We finally got blinds up in the living and dining rooms. Maybe one day I will post a picture! We also ordered a dining room table this week! It should arrive on Monday. Hope we like it!
J has Monday off, but I have a workday. It usually seems to happen this way. We both have Memorial day off though!
Nothing too exciting here, besides getting blinds up and buying a dining room table. It was a stressful week for both of us, so we are glad it is the weekend. We are going to hit the gym, wash our cars, and go to the young married's valentine's party. Should be a good time!
Instead of going out on Valentine's, we went out Wednesday to the Smokehouse in downtown Varina (I had a coupon :)). We both tried BBQ, and while it wasn't MS good, it sure was better than Eastern NC BBQ! We also has friend pickles, which are always good!
Is it June yet?
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Friday, February 10, 2012
Happy Anniversary, NC!
We can hardly believe we have lived in North Carolina for two years. Time flies. That also means I have been teaching for two years. Some days, I can't believe it. Other days, I don't know that I can do it for 23+ more years. Ah, the joys of teaching!
J has almost been at his current job for a year. Once he has been there for a year, he gets to work from home one day a week! No fighting traffic or having to put on real clothes. Not to mention it will save us some gas money! It will be nice to see him when I come home from work for a change.
We haven't been doing much lately. Work, school, and church mainly. And we have been continuing our Supernatural Marathon. We should finish season 4 tonight. I am still not sure why we like it so much, but we do! We DVR'd all our shows this week so we could watch Supernatural.
We watched the Superbowl at home. We didn't care much about the game; we just wanted to see the commercials. We thought they were mostly disappointing.
My classes are going well. Mondays are just extremely long for me, but I am glad to have class out of the way for the week! I am counting down the days until May 8 when I will no longer have class and work. 1 whole month of just work before 2 months of nothing!
We're still undecided about where to go for Spring Break. I am hoping to decide soon! I have a travel bug, so I need to plan a trip stat!
I checked out four James Patterson books yesterday. I finished one, so I am off to start another!
J has almost been at his current job for a year. Once he has been there for a year, he gets to work from home one day a week! No fighting traffic or having to put on real clothes. Not to mention it will save us some gas money! It will be nice to see him when I come home from work for a change.
We haven't been doing much lately. Work, school, and church mainly. And we have been continuing our Supernatural Marathon. We should finish season 4 tonight. I am still not sure why we like it so much, but we do! We DVR'd all our shows this week so we could watch Supernatural.
We watched the Superbowl at home. We didn't care much about the game; we just wanted to see the commercials. We thought they were mostly disappointing.
My classes are going well. Mondays are just extremely long for me, but I am glad to have class out of the way for the week! I am counting down the days until May 8 when I will no longer have class and work. 1 whole month of just work before 2 months of nothing!
We're still undecided about where to go for Spring Break. I am hoping to decide soon! I have a travel bug, so I need to plan a trip stat!
I checked out four James Patterson books yesterday. I finished one, so I am off to start another!
Friday, January 27, 2012
Since then...
Since we got back from Boston, we are getting settled into a new routine. I have class on Monday nights. It is nice that I only have class one day a week, but that also means all my assignments are due on the same day. I am trying to do a little everyday so it's not overwhelming. I am really liking my classes though. Makes me want to be a professional student!
A new semester has also started for work, so I have to get used to a new schedule! It will probably take me a couple of weeks, but over all I think I will like it better.
Our friends from church had their baby on Wednesday. She is so pretty. That means we'll be one family down on our Sunday night meals, but it's all for a good cause. (And no, it doesn't make us want one- just the opposite I think!)
We enjoyed watching State beat Vandy at our friends' house. Their little girl is obsessed with J. When we went to their house around Christmas, she gave J some candy. He figured she would want it later and just left it there. Well apparently, she really wanted him to have it and had been asking where J was for 2 weeks (while we gone to Boston.) She declared he must be on a date! Too cute. J did eat the candy during the basketball game. And she did manage to give me a candy cane, although I was instructed that J had to sit beside her during supper. "You can't sit there! That's John's seat," were her exact words.
Last weekend we rented Moneyball and the Ides of March. I really liked both, but J wasn't a fan of Ides. Gotta love RedBox!
We have also implemented a cleaning schedule. Since between work and school I sometimes neglect the house, we came up with a few things we do each day. While our house is never Mamaw or Kate Kate clean, it is much improved day-to-day. And I admit this is weird, but I love steam mopping. I simply cannot believe how much filth is on the floor!
We also tried a new recipe this week. I found it in Coupon Kitchen. J's friend at work introduced him to it. I have found that it is a great resource! Healthy meals on a budget! We have tried 2 or 3 meals from there and liked them all. And it helps us introduce something new into our standard routine of meals.
J borrowed season 1 of Supernatural from a friend at work, so we are planning to watch that this weekend (along with a basketball game, of course.) Glad it is warm outside. Today it reached 71! Love it! Too bad we still have 2 months of winter to go; who knows if we can keep the mild temperature trend.
A new semester has also started for work, so I have to get used to a new schedule! It will probably take me a couple of weeks, but over all I think I will like it better.
Our friends from church had their baby on Wednesday. She is so pretty. That means we'll be one family down on our Sunday night meals, but it's all for a good cause. (And no, it doesn't make us want one- just the opposite I think!)
We enjoyed watching State beat Vandy at our friends' house. Their little girl is obsessed with J. When we went to their house around Christmas, she gave J some candy. He figured she would want it later and just left it there. Well apparently, she really wanted him to have it and had been asking where J was for 2 weeks (while we gone to Boston.) She declared he must be on a date! Too cute. J did eat the candy during the basketball game. And she did manage to give me a candy cane, although I was instructed that J had to sit beside her during supper. "You can't sit there! That's John's seat," were her exact words.
Last weekend we rented Moneyball and the Ides of March. I really liked both, but J wasn't a fan of Ides. Gotta love RedBox!
We have also implemented a cleaning schedule. Since between work and school I sometimes neglect the house, we came up with a few things we do each day. While our house is never Mamaw or Kate Kate clean, it is much improved day-to-day. And I admit this is weird, but I love steam mopping. I simply cannot believe how much filth is on the floor!
We also tried a new recipe this week. I found it in Coupon Kitchen. J's friend at work introduced him to it. I have found that it is a great resource! Healthy meals on a budget! We have tried 2 or 3 meals from there and liked them all. And it helps us introduce something new into our standard routine of meals.
J borrowed season 1 of Supernatural from a friend at work, so we are planning to watch that this weekend (along with a basketball game, of course.) Glad it is warm outside. Today it reached 71! Love it! Too bad we still have 2 months of winter to go; who knows if we can keep the mild temperature trend.
Boston Tres
Sunday- was FREEZING! We wanted to make sure we stayed inside as much as possible. The wind chill was -11!
We headed to a coffee shop J and I found Saturday. We had a quick breakfast before heading to Cambridge.
We hopped on the T to Harvard Square. If I hadn't known I was on Harvard's campus, there is no way I would have discovered it really. It is kind of like Duke and Rhodes with its buildings.
We then stopped by MIT for Bubba to get a shirt, only to find all the bookstores closed. We then went to Trinity Church for a [free] tour. It was beautiful inside and out! It was very ornate. Everything is hand painted.
Then it was time for the library tour, which is just across the courtyard. I searched on the website and found the free tour and was so excited! See where this is going? No mention that the library would be closed on Sunday for MLKJ day. We were so disappointed! But this meant we could eat a real lunch. We had California Pizza Kitchen, then headed to Boston College. It was a LONG ride, but it was cool to see another campus. And Clark wanted a shirt or hoodie since MIT didn't pan out. Then it was back to the hotel to relax before heading out for supper.
After a detour, we finally got to Jerry Remy's at 6:55 for our 7:00 reservation. (Good thing we had one, too. It was packed! Bostonians love the Giants apparently.) The hostess tells us that our reservation isn't until 7:00 so we can come back then. Um.. we were 5 minutes early. We just stood and waited... and watched the game. There were tvs everywhere! Amy said there were even some in the bathroom. The fans were really loud, and it was hard to hear ourselves think! I guess we can say we have experienced a sports bar atmosphere now. Don't think I want to again though! After supper, we called it a night.
Monday, J and I headed out to Beacon Hill. We ate breakfast at The Paramount. Delicious!
We wandered around Beacon Hill and the Public Garden. We even met C&A there.
And then we were off to Baltimore then to Raleigh!
We headed to a coffee shop J and I found Saturday. We had a quick breakfast before heading to Cambridge.
 |
| Hot chocolate and Cinnamon Honey Latte at The Thinking Cup |
 |
| Searching for a T, we stopped here! |
Then it was time for the library tour, which is just across the courtyard. I searched on the website and found the free tour and was so excited! See where this is going? No mention that the library would be closed on Sunday for MLKJ day. We were so disappointed! But this meant we could eat a real lunch. We had California Pizza Kitchen, then headed to Boston College. It was a LONG ride, but it was cool to see another campus. And Clark wanted a shirt or hoodie since MIT didn't pan out. Then it was back to the hotel to relax before heading out for supper.
After a detour, we finally got to Jerry Remy's at 6:55 for our 7:00 reservation. (Good thing we had one, too. It was packed! Bostonians love the Giants apparently.) The hostess tells us that our reservation isn't until 7:00 so we can come back then. Um.. we were 5 minutes early. We just stood and waited... and watched the game. There were tvs everywhere! Amy said there were even some in the bathroom. The fans were really loud, and it was hard to hear ourselves think! I guess we can say we have experienced a sports bar atmosphere now. Don't think I want to again though! After supper, we called it a night.
Monday, J and I headed out to Beacon Hill. We ate breakfast at The Paramount. Delicious!
 |
| Banana Caramel French Toast. Literally melted in my mouth. |
 |
| Acorn Street |
 |
| Cheers |
 |
| J Ice Skating on the pond. It completely froze while we were there! |
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Boston Part II
We met up with C&A at Quincy Market. J and I shared swordfish kabobs, Clark had a Greek something, and Amy had some amazing mac n cheese. There were 2098765789 options. Only slightly exaggerating.
After a quick lunch, we continued following the red brick path. It took us to Paul Revere's House. Built in the 1600s and still standing! Crazy!
We took a quick detour to Mike's Pastry. Seriously Awesome Cannolis. Didn't know how good they could be. No surprise, mine was peanut butter; J's was chocolate dipped. (I'll let C&A tell you what they had, but I do remember!)
Then onto the USS Constitution...
And then Bunker Hill...
For some reason, we decided to climb all 294 steps to the top. J and I had been walking since 9:15 that morning. It was 3:30 or 4 when we got to Bunker Hill. I thought I was going to have a heart attack on the way up. So. Out. Of. Shape. I just hoped I would pass out so someone would carry me down. :)
We took the T back the the Boston Common and walked through the Public Garden.
After a little rest, we headed to Legal Seafoods. I had some awesome Mahi Mahi. J had shrimp, scallops, Blueflish, Tuna, and Mahi Mahi. So. Full. We decided it was too cold to go anywhere else, so we called it a night. We watched the Patriots games from our hotel room... well J watched. I slept.
After a quick lunch, we continued following the red brick path. It took us to Paul Revere's House. Built in the 1600s and still standing! Crazy!
We took a quick detour to Mike's Pastry. Seriously Awesome Cannolis. Didn't know how good they could be. No surprise, mine was peanut butter; J's was chocolate dipped. (I'll let C&A tell you what they had, but I do remember!)
 |
| Enjoying cannolis! |
 |
| Copp's Hill Burying Ground |
Then onto the USS Constitution...
And then Bunker Hill...
For some reason, we decided to climb all 294 steps to the top. J and I had been walking since 9:15 that morning. It was 3:30 or 4 when we got to Bunker Hill. I thought I was going to have a heart attack on the way up. So. Out. Of. Shape. I just hoped I would pass out so someone would carry me down. :)
 | ||
| View from top of Bunker Hill Monument |
After a little rest, we headed to Legal Seafoods. I had some awesome Mahi Mahi. J had shrimp, scallops, Blueflish, Tuna, and Mahi Mahi. So. Full. We decided it was too cold to go anywhere else, so we called it a night. We watched the Patriots games from our hotel room... well J watched. I slept.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Boston Part I
We had a great (although COLD) time in Boston.
We met Clark and Amy in Philadelphia and we flew into Boston together. We managed to figure out our way around on the T and male it to our hotel. Somehow, J and I got upgraded to a bigger room, but C and A didn't. :( Turns out they were the lucky ones. We had psychotic neighbors that woke us up every morning at 1:30 and yelled profanities at each other. Joy! The last night, the hotel manager stepped in.
Anyway, after a quick change of clothes we were off to Cafeteria Boston thanks to a Groupon! We got there early, but they seated us right away. We shared spinach artichoke dip and calamari. I had a messy, but good burger. J had hanger steak. We topped the meal off with apple pie. So glad we had the Groupon because it wasn't worth how much they would have charged. We walked around a little before deciding it was too cold and going back to the hotel. Thankfully, our hotel was 1 block from the T station.
Saturday morning, J and I headed out for the Freedom Trail. We stopped for breakfast at the Thinking Cup. We had pastries and hot chocolate. So yummy! We started at the Boston Commons and started to follow the red brick path!
After getting through over half of the sites, we met C and A for lunch and Quincy Market and we went together to finish the trail....
We met Clark and Amy in Philadelphia and we flew into Boston together. We managed to figure out our way around on the T and male it to our hotel. Somehow, J and I got upgraded to a bigger room, but C and A didn't. :( Turns out they were the lucky ones. We had psychotic neighbors that woke us up every morning at 1:30 and yelled profanities at each other. Joy! The last night, the hotel manager stepped in.
Anyway, after a quick change of clothes we were off to Cafeteria Boston thanks to a Groupon! We got there early, but they seated us right away. We shared spinach artichoke dip and calamari. I had a messy, but good burger. J had hanger steak. We topped the meal off with apple pie. So glad we had the Groupon because it wasn't worth how much they would have charged. We walked around a little before deciding it was too cold and going back to the hotel. Thankfully, our hotel was 1 block from the T station.
Saturday morning, J and I headed out for the Freedom Trail. We stopped for breakfast at the Thinking Cup. We had pastries and hot chocolate. So yummy! We started at the Boston Commons and started to follow the red brick path!
 |
| Paul Revere's grave marker |
 |
| Marking First Public School |
 |
| Old State House |
 |
| Boston Massacre Site |
After getting through over half of the sites, we met C and A for lunch and Quincy Market and we went together to finish the trail....
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Starting Off the New Year!
We started the year off asleep.. well, I did. J managed to stay up until midnight.
This weekend we had a movie marathon. We watched The Help, The Change-Up, and Super 8. The Change-Up was pretty horrible, but we enjoyed the other two! We also started the hunt for dining room furniture. Not sure how much closer we are, but we don't really have a time frame for getting one.
We went to a friend's to watch theboring national championship last night. I have class on Mondays from 4:10-9:55, but I got out at 5! I know that won't happen again. We had a good time, even if the game wasn't that fun to watch.
Boston this weekend! Looks like it will be cold- low 30s and upper 20s for the highs. We're not too worried since we did fine in NYC last year. We are getting excited about it!!!
Not much else going on here... Hopefully I can post about Boston soon after we get back!
This weekend we had a movie marathon. We watched The Help, The Change-Up, and Super 8. The Change-Up was pretty horrible, but we enjoyed the other two! We also started the hunt for dining room furniture. Not sure how much closer we are, but we don't really have a time frame for getting one.
We went to a friend's to watch the
Boston this weekend! Looks like it will be cold- low 30s and upper 20s for the highs. We're not too worried since we did fine in NYC last year. We are getting excited about it!!!
Not much else going on here... Hopefully I can post about Boston soon after we get back!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Last Post O' the Year!
Crazy to think that Sunday starts 2012!!! Where has the time gone?!
I have a few ideas..
-buying our first house!
-moving (again!)
-decorating/painting said house (4 days after move-in, guest bathroom, guest room, dining room, entry and office, living room, bedroom, and bathroom, laundry)
-starting grad school
-trips to NYC, the beach, the mountains, Virginia, Texas, Kentucky (x2), Mississippi (x2), Georgia, South Carolina
What's happening in 2012?
-Boston with Clark and Amy
-Hopefully a trip to Charleston or Savannah
-Trips to the mountains and the beach
-David graduates from State in May
-Caitlin graduates from WKU in December
-Hopefully getting the house more settled- we need a dining room table!
I have a few ideas..
-buying our first house!
-moving (again!)
-decorating/painting said house (4 days after move-in, guest bathroom, guest room, dining room, entry and office, living room, bedroom, and bathroom, laundry)
-starting grad school
-trips to NYC, the beach, the mountains, Virginia, Texas, Kentucky (x2), Mississippi (x2), Georgia, South Carolina
What's happening in 2012?
-Boston with Clark and Amy
-Hopefully a trip to Charleston or Savannah
-Trips to the mountains and the beach
-David graduates from State in May
-Caitlin graduates from WKU in December
-Hopefully getting the house more settled- we need a dining room table!
Christmas has come and gone
We had a week long Christmas! Too bad I spent most of it not feeling well. I enjoyed it all anyway!
It started on the 17th. We opened presents from each other and went to see a movie.
The 19th I went into work, then drove straight to Mississippi. We has a great Christmas with Grannie and Granddaddy and Uncle Thomas and Aunt Linda. Rachel and Elise taught me how to play PIT and we ate lots of food! Santa came early in MS on Wednesday and brought us an iPad! Thursday, we had Christmas with Kate Kate, then off to KY! We enjoyed meeting the newest member of the family, Jordyn. We enjoyed looking at lights and eating too.much.food. Santa came and brought me the best dust buster ever. It is amazing! We had a good time playing games and still ate too.much.food. We left Christmas day around 5 and headed to Harriman, TN to break up the long trip. It was such a good decision! Driving back Monday didn't feel so long- we even got home before dark!
I slowly undecorated the inside this week. The Christmas tree was put on the curb last night. (The city picks them up for free!) It feels so naked inside the house now! The tree took up lots of space! J is taking down the outside lights tomorrow. I have been enjoying not working. And thankfully, the construction on the house next door started at 9 Tuesday- Thursday, so I got some good sleep! My one project for the week was making a curtain for the kitchen window. I went to get the fabric this morning and it is nowhere to be found! :( I hope they will restock it soon and it is not discontinued. The ladies at the store weren't much help. If I can't find it soon, I guess I will have to pick out a new fabric....
Work starts back for me on Monday. Of course, J has Monday off. Always seems to work that way. Classes start back January 9, so I will be busy before I know it!
It started on the 17th. We opened presents from each other and went to see a movie.
The 19th I went into work, then drove straight to Mississippi. We has a great Christmas with Grannie and Granddaddy and Uncle Thomas and Aunt Linda. Rachel and Elise taught me how to play PIT and we ate lots of food! Santa came early in MS on Wednesday and brought us an iPad! Thursday, we had Christmas with Kate Kate, then off to KY! We enjoyed meeting the newest member of the family, Jordyn. We enjoyed looking at lights and eating too.much.food. Santa came and brought me the best dust buster ever. It is amazing! We had a good time playing games and still ate too.much.food. We left Christmas day around 5 and headed to Harriman, TN to break up the long trip. It was such a good decision! Driving back Monday didn't feel so long- we even got home before dark!
I slowly undecorated the inside this week. The Christmas tree was put on the curb last night. (The city picks them up for free!) It feels so naked inside the house now! The tree took up lots of space! J is taking down the outside lights tomorrow. I have been enjoying not working. And thankfully, the construction on the house next door started at 9 Tuesday- Thursday, so I got some good sleep! My one project for the week was making a curtain for the kitchen window. I went to get the fabric this morning and it is nowhere to be found! :( I hope they will restock it soon and it is not discontinued. The ladies at the store weren't much help. If I can't find it soon, I guess I will have to pick out a new fabric....
Work starts back for me on Monday. Of course, J has Monday off. Always seems to work that way. Classes start back January 9, so I will be busy before I know it!
Friday, December 16, 2011
9 days til Christmas!
We have been busy!
We had a Young Married's Christmas party full of food and an ornament exchange. We wound up with a Frosty the Snowman!
We discovered some awesome Christmas light displays set to music.
I finished the semester with a 4.0.
I had 2 cookie exchanges (just this week!) and an ornament party.
I celebrated my friend's birthday on Wednesday by painting pottery in Fayetteville.
We went over to a friend's house for steak last week. They must really like us!
We finished all our Christmas shopping!
Today, I woke up with a sore throat.. I am hoping it goes away quickly! Thankfully, today was a half day.
Now we are gearing up for our Christmas trip. Can't wait to see everyone!
We had a Young Married's Christmas party full of food and an ornament exchange. We wound up with a Frosty the Snowman!
We discovered some awesome Christmas light displays set to music.
I finished the semester with a 4.0.
I had 2 cookie exchanges (just this week!) and an ornament party.
I celebrated my friend's birthday on Wednesday by painting pottery in Fayetteville.
We went over to a friend's house for steak last week. They must really like us!
We finished all our Christmas shopping!
Today, I woke up with a sore throat.. I am hoping it goes away quickly! Thankfully, today was a half day.
Now we are gearing up for our Christmas trip. Can't wait to see everyone!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Those neighbors..
must hate these neighbors!
Christmas Lights in Cary near church. Hopefully we will get a better video of one closer to the house to post.
Christmas Lights in Cary near church. Hopefully we will get a better video of one closer to the house to post.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Fa-la-la-la-la
It's Christmastime! But first, a quick re-cap...
We had Thanksgiving with friends. It was fun and food filled. Saturday, we went to the Vandy @ Wake Forest with them. So glad to cheer for a winning team! We had a great time with them. On the way home, J and I stopped at Steak N Shake. We needed a milkshake fix!
Other than that, not much going on lately. I am wrapping up my semester. My final Monday night class is tomorrow, and my final Wednesday class is Dec. 7. Both classes are just presenting our final projects. I am feeling confident that I will have A's in both classes. :)
Work has been busy, especially since I got a pre-schooler at the beginning of the month. Between adding a new student to the mix and meetings, I have been pretty busy! I was glad to have a break.
I did go out on Black Friday to get a few things, but mostly Christmas decorations. Since we are in a new house, we didn't have any lights for the outside. We also decided to get a real tree this year, so we needed more ornaments, garland, lights, etc. The house is now Christmas-fied, including presents under the tree. :) Less than a month now!
We had Thanksgiving with friends. It was fun and food filled. Saturday, we went to the Vandy @ Wake Forest with them. So glad to cheer for a winning team! We had a great time with them. On the way home, J and I stopped at Steak N Shake. We needed a milkshake fix!
Other than that, not much going on lately. I am wrapping up my semester. My final Monday night class is tomorrow, and my final Wednesday class is Dec. 7. Both classes are just presenting our final projects. I am feeling confident that I will have A's in both classes. :)
Work has been busy, especially since I got a pre-schooler at the beginning of the month. Between adding a new student to the mix and meetings, I have been pretty busy! I was glad to have a break.
I did go out on Black Friday to get a few things, but mostly Christmas decorations. Since we are in a new house, we didn't have any lights for the outside. We also decided to get a real tree this year, so we needed more ornaments, garland, lights, etc. The house is now Christmas-fied, including presents under the tree. :) Less than a month now!
 |
| Outside :) I have a porch tree being shipped! So the porch will have a little light, too! |
 |
| Christmas tree in our room. Since it is in the front of the house, we open the blinds so it can be seen from the road. |
 |
| Mantle and the real tree! :) |
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Painting and Shopping
The semester is winding down for grad school, so I have been busy with all the final projects. I am done with half of them, so that is a relief!
The trees have been beautiful here the past couple of weeks. Now, the leaves are on the ground. It is beginning to get cold, which can only mean one thing! Christmas is coming!
We spent yesterday shopping for Christmas stuff. (We also ended up with a cute Halloween decoration marked down!) We now only have 3 people to shop for (we had no luck finding something for 1 person... even after going to 5 stores!) So we are close to being done with others. So far we have no idea what to get each other though, There is still time, but after going shopping yesterday, neither of us has any desire to set foot in a mall again. We ended the night eat in Cameron Village and an early bedtime. You see, since we were both off work yesterday, we decided to go see J. Edgar at 12:01. We didn't get home until after 3 am. I still need some catch up sleep, and I slept 10 hours last night!
Today, we painted the laundry room. It is about time because the paint for the laundry was actually the first gallon we bought!!! Now our house is all painted! (Except closets, but we are so not going there. Khaki is just fine for closets!) We have out Young Marrieds' Thanksgiving tonight. I made sweet potatoes for the first time. Hope they are good! I also made a pumpkin cheesecake, but I know that will be good!
December 7 I will officially be done with this semester. Cannot wait! Next semester I am taking 2 classes on Monday nights. So I will be in class from 4-10. Going to be a long semester. At least they are both considered distance education, so my tuition was lower than this semester!
The trees have been beautiful here the past couple of weeks. Now, the leaves are on the ground. It is beginning to get cold, which can only mean one thing! Christmas is coming!
We spent yesterday shopping for Christmas stuff. (We also ended up with a cute Halloween decoration marked down!) We now only have 3 people to shop for (we had no luck finding something for 1 person... even after going to 5 stores!) So we are close to being done with others. So far we have no idea what to get each other though, There is still time, but after going shopping yesterday, neither of us has any desire to set foot in a mall again. We ended the night eat in Cameron Village and an early bedtime. You see, since we were both off work yesterday, we decided to go see J. Edgar at 12:01. We didn't get home until after 3 am. I still need some catch up sleep, and I slept 10 hours last night!
Today, we painted the laundry room. It is about time because the paint for the laundry was actually the first gallon we bought!!! Now our house is all painted! (Except closets, but we are so not going there. Khaki is just fine for closets!) We have out Young Marrieds' Thanksgiving tonight. I made sweet potatoes for the first time. Hope they are good! I also made a pumpkin cheesecake, but I know that will be good!
December 7 I will officially be done with this semester. Cannot wait! Next semester I am taking 2 classes on Monday nights. So I will be in class from 4-10. Going to be a long semester. At least they are both considered distance education, so my tuition was lower than this semester!
 |
| Laundry when we moved in |
 |
| Laundry Today :) |
Friday, October 28, 2011
Stuffed Shells
We made stuffed shells a couple of weeks ago. They were SO good!
20 jumbo shells
2 1/2 cups marinara/pasta sauce
10 oz bag of chopped spinach, thawed
8 oz bag of chopped broccoli, thawed
15 oz ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 small red onion, chopped
Heat oven to 400 degree. Cook pasta according to box.
Stuff shells. Layer sauce on bottom of pan. Put shells on top and sprinkle with the rest of the mozzarella. Bake for 10-12 minutes, then broil for 2-3.
While baking...
20 jumbo shells
2 1/2 cups marinara/pasta sauce
10 oz bag of chopped spinach, thawed
8 oz bag of chopped broccoli, thawed
15 oz ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 small red onion, chopped
Heat oven to 400 degree. Cook pasta according to box.
 |
| Mix broccoli and spinach in a large bowl |
 | ||
| Stir in the ricotta, Parmesan, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella, and 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper |
Stuff shells. Layer sauce on bottom of pan. Put shells on top and sprinkle with the rest of the mozzarella. Bake for 10-12 minutes, then broil for 2-3.
While baking...
 |
| mix together the oil, vinegar, and 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper |
 | ||||
| Serve onion mix on top of hot shells. |
Enjoy!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Mountain Trip '11
This year, we decided to head to Jefferson, NC. We actually stayed in a cabin outside Piney Creek. That was about 30 minutes from anywhere. We thought we were lost getting to the cabin on gravel roads!
Friday night we grilled chicken and watched Hocus Pocus. The cabin didn't have heat- only portable heaters. When we put them in the bedroom and turned them on, the power went out. Now, we are in the middle of nowhere with no cell service. We can only imagine things from horror movies. Yeah, we blew a breaker (not the only time during the weekend!) Funny now.. not so much then!
Saturday, I made hashbrowns, biscuits, and veggie protein (always look closely when buying things at Whole Foods!) We headed to Mouth of Wilson, VA. The drive was beautiful! We drove on a gravel road along the New River. We headed on to Grayson Highlands State Park. We hiked some and even saw snow!
After hiking up a steep mountain, we decided to head to Jefferson to find some food. We ended up in West Jefferson at a pizza place. It was so good! We headed back to the cabin to watch some football. We grilled steaks, then headed to the Spooky Forest. We had seen signs for it, but no real address. I typed in part of the address in every city around and picked one. And sure enough, after some gravel roads we ended up there! It wasn't too spooky, but it was cheap and the proceeds went to a good cause. And, again, it was in the middle of nowhere. We hadn't seen that many stars in a long time!
Sunday, we took our time heading home. We got on the Blue Ridge Parkway to near Boone. The colors were amazing. Pictures cannot really capture how beautiful it was!
We stopped at a cafe in Winston-Salem for lunch. I had pumpkin pancakes- delish! It was a great trip! Can't wait to see where we end up for next year's trip!
But before then, we will be heading to Boston with Clark and Amy!
 | ||||
| View from cabin |
Saturday, I made hashbrowns, biscuits, and veggie protein (always look closely when buying things at Whole Foods!) We headed to Mouth of Wilson, VA. The drive was beautiful! We drove on a gravel road along the New River. We headed on to Grayson Highlands State Park. We hiked some and even saw snow!
After hiking up a steep mountain, we decided to head to Jefferson to find some food. We ended up in West Jefferson at a pizza place. It was so good! We headed back to the cabin to watch some football. We grilled steaks, then headed to the Spooky Forest. We had seen signs for it, but no real address. I typed in part of the address in every city around and picked one. And sure enough, after some gravel roads we ended up there! It wasn't too spooky, but it was cheap and the proceeds went to a good cause. And, again, it was in the middle of nowhere. We hadn't seen that many stars in a long time!
Sunday, we took our time heading home. We got on the Blue Ridge Parkway to near Boone. The colors were amazing. Pictures cannot really capture how beautiful it was!
We stopped at a cafe in Winston-Salem for lunch. I had pumpkin pancakes- delish! It was a great trip! Can't wait to see where we end up for next year's trip!
But before then, we will be heading to Boston with Clark and Amy!
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Hello, Autumn!
While it has been very rainy here this week, the temperatures have been nice. This weekend has been sunny and perfect!
Monday night I didn't have class, so I met with a project partner at a coffee shop to work on a video. This is where I discovered red espresso. SO good! No caffeine and apparently, better for you. I had a pumpkin spice red espresso latte. A mouthful for sure, but oh so delicious! The coffee shop is pretty out of out way, so I doubt I will get to stop by often.
Tuesday, I had girls' night with the young married ladies from church. Wednesday, I had class; last week was SOOOO nice with no class. Next Wednesday, we begin clinics where we actually are going to diagnose students with reading problems. Thursday, I video conferenced with a different project partner to work on this week's deadlines. Whew! I feel like I don't sit still. Friday was an interesting day at work that involved some legal issues, so that made for a long day.
J got to wear jeans on Wednesday, which was a treat!
I ordered from jeans and a couple of shirts from J Crew Factory this week. There was a sale and a coupon code. I LOVE my purchases and wished I had ordered more. The jeans I bought fit me almost perfectly.. just an inch too long. I need to figure out what to do about that!
Friday, we had a date night. J even came to the door and rang the doorbell. He also opened doors for me almost all night. I can't remember the last time that happened. We went to eat at a Japanese place in town. We had sushi! (Eel is still our favorite.) Then we went bowling. It was so crowded, but it was fun. I broke 75 both times! Impressed? I was. J beat me both times, of course. We had a good time though!
Today was a beautiful autumn day! We had the windows opened and enjoyed watching football (even if we did lose. That's the typical story for State.) After the game, we went for a nice walk. There is a park with trails within walking distance of our house, but we had never been. We decided to change that. It was a nice area- much bigger than we thought. We took a trail, then took a greenway to the community center, then walked back home. Now that we know how nice the trails are, we will definitely be going back! When we got home, we made stuffed shells. It was intense labor wise, but they turned out great. Hopefully, (if I can find time) I will post pictures and the recipe soon.
This coming week, I have several meetings. I also have class on Monday and Wednesday this week. It has been 3 weeks since that has happened. I was enjoying it! I still have 2 Monday classes where we won't meet and 1 week where my Wednesday class doesn't meet, so I am looking forward to those! I also found out that next semester I will have class from 4-10 on Mondays. Going to be a long semester!
Friday, J is taking off work, and when I get home we are heading to the mountains! So excited :)
Monday night I didn't have class, so I met with a project partner at a coffee shop to work on a video. This is where I discovered red espresso. SO good! No caffeine and apparently, better for you. I had a pumpkin spice red espresso latte. A mouthful for sure, but oh so delicious! The coffee shop is pretty out of out way, so I doubt I will get to stop by often.
Tuesday, I had girls' night with the young married ladies from church. Wednesday, I had class; last week was SOOOO nice with no class. Next Wednesday, we begin clinics where we actually are going to diagnose students with reading problems. Thursday, I video conferenced with a different project partner to work on this week's deadlines. Whew! I feel like I don't sit still. Friday was an interesting day at work that involved some legal issues, so that made for a long day.
J got to wear jeans on Wednesday, which was a treat!
I ordered from jeans and a couple of shirts from J Crew Factory this week. There was a sale and a coupon code. I LOVE my purchases and wished I had ordered more. The jeans I bought fit me almost perfectly.. just an inch too long. I need to figure out what to do about that!
Friday, we had a date night. J even came to the door and rang the doorbell. He also opened doors for me almost all night. I can't remember the last time that happened. We went to eat at a Japanese place in town. We had sushi! (Eel is still our favorite.) Then we went bowling. It was so crowded, but it was fun. I broke 75 both times! Impressed? I was. J beat me both times, of course. We had a good time though!
Today was a beautiful autumn day! We had the windows opened and enjoyed watching football (even if we did lose. That's the typical story for State.) After the game, we went for a nice walk. There is a park with trails within walking distance of our house, but we had never been. We decided to change that. It was a nice area- much bigger than we thought. We took a trail, then took a greenway to the community center, then walked back home. Now that we know how nice the trails are, we will definitely be going back! When we got home, we made stuffed shells. It was intense labor wise, but they turned out great. Hopefully, (if I can find time) I will post pictures and the recipe soon.
This coming week, I have several meetings. I also have class on Monday and Wednesday this week. It has been 3 weeks since that has happened. I was enjoying it! I still have 2 Monday classes where we won't meet and 1 week where my Wednesday class doesn't meet, so I am looking forward to those! I also found out that next semester I will have class from 4-10 on Mondays. Going to be a long semester!
Friday, J is taking off work, and when I get home we are heading to the mountains! So excited :)
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Football Weather
J here for my 2nd blog post (I think that's right).
We had a good weekend with Mamaw and Papaw. We showed them around the area including the farmer's market which was particularly nice. C was like a kid in a candy store with all of the pumpkins and gourds for sale :) We bought a pumpkin, a white pumpkin, a bag of decorative gourds, two mums, and apples (for pie).
Last weekend, we went to the Georgia game in Athens. We stayed Friday night in Anderson, SC and had dinner with old friends. It was nice to catch up. Saturday morning we woke up early and headed to Athens. The campus wasn't quite as nice as I'd hoped, but the stadium was huge. We were very high up and neglected to wear sunscreen. So on top of watching State play a horrible game, our faces got burned up. After the game, we stayed the night at the Omni in downtown Charlotte which was very luxurious (C got a good deal on PriceLine for the room which we were both excited about). We treated ourselves to room service since we got such a good deal on the room. Sunday we went out for brunch and shopped for a bit and then headed back home. Overall, it was a good weekend.
We are heading for the mountains on the 21st for the weekend but until then it should be life as usual. C is at Girl's Night with the girls from church. Hopefully she will be back soon :)
Football note: So far this football season has been amazingly disappointing. If we can beat South Carolina though, things will be looking better. It is hard to believe that things will ever really change though. Losing to Auburn pretty much sums up what it's like to be a State fan. At least things are better than they were a few years ago.
Y'all have a good week!
We had a good weekend with Mamaw and Papaw. We showed them around the area including the farmer's market which was particularly nice. C was like a kid in a candy store with all of the pumpkins and gourds for sale :) We bought a pumpkin, a white pumpkin, a bag of decorative gourds, two mums, and apples (for pie).
Last weekend, we went to the Georgia game in Athens. We stayed Friday night in Anderson, SC and had dinner with old friends. It was nice to catch up. Saturday morning we woke up early and headed to Athens. The campus wasn't quite as nice as I'd hoped, but the stadium was huge. We were very high up and neglected to wear sunscreen. So on top of watching State play a horrible game, our faces got burned up. After the game, we stayed the night at the Omni in downtown Charlotte which was very luxurious (C got a good deal on PriceLine for the room which we were both excited about). We treated ourselves to room service since we got such a good deal on the room. Sunday we went out for brunch and shopped for a bit and then headed back home. Overall, it was a good weekend.
We are heading for the mountains on the 21st for the weekend but until then it should be life as usual. C is at Girl's Night with the girls from church. Hopefully she will be back soon :)
Football note: So far this football season has been amazingly disappointing. If we can beat South Carolina though, things will be looking better. It is hard to believe that things will ever really change though. Losing to Auburn pretty much sums up what it's like to be a State fan. At least things are better than they were a few years ago.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Awesome Potato Soup!
A few weekends ago when we went over to our friends' house for football, she had crockpot potato soup. It was so good, so I asked for the recipe. I made it tonight, and it was just as good. So I thought I would share it here. It is super easy! I got it ready last night, put it in the fridge, then just moved it to the base and turned it on!
1 lb Sliced Bacon
2 pkgs Diced Hash Browns (32 oz each)
3 cans Chicken Broth
3 cans Cream of Chicken Soup
2 pkgs Cream Cheese,softened and cut up
1/2 cup Minced Onion
1 tbsp. Parsley
1. Cook all bacon and crumble.
2. In crockpot, combine the rest of ingredients. Stir in bacon. Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours. Stir before serving.
That's it! Hope you try it and like it.
P.S. It makes a TON! We froze half to eat later.
1 lb Sliced Bacon
2 pkgs Diced Hash Browns (32 oz each)
3 cans Chicken Broth
3 cans Cream of Chicken Soup
2 pkgs Cream Cheese,softened and cut up
1/2 cup Minced Onion
1 tbsp. Parsley
1. Cook all bacon and crumble.
2. In crockpot, combine the rest of ingredients. Stir in bacon. Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours. Stir before serving.
That's it! Hope you try it and like it.
P.S. It makes a TON! We froze half to eat later.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Peacocks and Baskets
Yes, that is the only exciting this happening around here. We seem to be in a vicious cycle of work-eat-sleep (and I have school thrown in there). So our lives haven't been update worthy recently. Next weekend we are going to see our bulldogs play, so maybe after that I will have a real update!
 |
| Baskets in Laundry |
 |
| My painting I did at Wine and Design |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)