Our Tofu Turkeys

For Thanksgiving I found a delicious recipe for tofu. I cut the tofu into turkey shapes, just as the recipe suggested, for a pun on Thanksgiving dinner. Here they are in progress...let me know if you want the recipe link. It turned out divine! I'm planning to do a twist on it featuring cows and pigs for Christmas with each of our families!

Our New Home

So we bought a house!!! Yeppers, that's right. This morning at 10 am we closed on our very first home. We were so excited but we could hardly wait to get Sampson over there to test out his new yard and all of the space. Well, he loooooved it all just as much as we did! More pictures to come soon...

Golfing in Heaven...

My uncle passed away tonight. He has been battling cancer for a few years now. Once supposedly beating it but it came back and he wasn't able to win this round.

I know that I've written before about the history of cancer in my family, specifically on my moms side. My mom has now lost both of her brothers from this awful, awful disease. My grandfather has lost his wife and two sons...not to mention the cancer battles and scares that his other two daughters have had.

I will always remember my uncle Tom as the lovely (and oh-so-very tall...honestly the tallest person I've ever had the pleasure of knowing) man that he was. Dancing away to his favorite Sweet Home Alabama...

Pumpkin Black Bean Chili

I made this recipe tonight. The Mister really enjoyed it...my response was lukewarm. Let me know if you try it and what you think! We used real shredded cheese and I added a little sour cream as well.



Pumpkin Black Bean Chili

1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 cups cooked black beans (or 2-15 oz cans, rinsed and drained)
1 cup frozen corn
2 cups fresh pumpkin puree (or 1-15 oz can)
2-15 oz cans or 1-28 oz can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, with liquid
1 cup hearty fall or winter beer (or sub vegetable broth)
1-1/2 tbsp smoked paprika
3 tsp chili powder
1-1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp rubbed sage
1/4 tsp cayenne


Heat 1/4 cup water in a large stock pot and add onion. Saute for 3 minutes, or until translucent. Add garlic and saute for an additional 2-3 minutes, until fragrant.


Add spices and stir to coat the onions, saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in beer and allow to simmer for about 2 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Lower heat and cover, simmer for 45 minutes stirring occasionally.


Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve. Garnish with vegan cheese and chopped green onion.

Original photo and recipe found at The Ordinary Vegetarian

Our Big House Home

Here is a mini tour of our seats/section. I forgot to take pictures of a few things - the concession stands, bathrooms, etc. but you'll hopefully get the idea!

The elevators that bring you up to the club level...
I thought this sign was really pretty...especially since it's the first thing you see getting off the elevator!
One side of the hallway...it's pretty long!
There are high top tables all along the club level where you can sit and eat or just sit and stay warm on the inside!

One of the many lounges that you can camp out in. The middle screen always has the live action plays from the field. The two other screens feature ESPN, etc.
A view of campus from within the lounge closest to our section. The orange building was our former home...the business school.
Our section...
Our view...
We were both SO excited to see our section and the renovations done to The Big House. We're also so glad that we were able to get season tickets in this section...can't wait to come back to our seats year after year...

Go Bluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuue!

A Successful Trip!

We picked a great game to see.

Triple overtime.

Final score 67-65.

Just awesome.



The view from our seats.



The view behind our seats.



An amazing time...just amazing.

Time to Bundle Up...

The Mister and I are heading to Michigan this weekend. We can't wait to finally sit in our seats...the one's we've been paying for since before the big renovation was even completed! Yay for season tickets in The Big House!!!! Here are the top five things we're going to do while we're back in Ann Arbor...I would say top ten, but we have only 30 hours to play with!!!

1. The game...duh!
2. Visit with the hubsters bff and his Fiance!!!
3. Eat at Zingerman's Roadhouse.
4. See our old townhouse...mmmmmemmmmrrrrieeeeeeeezzzzz...
5. Buy a billlllion bags of tortilla chips from Ann Arbor Tortilla Factory.

And a bonus...

6. Walk through Whole Foods. Man I miss that place.

Pumpkin Patchin' it with Super Girl

We were soooo lucky this weekend to have our niece Joey visit with Nate's parents. She wore her adorable Halloween costume (made by my mother-in-law) that she requested...pink Super Girl. We had such a blast taking her around Charlotte for lunch and to a local farm. Hunter Farm is a great little family farm that offers hayrides, a petting zoo and of course a pick-your-own-pumpkin ending for all.


So excited to be on a real wagon ride.



One boy smiling...one focused on Super Girl. :)



The girls...all smiling!



Joey was so good with the animals. And they in turn were good with her despite her sparkly get-up! Ha!



The hunt begins...



Yay! We found "THE" perfect pumpkin.



I just love crisp fall days with family...

Happy Halloween!

Our punkin on his first Halloween as a pumpkin!



And another Fall-ish blast from the past...

Missing Maddie

New Fall Favorite

I made Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins this weekend. They were delicious!!! I tried the Starbuck's version and did not care for it at all...but these are delicious! I made a half batch and we still have way too many!


Find the recipe here Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins.

Photo and recipe from Annie's Eats

Not in Kansas

"I had a twin but she died. My momma was smokin' and drinkin' too much."

Reality Check

Last week Nate and I met with a genetic counselor. I've always had the mindset that "it's not IF it's WHEN" when it comes to cancer due to my family history. My mother's family has been affected by all different types: breast, bone, stomach, leukemia and more.

My aunt was in her early 30's when she was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy.

My own mother had a double mastectomy when I was in Kindergarten.

My grandmother was diagnosed for the first time with breast cancer when she was 28. She died after fighting breast cancer for the second time in her forties.

I'll be 28 in six months.

Breast cancer is always a health concern for me at every doctors appointment and during every self-exam. I knew that I needed to be proactive - putting some sort of action plan in place for prevention and possible treatment. It was a teary and emotional meeting. How could it not be when you're hearing that having a preventative mastectomy sooner than later is very realistic? Especially after you've just walked a stranger through the many many family members that have been diagnosed, fought and died from this disease in many different forms. I was terrified. I knew that I needed to be tested for the two known genetic strands specifically for breast cancer.

The ray of light? My aunt tested negative for this strand three years ago which means that I should not have these particular genes either.

The reality? Who knows.

So the counseling continues..........

Still...Not in Kansas

I called a parent yesterday because her child was acting out in an unusual way. The mother's response?

"He has been acting strange. I think it's because his father's been incarcerated."

Umm...ya think???

Not in Kansas

This morning a parent came to see me before school started. We needed to talk about her sons behavior. This is a part of our conversation.

Parent: I also wanted to tell you, in case you saw the news, that yes that was my son's daddy that robbed the bank.

Bet you don't hear that one everyday.

OhMyOrganizationalMESS

I'm through with a billion files of ideas, worksheets and teaching tools.

On to sheet protectors, binders and specific labels.

Hope I can finish before 2011..........

Fitness Question

I got new kicks.

I bought a new fitness regime.

I tried it out. And my body yelled at me the whole next day.

I'm still not completely motivated. So I'm wondering if I just put it all "out there" that I might feel obligated to, you know, actually FINISH what I start. So, will you help me be accountable? Or, will you just avoid this blog more after you find out what I really weigh and what size I really wear??? Comments would be very helpful here peeps, especially from those of you reading that I don't know about. :)

Oh my, I think I might actually do it...

Back to School

I had to bring everything home this summer in case we moved this summer.



So this week I loaded it allllll back up and brought it in to school.



I am NOT ready to go back...can't we start after Labor Day instead??

Last Minute Lunch

Nate worked from home today so I whipped up this tasty recipe for Simple Sesame Noodles. The Pioneer Woman always has such great simple recipes. Did I tell you I tried her Roasted Red Pepper Sauce? Divine! Anyway, I literally had everything in the kitched already...minus the chili oil and green onions. It was a nice easy lunch...I think it might by great with veggies or something else thrown in for a "heartier" meal.

Ingredients
12 ounces, fluid Thin Noodles, Cooked And Drained
¼ cups Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Sugar
4 cloves Garlic, Minced
2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
3 Tablespoons Pure Sesame Oil
½ teaspoons Hot Chili Oil (I didn't have this - I used fresh red pepper flakes)
4 Tablespoons Canola Oil
2 Tablespoons Hot Water
4 whole Green Onions, Sliced Thin (Didn't have this either, oops)

Directions:
Whisk all ingredients (except noodles and green onions) together in a bowl. Pour sauce over warm noodles and toss to coat. Sprinkle with green onions and toss.

Recipe and Photo from The Pioneer Woman see her recipe post here

Handheld Photobooth

Thank You Parents!

As a non-parent I know that I am likely to eat my own words, however, in the last few days we've run into some great parenting lessons. Whether we wanted to or not.

Exhibit A: Target breakdown

I'm shopping for some Seventh Generation items. (I only say this because for some weird reason our Target has these things located next to the candles, not the other cleaning items...apparently more natural cleaning items belong with stinky candles.) As I'm debating my choices a mom comes around the corner with her three kiddos (I assume they were roughly 1, 4 and 8). One boy in the basket and a brother and sister walking by themselves. Then I hear it. Crashhhhhhhhhhhh. I literally put my hands over my eyes because I knew it wasn't pretty. Well, when I turned to look the mom said "Matthew, you did this, now YOU need to find someone to clean it up because it's too dangerous for you to clean up. See that lady in the red shirt? You need to tell her what happened and ask her politely for help." Now, this may seem harsh to some of you but I was all "Yahoo! You go mama!" because I have seen many a mom asking the worker-bee's for help, cleaning it up themselves, just leaving the mess behind as if it didn't happen all the while overlooking who really should be asking for help or cleaning up the mess. The little boy walked up to the employee and said "Excuse me, I need some help please. I picked up a candle and I didn't know it was glass and then I dropped it on accident and it broke all over. I'm real sorry but my mom said it's too dangerous for me to clean so could you please help me?" I kid you not. He was THAT apologetic and polite! I could tell he felt rotten about it, but he also felt responsible for the accident through that embarrassment. Never once did I feel the mom was overly harsh about the situation. But I also felt a great amount of respect for her because in the embarrassing situation she still made sure that her son took responsibility for his actions. I don't think that 8 year old will be touching candles anytime soon.

Exhibit B: Brooks Brothers cry-Baby

This weekend Nate needed some new work shirts so we headed to the mall. While he was sorting through colors and styles I happened to see a family of four come in the back door of the store. The dad stayed, also looking for items, while the mom took the son (5ish) and daughter (2ish) out the front and across the hall to a childrens store. Upon returning to Brooks Brothers the son was wimpering quite a bit about "mom wouldn't buy it for me" and such. Well dad quickly said "this is a quiet store, so we need to talk about this outside when we're done." Well, the little mister was NOT happy about that so he had a COMPLETE meltdown. Mom stepped in and walked both children out the back door to the parking lot while dad finished shopping. Little sister innocently asks mom on the way out "Mommy, why is Kyle crying?" Moms response? "Because he didn't get his way." Bam. Boo ya. And all those other fun phrases. Way to go mom!!! Way to NOT buckle under the pressure of the quiet surroundings. Way to NOT buy your children something just because they want it and cry when you say no. And way to point out the obvious...you're the boss and that's that.

Now, like I said earlier, I'm know Nate and I will struggle with these things when we're raising our own offspring. It's so easy to give in, clean the mess yourself or take the quick fix. We already butt heads about Sampson at times...but I'm always comforted when I/we see parents doing parenting the way I/we hope to. Be consistent with your rules and actions. Help them take ownership and be responsible. Most importantly? Do NOT crack under pressure!

Our Fridge

Top Row: homemade dog treats, peanut butter for Sampson's bone, homemade dog food, cottage cheese (leftover from S's birthday pupcakes)

Middle Row: whipping cream, peeled garlic, butter, limes, eggs

Bottom Rom: Diet Coke with Splenda (had to try it...not a big fan), water, Simply Lemonade (hiding), whole wheat flour, milk, tonic water (my FAVORITE drink...with some fresh limes!)

I know what you're thinking. She hid the rest in the drawers. Umm. No. The left drawer has shredded carrots from the pupcakes. The right drawar has a few whole wheat tortillas and leftover mozzarella cheese from last weeks pizza night.

Time to hit the grocery store. Anybody else despise grocery shopping???

Friday Night Treat

We got a couple treats to share at Dean and Deluca before we hit the movie theater on Friday night. Water and raspberry oatmeal bar for her. Arnold Palmer and turtle brownie for him. They hit the spot.

We saw The Other Guys with Will Ferrel and Mark Wahlberg. It was okay...lots of giggling, not too much bust out laughing. Nate definitely enjoyed it more than me but I'm not a big fan of Will Ferrel to begin with so my opinion is skewed. I always love a Marky-Mark sighting though. Speaking of which, Date Night was a waaaaay better movie than this.

Pupcakes

For Sampson's birthday I used the same recipe for his birthday cake as last year. However, I decided he didn't need a WHOLE cake...so I just made cupcakes...and now we have 11 pupcakes to give him over the next few months. (I froze the leftovers)

Peanut Butter Cake

1 cup white or whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup honey
1 egg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F Mix together flour and baking soda. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour equally into greased cupcake tin. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. I checked mine every 2 minutes after the 20 minute mark.

Frost this cake with low fat cottage cheese. Store in the refrigerator or freeze the leftover cake for later!





When you see the "crazy eyes" you KNOW you have a hit on your hand!

Birthday GIRL

Today is my Grandma's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!!!!

You already know how much I love her egg salad, but here are a few other things that I think are great about her.



She's a talented artist. Whether she's painting, drawing or writing her memoir she has a true talent for each. She's currently working on a special request piece from me...I promise to share it with all of you once we finalize it!



She's so hip! Seriously! Nate calls her our "Hip Grandma." She had a flat screen tv before anyone else in the fam! She listens to her ipod daily while she works out. I don't even know how to upload songs on mine without Nate's help. She's really great with technology - emailing, reading the blog, etc.- which is fabulous for me who lives so far away!



She always roots us on. And she's so proud of our accomplishments. I think she was just as proud of Nate as I was when he finished the Green Bay marathon. She always loves us. No matter what. She even accepts and loves Sampson WITH all of his drool.



Have a WONDERFUL day Grandma!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Love you lots.......