Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Happy Easter!


Mom and Dad headed to Minneapolis on Good Friday to see a Twins game and visited my cousins Tyler, Kate, and Dylan. Bummer the game was rained out, but I think they had fun going out to dinner all together.

The parents figured they were "halfway" to Georgia already so might as well come down for Easter.

So on Saturday morning they left for Atlanta, and we picked them up just in time for lunch. A relaxing Mexican fiesta, followed by chatter and relaxing led the way to a perfect evening at the firepit.

Neither of them had eaten skin-on chicken cooked over a fire, plus teriyaki onions, asparagus, green beans, and southern style potato salad. We had a feast!

On Easter morning, we went to 8:30 church which included a huge choir and mini-orchestra. The music was soooo beautiful!

We were done in time to prepare a full Easter dinner: Ham, Mashed Yukon gold potatoes, glazed carrots, relish tray, veggie tray, lots of deviled eggs, and all served on my wedding china.

We passed the afternoon rearranging furniture, napping, watching baseball, and playing a fierce game of Tripoley.

Bright and early Monday morning they were off - by 6:30AM! It was short but I am soooo glad they came down.




Monday, April 18, 2011

A Passover lesson

I always think of this story every year as we prepare our hearts and minds for Easter. I know the holidays are not supremely related, but high holy days for any religion are worth knowing at least a little about. And it was said that Maundy Thursday's Last Supper was an observance of Passover.

From Wikipedia (ha - always a reliable source because it's "on the internet"):

Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival and is one of the most widely observed holidays. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt.

In the narrative of the Exodus, the Bible tells that God helped the Children of Israel escape slavery in Egypt by inflicting ten plagues upon the Egyptians before Pharaoh would release his Israelite slaves; the tenth and worst of the plagues was the slaughter of the first-born. T

he Israelites were instructed to mark the doorposts of their homes with the blood of a spring lamb and, upon seeing this, the spirit of the Lord passed over these homes, hence the term "passover".

When Pharaoh freed the Israelites, it is said that they left in such a hurry that they could not wait for bread dough to rise (leaven). In commemoration, for the duration of Passover no leavened bread is eaten, for which reason it is called "The Festival of the Unleavened Bread". Matzo (flat unleavened bread) is a symbol of the holiday.

Have a blessed holiday, no matter what you are celebrating!

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Is Sam's Club worth it?

Does a family of 2 adults really need a Sam's Club membership?

There is one recently opened in Peachtree City, and when Lois visited we took advantage of her membership to check it out.

We came across 4 items which we FOR SURE purchase at Publix or Target. We bought them, wrote down the price, figured out similar case cost at a few non-Sam's places, and determined if the $40 admission is worth it.

Note: None of the comparable items are listed with a sale or coupon price.

Our case study:
Item Package Sam's Grocery Volume Savings
Prevacid 42-count $24.82 $25.69 17 $(14.79)
Digiorno Pizza 1 pizza $4.49 $7.69 25 $(80.00)
Gatorade, orange 8-pack $4.96 $6.59 20 $(32.60)
Granola Bars 6-pack $1.69 $3.05 20 $(27.20)
TOTAL $(154.59)

So, for these 4 items it's worth it. BUT...nothing else. And we'd have to make a special trip just for these. And, if we buy anything outside of these 4 items we normally wouldn't - POOF savings gone.

We are sticking to Publix.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Ekornes, come to me

This is the only room in the house we have upgraded...with Ekornes chairs!!!





The seed was planted 2 years ago for these chairs and we have been coveting them ever since. Finally, the world's finest Scandinavian engineering is in our traditional-flavor home.

In the photos - the walls are not quite so orange (they are more red) and the chairs are not quite so light (they are more espresso-colored). BUT you get the idea.

This is the only room in which we have all new furniture (except for one piece). Other than that one end table by the sofa, no hand-me-downs or college bargain buys or consignment shop specials can be found - which is different than every other room in our house. And we are thrilled to finally be grown up!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Bye, Bye, Sunfire

This thing of beauty is for sale. It needs some brake work and has some idling problems but we are going to see if someone wants it anyway.

Amy, a piece of your history is leaving the family. Don't be sad to see it go - it treated us both well!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

A bit o' decorating

I realized I never posted photos of my mom and Kathy's handiwork. So here it is - several of our travel souvenirs are featured - including our 'rock collection', some German and Austrian items, and a book featuring the Northern Lights in Iceland.

Looks good! We are soooo happy with it :)

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Go BRAVES!

Saturday's sunny and 85 degree weather made for a PERFECT day at Turner Field! The day after the home opener, playing the Phillies...but we lost. No bother, Lois and I had a great time anyway!





Friday, April 8, 2011

Coming through

The great wayward Lois is heading home (finally) after 3 months escaping the Iowan winter. She has a stopover at our house for a few days. We are always a little busy - and have fun - when she's here!

She has immediately been put to work making her FAMOUS strawberry jam, made with fresh strawberries from Floridian farmer's markets which she brought up for us.

Thanks, Lois!!

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Going on the tarmac

Today I did a ride-along with one of my suppliers who delivers to the airport in Atlanta.

After waiting a long time to get clearance from TSA (they had to check and re-check everyone's credentials), we drove from concourse to concourse, following the daily delivery schedule. In the meantime, ALWAYS following the "Yield to Airplanes" road paint.

It's crazy that crossing the tarmac is a little like having a tentative 4-way stop but always yielding to the planes. But if it's clear - you GO!

It was awesome - but one of my favorite little parts had nothing to do with the trip. As we were tooling around, I waved at a 777 that was being pushed back by a Tug - and the captain waved back, with a thumbs up! :)

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Jambalyin'

That's right - when you eat Jambalaya, it is DEFINITELY a verb. JAMBALAYIN'!!!

We made some deliciousness last night, although between the c.razy thunderstorm / tornado conditions / super windy and the heartburn, it was a little unrestful.

1 box Zatarain's Jambalaya Mix
1/2 lb chicken, 1" cubes
1 lb peeled, deveined shrimp
1/2 package Savoie's Andouille Sausage, sliced into pieces
Lots o' water

Using a big sauce pan:
Cook up the chicken and sausage for about 3-5 minutes.
Add water and rice contents as directed on package. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Add shrimp and finish cooking 10-15 minutes.

Hold on to your hats, ladies and gentlemen - it's SPICY! (I think it's the sausage.)

Monday, April 4, 2011

"Corn" Dog

My friend Becki took this outside the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD.



It's a CORN DOG - hahahaha!!!

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Spring Break

I am almost 30. I have taken some AWESOME vacations the past 2 years. I have seen lots of parts of the country, and the world, I never thought I would.

Why then, praytell, am I so INSANELY jealous of everyone IN THE WORKING WORLD talking about going on spring break????

(I also did not go on a legitimate spring break vacation during the time I was in school (Chicago 2002 only counted somewhat - it was still a cold and snowy destination, not beachy and fruity-drink-filled).)

Top 5 Reasons for Spring Break Jealousy and Why I Am Mad that I am Jealous

1. Spring Break is for students. Not everyone else. The working world does not get a week off in the spring, a week off in the fall, 4 weeks during Christmas, 12 weeks during the summer, etc etc.

2. 'Students' these days that have this extended vacation are not just college kids - they are CHILDREN. Ummmmm, lots of people I work with have kids. Like, kids between 8-18 years old. Those kids have a week off for spring break so guess what...it's totally great the parents take of an entire week to go to Cancun as well. But it's a little bummer that those of us without kids don't have a ready excuse for a spring vacation!!! (Note: This is not an official work policy, it is just when-people-choose-to-take-vacation days thing.)

3. Spring Breaking / Vacationing costs money. BOOOO.

4. I LOVE my new job. I would not want to abandon it for vacation yet, after only 2 weeks. But...I'm just sayin', vacation would be nice.

5. Pollen sucks. Not as much as cold, snowy weather, but I literally have a headache all the time and feel a little woozy. It would be ok to escape Mother Nature for a bit.

BUT, the main reason for not going this year...I am almost 30 and probably WAY to old to be on spring break. So I had better just get over it.