GOOD READS

Posted on November 14, 2008 by Jenn

Colleen invited me to Borders tonight for a reading and book signing by Wally Lamb and I am so glad I went! She’s Come Undone is one of my favorite books, along with The Time Travelers Wife and The Catcher in the Rye. I think those are the few books I will ever read multiple times. We’ve been really trying to save money, so I didn’t buy a copy of his new book for myself, but did bring my very well read copy of She’s Come Undone for him to sign. He spoke about his life, and about growing up in Connecticut, read from his new book The Hour I First Believed and did some Q & A. I had been to one book signing before with Orson Scott Card, but he didn’t speak at all. I should really keep my eye out for more events like this, even with unknown authors. What a great way to spend an evening.

While I’ve been really inspired to read lately, I’ve given up reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle because it’s just too depressing that I can’t afford to eat the local, organic food that I’d like to eat right now. I’m currently reading Seven Years in Tibet and plan to read the book club pick, Silver Bells, after that and to get me in the Christmas Spirit.

Posted in Book Club, Friends | 3 Comments

MY HAPPINESS

Posted on November 12, 2008 by Jenn

I used to do a lot of question and answer bulletins on myspace when I had the time. Those were the days. Cory tagged me for this, so I had to do it, and I think this one is kind of nice. Couldn’t we all use a little time to sit back, relax and think about what makes us happy in our lives?

I think it is especially funny that a few of the things that make Cory most happy, scare the crap out of me.

Anyhow, the rules:

(1) List six things that make you happy
(2) Pass on to 6 more bloggers
(3) Link back to the person who linked you
(4) Link to the people you are passing it on to and leave them a comment to let them know.

Things that make me happy . . .

1.) The feeling of accomplishment, however it might come. Like the feeling you get after you’ve prepared a spectacular meal, or cleaned your house top to bottom, or when you’ve completed a project such as knitting a hat, painted a wall or finished a really good (or bad) book. Wow, I sound like an old 50’s housewife don’t I?

2.) Eating. Cooking. Baking. Sugar. I love to eat pretty much anything and love to cook when I have the time. You should have me over for dinner.

3.) Reading. I love to read. It feels like time I’ve stolen just for myself. And it introduced me to a great group of friends. I need to read more.

4.) Hiking. I really love being outdoors and especially love hiking now that we have Izzie to entertain us while we’re hiking.

5.) Things that remind me of home, whenever and wherever I consider home to be or have been. It could be rain on a metal roof to remind me of my parents’ house in Lantana or of the first place Ryan and I lived together in Gainesville. It could be thunder on a humid day that reminds me of my father and I shouting ka-boom at the thunder and lightening on our back porch when I was a scared little kid. Whatever it is, I just love the smells or sounds that trigger your memory to go back to a long ago thought or place. I love that.

6.) My mom and Dad, and Ryan. None of the other stuff would even matter if I didn’t have them.

And for you, my friends near and far, please tell me what makes you most happy in the world, and reading that will make me happy!

1.) Left of Center, Against the Grain
2.) Nibblin’ on Spongecake
3.) Sheer Excitement
4.) Little Red Pen
5.) A Day in the Life of a “Worrywart”
6.) I have a lot to say . . .

Posted in Cooking, Family, Friends, Life | Leave a comment

TGIF

Posted on November 8, 2008 by Jenn

Had a rough week this week, and glad it’s over. Lots going on at work, and I am not going to get into it right now. I’m dealin’ but not really happy with the way I dealt with it this week, and hoping the weekend brings some positive energy. Some fun things on the horizon and while I’ve been down most of the week, I am on the upswing. Obama is our new President-Elect. I can’t even believe that was this week! Of course, I couldn’t stay awake long enough to watch his acceptance speech. Anyhow, gotta shape up my attitude. Gotta get my mind focused on the right stuff. I’m off to eat cookies (freshly baked) and watch Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind – love that movie!

Posted in Movies, Work | 1 Comment

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Posted on November 3, 2008 by Jenn

We started off Halloween weekend by giving out candy Friday night. Not too eventful, but fun. The highlight was when this little girl, maybe 6 years old, possibly younger, said, “Are YOU voting for Barack Obama?” When I said yes, she yelled back to her mom, very enthusiastically, “MOM, SHE IS VOTING FOR BARACK OBAMA!!!” I’m not sure if the mom is telling the kid to ask everyone, or if she just noticed my Obama bumber sticker, and that I was watching him on the daily show while handing out candy. It was pretty amusing, and cute. I can’t believe Election Day is Tuesday. I can’t even fathom John McCain winning. Well, more like, I can’t even fathom Sarah Palin being Vice President. We’ll see how it goes, and see if I should start looking at houses in Victoria, BC. It’s so pretty there. Really, they have bunnies instead of squirrels. Or maybe that’s just on campus at UVIC.

Anyhow, we were lucky enough to have 5 visitors this weekend, and it wasn’t even a long weekend! Amy came from Boston, and Gretchen, Graham, Banjo and Happy came from Effingham, NH. We enjoyed some homemade crab gumbo on Friday night, and watched Return of the Living Dead. I was pretty proud of myself for watching it and not having any real nightmares.

On Saturday, we had a yummy big breakfast and went for a hike up Case Mountain in Manchester.



We watched the Gators whoop some UGA butt. We went over to Jenna, Brian, Luke and Max’s to see all the book club girls, and hubbies with a special guest appearance from former, but always honorary, Book Clubber Laura and her husband Steve. Amy, Gretchen and I were happy to present to Luke a hat that we collectively made for him. I knitted the body of it, Amy finished up the knitting and Gretchen constructed it into a hat, and made the tassel. We think it’s pretty darn cute.

I think Colleen especially liked it and has made a request for one for herself, but a little bigger . . .
Unfortunately, we got to Jenna’s late since the game ran over, and we couldn’t stay long because we had a 10 o’clock appointment at the Trail of Terror in Wallingford. I figured since everyone wanted to come for Halloween, it was my responsibility to do something halloween-y with them. Turns out I think they would have been ok to sit on the couch and drink hot chocolate and watch scary movies. After a kinda long, cold wait in line, I think we mostly enjoyed the Trail of Terror. It was dark, long and lots of people jumped out at you. There was one room where I am pretty sure something died (hence the smell). It was fun, but probably something I wouldn’t do again unless someone else really wanted to go. I hope everyone had fun! Amy took some pictures, which I’ll add later when she sends them.

On Sunday, we had cinnamon buns, took the doggies to the park and did some yarn shopping. Now that I know how to make hats, I should be able to keep busy!

This week will be good. Lots of evenings with the hubby again, which is great! Lots of reading to do to get caught up for book club this week. We’re reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

Now, what post is complete without a few Izzie pictures . . . Did I mention I got her a new blanket? And she loves it!

We’re working on the perfect submission for UpSideDownDogs.com

And we’d like to welcome the newest members of the Haines Family, Cooper and Major. I can’t believe Ben and Kristen got two puppies! Now I am wondering if Izzie doesn’t need a friend? Jasper just isn’t cutting it.

Posted in Babies, Book Club, Family, Izzie, Life | Leave a comment

HALLOWEEN FRIDAY

Posted on October 31, 2008 by Jenn

I am sick of trying to come up with titles for my blogs. I might just start calling them whatever day it is, if I can’t think of anything else.

I know it’s a little controlling of me, but I’ve installed Google Analytics on my site. It’s pretty neat-o. I can see how many people are reading per day, where they are linking from, and how long they stay at my site. I can’t see who they are, but there are maps that show you where your readers are concentrated, as well as list the towns they live in. A little big-brother-ish of me, but it’s neat. Also, a little scary that your computer tracks so much info! Although, these days you should expect that I guess. I mean, it always boggles my mind when people are arrested for crimes, and police seize their computers and they’ve googled things like, how-to-hide-a-body . . . how-to-get-away-with-murder. Anyhow, that’s depressing. I got Google Analytics, and I’m watching you people, so keep reading! And I’ll try to keep writing, and try not to be too boring.

My thought for the week is that I need to chill out a little. I’ve come a long way with the chilling out. Ryan and I were talking last night about how different everything would be if we hadn’t ended up getting married. We’d probably not be in touch with a lot of people from high school. And to this point, he’d be even more extremely laid back, and I’d be wound uncomfortably tight. So, I’ve come a long way. It’s interesting to step back and see the things that affect you. I am so wrapped up in my little habits, that I think it makes me miss out on life sometimes. It really urks me when I do a sink full of dishes, and wake up the next morning to more dishes. Or when I do them before I go to work, and then come home to dishes. It’s not like my husband doesn’t do the big sink full of dishes often, in fact he does them almost evening. But if I lived alone, I’d probably wash each dish after using it, that’s just the way I am. But, really, who cares if the dishes pile up? I have to get over it. It’s a stupid thing to focus my energy on. So, I am going to work on that. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Today is Friday, and I am so glad. I had a great week of evenings this week. My husband and I had dinner together, homemade, every night this week. We ran errands, we planned the weekend, we played with our dog. It was great. I’m looking forward to a great Halloween Weekend!

I got Izzie a blanket at Ocean State Job Lot yesterday. She’s been sleeping on the kitty’s little bed a lot, I think it’s more cozy for her. She’s also been sneaking up on the couch to cuddle with the couch blanket lately. I felt like her bed needed to be more cozy. She loves the new blanket, and snuggled with it all evening last night. She makes me happy, so I like to make her life happy too.

Posted in Blogging, Izzie, Life | 1 Comment

FROM ENDLESS SHRIMP TO TOFU GUMBO, MY WEEKEND OF GOOD EATIN’

Posted on October 27, 2008 by Jenn

Wow, I had a great weekend. This was the first weekend in a long time that I had no plans, and Ryan didn’t have any gigs or rehearsals. The plan was no plan, and it was wonderful. Although, I did try to plan out my weekend with no plans – when should we hike, what should we cook?

We started out the weekend with a trip to our ol’ standby, Red Lobster, which will from here on out before referred to as The Lob. We usually go for the Ultimate Feast, but we had a $25 gift card and it was Endless Shrimp! Usually during endless shrimp, the Lob lets you order 2 of the 5 selections, and when finished, you are able to order (and wait for) 2 more selections. We each order, and just after we are served, the waitress comes out and asks if we want more. She’s carrying a LARGE tray with probably 8 plates of different types of shrimp, which I assume she’s taking to another table. We say sure, we’d like to order . . . but she puts ALL of these plates down on our table. We probably have about 100 shrimp each on the table. Then, she brings more. So needless to say, she got a good tip, and we took home a lot of shrimp. We ate shrimp all day Saturday too.

On Saturday, we caught up on our fake Tivo, we took Izzie for a hike, we lounged around and ate leftover shrimp. It was great. I missed out on Stefania’s girls night party, but I’m hoping to catch the second installment. We also passed up going to the Keene Pumpkin Festival, but were glad we did, because the night turned out to be rainy and windy. It was the perfect night for sitting on the couch and watching old first season episodes of the X-Files.

Today, we ran some errands in the morning. We were returning some things to Old Navy and they were doing this promo where you got a scratch off type coupon when you walked in the door. The girl in front of us got the grand prize of $150 in free merchandise. I was bummed it wasn’t me. Ryan was sure to point out that if I’d hopped out of the car to go in a return the stuff (dog sweater) by myself, it would have been me who got the $150. Jerk. We did each get a $5 off coupon. We had Jenna, Brian, Luke, Cathy, Colleen & Dave over for our turn at the Sunday night revolving dinner party. Ryan made Chicken & Tofu Gumbo. I baked fresh bread, and made ice cream sandwiches with from scratch chocolate chip cookies and vanilla bean ice cream (not from scratch). They were to die for!

All in all, it was a very relaxing weekend. I finally didn’t feel like I had too much to do. I got a lot of good quality time with my husband. I need more weekends like this, but I’m also looking forward to next weekend when Gretchen, Graham & Amy come to visit for Halloween!

Chicken or Tofu Gumbo

1 tsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup flour
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1.5 lbs chicken or firm tofu
1 cup potatoes, cubed
1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup carrot, finely grated
4 cloves garlic
2 stalks scallions
1 whole bay leaf
1/2 tsp thyme
1.2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp jalepeno pepper
1 cup okra sliced into 1/2 inch pieces (we used frozen, pre-sliced)

1. While preparing veggies, cook tofu or chicken in skillet with some oil.
2. Add oil to large pot – dutch oven works well
3. Heat pot over medium flame
4. Stir in Flour
5. Cook, stirring constantly, until flour becomes golden brown, and stir slowly with whisk until mixture is not lumpy.
6. Add all ingredients, except okra. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 mins.
7. Add okra and let cook for 15-20 mins.
8. Remove bay leaf
9. Serve in bowl or over white rice.

Posted in Eating Out, Recipes | Leave a comment

THE SPAGHETTI INCIDENT

Posted on October 24, 2008 by Jenn

When we got Izzie, we decided not to feed her table scraps. I haven’t really been having a problem enforcing that rule (I might be having a little trouble with the no dog on the couch rule!). She gets plenty of treats and has been known to sneak into the kitty’s room to eat her expensive Science Diet Hairball Control Light food. The other night, I hear Ryan laughing hysterically in the kitchen, and he yells for me to come see. And this is what I see . . .

Note: I did not run in with my camera. I might have had him reenact the incident.

Posted in Izzie | Leave a comment

I HATE RETURNING THINGS

Posted on October 22, 2008 by Jenn

But the mean old daddy says it has to go back . . .


. . . And he’s right. It’s not really warm enough. We need something cute, but with some warmth. We don’t want our doggy catching cold. Meanwhile, I am keeping several things for me. I just love Old Navy. Why can’t I stop buying, even on the same day that I get my gynormous credit card bill?!

Posted in Izzie | 1 Comment

TIME FOR A REFRESHER

Posted on October 20, 2008 by Jenn

I need to recite to myself the four agreements by Miguel Angel Ruiz. There is one of those fancy spanish apostrophes above the “A” but I don’t know how to type that.

  1. Be Impeccable With Your Word.
  2. Don’t Take Anything Personally.
  3. Don’t Make Assumptions.
  4. Always Do Your Best.

I am doing none of these. I’d like to think I am doing number 4, but if I am not doing 1-3, then I cannot possibly be doing my best. Time to get your sh*t together Jenn. Yes, I am talking to myself in the 3rd person on my blog. And time to stop cursing, dangit. Maybe Sarah Paylin has a list of her favorite ‘not curse words’ I could use. Gosh, I just broke number 1. Better stop writing.

We made apple juice in our new juicer tonight (new from our marriage in February). It tastes good, but it’s a little brown looking. We’re having Butternut Squash and Lobster Ravioli with Vodka Sauce for dinner, yum. In case you care. Over and out.

Posted in Life | Leave a comment

LIKE IT’S GOING OUT OF STYLE

Posted on October 20, 2008 by Jenn

I have to stop eating like it’s going out of style. I’ve noticed that I just eat and eat until I am overly and uncomfortably full. Yuck. Anyhow.

Ryan had gigs and rehearsals all weekend, so I hardly saw him. Except for now. And I am blogging and getting ready to roll out workamjig at work tomorrow.

On Saturday, I went wine tasting with Ryan and Jen. We went to 6 wineries:
Land of Nod
Miranda
Sunset Meadow
Jerram
Haight-Brown
Connecticut Valley Winery

Not in that order. But I can’t remember what order, because I was drinking wine. Ryan was driving. So needless to say I spent Saturday evening sleeping it off. I bought 6 bottles of wine. I am quite a shopper when I am drinking.
On Sunday, Ryan had to get up early again for a gig. It didn’t matter, because I was already up because Izzie was making a lot of noise to get out of her crate (thanks, my pre-baby!) I spent the morning baking bread, cleaning the house and trying to stay warm. We just finally turned the heat on tonight. When you’re poor, heat is a frill. I’m just kidding of course, but we were trying to hold out as long as we can. Once you turn the heat on, it’s on for like 6 months! Izzie and I went over to Jenna’s for a play date with Max. Brian was kind enough to watch the doggies and Luke while Jenna and I had a little outing at Trader Joe’s. On my way home from Glastonbury, I saw this cute little display in support of Obama! Then, it was dinner with Ryan, Jackie, Chris & Jim at Chili’s. And now I am uncomfortably full.


And here’s a little Izzie video. The sound is horrible, because I am vacuuming. I don’t know how I get any cleaning done with this monster following me around trying to save me from the Vacuum.

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