98 degrees reunion

yep, you read that right.  rumor has it 98 degrees is making a come back and going on tour this summer.

98 degrees is near and dear to my heart because it was the first concert i ever went to back in 1998ish. they were at steamboat days and my mom was cool enough to take me and a few friends. i had a huge crush on nick lachey (i mean who didn't) and i remember them wearing matching red outfits, possibly the same ones they are pictured in to the right.

after all the fun calista and i had last summer at the nkotbsb reunion tour, this might have to make the list.  

n'sync you better be next...

what was your first concert? i doubt you can beat 98 degrees.

big money, big money

the italian riviera -- absolutely beautiful i'd love to see it for myself

how much fun is it to think about what you would do if you won the lottery? i know the likelihood is slim to none and you're more likely to get hit by lightning five times in one day (okay maybe not five times) but it still fun to dream. i proposed the question at our small group this week and it was so fascinating listening to everyone's responses.

here are a few of the items on my list:

hire a professional and live off the investments...duh.
pay off all of our debt and our families debt...how cool would that be?
create a charity fund...i love volunteering and would love to be able to provide for all the organizations near and dear to my heart.
travel...going back to europe would be first on my list and then off to all 50 states i'd go.
work at a coffee shop...i'd probably sponsor free coffee tuesday or something crazy like that.

what would you do if you won $540 million dollars?

tasty lunch

today for lunch you could say i went slightly overboard and that might be an understatement. it was all insanely delicious.

next week i will hit the gym...

original taco from tasty tacos

krispos also from tasty tacos

vanilla custard from classic frozen custard on se 14th

weekly menu posting

sunday: roast pork with creamy peas and mashed potatoes -- this dish reminds me of home.

monday: mexican risotto -- i love mexican food and i love risotto so i can't wait to try this out.

tuesday: oven roasted tilapia with parmesan-roasted broccoli with pine nuts -- i have some delicious tilapia from costco that you just throw in the oven, super easy and super good for you.

wednesday: spaghetti with herbed garlic bread -- i am a sucker for spaghetti and i love how simple and quick it is for an week night meal.

thursday:  sirloin with teriyaki broth -- probably the most interesting item on the menu this week, i found it while searching for healthy recipes so we'll see how it turns out.

friday: honey-glazed chicken wings and macaroni and cheese with corn-- my friend lucas makes this corn mac dish the best and mine doesn't even come close to his. 

saturday: dinner out -- location tba.

cheers to a lovely week!

remote overload

after a delightful lunch and some shopping with nicole today, i had the rare opportunity to have the house all to myself to watch SATC while Jared was away golfing today but had no clue how to operate the dvd player. ugh. i will definitely need to schedule a lesson when he gets home. how is a normal person supposed to know how to watch a movie with this many remotes?

i thought that is fine, it is a nice day i'll go lay out and get some sun, think again. there is a 5-year-old superhero birthday party going on across the fence and didn't think it would be right to blind them with my pasty white skin. time for a back up plan, perfect i'll read a book outside. well after a few pages, a wasp appeared and got way too close for comfort on more than one occasion. in i came.

so here i am, blogging it is.

WDM crime beat

as i was reading the paper this morning i couldn't help but look at the crime report for west des moines and think how hilarious.  now i know bad things can happen anywhere and serious crime does occasionally happen in wdm but 99% of the crimes listed were alcohol related.

here are my top three favorites:

 3. 5625 Mills Civic Parkway, March 16 — A 23-year-old Osceola man lying in the grass next to First Bank was arrested for public intoxication. He had spent the evening drinking at Wellman’s Pub.

2. 7275 Wistful Vista, March 16 — A 23-year-old Adel man was arrested for driving under the influence. He was found passed out in his car in the Burger King drive-through lane.

1. 6500 block of Vista Drive, March 18 — A resident reported that someone entered her apartment by pushing in a screen window while she and her two daughters slept. The person took some toys, ate half of a box of popsicles and drank a bottle of orange juice.

when you're in a bind

last week i realized i had something green smack dab in the middle of my two front teeth.  i attempted to get it out by swishing water around in my mouth, no luck.  then i went onto using my finger nail, nope, still there. i went onto a paper towel, nada.  i asked my friend kate if she had any dental floss, no go.  but she did share a genius solution with me...use a piece of your hair.

what do you know, it worked perfectly, just like a piece of floss. 

i know it sounds gross but i had just washed my hair that morning and her brother is a doctor and he is the one that shared it with her so it can't be that bad for you, right?

you'll thank me later.

rabbits, squinnies and bees...oh my

spring has sprung.  look what else showed up this weekend, i hope the warm weather is here to stay:

my chives are growing like crazy.

the flowers are coming up, hopefully the frost stays away.

and yep the weeds even made their first appearance.

time to pull out the patio furniture and put away the snow blower.

weekly menu posting

after a crazy busy week i'm excited to get back into a routine and some home cooking.  while i love eating out, there is just something fun about coming home trying a new recipe and enjoying your hard work all while having leftovers for lunch the next day.

here is this week's menu:

sunday: pizza margherita -- whenever i see this kind of pizza on a menu i always think it looks fantastic but end up passing it up for a more interesting flavor combination, but today is the today and i'm going to try it out for myself.

monday: confetti chicken pasta -- i'm going to fudge on this recipe some and take advantage of the fresh produce i already have.

tuesday: i'm volunteering so watch for me on IPTV and as a thank you they provide dinner.

wednesday: grilled chicken with pineapple and garlic herb potatoes -- this recipe is actually for a sandwich but i'm going to skip the bun and save a few calories.

thursday: lemon basil orzotto -- this recipe is from a chef, kelsey nixon, i just loved on next food network star a few years ago, she didn't make the final cut but she now has her on show on cooking channel. looking forward to trying this out, orzo is one of my favorite things!

friday: dinner out -- location TBA, maybe india star but i'm open to suggestions.

saturday: steak on the grill and sweet potato fries

apple crisp : recipe recap

my mom makes the best apple crisp EVER. i know people think their mom's whatever is the best just because it is their mom's but here i am not lying, it is delicious. her recipe is super easy and tastes incredible.

don't worry i called and asked her permission prior to posting.

apple crisp recipe:

 8 cups sliced apples (peeled)
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons flour

mix together and pour into 9x13 pan (sprayed with pam) or a baking stone.

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup butter (softened)

mix together until crumbled and pour over apples.

bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes. 

sewing kit

i am not a sewer. period. to prove my point i will share a short story with you.

in 8th grade home ec class we were tasked with sewing a football together, well i sewed mine inside out. how...i have no idea. my teacher got so frustrated instead of showing me how to fix it, she just did it for me. from that moment i just gave up on sewing.  probably not the best attitude but it is the truth.

thankfully jared knows how to sew on buttons but anything more complicated than that either needs to go to a tailor or my mom. well this past weekend my mom was in town and i had a tank that needed fixed. i asked her if she could help or if i needed to bring it to the tailor, silly question.  she couldn't believe i couldn't fix it myself and then asked to see my sewing box. well that's just say my "sewing box" is more like a sewing kit.  it contains the bare essentials and i still have no idea what to do with it.

maybe this can be the one thing i learn how to do this year...emphasis on the maybe.  

thanks mom for taking care of me for now.

scu graduation

after months of training it is finally here, graduation day! since august i've been in an intense training program  learning to become a commercial underwriter. i have learned so much and have been given so many amazing opportunities.  i am thankful every day for this job and i can't wait to dive in and get to know my agents and territory.

cheers to a new beginnings.

thankful

how does that saying go.."march comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb?" well i can't wait to see what the rest of the month has to offer.

i'm so thankful for the warm temps and sunshine.  it is not too often you can have the windows open and see 70 plus on the thermometer in march. 

now i'm a realist and understand it could snow next week but for now i will enjoy every moment.

bring on spring. 

cupcake atm

this is old news but i still have to share (i've been a little behind on the blogging lately.)

sprinkles now has a cupcake atm, how fun is that! i follow them on twitter and they said there has been no wait for their LA bakery but the cupcake atm has had a line around the block.  it has been dispensing 1,000 cupcakes a day. wow.

cannot wait for our next trip to LA!

state basketball

this weekend we had the opportunity to cheer on our hometown, mount pleasant, in the boys state basketball championship game (first time since 1918.)  it was a nail biter but we won in double overtime. it was great watching the whole community come together to cheer the panthers on and it was fun seeing so much maroon and gold in des moines. in other good news for the third year in a row, mp took home the sportsmanship trophy. 

i dug out an old mp basketball shirt to wear to the game but my mom vetoed it, apparently after 10 years some things should be retired.

weekly menu posting

i'm sad to report no menu this week. it is a crazy busy week for me so jared will have to fend for himself, thankfully he has a freezer full of leftovers to choose from.

sunday: popcorn, cheese, pickles and olives -- growing up this was a regular sunday evening meal minus the olives.

monday-thursday: dinner with my fellow scu participants.

friday: pizza night with g&l.

saturday: st. patrick's day outing with our life group.

riDQulous savings

dairy queen is offering a great deal in the month of march, buy one blizzard get the second for $0.99.  yes please. what better way to celebrate the warm weather today than with a blizzard and at a discount to make things even sweeter.

i went with the banana split blizzard while jared chose the mint oreo (on a side note, did you know oreo turned 100 today? happy birthday oreo!) 

yummo.

weekly menu posting

sunday: greek salsa chicken -- i think i need to stop planning meals for friday evenings.  it is hard to get motivated to come home and cook a meal on a friday.  no biggie though, we just moved last friday's meal to tonight.

monday: skillet lasagna -- while i love a traditional lasagna, this will be the perfect week night alternative.

tuesday: slow-cooker cheesy chicken and rice -- this looks amazing, i sure hope it turns out because i am pretty excited to try this recipe. (pictured to the left.)

wednesday: p.f.chang's knock off lettuce wraps -- every time i've frequented p.f. chang's i've ordered the lettuce wraps.  they are incredible.  i have high expectations for this one.

thursday: gusto or jimmy john's -- i have to bartend so we'll grab a quick meal out before i have to head to work.

friday: dinner out -- location is still tba, but i'm learning from experience and planning a meal out on friday.

saturday: cheeseburger soup -- whenever i go to smokey row, i always order the cheeseburger soup so when i saw this recipe i thought immediately of that delicious soup.