Thursday, May 28, 2009

Giveaway!!


So in 5 days, we leave on our honeymoon!! I have no idea where we are going, the husband has planned everything and is keeping it a surprise!! All I know is I need a passport and it is beachy, and the weather is in the 80s for the time we will be there!
So here is my contest, write a comment with your guess about where we are going. The prize is a $15 gift certificate to my new favorite etsy shop SweetIrie. I just ordered this cute set. If more than 1 person answers correctly, I will pick the winner with random.com!! Good Luck!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Own a Wii?

You need to get this game!

My husband got the original Boom Blox for Christmas and we have played it for hours, well part 2 came out this past week and we have already racked up over 10 hours playing it on our Wii. It is great because you can play with so many players at all ages!
The press release says: The Boom Blox fun continues with Boom Blox Bash Party, featuring richer multiplayer action and more than 400 new levels that will have players of all ages gaming together and solving action-packed puzzles under water, in zero gravity, and beyond! The game showcases new block types, including: virus and conveyor blox, new blox shapes, such as: cylinders and wedges, and new tools that will make for even more destructive fun. Players now can also sling, launch, and blow the competition away with new cannon, paint ball and slingshot tools.

The fun continues online as Boom Blox Bash Party enables players to download even more new levels via the Internet. With the press of a button, players will be able to grab, play and rate new levels from EA as well as levels created by members of the Boom Blox Bash Party community. Using the game's easy-to-use Create Mode, players now have the power to share the levels they built with friends, or submit their masterpiece to be shared with the world! The expanded Create Mode lets players build and create like never before, giving them access to the same tool set the EA development team used to create each and every level in the game.

Monday, May 25, 2009

Summer scent!!


I have found the perfect summer scent--White Citrus from Bath and Body Works! I am normally a vanilla girl but when the thermometer regularly hits 100 it just doesn't work. This is a very light and fresh scent--plus BBW is having a big sale--buy 3 get 3 free!!

Friday, May 22, 2009

Summer time!!


So I have been neglecting my blog, the last few weeks of school are crazy busy I feel like I don't have time to breathe sometimes! But school ended yesterday and I checked out for the summer today!! So I promptly came home and took a nap and then headed to the movies with my husband. Night at the Museum 2--2 thumbs up!!
On the agenda for this summer:
--a mini reading conference with some colleagues(plus that 1 last unit to move up the pay scale again!)
--off on the mystery honeymoon June 2(watch for a related giveway contest!)
--The TIE conference with a good friend from my master's program that I haven't seen in months--a relaxing week at Copper Mountain!!
--AVID conference in San Diego at the end of July--should be a blast(I have been before and it was one of the best teaching conferences I have been to)

--working out!!
--hanging out with my GJ friends
--maybe finishing my wedding scrapbook(in time for our 1 year anniversary)
--sleeping in
--trying new recipes

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Monday, May 4, 2009

look what arrived in the mail today..


I ordered this from Stella and Dot, my husband's cousin has an online boutique and hosts parties!! It is so gorgeous in person, I can't wait to wear it! Alas tomorrow is a hiking field trip so it will have to wait until Wednesday.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Strip Loin Steaks with "Pizza" Topping


From Everyday with Rachael Ray May Recipe

Ingredients
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 plum tomatoes, finely chopped
Salt and pepper
One 8-inch piece baguette, chopped
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, coarsely chopped (I used reduced fat)
1/4 cup sliced fresh basil
Four 1 1/4-inch-thick boneless New York strip steaks (about 12 ounces each)( we only bought 2 that were about 12 oz each and we each only ate half of a steak)


1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over low heat. Add the garlic and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Reserve 1 tablespoon of garlic oil in a small bowl. Add the tomatoes to the garlic oil in the skillet and season with salt and pepper; let cool. Add the bread, mozzarella and basil and stir until moistened.
2. Preheat the grill to medium. Brush the steaks with the reserved 1 tablespoon garlic oil and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the grill and cook for 7 minutes. Flip, then mound the bread mixture onto each steak. Cover and cook until the topping is golden and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.

We do not have a grill so I used our George Foreman set at 350 degrees and it worked great. This comes in at 18 points--a little less if you use a set points of 6 for the meat and then just add the toppings--its a lot of olive oil so you could cut that I used all of it in the calculation even though a lot drips off in the cooking and a whole wheat baguette would cut it again. My husband loves this(he thinks its not eating unless there is red meat) but the points are a little high for me and for just half a steak but it was filling.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Very Sad


My family's beloved dog Snickers died last night.

Friday, May 1, 2009

MHRF--Our Engagement


We had been dating about 2 years when we went Christmas shopping one December day when we were both playing hooky from work. Our final stop was a jewelry store, Kevin started looking at rings and they had me try some on. I was a little freaked out but excited at the same time. Then Christmas rolled around, after being socked in in an enormous snowstorm that closed down most of Denver, I wasn't sure I would even be getting home to California,I thought well at least I will be here with Kevin and we can celebrate our engagement which I was sure was going to happen. I opened my presents from Kevin with a little bit of a racing heart. But there was no ring. I finally was able to get a flight to CA and spend some time with my family, and I thought OK maybe when he picks me up from the airport. Nope. My birthday in March. Nope. Friends kept asking both of us when we were going to get engaged, but still nothing. The end of the school year is always stressful, so I just got busy doing school and put it in the back of my mind.

We were sent to go to a relatives wedding in South Dakota. We headed up to Custer State Park for a night of camping and a day of sightseeing before diving into the wedding craziness. I slept almost the whole way(as I often do on the week after school gets out). We set up our campsite and get our fire going, it was starting to drizzle and it was cool. Kevin says, "I have a surprise for you," And hands me a box. I think my words were, "Are you serious?" And started crying. He was looking at me, and I said, "well are you going to ask me." And he did, and we kissed, and I kept crying, and immediately got on the phone to everyone I knew. My parents were the first call. My dad answered and his response, "What about the cruise?"(We had planned this big family cruise for the next summer.) I said, "oh Dad we will still go!" I then called my mom, she cried, my sister, she cheered, my best friend Tracy, who left me a long rambling, slightly druken message a couple hours later. And anyone else whose number was saved in my phone. Kevin just watched me amused. We made s'mores to celebrate and had one of our best vacations ever!

LOVE YOU!!