Merry Christmas John and Tash!

Here a few pictures for John and Tash who are in Germany with Tash's family....we missed you at the annual Crozier Family Christmas Eve party. Here are a couple classis moments:

Snack

Today Graham frosted a graham cracker with mayo.

I can't stop laughing!!!!

We had some mayo in a tupperware container which apparently looked very similar to cream cheese frosting.

HAHAHAHA!

Grandma Wilson

I have found myself thinking a lot about my Grandma Wilson this Christmas season and thought I'd blog a few of my thoughts about her to pay tribute. She passed away back in the spring of 2005 due to breast cancer that had metastasized to her lungs.

I'm thinking of her in particular this morning because I just mixed up a batch of her famous Cinnamon Roll dough for us to enjoy on Christmas. She and my Grandpa did not own a house for the majority of my lifetime. Rather than stay in one spot and have people come to them, they made it their mission to go out and help others. They had a white Toyota pickup truck with a big trailer attached (I guess like an RV) that they would travel in. They took many trips around the US in that thing as well as a number of trips to AZ and Mexico where they served at various mission sites. When they weren't serving at a mission, they would rotate between their 6 kids' houses, visiting each for ~3 weeks to a month. My Grandpa would expect a list of projects to work on once he arrived. For our family, I remember him helping build our fence, cementing the back patio, painting the exterior of our house, building cabinets, remodeling the downstairs to create a bedroom for Lani, and building book shelves for us kids.

Meanwhile, my Grandma would keep herself busy inside the house, cooking, cleaning, doing the laundry and playing with us kids. My mom admitted recently that it bothered her at first, that her mother-in-law was doing all the housework because she thought it meant my mom was not a good enough house keeper. But she soon realized it was my Grandma's love language to serve and she always wanted to keep her hands busy helping others.

I think Grandma really wanted to make sure her granddaughters knew the basic skills of cooking and sewings so she would frequently bring projects for us to work on. She taught me to sew a couple of different stitches by hand and to cook. Her specialties were homemade cinnamon rolls and pies. I now credit her as playing a huge role in developing my love of cooking.

We would always ask Grandma for her top secret cinnamon roll recipe. She would tell us that she didn't follow a recipe, she just would put a "scoop full of this and a spoonful of that." We never knew how big of a scoop or spoon to use so finally we had her measure out the ingredients so her famous recipe could be passed on. I've made the cinnamon roll recipe that she wrote out a number of times, but they are never quite as good as hers. She was always so cute because she knew that I liked the gooey middle rolls so she would use a huge pan for my batch (the bigger the pan, the more middle rolls!) But my Grandpa loved his cinnamon rolls crusty so she would make a special small pan for him that were all crusty.

At Christmastime, Grandma would use her same cinnamon roll dough recipe to make "Christmas Tree Bread." She would create strips of dough (each on a bit shorter than the other) and then line the strips up into the shape of a Christmas tree. She would frost them with green frosting and sprinkles and then use red hots for ornaments. I had my first attempt at making Christmas Tree Bread without her last year and hope to try it again this year for Graham and I to bring to work on Christmas Eve. I hope I can keep this tradition going in my family.

Grandma Wilson died a couple years before Graham proposed but I am so thankful that we were dating at the time and she was able to meet him. He was in nursing school during the time as she grew sicker (in addition to the cancer, she had a stroke that compromised her right side) and so I think he was able to be a comfort for my Dad's family as he was able to explain what a lot of the medical terms meant.

Recently, I came across a card that my Grandma wrote (in her very best left-handed penmanship)to me not too long before she died. In it, she commented about Graham, that he was a "very special boy" and that she was glad to know him. I think she knew deep down that he was right for me and that we would get married. Even though I really wish she could have been at our wedding, I am so thankful that I have this card to cherish. I know she approved of him.

SNOW!!!

I love how the city practically shuts down when it snows here. The grocery store has been packed with families "stocking up" for the storm and the streets are lined with three times as many people walking than usual (if snow is what it takes to get them exercising than I'm all for it!) So many people have spent the week at home rather than at work or school. Except for us of course. We never seem to get that lucky. I worked the past 6 of 7 days so spent a lot of my time driving on the roads of Snohomish County which was quite exciting to say the least. My little civic was a little trooper throughout the week....up until today (which, speaking of, since all the news stations spent so much time promoting the coming snow/wind on Saturday night, wouldn't you think they would have had the plowers ready and working through the night for all the people who had to get up and drive in the AM!!!??? Of course not! How could I be so silly to think things might work that logically!) Anyway, the freeway was absolutely horrid yesterday on my drive to work--I have never in my life seen so much snow on a main interstate. I mean, no plow had even touched it! My car kept bottoming out on the snow. Then there was the time I almost slid head on into the cement divider as I was taking my exit. Oh and the time I almost didn't make it up the unplowed major road uphill to my hospital (once I got going, I made the decision to continue on through all the stoplights, even if they weren't the right color--it was that bad.) Then there was the time I got stuck in the parking garage trying to leave my hospital. No one had thought to shovel the incline out of the garage (maybe that was their way of keeping their employees there to make up for all those that didn't show up). Oh and then once I finally got on the road home, I almost hit a line of about 5 stopped cars. Needless to say, it was an exciting day and I somehow made it home in one piece. I have to admit, I squeeled aloud with delight a couple time while driving because it felt sort of like an amusement park ride, sliding and swirving all over with no control (of course, the times I actually enjoyed the sliding were only when no other cars were around me.)

After arriving home, Graham and I decided to WALK to our desired destinations rather than drive. Graham really enjoyed watching all the other cars spin out and get stuck (we helped push one guys out of his driveway). We went for a nice long walk to Starbucks where we read the paper which was super relaxing. Then we had an early dinner and watched a movie. I was in bed by 8:45 since I had to wake up so early to drive through the snow to work throughout the week!

Hope the rest of you are enjoying the snow and staying SAFE! And hopefully basking in the fact that a lot of you don't have to go to work when it snows.... :o)

Frozen Shut

So one of my favorite nurse practitioner coworkers had another story for me today that I felt was worth sharing (the funniest things always seem to happen to her). This one is pretty incredible!

She and her 16 year old twins (a boy and girl) were out at a friends house on Sunday night for dinner. It was dark when they headed for home (for you Seattlites, keep in mind that it was SUPER cold this weekend). Anyway, this nurse practitioner tried to unlock the car and realized, alas, the lock was frozen in place and would not budge. She tossed the keys over to her daughter to attempt the lock on the passenger side. Darn! It was also frozen and not to be unlocked. After spending a long time trying to get the lock open (which included blowing on the lock to try and "melt" it and almost dumping warm water over it), the lock finally clicked. Of course then the door was frozen shut but with lots of force, it opened.

This nurse practitioner was able to unlock the other locks from the inside so that her kids could also climb in. It wasn't until they were seated and about ready to leave that she looked up and saw a crucifix hanging from the rear view mirror that she did not recognize. Wham. All of a sudden, it hit her and she yelled out "Kids, this isn't our car!!!!!!!!!!"

They quickly got out and noticed that there were 2 silver Toyota Camrys parked one in front of the other on the street and they'd accidentally entered the wrong one! Funny thing was, the key worked perfectly in their own car....oops! I guess the doors weren't frozen shut after all.

Isn't that just too funny? So this nurse practitioner kept mentioning throughout the day that she is such a bad mother, teaching her kids to break into cars and all. She said that teaching them to hot wire will be next! :o) By the way, she is black and that is an important preface for this last part. She said (and these are her words, not mine) "Once I realized what happened, I was just waiting for whoever might have been watching us through the window to call the cops to tell them that three black people are breaking into my car! I'm sure it didn't look good."

Anyway, she said they quickly exited the car and relocked the doors before heading on their merry little way.

Christmas # 1

This past Saturday we celebrated Christmas #1. John & Tash (Graham's brother and wife) are headed to Germany for Christmas with Tash's family which called for an early celebration with the Crozier Clan. Scotty just arrived back from 118 days in South Africa to join the party--it was so great to have him back! Of course he came bearing many African gifts, a couple of which are pictured below. All the boys got these very colorful tops which made for a great photo.

Isn't the picture below just the cutest ornament ever? Apparently it is the favorite and most-prized ornament to all of the boys. Poor Ingy hates it and tries to hide it every year and keep it from getting on the tree but somehow it always ends up front and center. I don't think the boys will ever stop teasing their mother....For instance, it is also tradition for the boys to mess around with the nativity scene. Mary is frequently caught making out with one of the shepherds (I am told that Graham usually pulls this fast one) and so on and so forth.

Anyway, back to Christmas, I got some wooden giraffe salad tongs which I LOVE and 2 fun necklaces, one made out of African seeds which I have been parading around ever since. You can kind of see the seed necklace in this picture:

We had cheese fondue for dinner follow by chocolate fondue after the gifts were opened. Apples to Apples was debuted for the first time in the Crozier family and I must say they are the perfect group for this game--I don't think I ever stopped laughing!

Graham and I ended up getting "snowed in" that night (okay so maybe we really like the Crozier's guest bed and sorta packed extra undies and toiletries in hopes that it would snow and give us an excuse to stay over...) Anyway, it made the drive to church the next morning take 10 minutes rather than 40.

We had a wonderful weekend with family and I'm thankful for all the ways they make me laugh.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

So this past Saturday night, Graham and I decided to see a late movie after he got off work. I was super excited because Four Christmas' is out and I really was looking forward to a cheery, light-hearted Christmas movie (I always try to see one each year). Anyway, apparently Graham and I did not agree on what makes a "heart-warming" movie because he wanted to see The Boy in the Striped Pajamas because he had said it was really, well, heart-warming. Holy cow I don't know WHAT he was listening to but it is more like heart-WRENCHING! Has anyone else seen it? Holy moley it was well done but wow! I have never felt that heavy after walking out of a movie. It probably didn't help the fact that I was already crying over other things in the theater before the movie even began....but still, what a tear jerker!

I won't ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it and plans to (though it may not seem like it from my commentary, it really was very thought-provoking and I would recommend you all see it--just not when you're in the mood for a cheerful Christmas comedy), but in summary, it is a story about the Holocaust through the eyes of two 8 year old boys, one who is the son of a German soldier and one who is a Jew. I have always realized that the Holocaust was a terrible tragedy but never quite pondered the immense consequences that came as a result. And quite frankly, it baffles me how nearly an entire country's population could be brain-washed with such false and horrid assumptions about a select group of people.

Graham and I came away wondering how history teachers in Germany now present the past events of the Holocaust to their students--is it presented as a grave error? I'm not quite sure how else it would be presented but I sure I wish I had a German history textbook handy...

Happy St Nicholas Day!!!

Did St Nicholas put anything in your shoe last night?


It is hard to believe, but some of you may not know that today, December 6th is a very special holiday. St Nicholas was a 4th century bishop who was renowned for his kindness and generousity. He would visit homes and night, leaving toys, treats and candies in the shoes of good little boys and girls. I highly doubt he had a big belly, long white beard and a red suit, but who am I to say??

Growing up, we always set our shoes out on the night in December 5th, in hopes of having them filled by morning. Each year St Nicholas left us a mandarin orange, a candy cane, chocolates and very special ornament. I love this tradition and all the memorable ornaments that I have in my possession as a result. Graham and I continue to celebrate this tradition with just the two of us but I hope it is one that we can pass on to little Croziers in the future. In the meantime, I'm wondering why the rest of you did not find your shoes filled with treats....hmmmm?

Here's a glimpse of today's additions to the tree.....

I don't think there was any way dear old St Nick could pass this one up--in case you're wondering, it was in Graham's shoe. He can't wait to show his mother! :o)

This was also in Graham's shoe--a beach turtle

A red hot chili pepper--are we sensing a theme here? Looks like St. Nick had Mexico in mind when he selected these ornaments. Maybe that's because we leave 20 days from today!! (This cute one was in my shoe--a perfect addition to my foodie ornaments).

French Onion Soup Story

Me: "I'm planning the menu for the week. Do you like French Onion Soup?"

Graham: "No."

(Long pause.....me thinking "I've never made it for him before, I wonder....")

Me: "Have you ever had French Onion Soup?"

Graham: "Nope."

Me: "Oh, I see. Well it is actually really good. It has a rich beef broth filled with onions that are sauteed until sweet and caramelized. You top it with a thick slice of french bread and a layer of melted gruyere cheese--yummy!"

Graham: "Okay, that sounds good."

This little conversation we had makes me giggle and I had to share it. To his credit, the title French Onion Soup does not sound very appetizing or thrilling.

Tonight we shall dine on soup!

Thankful

I have been spending time today pondering what I am most thankful for this year. We have had a whirlwind of a week and so was disappointed that Graham and I haven't had an opportunity yet to discuss our many blessings yet together (I'm sure we will tonight in our car ride to Bellingham).

One thing that is really on my heart is the blessing of caring friends and mentors who have really helped walk us through these first 20 months of marriage. We have had one couple from church in particular who have taken us under their wings, encouraging and supporting us, letting us cry and be honest with them through the challenges of being newlyweds, inviting us into their home to be loved and cared for--they are amazing! I just got back from coffee with the wife and my heart is so touched that she took time away from her two kids and husband on a busy holiday eve to hear was is going on with me and let me just be me. I am so very thankful that I have people in my life like this!

Cooking Tales

Over the past 2 weeks, I had a total of 7 people request frozen meals. My goal was to get the orders cooked and delivered by Thanksgiving so that I could rest and relax and enjoy my LONG weekend off! This means that I cooked a total of 35 frozen meals in two weeks time but I actually only cooked on three separate occasions. Whew! So far I am hearing good reviews from my coworker "customers" and more and more people are getting excited about my little business venture. Actually, some of them are probably more excited than I am! Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled to have a small number of friends and coworker "clients" but really don't have a desire to launch into a full blown commercial-kitchen business at this moment in time...but I'll keep you posted! I was very much looking forward to having a little extra cash to spend on Christmas gifts this year but that idea was put quickly to rest yesterday (more on that later!)

In addition to my freezer entrees, I've also been doing some cooking for Graham and I and a few of our friends. I thought I'd share a few of my favorites since I haven't done so recently. The big hit for us this week was a Creamy Indian-Spiced Halibut Curry--oh my! It is so incredibly tasty and also super spicy for spice lovers (you can cut back on the cayenne pepper if you don't). I made it with half and half instead of cream and low fat yogurt instead of whole. It still turned out great.

Tonight I was in the mood for a comfort meal so we had:

Gnocchi Gratin


Yield 6 servings (serving size: about 3/4 cup)

Ingredients
1 (22-ounce) package gnocchi
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded Gruyère cheese
1/3 cup chopped fresh chives
2 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled
Cooking spray
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°.
Cook gnocchi according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain.
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Add flour, salt, and pepper to pan; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add milk and broth, stirring with a whisk until blended. Bring to a boil; cook until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add Gruyère, chives, and bacon; stir until smooth. Add gnocchi; toss well.
Spoon mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve immediately.


It is a Cooking Light recipe that was especially creamy-real treat in our house! Graham's comment was that it tasted like a really yummy, glorified mac n' cheese. Try it!

Right now I have a pot of Cranberry Cherry and Walnut Chutney bubbling on the stove for our Thanksgiving dinner at my parents. We're leaving tomorrow night after work and I get to stay through Friday (Graham has to work Friday) so I'm super excited.

So going back to the extra cooking cash I've earned....why exactly can't I spend it on Christmas gifts? Well, let me tell you using a couple of illustrations:

So yeah, Graham got in a little fight with a short yellow post in the Overlake parking garage--it appears that the post won. Poor guy! He was so upset and he made it sound so bad over the phone that I was quite excited to find the damage as limited as it is. I just smiled and said "Now the Jetta has a bright yellow racing stripe!" :o) Unfortunately, we've taken it in to 2 places for quotes. One said it would cost us $1400 for the repair and the other $2000. Whew, that's a lot of cash for such a seemingly minor scrape!! Anyway I am very THANKFUL that Graham is okay and now I'll be looking for some more cooking clients to help us pay the bill--any takers? ;o)

This always makes me happy

One of my all-time favorite things to do since moving to the eastside is walk in downtown Kirkland. Without fail, it always makes me cheerful to go down to the waterfront parks and walk and people watch. Because it was so sunny yesterday, I insisted we head down to Kirkland for a stroll. I also had the bright idea of bringing along some old bread in hopes of finding ducks to feed. Thankfully, our Kirkland duck family was still here and had not yet headed south (we had the pleasure of watching a couple of duck families grow up over the course of the summer). We made it just in time for sunset. Here are a few fun shots.

Walking through the gorgeous homes in the "West of Market" neighborhood

What a beautiful view!

Doesn't he look super cute? He had quite a gathering of duck fans.

I took my turn feeding and got 2 ducks to eat from my hand!

The two of them kept "pecking" each other (especially the greedy male who wasn't into sharing)

Half Job Offer

It's probably time I write an update about my job situation....Apparently the Children's Center job (in Everett) had a lot more applicants than was expected so the interview process took longer than planned. On Thursday, I received a call from the manager, apologizing for the delay and asking for references. I gave her references but meanwhile was thinking "Oh shoot what do I do!? What do I say!? Do I tell her?" In other words, I'd decided a couple weeks back NOT to take the job and had been debating whether or not to let them know before I heard from them or wait until I received a call and then tell them. Well, the decision was made for me! The manager told me that I was their top candidate and that she needed to go through the process of contacting my references and after that, would be offered the job. Of course then she asked if I was still interested. I told her I was thrilled to be the top candidate but that a lot had changed since I initially interviewed. She was very understanding and told me that having me in the NICU is important to them too as my patients there are the ones that are referred to them and so we kind of work together already and they like what I do.

So what changed to make me stay!?? There were a number of factors. I was honestly so ready to go, was feeling burnt out and tired and was 98% sure that I would accept a new job if offered. But I really feel that, for some reason, God wasn't ready for me to leave yet and in the end, He made it pretty clear. I had reached the point where I had a bad attitude about work and was having a hard time seeing the positive aspects but it was like all of that changed overnight. Graham and I had a lot of long conversations about what is most important to us and it came down to the fact that we really both need Sundays off. We love our church and are so refreshed every time we are able to attend and serve together.

When Shona, the dietitian I job share with, found out that Sundays were a huge part of the issue, she offered to trade for one of my Sundays so that I will only have to work one/month (I'd been told back in August by my manager that having more weekends off was not an option). I had a wonderful conversation with her (whose previous careers were in upper management) in which she said a lot of very kind things and basically begged me to stay.

Meanwhile, all of a sudden I felt excited by my job and even challenged (which is huge for me). I realized that I am never going to find a group of staff who are as incredible as the ones I work with now---seriously they are like a huge extended family to me and it has been pretty neat to have them know me before I was engaged (okay, so that was only for like a month), when I was engaged, and now as a newlywed. They are a great group of people and I really feel like I'm having opportunities to minister to them as I get to know them better.

Once I decided to stay, I was brave and sat down with my supervisor and told her some of the things that could be done to make my job better, to help me continue to grow and develop. I'd realized that it wasn't fair of me to expect her to just know what I need and then be upset when she didn't provide it (arrggg, that passive aggressive thing never works!)

All in all, I am so thankful for my job and am excited to see why God had me stay. I'm thankful that He gave me a new perspective and attitude and is providing positive encouragement and feedback along the way to keep me going.

Sorry for the lost post but for those of you still....and they lived happily ever after..... :o)

"Our" Kitty

So I think we've become foster owners for a sweet kitty. I call him Tuxedo. He's been showing up at our back door meowing and just sits there and watches us through the window. Graham wanted let him in (the poor kitty is just begging for attention) but I told him that was a bad idea and that he might truly become ours if he comes inside. Today we arrived home to find Tuxedo waiting at the front door. He let me pet him for awhile and then tried to dart into the house when I opened the door. After making it safely inside (without him), he just sat outside the door and meowed. He waited there for about 5 minutes before he gave up. Next thing I knew, I looked up to see that he'd migrated to the back door to see if his luck was any better from that side. Graham tried to feed him peanut butter--which I think is just wrong--but Tuxy wasn't interested (can cats have peanut butter?) I'm not quite sure what to do with him but he sure seems to be intrigued by us. Guess we have a peeping Tom Cat...

More Art

Graham's been making modern art again! This time he used an old glass coke bottle and one of my flower pots. My photo of the painting doesn't do the color justice (the colors are navy and Restoration Hardware blue). He used left over paint from our guest room and office and by hanging it in the hall, it sort of ties the two rooms together. We've received many compliments on it. If anything, it's a conversation piece!

For the record...

My last fill up at Arco cost me a whoppin' total of $22.68.

And yes my tank was empty. I'm feeling thankful!

I jinxed myself!

So since my last post about NOT cooking, something crazy happened. I've been cooking freezer meals on and off for random people over the past year but have not had any consistent clients since the spring. Awhile back, one of the nurses at work found out that I make freezer meals and asked me to make 7 dinners for her. I did it and it went went and that was that. That was over 3 months ago.

Well apparently, Thursday night after I left work, this nurse had a conversation with a few other NICU staff that I make freezer meals. NEWS SPREADS LIKE WILDFIRE AROUND THAT PLACE!!!! I walked into work on Friday morning (having no idea about the conversation that had gone on the night before) and was almost immediately approached by 2 staff members, asking if I could give them a list of the freezer entree options that I offer. As the day went on, a couple more people were asking me about the meals. And then today, a whole new group of people were working and somehow the word spread to them. Everyone was asking for a list of meal choices. I had 3 people sign up for meals on the spot and have at least 2 more who plan to give me their "order" tomorrow and then about 3-4 more who are going to look over the options and get back to me. Holy cow--what have I got myself into??!! I'm super excited by the possibility and am sort of in shock that it was so easy to get this many people interested. And to think I did NO advertising! I am definitely working with the right group of people--busy moms working 12 hour shifts who don't arrive home until 8 PM and need easy, healthy dinner options for their kids/husband at home. I don't anticipate many of these "clients" will be consistently ordering meals on a biweekly basis (thankfully!) so I think if I stagger everyone, I can handle the load. Especially if a couple people want the same entree, I can just make a big batch and split it into 2 dishes....We'll see what happens!

So if this many people are desperate for meals, I'm going to have to expand my options. I came home today and in 2 hours flat, prepared and froze the following:

Spicy Grilled Chicken with Lemon Rice Pilaf

Asian Sirloin Steaks w/ Hoisin Sauce and Sesame Seeds

Herbed Lime Chicken

Pork Loin Chops w/ Pears and Cranberries

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

Ham and Gruyere Strata w/ Turkey Bacon

I haven't cooked since Halloween

This is actually rather absurd come to think of it! I think the last time I didn't cook for a week must have been when we were in Italy on vacation....I feel like I am ALWAYS cooking but we've had a very busy week w/ dinner at small group, being out of town over the weekend and then out on a cheap date last night. Feels weird to have to cook tonight...
Anyway, we took a look at our finances about a month ago and were SHOCKED to realize we'd been averaging $200/month on dining out for 3 months straight! WHAT!!??? Where did that figure come from?? We really don't go out that much but somehow it was all adding up. So our challenge as of late has been to aim for $15-20 dates which we've been quite successful at using our entertainment book (thanks to my father-in-law--he bought 3 books--one for him, one my brother-in-law John and one for Graham, informing the boys that they needed to "keep dating their wives.") :o) A coupon can go a long ways!

New Kittens!!

Unfortunately they are not ours....much to my dismay. My parents just got this brother and sister pair last week and we were able to pay them a visit over the weekend and welcome them properly into the family. They are adorable! The smokey-colored one, Bear, is the boy and once he falls asleeps, he is SOUND ASLEEP (as illustrated by Graham's successfully putting him on his head without him waking). The girl, Monkey, is very playful and energetic and you have to make her run around for a long time before she'll snuggle with you. SO cute! Wish I would have been a good girl this year so I could ask for a pair for Christmas...

Monkey

Bear

Cuddling w/ Monkey

Bear can sleep through anything!

See?

"Girls dream a lot."

The title of my post is a direct quote spoken by Graham today. We had a great day together, running errands, shopping, enjoying pho soup and then having a delicious dinner at home (Graham made the best burgers ever!)

First we went to Shane Co to have our rings cleaned and polished (and mine re-dipped and re-sized). Of course I had to check out all the other rings on display, dreaming of the right hand ring I'll someday have... I did make it very clear to Graham that I am not expecting a ring ANYTIME in the near future, but explained to him that a girl always dreams about her wedding ring, and after she gets that, she has to move on to dream about her next piece of bling.

Then we went clothes shopping and I kept making comments like "Wouldn't it be cool to have red shoes someday?" or "Maybe we should just buy a pretty pump of green scented hand soap for our kitchen--wouldn't that be nice?" And on and on.... I really wasn't begging for these things or even asking for them really, I was just dreaming. Anyway, I did find a gorgeous winter coat that I'm excited about.

Over lunch, I started talking about how I want to take a three week trip to Europe sometime soon--"When will we fit that in?" Graham just laughed and playfully rolled his eyes.

On to Crate and Barrel where I used my gift card to buy the CUTEST Christmas mugs. Check out http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=17&f=30443 and http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=17&f=30370. Graham could not get over how excited I was to drink out of these come the day after Thanksgiving. Of course then I was on to jabbering about how my dream is to have a set of Christmas dishes to use during the month of December....

All this to say, we had a great day together and I in particular really enjoyed dreaming--it does my heart good. Now I'm doing my heart a 2nd favor as I sip a glass of red wine.

Today I dialed 911

So I was leaving work when the following scene unfolds:

I'm driving along Broadway when I pass a couple of strip mall (7-11ish type) shops next to a gas station. Out of nowhere, a man comes booking it out of the store, running along the sidewalk as fast as he possibly can, looking back occasionally as he runs. It was pretty much a blur because he was going so fast but I see him zipping into the gas station where I presumed would be his "getaway car." Acting on instinct, I take an immediate right next to the gas station to get off the main road and do something. (What I was going to do I'm just not quite sure...my gut said not to lose sight of the guy). To my surprise, he did not jump in a car at the gas station but ran into the alley right by where I had pulled over. Someone else apparently saw this suspicious activity go down and also had pulled over. He was dressed in nice slacks and dress pants actually got out of the car and approached the runner with fists raised. Then things get a little odd....The runner looks for a minute like he is going to try and knock the lights out of this nice business man, but instead he lifts up his white t-shirt and exposes his giant beer belly (I wish I would have had my window down to hear the verbal exchange because I certainly felt like I missed something!) At this point, I decided I should disappear because in Everett, crazy people like this carry guns and I wasn't about to get shot just for trying to be a good citizen. I was already on the phone with the cops and so I sped away quickly, giving them my best description of the runner. I hope they catch him! I don't know what he did, but he sure looked like he didn't want to be caught.

Good ole' Everett--gotta love working is such a classy city!

Bear--grrrr

Today Graham and I finally went to see a financial planner to discuss....well.... our finances. We've been meaning to do this for a very long time but it just never happened. We went to the father-in-law of one of Graham's fellow worship leaders at Bethany and he was so great! I think we definitely made a great choice by selecting a Christian man to help give us advice and guidance--not only does he know a lot about money and the market, Don also seemed to have lots of godly wisdom.

The two of us are pretty clueless when it comes to money and investing, or at least so we thought. Apparently though, we've gleaned enough guidance from friends, family, financial articles, and for Graham, NPR, that we're doing the right things (according to Don). We learned a lot about bear markets and bull markets and what that all means and were glad to see that a financial expert was so relaxed even despite our current bear market economy.

Basically now we need to decide our timeline for the various goals we have (i.e. selling our place, moving to Seattle, having babies, me quitting etc). In the meantime, we're going to explore the world of CDs while Don helps us look at our current 403b retirement plans. (By the way, my current retirement plan is set up for my retiring in the year 2050---doesn't that just sound depressing!?! I better not still be working in 2050!)

Sight of the day

Need I say more?

You know I've had a bad day when....

.....I voluntarily order a beef burger with bacon, cheese, mayo and guacamole on a WHITE bun--so out of character for me! I would have had a glass of wine too but we were on a $10 date night budget so that would have put us over...

Welcome Fall!

I love it when the leaves change color! Graham and I went for a walk today to enjoy some fall sunshine. I took pictures as we went....this one is my favorite.

Eggplant Season

For those of you who like to cook, now is the perfect time to showcase a fall favorite: eggplant. It's full of fiber and also a good source of potassium. If you're anything like my husband, you're probably shuddering at the thought of trying to choke down the purple veggie, but really, you need to give it a fair chance!

Last night Graham came home from work (very hungry I'm sure) only to look down at his plate and notice a foreign and undesirable object beneath the red sauce and cheese. "Is this eggplant?" he asks. "Yes" I reply, and smile at him with a look that he knows means "I know how you feel about eggplant but just give it a shot." He took one bite and it didn't kill him and so he proceeded. I knew this would happen! Pretty soon, his plate was clean and he rose from the table, glanced at me sheepishly and then headed towards the stove to dish up seconds! I didn't have to say it--he could see the "I told you so" look beaming in my eyes.

Ahh, success! Oddly enough, it is often my goal to somehow get people to like the foods that they think they despise the most. This task can be rather tricky, but if you just present it to them in the right form, it can be done! Try the recipe below showcasing and see if it doesn't win you over. If you don't want to make the pesto from scratch, you can just blend store-bought pesto with the cream cheese and ricotta for the filling.

Eggplant Manicotti With Creamy Pesto Filling
Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:
1/2 cup shredded part-skim Mozzarella cheese -- divided
1 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup spinach leaves
1/4 cup pine nuts -- toasted
1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup tub-style fat-free cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 container (15-ounce size) fat-free Ricotta cheese
2 cloves garlic
1 large eggplant -- cut lengthwise into quarters
Cooking spray
2 cups low-fat spaghetti sauce -- divided

Directions: Combine 1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese and next 9 ingredients (Mozzarella cheese through garlic) in a food processor, and process until smooth. Set pesto mixture aside. Arrange half the eggplant slices in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Broil 5 minutes or until lightly browned and very tender. Repeat procedure with remaining eggplant. Preheat oven to 375. Spread 1 cup spaghetti sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Place eggplant slices, browned sides down, on a smooth surface; spoon about 2 tablespoons pesto mixture in center of each slice (the amount will vary from 1 to 3 tablespoons depending on size of eggplant slices). Roll up, starting at short ends; place eggplant rolls, seam sides down, over sauce. Repeat procedure with remaining eggplant and pesto mixture. Pour 1 cup spaghetti sauce over eggplant rolls. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Top with 1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese; bake an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned.

A real blusher

My coworker told me this hilarious interview story today at work. I hope I can do it justice...

About 30 years ago, when she was newly married, she and her husband were in desperate need of money so she applied for a well-paying job at an orthodontist's office. She interviewed well and at the end of it all, stood up to shake the interviewer's hand. As she leaned forward, something unexpected happened. She farted!! Unfortunately, this was no small little wiff of air that could easily be played off as a chair squeaking on the floor. No, it was a loud trumpet of gas that was not to be concealed. As hard as she tried, she could not hold back the nervous giggles welling in her throat (what else is a girl supposed to do in an awkward situation like that!!??) BUT, it gets worse! She began laughing so hard that she lost control of another very important body function........and proceeded to pee her pants. Well, actually, she wasn't wearing pants but rather a dress, so the stream created a nice little puddle on the orthodontist's floor. She ran out of the room as fast as she could and didn't turn back.

Needless to say, she didn't get the job....

We're going to.....

HAWAII!

Exactly 7 months from tomorrow, we will be boarding a plane to Kauai for 8 nights of tropical bliss. Because we became Starwood Resort members on our honeymoon, we got a really cheap offer for 5 nights at a nice hotel right on this beach:

Would wouldn't pass up an opportunity to pay $100/night for a room that was normally $250-300/night? We were sneaky about the airfare too. Graham signed up for an Alaska miles credit card and so he was basically able to purchase his ticket and then get mine for only $50. I think this post will accurately illustrate that we are complete suckers for a good deal. But hey, I'm not complaining! I've never been to Hawaii and so can't wait to take this trip with Graham. We'll be staying 5 nights at a larger hotel on the south shore of Kauai and then are hoping to find more of a unique bed and breakfast or boutique hotel on another part of the island for the other three nights. Anyone have ideas or recommendations?

My Interviews

Yesterday was the big day! I must say that it was far more exhausting than a regular work day but I would highly recommend having interviews on the same day! After completing one, the second was nothing and I found that a lot of the questions that I was asked were the same anyway. ;o)

So, here's the run down...

First interview (Children's Center in Everett): panel of 6 people, 2 of which I already work closely with, 2 that I have met before, and 2 that were entirely new faces. They utilized a system called "Select Interviewing" where all candidates for any and all job opening are asked the exact same questions to keep everything consistent. The questions were very behavioral based and thankfully I had lots of stories to share that fit all 25 or so questions. All in all, I think that it went really well! I felt at ease and was SO excited by the work environment and the general vibe I got from the panel (it REALLY helps to know the people that I interviewing you!) Anyway there are 2 other applicants to interview so it will probably be 2 weeks or so until I hear anything, but as I was walking out the door, the manager kind of paused, got a smile on her face and said "I'm pretty sure you'll be getting a call from us." Woo-hoo! It sounds promising!

After the interview, I had enough time to come home for a bite to eat and then Graham decided to drive me to the 2nd interview at Children's Hospital and then meet a friend at Starbucks. Bad idea! He had coffee w/ his friend Brant for about 1 1/2 hours and then decided he should probably head back to the hospital to come get me (even though I said I would call him when I was done). He waits at the hospital for about another hour and then starts really freaking out. He's thinking "what could possibly be taking her this long!? I bet something happened to the phone and she tried to call me but couldn't get through..... and then started walking towards U Village and got hit by a car.....etc.....etc......lots of worry..." I guess he even came into the hospital and was asking all the receptionists if they had seen a 23 year old with brown hair use a phone anywhere (for the record, I'm 24!) He thought about coming down to nutrition services to ask them how long it had been since I left their office. Poor guy! Thankfully he didn't go that far because he would have barged in on my THREE HOUR INTERVIEW!!!!

Phew! I started by meeting the 2 current renal dietitians and we just chatted about this and that with a lot of awkward silences. This lasted about 1 hr and 20 minutes and then I moved on to meet with the manager who was very nice and told me a lot about Children's visions and goals. Then we got into the interview questions. I found the hardest question that she asked me was "Why do you want to be a renal dietitian?" I found myself thinking "Do I even want to be a renal dietitian?" And so that kind of decided it for me. I think I would love working at Children's Hospital--I would love the environment, the people and what they stand for- but I just don't think this position would be the right fit. I hope that doesn't mean I've burned by bridge for the future, but if they do call back for a 2nd interview, I think I will be telling them no.

So that's where I'm at today. I'm thrilled that the hard part is over but am surprised by how relaxed I was at both interviews. I'm sure that was only the result of lots of prayer!

Something Magical

Today something incredible happened...I lost to Graham in tennis with a score of 6 to 4!!! And yes, that is GOOD NEWS! Actually, it is quite amazing news...my highest score so far has always been 2 (and that only happened once) so the fact that I almost kept up with him is a miracle! I am thrilled that I might be becoming a challenge for my husband to beat in the near future--hehe, a little healthy competition never hurt anyone. Thankfully, Graham has put up with my learning this sport and has kept with me long enough for me to hold my own. Tennis anyone?

Update

Today I was offered an official interview for the Everett Children's Center job!!! At 9 AM one week from today (Thursday, Oct 9th), I will be interviewing in Everett for the outpatient job. I'll have lunch, take a deep breath and then at 2 PM, I'll be interviewing at Children's Hospital in Seattle. That will be a big day--2 interviews for 2 different jobs--but I guess maybe it's better just to be nervous once and get it over with!

I Did It!

Today I made arrangements to meet with my manager and I let her know that I am interviewing elsewhere, and at this point, if the job is offered to me, I plan to accept. I can't believe I actually did it and that this happening! She was very nice about it and seemed understanding. I made sure to emphasize all the positive aspects of the other jobs that I'm pursuing rather than stating the things I don't like about my current job. I had kind of dropped hints at my last annual review that I was hoping for more of a Monday to Friday schedule so at least that was on her radar and she wasn't blindsided by my pursuing a "normal" schedule.

After the meeting, I felt at peace and free. And then I flipped out and wondered if I did the right thing. But I'll admit that today I had an extra skip in my step, wondering if maybe, just maybe I'm on the way to a job where I'll LOVE what I do! (Is that allowed??!!)

Egg Carton + Plywood = ART??

We just got back from a two-night trip to Spokane to visit our good friends the Moodys. They lived in Kirkland for the past year but then both won chairs in the Spokane symphony (they are fabulous musicians) and so moved east last month. It was so great to see them and tour their new stomping grounds.

The activities of our stay were quite spontaneous. For instance: the Moodys are still newlyweds and therefore haven't accumulated a lot of furniture and wall art. Their new place was beautiful but the dining room had a huge empty wall that was begging for a showpiece. Enter my artsy husband. He was itching with creativity and the Moodys were much desiring his eye for art. Jason pulled a 5 foot x 5 food piece of plywood from the basement and we set to work painting it white to create our version of a "canvas." We weren't quite sure where we would go from there but decided to take things as they came and create "group art."

Graham found an egg carton in the recycling bin and quickly went to work using it as a "stamp" on our "canvas."

I was quite skeptical as I am one for symmetry and neatness (and certainly not modern art!). The rest of group seemed excited by splatters and less uniformity so I kept my mouth shut and smiled. We all contributed and to my surprise, it worked! I really thought that our white trash art would end up as, well, trash.....but no! Granted, the piece is quite modern so you have to appreciate modern art to really enjoy it but it really made the room. See what you think:

Floating Down the River...

Last weekend, my brother Ben came and stayed with us while my parents took a weekend away to celebrate 29 years of marriage (go Mom and Dad!) On Friday afternoon, Ben challenged me to a game of tennis while Graham was at work and then we made grilled pizza for dinner--yum!

On Saturday, we planned to take a trip to Leavenworth to go tubing down the river. Unfortunately, Friday was about 80 degrees and sunny and Saturday was more like 70 and cloudy. BUT, we pressed on and decided to tube despite the weather and boy was it worth it! Thankfully the snow melt river had all summer to heat up and so it really wasn't that bad. Our tubes were practically luxurious with a back rest and cup holders and frisbee paddles for some degree of control. I saw lots of salmon swimming under my toes (I like to eat fish but I HATE swimming with them). We will definitely tube this river again in the future--hopefully as a part of a family campout or maybe for my birthday next year. Here are a few photos....

The 3 of us w/ Ben holding a beer stick??

Getting suited to float

I find this photo hilarious...Graham eating lunch

Ben (and me) w/ his "paddles"

Oh and yes, I was there too

Such a pretty float!