Laney
Ty
Og
They are amazing. I'm the most blessed auntie ever.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
My Favorite Little People
These are my three favorite little people.
Laney
Ty
Og
They are amazing. I'm the most blessed auntie ever.
Laney
Ty
Og
They are amazing. I'm the most blessed auntie ever.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
This is the Sound of My Favorite Voice
This man has unending talent. I've seen him perform several times...his voice never fails to make me cry.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kOy43qVzMQ
Just thought I'd share.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kOy43qVzMQ
Just thought I'd share.
I'm So Unimaginative
The bad thing about repeatedly forgetting to blog is that when I finally DO blog, I have a zillion things to blog about. In fact, this particular blog could be several hours worth of reading. To avoid this conundrum, I will try to condense things into short blurbs about all the recent changes.
First off, the house. The remodel is well underway...we could be done with it by the end of this month. Unfortunately, our stupid cabinet makers decided that the soonest they can deliver our cabinets is June 18th. The bad thing about that is that is drags the whole process out a little. The good part is that we can relax a little, because we are very, very busy right now, and our neighbors probably would NOT like it if we worked late into the night in an effort to get things done.
We are both so ready to have our kitchen and living room, though. Right now, between our upstairs and our basement, we are basically living in the same square footage as we had in our apartment. So while the space is decent, we would appreciate also having the use of our main floor.
Nathan and I both recently (sort of recently) started working new jobs. He is working at Historic Fort Snelling as a reenactor (he loves it), and I am working at The Limited in Rosedale Mall. It's not a career, but it keeps us solvent.
We also were both recently cast in The Music Man, as Marian and Harold, so nightly rehearsals will add a new layer of craziness to our summer. I am ecstatic to be back on stage again, and playing opposite of Nathan will just make it more fun.
The last major change is that we are both transferring schools in the fall. I've realized (finally) that I cannot be a theatre major. I'm bored. While I love the performance classes, the academic side of it is not terribly challenging. I love school, always have, but I haven't truly enjoyed college since my first semester when I took Latin.
So, after much research, I am transferring to the University of Phoenix in the fall. No, we are not moving to Arizona (I'd kill myself). I am finishing my degree online as an English major. I did my senior year of high school PSEO online, and I loved it. I've spent a good deal of time with an admissions counselor on the phone, and I think the program suites me well. It is the number one online English degree in the country, and according to him, will challenge me plenty. I can also get my Masters through the same program if, when the time comes, I choose to do so.
Nathan is transferring to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts as a graphic design major. He has toured the school and loves the program. The fringe benefit to all this transferring is that both programs are significantly less expensive that NWC.
So there you are. A lengthy blog about my life. Now I can wait several months before I bore you with another one.
Love to you all,
Lissa
First off, the house. The remodel is well underway...we could be done with it by the end of this month. Unfortunately, our stupid cabinet makers decided that the soonest they can deliver our cabinets is June 18th. The bad thing about that is that is drags the whole process out a little. The good part is that we can relax a little, because we are very, very busy right now, and our neighbors probably would NOT like it if we worked late into the night in an effort to get things done.
We are both so ready to have our kitchen and living room, though. Right now, between our upstairs and our basement, we are basically living in the same square footage as we had in our apartment. So while the space is decent, we would appreciate also having the use of our main floor.
Nathan and I both recently (sort of recently) started working new jobs. He is working at Historic Fort Snelling as a reenactor (he loves it), and I am working at The Limited in Rosedale Mall. It's not a career, but it keeps us solvent.
We also were both recently cast in The Music Man, as Marian and Harold, so nightly rehearsals will add a new layer of craziness to our summer. I am ecstatic to be back on stage again, and playing opposite of Nathan will just make it more fun.
The last major change is that we are both transferring schools in the fall. I've realized (finally) that I cannot be a theatre major. I'm bored. While I love the performance classes, the academic side of it is not terribly challenging. I love school, always have, but I haven't truly enjoyed college since my first semester when I took Latin.
So, after much research, I am transferring to the University of Phoenix in the fall. No, we are not moving to Arizona (I'd kill myself). I am finishing my degree online as an English major. I did my senior year of high school PSEO online, and I loved it. I've spent a good deal of time with an admissions counselor on the phone, and I think the program suites me well. It is the number one online English degree in the country, and according to him, will challenge me plenty. I can also get my Masters through the same program if, when the time comes, I choose to do so.
Nathan is transferring to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts as a graphic design major. He has toured the school and loves the program. The fringe benefit to all this transferring is that both programs are significantly less expensive that NWC.
So there you are. A lengthy blog about my life. Now I can wait several months before I bore you with another one.
Love to you all,
Lissa
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Update from Starbucks
This blog, I'm sorry to say, will be sans pictures. We still don't have wifi in our new place (Nathan is calling about that right now!) so we are in Starbucks, using theirs.
The move this weekend was a little insane, but it went well. We had a ton of help (thank you, my amazing family!!!) especially in the morning. We were able to get pretty much everything moved on Saturday. We didn't really unpack anything other than our bedroom furniture on Saturday night, because we were exhausted.
Sunday morning, we woke up to a disaster of a house. Somehow, when you move, you never expect to wake up the next day to a house full of boxes...but alas, alack, the Unpacking Fairies did not visit us in the night, and we spent the morning comically digging through things to try to find food and clothing.
Around 11:30 we headed up to Forest Lake for my mom's 50th birthday party. It was so much fun! I got to see my brother Matt who came in from Chicago for the party, and several other people I hadn't seen in a while. It's rare that we get all 5 kids and significant others together...unfortunately, Emily couldn't make it. I guess we'll just have to go to Chicago soon to visit them!
After the party, all of the siblings headed over to Pops' and Grams' house for pizza and, in Cody's case, copious amounts of wine. Nathan and I had planned to do some serious housework on Sunday after the party, but of course, by the time we got home, we didn't really want to do much. We did manage to unpack most of our clothes, and I got a good start on organizing my amazingly gigantic closet.
Monday we got an early start. I had class, and chapel, and then we headed over to our old apartment for the last time. We spent about 2 hours scouring the place (it's never been so clean) and then loaded up the last few little things that we had left there on Saturday. Then we locked up, turned in the keys, and left. After lunch, we began to unpack the plethora of boxes that basically made it impossible to walk through our house.
By Monday evening, our upstairs was pretty much done. The study (with all of our books), our bedroom, and our bathroom were unpacked and completely set up. Tuesday was another long (but very productive) day of unpacking. We hauled all of the things for our kitchen and living room down into the basement, because we are renovating those rooms. Then we set up a temporary living space and kitchen area (with a toaster oven and microwave) and packed everything that wasn't completely necessary away for the next two months. I will post pictures of all of this soon. Promise!!
So today is the little things...calling about wifi, contacting our association with some questions, grocery shopping (we've eaten so much Subway in the last week...) and basically tying up loose ends.
Then the renovations begin! Oh joy.
Love to all,
Lissa
The move this weekend was a little insane, but it went well. We had a ton of help (thank you, my amazing family!!!) especially in the morning. We were able to get pretty much everything moved on Saturday. We didn't really unpack anything other than our bedroom furniture on Saturday night, because we were exhausted.
Sunday morning, we woke up to a disaster of a house. Somehow, when you move, you never expect to wake up the next day to a house full of boxes...but alas, alack, the Unpacking Fairies did not visit us in the night, and we spent the morning comically digging through things to try to find food and clothing.
Around 11:30 we headed up to Forest Lake for my mom's 50th birthday party. It was so much fun! I got to see my brother Matt who came in from Chicago for the party, and several other people I hadn't seen in a while. It's rare that we get all 5 kids and significant others together...unfortunately, Emily couldn't make it. I guess we'll just have to go to Chicago soon to visit them!
After the party, all of the siblings headed over to Pops' and Grams' house for pizza and, in Cody's case, copious amounts of wine. Nathan and I had planned to do some serious housework on Sunday after the party, but of course, by the time we got home, we didn't really want to do much. We did manage to unpack most of our clothes, and I got a good start on organizing my amazingly gigantic closet.
Monday we got an early start. I had class, and chapel, and then we headed over to our old apartment for the last time. We spent about 2 hours scouring the place (it's never been so clean) and then loaded up the last few little things that we had left there on Saturday. Then we locked up, turned in the keys, and left. After lunch, we began to unpack the plethora of boxes that basically made it impossible to walk through our house.
By Monday evening, our upstairs was pretty much done. The study (with all of our books), our bedroom, and our bathroom were unpacked and completely set up. Tuesday was another long (but very productive) day of unpacking. We hauled all of the things for our kitchen and living room down into the basement, because we are renovating those rooms. Then we set up a temporary living space and kitchen area (with a toaster oven and microwave) and packed everything that wasn't completely necessary away for the next two months. I will post pictures of all of this soon. Promise!!
So today is the little things...calling about wifi, contacting our association with some questions, grocery shopping (we've eaten so much Subway in the last week...) and basically tying up loose ends.
Then the renovations begin! Oh joy.
Love to all,
Lissa
Monday, February 21, 2011
We Bought A House
Yes, that is right. We bought a house. And we are moving this Saturday.
It's kind of crazy, actually. We were semi-casually looking, and this place kept coming up. It was too good of a place, at too good of a price to pass up.
It's a town house in New Brighton...not my ideal location, but everything in the cities is either crap, or out of our price range. And since we will only be here for 3 or 4 years (enough time to finish school, do some theatre, and move to Manhattan) I can deal with the fact that I live in a suburb.
Things I love about my house.
1) It is 500 square feet bigger than our current place, NOT including the basement.
2) The basement. While it is technically "unfinished" it is clean, painted, and completely usable for a work room for Nathan.
3) The laundry room. It's in the basement, and the washer and dryer do not require me to feed it quarters before I can wash my clothes.
4) Three bedrooms. And because Nathan has the basement as a workspace, we will be able to have a guest room, and a library/study.
5) Walk in closet. Huge. Mine. Need I say more?
Things I Hate:
The kitchen. That's it. But since we got an INCREDIBLE price on the townhouse (so good...you have no idea) and because we paid way less than we expected to pay for a house, we are redoing the entire ground level floor. Reflooring, new appliances, new cabinets, etc. Nathan's dad is an architect, so he helped us with the design, and because Nathan is great with house work (he a lot of the same kind of work on his sister's house when they lived in St Paul) we won't have to pay for most of the labor.
We;ll be eating Chinese food and microwave dinners for about a month, but it will be so worth it!!
So all in all, we are both very excited to be moving. It's not our dream house, but it't will be a good place for the next few years.
And anyone who wants to is welcome to help us move this Saturday...just saying.
Love to you all,
Lissa
It's kind of crazy, actually. We were semi-casually looking, and this place kept coming up. It was too good of a place, at too good of a price to pass up.
It's a town house in New Brighton...not my ideal location, but everything in the cities is either crap, or out of our price range. And since we will only be here for 3 or 4 years (enough time to finish school, do some theatre, and move to Manhattan) I can deal with the fact that I live in a suburb.
Things I love about my house.
1) It is 500 square feet bigger than our current place, NOT including the basement.
2) The basement. While it is technically "unfinished" it is clean, painted, and completely usable for a work room for Nathan.
3) The laundry room. It's in the basement, and the washer and dryer do not require me to feed it quarters before I can wash my clothes.
4) Three bedrooms. And because Nathan has the basement as a workspace, we will be able to have a guest room, and a library/study.
5) Walk in closet. Huge. Mine. Need I say more?
Things I Hate:
The kitchen. That's it. But since we got an INCREDIBLE price on the townhouse (so good...you have no idea) and because we paid way less than we expected to pay for a house, we are redoing the entire ground level floor. Reflooring, new appliances, new cabinets, etc. Nathan's dad is an architect, so he helped us with the design, and because Nathan is great with house work (he a lot of the same kind of work on his sister's house when they lived in St Paul) we won't have to pay for most of the labor.
We;ll be eating Chinese food and microwave dinners for about a month, but it will be so worth it!!
So all in all, we are both very excited to be moving. It's not our dream house, but it't will be a good place for the next few years.
And anyone who wants to is welcome to help us move this Saturday...just saying.
Love to you all,
Lissa
Monday, February 14, 2011
Favorite Recipes
I tried to insert the links into this post, but they wouldn't show up one I posted the blog...they just left big empty spaces. So you'll have to copy paste into your browser. Sorry.
As per Sheryl's request, I am posting the links to some of my new favorite recipes.
There are the old standbys, of course. Some of the regular dishes at our house (and by regular, I mean bi-weekly, or even weekly. We love a few of these) are Kimbap (a Korean Seaweed wrap), Thai Peanut Curry, Parmesan Chicken with marinara sauce on pasta, and breakfast (we both love breakfast for dinner...eggs, pancakes, bacon, etc)
Most of these recipes aren't really recipes...the Peanut Curry recipe is Nathan's, and Kimbap is a little different every time. Breakfast is self explanatory.
For the Parmesan Chicken, I don't use a recipe. I just throw some whole wheat bread, parmesan cheese, and a clove or 2 of fresh garlic in the food processor. If we have fresh basil, I use that as well. Otherwise, I will sometimes use an italian seasoning blend. I dip the thawed chicken breast in olive oil, then, then coat it thoroughly in the crumb mixture. I bake at 425 for about 20 minutes in a glass dish (or until it's done...be careful it doesn't dry out!!). Sometimes I flip it halfway through so both sides are nice and crispy. Then I throw it on a bed of pasta (usually angel hair or fettuccine), and cover with marinara sauce. I prefer Hunts, when I'm too lazy to buy the canned tomatoes and make my own. (Which is almost always.)
So...besides all of that, here are some links to a few recipes I've tried recently and LOVED. They are all pretty simple (proven by the fact that I can make them). Have fun!
Baked Spaghetti Squash: I love pasta, and so does Nathan. Lately we've been substituting Spaghetti squash for most of our pasta dishes (including parmesan chicken, and plain old spaghetti with a meat sauce). It's a little bit of a different texture than pasta, but I love it! It goes especially well with a spicier marinara sauce, like we prefer. (I usually doctor up Hunts sauce with red pepper powder and herbs). One thing I will warn you of though...most spaghetti squash recipes will not tell you to drain the squash, but DO IT!!! It has a lot of water in it, and while it doesn't change the flavor, it's a little annoying when it's runny. I usually squeeze it out between paper towels after cooking it.
I also skip the bell peppers and olives in this recipe, and usually the onion. Because in my world, raw bell peppers are great. Cooked, they are disgusting. The parsley is unnecessary, but it's cheap, so we usually have it on hand.
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/food/recipes/baked-spaghetti-squash-540269/;_ylt=And29FamDJ48blo6Ucj_ZL3kgKU5
And spaghetti squash recipe 2. Once again, I exclude the olives.
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/spaghetti-squash-i/Detail.aspx
I hate making pancakes from scratch...so messy and time consuming! But the "just add water" pancakes are gross. I found this and I love it. It basically adds a couple of things to boxed pancake mix, and they are delicious. Light, fluffy, and perfectly golden brown.
http://www.ehow.com/how_4451505_better-pancakes-commercial-mix.html
Soup!! This soup tastes fresh, delicious, and creamy. Also, it's outrageously easy to make. I like to cut back on the alfredo sauce just a little, to make it less rich. Just add or subtract to taste.
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/food/recipes/tortellini-florentine-soup-540215/;_ylt=AlPYg7R9cwCh3n8yQ00LqzfkgKU5
As you can see, we mostly like Asian and Italian food. Sorry about that. But this recipe is so easy, and looks pretty impressive.
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/pasta/ravioli-vegetable-stacks/
And this is the dessert I've been making for pretty much every meal lately. Don't bash it before you try it...I was skeptical too. But it is WAY better than traditional pudding recipes, and way easier. I will never stand over a stove and stir milk for 20 minutes ever again. Just watch the boiling, or you will have a microwave full of chocolate. And add a pat of butter with the vanilla.
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/hasty-chocolate-pudding/Detail.aspx
Here are some things on my "to try" list.
http://www.countryliving.com/recipefinder/margherita-pizza-clv0108
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/beef/herb-garlic-beef-roast/
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/turkey/turkey-burgers-home-fries/
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/mushroom-spring-rolls-with-creamy-ginger-sauce
And the scariest...
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2005/10/french-chocolat/
Enjoy!!
Love to you all,
Lissa
As per Sheryl's request, I am posting the links to some of my new favorite recipes.
There are the old standbys, of course. Some of the regular dishes at our house (and by regular, I mean bi-weekly, or even weekly. We love a few of these) are Kimbap (a Korean Seaweed wrap), Thai Peanut Curry, Parmesan Chicken with marinara sauce on pasta, and breakfast (we both love breakfast for dinner...eggs, pancakes, bacon, etc)
Most of these recipes aren't really recipes...the Peanut Curry recipe is Nathan's, and Kimbap is a little different every time. Breakfast is self explanatory.
For the Parmesan Chicken, I don't use a recipe. I just throw some whole wheat bread, parmesan cheese, and a clove or 2 of fresh garlic in the food processor. If we have fresh basil, I use that as well. Otherwise, I will sometimes use an italian seasoning blend. I dip the thawed chicken breast in olive oil, then, then coat it thoroughly in the crumb mixture. I bake at 425 for about 20 minutes in a glass dish (or until it's done...be careful it doesn't dry out!!). Sometimes I flip it halfway through so both sides are nice and crispy. Then I throw it on a bed of pasta (usually angel hair or fettuccine), and cover with marinara sauce. I prefer Hunts, when I'm too lazy to buy the canned tomatoes and make my own. (Which is almost always.)
So...besides all of that, here are some links to a few recipes I've tried recently and LOVED. They are all pretty simple (proven by the fact that I can make them). Have fun!
Baked Spaghetti Squash: I love pasta, and so does Nathan. Lately we've been substituting Spaghetti squash for most of our pasta dishes (including parmesan chicken, and plain old spaghetti with a meat sauce). It's a little bit of a different texture than pasta, but I love it! It goes especially well with a spicier marinara sauce, like we prefer. (I usually doctor up Hunts sauce with red pepper powder and herbs). One thing I will warn you of though...most spaghetti squash recipes will not tell you to drain the squash, but DO IT!!! It has a lot of water in it, and while it doesn't change the flavor, it's a little annoying when it's runny. I usually squeeze it out between paper towels after cooking it.
I also skip the bell peppers and olives in this recipe, and usually the onion. Because in my world, raw bell peppers are great. Cooked, they are disgusting. The parsley is unnecessary, but it's cheap, so we usually have it on hand.
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/food/recipes/baked-spaghetti-squash-540269/;_ylt=And29FamDJ48blo6Ucj_ZL3kgKU5
And spaghetti squash recipe 2. Once again, I exclude the olives.
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/spaghetti-squash-i/Detail.aspx
I hate making pancakes from scratch...so messy and time consuming! But the "just add water" pancakes are gross. I found this and I love it. It basically adds a couple of things to boxed pancake mix, and they are delicious. Light, fluffy, and perfectly golden brown.
http://www.ehow.com/how_4451505_better-pancakes-commercial-mix.html
Soup!! This soup tastes fresh, delicious, and creamy. Also, it's outrageously easy to make. I like to cut back on the alfredo sauce just a little, to make it less rich. Just add or subtract to taste.
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/food/recipes/tortellini-florentine-soup-540215/;_ylt=AlPYg7R9cwCh3n8yQ00LqzfkgKU5
As you can see, we mostly like Asian and Italian food. Sorry about that. But this recipe is so easy, and looks pretty impressive.
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/pasta/ravioli-vegetable-stacks/
And this is the dessert I've been making for pretty much every meal lately. Don't bash it before you try it...I was skeptical too. But it is WAY better than traditional pudding recipes, and way easier. I will never stand over a stove and stir milk for 20 minutes ever again. Just watch the boiling, or you will have a microwave full of chocolate. And add a pat of butter with the vanilla.
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/hasty-chocolate-pudding/Detail.aspx
Here are some things on my "to try" list.
http://www.countryliving.com/recipefinder/margherita-pizza-clv0108
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/beef/herb-garlic-beef-roast/
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/turkey/turkey-burgers-home-fries/
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/mushroom-spring-rolls-with-creamy-ginger-sauce
And the scariest...
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2005/10/french-chocolat/
Enjoy!!
Love to you all,
Lissa
Right Now I am Loving...
- Coffee. With Coffee Mate French Vanilla creamer. I refill before every class, because most of my classes require a good amount of caffeine to survive.
- Books. I received so many awesome books for Christmas (thank you, Sheryl) and it's been amazing to have an array of new, unread literature on my shelves. I still have a few left before I have to start skulking around Barnes and Noble again.
- Gilmore Girls. I love this all the time. It is my background noise for all of my studying.
- Volleyball. Have I mentioned lately that my Junior Olympics team is awesome? I love these girls so much!!
- Cooking. That's right, I have discovered a new love for cooking. It's been several weeks of me making 2 or 3 meals a day, and LOVING it. Usually Nathan does the majority of the cooking, but I've become obsessed with searching through cookbooks and online recipes. I've bookmarked about a zillion online recipes that I have to try. I'm still not certain if this is a phase or a new hobby. We'll see.
- And most of all, I love my incredible husband. Every day I am reminded of how blessed I am. He is an awesome, loving, guy who makes me smile a hundred times a day.
- Books. I received so many awesome books for Christmas (thank you, Sheryl) and it's been amazing to have an array of new, unread literature on my shelves. I still have a few left before I have to start skulking around Barnes and Noble again.
- Gilmore Girls. I love this all the time. It is my background noise for all of my studying.
- Volleyball. Have I mentioned lately that my Junior Olympics team is awesome? I love these girls so much!!
- Cooking. That's right, I have discovered a new love for cooking. It's been several weeks of me making 2 or 3 meals a day, and LOVING it. Usually Nathan does the majority of the cooking, but I've become obsessed with searching through cookbooks and online recipes. I've bookmarked about a zillion online recipes that I have to try. I'm still not certain if this is a phase or a new hobby. We'll see.
- And most of all, I love my incredible husband. Every day I am reminded of how blessed I am. He is an awesome, loving, guy who makes me smile a hundred times a day.
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