Sunday, April 29, 2007

All Is Quiet

You may have noticed that my blog entries over the last two weeks have been few & far between. That is mostly due to my vistors of the last 10 days. Matt, Andrea, & Ethan came to visit. They arrived Thursday (a week ago) & stayed the weekend with us. We really did photograph this occasion - I just can't find the pictures to prove it. I'm still working on locating them. Anyway, we had a blast. Then the family ventured off to the coast while Tim & I went to work like slaves. :) Our guests arrived back here on Friday & went home yesterday. It was a fun filled time of chatting, playing, and making memories. And now, my house is quiet - almost sad. (Except maybe the kitties who know Ethan won't be chasing them today).

One of the highlights was Friday night when Andrea suggested we go to the casino. I often forget her little secret addiction. :) We had a great time there & walked out with less than we had walked in with - bummer too, because we had BIG plans for our winnings...

We also started a sweater project. We casted on together & began knitting. 3 hours into it, I realized I had twisted mine & had to take the whole thing out. *sigh* When Andrea came back from the beach, she had 24 rows & I still had none. So...this weekend I re-casted on (is that a word?!?) and went at it again. I'm now as far as I was when I had to bail the first time & so far - so good. In fact, I think I'll be off to work on it some more in a moment.

Thank you Andrea for coming to visit us. You are welcome anytime - want to come over again tomorrow?

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

A Baby For...

Stacie!! My cousin Stacie has been trying to have a baby for almost 10 years. She & her husband have been married for over 15 years & have wanted to be parents so badly. They just found out that they are expecting - & were totally shocked. I'm so thrilled for them - what a wonderful miracle. (And also so thankful it's not my turn yet!!). :) She is due November 29th, her husband's birthday!

On a much less exciting note - we will be on TV this Friday. The fabulous (or not so much) 60 minute Price Is Right will be airing the show we went to. You can look for us in the very back row, center.

Happy Tuesday!

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Plugging Along

Just thought I'd post a post to post a post. How's that for an introductory sentence?

Things I did today:

1. Taught 8 music classes of at least 26 kids each (one reaching 33)
2. Did NOT take a nap (still a little sad about that)
3. Made dinner
4. Caught up on some TV
5. Cleaned the house including: vacuuming the whole house, cleaned sinks, showers, toilets,
laundry, ran & emptied the dishwasher, changed sheets on all beds, dusted, straightened up,
de-cat haired the sofas (bleh), petted said cats...and all after 8:30 pm!
6. Entered receipts in the checking account
7. Planned outfit for tomorrow

Yep, that's about it, really exciting around here...but very happy & clean too.

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Wonderful Weekend

My previous post talks about how I was almost dreading my busy weekend - but what a blessing this weekend has been!!

You already know about Friday night - so I'll just share about Saturday & Sunday.

Saturday we went to Bill & Lindsey's for brunch. I hadn't seen them since July when Lindsey & I went out to lunch for both of our birthday's. (Lindsey is my good friend from my Master's degree program - they had a baby a year ago & live in Portland, so we don't see them as often now). We had a lovely time at brunch, it was so nice to spend time with them.

After brunch Tim & I went to the mall to look around for a bit. The new Bare Essentials store opened the day before & I was determined to check it out. I love Bare Minerals & I recently decided I needed to try their eye shadow. 1 hour later we walked out with my new eye shadow & a few less $$ in my pocket. 1/2 later I went back into the store & purchased some blush for my sister. So much girlie fun. Thank you Tim for being so patient with me in the store, even helpful to other customers!

Following the make-up adventure, I went to Laura's & Tim went to his best friend's house. Laura & I had a wonderful time together. We played with the girls, painted our nails (fingers & toes, & Nellie's fingers & toes), went to the grocery store, cleaned her house, folded laundry, cleaned up dinner dishes, went shopping, & went for a drink & appetizers at her favorite restaurant. It was a perfect afternoon/evening with my sister. We had silly chats, laughed too hard, & shared from our hearts. Thank you Laura for a fantastic day.

Today (Sunday) we went to church. I love Sunday's now. I never knew that I didn't look forward to church until we found our new one. We had a guest speaker this morning & the worship service was very uplifting. I am going to volunteer to be a part of the worship team if they'd like to use me. I'm excited to get involved.

This afternoon we took a quick nap & then headed back to church for what turned out to be almost a 5 hour class on the church history/membership class. It was informative & I enjoyed our time.

With such a nice weekend, I'm almost feeling refreshed enough to go face my week. :)

Friday, April 13, 2007

Busy Bees...

This weekend is proving to be more busy than relaxing.

After a delightful nap this evening, I got some laundry done & was sitting on the sofa under the lovey when my friend Amanda called. Tim was over at their house fixing the computer & they devised a plan of brownies, ice cream & a movie. So...Amanda came over & we got busy with the plan. We watched 'Stranger Than Fiction'. A cute movie - perfect for a Friday night.

Tomorrow we are off to brunch with friends in Portland & then I'm spending the day with my sister & her family.

Sunday morning, Tim & I will head off to church - & then go back to church for the afternoon/evening for a class offered to 'newcomers'. All in all, it should be a fun filled weekend - just busier than I had originally hoped. I am however, thankful for our friends & family that we get to spend time with!! I hope you have a busy/fun-filled weekend to look forward to! Good night.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Status Quo...

I was hoping to post something exciting for you, but everything here is status quo - not that that is a bad thing.

...alarm goes off on time - I push snooze 2 times (gotta love an extra 18 minutes!)
...smiling children enter my classroom every 40 minutes of the day...
...hanging out with my husband & friends in the evenings...
...giving voice lessons & piano lessons after teaching all day (& it's still fun & rewarding)...
...keeping up on American Idol (thought Hailey should go a long time ago - Sanjaya's next)...
...on my 6th day of no caffeine; no coffee, no tea, no latte - (but still doing okay)...
...all is well...

Sunday, April 08, 2007

Easter Sunday

Wishing you & your family a blessed Easter Sunday.

"He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee. The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be rasied again."
Luke 24:6-7

Saturday, April 07, 2007

Victoria's Baby Shower

For a month or more we have been preparing for Victoria's Baby Shower. Our friends Dan & Victoria are welcoming their second son into the world on April 17th. The baby shower was today & was a brunch. I had intended to play 'who's water will break?' with babies in ice cubes, but only Victoria drank Orange Juice....the rest of us had coffee - so the babies were frozen for nothing....alas. :) We had a lot of fun, here are some photos from the event today.

Congratulations Dan & Victoria. We are so excited for your growing family & blessed to call you our friends. Happy baby!!
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Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Chef Jessie Presents...

Sauteed Chicken with Marsala

Tim & I have decided to do more cooking from the Sonoma Cookbook. At the beginning of the school year I was following this cookbook very closely & lost 10 pounds. My sister started it in January and has lost 22 pounds to date. So...I've decided I'd better get back at it for the spring. :) Tonight, I made Chicken with Marsala. I served it with whole grain angel hair pasta, spinach, and fresh strawberries & pineapple. Mmmm!!


4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (I used 2 since that's how many I was feeding)
1/4 t kosher salt
1/8 t freshly ground pepper
1 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 T finely chopped proscuitto (I left this ingredient out...)
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 C dry Marsala
1 C chicken broth
2 T capers
2 T chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 t chopped fresh sage

1. Season chicken with kosher salt & pepper. In a large skillet heat 2 teaspoons of the olive oil over medium heat. Add chicken; cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender & no longer pink, turning once. Transfer to a serving platter; cover & keep warm.

2. In the same skillet combine the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil, the proscuitto, & garlic. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add Marsala. Bring just to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 4 to 5 minutes or until reduced to 1/4 cup. Add chicken broth, capers, parsley, & sage. Return to boiling; boil gently about 8 minutes or until reduced to 2/3 cup. Return chicken to skillet; heat through.
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Sunday, April 01, 2007

The Price Is Right Story...

As many of you know, I'm a bit of a Price Is Right nut. Even as a child I've loved this game show. For my bridal shower - Erin, Andrea, Nicole, & Laura threw me a 'The Bride Is Right' shower. We played TPIR games, including 'Groomhanger' a take on my favorite game 'Cliffhanger', Plinko with a homemade Plinko board (thank you Bill & Lindsey) & even had showcases to bid on. Wow.

This birthday bash included a trip to TPIR, something I've been wanting to do with Tim since we got engaged. This was not my first time to TPIR, right Erin?! :) In college, Erin & I flew to Burbank for 1 day to see the show & the morning we showed up, it was canceled because Bob was sick. A few weeks later, Dwayne, Stacie, & I went and got to see it. I still think it was SO nice of them to take me to the show - they knew how much I wanted to go. (I think Erin was glad that she got out of it that time too). :)

But not this time...Erin was involved in every minute of it this time & it proved to be a most interesting day. Here's how the day went:

3:00 am - Alarm goes off - everybody up
3:45 am - We find our way to the car pile in and away we go
4:30 am - Arrive at CBS studios - get in line
4:30 - 6:00 am - Freeze as we wait in the growing line
6:00 am - Get our temporary number. We were #'s 242-245 (the studio only holds 330)
6:00-7:20 - Freeze while we still wait outside
7:20-8:45 - Get our 'real' number & wait...still outside with the wind blowing
8:45-9:50 - We leave to go get breakfast & a video game for Shawn
9:55-2:00 - We wait...outside...with the wind...with not much to do as we can't have our bags,
cell phones, cameras, or anything really with us...
2:00 - 2:30 - We finally enter the studio - it's FREEZING in there...are you kidding me?!?
2:30-3:30 - Taping of the show. I keep waiting to hear my name - but alas, they don't call. Again, are you kidding me?!?
3:30-4:00 pm - Finally we get some lunch
4:00-6:00 pm - Travel back to the hotel with everyone else in LA
6:00-7:30 pm - Nap
7:30-9:30 pm - Dinner & debriefing with Dwayne & Stacie
9:30 pm - Vow never again to go to The Price Is Right

So there you have it - a time line of our day. If it hadn't been SO cold that day, it would have been better - the wind blowing constantly didn't help matters either. Tim read the night before we went that due to Bob's retirement people begin lining up at 5:00 pm the day before tapings. Tim offered to go spend the night in the line so we could be sure we'd get in that day - 1 milllion points for him. Thankfully, he didn't end up doing that, we got up at 3:00 am instead. :) I'm pleased to announce that I officially have The Price Is Right out of my system. I will still watch the show, but I have no desire to get involved in that craziness again. 150 people spent the night in line the day that we went. 4 of them were called down to be on the show - I guess I'm just not that big of a fan...




Tim, Jessie, & Erin after the taping (notice the wind is STILL blowing...)


Me showing off the t-shirt that Erin & Tim made for us -
isn't it cute?! I love it.
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