Home Sweet Haselton

The best pizza in the history of the world

2012-02-09T12:09:00.001-08:00

1 package pre made pizza dough
1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 sprigs thyme

1 cup gorgonzola

8 slices prosciutto
Some parmesan-it's a pizza, load up as much or little as you like.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Roll out pizza dough as directions indicate on package. Or make your own if you have that kind of time.

Heat olive oil, garlic, and thyme in saucepan until warmed through but do not let garlic burn. When fragrant, turn off the burner and put lid on pan to let flavors infuse.

Roll out pizza dough, and using a pastry brush, spread olive oil "sauce" over dough, followed by the gorgonzola and parmesan. Top with prosciutto ribbons and drizzle any remaining olive oil over entire pie. Bake for 8-10 minutes.

No picture because we consumed it as if it were the last pizza on earth. Thus, imagine what the best pizza on earth looks like and there you have it.

Recipe adapted from Ina Garten's fabulous white pizza.

Project: nursing cover

2012-02-05T17:42:00.001-08:00

Sewing project number two was a surprise gift for new mom Virginia. I found this set of directions and it was a great lesson in working with a knit, velcro, and boning.

I forgot to take pictures of the cover before giving it to her and asked if her husband could get her in some shots this weekend, and the kind souls they are obliged.

And she's such a good friend she even flipped it over so everyone could see the cute polka dot fabric underneath.

Sunday Confessions

2012-02-05T14:14:00.001-08:00

We've lived in our house nearly two years and today I cleaned the oven. Lessons learned:

Follow directions and wear long gloves. Chemical burns are terrible.
I should do this more often. At least annually; maybe next Superbowl.

We hosted an awesome game night last night and I made 7 different apps and desserts and yet took absolutely no pictures of food or people. The food was great, the libations flowing, and the company the best.

Project: apron

2012-01-28T21:22:00.001-08:00

I've done it-my first 99.9% sewing project completed by myself*.

I found the pattern here, and it was pretty simple for me to work with being a first-timer. I'd estimate the project took about 5-6 hours to complete.

I do believe the bride enjoyed the gift :)

*After two hours on my own, small buttonhole work was subcontracted to my mom.

Arrivederci

2012-01-20T20:30:00.000-08:00

He was a solver of brain teasers.

A chauffeur after school.

A storybook reader.

A corrector of driving skills.

A lover of ice cream.

A veteran.

A landscape manicurist.

An origami money maker.

A man devoted to his faith.

A frequent caller to Anaheim's Code Enforcement. (True, several cards in the Rolodex.)

A man full of trivia.

A man with the cleanest bathroom this side of the Mississippi.

A husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend.

To me, my grandpa. Arrivederci Grandpa. A dopo. May you rest in peace.

The birthday

2012-01-16T19:32:00.001-08:00

The birthday came, lingered, and went. A good one it was.

We had cupcakes and cake balls complete with song at work.

That night, Scott took me to a restaurant we've heard rave reviews about but had not tried-Il Garage at Park Ave. The Italian bistro portion of the restaurant-the garage- is in the garden where the chef sources his menu from- a menu that changes 25% each day. We'll definitely return.

The big trip for the bday consisted of a trip to the Huntington Library. An amazing place that one visit will never do justice.

The Blue boy...and Scott.

A path in the rose garden.

Mona Lisa Anemone.

She spoke to me. I don't recall the artist other than he was an American and amateur-which partly explains the oddness of the woman to me.

Magnolia trees.

Cactus garden...straight out of Dr. Seuss.

Massive fireplace in the Huntington's dining room accompanied by the original George W.

Thanks to Yelp, we had lunch at Roma Italian Grocery and Deli, which was delicious and a diamond in the rough of a strip mall. If you find yourself in Pasadena and craving a sandwich, by all means, go there. The little Italian man serving up The Sandwich-yes, there's only one-may offer you 10 year old cheese to sample. If he doesn't, by all means inquire-the people behind you won't mind you holding up the line. 1o year old provolone-ZOMG.

That night Rob and Kerri came up for dinner-Scott's famous steak, Brussels sprouts and aperitifs at the Twisted Vine. We wined, dined, and talked a little shop for the planning of my 10 year high school reunion. And Krob even me this awesome succulent planter.

Sunday night my parents, grandma, sister, her boyfriend and my in-laws celebrated at our local pizzeria. It was a birthday weekend well spent and I thank everyone who made it as special as it was, from the cards, texts, phone calls, emails and Facebook messages-cheers!

Pinterest Challenge: Roman Blinds

2012-01-08T10:20:00.001-08:00

Pinterest is a place of inspiration and very little execution. Thus, Andrea prompted me to participate in a challenge to put our pins into practice.

The timing was perfect because of our office revamp (or rather, just vamp, seeing as we've done nothing to it at after living here over a year) and the the project was chosen-DIY Roman Shades.

Source: 365days2simplicity.blogspot.com via Erin on Pinterest

My final version:

Post project thoughts:

1) Crappy blinds yield a not so fabulous backbone of a shade. They function, as noted above, but the fabric is a home dec fabric thus its weight might be a little much for the flimsy blinds.

2) MEASURE ERIN, MEASURE. I'm not convinced each of my blinds are perfectly straight.

3) These blinds replaced the previous owners' white vinyl roller blinds. They are certainly a cosmetic upgrade, but in hindsight I wish I had used a blackout fabric on the back, as these are more light-filtering.

Overall, I like them for the pop of color to the room, and though the functionality is fair, it was also a project that satisfied my need for instant gratification.

New Year's Eve 2011

2012-01-01T19:05:00.001-08:00

Dinner and Drinks and darn good times with Blake and Priscilla.

Strolling down Harbor Blvd.

Running into favorite coworkers.

Cheers to 2011 and it's memories and welcoming 2012!

Final 2011 Victories

2011-12-31T13:45:00.000-08:00

1. Fruits of my labor began sprouting-ziva paperwhites.

2. Built up my tolerance of other species.

3. FINALLY got around to organizing and decorating the office.

In process of moving everything out to prep for paint.

More put together, but not the final vision.

3a. Earthquake-strapped the bookcase to the wall.

4. Started new nail trends in the painting process, "the spackle".

5. Fixed the doorbell so that it's no longer on the same frequency as the next door neighbor's.

6. Hung rain gutters and down spouts.

Goodbye 2011, hello 2012. First anticipated victory will be staying up until midnight.

Christmas

2011-12-25T22:04:00.001-08:00

A week of fun, frivolity, family, friends, and food (and sometimes lack thereof the latter.)

Employee of the month here, who braved Costco.

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner Wednesday.

Business cat.

First real sewing project! Potholders for Leah!

Christmas Eve duets.

Really? It's own section?

Christmas morning breakfast.

350 miles shared with wonderful family.

Happy Christmas!

Victors

2011-12-18T08:47:00.000-08:00

Winner, winner, Catchphrase clincher!!!

Shout out to Amie who always has her camera and tripod at the ready!

Please sir, a little wine for me?

2011-12-09T04:27:00.000-08:00

Yes, I love my cat.

The most interesting cat in the world

2011-12-06T00:05:00.000-08:00

He's the one controlling the laser pointer while the other cats run trying to catch it.

Help

2011-12-05T18:47:00.001-08:00

My usual mix of vinegar and baking soda is not working.

Good Things

2011-12-04T22:21:00.001-08:00

It was a weekend full of good things:
1. Boot camp to get this booty into better shape.
2. Celebratory dinner with Kerri and Rob to celebrate her new PhD status.
3. Sewing with mom.
4. Lunch with the in-laws.
5. Afternoon naps.
6. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince on the tele.
7. The Amazing Race, although my favorites Tommy and Andy were eliminated. They had an amazing run though.
8. Meeting babies, specifically Miles Sandfer.

The circle of life can be cruel.

2011-12-01T22:21:00.000-08:00

A friend from work lost her baby this week. She was three months old, diagnosed with congenital heart defects while pregnant. I had never been to a baby's funeral before today and I hope I never have to again. Though her parents were in pain, she looked peaceful, like she could be sleeping. Ready to be picked up and loved. To have life taken so soon is unfair.

It is bittersweet. As Courtney left her family, Miles came to Virginia and Shawn on Wednesday night. I know they will make awesome parents.

I struggle to comfort the grieving while congratulating the joyful and making sense of how the cards fall.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-28T20:22:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving started early for us with a brunch on the Calabrese side at my grandparents' assisted living home on Sunday, November 20. I think we may have been one of the largest families there-all 19 of us--one grandma, four kids and 5 spouses, six cousins, and a senior center entertainer in Pilgrim gear. My brain was focused on my omelet so there is no picture sadly.

For the long weekend, Scott and I traveled to Blythe for a Haselton Thanksgiving with his dad's side of the family. His aunt and uncle very kindly hosted us and other members of the family for a few days while still managing to do a sit down dinner for 21. I'm guessing they are enjoying the peace now!

Bonfires and babies

The trip was very fun to see family and finally become acquainted with my second amendment rights.

Scott and Tim, Robert pulling the pigeons.

Audra had way better form.

And for my dad who will appreciate it-the first shot, atrocious form, nerves, and all:

The Haselton women did exceptionally-shooting pigeons, bottles, cardboard left and right. I shot one pigeon and felt good about finally getting comfortable with such a powerful weapon. Holding a shotgun certainly brings out one's inner badass.

We capped off the weekend with a wine and game night with Scott's coworkers and a Sunday night turkey roll. All in all a great Thanksgiving.

Big thanks to the Maltby's who hosted the holiday-we had a great time!

The Moose Lodge

2011-11-16T19:49:00.001-08:00

Tuesday night Scott and I ventured to the Anaheim Moose Lodge with our friends Virginia and Shawn, where Gigi's dad is a Moose.

Cheap drinks, great company, and good times had by all. I even stayed out until 11 on a work night.

Posted via my iPhone. Not sure why the photos are ginormous.

The day I learned to sew.

2011-11-13T20:05:00.000-08:00

It's been a long, sweaty, frustrating road. Two dropout classes, several YouTube attempts, and many tutorial reads later, we have this:

Three words: mother knows best.

Actually my mom is not that way, but a few hours with her were far superior to the previous classes I've attempted. There is something to be said for one-to-one teaching for sure.

Now I have a pink and plaid Hawaiian print Christmas stocking as my first real project. My curves need a little work, but overall, not too shabby. I may seek a shadow box to display at home or pass it down as a future heirloom. We shall see.

Thanks to my mom for the great lesson. Did you just hear that sound? It was the sound of my fabric glue soaring into the trashcan.

Saluting the Vets

2011-11-11T06:45:00.000-08:00

I originally posted this in 2009, but I think it's just as relevant today. Thank you veterans for what you do for our country.

*****

Today, and everyday, I salute the men and women around the world fighting for safety, freedom, democracy, and a job I could never do.

Personally, I'd like to thank the men in my life who have devoted time to the armed services. (I am just sorry that I don't have pictures of them all in uniform.)

My dad, who served in the United States Army.

My paternal grandfather, a soldier in the United States Navy, and a part of Pearl Harbor.

My maternal grandfather, also a soldier in the Navy and also a part of Pearl Harbor.

Longtime friend Harrison, US Marine, who most recently served in Iraq.

Thank you for all you do, have done, and will continue doing for this country.

A woman about So Cal

2011-11-06T08:43:00.001-08:00

Saturday was a big day. I drove to Temecula to see Ashley and little Luca for the second time since his birth in late August. She might have been the cutest little mama around pushing a very hip stroller and looking adorable.

We are both lovers of wine and cheese and so she has raved about the Temecula Valley Cheese Company and thus treated me to a lovely afternoon of artisan brie, parmesan, gruyere, and fontina. And of course, vino.

Delightful friend, company, and time together. I so wish we lived closer.

After a dinner foul in the kitchen that caused me to lose a spoon and my Pyrex measuring cup, Scott and I headed south again to The Tiki Bar in Costa Mesa for my sister's boyfriend's band, Main Street Lights. And they went on after 10:30. I felt like I shed a little of my grandma exterior that night.

The band was great, the people watching as amazing as it gets at a dive bar. And I enjoyed two glasses of Chardonnay and watching the lobsters before the band.

Three cheers for Saturday nights with friends, family (in spirit since the sister is not yet 21), and extra hours.

Blogging on the go

2011-11-01T20:48:00.001-07:00

This is what being a part of the iPhone club feels like!

It's the most wonderful day of the year

2011-10-30T20:13:00.001-07:00

Happy Halloween!!! The night I live for, the night of holiday without gifts, no pretenses, and tons of dressing up.

Ruffle socks with peep toe wedding shoes do nothing for my calves.

Dorothy and the Wicked Witch get along very well in this family!

Surprise! The Cowardly Lion showed up!

I told Scott I couldn't wait until we had a kid I could dress up. As if that wasn't already not in our immediate future, it's now in our super not immediate future. Whatevs, I have Oliver acting as my Toto today.

Burn Victim

2011-10-29T08:35:00.000-07:00

Well that might be a bit over dramatic.

However my kitchen safety does need some improvement.

Two years ago I burned myself on the oven in our apartment and earned myself a "10" from the upper grid irons on my elbow. Since then there have been a dozen other incidents involving the oven, stove, bbq-you name it.

The worst by far was a few weeks ago when I took a shortcut (first no-no) in making bacon in the microwave. (Sidenote-I really hate the grease from making it on the stove and didn't feel like turning on the oven. Plus I hate the smell of a home post-bacon. Strange, I know.) As I took the bacon out of the microwave, my force was that of superhuman strength and the grease from the plate splashed onto my bosom. It took every ounce of energy in me not to throw the plate across the room (fearing the mess I'd have to clean up later-I already had the grease spill on and around me contained).

That bacon grease went through my shirt AND my bra to emblazon the very delicate skin with a scarlet splotch. This was one bad burn. I tended it as best I could and a few days in finally called the hospital nurse's line to confirm it sounded like it was actually healing and not staying forever. Thankfully about 12 days later it's healed and only a slight scar on my body that is full of them.

Because of this experience I figured it was high time to buy a First Aid kit. I'm slightly embarassed that we didn't have it before and might just start giving it as a wedding gift now. Good thing I did because last night I gave myself another oven burn tattoo. I realize I also need to buy elbow length oven mitts since that along with my hands seem to be the most common victim.

Thus, always remember safety first, kids (and almost 30-year-old adults).

A First Time for Everything: Acupuncture

2011-10-24T17:45:00.000-07:00

The couple that experiences Eastern medicine together, stays together.

Saturday morning Scott and I went in for our first accupuncture appointment together...or so we thought. It actually turned out to be a 1.5 hour consultation complete with a dianostic analysis of our respective bodies. Turns out I am close to obese. Now while I know I can stand to lose a few pounds, I didn't think it was as serious as being close to obesity. It put a damper on my Saturday and of course made me consider eating spinach and carrot sticks morning, noon, and night. Scott on the other hand is a perfect specimen and if anything underweight, which is not surprising to anyone.

After we determined this was indeed a self-esteem ruining meeting, we made appointments for the real deal, and today I went.

I wish I could have taken photos but, I was covered in 22 needles and I didn't need the world to see my lumpy-nearly-obese-self anyways.

The experience began with 15 minutes with my "pain therapist." I think this might be a term that is lost in translation as it really felt like a deep tissue massage without the ambiance of a regular massage. Lots of kneading, reminders of tightness, relax, relax, knead more. Lights switched on. (If I do a Yelp review, I will suggest a dimmer.)

Following my mini massage with the pain therapist, we began the acupuncture. Dr. Kim put 22 needles on me while I laid on my back: one in between my eyebrows, five on my head like a stegosaurus, one behind and on each ear, one on the fleshy part of each hand, four on my abs, two above each knee, two on top of each foot below the toes, and one I cannot recall.

None of the pricking was painful except for the feet. She pulled in a heat lamp to radiate on my abs for the obesity and I was told to relax and encouraged to sleep for the next 30 minutes. I was not uncomfortable but as my legs were propped up on a triangular pillow, I had some discomfort in my ankles, and when you are fixated on a problem you can't do anything about, sleep doesn't really happen. I did sit up to at least have a visual of the experience and when I raised my arms it felt a little weird, as well as my legs from (the fat) moving around the needle.

Following my 30 minute warm up, the needles were removed and we went into the doctor's office for more "therapy." Dr. Kim speaks very good English, however I have a difficult time understanding accents, so I'm fairly sure the four Chinese seeds she pushed into my left ear and covered with a bandage are for combating headaches, tension, and my appetite. She then pricked my ear for reasons I do not know.

My homework is to push the Chinese seeds into my ear five times a day for the next three days. Some of them are pretty painful and feel like I've got a new piercing.

If Scott and I keep up the recommended plan it's going to cost us about $1200. This may be my only acupuncture experience and thus I will continue down the slippery slope of obesity and join the local Weight Watchers.

Progress Report-Part II

2011-10-22T08:46:00.000-07:00

The bathroom is about 80% done. And my visits to the gym to shower are looking to be a thing of the past. All that is left on the to-do list is ripping up the awful linoleum and putting in a pedestal sink. The public lavatory model kills me.

The wallpaper tearing down process:

A previous owner actually used hot glue to seal the top and bottom of the wallpaper likely when it started to curl from moisture in the bathroom. I'd like to have a few words with the other person who slopped paint on the kitchen cabinetry, but that must wait for another day.

I hated those stupid moonbeams.

I am actually thankful in terms of wallpaper removal for this home-this was it, a border. Granted it had hot glue that had to be scraped off, but at least it wasn't rooms and rooms of it.

When my parents remodeled their house a few years ago, I earned my wings scraping wall paper down from every nook and cranny it seemed. Layers on layers of wallpaper. I shudder at the memory.

Finally gone.

First off-the grout lines in the tile are wider than we would like. However, being our first time dealing with tile (though we didn't lay it) we went with a recommendation. It's grown on me with the darker paint and accents as well.

The paint choice leans more towards the feminine side, but I'm trying to balance it with the black and gray accents. Scott is manly enough to handle it though.

The two white spots in the above picture are waiting for a new set of hooks to go up.

I have to say I love it more than the hippie version that preceded it. And it's another lesson in the dramatic difference paint makes.

A Mustache Baby Bash

2011-10-14T15:21:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how people did parties in my office suite before I came along. Seriously, they must have been lucky if it was ice cream cake day. Let me say the Party Planning Committee brought it on at Virginia and Shawn's "Mustache Baby Bash."

Guests of honor:

We asked guests for a baby photo and added some of our own creative touches.

We kept theme beyond mustaches, bow ties, and monocles to graphic prints in primary colors.

Since baby showers are much more guy friendly these days we opted for games that appealed to a variety of ages and both men and women. Guess the 'Stache (my game, thus no word bank. My dear coworker did the next. She's a lover of the word bank.)

and Who's that Baby.

Food included manwiches, bow tie pasta with dill, homemade pizza, green salad, fruit, quinoa and black bean salad, stuffed mushrooms, and real cookie ice cream sandwiches. Seriously, this suite brings it when I ask.

Guests made onesies for the baby boy to be.

Presents were received and joy abounded.

Twins!

Oh dear.

2011-10-13T21:33:00.000-07:00

I, for one, am a Target girl. As you may recall I gave it up for Lent. In many parts of the US, another discount giant is beloved by many. Around here, I give it the stank eye. Especially when I see* my alma mater's apparel inside. Oh my.

*I obviously don't go to Wal-Mart. This was emailed by a former Saxon who desperately needed paper clips.

Cooking for Kings

2011-10-04T16:10:00.000-07:00

I joked on Twitter that it's awesome to be married to me due to the dinners I make. All joking aside, it's still true.

We've had two pretty darn tasty dinners so far this week-the Pioneer Woman's perfect pot roast (no pictures, it was consumed too quickly) on Sunday, and yesterday, Ina's mussels with basil breadcrumbs. Oh em gee, I felt like Ina, in a French bistro enjoying our cuisine with Chardonnay, the only difference is we sported our our finest gym clothes. It's great dining fine at home.

Both nights I used my Dutch oven as well-one pot meals are the best.

A Progress Report

2011-09-28T16:23:00.000-07:00

We timed our Solvang trip to coincide with some work being done on our shower. If I may give one piece of advice to anyone buying a home-pull back the shower curtain. Two inspectors and two newbie buyers lacked to do so and were stuck with water damage in the window frame that is costing us to fix part of the bathroom sooner than we'd hope and forcing us to go to the gym so we can use the shower. The highlights of a one bath home!

The entrance to the supreme dust zone. It even has a red (plaid) carpet.

Progress! But no available shower.

The work required the walls of the shower to be ripped out, new studs and and waterproofing board that the new tile can be affixed to.

Power tools and boom box take priority to perfume.

Because we think the tub was originally claw-footed and previous homeowners sometime in the last 85 years filled in the corners with cement to make the tub flush with the wall, it's requiring some creative solutions. Thankfully we've got a great contractor who's well equipped to face these issues.

Dust everywhere. I am counting down the days to a functional bathroom and major house clean.

Naturally with the shower's progress I want to move along to replace the gym sink with a pedestal and of course pull up the vinyl flooring for tile. In reality I will probably finally remove the celestial wallpaper and paint.

Solvang, 8 Months Later

2011-09-28T04:02:00.000-07:00

This past weekend the entire Haselton clan descended upon the Santa Ynez Valley for Scott's uncle's 60th birthday. It was nice because this trip we were able to try three different wineries than we had since the trip in January.

Sort this Out Cellars (actually we came here in January and one of the co-owners is also the event planner at a local restaurant.) Thanks to Scott's Aunt Kathy (wife of birthday Uncle Jimmy for the photo.

My favorite new winery was Sarloos and Sons, which does cupcake pairings along with their wine. Thank you Audra for selecting that winner!

Our hotel has agreements (probably in the price we paid per night) for complimentary tastings at about 20 local tasting rooms and wineries. We stopped at a few in between the Haselton's route specifically-Andrew Murray Vineyards where I had a one hour conversation with the employee about Pottermore.

After Andrew Murray we drove to the ends of the valley to Zaca Mesa, which will be known as the winery where I shattered my wine glass. Good wine though, combined with a lovely picnic lunch and giant chess board.

Finally we embarked upon the famous Fess Parker for a final tasting and cigar enjoyment. It was also rumored that Amanda Seyfried was there, so I went into the vineyard to look for her. The rumor really only came from Tim but I tried to confirm it with no luck.

Dinner was enjoyed at a local Italian eatery which made the best ravioli I've ever had in my life. I'm going to attempt to replicate it this weekend, though I know it won't come close. It was life-changing ravioli.

It was a lovely weekend getaway that has ended our month of vacation for a while. Though I am plotting an MLK getaway if we can swing it to coincide with my birthday. I feel you always need something in life to look forward to, and January can be kind of a low month following the holidays and copious amounts of brie consumed.

400 Posts

2011-09-27T15:27:00.000-07:00

Well, this makes 401.

I started blogging back in 2007 and those posts were rather lame (as in I referred to Scott as My Boy-well our last name and credit scores [which are AWESOME] are pretty much now on the webs for public view.)

I've written before about how I go back and forth about what to put out into the blogosphere. Mostly, I enjoy sharing thoughts and events with family members and friends I may not see very often and finding pleasure through reading other blogs, many of which I've never met the author in real life.

I realize it's completely du jour to have a blog these days (remember though, I started in '07 was four years ago, so I'm not a total bandwagoner). People write for different reasons, but I do feel if I am putting something out there that a set of eyes are deigning to read, I should attempt to make it interesting, which is why there can be lapses in post. Sometimes I'm not that interesting-we work, eat, watch Intervention and repeat. I don't think people need a brain dump of my mental to-do lists.

I've noticed a trend in blogging as of late-MAJOR product pushing. I get that people are trying to earn a little money from their blog and thus they have sponsors and do features-why not have a little ROI for the time that goes into posting. I also understand marketing is ever evolving and is not limited to your tv/radio/print venues anymore. I could simply stop reading but frankly I do find other aspects of these bloggers daily lives interesting. And perhaps it has come to that-a little bit voyeurism and a little bit of laziness in not wanting to delete from my reader or Twitter. I don't want to say you'll never see that on here because the minute I do, Martha Stewart Crafts will probably want to advertise for $4,000 a month. I would not refuse that offer.

Clearly I'm no Pioneer Woman in the blogging world (though if the Food Network calls, they should know I'm ready at a moment's notice to be a fabulous guest at a certain Hamptons home) and don't have 700 people a day reading this (which is good, since I don't post daily and use far too many parentheses) thus, no amazing calculators or diapering services to push for an extra fifty bucks a month.

For a 401st post this is certainly no Kerri Knight-Teague dissertation. Thankfully I'm only graded by my own shame later when I go back and read. I know the people who read this may crack a smile and can easily skip the tangent thoughts. Thanks for reading through the last 200 posts-that was probably when it got good anyway. There will be no giveaway because I'm not into those and would probably offer a Chia Pet or Bump It anyway.

Vacation Reading

2011-09-17T06:37:00.000-07:00

I stocked up at the Borders going out of business sale earlier this summer in anticipation for our Cancun getaway with some classics-The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Lord of the Flies, and Gulliver's Travels.

I powered through Tom Sawyer (loved it-never read it) and am almost through Lord of the Flies (Sorry Mr. Leon, I remember nearly nothing of this from 10th grade!) Still working on Gulliver's Travels.

What piece of amazing literature took the cake, pie, cookies, and ice cream:

Snort, cry, laugh out loud reading. So much I know Scott was annoyed by the continued outbursts. I wanted to buy this book from the day it came out, but I forced myself to wait until it would apply to beachside reading. So glad I did. Ironically, American Airlines has some sort of agreement with NBC so I saw the same episodes of 30 Rock*, The Office, and Community on four different flights (sans headphones) and in one, it was the season finale when Tina Fey has a fantasy and Ina Garten is her neighbor!!! ZOMG my worlds collided! I do realize this is actually her character Liz Lemon, but let me say if there is a dinner party waiting to happen it includes me and those two ladies. Meryl Streep is optional.

I was tempted to put quotes here from the book but then I'd just be retyping everything and thus, people should just borrow it from me or buy it. I even went against my principles and bought it in hardcover. Doesn't come out in soft until January of 2012. Too long to wait people!
Do yourself a favor and ignore the depression of the world for a few hours and crack open these pages of fine American literature.

*I'm not sure what happened but we fell out of 30 Rock Thursdays so you can bet I've added them to the Netflix queue to catch up.

Hola, Buenos Dias

2011-09-16T18:40:00.000-07:00

For our third anniversary, we ventured to our neighbors to the south, Mexico, specifically the Maya Riviera in Cancun. In a word: humid. In a second word: awesome.

We took nearly 200 pictures and thought it was an awesome trip. I am lacking the motivation to really post that much on here, mostly due to the fact this blogging platform's picture posting is crappy . Blogger-you really need a gallery function. Thus, consider this post a snapshot of the trip. If anyone who comes across this wants more info on anything, I'm happy to share.

Day 1:
We arrived in the late afternoon and used the evening to check out the amenities at the hotel, Secrets Maroma:

Bedroom

Bathroom

We were lucky enough to go during a promotion so our room was upgraded from partial ocean view to full ocean view.

The main drag of the hotel had these shallow "foot pools" with lounge furniture and table games.

Pool and beach.

Party people, first night there and we're playing Jenga, followed by a Fire and Ice dance show.

Day 2:
Eat, drink and be merry.

Like I said, humid.

Day 3
We took a day trip to Chichen Itza, newly added to the list of the wonders of the world, and even if it were not, a marvel to visit. It also calmed my fears to listen to the residents see 12/21/12 as no big deal. Thank goodness, I have started mentally planning my 30th for 2014.

Blue agave/crucial future margarita ingredient.

Pit stop after 2 hours in a bus with half the tour in French and half in English. I actually enjoyed it because it reminded us how much we need to learn a second language, since the rest of the world speaks more than one.

We have arrived. Like I said above, a marvel to see and a trip to learn about the culture.

Commemorating the human sacrifices made...quite eerie.

Following a 2.5 hour tour of Chichen Itza (and about 35 photos of the ruins, pool where the dead bodies were thrown, and vendor stands selling apocalypse shirts) we moved on to lunch at a local restaurant. It wasn't that good. I'm all for authentic Mexican food, but this was buffet and not that great. But we did get entertainment. Love me some ballet folklorico. I left high marks on the survey following the tour with the needs improvement in that lunch. After refueling, it was onto a cenote, pools from underground rivers that meet salt water from the ocean forming a crystal clear estuary. We climbed down about 50 feet to reach the cave and swim for a bit, as well as take a brief venture into a VERY claustrophobic cave that had a tortuga, Maria and Christo formed by stalactites inside. Tips requested.

Day 4:
I am not known for my driving skills. It's rather embarassing in real vehicles as well as K1 speed racing go carts. Scott wanted to go ATVing, so I knew what my plan would be bringing up the rear. So, while the rest of the group nearly popped wheelies, I followed as the caboose only speeding when it was a very clear and long path ahead of me, instead of the other twisting and turning through blind corners in the jungle.

After charging hills and mud, we came upon another cenote for swimming.

Crystal clear waters with strict instructions about not using it as a bathroom.

Awkward ATV photo of the year.

After the half day activity, we returned back to the resort for the real reason for vacation:

Endless drinks by the pool.

Lunch-grouper.
As if, we were boring Americans and had cheese burgers and fries.

The late afternoon storm moved us to the deck where we continued the theme of libations through Crown Royale's on the rocks for the mister, and a revolving array of Champagne, mojito's, Chardonnay, and margaritas for me. And quoting my new friend Tina Fey. Oh man that book is hilarious.

Cheers!

Dinner of fennel roasted chicken and rib eye steak.

Day 5
Day four is also known as the day we wish we had a do-over for. More than one person suggested we visit Xel-Ha, as did every other bilboard there. Xel-Ha is a natural water preserve where people probably have a great time if they don't have access to Wild Rivers or Disneyland at their fingertips any time of the year. For us, the lazy river was nice (when you weren't going to be decapitated by the mangroves) but the snorkeling was better in the cenotes or standing at the beach, and the zip lining, cliff diving, Blackbart's Cave adventure was not our cup of tea and I didn't want to pay 1 million pesos for swimming with dolphins or manatees.

That aside, we did check out another site of ruins, Tulum. Again, it was hot and humid. So hot and humid we sat down in the shade and watched iguanas fight, ignore, and sun for the last 30 minutes of the tour. However, still a site to behold, and if my memory serves me correctly, one of the only remaining coastal ruins sites.

Best item I took-that hat. It's in nearly every photo but I don't have a head sunburn that looks like dandruff.

Xel-Ha lagoon for snorkeling.

Day 6
RELAXATION

Book 2/3 for the trip, Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Day 7

Departure day. We spent the morning on the beach and in the pool, and then lines, lines, and more lines flying from Cancun to Dallas to Los Angeles. Welcome home, Haseltons!

Story of our travels: show passport, go through underwear, discover maple leaves and/or marijuana. Ok, welcome back to the US, grab luggage.

*Shout outs to both of our parents for this trip-Cratons for taking us at 5 a.m. and picking us up, and Haseltons for Oliver sitting. THANK YOU!!!

Three Cheers for Three Years

2011-09-08T07:24:00.000-07:00

In honor of the third anniversary we dined at the Anaheim White House, a restaurant neither of us has ever been to, despite calling that city home for over 20 years. If you are a local, you're likely familiar with the restaurant's story. If you care to learn, go here. Like many who've dined before us, Bruno was there and did greet our table, though I secretly wished he would have spoken a little more Italian, specifically "mozzarella," Giada-style. A little marital humor for Scott.

Now we're not snooty (or snotty) but we have been fortunate enough to also dine at similar spots like Mr. Stox and The Cellar, so it was easy to compare. I actually won the dinner for two in July at a baby photo event I went to with my sister-in-law and nephew. I never win anything, so to win dinner at a rather nice restaurant was pretty great.

We dined on tuna tartar, brasato piemontese (braised short ribs) and costata di manzo (New York steak) with a side of broccoli and cheese. The wine was Pinot Noir and for dessert they gifted us this:

We had a thoroughly enjoyable time with good conversation and great people watching. Seriously, do people roll out of bed and think "I want to eat at a four star restaurant tonight"? Actually I think they spend the entire day at Disneyland in 100 degree heat and then have that thought.

Earlier in the day I had gifted my groom his third anniversary gift, leather:

So stylish, practically Don Draper.

A 3 Year Analysis

2011-09-07T05:47:00.000-07:00

Today marks three years of marriage for the mister and me. While we certainly aren't perfect, it's been some of the easiest three years of my life. I thought it might be cheeky to do an analysis of where we are now if aliens were watching our home as anthropological study.

1. We never go to the movies. I finally figured out why-we don't ever want to see the same films. Thankfully we've got Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings to keep us together on nights in. And Aragon.

2. Our roles are very gender typical. I cook, clean, grocery shop, and take care of the cat. He does yard work, fixes things for me, and works late into the night.

3. The neighborhood (and aliens) may think we are poor examples of young people today, since we sit on the porch drinking wine and whiskey, enjoying cigars, mowing the lawn with shirts off, and watering with shirts too low (I had a bathing suit on though.)

4. We eat like kings. I am tooting my own horn here, but he revealed to me that he looks forward to what dinner will be each night-even if it is only taco night.

5. We watch entirely too much Law & Order, yet sometimes discover an episode unseen.

6. There is a lot of love, even through disagreements about the speed at which emails should be responded to.

Happy anniversary Scott! Thanks for three glorrrrious years!

The Ghetto Box

2011-09-05T17:10:00.001-07:00

Or, another lesson in "never say never." Specifically, I'll never have a window air conditioning unit.

Time to shut your pie hole, Erin.

Although it's not in our originally intended location of the bedroom, it's going to make us utilize the office much more. Apparently this variety of air conditioning units don't work with the left to right sliding windows which we have in our bedroom. Whatevs, it's still cooler than it was and I'll still spoil my cat with it on this week when temperatures are supposed to hit 100.

I was spoiled growing up with central a/c, then I got married and moved into an Irvine Company apartment, which boasts gyms cabanas, nightlife and central a/c. I continue to pretend I'm Laura Ingalls Wilder. Sadly, the heat makes me more of a Nellie Olson.

While the boxy beast is certainly not central a/c, it cost about $5,802 less and it's cooling down the back end of the house...sorta.

Vegetarian for a month-Week 4

2011-08-21T07:57:00.000-07:00

This weekend marks the end to our vegetarian for a month trial. Ultimately, like I've stated in other posts, we feel really good, but there were other factors involved in the 30 days as well-increased workouts, consuming less alcohol, and making better choices overall. I plan to weigh myself at the gym today to see if there has been any difference there, but I anticipate more change in inches-which I did not take at the beginning. I can see better definition in parts of my body which makes me happy even if it's not reflected on the scale.

Final week of recipes:

Monday: Broccoli, baby potato, and gruyere tarts in a saltine crust. Really, really good. Mom, Kelli and Kerri- it was surprisingly similar in taste to chicken divan (and I was shocked by liking it.) I added baby bella mushrooms for an extra bit of fiber though next time I'll probably make in a puff pastry crust, as the saltine cracker one did not set. It did not call to be cooked first is probably why, so it was quite crumbly.

Tuesday: Peri peri grilled halloumi with portobello and chili jam. I had the intentions of making this but what came out was its third cousin twice removed. First of all, apparently halloumi cheese is only available via Amazon.com which might as well have been the Amazon because I am not ordering cheese for one meal from the internet. Essentially all this turned out to be was grilled portobellas in a pita with leftover gruyere slices, alfredo sauce and shredded carrots and something green I can't recall. It was the epic FAIL MEAL this month.

Wednesday: Out to dinner with Zina and Andrew to Roman Cucina, had the special-mushroom stuffed ravioli with peas.

Thursday: Homemade white pizza. In my world, you can't go wrong with pizza. I topped with alfredo sauce, mushrooms, bell peppers and basil.

Friday: Spicy shrimp stir fry with Japanese soba noodles. (No link because I made it up). Cook soba noodles as directed. Stir fry vegetables (squash, asparagus, bok choy, red cabbage, sugar snap peas) with soy sauce, pinch of red pepper flakes, and few teaspoons of hoisin sauce. Meanwhile, marinate as much shrimp as you want in one cup soy sauce, tablespoon hoisin sauce, and tablespoon siracha sauce. When soba noodles are done, rinse, and add to stir fry, then add in shrimp marinade to heat shrimp through. Voila, spicy shrimp stir fry with Japanese soba noodles. Fancy.

Saturday: Luau! Welcomed chicken back into my life and it was quite good.

I still have two meals left, vegetarian tacos with goat cheese and quinoa with mushrooms, goat cheese and sweet potatoes that I'll use this week.

Thus ends our venture to vegetarianism. In going grocery shopping today I feel oddly timid about buying meat again, so perhaps the change will be a 50/50 split of meat/veg meals as opposed to 90/10.

A Weekend SPENT

2011-08-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend was all about finishing projects, large and small, mostly ones that I visualize while laying in bed at night and wishing someone would wave a wand and we'd be done. Not so much. That's what husbands are for.

So what did we do?

I finally painted our everything-including-walls-and-trim-and-closets-and-windows bisque bedroom, a few shades of tan. Still has some more dressing up to do with a new duvet that does not seem to exist outside my brain and within my very reasonable budget. I'm sure this service exists somewhere so I may promote the idea but I'm too cheap to actually hire people like this--a service that would do the painting prep work for you-TSP the walls, spackle, sand, tape, and prime the walls, all so you can get Sugar Kisses up in one day. I loathe painting prep.

I purchased a headlight oxidation repair kit a few weeks ago and went to do it this weekend when one of the three parts included-buffer, wash cloth, and solution was missing-the buffer. So we rode our bikes to Autozone and in my sweaty paint-clothed feminine way, I nicely asked them to swap it out for a complete kit-as I was sans receipt. Being nice gets you places people! After a 4:00 lunch I got to work to rectify my poor headlights.

I'm pretty bad about taking before and after pictures, so imagine my headlights looked something like this:

Thank goodness for Google images.

Since I am on the bandwagon of listing our hard work, I'll also add grocery shopping because that takes time and efforts that resemble the work of a burrow.

Scott hung our new porch light. I broke the orb that surrounded the white bulb MONTHS ago dusting away cob webs, and living the ghetto lifestyle of a solo bulb wasn't very inviting to our guests. Now, high porch fashion.

I also finally got rid of 6 keys from my keyring. Lessons learned the hard way in life-too heavy key chain can break your transmission and leave you stranded at a bridal shower for hours. Not really a big deal when you do it before or during the shower, but after it slightly cramps your Sunday evening plans. Also, it gives your assistant back aches hauling the set to and from the post office. But, I've ditched 6 keys to the tune of an intimate14. Now you might think-is this really laborious? Yes-because I walked between our two sides making sure I was getting rid of keys that really had no purpose.

Finally got around to filing/shredding/ditching/making a new pile of "requires further reading" mountain of paperwork that accumulates during the week on my desk. Nothing like organizing to help you find zen.

Finally, I capped my weekend off with vacuuming and washing both of our cars. Complete with final Febreze spritz.

The most laborious award this weekend goes to Scott, who helped his brother and sister-in-law move from their apartment to their new home and then came home to rip out the mile of pink geraniums on our parkway. I know people will be saddened, but every person getting out of the passenger side of the car will salute us for years to come. Though we will miss the small bouquets left on our doorstep by Vivien and Nathaniel too.

Before:

After:

Next up: installing sprinklers. Scott will act as the ultimate in charge, I will supply beverages and In 'n Out to the laborers.

Vegetarian for a month-Week 3

2011-08-14T08:46:00.001-07:00

Well we've made it to week three, and I still hold true to the fact it has not been hard. Though, I did stray into old habits (accidentally) at a work lunch going through the buffet line. I picked up a piece of chicken, and upon sitting down and taking a bite my current brain instead of my 25-days ago brain, and actually thought "this is foreign, what am I eating?" To which I was horrified I'd slipped up. Oh well, it was one bite. It was hotel chicken anyway.

This week's recipes were by far my favorite-I definitely would recommend to all.

Sunday: Spaghetti and spinach balls. Scott said this could be on the regular rotation. What does that say?
Monday: Vietnamese summer rolls with mango and sweet chili dipping sauce, and asparagus. So tasty and easy!
Tuesday: Black eyed pea cakes with chipotle mayonnaise and salad. I could not locate black eyed peas so I used black beans. Still good.
Wednesday: Mango blueberry quinoa salad with lemon basil dressing. This may be better suited as a lunch entree as its rather light, but after having the stomach flu for two days it was perfect.
Thursday: Portobello mushroom and zucchini rellanos with ranchero sauce. Again, so good! Very hearty, will definitely make again.
Friday: Spinach and taleggio quesadillas and salad. I had four of these-Friday dinner and Saturday lunch. Used brie instead of taleggio.
Saturday: Went out to dinner, and we both had an entree featuring mahi mahi, as we left fish as part of the diet.

Possum v. Kitty

2011-08-13T03:47:00.000-07:00

Thursday night while I watched the dishes, I looked outside and saw a possum on the fence. The vermin always elicit a lip curl from me.

I watched it for a while, with its pink tail swinging and it slowly walked the fence between our house and the neighbors, over to our gate, which was a little too close for comfort. Oliver, and his keen sense of smell, knew something was up and flew into the room and onto the couch. That possum came right up to the open window and put its snout on the screen as if to say hello.

Gross, gross, gross, gross, gross, gross. If I wasn't screeching I would have taken a photo. Instead, I slammed the window and blinds shut-party over.

Perhaps you had to be there.

Vegetarian for a month-Week 2

2011-08-06T20:27:00.000-07:00

Week two and I am proud to say I remained a vegetarian diet through the OC Fair and Medieval Times. (Scott indulged at the fair, but this is our experiment so he can do as he likes.) The fair was the first time I genuinely missed meat with all of the turkey legs walking past me. Don't let me fool you into thinking I ate well though-cheese on a stick? I definitely didn't feel great the next day.

Monday: Goat cheese tart and salad (really good, will make again)

Tuesday: Lentil fritter pitas with red cabbage slaw (good, but I did not know you had to cook the lentils before using them. So these little patties were rather tough. Good workout for the teeth.)

Wednesday: Stuffed portobellos and caprese salad

Thursday: Fair

Friday: Medieval Times

Saturday: Cheesy penne and haricot verts (I upped the veggie factor on the penne, since that version is rather indulgent. I added spinach, arugula, and mushrooms to bulk up the iron and fiber. I also omitted the bacon from the haricot verts.)

All in all this continues to go well. Still feeling well, still working out 4-5 days per week with running/walking, Zumba, Piyo and yoga.

Luca Anthony

2011-08-06T20:16:00.000-07:00

Lucy Anthony came into the world on Saturday, July 30 to two wonderful parents. I am overjoyed for them and this time in their lives.

Look at that hair!

So tiny. So precious.

Welcome to Medieval Times

2011-08-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

I am almost 30 and I finally went to Medieval Times. I'm not sure why I had not gone up until now-it's in the theme park backyard that is Orange County. Better late than never.

We went in celebration of this guy's birthday:

Happy birthday Harrison!

The place is huge. I had no idea they had so much space-gift shop, dance hall(?), arena for the show, and bar. Kerri enjoyed a brew as her aperitif.

As you can see, we were assigned the red and yellow knight-can you say GRYFFINDOR!!!???

I did.

The whole thing is very kisch. I joked that the staff were cut from the Disneyland auditions but Scott was quick to point out they were more of the Ren Faire enthusiasts so perhaps its a dream position. Those serfs loved their "m'lords and m'ladies" greetings.

The food is served during the show, and as the guests watching you are to eat as the medieval kingdom commoners did-sans utensils. Since we are on our vegetarian diet for the month, I had looked ahead to see what the meal would be-stuffed portobellos, hummus and pita chips, and roasted vegetables--and we even had a knife and fork-HAH! Vegetarians were/are clearly civilized.

Our knight very gallantly died (thankfully, not first) but it was not the end of his flowing mane-the meet and greet at the end complete with DJ playing Usher allowed us the opportunity to catch up on the past few centuries.

Happy birthday, Harrison!

Vegetarian for a month-Week 1

2011-08-01T16:38:00.000-07:00

Well the title pretty much sums this up-we've gone vegetarian for the month. In the grand scheme of things, it's a small amount of time to do a bit of an experiment-see how our bodies feel without the meat combined with an increased fitness routine.

This also presented an opportunity for a meal planning perspective change. No longer could I sit down and come up with 7 days of chicken/beef/pork/fish/veggie combination-this would be an entire shift in grocery shopping.

So we're officially a week in-and for anyone up for a food challenge or simply Googling around like myself for recipes, here's a glimpse of the past week.

Tuesday 7/26: Eggplant parmigiana and salad

Wednesday 7/27: Portobello burgers with garlic aioli and asparagus

Thursday 7/28: Grilled eggplant and sweet pepper sandwiches and salad

Friday 7/29: Sesame soba noodle salad

Saturday: 7/30: never ate dinner, went to LA Rising, had Cheerios at 1:15 a.m. upon getting home.

Sunday: 7/31: Veggie burger patties (purchased), corn on the cob, black bean salad

The important thing (for me) to remember is not to consume only cheese and bread and replacing the missing protein with other options, like legumes. Breakfast is usually an over-easy egg on toast, cereal, or Greek yogurt. Lunch last week were veggie sandwiches and plenty of leftovers. So far, we both feel great. Energy levels are good, and frankly I'm sleeping better-though the increased exercise could factor in as well.

Next week there will be no eggplant.

Mason is One

2011-08-01T07:56:00.000-07:00

Where does the time go? It's been a year since Mason was born and in that time he's managed to build a city and become its sheriff, police chief, and city manager. Impressive.

Mason's Tiny Town. My mother-in-law is far craftier than Martha Stewart. Seriously, they should have a showdown.

Mason and Makenna enjoying pool time.

Birthday boy, caught in a bubble storm.

How you doin'.

We all know sometimes City staff can get into mischief.

He's a cowboy bay-bee.

Birthday boy, with his aunts and mom :)

Cake time!

The happy family!

LA Risen.

2011-07-31T09:01:00.000-07:00

LA Rising: Amazing. Bananas. Epic. Unreal. Dreamy.

Rise Against-and nowhere near the capacity this would be in a few hours.

Muse. Oh Muse and your melodies, performances, talent. Awing. Plus your fans are just so cool too. I'd feel safe in that pit. Love me some Rage, but no way Jose.

Mr Zach de la Rocha and that little band of his, Rage Against the Machine. (Shout out to my 8th grade desk buddy Brendan Haro, who introduced me to all of the rock band leaders thanks to his binder's gallery. Every day was a test of who's who. I didn't contribute much on my end with probably a photo of Devon Sawa.)

I took several videos but I could have had 4 kids, put them through college and marriage, become a grandparent before they would have uploaded.

Trust me, the performances were great. I could have done without the social agenda commentary but I've also been to my fair share of Blink 182 concerts and those guys yak it up more than sing. Comes with the territory I suppose.

Laying off the hard stuff

2011-07-24T11:31:00.000-07:00

He's laying off the hard stuff.

Finding Bigfoot

2011-07-20T07:30:00.000-07:00

I have some unnatural fears that include supernatural creatures-aliens being one, and bigfoot during my childhood. Trueblood has made vampires acceptable. The bigfoot fear has not necessarily been brought back to life but my curiosity of the science behind his existence. And hallelujia there is now a show DEDICATED to finding this hairy man/ape (bear/pig?) in the Animal Planet series: Finding Bigfoot.

A group of "enthusiastics" named the BFRO-Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization have made it their mission and apparently day job to see this species:

Ranae, Bobo, Matt Moneymaker, and Cliff

Essentially the team takes reports from around the US and Canada, holds town hall meetings in these remote wilderness towns looking for "squatch sitings." People come forward, and then they reinact the sitings with the citizens. The reenactments are hilarious. I'd love to be the actor whose agent calls saying "I've got a gig-it requires a large suit and deliberate yet animal-style movements and possible screeching." What a resume highlight.

Of course the reenactments never produce a sasquatch, but the team goes back at night with their night vision goggles, infrared cameras, and motion sensors. Some are even skilled enough to "call" like a bigfoot. I'm not certain as to how they know what they sound like. Occasionally they find more "evidence" (sorry about the amount of Joey Tribbiani quotes here) in large footprints and deer carcasses that according to lead BFRO member, Matt Moneymaker (really??) "are the exact signs of a squatch kill." So we know that bigfoot is a carnivore.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and retreat to my preparation for the Oak Canyon Field trip back in 1992, when we learned about scat and the evidence it provides of the particular animals in the area. Where the heck is the scat BFRO? And where the heck are carcasses of deceased sasquatches? And why have we been to the moon but cannot yet confirm the presence of a bigfoot? My opinion-there's a counterculture opposite of BFRO out there egging them on. Or, in the event they do exist, perhaps they are waiting for a proper JCPenny portrait session.

The show is entertaining and the slightest twig crack insists upon a commercial break. I know Scott loves when I get lucky and its a marathon weekend.

*Apparently the words bigfoot and sasquatch are proper nouns as I've got red squiggle lines everywhere. I will not do them justice but capitalizing.

It was Bananas

2011-07-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

This weekend was bananas.

It started off Friday with a 10 hour work day sans break or lunch, then rushing home to load the truck with tables and chairs for the dance team reunion to get down to Tustin for set up.

Saturday brought the usual weekend chores and gym, and then the reunion. We worked really hard to bring dance teams from 1997-2004 together and were pretty happy with the 30 attendees. The party foul was that I did not charge my camera so the few shots I have do not include everyone that was there. BUT, I still think everyone had a good time.

The Committee:

Karen (1999), Kerri (2001), me (2002), and Shannon (2003)

We served white sangria (shout out to my mother in law who was the wine sponsor-thanks Sandy!), beer, iced tea, and water.

A taco cart with a very nice gentleman supplied the food. And we used dahlias for decor.

Tracy and I-went all the way from freshman to senior year together on the team.

Kane, Alex, Amanda (1998) and Carrie (2000)

Jason, Shannon (2003) Rebecca (2002), and Adam.

Tracy (2002), Jeremy, Jon, and Jessica (2002)

Our instructor was supposed to come as well but ended up having to stay home with a sick child. I wish we had taken a group picture so that I had one of everyone, but c'est la vie. We stayed and chatted and ate peanut butter pie until about 11 p.m. before cleaning up and heading home.

The next morning, we boarded the 9 a.m. train to San Diego for a little soccer and Brewfest. Little known fact (and rather ironic) I was at the 1999 World Cup with some of the ladies pictured above where we "danced" with Jennifer Lopez. I say "danced" because it was billed that way on paper when we really shook giant sheets and ran around the field. But, the game was exciting to watch live as was yesterday's. Following the dive bar soccer, we headed to Brewfest, an event for beer enthusiasts, aficionados, and just your general drinkers. We went with Scott's coworker Blake and five of his dodgeball/ultimate Frisbee/other recreational sport buddies...meaning I held down all of the estrogen.

Live music!

Live dancing!

Cheers to new beer, Pyramid Apricot Ale.

Good times with new friends and sourdough bread.

Now, I think I hit my threshold for rowdy boys at about 7 p.m. and we had an 8:20 train home. Little did I know that was about to really get full throttle.

Keeping with the theme of the weekend my phone was dead so there is no evidence from me, and it could be a "you had to be there" situation, but understand a disco ball should have been on our Amtrak car. A few seats up, a group of young guys were bumping a laptop with electronic, dance, hip hop-you name it. It raged and as soon as a conductor approached, off it went. This continued for 2 hours, and this was a full train, so the middle aged couples in front of us were unable to sit in their business class seats (but still enjoyed complimentary wine and beverages so really, this was nice for them.) In the beginning, I think they felt like they were on the Riff Raff Railroad. By the end, they were enjoying Club Amtrak. When we rolled into our station at 10:30, we (and I am not including me in this-it was all the boys) were given a standing ovation off the car. It was bananas.

Christmas in July

2011-07-10T08:53:00.000-07:00

My in-laws were able to capitalize on their Christmas present-an afternoon of sailing (and a lesson if we wished) on the high seas in Redondo Beach. It was not our first time on a boat, but for a few, the first time sailing.

Our ride: a 28 footer:

Our instructor was Ann from Jersey. She helped the only one of us who chose to participate while the rest of us enjoyed the ride:
Frank commanded the ship like a seasoned professional.

We saw plenty of sea lions, some leaping fish, and kelp beds.

We feasted on roast beef and salami peperonata sandwiches, cannoli, wine, and Perrier. Sidenote: I went to my favorite Italian market for the meat, cheese, cannoli, and bread. That place is like a museum. I salivate looking at the deli cases, wines, and marinating goodies. So so good. If you are near Anaheim, check it out-Cortina's Italian Market. It's practically a landmark to the city and first employer to my fellow high school comrades.

My favorite boat. Classy, a touch of pirate, and clean lines.

Back on flat water and only pale green. Scott was a trooper sans sweater.

The crew. Ahoy!

It's hot.

2011-07-05T22:47:00.001-07:00

It's hot here. The truck read 96 degrees today. And it was humid. Wah wah wah, I know I am blessed but let's just say the A/C talks are getting really serious. The hot (and humid) weather makes me cranky. In a game of would you rather I always choose freezing temps vs. hot. I'd rather be in pain with frostbite than sitting slovenly in my own sweat.

Due to the high heat I bailed on my weekly walk/hike with my sister-in-law tonight. I didn't say "how are you feeling about Mason hiking in this weather?" it was simply a no for me. So we went swimming instead. Far more fun.

Such a charmer.

He loves the water. Nothing but squeals when he wasn't busy watching the other kids in the pool.

Loves the glasses.

Rock Lobster

2011-06-25T21:06:00.000-07:00

OMG it's been 20 years since I've gone to Red Lobster. Holy cow. I begged my parents to take me there after we went and saw Curly Sue in 1991. (There are now activities I can say it's been 20 years since I've done. Ugh. Skip Its can also be added to that list.)

Well today, the unknown leave of absence ended.

Scott was gifted a gift card for his birthday from his grandma and today we went for lunch.

We started with Ceasar salads and their complimentary cheese biscuits.

Eh to the biscuits. If I'm going to indulge in carbs, regular rolls do it for me.

His order: linguine with shrimp, lobster, and asparagus.

Unknowingly thematically dressed.

My order: lobster pizza.

Super tasty. I just finished it for dinner.

We both enjoyed our meals, and the place was hopping. I will say the median age was probably 65. The lobster tank took me back to my youth when I'd go grocery shopping with my grandparents and I distinctly remember the seafood counter always used to have lobsters. Can't say I've seen them in a long time.

We'll probably go back in another 20 years.

Vanity in the Home

2011-06-25T16:09:00.000-07:00

What do 20somethings with no children put on their walls? Clearly not pictures of our cat everywhere, so that leaves us-wedding, trips, other weddings, etc. I have to think that our guests must think we love ourselves.

I'd love to acquire more art, but there is something about photographs of a great memory that make me smile as I see them.

We have a great piece from our friends Rob and Kerri they gifted us from our wedding:
Additionally, we have this wedding gift that I plan to use to coordinate the rest of our master bedroom.

Other than that, it's our mugs everywhere. And it wasn't until recently as I was cleaning the toilet bowl that I realized how awkward this picture is for our male guests. It should probably be swapped out for art.

Tastebuds Changing

2011-06-25T08:14:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling the effects of aging. I know people will roll their eyes at that seeing as I'm still under the 30 mark, but it's true, and I would guess natural.

The most noticeable are simply what I like to eat. Until recently-huge pasta fan. Pour some pasta on me-any meal. I don't hate it now, but if Scott hasn't noticed, it's not made it into one of the weekly meals in a while. Part of me is limiting the carb intake the other part of me is just not satisfied with it. I'm becoming unintentionally picky.

Other items I hated as a kid and welcome in my life now-mustard, olives, mushrooms, salad, and nuts-which is shocking. However, nuts are not permitted in my sweets. Brownies and cookies (I haven't gone off the deep end here) are always better sans nuts. I like a satisfying, chewy bite. No crunch.

I've also felt the effects of my body craving really good quality food-simply fruits and vegetables. My coworker, Leah who brings a salad everyday, is probably crying with joy upon hearing that her finger shaking at me is getting somewhere.

I forgot my lunch yesterday and where I live--there are AMPLE options for lunch. More and more I just don't want a) to spend $10 on a sandwich and b) don't want the sandwich anyway. Generally, I make my lunch-string cheese, apple, carrot sticks, almonds, etc. I'm not trying to eat diet food but it does satisfy me and I don't feel disgusted with myself after. It does require planning and because of the Father's Day parties last weekend my shopping trip was unusual and I did not plan for the week's midday meals, so next week should be better.

The other body changing factor-my skin. It's actually regressing. I've felt like a 13 year old as of late. Not cool.

And lastly, I can never be the wino I once was. Mom and dad, rest assured, your daughter is no lush, but I could enjoy several glasses of wine without feeling the effects. Now? Two glasses and you better sip 'em slowly Erin.

This and that.

2011-06-23T22:03:00.000-07:00

Every week I remark to anyone with a functioning ear "I can't believe it's (fill in the date!)" I think it began January 31 and has continued. Seriously, where has the year gone? It's almost July.

We really need a vacation. So if you have any ideas about where to go for a week's time I'd love to hear them. Right now my top picks are Savannah, New Orleans, Julian (a little more local), or somewhere I can fall off the grid and hopefully have a mojito. I have seriously dragged my feet updating my passport post marriage so suggestions need to stay in the US.

Last weekend I had a whirlwind Father's Day celebration, akin to Mother's Day. I do think it's smart doing it back to back, but there are drawbacks. The first being that I am a bonehead and bought a fridge without an ice maker because I didn't think we had the connection. Well we do and it just dangles, taunting me each time we have to refill our ghetto tray. Secondly, I am taller than my fridge, which makes engineering storage for parties of 18 rather tricky. But, we get 'er done. Having my mom's side over was really fun, and of course we got to give everyone a house tour. Good times had by all. My mom left her camera and I tried to steal the photos on it, but alas, I do not have the same USB cord.

Sunday night I had my in-laws over for Father's Day part II. Again, good times had by all. I don't know what family gatherings were like before Mason was around. Clearly we just sat around staring at each other quietly over dinner.

In honor of these visits I made a "quick stop" at Home Depot for potting soil. Yeah right. The produce aisle is the new hardware store is the new garden section. $40 later with herbs, succulents, and flowers in tow, I headed home. Yeah I probably spent too much but I can say that basil may have just been bumped as favorite herb to mint. I'm putting that fragrant little herb in everything, especially lemonade. See mojito craving above.

Speaking of plants, I also bought a great arrangement of peonies at Trader Joe's. It's the simple things in life. I have no photo as it's been so crazy and they are now dying, but they were a gorgeous shade of magenta and really brightened the living room.

A few other firsts-we had our friends Virginia and Shawn over for dinner Tuesday night. Virginia is pregnant and vegan which made for a challenge in dinner plans-however, a challenge I wanted to take on. We feasted on artichoke and bean crostini (Parmesan ok'd by V, and I kept some crostini sans proscuitto), tofurkey sausages with hummus, bell peppers, onions, on pita bread, as well as a garden and fruit salad. Shawn made silken tofu mud pie. Pretty tasty and most of all, good time had by all.

Last night Scott went to his first yoga class with me. There were times I could not look at him because I knew I would snort-not because of anything he was doing, but rather what the teacher was asking us to do. This particular teacher utilizes some interesting breathing techniques to say the least. His favorite part-being able to stretch his shoulders and reach his hands around his back and touch his fingers, on both sides, whereas I am unable to do it on my right.

Now as the week ends we have plans to celebrate Rob and Kerri's birthday this weekend and I'm off to Ashley's baby shower on Sunday. Seriously, it's almost July???

TMI

2011-06-16T19:43:00.000-07:00

There are days when I feel like I put too much out there. Like the day when a scammer posing as my credit card company wanted my birthday to verify the account, though "there was no negative activity," yet they had my full name and last digits of the card number. That's pretty unsettling.

I'm on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Four Square, work in a public position (though non-government-i.e., i have NO pension) and I've definitely Googled myself. I understand we live in a digital age and its not as if I can wipe the Internet cache clean, but I do even second guess this blog sometimes. Do we put too much out there? Am I handing identity thieves my life on a silver platter? I don't think I'm that important on the web, but it certainly would not be hard to piece together my resume with a few searches.

I don't plan to change anything at this time, as I'm not sure it would solve anything. Am I alone in this? I might just be at an unusual level of crazy right now.

Weddings and Whatnot

2011-06-12T16:36:00.000-07:00

The last wedding on our social calendar (at this time) was this weekend, another high school friend couple tied the knot: congrats Ryan and Ruthie!

The groom awaiting his bride.

Here she is! Super fabulous and quite fashion forward.

Gratuitous picture of Scott's new suit, looking quite sharp.

Newlyweds!

High school reunion-5 of the 16 that I know.

The dancing at this trumped anything I had up my sleeve. Serious moves. I'm talking bridesmaids doing the worm. I was shocked and yet entertained. Good times.

Our new tenant is moving in tomorrow so today was full of back breaking yard work. I am trying to convince Scott to go to Red Lobster tonight (thanks to his grandma for the gift card for his bday-perk of marriage, side benefit!) as I really am not up to cooking or dish washing tonight.

And with that, I congratulate Ryan and Ruthie and also reflect that 9 years ago today I graduated high school. Scott asked me what I would tell my old self and it would be to properly pronounce "niche" which in my grad speech I said "neesh."

It's the Great Garlic, Oliver

2011-06-11T07:37:00.000-07:00

A shoot has been protruding out of my flower bed for months. Painfully I've waited for it to bloom while the poppies and ranunculus have come and gone, and now the dahlias have made their debut. Still nothing from this frondy shoot. I was thinking it might be a type of palm for a while.

This week, while watering, I got a little closer and saw a bulb...was it an onion? I finally decided to dig it up and low and behold, it's a head of garlic. Who knew? I surely did not plant this. We've had surprises come up in the garden from the previous owner(s) but this vegetable is certainly a first.

My burners need a major cleaning. Don't judge.

(With Oliver for perspective-it was actually a grocery-store sized head. Not elephant garlic, but your generic Ralph's garlic.)

I hope he comes back next year.

Another Domestic Saturday

2011-05-30T08:15:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, another baking fire was lit and off I went trying some new recipes for Scott's family birthday barbecue. I planned to bring the S'more Pie but after talking to Scott, decided to try something new. It was a bit too rich for him so my plan was to try two new fruit desserts-no chocolate.

The first: Nectarine and Marscapone Gingersnap Tart
This was painfully simple and got great reviews-even from the birthday boy who can be very anti-dessert. It was my first (but definitely not last) time making a gingersnap crust-a nice change from your generic graham. The spiciness paired nicely with the tart mix of cheese.

I forgot to take a before we cut the tart shot. C'est la vie-it was enjoyed.
There is a good picture of it on the author's recipe site.

The second: Strawberry Summer Pie
Houston, we have an oops. I had made the tart in the pan that I would have preferred to make this cake in and didn't want to use a pie plate or cake round because I wanted to bring it in a cute dish. Image is everything right? I thought I had a brilliant idea to put it in a bundt pan but as I was putting it in the oven, my error glared me in the face. You FLIP bundt cakes-and this cake is meant to be beautiful on the top. Not an end of the word baking fiasco, I would just have an upsidown upsidown (I think?) strawberry cake. But then I couldn't get it out of the pan so it came out it chunks and pieced it together to take to the party. I don't think anyone noticed but it did lack in appearance ratings. Still, tasty cake, super easy. Only modification I made was to use buttermilk instead of regular milk.

Same story as above.

I use the weekends as my time to prepare a more glamorous dinner for Scott and I because he's fabulous, I'm fabulous and we should always be fabulous. (That's be being Ina. Currently we don't have Broadway directors coming over for dinner-just us, and I find us to be fabulous. It's good for the self-esteem.) This Saturday, I decided to try a few Giada recipes I'd seen her make for a DeLaurentiis family dinner: Vegetable Chow Mein and Orange and Pineapple Beef.

The recipe was certainly not hard, but about an hour of prep time. The good news is you can make the beef and put it in the oven and during that time, prepare the sauce and chow mein-so it's a good use of time, albeit too long for a weeknight dinner. It turned out well, I may even try it with chicken next time because the sauce really made the beef stand out. The chow mein was quasi-improvised as Fresh & Easy didn't have chow mein noodles-but Vietnamese noodles, which I think were a find stand in.

Winner winner Chinese dinner!

His Best Friend's Wedding

2011-05-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

I joked that it felt a little like Old School-the married best man whispering to his best friend while his wife looks on in the audience (though in this vision, sans babies.)

Scott's best friend Harrison married his long time girlfriend on Sunday and a lovely wedding it was.

Here comes the bride

Vows

Officially married.

Good looking Best Man.

The reception was lovely-good food, good drink, and a great reason to celebrate.

Good friends.

The next bride!

We tore up the dance floor and both Scott and I were zombies the next day at work. Mark of a good wedding methinks. Cheers Erin and Harrison!

Not Your Mother's Mums*

2011-05-19T14:30:00.001-07:00

For those of us who have yet to move onto our own plantations with sprawling flower fields and pastures, we are limited to the smaller window boxes and potted groupings of flowers for our home flora.

Herbs, daisies, and begonias do well in most climates with a fair amount of sun and regular watering, but as young professionals on the go, something low maintenance with a big punch is required. The solution – succulents.

This indoor/outdoor plant thrives on extreme heat and little water, is most often ignored by house cats and dogs, and provides lasting color on porches, tables, and patios.

Small, individual varieties are available at major hardware stores, such as Lowe's and Home Depot – at my local store they will even pot yours for free, which is great when you are in a pinch for a housewarming gift. Conversely, planting at home could not be easier with just a pot, cactus blend potting mix, and your succulent.

City arboretums and farmers’ markets are likely to have indigenous species as well, and often have annual or semi-annual plant sales where you can score gorgeous blooms.

Succulents make lovely centerpieces and for some, a major landscape overhaul. For most, they offer a modern aesthetic alternative to your garden gerberas.

*Sample post for ApartmentTherapy.com

Selecting the Outdoor Table*

2011-05-19T14:30:00.000-07:00

Living in Southern California affords us nearly year-round alfresco dining. However, with the rest of the country in mind, now is the time that people are stringing strands of paper lanterns across gardens and power washing their patios.

Replacing patio furniture can be a huge expense, especially while on slim budget. Garage sales and Craig's List are often the answer for those of us without a secret hedge fund, like myself, who scoured the usual sites to no avail as sums passing $1,500 for a new ensemble appeared the norm.

Courtesy of Crate and Barrel

After weeks of searching, I did find a six piece set that needed a face-lift, but would be well within my scope of talents – i.e., trigger finger friendly spray paint and elbow grease. I purchased the four chairs, umbrella (sans base), and coffee table from a woman in Huntington Beach for $125, who originally paid over $800 for the Martha Stewart set at Kmart.

The set was an interesting grey/beige yellow combo – in theory a great combination. Those tones on a patio set, not so much.

After a good scrub, a layer of primer, and three coats of Rust-Oleum Metallic Bronze spray paint, we've got ourselves a new-to-us patio set.

The cushions that came with my original purchase were a paisley-floral pattern, matching the umbrella, but rather sun-bleached. Once again after scouring the Internet and all home improvement stores in a 15 mile radius for a solid color that would go with the umbrella’s color scheme on a deep-seated cushion, I came up empty handed. Naturally, I assumed this product that fit my specifications would be out there – and it was, at a premium.

This story does have a happy ending – on a routine trip for fillets at Costco I passed their legendary line of random products at the entrance and stumbled upon 20" aqua pillows, in a two-pack, for $15 each. Sold, to the brunette for $30, and the old seat cushions were left in the dust.

With a little elbow grease, a lot of research, and a little luck when you are least expecting it, even the most insipid patio furniture can be turned into your backyard’s most appealing feature.

Time to fire up the barbie.

*Sample post for ApartmentTherapy.com

A Domestic Kind of Saturday

2011-05-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

The past few weekends have been pretty busy with commitments and to-do lists, so this was the first weekend I could indulge in one of my favorite hobbies-trying new recipes. Saturday, this meant baking.

Both recipes are from Smitten Kitchen: S'mores Pie and Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti.

Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti
Besides hazelnuts being pretty unavailable at each store I went to, this recipe was ridiculously easy.

Sliced, before heading back into the oven for the second baking.

Sunday morning biscotti!

S'mores Pie
Another pretty simple recipe, with the downsides being the time standing with the three steps. I opted to make everything, though you could easily make shortcuts and buy a graham cracker crust or buy Marshmallow Fluff in lieu of making your own.

The marshmallow making portion was the most difficult. In the recipe, it says the approximate time for whipping the gelatin and corn syrup is 5 minutes. I'm pretty sure Big Red just paid for himself being on for about 25 minutes.

I can't say the mixture tripled in size either. While it was mixing at high speed, I put some mini marshmallows I had on hand atop the pie, and then spread my own marshmallow mixture above them.

With cooling, baking, and chilling time, this recipe took close to 3 hours-and I took shortcuts. I did not let the pie cool coming out of the oven before putting the marshmallows on (another lesson in reading directions thoroughly-though it was a happy coincidence since I put the mini marshmallows on top of that layer, so they melted a bit.) The pie is supposed to chill for 3 hours after adding the topping and we went to a movie for 2. Who can really wait that long anyhow. After it comes out, the final step is broiling the pie so the top browns-truly making it a S'more Pie.

Mmm, the inside.

Slice of the pie. Scott even enjoyed. He likes pie, but does not like s'mores. It was a dicey decision to attempt this pie for this household.

Capping off my day of baking, we feasted on lime halibut with mango salsa (not pictured-sometimes you forget about your early prep still in the fridge), twice baked potatoes, and stuffed mushrooms.

After seeing Bridesmaids (I'll give it a B), we came home to enjoy the remaining wine and of course, the s'more pie, in the backyard over a roaring fire naturally, and a little poetry courtesy of Walt Whitman.

It was a great Saturday.

Happy House-aversary

2011-05-10T03:25:00.000-07:00

May 8, 2010 we closed escrow and moved into our first home, which ended up being not just one, but two-which I lovingly refer to as "the twins."

Closing day!

What a year it has been. I never dreamed we'd become homeowners and landlords at the same time-but we've managed both with the help of insight from family, friends, and of course, the all knowing search engine that is Google. I thought I paid our first mortgage payment twice; a great set of renters serendipitously found us and stayed the entire year; I mowed the lawn for the first time; Scott (my own Wayne Szylinski) is in the planning stages for engineering a temperature-timed sprinkler system; he has completed countless projects that I have started and given up at finishing; and though no official housewarming party has been had, we've hosted the annual Haselton Cousin Christmas Party, a recent Mother's Day weekend, and countless dinners for our parents (which will never begin to repay them for their help in educating us to arrive at the point in our lives where we could afford to purchase, making curtains, helping us move and pulling up carpet and nails the day we moved in.)

I've mentioned before there are countless projects that need tackling and I'm sure they'll get done in the next few years-though this is not our forever house we plan to live in, we do plan to hang onto it as long as we are alive and kicking-and this house is already 86 years young. It's got a few creaks, cracks, and dings, but then again so do we. It's our perfect house we've made our home.

Mother's Day Part II

2011-05-09T18:12:00.000-07:00

While Scott enjoyed all that Vegas had to offer for a friend's bachelor party, I entertained not once, not twice, but three evenings this weekend in honor of all that is mom. My mom, my pseudo moms, my mother-in-law, it was a rotating cast of moms at casa de Haselton.

Since Scott was in Vegas all weekend I offered to host his family for a dinner on Sunday night so that he could roll in from his trip straight to the previously prepared table from the night before. So smart. Some people called me crazy for three parties three nights in a row-I call it strategic. I was worn out, but Sunday was far less work than Saturday since I only had to prep food and barbecue.

For this affair, I served:

Tequila-lime chicken kabobs with mushrooms, bell peppers, and red onions
Giada's red tomato and potato salad (though it was really cold here yesterday so to add some warmth to the meal beyond the bbq, I made a bread crumb topping and added Parmesan and mozzarella and baked it. Turned out well, if you are interested in also attempting.)
Roasted asparagus with a Dijon-lemon marinade (courtesy of my sister-in-law, Traci) These were super tasty.
For dessert, we had leftover Nutella cupcakes from the night before from Caitlin, so they took center stage, though I'd originally planned on a lemon cake.

At most Haselton events, this guy was the hired entertainment:

But we were there to not only coo over him, but toast the moms:

Oliver likes to be in thick of things as well. He and Mason got along peachy.

To keep things simple, I used the same motif from Saturday's soiree and just changed the meal. Makes things really easy and I knew Sandy would love it. She's a sucker for twinkle lights like myself. It was the perfect ending to a great Mother's Day weekend.

Such a doll.

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T06:40:00.001-07:00

Last night, my girlfriends and I held a mother's day dinner in honor of our moms. I think it's safe to say this might become a tradition-a great time was had by all.

Motif: Shabby-chic farm style dinner with vintage embroidered linens. (Thanks Cristal!)

You can see we attached pictures with our moms to the lattice in the background.

Backyards are always better with lights! This is proof I manned the BBQ.
Lessons with Scott paid off.

Kiss the cook!

Shannon-a great grill master herself. And maker of the best ever bacon-wrapped dates.

MEAT.

The moms-before they toasted us! Clever ladies, beat us the daughters to the punch.

End of the night group shot, though Katie, Paula, and Shannon had left.

I'm often interested in the menus for parties-here's the breakdown:

Appetizers:

Caprese salad
Blue cheese-stuffed olives
Artichoke and bean crostini
Bacon wrapped dates

Entree

Filet mignon (with Scott's secret marinade)
Chicken with tequila lime marinade
Twice-baked potatoes
Cesar salad

Dessert

Nutella cupcakes
Coffee cupcakes

And several bottles of wine-of course.

This was a super fun evening. We've all been friends from as early as elementary school and were all on dance team together during various years in high school and the friendships have remained. Cheers to moms-both biological, stand ins, in-laws, and soon-t0-be as well!

Foodie First-Timer: Artichokes

2011-05-01T11:59:00.000-07:00

I've loved artichokes since the day they were introduced to me at our family friends' John and Shannon's home, when I was about 12. It was important date because Shannon took the opportunity to tell me one eyebrow was significantly shorter than the other thanks to my overzealous plucking. She told it like it was, and after a painfully long month or so, I had quasi-even eyebrows again. I say quasi because I think they are still more fraternal than identical.

Anyway, back to artichokes. It was my first experience eating these vegetables-leaves, heart, and copious amounts of butter and there was no turning back. I requested my mom make these for my next birthday, though I was the only one to enjoy them-not many other 13 year olds know what to make of the spiky vegetable.

Artichokes (the non-canned variety, specifically) and I experienced a period of absence until recently-last week specifically. I had not ventured into cooking them on my own and really admired their place in the kitchen more as a decorative center piece than meal accompaniment. My favorite magazine Real Simple, had a great spread dissecting the 'choke:

I purchased two artichokes at the farmer's market and then stopped by my favorite store in the world to get a steamer basket which I'm sure will prove itself useful in the long run.

The article suggested rubbing lemon wedges directly on the artichoke and including them in the steamer basket as well. Made for an enhanced flavor when done.

In an effort to not be a total cow, I opted for one of the recipes suggested in the magazine for the dipping sauce-a Dijon vinaigrette. Overall, pretty tasty.

Foodie Review: Five Guys Burgers and Fries

2011-04-30T07:55:00.000-07:00

Though on the list of the to be avoided sins, I tend to overlook the "thou shall not be gluttonous" request because as my motto goes, life's short-eat a cookie...or a burger in this case.

The buzz around Five Guys Burgers and Fries coming to town has been strong the past few months. They are strategically located near the university, on State College and Chapman, near other greats such as Chipotle, Starbucks, Yogurtland, Panera, and Office Depot of course.

I'm not sure how any Southern Californian could write a review of a new burger joint without the holy grail of burger chains-In 'n Out. A #2 with a lemon-up would probably be present at my last meal. For the record, I did go into Five Guys with an open mind and a starving stomach.

On Friday, April 29, the restaurant held their soft opening, and Scott and I went for dinner. The place was packed. My coworker had gone earlier in the day and by noon they'd already served 100 customers opening at 11 a.m. Needless to say, at 8 p.m. it was still going strong. They were well staffed with very friendly worker bees-the cashier happy to explain the menu, the bussers offering to refill drinks even though it was a self-serve machine.

We both ordered the "little" hamburger variety. For novices like ourselves, the regular is actually a double patty, the little a single. I had the little bacon cheeseburger with sauteed mushrooms and Scott the little bacon hamburger with grilled onions, pickles and mustard. We split an order of Cajun fries and holy mother of junk food-they have Cherry Coke on the fountain. It's my one soda indulgence and I'm glad to add them to the tally (along with Rubio's who offers Vanilla Coke for anyone interested.) While we waited for our order, we snacked on peanuts on the patio outside.

Now about those Cajun fries. I'd snuck a few earlier in the day when my coworker brought some back for the office, and wow-they have some zip. That night, because the portions are large, we split a regular order and could not finish it. They were just too spicy and over powering. Try them, but it will be a regular for us next time.

I had been craving a burger for a week when talk of this chain really began buzzing about their soft opening. And, like In-n-Out, they use the freshest produce and meats-no trans fat, grill in peanut oil, and nothing is ever frozen. You can read more here. Makes me feel a bit better about the burger indulgence.

The first bite-pretty darn good. First words that came to mind-homestyle. Good texture as well-soft bun, crispy bacon, melted cheese, meaty mushrooms, and a well executed burger. Seasonings were subtle and flavor enhancing. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't doing the In-n-Out comparison, because I was. There is such a distinct flavor that has come to be the burger benchmark it can be hard to have the self conversation of "it's ok, it doesn't have to taste that way." And by the way, it's not the spread-not a fan, I have it without.

Back to the burger-it was the perfect size. If you are a burger fiend, try the regular, but the entire meal was satisfying. We spent $14 for the two burgers,and shared fries and soda. Will we go back? Definitely. My overall impressions were that the staff (of nearly 20 on hand) did great with the first day, especially with the speedy delivery even with a packed restaurant. I believe that fresh products prepared with pure cooking methods equates to a truly happy meal.

If I were Kate

2011-04-28T21:16:00.000-07:00

Today I was trying to imagine what Kate Middleton must be feeling on the eve of her wedding. I don't doubt the romance between her and Will, but their wedding really is a dog and pony show for the world. The intimacy is lost when you have 1200 guests from the Queen Mother to Lady Gaga to me at home fast forwarding through my DVR'd Lara Spencer's babbling to get to the good stuff.

Don't get me wrong-I am infatuated with the proceedings and the historical event that is this wedding. Part of me is sad for them-and it could be unnecessarily so-that they won't have a wedding attended by those near and dear, but a political who's-who affair full of dignitaries. Yes, Kate knew what she was signing up for-a public life with a public wedding. I'm sure she's been prepping herself for this day upon their initial courtship.

We all know the English are far more cultured than us Americans and there is likely no garter toss (though I'd love to see the Queen Mother's face during that) and we all know there is no beer. I sincerely hope it's a memorable day for the pair and that they can truly enjoy it, without having to follow 18th century orders during the entire day.

Cheers Will and Kate-I wish you nothing but happiness and I hope you stick to your household sans help and stock the fridge with plenty of Newcastle to make up for the absence on your wedding day.

Erin

Sunday Confessions

2011-04-24T08:05:00.000-07:00

It's been a while. But seeing as today is Easter and this blog is about almost full disclosure, here goes.

Well I made it 32 days.

Scott was gone last weekend and my to-do list could not be accomplished anywhere else all together, and I did not have time for multiple stops. Where else can you refill your prescription, get allergy meds, buy cat food, candles, deodorant, paper towels, toilet paper, Brita filter replacements, Febreze, and cleaning wipes? Yes, probably WalMart or the Piggly Wiggly but we have neither of those (in location or a state I want to visit.)

So, I did not make the full 40 days of Lent, but the way I see it, it was longer than I'd ever gone before between Target runs, and of course it was a great homecoming returning. I wish I could have scheduled the employees to do an applause and balloon drop.

The conclusion: I don't want to live in a world without Target.

Visiting the Classics

2011-04-17T20:56:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what has taken me so long to see these movies, but better late than never. And thank goodness for Netflix.

How fun is this musical? Antebellum America narrated by Judy Garland in song. The days of men in suits at midnight, ladies who have a set of clothing dedicated to dinner...I could go on and on. Where has the class in this country gone?

This is a thriller I can watch alone at night. Suspenseful, zero gore, Grace Kelly and Jimmy Stewart, and creepy music.

Keeping with the classic movie theme I also rented:

We've actually seen this movie many times. It's a favored book. So favored we named our first cat after steadfast Atticus. I love each one of these characters, the message, everything. It was also my favorite read of all high school literature. (I hope this movie is never remade with Dakota Fanning as Scout. Granted she'd be like 16 but she really was the go-to child actor for a while.)

And finally, another revisit:

Street Car Named Desire is one of the only Tennessee Williams plays I enjoy. In the movie version, you get early Marlon Brando who is quite easy on the eyes, and the gorgeous Vivien Leigh (who really is a better brunette) and the result is a pretty fiery.

Whiskey sour please

2011-04-17T19:57:00.001-07:00

Whiskey sour please, and deal me in.

I have officially crossed into crazy cat lady territory.

There is a first for everything

2011-04-15T12:52:00.003-07:00

Today I mowed the lawn.

Not a huge milestone in life, but the fist time I did the task on my own. I realize that women do this and carry water for miles on their heads every day, but I grew up in more of an indoor chore environment.

Scott gave me a quick tutorial in the garage last night and obviously it looked simple enough. I got a few rows in and then the engine started smoking. This was a dilemma. I wanted to finish the task and not have some wonky half mown lawn, yet didn't exactly want to meet my maker via lawn mower explosion. So I did what any sensible girl does. I called my husband. None of my man neighbors were around to help, so I did feel slightly the failure, but hey, I had a smoking lawn mower on the grass-direction was needed. At his direction, I let it sit for about 4 minutes and investigated the situation and found what I believe to be the problem. Fixed it, felt like I should win some kind of blue ribbon and finished.

While its not necessarily a military lawn mow, it suits and will provide a nice foundation for my tenants who are having a garage sale tomorrow.

No photos were taken so as not to increase the dork factor of this experience.

Viva la Revolucion

2011-04-13T20:32:00.000-07:00

I didn't think this was my path in life but sometimes things are just chosen for you. Apparently we've moved past Erin Brokovich to Joan of Arc.

The shiz has hit the fan. I don't care about being PC anymore (perhaps because I am hyped up on wine and the blood pulsating through my veins) because tonight that ended. At the suggestion of a former city council member I started speaking to current members about the parking situation in this city. My first opportunity presented itself tonight with the Mayor Pro Tem at a work event and after describing my pickle, the gentleman just smiled, offered suggestions that I was familiar with and not wiling to take on. According to him there is a case in the Supreme Court (seriously? I do not believe this one bit, but will look into it). He admitted to favoring it because of the crime prevention, blah blah, things I don't agree with, etc., etc. When I persisted outlining why this is STILL a pickle for me, he excused himself because he was missing the numbers being called in the raffle.

What

The

Fudge. I really want to write the other word but I am a lady and won't. But you best believe I am thinking it.

I'm sorry this $10 raffle is not really going to contribute much to your billion dollar pension, but go ahead, don't let me distract you with a residential issue. I will just blog about you later.

Seriously, the revolution has begun. Watch out for a movement. I didn't know I had it in me, but apparently fires light themselves when we least expect it.

I hope I don't regret posting this in the morning.

Say hello to my little friend.

2011-04-10T07:56:00.000-07:00

He's been a long time in the making.

Gnomes are pretty expensive. I was really surprised when I realized you could be spending upwards of $50 for a piece of folklore pottery.

So, my bargain bum went to Michael's and found this guy for $1.50:
Thirty minutes later after some acrylic paint, we have our own Winkelbottom.

Someone in the Haselton home is not going to be pleased. Neener neener neener.

Goal setting is not my forte.

2011-04-09T08:23:00.000-07:00

I have a tendency to make lofty goals and give up after 5% of effort is given. Examples of this behavior include my New Year's resolution to learn the guitar (hurt my fingers too much), building Trash Can Terrace (Scott is doing an excellent job-my contribution is buying the supplies and hauling them home), and assembling any sort of Ikea furniture (which I start and he finishes.)

I am well aware of this flaw in my persona and really want to change it. Therefore, I only take on one project at one time as project manager. Currently, this project is giving some Craig's List patio furniture a face lift. When that is completed this weekend, I am going to learn to sew. I have made this proclamation several times now and even signed up for a class through extended education that was $5 for the whole semester. Well it met on Monday nights from 6-9 p.m. in Yorba Linda which is not far, but it felt like Egypt after a 9 hour work day on a Monday and at that time I lived in South OC and thus it really was a bit of a drive home at that hour. I dropped out. And yes I make excuses like an addict.

So, I am starting the search now, today, the eve of my sewing bonanza, to find classes. Naturally they are all in LA which might as well be Mars compared to Yorba Linda. Scott is a firm believer in YouTube how-to's but at this point in technology I'm sure that the instructor's hand cannot exactly reach out and fix the machine for me when it's jammed.

Sewing will open up an entirely new project category for me. Currently my "sewing" includes fabric gluing hems when needed or pawning off projects to my mom. I'm pretty sure she doesn't want to take on a set of four custom patio chair covers...or does she :) Of course if and when we have kids, I want to be able to sew Halloween costumes and other crafts.

Here is the beauty:

Thanks Grandma!

I have a new friend.

2011-04-04T21:37:00.000-07:00

His name is Ruben and he works in the paint department at Lowe's.

I recently purchased patio furniture on Craig's List and am currently giving the items a face lift.

Now I have been to Lowe's about 3 times a month for the past year and somehow I only met Ruben yesterday. Maybe he's new. I didn't want to inquire.

He was very helpful in answering some questions for me, and looking past my tunnel vision when I couldn't spot the primer that was right in front of me. When it came time for me to depart, he said "I just know you are going to have a good day-you have such a good attitude!" I thought that was really sweet.

I returned today because I bought every last bottle of Rustoleum's Metallic Copper spray paint and was hoping it had been restocked. Low and behold Ruben was working again and even remembered me. He was very complimentary and told me how nice I looked (which I did, I had new dress on for our biggest business event of the year. Probably looked a little out of place at Lowe's.) And it was in stark contrast to my usual home improvement weekend look of stained jeans, t-shirt and no makeup. I had also left my name tag on so he was eager to learn what I did at my job and to have a name with the sometimes bare/sometimes made up face.

Ruben was so happy to see me he made me promise to come find him and say hello next time I was in. Which will likely be Friday when my spray paint is expected to arrive, or I can jet over to a neighboring city where he looked up that two cans were in stock. But no Ruben at that store!

Just like my time with the best pharmacist ever, Ruben was the epitome of customer service. And I have to guess he liked me so much because I was not a crazy, demanding customer. It was refreshing to see someone so helpful and genuinely nice who cared about my project and was interested to know how day 1 went.

Selfishly, I filled out two surveys for Lowe's to win $5k (which I also do at Target-someday I'll win something) and was hoping for a fill in the blank comments section where I could call Ruben out and hopefully earn him employee of the month, but sadly, no such deal. I'll send the manager a nice note instead.

Good Reads

2011-04-03T09:20:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite referrals in life besides a great new wine or DIY project I think I'll get to is a good book. My mom and Kerri did not disappoint this month. I now pass this on to you (besides Kerri and my mom who have read 2/3 or 1/3 of these books, respectively) because it can be overwhelming to declare you want to read something and not know where to start. Plus there are only so many times one can read the Harry Potter series.

The Pioneer Woman: From Black Heels to Tractor Wheels, by Ree Drummond
For those who may not know, The Pioneer Woman is a blogging sensation. I read recently that it's estimated she makes approximately $1 million in sponsor ads on her website. In true Erin form, I don't remember the reference, so just believe me. She is one of the few with a simple story and a way with words (and food-which also translated into a cookbook) which now sounds like a pretty good income next to her husband's cattle ranch.

The book chronicles the love story with her "Marlboro Man" (but I did do research here-I wanted to know his real name. It's Ladd.) up to the point of their wedding and first year of their marriage. It's a lighthearted read, filled with her trademark quips, anecdotes, and recipes.

Kerri is her number one fan and hopes to win one of her contests to go to her ranch someday. I would write her every recommendation letter required, citing her perfectly executed Sloppy Joe's and Proscuitto Pizza.

Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes, by Diane Chamberlain
Suffice to say I devoured this book. I found it completely intriguing and with a story line I had not read before.

From the book itself: "CeeCee Wilkes knows how Genevieve Russell died, because she was there. And she also knows what happened to the missing infant, because two decades ago she made the devastating choice to raise the baby as her own. Now Timothy Gleason is facing the death penalty, and she has another choice to make. Tell the truth, and destroy her family. Or let an innocent man die in order to protect a lifetime of lies…"

It is part mystery, part mistaken identity, and entirely suspenseful.

Winter Garden, by Kristin Hannah
My mom raved about this book. Twice to me. I think she forgot about the first time because she was so excited. It was definitely a good read, but it took about 2/3 of the book to get there. I found the set up entirely too long and repetitive to achieve the time length desired. That aside, once the book got to the point, I really enjoyed the tale and I think I even shed a few tears.

Next up, I'm giving Gone with the Wind a second go. I started a few years ago but was interrupted and it's high time Katie Scarlett and I met again.

Mother Nature is Menopausal

2011-03-31T21:56:00.001-07:00

Mother Nature is a wild woman. Besides the heartbreaking disasters worldwide, she is being quite fickle with the weather in SoCal as of late. Some days it's winter, some days it's spring, some days it's a season not yet defined.

Last week: high 50s, rain, wind, battening down the hatches.

This week: sunshine, breezes, and today a high of 90.

What gives ma? I like it a moderate 75 with a slight breeze. I don't have a/c and my poorly-insulated plaster walls don't do well with extreme heat or cold...but mostly heat.

In other news, a second variety of my poppies are blooming and our renters have given notice. If you are quiet, clean, and by culture like taking your shoes off before entering the home and want to live in an adorable 1 bedroom/1 bath duplex, give me a ring.

8 days

2011-03-18T07:20:00.000-07:00

It's been 8 days since my last visit to Target-a record in itself.

Last night I actually dreamed that I showed up, almost walked in thle automatic doors and then reminded myself I shouldn't be there. Naturally every shelf was completely alluring, but I turned away proud of my self-discipline.

People have really mocked my sacrifice for Lent. Perhaps it is a little unusual, but what's the difference with chocolate, soda, or wine? I know someone who even gave up Facebook. The point is to sacrifice something important in your life. We are not giving up food and water here, but many select indulgences. Who are we to judge? We aren't, that's the point.

Erin Go Bragh!

2011-03-17T05:33:00.000-07:00

Here's a Thursday confession that's about 20 years overdue: I think of St. Patrick's Day as my personal holiday. Perhaps it's my name, perhaps it's the fact that I've been brought up on an Irish spoon by my maternal grandparents (although there definitely was Italian present too-for some reason I cling to the Emerald Aisle...I think it has to do with my paleness factor and freckles.)

In any event:

May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life's passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Sacrifice

2011-03-11T18:32:00.000-08:00

After much thought, I am doing it-farewell Target, see you in 38 days. I hope Scott is up for his new role in this marriage for a few weeks. At least it will come with VERY specific lists.

Love for Target

2011-03-09T07:26:00.000-08:00

I was going to write a post about possibly giving up Target for Lent. I go there FAR too often. Sometimes up to 4 times a week. It's always because I forget one little thing, which in reality, I could probably live without. I don't think I am alone in this-women LOVE Target. My neighbor now sends her husband because she does not have the self-restraint. I don't know how people are able to go less than one time per week. Perhaps they shop at Costco and really stock up. Try as I might, I'm not on a schedule of running out of tp, paper towels, razors and toothpaste all at the same time.

It's not like their merchandise changes THAT often. It's the marketing, placement, the fact that you can accomplish so much there. Shredded cheddar-check. A new side table lamp-check. Cardigan-check. Mascara-check. Dollar bin binges-check. Some people are weirded out by a cart with cereal and a tank top in it. I am happy to have one less trip.

At any rate, if I give up my visits (let's be honest, cut down to bi-weekly) it starts tomorrow because they saved my derriere today. A vital daily medication of mine somehow disappeared between yesterday morning and today, and after searching high and low in my purse and truck (which also recently swallowed Scott's driver's license-coincidence?) they were nowhere to be found. I called the pharmacist, who was great. He told me they'd contact my insurance company about filling the gap and no sooner than 2 minutes later he told me it was ready. I went down there lickety split, and the pharmacist-the friendliest I've experienced-told me it was a courtesy prescription. When does that happen?

I <3 you Target, especially your pharmacy today.

My Science Project

2011-03-04T07:00:00.000-08:00

I've come a long way since lima beans, thanks to the help of my mother-in-law who weeds each time she comes over, since I cannot tell the difference. She very sweetly informed me when my 4 foot dandelion was in fact, not one of my seedlings.

I'm very proud of these poppies, even if they are akin to the leaning tower of Pisa. They are my little garden babies.

I'm still waiting for my poppies and dahlias to bloom. I did not grow the calla lilies-those were a gift from my mother in law, nor did I plant the hot pink shrubby plants-I was tired of the non-sprouting greenery and needed some insta-color.
We have a long way to go but we're getting there.

Life Cycle

2011-03-03T03:08:00.000-08:00

I joined my parents and uncles as they settled my grandpa into assisted living this week. He, like usual, was grumpy, uncomfortable and really not into this new idea of life. But as we walked away and he became acclimated with his new address, I could not but compare the scenario to the adult equivalent of leaving your child on their first day of kindergarten.

My hope is that it will be much easier when my grandma will join him in the coming weeks. Life really is a cycle.

It's YOUR Birthday, Giraffe Girl!

2011-03-02T03:09:00.000-08:00

I want to wish one of the most wonderful women I know a very happy birthday as she embarks on a very memorable year, with the birth of her first baby in the summer.

Happy birthday Ashley!

Thank you for your friendship and pretty much one of the most lovely people to walk the earth. I'm so glad we thought each other looked normal enough to talk to on that fateful first day at Chapman!

The Season of Giving

2011-03-01T15:08:00.001-08:00

Since it's the season of giving (giving to the tax man that is), I figured it would be nice to highlight some of the charities that I support throughout the year, as I believe in their respective missions in helping fight their own good fight. It's also another way of supporting my friends and family who are directly affected or related to the causes.

Invisible Children: Scott went to Africa for a cumulative 5 months during two different summers to assist this NGO's database building and suffice to say it was a life changing experience for him. In their own words: "We are mobilizing a generation to capture the attention of the international community, and make a stand for justice in the wake of genocide." The organization has created a movement among the young, bringing attention to a crisis deserving US intervention.

Habitat for Humanity: Because everyone deserves a decent, affordable place to live. I had preconceived notions about Habitat until I sat in on one of their seminars and learned about the criteria required of recipients--these folks are on stringent when it comes to who can apply. When it comes to US builds, applicants must be US citizens, show a proven income, and take various classes before home ownership. My friend is currently in the process of crossing off one of her bucket list goals--going to Brazil to help build homes for families there and is raising money to finance expenses incurred to do so.* I hope to also participate in a build (closer to home) in the near future.

National MS Society: Because this disease, like pretty much all others, needs to be kicked to the curb. My friend's mom was diagnosed many years ago and I know how much it would mean to her and many others out there to see a cure if not progress made in understanding this disease more.

I know there are countless charities out there that are clamoring for funds, and I think it is important to identify those that you can either lend your time, talent, or treasure, because each of those aspects are highly needed.

*My very legal disclaimer: my friends do not know I am promoting their causes. I believe in them and what they are doing and hope that perhaps someone might be inclined to donate as well.

Fighting the Good Fight

2011-02-22T18:08:00.001-08:00

Time to start channeling my inner Erin Brokovich.

I love the city I live in-heck I work here too, but they have many a citizen who think it should retain its Mayberry-esque origins...not possible in the 21st century.

The problem is there is no overnight parking from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. and because our home was built in 1925 when people possibly drove a Model T, my two car garage for a duplex can't even accommodate my Civic. So, with three tickets in three weeks, the $#@! has hit the fan. With the help of my Realtor and ally/ friend at the city, I am going to fight the good fight, at least for my house. And possibly petition the neighborhood with baked goods in exchange for signatures.

Time to get the memo, photos, and brassiere ready.

Womp Womp Weekend

2011-02-20T18:56:00.001-08:00

Well they can't all be fabulous.

I unsuccessfully tried to go to Ikea by myself, buy a dresser (two boxes) and then load them into the truck. Thank heavens two kind gentleman came to my rescue to help both with the box retrieving in the self-serve area and then again when it came time to loading. I also discovered you BYOB when checking out, so you don't have to throw a vase and ladle into your purse all while trying to wrangle a runaway shopping cart.

I loathe assembling furniture but am too cheap to spend 4 digits on the good stuff. You get what you pay for when you take a misstep and accidentally, albeit gingerly, step on a piece of particle board. Ugh, remedying a new dresser with decoupage was not high on my to-do list. Subsequently, it took me not one, not two, not three, but FOUR attempts to assembly the g-d thing. And it turns out it was right the first time. Like cooking, it's a good idea to read through the entire directions first. Scott save number 2 of the weekend.

When I wasn't wasting my life trying to assemble the dresser whose instructions REALLY need words or at least color illustrations, I was dumping the excess dinner from Saturday night down the drain. BAD MOVE. I blame the Ikea trip from hell. Clogged drain, clogged disposal, backed up sink, new leak under house. Goodbye Chicago in the spring. Scott save number one, and some supplementary advice from dad and my mother-in-law.

Last (I HOPE!), I rubbed my eyes in the shower, which I know better than to do (a trend this weekend it seems) and down one contact lens went. And naturally I should have placed my next 3 month order a week ago, so it's specs for the week. I have nothing against glasses but they never feel as strong as the lenses. Cue the violins at this point.

It can't all be terrible though. We inherited a table from my grandparents today which I'm enjoying as a pseudo-desk in the living room. Pardon the camera phone picture and quite distorted lamp light.

Added silver lining: it's a holiday tomorrow. Someone pour me a bourbon. Followed by a bourbon.

I love Toddlers & Tiaras

2011-02-16T20:54:00.001-08:00

We all know why I hate The Bachelor. But oh how I love me some Wednesday night Toddlers & Tiaras. Let me count the ways, Letterman style.

10. The moms. Oh the moms and reliving their glory days through their daughters. It is rare that these women aren't haggard, sleep deprived and desperately in need of an orthodontic intervention.

9. The dads. The 1/100 of the audience forced to wear those gawd-awful airbrushed t-shirts with screen printed Glamour shots of their daughter. "WE LOVE YOU DESIREE!"

8. The moves that these goofy pageants require. I toy with the idea of YouTube-ing myself doing because I find it hilarious trying to master that walk. Maybe I'll save that for a Halloween party instead.

7. The Pageant Super Dad.

6. The introductory bios. Especially for babies. "Destiny has brown eyes and blond hair. Her role model is her mommy and she loves pageants, acting, gymnastics, and one day she hopes to be Miss USA. She is 6 months old. Thank you Destiny!"

5. The money! Some of these parents are living in trailers, can barely afford a meal beyond top ramen, and somehow think glitz pageants are a great investment. I think they may also be playing the Lotto each week in anticipation of a big win.

4. Flippers. There are not enough teeth for words.

3. The tantrums. I'm convinced these girls are grooming to be contestants on The Bachelorette 10 years from now. Because yes, they will be trying to go on at 15.

2. The audience. Or lack therof.

1. Eden Wood. Girl has a book about her at four years old and autographs it while BARELY able to write her name.

Where's the confetti?

2011-02-16T04:36:00.000-08:00

When I paid off my student loan in 2009, I waited for a congratulatory letter in the mail. Something just to even file away saying those magic words: $0 balance.

When I completed payments on my Honda, I did receive the pink slip from my parents, who graciously more than helped me pay for that car, but still no congratulatory letter-not even to them, who really deserved it.

We paid off our honeymoon to Fiji a few months after the wedding and CapitalOne did not have anything in the mail besides my next statement.

Now, Scott's truck is paid off (exclusively by him) and still no letters with confetti or large type proclaiming "Congratulations! No more car payments for you!"

Scott very wisely responded with his rationale-why should there be praise for doing what you are supposed to do? Touche. But this type-A likes the positive reinforcement. I know companies have templates on top of templates of collections letters. I think someone needs to invest in the party letterhead. They have 30 years to work on it because I'll expect it when this house is paid off.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-15T04:23:00.000-08:00

We cheersed to our 11th Valentine's Day over a cheesy pizza (pun intended) from Cortina's.

(omg30minutestopurchaseanUNCOOKEDpizzaCortina's?Whattheheck?!?!Murphy'sLawatitsbest-IthinkI'mbeingsmartbynotorderingitcookedandnaturallyIwaittwiceaslongtohaveitmadeincorrectly. Aren'tthesejuststackedandreadytocook? Therewent40minutesofmylifeI'llnevergetback.) End rant.

Annoyed or not, it was great pizza. Even if the smoke alarm went off.

Holidays are also my favorite time to try new recipes, like yesterday's peppermint patties. Today it was chocolate souffles. Perhaps it's because the name is French that I believe it to be fancy and tres difficile. Not so much with these! And by Scott's rule of recipes, they are now Erin's Chocolate Hazelnut Souffles because I added one ingredient to make them my own-hazelnut liqueur in honor of our nutty moniker. Here's the recipe if you are so inclined to make the delightful dessert.

Pizza, wine, souffles...pretty darn good Monday if you ask me.

It's Amore!

2011-02-14T04:22:00.000-08:00

I miss the days of picking out the perfect valentine for the crush in the class, hoping its message wasn't too obvious or too friendly, and cutting out the bonus cards on the back of the box for the teacher or the girl you didn't really want to give the card too because the ones on the back were hard to cut out!

So this year I decided to bring a little old school to the office with some valentine's and peppermint patties. Enjoy.

Mix powdered sugar, condensed milk, peppermint extract, and food coloring in blender. Shape into balls.

Press down with fingers or use bottom of drinking glass to flatten.

Melt chocolate chips in double boiler or use melting chocolate and melt in double boiler or microwave.

While chocolate melts, consider dipping into your own v-day dinner dessert, cakeballs from Patty's Cakes.
Dip patties into chocolate, let harden.
Artfully, or not so artfully, decorate with contrasting melting chocolate.

Just like the aforementioned valentine selection, choose the right valentine for the right person, especially in the office. And the right sweet treat-like Oreo's for the vegan friend.

Happy Valentine's Day!

A Place to Dine

2011-02-06T17:35:00.000-08:00

Scott and I rough it well.

We lived out of an ice chest for two weeks when we first moved into our house before we finally got a fridge.

We were without a microwave for 5 months. Not totally a hardship but it was quite inconvenient for a popcorn snack.

Dear me did we have a washer and dryer debacle. I realize many people don't have them in their home, but when you do, don't, do and then don't again, it's a roller coaster of laundry emotions.

Since we moved in we've also been without a dining table. The one we had in the apartment was not going to work in our little dine-in kitchen nook, and pretty much everything I found online was still too wide. My mother-in-law actually ended up having the perfect sized table that she found at an estate sale for $.75 years ago. It needed a little love having been through a few rainstorms outside, so my dad took it to spruce up. Unfortunately the little table was a too far beyond saving, so the family carpenter, a friend of my dad's from college, replicated the table for us, a gift from my parents for my birthday. Simply stated, we love it. He even added some great details the first table did not have. Thus, custom table for us!

It has the drop leaves on both sides so we can always shrink it to fit the space if needed. It still needs to be stained, probably a light brown, which I hope to accomplish in the coming weeks.

Here's a full view:
Bon appetite!

No title.

2011-02-03T19:29:00.000-08:00

Two months, three losses. You don't have to be a mathematician to comprehend the numbers. Closer to some than others, though it all feels like a disbelieving sucker punch. I am beginning to see the worst side of aging.

It's hard to find anything positive in the past two months in this respect, only that I am aware of three new babies coming into the world. I suppose that is the circle of life at its finest.

I struggle to find words of comfort to express to the grieving families as well as the answer to the question on everybody's mind. Why?

Wedding Wall

2011-01-29T15:01:00.000-08:00

I just love projects that I think are going to be a) easy and b) inexpensive. My wedding wall has turned out to be neither of those things.

We have a random plank of wood in our hallway that I painted to become our "wedding wall"--a wall of the weddings we have been in over the years. On Black Friday I went to the Goodwill to buy 5 different frames, all a little different, to hang the photos. Easy. And they were 50% off that day. So I spent $9 on 5 frames.

After settling on the images and laying the frames out on the floor, we decided to hang the frames from the middle-thus they are centered to the yellow plank, not by hanging from the typical top spot. Enter challenge to hang the suckers.

Because these frames were from all corners of the retail world, a few had the teeth, some had popout holes, etc. Either way, all were not in the right spot. I needed something to affix to the middle of the frame and then could stick to the wall. Enter 3M Command Strips. I know everyone swears by them, but they did not work. At all. ONE of the Velcro sticky variety claimed to hang up 3 pounds. I think most of the frames weighed less than one. We had up to 4 sets of those little buggers on a frame and they still fell from the wall. Sometimes during dinner, sometimes in the middle of the night which is always good for the heart. I'm pretty sure I spent about $25 on those damn things. And then my favorite frame fell and broke. Awesome, who doesn't like 5 trips to Michael's in one week. So I purchased a new frame. And then we tried the stick-ems another way and again, frame dropped, and broke. Make it 7 times to Michael's because I forgot my coupon the first time.

So, here we are, probably $40 later, but I do have the wedding wall, thanks to my resident handy man.

Wider shot towards the front door:

I excel at blurry photos in three feet wide hallways. Yet, the "wedding wall" does bring a smile to my face at each walk-through.

Central Coast Vino Vacation

2011-01-18T20:59:00.000-08:00

Solvang, CA-land of all things kitschy and ~~Dutch~~ Danish:

With what I am guessing is California's own-Ostrichland!

Piggy little buggers.

Another novelty: mini pony farm, Quicksilver Ranch!

And the main attraction for the trip: WINE

All in all, wonderful weekend spent!

Vingt-Sept

2011-01-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

Doing this birthday post really tells me I need to get to my parents' house and scan my childhood photos so I don't have to use the same picture every year.

I was stoked at 4 years old with my Ducktales party and of course, upon receiving Webby. My parents even surprised me with my preschool teacher, Miss Beauxay (no idea how to spell, it was pronounced Boo-ay) at the shindig. Subsequently, they also tried to set her up with my uncle. Who knew 4th birthdays had match.com moments?

I am going out to lunch with my dear friend Courtney and tonight I'm making a Greek-inspired dinner with my husband and bff complete with baklava and of course cake balls from my favorite bakery, Patty's Cakes. Feels like the perfect way to greet this new year, which is feeling ridiculously far from 20 and all too near to 30.

My wish list 6 months ago was central a/c. Funny how all I want now is a vent in our bedroom, which is both the hottest and coldest room of the house, respectively, but mostly so we don't have to use 3 quilts to sleep comfortably. I know Scott went to South Coast Plaza last night, so methinks no a/c is coming but I am still secretly hoping he'll finish our wedding wall. Scott please note I actually did write "he" as in no implied "we" because I just want it done and I'm hoping you will do it :)

I hate "The Bachelor."

2011-01-07T16:35:00.000-08:00

Never had I watched an episode of "The Bachelor" until this week. Never again will I watch an episode in the future. It's not even getting a hyperlink because it deserves zero publicity. Though I do realize I'm writing about it. Thankfully I don't know how my SEO ranks for ABC shows.

OH MY GOD who are these women?

I could just be missing the boat here, but do women love this show because it is a hot mess? Or do they really believe these bachelors are looking for a ~~chance at fame~~ meaningful relationship? Dear me I hope it's not that because what is there to like about a guy who a) gets to be with a dozen moderately attractive to good looking women b) has to find his best side for the camera c) is snogging a dozen different women andtheyknowaboutit!!!

It's madness.

I can't wrap my brain around it. Perhaps everyone just has their own train wreck show. I can't get enough of a Toddlers & Tiaras and for others its that gawd awful Jersey Shore.

The thing about The Bachelor is that I see my contemporaries practically graveling to be chosen in a competition for wife. There is nothing rational about that last sentence which is exactly why I am baffled and watched the show with exclamation marks above my head.

These women are disillusioned if they really believe true love is coming from a television show with an outline, if not a script, and beyond realistic "dates" that are more like showcase showdown prizes. Of course sky diving in Costa Rica after swimming with dolphins in your en suite pool is going to be fun--but it's not realistic. Sorry ladies, once the cameras are off and you have been "proposed" to (which is laughable in itself), it's back to Friday night brews at the dive bar--AND THAT'S OK! But, these women are suddenly accustomed to the posh ABC-funded Hollywood Hills loft, jet setting dates, and a man with a Photoshopped sparkle in his smile.

Perhaps I'm harsh and perhaps I am assuming. Either way, I find nothing remotely redeeming about this show. Clearly women love it and watch it or it wouldn't have been on the past 800 years. However, this is the beauty of a blog, I get to air my grievances with tv programming and they continue to budget for a 10 month wedding for tv's latest enamored "it" couple.

What happened to good old fashioned man meeting at baseball games, church, happy hour, or desk sharing in ASB?