List of 4's

Tammy tagged everyone on a list of 4's.... and you all know that we Dais girls can't past up a list form!

FOUR JOBS I HAVE HAD IN MY LIFE
1. Microsoft eLearning Curriculum Coordinator
2. Middle/High School English Teacher
3. Counselor at juvenile delinquent center
4. Radio/DJ personality (ok, that only lasted for 1 night until I realized I wasn't cut out for it - but I did have paid training for 3 weeks)

FOUR MOVIES I HAVE WATCHED OVER AND OVER
1. Dead Poets Society
2. To Kill a Mockingbird
3. 12 Dancing Princesses (thank you Campbelle)
4. Coyote Ugly (just kidding, that ones out there for Kelly!!)

FOUR PLACES I HAVE LIVED
1. Issaquah, WA
2. Fargo, ND
3. Pierre, SD
4. Brookings, SD

FOUR TV SHOWS I LIKE TO WATCH
1. Lost
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. Rome
4. Entourage

FOUR WEBSITES I VISIT DAILY
1. Quadrant Homes showroom (just a recent interest)
2. All the blogs on my site... plus a few others that I've webbed to
3. windows.live.com (not nearly as catchy as google.com... but thanks to Leif, Google is banned on our computer)
4. wikipedia.org

FOUR PLACES I HAVE BEEN ON VACATION
1. Italy (Tuscany and Venice)
2. Spain (all over)
3. London
4. Nantucket Island

FOUR OF MY FAVORITE FOODS
1. spicy chicken curry
2. rainbow sushi rolls
3. pizza (just about any kind will do)
4. ice cream (just about any kind will do)

FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE RIGHT NOW
I'm pretty good where I'm at right now, just got back from a great celebration dinner for my sister's birthday, great babysitter, kids in bed sleeping sweetly, about to relax with my favorite guy.... but if I had to pick...
1. India
2. Asia
3. Hawaii
4. St. Michael, Mn - I'm getting a bit homesick for the Gallagher clan

You're all tagged...

The Year of the Boar!

Ever since checking out a book at the library about celebrating Chinese New Year (about 8 months ago), Campbelle has been obsessed with the holiday and most things 'Chinese looking.' Now whether she gets this interest of all things Asian from her mother and her farmor, or if she's just attracted to the colors... she finally got her wish to celebrate a Chinese New Year. We went to Seattle's Chinatown this afternoon for the Lunar New Year festival. It was really colorful and beautiful. The kids really liked to see all the dragon dancers and hear the rhythmic beating from the drum. They were however, not crazy about the really loud firecrackers.Afterwards, we eat long noodles and chocolate coins to bring us long luck and good fortune. And now, according to Campbelle's library book, I should really clean my house and get rid of any bad luck of this past year....we'll see if that gets done.

Great Cookbook

You guys all know that I really love to cook and try new recipes, and I've recently gotten a new cookbook that I absolutley love. It's from the authors of Cooks Illustrated magazine and the PBS TV show America's Test Kitchen. It contains over 1200 recipes with tons of color pictures as well as really useful tester information about certain equipment and food products. It has been my 'go to' cookbook for everyday cooking.

Here are some really good, quick pasta recipes that we've recently tried.... and were goobled up by everyone - even Christian!!

Skillet Chili Mac
3 tbs vegetable oil
1 lb ground beef (I used ground turkey and was very good - and healthier)
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
salt pepper
4 garlic cloves
1 tbl chili powder
1 tbl cumin
8 oz macaroni (2 cups)
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15oz) can tomato puree
1 cup water
1 tbl brown sugar
8 oz Colby cheese, shredded

1. heat oil and brown beef. Once fully cooked, drain and set aside.
2. heat oil, onion, bell pepper, and salt. cook until tender
3. stir in garlic, chili powder, cumin and cook until fragrant. Stir in macaroni, tomatoes with juices, puree, water and brown sugar and drained beef. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to md-low and continue to simmer until noodles are tender, about 20 minutes.
4. Salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle cheese over top. Cover and set off heat until cheese melt about 3 mintues.

To add some extra kick, increase chili powder and add red pepper flakes.


Orecchiette with Broccoli, Sausage, and Roasted Red Peppers
4 oz sweet of hot Italian sausage
1 jar (12oz) roasted red peppers, chopped
6 garlic cloves
1 bunch broccoli, cut into florets
salt
1/2 cup water
1 lb orecciette (or other chewy pasta like campanelle or conch shells)
2 oz (1 cup) grated pecorino romano or parmesan cheese
1 tbl extra virgin olive oil

1. boil water, add pasta
2. cook sausage and break into small pieces (casings need to be removed if bought in links). Stir in red pepper and garlic. Cook until fragrant - 15 seconds.
Stire in broccoli, 1/2 tsp salt, and water. Increase the heat to high, cover and cook until broccoli is bright green (2 minutes). Uncover and stir until water is evaporated - 5minutes longer.
4. Drain pasta and add to sausage mixture. Add cheese, oil and toss to coat.

If you are looking for a good, everyday cookbook - I would highly recommed this one.

Happy Valentine's Day

Leif surprised Campbelle with a rose tonight when he got home from work. She was so excited and exclaimed 'Oh, it's just what I've always wanted for Valentine's Day." She later told us that she thinks she enjoys Valentine's Day even more than Christmas (this after she got to eat heart shaped waffles for dinner, a chocolate cupcake for dessert and some heart shaped candy....hmm, seems its the sweets she likes).

Captain Underpants.. the Bus Driver

Just a quiet Sunday morning bus ride. But notice Christian's clothes... this is his version of dress up. He has recently decided that princess dresses where not his style, but insisted on wanting to get dressed in 'something else' than just his regular clothes. So he now has his own dress up box of clothes that consist of boxer shorts and various other types of underwear, a 'wife-beater' Justice League undershirt, and an assortment of other undergarments. He usually likes to pretend he's a superhero when dressing up... so we'll call him 'Captain Underpants'.

The Killers newest fans!

NRN (No Response Necessary) :-)

Sister Tammy has a post today about all the acronyms that are floating around out there in the highly tech savvy planet of ours (at least for those of us under the age of 30) and she has challenged us to figure out what some of them mean. Since I am not young and hip and clueless about this chat lingo, here is my lame attempt:

1. IMHO PEBCAK... I Might Help Out - Please Erase Bad Chi After Karate

2. ROTFLOLAPMP.... Running Out To Fill Lots Of Loving Alcohol Per My Party or Rolling On The Floor Laughing Out Loud And Peeing My Pants

3. WIBAMU ....What If Boys Are Massively Ugly?

4. TTFN LYMY.... Ta Ta For Now - Love You My Yuppie

5. FYA IFOML...Finally You Ass - I Figured Out Message, Loser

Look for these acronyms in an instant message coming to you soon!

'Mecury, Venus, Earth and Mars...." The Planet Song

A Good Morning

"Ummm, could you please pass my the Arts and Entertainment section when you are done, pappa?"

Science Experiment

This afternoon we did a little science experiment of sorts. We took half walnut shells, a bit of play-doh, toothpick, and paper sail and assembled little boats.

They floated in water and the kids had to blow on the sails to get them to move.

That's some fancy scootering!

Christian thinks it's fun to do 'fancy scootering' - that's when he gets going and then lifts a leg up really high.
Campbelle likes to pretend she's a judge and gives him a score. This particular ride only got him a 4... she thought he could lift his leg a little higher!

I'm just thankful for helmets!

Snoqualmie Ridge... here we come!

Exciting news to report!! We recently decided to build a house at Snoqualmie Ridge (about 5 miles east of Issaquah). The pictures are of our Lot, #89 and what will be our view from our front porch. The scenary is absolutely breath taking as it is closer to the Cascade mountains and is a very new (<5 years) developed area. We are really excited about the move, and anxious to get to all the details of building. They don't expect to break ground until this summer, with hopes of us moving in early fall. Yeah!