One year already!?

I haven't been on here since April? Man, time does really fly.

Well we've gotten through our first year of marriage! There have been a lot of different experiences, and "firsts" since this was also the first year without Dad around. Casey was been so understanding and helpful in any way that he can....even if it was just trying to make me smile.

The summer came and went, and was full of many surprises. Casey visited Canada for the first time and enjoyed his time at the cabin...he even wants to go back!

The weather was surprisingly chilly for summertime....I wasn't complaining though! Just ask Casey.....I don't take extreme weather very well.

Casey's hectic work schedule changed slightly after being promoted to lead supervisor at Sharks Ice. Now instead of coming home at 2 or 3 in the morning, he comes home around 11. I however, am usually still asleep, but on occasion I do welcome him now and then. But these new hours have definitely helped him get back on a regular schedule especially when it comes to getting up in the mornings for school.....

Casey and I are now both attending San Jose State University together, and even have the same schedule on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It's fun getting to spend more time together as we car pool....although Casey sometimes wishes that weren't the case :). I'm a little more of a perfectionist when it comes to attendance!

But now that our schedules are a little busier with school and work, we have less time for fun things like our movie Mondays. We did however take a trip to San Francisco on Oct 4th which was fun. We'd never been to the Zoo and were both enamored with all the different animals....well, Casey wasn't a big fan of the anaconda, and I got creeped out in the bug/insect room.Eeek! Too big! Too big!!!

Anyway, we just celebrated our first wedding anniversary and couldn't believe how fast this year went.....just like that. We enjoyed a weekend at the beach condo in Pajaro and just watched movies, and enjoyed the fire while it rained outside. Casey even got to have his favorite meal at Shadowbrook in Santa Cruz.....

Yes.....Prime Rib. He was in complete heaven the entire meal.

So now that the holidays are approaching, it's only going to get busier and busier....but it's our favorite time of year, so we try to handle it the best we can in order to enjoy it. Because that's what the holidays are all about right!?! You need to enjoy them!

So hopefully it won't be too much longer before I post again....but I really should be studying right now....just another form of procrastination! :)

Routine Life

Seems like my life's just one big cycle these days on repeat..... sleep, exercise, work, eat, homework, sleep....school, exercise, work, homework, eat, sleep....and so on....

But hey, at least I have a study partner! Too bad she sleeps on the book, rather than trying to help me read it!

And then of course she gets restless and would rather play with my pen ....

Oh Thornton Kitty.....what I am going to do with you!

"My personal trainer feeds me brownies and cookies..."

Yeah, that's what Casey said after I had another day of baking. Yeah yeah, I know Im probably a bad influence at this point, but I share the wealth! I've taken a majority of them to work and friends so they're not here to tempt us.

Anyway, I made peanut butter and chocolate marble-swirled brownies. Those turned out absolutely delicious and to-die-for! And it was super easy and fun to make them.

Then after I ran some errands, went for a run and started to get ready for work, I thought I'd like to make this batch of cookies that sounded delicious. Well, it was like speed baking, coz I needed to get the ingredients measured and mixed and in the oven before I left for work...which was in an hour and a half. As Casey put it "I think you bit off a little more than you could chew babe." He may have been right, but these also turned out delicious!

They are called "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink cookies" and they literally do have everything in them! I left out the pecans they called for, since some people are allergic to nuts....but I put in everything else! Rice krispies, shaved coconut, chocolate chips, oats and all the sugar/butter/flour ingredients. Yumm!!! I still have a mound of cookies to get rid of. Good thing I work at 3 different places!

Adventures in.....BAKING!

So Casey has always wanted me to cook more, or at least produce something of substance in the kitchen....and while I am late on the New Year's Resolution, I think I've finally started something that I can keep up with every week. At this time, I will start with Baking. While it might not be the healthiest option, I'm practicing with measuring, reading recipes correctly and finding recipes that I like. My first objective was to find the best brownie recipe from scratch.

The first time, I just did a random search on the internet and found a recipe from cooks.com. The only thing I did differently was add a little brown sugar to make up for the sugar that I ran out of....and I also added toffee bits and chocolate chips. These brownies came out a little too dense.....almost like Texas Cake-if you're ever heard of that. So these brownies didn't really float my boat, although after a day or so of just sitting on the counter, they hardened up and tasted a little bit better. But I think the fact that there were 4 eggs made them chewy and dense.

So last night, I googled "best brownie recipe from scratch" and found this recipe from allrecipes.com. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Best-Brownies/Detail.aspx?src=etaf I've actually found recipes from this website and they are very helpful because there are many reviews to help you decide if it's worth making or not!

So, I went ahead with this recipe (which only had 2 eggs)....and the only thing I added was chocolate chips, toffee bits and raisins. Now, I know what you're thinking, RAISINS??? Yes, when my mom made brownies for us when I was little, she would put raisins in them, and I LOVED them! And I have now found out that I may be one of the only people that do!

Anyway, these turned out delicious...perfect texture and everything. Casey is one of the anti-raisin lovers, so his quote was "if it wasn't so fruity tasting from the raisins, then they would be perfect!"

Gonna try and figure out what my goal is for next week......maybe a pie!? Or struesel or cobbler of some kind? We are getting into spring here with all the fruits. YUMM!

We're alive, I swear!

Can't believe it's been almost 2 months since I last posted something on here. But between painting almost everyday...... to helping Matty and April move..... to going to school..... to working three jobs...... to visits with mom and Jason.........life got pretty hectic. Now that my art show has commenced after this weekend, (if you weren't aware, check out my art blog at http://www.paintedchiartwork.blogspot.com/) .....all I have to focus on now is work and school. Seems like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Yet, the busy schedule will persist. But for now, I can breathe a little bit better.

Casey and I have definitely gotten used to our new schedule with him working nights, yet we still seem to have lots of quality time together on Mondays and weekend mornings which is great.

He also keeps harrassing me about the new year's resolution that I haven't kept up on...which was 'start cooking more often'.....yeah, I haven't cooked 1 meal in 3 months. Guess I better get cracking!

I also have learned that I am going to be a bridesmaid for one of my highschool friends in Placerville! She's having the ceremony at her parent's house in the backyard (which ironically my dad did the landscaping for <3 )...and the reception will be at The Sequoia which is one of my favorite restaurants in Pville. So it's very exciting to be involved in another wedding, that is not my own! But I love looking at all the details again with her because it's such a fun process! August 1st, gotta fit into another dress!

Another thing to enjoy together....

Well, the cleanse was a quick one this time around for me. I couldn't handle it as easily as last time. Only went for 5 days.....but I still got the results that I wanted so I am happy and now I am back to exercising and eating REAL savory food again.

Casey and I have now found another thing to enjoy together.... WINE! We weren't big wine drinkers before, but I think it all started before the wedding when we had to test taste wines for the menu....it started to grow on us. So now we are starting a collection and evenings that we are together we break em out and start trying em! It's so much fun seeing what foods they go with; I already have some favorites!

I even have an app on my iPhone where I rate all the wines we try so we can remember which ones to re-buy in the future!

And I can't wait to go on various wine tasting tours this summer! We did that once before and it was a delicious experience!!!

Well, hopefully it won't be so long until the next post. Life just gets in the way sometimes I guess!

Food D-Day....

Happy New Year!

I haven't written for the past week or so as we've been so busy cleaning and organizing our condo and our lives. Weeding out the old and trying to figure out what to bring in or do that is new. It's been quite the process, and we are by no means done!

However, today was another interesting day of decisions.... what to eat for our "last supper"?

After countless meals, sweets, parties, cocktails and countless lbs. gained since the wedding...... our bodies have had enough and it is time to start over!

So we decided that today was our last day to "pig out" so to speak. I can't tell you how long we went back and forth as to where and what we were going to eat! You would have thought it was truly our last meal! We truly are foodies! (At least in our eyes).

So another day at the mall to see a movie....we shared a delicious cheesesteak sandwich and fries for lunch. During the movie was the usual kettle korn and junior mints combo, as well as some small cinnabon minis. For dinner we enjoyed another delightful, delectable meal at our favorite Asian bistro, Sino. Oh, and don't forget the ice cream and cookie from Ben & Jerry's afterwards. Now this overwhelming swollen feeling is making me so incredibly excited for my cleanse.

This cleanse is the same one I did in April of 2008, which helped my weightloss of 40 or so pounds before the wedding. Good timing eh!?

But now, I just want to feel normal again. I want clearer skin, more energy, jeans that fit and don't suffocate me and the ability to exercise or run without having to stop every 5 minutes. That's all. I just want it back to the way I used to be.

I'm not all quite certain as to what Casey's plan/regime will be. Except that he has missed Gold's Gym and cannot wait to return. Now that we are doing this both together, I think it will be a piece of cake! (ugh, but boy, I never want to see a piece of cake again for quite a while!) I'm so glad that he is so supportive. He would NEVER do this cleanse that I do, but he loves that I do it because he see that it makes me feel better. Which is absolutely 100% true. It stops my cycle of eating TERRIBLY.

So here is to good health, good eating and keeping great goals. Hoping this time around is easier and even more successful than the last!



P.S. Did I mention that I was surprised with flowers when I woke up this morning? Yeah....he's quite the guy. :)