Yum Yum

I LOVE to cook and have been on a kick of trying to recreate food that you get at restaurants. It helps us save money and has been really rewarding. I've been able to recreate most aspects of my favorite Mexican chicken salads but could never get the lime rice quite right. I was watching the noon news and they spotlighted this recipe. I haven't tried it yet but I couldn't resist sharing it with the dressing that has also eluded me.

Lime Rice

1 c rice
1 T butter
2 cloves garlic
Zest of 1 lime
2 c chicken broth
Juice of one lime
3T chopped cilantro

Combine Butter garlic lime zest and broth. Boil and add rice. Reduce and simmer 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat and add lime and Cilantro.

Mexican Ranch

1 C buttermilk
3/4 c mayo
1/4 c cilantro
1 package ranch dressing
4T salsa verde
2 cloves garlic
1/2 t Tabasco
Juice of 1 lime

Blend in blender/food processer

Enjoy!

Sad Story

So I thought I was being so good and starting a load of laundry first thing in the day. I forgot about it and had to run it again. I ran some errands and wondered where my phone was.... I figured it was around and left the house. I found my phone later in the bottom of the washer. =( I thought it might dry out but no such luck. Hopefully we'll find a new one I can afford.

The Pacific Northwest, According To Jeff Foxworthy

So I know many of you have read this a million times but I couldn't resist because it is so true! I can especially relate to numbers 2, 5, 24, 25, 26...oh well all of them!

1 . You know the state flower (Mildew).
2 . You feel guilty throwing aluminum cans or paper in the trash.
3 . Use the statement 'sun break' and know what it means.
4 . You know more than 10 ways to order coffee.
5. You know more people who own boats than air conditioners.
6 . You feel overdressed wearing a suit to a nice restaurant or to church.
7 . You stand on a deserted corner in the rain waiting for the 'WALK' Signal.
8 . You consider that if it has no snow or has not recently erupted, it's not a real mountain.
9 . You can taste the difference between Starbucks, Seattle's Best, and Veneto's.
10 . You know the difference between Chinook, Coho and Sockeye salmon.
11 . You know how to pronounce Sequim, Puyallup, Haceta, Yaquina, Yachats, Issaquah, Oregon, Yakima and Willamette. (almost forgot Ohanapecosh)
12. You consider swimming an indoor sport.
13 . You can tell the difference between Japanese, Chinese and Thai food.
14 . In winter, you go to work in the dark and come home in the dark while only working eight-hour days.
15 . You never go camping without waterproof matches and a poncho.
16 . You are not fazed by 'Today's forecast: showers followed by rain,' and 'Tomorrow's forecast: rain followed by showers.'
17. You have no concept of humidity without precipitation.
18 . You know that Boring is a town in Oregon and not just a state of Mind.
19 . You can point to at least two volcanoes, even if you cannot see Through the cloud cover.
20 . You notice, 'The mountain is out' when it is a pretty day and you can actually see it.
21 . You put on your shorts when the temperature gets above 50, but still wear your hiking boots and parka.
22 . You switch to your sandals when it gets about 60, but keep the socks on.
23 . You have actually used your mountain bike on a mountain.
24 . You think people who use umbrellas are either wimps or tourists.
25 . You buy new sunglasses every year, because you cannot find the old ones after such a long time.
26. You measure distance in hours.
27. You often switch from 'heat' to 'a/c' in the same day.
28 . You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit under a raincoat.
29 . You know all the important seasons: Almost Winter (Winter), Still Raining (Spring), Road Construction (Summer), Deer & Elk season (Fall).
30 . You understood these jokes and will probably forward them. And if you don't understand ANY of these, then you don't live in Oregon!!!

Jason's 30th

For all of you who are interested we finally really finalized Jason's 30th. We're going on a 4 day cruise to Mexico out of LA. We leave on the 14th. Ya'll are still invited. =)

Miracles Do Happen

http://justanotherdumb.com/byu/2007/BYUvsUCLA2007.wmv

I don't know how I could have forgotten with all of the other stuff that happened last month but I'll be in big trouble if I don't mention the BYU game. Oh wait or is that a game we want to forget about? Does barely squeaking in a win count? Just kidding we are happy that by some miracle BYU won the bowl game!

Chirstmas 2007

We had a great Christmas! We went to Oregon and saw 15 of our 16 nieces and nephews, included two adorable baby girls, Kasey and Kelsie, who we met for the first time. Garett and Brent became teenagers while we were there-watch out world!

I went out a week early because Grandma Wanda was in the hospital. She was there for 5 days while they did a number of tests and still couldn't figure out what was wrong with her-although they discharged her with ACS. I took her back for an overnight stay when she complained about her chest hurting. They continued testing and she came out of the hospital with lots of bruises, oxygen and COPD. She's doing better now but she gave us all a little scare.

While I was there Mom and I had a lot of fun updating her house. We reupholstered dining room chairs, sewed curtains, and painted the bathroom. It was a blast and I even got curtains and pillows for my house.

We spent a couple of days in Medford with Aimee, Ben, Luke and Makenna. Medford is a great community, although a little isolated. Come on Aimee, the nearest airport (besides Medford) is 2 1/2 hours away and a major airport even farther! We travel way too much for that to be fun. Aimee and I went shopping and I did all of my Christmas shopping in 2 hours! Jason stayed with Luke and enjoyed learning Luke's vocabulary (geezlouise).

Kasey’s blessing happened on December 18th. Carl did a great job, and Kasey was so good! Thank you guys for holding out for us to be able to be there.

Brenda's house was a great get away from my responsibilities with Grandma, even if it did get me in trouble.

Brenda and family got a Wii for Christmas and we had a blast playing with them before we left for the airport. I just wish all of Brenda's family could have been healthy at the same time while we where there =).

For Brent's Birthday he got a subscription to WoW and Jason helped set him up on it. Ryan's basketball team isn't any better though, for Jason's help. He went to help at Ryan's practice and ended up more of an observer. Go Colts!!

We finally got to sit down and visit with Cody at the family dinner before Christmas, Christmas, and the family dinner after Christmas. He's a lot of fun for a Ute.

Christmas Day we spent a lot of time with Sean, Amanda, Kelsie, Brockton and Rock Band. What a fun day! Kelsie is adorable but she doesn't like her Aunt Erica much. She'd be fine for the first 5 minutes then she would frown and cry and cry and cry. It was a foolproof cycle we tested over and over again. Sean and Amanda also took us to Portland and we checked out the new Ikea. What a great way to end our trip.

Now we're home and enjoying our 37 inch Christmas present. It's nice to be home where life isn't so hectic. It was so nice to be in Oregon near family that loves appreciates and understands us. I am so grateful for families and the support they lend, even from a distance. We hope you had a great Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Billy Joel

Jason and I had the chance to go to a Billy Joel concert Thursday 11/29. It was a blast! Listening to a lot of my high school favorites brought back memories of who I was and what my hopes and dreams were and in some cases still are. I didn’t realize how much Billy Joel's music helped shape my identity. It sounds weird to say but it's true. I also remembered a lot of old friends, both those who shared my obsession and those who tolerated it. So here's to all the fans of an aging Billy Joel whose music has touched your life, Vienna still waits for you!

Like Jason predicted this is a somewhat out of date look at our lives. We finally finished painting the kitchen cabinets and got those rehung. It only took 4 months. ;) Our next project is trying to get all of the hard water buildup off our windows. To think I used to like washing windows.

I quite my job as an Office Admin for Prudential Utah Real Estate and got my real estate licence this spring. I closed two deals this summer and that was enough to tell me that I really love being in real estate. The market is slowing down and I am going to have to be more disciplined to build my business. I've been talking to a lot of lenders and researching first time home buyer programs. It's amazing how many options there are. If you are thinking of buying or selling where ever you are let me know and I would be happy to refer you to an agent in your area.

Jason is doing well at work. Typical of Jason at ProPay he's looking into other positions that look interesting. He's not ready to move again but he's been there almost 4 years and has held 4 different positions. He would tell you it was less but it's not.

He's happiest during the fall when he can follow BYU football. We have season tickets again and really enjoy going to the games together. He's doing great with our weight loss goals. We're using a website called fitday.com to watch our calories and we have our elliptical to exercise on.

Well hopefully we will blog again before Christmas but don't count on it!

"The Answered Prayer" BYU vs. Utah 2006

Football highlights. John Beck completed a pass to Johnny Harline with no time left in this heated rivalry. Harline caught the pass in a kneeling position as if he were praying, thus "The Answered Prayer."

Alaska

Some of you don't know yet, but my Grandfather passed away at the end of October so Erica and I made a trip to Alaska for the funeral. We had a wonderful time visiting with family and meeting new and old additions. We hope that in the future it doesn't require such an event as Grandpa's passing to bring us all together again. He loved and respected by so many people they couldn't even all fit in the room where the service was held!