Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Hello



OH HEY!!

I just wanted to say hello to you lovely ladies. I feel like I've been all over the place this summer, but hope you are all doing well. I wanted to let you know where I'm going to be in the next couple weeks because I'm hitting up some of your places...

Aug 14th...I'll be in SLO, Lees..expect a call or I might just come over (yeah I'm like that!)

Aug 15th or 20th...I will be driving through Stockton...J, you live close enough that I might have to come see your new house!

Sep 5th & 6th...I'll be in San Diego...and Karina, frankly there is no excuse! We should see each other more, you're like an hour and half away and we have the same friends

Rheanna, I'm sorry I will not be north enough to see you, but Nik and I want to go to San Fran in the fall, so it might be in the cards for us! :)

This is more of an email than a blog, but I'm ok with that. Also I wanted to share a recipe that I made for "family night dinners" as we call it. I made a white bean chili, sounds kind of weird, but it's really good. Sorry you no meat eaters, it's got chicken in it. I got it from watching Food Network on TV! Enjoy!! Also, Nik is making enchiladas tonight and they will probably taste good, but let's be real, it's not going to be like yours Lees!


Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds
ground chicken
1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons chili powder
3 tablespoons flour
2 (15-ounce cans) cannellini or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1 bunch (about 1 pound) Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves chopped into 1-inch pieces
11/2
cups frozen corn, thawed
4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
1/2
cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions
In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the ground chicken, 1 teaspoon salt, cumin, fennel seeds, oregano, and chili powder. Cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken is cooked through, about 8 minutes. Stir the flour into the chicken mixture. Add the beans, Swiss chard, corn, and chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a simmer, scraping up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Simmer for 55-60 minutes until the liquid has reduced by about half and the chili has thickened. Add the red pepper flakes and simmer for another 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Ladle the chili into serving bowls. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.


Love you all.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

here comes the bride

Saturday marked the first of many wedding anniversaries for Johnna and Jeremy!!!! I drove up to witness this holy matrimony of J and Jeremy at Morris Chapel located on the UOP campus. The church itself was exquisite...the stained glass, the wooden pews, the rose gardens. It had this traditional and classic feel. The weather was absolutely amazing and the sun shined through the colored glass just as we sat down for the ceremony.

Johnna looked absolutely gorgeous. She had this ornate lace gown and a hand-made veil (down by one of her best friends). When we all stood up to watch her walk down the aisle she was stunning and Jeremy looked so happy. It was a wonderful ceremony and I was so excited to see all her friends and family.



Once the reception started, K, Rhe, and I were able to properly celebrate with J! It was so much fun and so great to be a part of this very special day. I'm so excited to share the pictures. I had so much fun seeing everyone and watching J & Jeremy get MARRIED!!!!


Karina and Rheanna were the natural dancers on the floor, but I tried really hard. It wasn't until the end of the night that we got the brilliant idea to take our shoes off. But we totally owned that floor. I'm pretty much the worst dancer ever and this was emphasized when a particular man dressed in all blue attempted to swing dance with me...needless to say it was a complete failure.

We did have our own personal celebration with a toast dedicated especially to J!!!


After the night ended the J's headed to Hawaii and we spent the rest of the night in Stockton! It was so much fun and so amazing. Here's to Johnna and Jeremy...I love you guys!!!!!

Thursday, April 2, 2009

the usual Sunday?!

Finally, we were reunited and able to hang out on a wonderful Sunday. After a lovely breakfast (from a restaurant that had 5 items on the menu...way to go Lees) & church we had to feed Scott and Jimmy again. The buttery waffles and weird oatmeal didn't cut it the first time. :) In the midst of deciding between sandwiches and pizza the idea of shooting guns started the swirl around. Considering it is nothing we've ever done together, I didn't want to miss a minute of it. Scott and Lees gathered the supplies and packed up the 4WD. We drove up the grade. I love that Rhe even drove half way up the trail...you did a fantastic job and the Camry had one of the best views of the day.


Once we got up there, Scott gave us a necessary course in safety and we were ready to rock...or shoot! Emili had the best reaction ever....see below--

It was really great to catch up with you girls and do something way fun and super exciting.

Lisa & Scott demonstrated the art of teamwork and you guys are my favorite married couple. I really loved seeing the two of you, visiting your house and checking out the SLO-life.


These little weekenders are pretty great and I was so happy to see you all. Let's do it again soon! Love you all...so much.
Rhe...I think we found your new calling, aside for being a vegan, it looks like you were made for activies like this...xoxo





Wednesday, March 25, 2009

I am so excited I could dance...




Rumor has it we're all going to be in SLO this weekend. Seriously...I'm so excited...seriously!!!!!!!
I hope to see you all there.

143 XOXO

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Shamrock Cookies!

So after the post I realized I didn't have an actual 4 leaf clover cut-out so I improvised and used my mini heart shaped one. Not too bad I thought?! J$ - I loved your story, definitely go with the cookies next year, way easier. I was a little jealous about the new stove though. I think Rhe told me you guys bought a house! Congrats, post some pictures for us! Anyhow, here are my makeshift shamrock cookies.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

St Patty's

This is a day late now, but Happy St Patrick's day. I figure since I have yet to do more than comment on a blog, its my turn...
After working a long day at the hospital and being told ALLL day "you must be Irish, with that red hair" and with the delivery of my new stove, I decided to give the corned beef and cabbage a try. Not realizing that it takes 3+ hours to cook that beef thing, dinner was ready at 10pm and was NOT worth the wait! I wish I had a picture to show you ladies. I pretty much filled up on cabbage and red potatoes.
If you haven't yet, I don't recommend trying corned beef, it is SUPER salty and SUPER fatty. Needless to say I think Chewy (the dog) got the most enjoyment out of the meal.

Next year I'm going with Lisa's St Patty's idea...shamrock cookies!

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

St. Patrick's Day

My Mexican blood has never made me a huge participant in the St. Patrick's Day celebrations, but this morning, after Sarah's nice gchat message (ps thanks!) I started thinking about this day in college. My first memory was freshman year, any takers? Rhe? Hahaha. I still remember walking into our dorm room filled with people sipping on their Guinness'. That was fun...who did buy that beer anyways?!? We were all like 19 - minus Leilani. Anyhow, then I remembered more specifically a green outfit and going to Mother's and then coming home and eating probably an entire batch of monkey bread. Somehow I still fit in jeans back then that are way out of my league now. Not fair. I was trying to remember if that was the night of the crazy bathroom scene?!?

Today I am going to celebrate by making four leaf clover roll out sugar cookies for the hubs since I have the day off. Maybe I'll take a picture if they turn out. Anyhow, I just wanted to say hi and that I really mean to post on this but I've had this cold from hell that won't go away and basically takes over my life. Kinda, sometimes I'm dramatic when I'm sick. I love you all and will promise to be a better poster, I don't want this blog to fail one month in!

XOXO