A Birthday, An Earthquake & A Hurricane - Oh My!

First of all --- a HUGE happy birthday to my wonderful mother today. Love you much, all the way up in Alaska! So glad we were able to chat, and just to let you know, you're my hero!

Now, a quick update to say that we all survived the random earthquake that shook, rattled and rolled us yesterday, Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011.

I was at work, as was Buppy, when it struck just before 2pm EST. Apparently the epicenter was Mineral, VA, and since Buppy is about an hour south of my work, he definitely felt it stronger than I did. He got much busier (working for a fire department in an emergency situation can do that to a person), while my coworkers and I simply decided to chat it up for the rest of the afternoon.

No damage to our home or my workplace, although there was some structural damage where Buppy works. A coworker near my hotel said her house shook enough to break some dishes displayed in a hutch. Didn't feel strong enough where I was to cause that, but who knows.

I thought it was the first quake I could say I survived, but Buppy correct me, pointing out that we were hit by a small quake a year or so. At that time, I was sleeping and woke to the bed shaking, leading me to believe Buppy had fallen out of bed (how funny would that have been?!). Truth be told, he was in the bathroom and nowhere near the bed when it happened. Regardless, I can now say I've survived 2 earthquakes. In Maryland. Sweet!

This weekend, Irene is a potential threat as well. I think Mother Nature is having fun with us here on the Eastern Seaboard. The dedication of a memorial to Martin Luther King Jr. is currently scheduled to take place on Sunday, and tens of thousands are expected at the National Mall in DC. Here's to hoping for a safe weekend.

Summer Partypalooza 2011

Our annual slip 'n slip - crabfest - partypalooza was yesterday. It was amazing, awesome, fabulous and stellar, all rolled into one. I save money all year for it, everyone looks forward to it and Mother Nature has cooperated for the past 4 years (the ones I've been to). What more can a person ask for than great weather, yummy food and super friends? Love it!

The slip 'n slide. EPIC, especially when we throw some dish soap on it for maximum lubrication.

One of our guys woke up with this bruise. We assume it's from the slip 'n slide but have no real idea how he got it.

Crab table. I found ones that were reasonably price (thank goodness 'cause we got a bushel and a half!), and they were super meaty and large. Awesome.

On the left, we have the chicken fajita dip a friend suggested I make. Shelly, it more than lived up to our expectations. Well, that's what I hear, but I didn't actually get to taste it; it was gone that fast! On the right, a guest brought homemade mac 'n cheese with bacon, stewed tomatoes and Velveeta. I don't even like mac 'n cheese (probably because I'm not really a pasta person), but this was really, really tasty.

Beer pong and flip cup in the garage. First year, and it worked out really well!

A guest brought this super cute "sand" cake in a sand castle bucket. She actually took flip flop cookies on sticks and carefully pulled the sticks out to get the cookies for the top (knowing how crazy I am about flip flops and all). She always makes the cutest things for our parties!

The beautiful crabs. Yummy!

Me and a friend of mine. We've been friends since 8th grade, and her family comes up for the party every year. This was Friday night --- food prep time!

Ugh. Here be the kitchen this morning. Thank goodness a friend of mine did a lot of cleaning last night. You can't tell from the way it looks here, but she did a lot. This though? This is all me. And it's still not all cleaned up as I write this. Gotta save somethin' for Buppy to do tomorrow since he took the day off, right? Right.

We grilled some hot dogs for lunch, then I got sleeeeeeeeepy. And yet I still managed to have a wine cooler in my hand. Yes, I'm always exhausted the day after the party, but it's always 100% worth it. The countdown is on --- only 363 more days until the next one!

Winding Down on Tuesday

A quick bit about work here this evening. Finding employment under my old supervisor has been stellar thus far. The fact that they pay me quite well (for my industry --- I'm not making millions here folks) is huge. A new perk: a bonus structure has just gone into place. My commute is beautiful, although I'll most likely call it treacherous once winter hits. I pretty much love going to work.

Today my supervisor asked me how I'm liking things, and I told her exactly how I feel. She found me minutes later (on our way out the door) to tell me that the owner of the property recently called me "a breath of fresh air", and the general manager said they "upgraded" when hiring me, which says a lot because everyone loved the girl whose spot I took. I don't think there is a sincerer compliment, and I beamed as I pulled out of the parking lot.

Enough of the gloating. Onto more important matters, like what to do for Memorial Day weekend. I think, although I'm not positive, I have Monday, 5/30, off for the 3-day weekend. No kids that weekend (praise the Lord), so both Ocean City and Atlantic City have been thrown on the table. Gambling? Beaches? Six Flags (oooooh, already thinking that will be swamped)! Going to see my sister in OH? Hmmm, come to think of it, I wonder what she's doing . . . that has potential, although gas is outrageous. We could even hit up NYC, and possibly do lunch with my bestie bride-to-be Rhi-Rhi in CT. Oh pooh, now I've given myself so many options I have no idea how to make a decision. I need a coin with more sides! Or, as Buppy so kindly pointed out, a dice. What to do . . .?

Harley Time!

Today was an absolutely, unbelievably nice day outside. Warm, but not hot. Slight breeze, but not overly windy as is often the case here (at least lately). Perrrrrrfect. After walking out to get the mail around noon, I came back, picked up my iPod and headed out for a nice hour-long walk around our neighborhood. Man, I missed being able to do that! Once I got back, I turned off our heat on both floors and opened up some windows. While our upstairs is usually set to 66F, it's now 70F thanks to Ms. Sunshine and a warm breeze. Love-love-love Spring, or at least when she peeks her head out for a day or two. I think they're predicting more snow next week, but this weekend, Buppy and I plan to enjoy a ride or five. I'm psyched, probably almost as psyched as Buppy is! We're discussing packing up some sammys and having a picnic, too, but even if we don't get around to that, just to be out on the bike again after winter will be a welcome treat. Yay!

Still Alive & Kickin'

I’ve been busy. I’ve been lazy. I’m a slacker at heart. ‘Nuff said.

So what’s new here? Well, my biggest news is that tonight I’ll be interviewing for a position doing almost exactly what I do currently, but in the same town I live in. Meaning the possibility of no more 45+ minute commutes to work on the beltway. Possibly no more 2 hours stuck in traffic on back roads on the commute home. Perhaps not feeling like way too much of my life is consumed by fighting traffic. But we’ll see.

To be honest, I’ve been “looking” for a new job for the past few months. I visit the appropriate web sites, see if I’m qualified, etc. I just haven’t gotten around to actually applying to any of them yet. I said I was a slacker, alright?! Interestingly enough, this venue sought me out. I applied with them at almost exactly the same time I applied with my current employer last year, but the position they had available suddenly became unavailable when the person who was leaving decided to stay. What can ya do? Anyway, I received an email last week asking if I was still interested, and I sure am. For a wide variety of reason, included but not limited to the whole commute thing. But enough about that. I’m not holding my breath, but a change of scenery wouldn’t be a bad thing.

Other than that, Buppy & I have been keeping busy. I went to my first RenFest on Saturday. We found an amazing champagne brunch on Sunday which, I might add, was half price because Buppy was smart enough to snag us some coupons when it appeared on Groupon. Thanks Groupon --- it was a great time! Between the champagne, mimosas, prime rib and eggs benedict, I left a very happy girl. We’ve also got a poker run [motorcycle ride?] coming up for Buppy’s work and a Halloween party coming up within the next few weekends. Good times.

I’ve been keeping busy in the kitchen. We made a rotisserie chicken last night and had mashed roasted-garlic potatoes and gravy and a large salad, too. Since I’ll be home late tonight, Buppy’s feeding the kids some frozen pizza and we’ll have steak salads when I finally get there. Tomorrow I’m going to try out a beef & mushroom stew recipe I found which I promise to post if it’s good. It looks good. Actually, it looks divine, and has red wine to boot! [Always a plus!] As far as meals go, I’m home alone on Thursday and still haven’t decided what we’re doing this weekend. There are simply too many recipes I want to try and too little time.

Busy, busy, busy!

Keeping Busy

August was a rather busy month for Buppy & I, and things don’t appear to be slowing down for the Fall either. It’s in a good way though, as the events we’re attending are mainly for pleasure instead of work. Mainly.

I verified yesterday that I have Labor Day off. While not in the handbook as a “holiday”, since I’m management, they’re letting me have it. And really, who would call to book their wedding or corporate event on Labor Day? No one, so good call boss man. Since my sister has visited us here in Maryland 3 times now and I haven’t made it to Ohio yet, Buppy and I are heading west this Friday after we’re done with work for a mini-vacay. We figure we’ll get in late on Friday night; sister said it’s about a 7+/- hour drive. Check into our hotel [thank goodness I get a huge discount with 2 major hotel chains!] late Friday night, then spend time with sister all day Saturday & Sunday. We’ll leave Monday morning since we have to be back Monday evening to pick up the kidlets. All in all, we’re looking at some good quality time this weekend!

What else do we have coming up? A wedding I have to be at work for on 9/11, which seems an odd day to me to get married, but whatever melts your margarine, right? The weekend of the 18th/19th we’re planning to hit up the Maryland Wine Festival, although we haven’t narrowed down which day yet. Should do that soon so everyone can plan ahead; I invited all friends to our house before and/or after for some potluck action, so I think we’re leaning towards Saturday the 18th. I’ve tried to contact our favorite winery to see if I can volunteer [and then get in free the opposite day!], but haven’t heard anything back yet. Boo. Maybe I should just pick up the phone instead of relying on email. Ah, my laziness.

We’re also planning to attend a Renaissance Festival near Annapolis for a friend’s birthday, a motorcycle ride hosted by Buppy’s work to benefit charity [and I can actually ride with Buppy on his new Harley!!], a possible Halloween party, a magician’s event at work that I should probably be here for [although I don’t really want to be], a trip to the Maryland Zoo, Six Flags & a Blue Man Group concert.

The boys at the Poker Run '09.

And the ladies at the Poker Run '08.

Sunday Evening

Ah, I'm sad to say it's already almost Sunday evening. Where do my weekends go? Well, this weekend wasn't actually a full weekend since I worked yesterday from 11am-7pm, but I'm happy to report that the wedding was a smashing success [at least it was up until I left at 7pm, so hopefully nothing went wrong after that point!]. They were late, but what wedding isn't? They enjoyed their meal, most of their guests showed up, their DJ was . . . lacking, but that's not my fault at all, so who really cares? All in all, it was another super successful event under my belt.

When I arrived home last night, Buppy was down at our neighbor's party. They have a pond, swing set, grill, patio, huge projector screen tied up in the trees so we can watch movies --- it's a really sweet setup they've got goin' on, not gonna lie. He met me up at the house, I mixed myself a drink and we headed down. I've been living here for about a year and a half and have yet to meet our neighbors. What can I say? It just hasn't happened. Luckily, I got to meet a few last night, and everyone was really nice. Lots of food, but I'd already eaten at work earlier. Tom & Jerry made an appearance on the big screen once it started to get dark, and we just had a really nice time relaxing with everyone. Ah, summer.

Today was supposed to be HonFest, but Buppy's stomach is on the fritz. We went for lunch at Maggie's, our newest favorite restaurant in town [favorite restaurant anywhere for that matter] and planned to leave from there. He wasn't feeling great when we left the house, and even after lunch was still having some stomach pains. We came home and decided against heading out to Bmore. While I'd love to have gone to HonFest again this year, I definitely wouldn't have wanted to go with a miserable Buppy. Especially since it's supposed to hit 91F today as a high, and at 10am it already felt like 96F according to weather.com. Ugh. That's hot when you're dealing with East Coast humidity. It's sunny with a breeze out now, so as I write this, Buppy is outside under the deck in the shade, reading. I hope he feels better. I should probably go check on him . . .

Hello 3-Day Weekend!

Happy Memorial Day all! Please remember why we celebrate; thank those who serve and protect and remember those that gave all. And stay safe!

Words can't even begin to describe how ready I am for this weekend. Work has been alright lately, but really, who can't use a 3-dayer every now and then? This girl sure can! I wish Buppy were off, but oh well. On the bright side, he was promoted this week to a job where he'll being working day shift [like us normal people] starting on June 6th. That means he'll be home every night and weekend, meaning all those nights I used to be alone, he'll be home too, but without the kids [yay, we finally get "us" time!]. And the weekends where I used to bum around alone --- a thing of the past! We'll now have those weekends to travel, be lazy . . . . basically do whatever we want. He's worked shift work for the past 15 years and I've become accustomed to my alone time and my freedom to travel [and not feel bad about leaving him at home since he was at work anyway], but hopefully we'll transition well. We never really got that whole "dating" period when we met, so this is it! I'm definitely going to have to kick up my menu planning now.

I don't have much planned for the weekend. I considered going down to VA to see friends who are heading to the beach, or up to CT to see friends there, or even over to OH to see my sister and go to Cedar Point. In the end, I decided I didn't want to fight traffic. My last trip down to VA was a good time, but traffic around Bmore, DC and northern VA [my entire trip, basically] was awful, both ways. Who knew 2pm on a Sunday afternoon was prime time to be on the road around DC? Not I, but I sure as heck know now! I'll be staying close to home on Sat. and Sun., doing some housework, laying out on the deck reading, cooking up some yummy food and possibly going to see SATC 2. A friend just saw it and rated it as "ok", noting that one could definitely wait to rent it. While I appreciate the heads up, I haven't been to see a movie in a theater in a long time, so I might go anyway. Or see what else is playing and pick a different movie. We'll see.

Monday we've planned a trip to Six Flags. I don't think we got around to going last year, although Buppy and I did hit it up the first year I was here. And there were no lines. I hate lines and will really go out of my way to avoid them. Hopefully Monday won't be too bad; everyone should be on their way home from vacay, right? That night we plan to go out for dinner to one of our favorite restaurants to celebrate Buppy's promo. Their cream of crab soup is quite tasty, but the real attraction is their prosciutto-wrapped asparagus with Parmesan and bread crumbs. These bundles of happiness are seriously amazing. Their one of the few things that I don't think I could make as well or better at home. The asparagus is cooked to perfection [not sure if it's steamed or sauteed or what] and the combo of everything is perfectly proportioned. And the fact that prosciutto is expensive makes me not really want to buy some, try it at home, be disappointed and be out the cash I spent on a high-quality ingredient. Plus, the restaurant is on restaurant.com, so I'm going to go pick up a $25 gift certificate for $2 and use that. Yesssssss.

So there we have it. Buppy has another surprise, besides his promo, but I'll wait until we have pics to post that. Let's just say I'm gonna have to get me a helmet soon . . .

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Have you ever had buffalo chicken dip? I hadn't until I met Buppy. It's one of the yummy foods he's introduced me to, and I really appreciate that. It's not a complicated dip by any means and is pretty quick to come together. This would be an awesome addition to any Superbowl spread, trust me. If you like chicken wings, you're gonna love this dip. Buppy often eats it with flat bread, but I also discovered that it's crazy-tasty with celery sticks. Makes sense, right? You usually get celery sticks when you order buffalo chicken wings at restaurants, so it just seemed like the right thing to do. Besides, this helps me feel just a scoach more healthy. Yeah right.

Since I just recently blogged about how I'm trying to cook bone-in chicken in the crockpot to shred for use at a later time, this would be the type of recipe where I'd use the chicken. Because seriously, canned chicken just isn't quite right.

Buffalo Chicken Dip
No idea where Buppy picked up this recipe, but I'm sure there are a zillion different places it can be found.

8 oz. 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 lbs. of chopped or shredded chicken
3/4 c. Frank's Red Hot Original Hot Sauce
1 c. light/reduced fat ranch or Bleu cheese dressing

Heat cream cheese, hot sauce and dressing in a saucepan over medium-low heat until smooth, creamy and a somewhat orange-y color (doesn't that just sound healthy --- "an orange-y color"?) Add chicken and continue to heat until heated through. I added chopped pickles on top as garnish and to add a little bit of crunch; I must say they were a nice addition. Serve with Tostitos, flat bread, veggies, crackers or whatever else you can think of to dip.

I'm really surprised by some of the things Buppy has introduced me to that I'd never heard of/tasted previously. Was I living under a rock? Whatever the case, my recipe repertoire just keeps on growin'! Enjoy!This is being linked up to this week's Ultimate Recipe Swap for favorite holiday foods. Buppy & I are excited to introduce this to the rest of my family next week when we head to Wisconsin for Christmas. My brother is pretty psyched for this, and Buppy's excited to be able to devour more of it, too! Check out Life as Mom’s blog for more great holiday dish ideas!

Chicken Broccoli Braid, Thanks to Buppy

This recipe is thanks to Buppy. I'm not actually sure where he got it from, so I have no other credit to give. It's really tasty, not too complicated and yet fancy enough for company. I'm sure you could mix up the filling to suite your tastes. Hmmm, I bet it'd be really good as a pizza type braid. We might have to try that next time. I love how I have all sorts of great recipe variations as I'm blogging. And then I forget them. Write it down Bugaboo, write it down!Chicken Broccoli Braid

2 c. cooked chicken, chopped
1 cup broccoli, chopped (we usually use frozen, but fresh would work great too!)
½ c. mushrooms, chopped (we've used fresh and canned, both turned out well)
1 garlic clove, minced (we use the jarred pre-minced kind)
1 c. (4 oz.) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
½ cup reduced-fat mayo
2 tsp. dried dill weed
¼ tsp. salt
2 pkgs. refrigerated crescent rolls (this is not the place to use generic; use Pillsbury, trust me!)
1 egg white, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 375F. Chop chicken, broccoli and mushrooms and place in a bowl; add garlic and shredded cheese and mix gently. Add mayonnaise, dill weed and salt; mix well.

Unroll package of crescent dough; do not separate. Arrange longest sides of dough across width of rectangular stone or baking sheet. Repeat with remaining package of dough. Roll dough to seal perforations. On longest sides of stone/baking sheet, cut dough into strips 1½" apart, 3" deep. (There will be 6" in the center for the filling.) Spread filling evenly over middle of dough. To braid, lift strips of dough across mixture to meet in center, twisting each strip one turn. Continue alternating strips to form a braid. Tuck ends up to seal at end of braid. Brush egg white over dough. Bake 25-28 minutes, or until deep golden brown. Cut and serve. Yield: 10 servings. Enjoy!
To be honest, the recipe as I've copied it here from Buppy's file says this should make 2 braids. We jam pretty much all the filling into one package of crescent roll dough, which is why it looks so full in the pictures. Do what you'd like --- make 1 big or 2 smaller braids; smaller in the sense that they'd have less filling. I really like filling though.

Don't be a raspberry hater!

This used to be what I'd call my go-to dessert for date night, which I'd use when trying to woo whoever was making my skirt flutter at that particular moment. I'm pretty sure (although not positive) it came from Keebler in some newpaper or coupon insert I happened upon one day when I was 18 or 19. It looked good, I love raspberries, end of discussion.

I haven't made it for a few years now, but decided to give it a try again this past weekend when we had friends over for dinner. Even though I was late leaving work on Thursday night and still had to stop at the grocery store for a few last-minute items, I still made this in relatively little time and with minimal effort. Don'tcha love desserts like that?

This past weekend was the first time Buppy tried this, and come to find out, he doesn't think he likes frozen raspberries.

Well I don't think we can be friends then anymore Mr. Raspberry-Hatey-McHaterson.

They're my favorite berry, hands down. He said he likes fresh but that frozen are too tart for him, like cranberrys (which I like, too). Hmmmmm. He thinks I should make it again with strawberries and my mom, after I told her about the recipe, thought it'd be great with blueberries. I'm sure it would be, so change up the berries to your heart's content! Hell, spread some peanut butter in there instead and I'm sure that would rock, too. But seriously, how can you not love these beauties??

Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

1 Ready Crust (6 oz.) (Original recipe calls for a chocolate crust, but I like it better with a regular one)
6 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. fresh or frozen raspberries
*Chocolate Glaze

Preheat oven to 350F. Beat cream cheese with mixer until fluffy. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk until smooth. Add egg, lemon juice and vanilla; mix well. Arrange raspberries on bottom of crust. Slowly pour cheese mixture over fruit. Bake 30-35 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool. Top cheesecake with chocolate glaze; chill. Garnish as desired. Refrigerate leftovers.

*Chocolate Glaze: In small saucepan over low heat, melt 2 (1 oz. each) squares semi-sweet baking chocolate with ¼ c. whipping cream. Cook and stir until thickened and smooth. Remove from heat. (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips this time around and just measured out 2 oz. on my kitchen scale. Still worked great!)

Enjoy!

Update: I'm linking this recipe up to lifeasmom.com this week for her "be cool" ultimate recipe swap. Check her blog for more great recipes!

Weekend Happenings

Friday was a pretty good start to the weekend. I had a 10:15am appointment with the dentist for a 6 month cleaning, where they said that I had less plaque and almost no bleeding of the gums. Score one for team Bugaboo! Since my last visit 6 months ago, I started using ACT mouthwash as my dentist suggested. Little did I know that most mouthwashes are for your gums, whereas ACT is actually for your teeth. Hmmm, learn something new every day. While I normally start work at 10am, I arrived at 12pm on Friday. It’s nice that they’re so lax and allow me time for appointments.

Friday was the day I found out I’m getting a raise, and I also left work earlier than normal since we had friends coming for dinner. This plan didn’t exactly work out as I’d hoped however, since there was an accident on the beltway and traffic was mucho backed up. Even the back road way I take to avoid traffic was backed up. Fail. What normally takes me 40+/- minutes to travel took double that on Friday night. But between NPR and 104.3, I jammed out and caught up on the situation in Haiti, as well as other news.

Speaking of Haiti, our GM and managers/directors have decided we want to do something to aid the relief effort. I think we’re deciding tomorrow how to go about raising funds; we’ve been advised not to collect non-perishable foods, so monetary donations will most likely be the course we take. Anything to help at this point.Buppy was asked by his contact at World Care Centers if he could deploy to Haiti for 1-2 weeks, but he doesn’t think he’s going to be able to. The scariest part about that whole situation seems to be thoughts about looters and rioters and how to stay safe upon arrival. Couple that with worries about food and clean drinking water and, well, it’s a bit much. For me anyway. Between already made plans, work and the kids, leaving for 1-2 weeks and not knowing for sure when he’d come home isn’t something that really works for him. Regardless, I’m so proud of him for being involved with causes like this in the past, even if he can’t help in Haiti at this time.

Back to Friday night dinner though; well, while dinner was lacking a little due to us getting caught up gossiping with company, it was still a fabulous night of drinks, conversation and fun. And a great head rub. Note to self though: next time, don’t drink so damn much Tuaca. I paid dearly for that mistake all day Saturday.

Saturday was a day of relaxation, followed by more relaxation and some errands on Sunday. Weekends are so amazing. And this coming weekend? Chili cook-off at S & B's house . . . without the kids! I'm confident good times will be had by all!

Wednesday already?

Sometimes I’m simply amazed at how fast time flies. Take this week, for example; where have Monday & Tuesday gone?

I’m somewhat excited for this weekend to get here. That last 2 weekends have been consumed with family, friends, outings and good times, but I feel like I need some time at home to lounge, cook, read, play outside (it’s supposed to warm up --- yay!) and catch up on things. New Year’s weekend consisted of traveling to VA, hosting family and the Nutcracker. Then following weekend, last weekend, consisted of working (gotta love big events!) and our employee party. While everything I've done each weekend has been great, I need some R&R. This weekend we have nothing on the books at home, and not much for me to worry about at work, which will be a nice break.

This past Monday night happened to be one of the nights we get alone, minus kiddos. It happened to be a somewhat stressful day in the office, so Buppy and I headed out to one of our favorite hibachi restaurants. We split 2 new and absolutely delicious sushi choices then split a chicken hibachi dinner. This restaurant is fabulous as it often sends out a coupon for a free meal, no purchase necessary. Split the entrée, share some sushi and what have we got? A great “date night” adventure at a fraction of the normal cost! I’m totally down with that.

Last night I left work early but ate a late dinner in the hotel, so our menu plans were kind of throw out the window. Speaking of which, I forgot to post my menu plan for the week. Oh well, I got a lot of other stuff accomplished on Monday, so I can’t complain.

We’re having friends over for dinner on Friday night; we don’t do this often enough in my opinion, but I’ll take what I can get. We’ve decided on an Asian inspired marinade for the pork loin chops, and then they’ll be cooked in the rotisserie. I’m so glad Buppy has a rotisserie. Such great flavor and a healthy way to cook as opposed to frying or drenching in a fattening sauce. We’ll also have rice noodles with veggies that will be infused with the flavor of the boiled down marinade. We’ve done this meal once before and I’m amazed at how fantastic the flavors are. My only thing left to figure out is what to do as our other side dish. I was thinking a fruit salad; hmmm, to come up with an Asian-style or Asian-inspired fruit salad. I’m sure I’ll find something.

Buppy is at work today and tomorrow, and since I still don’t feel completely over my sickness from 2 weeks ago, I think I might head home and go to bed. It’s only mid-afternoon now and I’m very tired. Nice to have that option sometimes.

Christmas in the Big Apple '09

My how time flies. Christmas '09 is now a thing of the past, if only by a day. Buppy and I seriously enjoyed our trip up to NYC Christmas Eve. We left our house around 4pm and arrived in The City around 8:30pm. The hotel was easy enough to find and we were lucky enough to find a parking garage almost directly across the street. After our quick check-in, we headed out to find Asian Fusion, our dinner pick from restaurant.com. We were surprised at how packed the restaurant was, but that doesn't say much considering how tiny the place was. The sushi was affordable (especially with our gift certificate!), beautiful and very delish. My salmon was my favorite (from my order) and had such fantastic texture. My favorite from Buppy's order? Both! His were really, really tasty! After dinner, we decided to find the Rockefeller Tree. We knew we weren't staying very far from it, so it was just a matter of locating the appropriate block. We found some cute decorations along the way, as well as some crazily decorated vehicles. I didn't know that Radio City Music Hall has their own tree (which turns colors), but we ran across that on our trek too. One of the most holiday-ish sites we found was directly across from Rockefeller; the Saks Fifth Ave. building had giant snowflakes all across the side that lit up along with Carol of the Bells.And then there it was, the main reason I wanted to venture to The City for Christmas --- Rockefeller Tree! I can't even describe to you the feeling of seeing that tree in person. Most people, my family included, don't understand the big deal, but it's just something I've always wanted to see up close and in person. It didn't disappoint. We didn't get in line to skate on the rink below the tree; I'm sure it would have taken us 2+ hours to get through the line! I'm ok with that though, since I saw what I came there for.

We wandered around looking at different buildings and sites for awhile after that, then ended up at one of the few places open to warm up: Applebee's. We had a cocktail or 2 there (At the staggering price of $62 for 4 drinks total, no food. Can you say OUCH?) and then headed back to the hotel.

Christmas day consisted of lunch at Carnegie Deli (can you say "wow" to their Reuben?!?!), walking the fashion district (the Juicy store had tigers on their model's heads!), roaming Bryant Park and just taking in The City. We found a fabulous little shop in Bryant Park where we got Buppy some hot choco. He said it was $5 and well worth it --- he called it "liquid gold" in his mouth!While I would have enjoyed being with my family for the holidays, especially since they were all home together in Wisco and I didn't get to see them last year for the holidays, this was a close 2nd to "most enjoyable holiday." And with my discount from working at a hotel, a quite affordable holiday as well! Happy holidays '09!

Neglection

While I'm aware of the fact that "neglection" (the title) is not a real word (at least I don't think it is...), it's still what's been going on with this poor, poor blog of mine. I'm trying to change that, but it's difficult when I'm a part-time mom, part-time girlfriend (I love you Buppy, but I just mean that you're not home all the time!) and now full-time lover of my job.

Things have definitely changed since this job landed in my lap. I cook less, and have less time at night to spend with Buppy. But the rewards are fulfilling, and I wouldn't change much. Well, perhaps just to have more time in a day, but then I'd just be busier, longer. November was the first month I earned commission (my first full month with the company), and it was such an ego boost to earn 5x more than predicted at the beginning of the month. I managed to snag a wedding the day after Christmas, which will (of course) help my figures for this month. And I've booked 2 holiday parties for January --- on the same day! That will be a challenge, but with the right staff, I'm confident in our abilities.

This coming Sunday, the 20th, we have tickets to see the Nutcracker ballet at the Lyric Opera House in Baltimore. We'll grab a gift certificate from restaurant.com (I love that website!), have dinner and enjoy the show. Buppy managed to get us a super good deal on tickets, which makes it all the better. Great entertainment without costing us a fortune!

I'm not going to be able to head back to Wisco to see my family and friends this year for the holidays, but I had the amazing idea to head up to NYC on Christmas Eve. The kids will go to their mom's at 3:30pm, and Buppy and I will head straight up to The City, roughly 4 hours away. Because I work in a hotel, we're going to be staying in a suite in Times Square for the low, low price of $59. Parking will be a little costly, but well worth it for a $59 room rate! And we're only half a mile from Rockefeller Center at this particular hotel, which is the main attraction for this trip. I've always wanted to see the tree live and in person. I'm psyched! I also plan to find a knock off Coach bag for a dear friend of mine who's never made it up that way. Don't worry Sunshine --- I'll find you something amazing!

Our 2 trees are up (1 being strictly a fire tree), Christmas is being celebrated at Buppy's mom's house this Saturday, the Nutcracker on Sunday, work 3 days, then up to NYC. What a great holiday season!

Wordless Wednesday - Revisiting Thanksgiving 2008

Buppy Cooks Comfort Food

First though, we shall start with a movie review. One of my new coworkers and I get along rather well and seem to have a similar taste in movies. We decided to trade a few that we were shocked the other hadn't seen; I lent him Team America and he borrowed me House of 1,000 Corpses (we'll call this one HC) as well as Fierce Creatures (FC). HC was awful. Horrible. As in, almost 2 hours of my life that I'll never get back. FC was better, although still not something I'd watch again. He assumed I'd enjoy HC since it came out (and supposedly explains) The Devil's Rejects, which I love. I didn't. It doesn't. Don't do it. Period.

Now, onto better topics . . .

Because my hours at my new job are quite different from what I'd been working almost since I moved to MD, meals are different now as well. I don't get home until 7:10pm or so on weeknights, later if I get caught up with something at work. Because of this, Buppy usually feeds the kids before I get home, then he and I eat together after they've gone to bed. I've told him he can make the meal and I'll just reheat it when I get home (so that all 3 of them can have dinner together) but he chooses to wait for me. How sweet! This past week he and the kids were all pretty sick, so Wed. night I picked up some hot & sour soup for Buppy and I (as well as a few egg rolls). It was the first time I'd had that kind of soup and it was good; I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but I did. And man, they make some bangin' egg rolls at that Chinese place too!
Thursday night Buppy made Shepard's Pie, which is something I've never made but he's really good at. Granted it's a pretty simple recipe to throw together, but he makes it just right. Friday night was a chicken-broccoli braid, but that will be blogged about at another time. Super tasty too!

Buppy's Shepard's Pie

1 lb. ground beef or turkey (we use turkey now as it's healthier)
1 packet Lipton Beefy Mushroom soup mix
1 jar Heinz mushroom gravy
Corn (as much as you'd like)
Potatoes (enough to make as thick a layer on top as you'd like)
Shredded cheese (whatever kind you like)

So here's what Buppy tells me he does: He peels and chops up some spuds, then boils them to make mashed potatoes. While they're cooking, he browns (or whatever color ground turkey turns when it cooks) the ground meat with the soup mix in a large skillet on the stovetop. If using beef, he then drains off the fat; this step is not necessary if using ground turkey as there is nothing to drain off. From here he mixes in the gravy. He pours the meat/soup/gravy into a large casserole dish, then layers on the corn (as well as any other veggies I might let him add.) I think it'd be swell with some sauteed mushrooms and onions, but that's not how Buppy does it. I think he'd put green beans in, but I vetoed them on Thursday. I wasn't feeling bean-y enough that day. Anyway, at this point the potatoes should be tender, so he drains them and mashes 'em up with some butter (margarine, actually) and whatever other stuff he wants to add. This week he made them garlic mashers; yum! He heaps the potatoes on top of the corn layer in the casserole dish, then throws on some shredded cheese and pops it into the oven. I'm guessing he bakes it at about 350F for half an hour. After all, he's really just making sure everything is nice and hot and the cheese melts. We like to broil it for a few minutes after the half hour is up to get the cheese a nice golden color. I'm so glad he can (and likes to) cook!

I was too busy eating to remember to take a picture. I'm such a bad dog.

I got the idea to try and make this as a vegetarian dish too, using a variety of mushrooms instead of meat and adding in some chopped onion (I love onion!) too. When I make it happen, I'll post how it goes. Doesn't that sounds like a delish vegetarian dish!?!

Note: I'm linking this up to Life as Mom’s Ultimate Recipe Swap for January 13th, 2011; it's about how we make it easier for our families to swallow veggies. Not hard, 'cause I love veggies, but check out her website for more great ideas.

Mini-Vacation is Coming Up (and a dip recipe!)

Buppy and I get to have our 2nd mini-vacay soon, on Monday. The week of the 19th, he went to Ocean City for a work conference and I met him there Wed. night after work; we got to spend Wed. night, Thurs. and part of Friday soaking up OC. It's off season now mind you, but it was still fun to see the sights and the ocean. It'd been too long since I'd seen the ocean!Come Monday, we'll be driving up to NYC for the Iron Skillet competition. Buppy does some part time teaching work for a friend of his and that organization's biggest fund raiser is Monday night. They pit well known NYC restaurant chefs against NYC firehouse chefs and my favorite restaurant (Carmine's) is competing. Plus they thow in some booze, and since it's high dolla, we all get pretty for the night. Now if only I can find a dress . . . tomorrow! Nothing like waiting until the last minute to hunt one down. I searched today, but everything I found screamed 'prom' or 'homecoming', and that's not exactly the message I'm looking to convey. I need something classy, something elegant; unfortunately it's not the time of year where stores have a lot in stock. Well, wish me luck!

On another (and completely unrelated) note, I came across a recipe today for a dip that I've made several times that is stellar. Not healthy by any stretch of the imagination, but really good. I took it to my holiday Christmas party at work last year and had several people come up to me to tell me how much their entire table enjoyed it. I promised I'd email out the recipe, but forgot. It happens, whatever. Yeah, about 3 weeks later I was asked again if I could email it out. I guess when something is that tasty, you don't forget it. This time, I delivered.

From what I can tell, this recipe appears to be a spin off of a Hidden Valley one. I can't remember where I found it, as I was in that "who cares where you get a recipe, why bother to write it down" phase. Sorry! But it's simple, quick and great with crackers and/or veggies.

Bacon & Cheddar Dip

1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix
½ c. milk
½ c. mayo or Miracle Whip
8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
8 oz. cream cheese
1/3 c. bacon bits

Combine first 5 ingredients and fold in the bacon. Refrigerate at least 2 hrs. before serving; best if let set over night to develop flavors.

Hope you enjoy it as much as Buppy, my coworkers and I have!

*Update: I'm linking up to Life as Mom's Ultimate Recipe Swap for this week, Feb. 4th, 2010, and the theme is "Superbowl or Other Party Food." I can't wait to see what others contribute; I love party foods! Stop on over to check it out!

What a Sweetie!

I like to think I do a pretty good job of appreciating my Buppy and all that he does for us around the house. He mows and weed whacks outside, cooks, does laundry, cleans, etc. One day he made this for a snack for us while I was busy doing something else; we planned to watch a movie that afternoon and needed something to munch on. He only arranged it all this way because he knew it'd make me happy. I love him bunches.