So-for my sister who is being adventurous with new recipes, this post is for you.
: o )
Today, Chris is going to be flying most of the day, so I am lounging around the house a bit until the temperature reaches a modest 60 degrees or so and I can go out in the warmth to grocery shop and run errands.
At the end of the week, it seems like there are lots of left overs...and what are you to do with them all? Today, our fridge contained the following left overs:
roast
potatoes from the roast
corn
cauliflower
And what am I going to make for breakfast? I haven't ventured out yet today, although it is starting to warm up. Chris had cereal (which I have had all week) and the milk was running low...and I wanted something else. So, we happened to have some tortillas and eggs, so I threw a portion size of the above ingredients into a pan and made breakfast burritos. YUMMY! Top it all off with a little A1 and some cheese...and I am ready to run some errands.
Also, Chris decided that he wanted to make some beef jerky today too. I just put it in the oven to dry for the day, so we'll see how it turns out. Although-it smells REALLY good!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Christmas Break Part 4 of 4
The next couple of days through new years, we saw family and friends and enjoyed not being in the car. (we did a LOT of driving!)
January 2nd we went to Joplin, MO to visit a friend/past coworker of Chris’. Then we hopped up to Kansas City that night to tie up a few loose ends there and spend Saturday with a few friends. Saturday afternoon we took one giant leap back down to Wichita. We were tired that night. Sunday was a big day though-at least for me!
Karen had her 1st bridal fair booth. I went as a “past bride,” as she photographed our wedding. It was fun, and I hope will be good business for her in the future. That evening, I was exhausted. We had a quick dinner, and Chris and I loaded up in the car and came home. I had to work the next morning.
Overall, it was so great to see everyone and enjoy the time off. I like this whole paid holiday thing too! It was great to be paid to not work. : o ) Well, 1600 miles and about 24 hours (total for the entire trip) in the car later, we arrived safely back in Stillwater, OK.
January 2nd we went to Joplin, MO to visit a friend/past coworker of Chris’. Then we hopped up to Kansas City that night to tie up a few loose ends there and spend Saturday with a few friends. Saturday afternoon we took one giant leap back down to Wichita. We were tired that night. Sunday was a big day though-at least for me!
Karen had her 1st bridal fair booth. I went as a “past bride,” as she photographed our wedding. It was fun, and I hope will be good business for her in the future. That evening, I was exhausted. We had a quick dinner, and Chris and I loaded up in the car and came home. I had to work the next morning.
Overall, it was so great to see everyone and enjoy the time off. I like this whole paid holiday thing too! It was great to be paid to not work. : o ) Well, 1600 miles and about 24 hours (total for the entire trip) in the car later, we arrived safely back in Stillwater, OK.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Hot Cocoa on a Cold Day
Yesterday OSU closed at 2pm : ) That meant that i got to go home too! Unfortunately, the ice had built up on my windshield, so i have a good 20-30 minutes of scraping to do before i could even see to go home. Oh, and for all of you out there who don't know...that wind shield washing fluid stuff that is supposed to melt ice off your wind shield...only works for MINIMAL amounts of ice...not the 1/4 inch i was attempting to melt away with it. Needless to say, there was a nice orange puddle by my car after I realized that the ice was not merely going to melt away with this magical orange stuff. Oh well...Chris got a laugh out of it.
After hand-numbing, scraping, I managed to make it home. Although, I missed the turn the first time into where we live. It's amazing how Oklahoma's small hills are big enough to allow minimal braking action when it's slick outside. There is a stop light maybe 1/4 mile from our house. I began slowly from that stop light, going only about 10 to 15 mph. As I attempted to slow to about 5 mph, it became obvious to me that I was not going to be able to stop on the small slope the street had. So, i decided to keep going, and take a turn around up the road and safely come into our street. When I arrived home, my WONDERFUL husband had made me warm chocolate chip cookies! (what a sweetie!)
Last night we sat in our office with our mini heater on (as our house does not stay warm all that well....man I can't wait until we don't rent anymore!) We have a big window in our office, and in-between working on scholarship applications and Chris working on his class, we gazed out the window and watched the cars inch by. One car even got stuck in the ditch : ( Chris said that he didn't see them move or anything, so we bundled up to see if they were ok. The lady inside the car was fine and assured us that her husband was on the way and a tow truck would be there later too. We told her she could come on over if she wanted, but she stayed in her car for awhile until her bladder told her she should take us up on our offer. So we chatted in our office for awhile until her husband showed up. Before too long, the truck was there and they were on their way.
This morning, I awoke to my alarm at the usual time, then remembered that school might be cancelled. Chris checked his email on his phone (how handy!) and YUP-no school or work today! Hehe...I joked with my boss that we should stay home when the weather is cold and yucky....I guess we get to today!
So here I am, typing away and sipping on some hot cocoa (coco? hmm...what is the right spelling?!) I noticed that on the Nestle individual packages that i use there are different recipes on them. Yesterday i saw one for a chilled mocha. Today's packet had "Mexican Hot Chocolate". Hmm....i thought....What is that? Well, i decided to give it a shot. It's contains:
one packet of cocoa mix
1/4 tsp of cinnamon
and 1/4 tsp of vanilla
It's quite yummy. I highly recommend it. It reminds me of the hot chocolate mom and i had on a canoe trip in Minnesota when i was in high school.
So, Cheers my friends! I hope you all stay warm and enjoy a cup of "Mexican Hot Chocolate" today.
After hand-numbing, scraping, I managed to make it home. Although, I missed the turn the first time into where we live. It's amazing how Oklahoma's small hills are big enough to allow minimal braking action when it's slick outside. There is a stop light maybe 1/4 mile from our house. I began slowly from that stop light, going only about 10 to 15 mph. As I attempted to slow to about 5 mph, it became obvious to me that I was not going to be able to stop on the small slope the street had. So, i decided to keep going, and take a turn around up the road and safely come into our street. When I arrived home, my WONDERFUL husband had made me warm chocolate chip cookies! (what a sweetie!)
Last night we sat in our office with our mini heater on (as our house does not stay warm all that well....man I can't wait until we don't rent anymore!) We have a big window in our office, and in-between working on scholarship applications and Chris working on his class, we gazed out the window and watched the cars inch by. One car even got stuck in the ditch : ( Chris said that he didn't see them move or anything, so we bundled up to see if they were ok. The lady inside the car was fine and assured us that her husband was on the way and a tow truck would be there later too. We told her she could come on over if she wanted, but she stayed in her car for awhile until her bladder told her she should take us up on our offer. So we chatted in our office for awhile until her husband showed up. Before too long, the truck was there and they were on their way.
This morning, I awoke to my alarm at the usual time, then remembered that school might be cancelled. Chris checked his email on his phone (how handy!) and YUP-no school or work today! Hehe...I joked with my boss that we should stay home when the weather is cold and yucky....I guess we get to today!
So here I am, typing away and sipping on some hot cocoa (coco? hmm...what is the right spelling?!) I noticed that on the Nestle individual packages that i use there are different recipes on them. Yesterday i saw one for a chilled mocha. Today's packet had "Mexican Hot Chocolate". Hmm....i thought....What is that? Well, i decided to give it a shot. It's contains:
one packet of cocoa mix
1/4 tsp of cinnamon
and 1/4 tsp of vanilla
It's quite yummy. I highly recommend it. It reminds me of the hot chocolate mom and i had on a canoe trip in Minnesota when i was in high school.
So, Cheers my friends! I hope you all stay warm and enjoy a cup of "Mexican Hot Chocolate" today.
Christmas Break Part 3 of 4
We left on December 28, our 1st Anniversary!!! We drove to Hutchinson, Kansas where we stayed in a Bed and Breakfast. It was a nice drive and a great little place to spend the night remembering our wedding the previous year.
The next day, we were supposed to visit some friends in Wichita, but those plans fell through, so we made a quick adjustment and drove to Salina to visit my old roommate, as well as my sister and her husband. It was so great to see them all. Oh, and Karen always has something right up my alley when I come to visit. She said she had a “project” for me. I know how some of Karen’s projects are—ask Erik and take a tour of her “house project.” : ) She assured me that it was a small one, and would be no big deal. She was right…it was painting some small canvases…so I’m interested to see how they turn out when they are put up. DISCLAIMER: I am nor have ever been an artist. But I can sure spread some colors around on canvas and make them look ok-or at least I think so! But I do not plan on taking up that type of a job any time soon.
That night we drove to Wichita to have Christmas with my family. After Carl got off of work, we began the exchange. I was so excited when Carl opened the present from Chris and I (yes—Chris too, he was my moral support when I was going insane working on this big project). See Quilt Below:
I have had this project in progress since I graduated high school in 2004! Suddenly, I was in college and busy…amazing how life can really get away from your projects that you started once upon a time. When we were living in KC, I decided that I would have time to work on it again and that Christmas 2008, was the year I was going to finish it. So on the evening of December 25, 2008, I completed Carl’s Quilt. (With the Help of my mother in law!) Carol hand-stitched the patch for me. THANKS CAROL!!
The next day, we were supposed to visit some friends in Wichita, but those plans fell through, so we made a quick adjustment and drove to Salina to visit my old roommate, as well as my sister and her husband. It was so great to see them all. Oh, and Karen always has something right up my alley when I come to visit. She said she had a “project” for me. I know how some of Karen’s projects are—ask Erik and take a tour of her “house project.” : ) She assured me that it was a small one, and would be no big deal. She was right…it was painting some small canvases…so I’m interested to see how they turn out when they are put up. DISCLAIMER: I am nor have ever been an artist. But I can sure spread some colors around on canvas and make them look ok-or at least I think so! But I do not plan on taking up that type of a job any time soon.
That night we drove to Wichita to have Christmas with my family. After Carl got off of work, we began the exchange. I was so excited when Carl opened the present from Chris and I (yes—Chris too, he was my moral support when I was going insane working on this big project). See Quilt Below:
I have had this project in progress since I graduated high school in 2004! Suddenly, I was in college and busy…amazing how life can really get away from your projects that you started once upon a time. When we were living in KC, I decided that I would have time to work on it again and that Christmas 2008, was the year I was going to finish it. So on the evening of December 25, 2008, I completed Carl’s Quilt. (With the Help of my mother in law!) Carol hand-stitched the patch for me. THANKS CAROL!!
Monday, January 26, 2009
Christmas Break Part 2 of 4
Also, while we were there, we did take some time to be tourists. We went to the Leoti museum. It had lots of history from when the town was founded. They even had a room which was a more “modern Leoti,” which housed uniforms, yearbooks, etc. from the high school from the past and today. It was actually a cool museum for such a small town. I really enjoyed going through it.
We also went to see the little chapel out by our friend, Kirk’s house. His grandpa built it after a war that he fought in. The story is that he promised God that if God would allow him to survive the war and make it home, he would make a chapel and dedicate it to God. This is just a small little chapel. It only has a couple of pews, on each side, and just enough to have a small group of people gathered there.
When Chris and I were looking at places to get married, we considered getting married there, in this small chapel-as we originally wanted a very small wedding. However, we decided that in December, weather was not always very promising, and then where would we have thrown the party? So, we just decided that we would come and visit it another time instead of being married there.
We enjoyed our time visiting family and friends in Leoti, but sadly the time went quickly and it was time for us to head out.
We also went to see the little chapel out by our friend, Kirk’s house. His grandpa built it after a war that he fought in. The story is that he promised God that if God would allow him to survive the war and make it home, he would make a chapel and dedicate it to God. This is just a small little chapel. It only has a couple of pews, on each side, and just enough to have a small group of people gathered there.
When Chris and I were looking at places to get married, we considered getting married there, in this small chapel-as we originally wanted a very small wedding. However, we decided that in December, weather was not always very promising, and then where would we have thrown the party? So, we just decided that we would come and visit it another time instead of being married there.
We enjoyed our time visiting family and friends in Leoti, but sadly the time went quickly and it was time for us to head out.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Chris is an ATP PILOT!!!!!
I am the proud wife of not only Chris Laws, but also an ATP pilot. (Airline Transport Pilot)
So...what does that mean? In "English" (non pilot gibberish) that means he can now fly large turbine airplanes with LOTS of people. If he wanted to fly for the airlines today, he could-he would just have to get trained in the aircraft that particular airline flies. However, he doesn't plan on working for the airlines anytime soon.
Yesterday we went to Tulsa, OK for his check ride (check ride is that fancy term pilots use for holy test of terror...aka Final for a particular rating). It is a MUCH shorter trip when you fly, especially in a plane that goes around 180 mph. (we drive to Tulsa once a week and it takes around an hour and ten minutes to get there...the flight was only like 30 minutes or less! Man, if we could only fly there every week! Some day....!)
I hung out at the airport while Chris was working hard, I was working on homework. I think I had the easier job yesterday...but I cannot say that I have my ATP either. : ( Chris tells me that I can still say "I'm not old enough yet," as applicants have to be at least 23 years of age...I have 6 months...I better get to flying and build up some time : ) I only have about 700 hours to go...hmm...!
Chris' check ride started at 1pm and he was done by around 4:30. All check rides have an oral portion where the examiner asks the applicant questions about the airplane, etc. that is associated with the particular rating the applicant is going for. Chris said that he is always more nervous for the flight, as there is more that can go wrong there... wind, traffic, bad flying day, etc. I, on the other hand, dislike the oral portion, as there are SO many things that the examiner can ask...but on a good note, by the check ride, I SHOULD know the answer!
While Chris and the examiner were out flying, I worked on homework, talked with Theresa and a few others for a bit. (Theresa was in Tulsa for a country concert...I was jealous we didn't get tickets too!) I also got a text from one of my students who I sent up with another flight instructor for the day (as i couldn't fly with him b/c i was in Tulsa with Chris all day). My student said that he passed Chris while he was flying! I was like..huh? It ended up that my student took a short cross country to Tulsa, where Chris was taking his check ride. They all happened to be talking to the same controller while flying! It's a small world...a little too small sometimes!
Overall, it was a great day. The weather was perfect and Chris could not be happier that he was finished with his FINAL pilot rating. (yup...that's right...no more to go for him! He describes the ATP like a PHD for pilots as far as ratings go)
Chris even let me fly home : )
So...what does that mean? In "English" (non pilot gibberish) that means he can now fly large turbine airplanes with LOTS of people. If he wanted to fly for the airlines today, he could-he would just have to get trained in the aircraft that particular airline flies. However, he doesn't plan on working for the airlines anytime soon.
Yesterday we went to Tulsa, OK for his check ride (check ride is that fancy term pilots use for holy test of terror...aka Final for a particular rating). It is a MUCH shorter trip when you fly, especially in a plane that goes around 180 mph. (we drive to Tulsa once a week and it takes around an hour and ten minutes to get there...the flight was only like 30 minutes or less! Man, if we could only fly there every week! Some day....!)
I hung out at the airport while Chris was working hard, I was working on homework. I think I had the easier job yesterday...but I cannot say that I have my ATP either. : ( Chris tells me that I can still say "I'm not old enough yet," as applicants have to be at least 23 years of age...I have 6 months...I better get to flying and build up some time : ) I only have about 700 hours to go...hmm...!
Chris' check ride started at 1pm and he was done by around 4:30. All check rides have an oral portion where the examiner asks the applicant questions about the airplane, etc. that is associated with the particular rating the applicant is going for. Chris said that he is always more nervous for the flight, as there is more that can go wrong there... wind, traffic, bad flying day, etc. I, on the other hand, dislike the oral portion, as there are SO many things that the examiner can ask...but on a good note, by the check ride, I SHOULD know the answer!
While Chris and the examiner were out flying, I worked on homework, talked with Theresa and a few others for a bit. (Theresa was in Tulsa for a country concert...I was jealous we didn't get tickets too!) I also got a text from one of my students who I sent up with another flight instructor for the day (as i couldn't fly with him b/c i was in Tulsa with Chris all day). My student said that he passed Chris while he was flying! I was like..huh? It ended up that my student took a short cross country to Tulsa, where Chris was taking his check ride. They all happened to be talking to the same controller while flying! It's a small world...a little too small sometimes!
Overall, it was a great day. The weather was perfect and Chris could not be happier that he was finished with his FINAL pilot rating. (yup...that's right...no more to go for him! He describes the ATP like a PHD for pilots as far as ratings go)
Chris even let me fly home : )
Christmas Break Part 1 of 4
It seems like time has flown by since Christmas! Let me back up and go from my last post. We spent Christmas in Leoti, KS with Chris’ family. We had a great time and really enjoyed being able to just chill after working hard all semester. It was nice to have nothing to do. Although, I did learn a few new tricks of the trade of being a Laws:
1. Sugar goes in lots of things that I have not put sugar in before
2. ish is a good measurement.
I learned to make “real” cinnamon rolls while I was there. I have made them before with my dad, but I don’t think I ever made the dough from scratch. There is a reason for this: I don’t do the yeast rising thing too well. : o )
After throwing all the ingredients in together, and mushing it with my hands for a good 10 minutes or so, I was wishing it was Christmas evening I was doing this instead of Dec. 24 (we got Carol a Kitchen Aid and there was a dough-hook attachment for kneading the dough! Boy I wanted to break that out of the box…but I restrained.) Needless to say, the first batch did not turn out : - ( and Carol had to remake the dough…she kindly said it could have been the yeast, but I think it was the “Robin” factor. (hence the reason I usually don’t make things with yeast in them…they just don’t seem to rise properly…?!)
After she made the fresh batch of dough, I helped cinnamon and sugar, roll them up, cut them, and sugar the pan, followed by putting them in the pan for baking. AND-then they had to rise again….I’m too impatient for that…so I think I’ll stick to the ones in the can, and you can keep the icing. But I did appreciate the learning process to validate the reason I usually make cinnamon rolls from the can : o )
Another thing I learned to make is the famed “Chicken and Noodles.” Chris said he almost couldn’t marry me because I did not know how to make this…but he was willing to make an exception! Tee hee-Lucky me! So to go along with Carol’s Christmas present, Terry got her the attachment for making noodles. So, back to dough-making we went-but this time, NO YEAST! This will be swell, I thought!
I got a good chuckle out of watching Carol during this process. I put the ingredients in the Kitchen Aid Mixer and she supervised, and threw some things in here and there. We put the machine to mixing…and every now and then she would stop it and feel the dough. She said she was a bit nervous about making it with the mixer because she has only ever made it by hand and won’t know when the dough is right. THIS IS WHERE THE 2nd thing I learned comes into play: the “ish” measurement. The measurements would never be exact, therefore it was always-“ish”—like 1 1/2 cups-ish. Or “oh that looks good.” I have hard time knowing when or how to make something when the “ish” is good enough…or did I need more? But she set me straight, and the dough came out all right. Before long we were rolling out the dough with the new attachment. All in all, the dish came out well and the noodles were quite delicious. Carol wonders why she didn’t get one of those years ago…it hardly took any time or effort to make the dough and the noodles!
1. Sugar goes in lots of things that I have not put sugar in before
2. ish is a good measurement.
I learned to make “real” cinnamon rolls while I was there. I have made them before with my dad, but I don’t think I ever made the dough from scratch. There is a reason for this: I don’t do the yeast rising thing too well. : o )
After throwing all the ingredients in together, and mushing it with my hands for a good 10 minutes or so, I was wishing it was Christmas evening I was doing this instead of Dec. 24 (we got Carol a Kitchen Aid and there was a dough-hook attachment for kneading the dough! Boy I wanted to break that out of the box…but I restrained.) Needless to say, the first batch did not turn out : - ( and Carol had to remake the dough…she kindly said it could have been the yeast, but I think it was the “Robin” factor. (hence the reason I usually don’t make things with yeast in them…they just don’t seem to rise properly…?!)
After she made the fresh batch of dough, I helped cinnamon and sugar, roll them up, cut them, and sugar the pan, followed by putting them in the pan for baking. AND-then they had to rise again….I’m too impatient for that…so I think I’ll stick to the ones in the can, and you can keep the icing. But I did appreciate the learning process to validate the reason I usually make cinnamon rolls from the can : o )
Another thing I learned to make is the famed “Chicken and Noodles.” Chris said he almost couldn’t marry me because I did not know how to make this…but he was willing to make an exception! Tee hee-Lucky me! So to go along with Carol’s Christmas present, Terry got her the attachment for making noodles. So, back to dough-making we went-but this time, NO YEAST! This will be swell, I thought!
I got a good chuckle out of watching Carol during this process. I put the ingredients in the Kitchen Aid Mixer and she supervised, and threw some things in here and there. We put the machine to mixing…and every now and then she would stop it and feel the dough. She said she was a bit nervous about making it with the mixer because she has only ever made it by hand and won’t know when the dough is right. THIS IS WHERE THE 2nd thing I learned comes into play: the “ish” measurement. The measurements would never be exact, therefore it was always-“ish”—like 1 1/2 cups-ish. Or “oh that looks good.” I have hard time knowing when or how to make something when the “ish” is good enough…or did I need more? But she set me straight, and the dough came out all right. Before long we were rolling out the dough with the new attachment. All in all, the dish came out well and the noodles were quite delicious. Carol wonders why she didn’t get one of those years ago…it hardly took any time or effort to make the dough and the noodles!
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