CSA = Creative Cooking!

This is our second summer participating in a CSA and we love it just as much as we did the first summer!  For those of you not in the know - CSA is community supported agriculture.  We pay a fee in the spring and then once a week from May to October we pick up a large basket of veggies!  We even split the cost/veggies with a friend and it's generally more than we can it - it's AWESOME!


Except for when you receive something and you either don't know what it is or don't know how to prepare it... that's where the creative cooking comes into play.  And by creative I mean googling the veggie to see what other people have done.


This past week we receive beets... yes those ugly little redish, purple roots!  I was unsure what to do with them, but ran across a Tomato and Beat Salad in Martha Stewart's Everyday Food - we liked everything else in the recipe so I thought I'd give it a try.  It was tasty and now we know we like beets!  See if you do.


Martha Stewart Tomato-Beet Salad
1 lb scrubbed small beets
2 lb sliced tomatoes (heirlooms/yellow)
1 pint halved cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup cilantro leaves*
extra-virgin olive oil
salt & pepper to taste


*I used basil, because that's what I had in my planter and it tasted great too!


Preheat oven to 400. Seal beets in foil packet and roast until tender 60 -75 minutes. When cool, rub beets with paper towel to remove skins; (This didn't work for me, I had to use a potato peeler.) slice. Slice tomatoes and halve cherry tomatoes.  Arrange beets and tomatoes on platter. Top with feta, cilantro, olive oil, salt and pepper.  


Enjoy!

Catching Up!

Wow... I'm really bad at this.  I clearly do not post often enough.  Let me do a little catch up - We've been busy since February. 

At the end of February, February 29 to be exact, we celebrated the first anniversary of our first date! I can honestly say I knew that night I'd marry Steve, so it's fun to reminisce.  

In March / April I started a new job!  I'm now selling SMART Boards to the Lexington and Eastern Kentucky areas - I couldn't be more happy!  It's an awesome job and I'm loving that fact that I'm helping kids learn and grow.  And if you're kid's school does not have SMART Boards they are really missing out on a key educational tool!

Our newest niece was born in April as well!  We helped Diane and Chad welcome baby Valerie into the world on April 16th.  See how cute she is!

Woody & Wendy are doing great!  We've finally managed to train Wendy to potty outdoors! 

It's been years, but I attended a very CUTE dance recital! These is our niece Vivian she was the cutest little bear in the show!

And we've already made two trips down to the lake. 

In May Steve finished his first year of Orthodontic residency! Whooo Hooo! Only 2 more years to go!

We've got a very busy summer planning so I promise to be more attentive to the blog!

Plan B... Part II

As some of you may already know we got some shocking (and when I say shocking I mean Steve dealt with it calmly and rationally, I cried.)  news a few weeks back.  I have Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome, which basically means my hormones are goofy and getting prego is going to be a little more strategic than we had originally thought.

Seriously it's not as scary as it sounds and surprising common - depending on what you read - one in ten to one and fifteen women suffer from this.  The shocking part - I'm not the ideal candidate and honestly it sucks to learn that there's anything "wrong" with your body.  But according to the doctor it's a mild case and we've worked out a plan to help us bring our little bundle of joy into the world.

So sorry for the melo-dramatics a few weeks ago... But I do ask that you keep us in your prayers.

Plan B

Well, friends I have had one heck of a day.  It's not been terrible and it could have been much worse, but it was still one of those days when you realize you've got to go with plan b or better yet put a little faith in God and let him lead the way.

More to come later...

Welcome 2012

So, I swore I was going to be better about posting blogs in 2012 - it's day 10, how do you think I'm doing?

I also swore I was going to get to work on time and so far I'm doing great! Been there before 9 am every day So take that haters!

But in all seriousness I happen to be one of those people that believes in resolutions and am genuinely disappointed (in myself) when they're not met. I am also a person that believes in setting realistic resolutions so I do make it a little easier for myself. Allow me to share a few with you.

1. Get to work on time
2. Stay at a healthy weight (maybe exercise more - 3 days a week instead of 2) 
3. Help Steve have a successful first year in Ortho school
4. Blog more - we're talking memories here!
5. Take more pictures
6. Create more photo/memory books (Think Shutterfly)
7. Have a healthy baby (Secrets out - we're hoping for a little bundle of joy in 12) 
8. Master new responsibilities at work (Tradeshow management, increase sales) 

See what I mean - realistic, except for maybe the get to work on time thing.  Kidding - I have a feeling the pregnancy thing is going to be a little more tricky. But we're putting a lot of faith in God and Steve's really not complaining about the constant practice!  So keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we start this next adventure in our life together.

Happy New Year!  May it be blessed!

Friends are AWE-SOME!

I spent this past weekend in Philadelphia, PA with my best friend in the whole world! More commonly known as Kallie, KT or way back in the day Daniel's sister (hehe).  What'd we do, you ask?  Nothing of great importance... Got our nails done, ate some tasty meals, watch movies/tv, saw some random exhibits and ate some tasty meals (oops already said that).


But this nothing of great importance is what makes friends, you know the real ones, so AWE-SOME! Being able to visit someone for the first time in 10 months and picking up right where we left off; it's great to know there's people out there who "just gets you"!  

And for those of you that are in on the story...

How to: Survive being married to a professional student

It's not tricky really - you have have to keep the end goal in mind... and a least you're not the one actually doing the school work.


As most of you know my husband has been in dental school the last 4 years (And yes, I take credit for the 2.25 years that we were only dating) and is currently at the beginning of 3 years of Orthodontic school, which means I have and will have a lot of time to myself.  (There's only so much studying you can help with when you only understand half of what he's talking about.) Therefore, I have found a fool proof way of entertaining myself to survive the loneliness. 


1. Find a hobby
    Currently in the market for a new one myself... Crochet, Needle point, actually
    scrapbooking all the pictures I take?  We'll see.
2. Read a multiple books. 
     I highly recommend "The Help" and "Alice I Have Been" Plus anything that comes in a
     series... it's just easier to decide what to read next.
3. Get a dog
     As you can tell my the puppies have provided endless hours of entertainment for me.
     (You think teaching them to roll was easy?)
4. Watch an endless amount of chick-flicks
     Because you can without whining and you know you want to!
5. Take a nap
     Admit it you're tired when you get home from work.

So there you have it... 5 simple steps to leave your husband alone while he studies. Good luck!