in a while, and I like to think our party gave everyone something to look forward to in the middle of a Minnesota Winter. Some of the groupies even went over to the park and went ice skating on our local ice skating rink! I can't wait to have another party in the summer where I can report that we BBQ'd and played a game of softball. Oh well, at least I can report that the winter LOVE party was a success!! I decided to make this an annual thing ... maybe its because it gives ME something to look forward to in the winter!

Note: I didn't take quite enough pictures (You know how hosting a party goes) and so here are the few I took.

The Spread


Since you can't really see it in the pictures, I made: Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup, a Cheeseball, Jalepano Artichoke dip, Chocolate Covered Strawberries & Oreos, Sugar Cookies (that I didn't have time to frost--- oops!), Brownie Trifle, and Cranberry Bread.



Two Fabulous girls that are in the Minnetonka Ward with us!!

Winter Carnival

Since winter is such a big deal here in Minnesota, Ryan and I have been trying to EMBRACE winter through a variety of activities. One of which was, Winter Carnival in St. Paul.

Supposedly, every 10 years or so, this carnival creates an Ice Castle (like, the size of a 2 story building--legit). Unfortunately for us, they didn't build a castle this year, but we still enjoyed the Ice Sculptures, Ice Maze and Snow Sculptures!

















It was so cold this day that after the Winter Carnival we went to my new favorite little deli for the best Tomato Basil soup and fresh bread! YUMM.

Jeralyn, this one's for you.

Over Thanksgiving break, Ryan and I spent some time in Utah with his family. Jeralyn, my new mother-in-law, took me out for a little shopping the day after Thanksgiving. One of the things I picked up were some gorgeous silk flowers. I was so excited to use these flowers to create a beautiful arrangement for my living room. Too bad the Holidays got the best of me, and its now February before I got this project done. For never arranging flowers before, I think it looks pretty good. Let me know what you think.


This is what I created:





And here's our mantle now: The new additions are the flowers, and our new Angela Johnson replica the bronze statue of Jesus Christ, Come Unto Me. We love love it.



A better picture of the statue:


Note: The vase I used for the flowers is from a flower arrangement Ryan had sent to me while we were dating -- he figured out quickly that I love cool vases. Nicely done, babe!!

Chicken Pot Pie

I made this again last night, and I think it's Ryans new favorite (Parley was practically licking his plate as well). I had a request for the recipe, so I thought I'd post it here. I hope your family likes it too!!

1 package of Pillsbury pie crust
3-4 Chicken breasts, cubed (I like to season my chicken and saute with onions and celery to bring out the flavor)
2-3 cups veggies (I use some frozen peas, frozen corn, and fresh celery, carrots and potatoes, red or russet)-- veggies can be subbed for your favs.
2 cans cream of chicken soup (can also use cream of celery, cream of mushroom, cream of potato).
Seasoning: I like Italian Seasoning Mix, and Dill weed. Can also add thyme and rosemary, whatever tastes good.

Mix together soup, veggies and chicken. Season to taste. (I also like to heat up but you don't have to).

Roll out pie crust, place in bottom of pie dish. Pour soup mixture into pie crust. Lay 2nd pie crust overtop; pinch the 2 pie crusts together. Use a knife to create a design and slit holes into the crust so steam can escape. Cut away extra pie crust around sides.

Cook at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or until crust is brown.