Talented Friends – Boudoir Photo Shoot

This past weekend, I participated in a Boudoir Marathon and got some bedroom photos done for my husband. I know, I know. First thought is What? Why? But stop and think for a minute.

When was the last time you looked in the mirror and saw the whole picture. Not looking at your skin and wishing it clearer, firmer, or more even. Not looking at your stomach or your thighs and wishing they were smaller and more firm. When did you stop and look at how beautiful you are?

For me, it had been a while. I mean, I don’t even have a full length mirror anymore. That went away when the extra 15lbs joined the party. This photo shoot not only opened lines of communication between me and my hubby about our likes and dislikes, but we had a lot of fun picking out the outfits. This was a great way to see how my body has changed since I started running at the beginning of the year (good bye fat, hello sculpted thighs and 2 pack abs!).

My two very talented friends Mandy Leonards and Megan Alexis held the event. They rented a room at the Conrad with the help of Amanda Coffey (Social Catering Sales Manager for Conrad). It was a very nice bedroom, and a great bathroom with plenty of room for Megan to work. Megan did a great job of calming me down and making me feel beautiful and comfortable. Mandy is very discrete and worked only with what I was comfortable with. She makes me feel fabulous and had me laughing and enjoying myself in no time! The whole session I felt relaxed, beautiful, and it was a blast! I loved my sneak peek and Dan can’t wait to pick out his favorites for his book.

If you’re getting married, have an anniversary, or just want a way to spice things up a bit, I strongly recommend giving Mandy and Megan a call!

Travel to Seattle

“There's Emerald City! Oh, we're almost there at last! At last! It's beautiful, isn't it? Just like I knew it would be!”

Like Dorothy and many others, I was given the opportunity to go on a quick 4 day vacation to Emerald City with my mom. Sure, we were there to help celebrate Julia’s wedding, but, we spent most of our time visiting old sights.

Friday we first went to visit the old neighborhood. Not too much has changed, but everything seemed older. Over time my mom’s rose garden and the playhouse have been removed, but the fence my dad built still stands! It was sad to drive through the neighborhood where the Stephenson and Edwards Clan ran wild with none of them living there anymore.

Next, we headed up to Crossroads mall to grab some flowers. We were able to visit Jon Boy for a bit, before heading down to Bel Square to meet up with the Ellenhorn’s for lunch. Nothing makes you feel old like getting lunch with someone you used to baby sit who just finished their first year at college.

After lunch, we headed down to Seattle. The city has changed so much. There are so many new buildings, and a lot of the Native American culture has been driven out to make room for tourism. But, a lot has stayed the same.  We spent most of the afternoon at Pike Place Market. 

1st St Starbucks

That night we met up with Uncle for dinner and relaxation back in Bel Square. It’s always good to see family. We got to see his truck which is filled to the brim with any tool you could ever think of.

Saturday was the wedding. Mom went to the sealing while I relaxed back at the hotel. We headed back to Crossroads for a little shopping. We headed back to Seattle for lunch and to walk along the waterfront. All our favorite food places are still there. We didn’t get to go on a ferry, but we did find time for a ride on the carousel and to feed a few seagulls.

Saturday night we attended Julia’s reception. It was beautiful! It’s always great to see two wonderful people getting married. This was the first wedding reception where I didn’t have to go up to catch the bouquet. Thank God that humiliation is over!

Overall, the vacation was short, and being back home, it feels like just a dream.

“But it wasn't a dream. It was a place. And you - and you - and you - and you were there.”

Movie Review

One of mine and Dan’s favorite thing to do is go to the movies. We like looking at the movie posters, eating popcorn, and watching a movie on the big screen. Unfortunately with ticket prices up to $9.50/person we can’t do this as often. But, we recently signed up for NetFlix and here are some reviews for movies we’ve watched in the past couple weeks.

It Might Get Loud – This is a documentary of Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), The Edge (U2), and Jack White (White Stripes). Each guitarist talks about how they got into music, what inspires them, and how they make their distinct sound. They have a jam session at the end. As a music wanna be, this is a very cool movie. It’s not the type of movie where you eat a bowl of popcorn and settle in the for night, but it is good while you play a game of scrabble or boggle. If you like electric guitar, learning some music theory, and the creative process, this is a movie for you.

Rachel Getting Married – This was not what I thought it was going to be. I watched it while Dan was gone one night. I loved it. It follows a family as one daughter is getting out of rehab (Kym), again, and the other is getting married (Rachel). Stress is high, and it really shows the struggle the whole family goes through. This is a very honest, raw, and intimate movie. Tissues are needed, but in the end, you’ll want to call your sister/brother/mother/father to tell them how much you love them. I also have a new respect for Anne Hathaway for her role.

Splinterheads – This was a movie we tried because we could watch instantly. It captures two very different subcultures of a carnival worker, and a small town guy with no ambition. It is a rom-com, but it definitely funny when it could’ve been cheesy. This movie also features Geo-Cashing which I’ve been interested in doing for a while. It’s definitely a quirky movie, but we enjoyed it.

An Education – LOVE this movie. This is a definite chick flick. It follows a 16/17 year old girl (Jenny) and her first love (David, who happens to be in his 30’s), and what it means to be a woman in the 1960’s. It deals with the choice of love and college. Open a bottle of wine, get the popcorn. I’ll admit it gets a little slow at times and the end is really abrupt, but I loved it.

5K Training – Cinco de Mayo Hash

The past week and a half have been really hard on me. The heat and humidity is a stresser that I’m still adjusting to. Its become a mental game where I try to rationalize laying out in my hammock with a good book over running.

I’ve learned that I need to drink more water, and really watch what I eat to be sure I have the carbs needed for the heat. I’ve also learned that I need to work on my focus and I need to find a mantra to keep me going.

I ran my first 800’s last Thursday. They kicked my butt. My goal was to run 800 meters in under 5 min, with 5 min rest, 4 times. I started out too fast the 1st run. I worried more about the time then what my body was telling me. I was running at a good pace, but I had to quit after 400 meters. This was instantly frustrating. After walking the remaining 400 and resting 5 min, I ran the next 3 800s under 3.5min.

Looking back now I’m very proud that I pushed through and finished, but I know I can do better. Today I have 800’s again. I’m hoping to be better prepared today. I have my water, I have nothing to focus on except my time.

Yesterday I went to my 2nd hash. Dan couldn’t go because he had a MMA class, but I took one of our good friend’s, Clint, and he had a great time. After his g/f runs the mini on Saturday, he’s going to get her to come! Once you try it, you can’t quit!. Hashing makes running fun. It refreshes my outlook and gives me motivation. I found a true trail on one of the many boob checks (ugg, extra running if you’re not willing to you’re your tatas, which I’m not) and I’m very proud of myself. After talking to the other hashers at one of many Beer Checks (3 this time!), most of them have run mini’s, 5 and 10ks. So, I have a good network of support. They usually have a stand towards the end of the big races handing out beer. I’m hoping to learn from their experiences, and to lean on them for motivation when I have weeks like this. I’m really sad I’m going to miss the Prom Hash on the 15th. The count down to the 29th begins!

Developing a Green Thumb

Yesterday, I made my first plant purchase for our new house. I am very excited for these plants to come in! I ordered the following plants from Spring Hill Nursery, and got a great deal!  Everything except the vegetable garden was only $150.

We plan on putting the Three Season Garden in the front of the house in front of the music room window. Also, a lilac bush in front of the address block and on the side of the garage.

In the back, I’m going to put the Easy Care Shade Garden under the living room window, to the left of where the patio will go. I also bought a Purple Hydrangea to put by the corner where the kitchen is to frame the deck a little.

For the back tree line, I got 3 Hedge Rose bushes. Dan and I are going to dig up some Honey Suckle to put back there as well. This should help add some color a little lower. Plus, being so far from the house, this will keep the bees away from the deck.

I laid out our raised garden bed my mother-in-law got me for my birthday last year. I’m going to use it for our vegetable garden. Here is the layout I was thinking. Its only 4’x4’, but with only two of us, I think we will have plenty. I’m going to use the square foot method of planting.

The Tomatoes and herbs are in pots. I also ordered a Strawberry Kit.  Its an everberry so we should have strawberries all summer.

Hopefully we’ll be planting the vegetable garden this week/weekend and the flowers should be in between the 11th and 18th.

Wish me luck!

Cooking with Wine

As the seasons have shifted from winter to spring, I've struggled to get away from the soups, chili's, and other heavy meals that got us through the cold months.  Now that Farmer's Markets are opening up, and the nights are warm, its time to jazz up some old favorites, without spending time looking for new recipes.

Now, I prefer to use drinking wine over cooking wine, but I usually have a glass in hand as I cook.

Fish - As you are baking or grilling your favorite fish, drizzle a couple Tbls of your favorite wine pairing on top.  Or, if you prefer to pan sear, add a splash of wine to the pan.  I like to bake my fish.  Make a foil boat enclosing your fish and add your favorite wine.  Add a package of your favorite pre-mixed salad and some fruit, and you have a quick, easy, healthy, tasteful meal.

Slow Cooker - With the nice weather, who wants to stand at a stove making dinner, when you could be out enjoying the sun??  Cover the bottom of the slow cooker with wine, mix in your favorite herbs (I like the Lipton Secret Recipes Soup Mixes (onion or garlic and herb).  Add your favorite meat (be sure to coat the meat with the herbs).  Set it and forget it!

Marinades - Replace 1/2 of the oil used in your favorite marinade with wine.

Dessert - Replace 3/4 c of oil to your favorite cake mix with a dessert wine.  Yum.

Now a couple of my favorite wine recipies:

Apple Chicken in a Cream Sauce - This was inspired by Dr. John Berardi

Slice one apple.  The smaller the slices, the better.  I use my apple peeler/corer/slicer and it works great.  Lightly brown apples in sauce pan with butter.
Remove from pan.
Cook 2 strips of turkey bacon in separate pan.
In the same pan the apples were cooked in, brown 1lb of shopped chicken in EVOO.  The chicken doesn't need to be fully cooked, but just browned on all sides.
Add 1/4 c white wine to deglaze the pan.
Add 1/4 c of apple juice, water, or chicken broth and 1tsp of dried thyme ( use 2-3 tsp of fresh herbs), and cooked apples.
Reduce (boil heavy to reduce the liquid content, concentrating the flavors).
Remove from heat, and slowly add 1/3c of low fat plain yogurt.
Serve over rice and top with crumbled bacon. 

Oranges with Wine Sauce - Fantastic if put over chocolate ice-cream (sugar free of course)
In a sauce pan combine:
3c red wine
Juice from 1/2 orange
1/2 c splenda
1 stick cinnamon
Reduce over high heat until about 1 c remains (about 20 min).  Remove cinnamon stick.
Let coo1 (can stick in freezer at this point).
Stir in the zest from one orange.
Poor mixture over orange slices.


Feel free to share your favorite wine recipes, or your favorite wines!