Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts

Monday, January 20, 2014

On the Menu Monday (MPM) - Week 4

What a busy weekend, feel like it just flew by!
Friday we were able to catch an early movie, Hunger Game - Catching Fire, we also tried a new (to us) restaurant. Look for a review later this week!
 
Saturday was a spa day with my girlfriend C. It was fabulous. I had a full body exfoliation, and with the dry cold winter we have had, it was just what my skin needed. I cannot believe how smooth and soft my skin feels. Really makes me think about taking better care of my skin and making sure that I am using lots of lotion on a regular basis. That was followed up by an hour massage that left me feeling like a wet noodle. I sat in the steam room for a good bit, opening up my pores which after the exfoliation and body treatment, was just what I needed. 
Saturday evening we joined friends out for dinner at Capital Grille. Love that place. We have a favorite server there and the GM is wonderful and always happy to see us. We brought some great wines and just had a fabulous dinner and conversation. 
Sunday was our big day with a jam packed day. We started with brunch at a little cafe not far from our house. It was wonderful and I knew it would stick with me most of the day. After brunch we turned in some old phones for bill credit, we had some OLD phones, but nice that they gave us credit for them. The boys cousin and his wife had a baby last Monday, Mallory Grey (love that name) and we could not wait to go and visit. She is just beautiful!
After, we headed to the bowling alley to celebrate my niece and nephew, G & G's birthdays! Pizza, soda, chicken wings and bowling, who could ask for more? We had a really good time, even though we did not bowl very well, it was a ton of fun! Sister selfies too!


Even  sibling photo bomb!
 
Here is what we have going on this week! There were a couple of recipes from last week that I will be carrying over to this week that we didn't get to make or changed up.
 
 
Monday
Plans - Target, Gym
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, berries, salad
Dinner -Turkey taco meat (for salad and leftovers this week), I am also going to make a cauliflower soup to have for lunches as well. I will probably post the soup, I am excited to see how it turns out.

Tuesday
Plans - Gym, Home
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, berries, salad
Dinner - Chicken breasts stuffed with spinach and feta (from last week, we switched things up)

Wednesday
Plans - HH with former co-workers, Ahi Tuna Crisps, NUM!
Breakfast and Lunch - Cottage Cheese, Berries, Salad
Dinner - Out for HH

Thursday
Plans - Out to dinner, maybe a movie
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, Berries, Salad
Dinner - Out with the boys parents for dinner.

Friday
Plans - Taking a the day off and heading up to the lake with friends L & J, I cannot wait for a weekend of cooking (cannot wait to find fun things to cook - need a good egg bake for sure, so if you have one, please send it or post it), hanging out and just spending time with good friends!
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, berries, lunch on the road
Dinner - Not sure yet, so far the food plan for the weekend is turkey chili, an egg bake, fruit and other snack goodies.

Saturday and Sunday
Plans - The lake.

For more meal plans and links to recipes, check out the orgjunkie!

Monday, November 11, 2013

On the Menu Monday (MPM) - Week 46

We had a wonderful weekend. Starting Friday, we met friends T & J out for dinner at a place I never would have thought to check out, a relic in downtown Minneapolis, Normandy Kitchen, but do not overlook the relics. Our food was fabulous, the service was wonderful and the ambiance is just so unique. They make popovers to order, do not pass those up. It was a great way to wind down the week!

Saturday was more than wonderful. Sister J and I had a wonderful spa day. We started with spa pedicures while enjoying salads that I picked up for us. They were wonderful salads too. We had our nails done and then a fabulous 60 minute relaxation massage, oh how would love at least one of those a week, maybe every other week? We wrapped up our visit with some champagne and having our hair done. We spent the day at Future Concepts Studio and Spa. I could not recommend it enough. The staff is wonderful, the space is so relaxing and the whole day just flowed perfectly.

We wrapped the day up with dinner out at Firelake Grill. It was delicious! And of course we ran into our friends T & J that we had just seen on Friday night. They wound up joining us for a while which was fun!

Sunday we ran to the store for some dinner necessities and then a quick lunch at Bar Louie. They were honoring veterans a day early so the boy had a free lunch which was really nice. Their sandwiches are huge though, we easily could have shared one!

Dinner with our parents turned out really good. I made the autumn mixed green salad with pears, dried cranberries. gorganzola. spiced pecans and a wonderful fig balsamic. I grilled steaks which I actually got cooked right the first time and to everyone's liking. We did roasted potatoes and delicata squash and then I tried to replicate the sea salt caramel pretzel bread pudding that we had at Eat Street Social. While it was not as good as theirs, it was a big hit.

This week we don't have a lot of plans, which is nice, we have a lot we need to catch up on at home.



Monday
Plans - Out to dinner for Veterans day, car serviced, errands.
Breakfast and Lunch - fruit and cottage cheese
Dinner - Out, boys choice for Veterans day

Tuesday
Plans - Bunco, I need to bring an appetizer, I think I am going to make Pepperoni Pizza Dip, using turkey pepperoni.
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, fruit, nuts
Dinner - Leftovers

Wednesday
Plans - Home
Breakfast and Lunch - Cottage cheese, fruit, nuts
Dinner - Catfish and zucchini Went to sister J's for dinner, she made a wonderful beet and goat cheese salad and chicken stuffed with goat cheese and sun dried tomatoes

Thursday
Plans - Home
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, fruit, nuts
Dinner - I am making an spinach and egg dish from a cook book I recently purchased which I will share later this week. This didn't happen, but I made this wonderful Pancetta and Leek Pasta recipe

Friday
Plans - Probably out somewhere, not sure yet Friends for dinner
Breakfast and Lunch - Yogurt, fruit, nuts
Dinner - out

Saturday
Plans - the boy is working Saturdays now which is kind of a bummer. We have been busy getting the garage cleaned out, that has been quite the under taking, but we have been getting rid of a lot too.
Breakfast and Lunch - Not sure yet!
Dinner - Out, sister J has a good friend in town from Nebraska for some more birthday celebrating.

Sunday
Plans - I am going to the opera in the afternoon with a friend and neighbor. Not sure if we are going out for lunch or dinner yet. The meal plan is a just in case.
Dinner - Creamy Greek Yogurt Mac & Cheese, grilled pork loin

For more meal plans, check out the orgjunkie!

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Movie Review - About Time

Last night we saw a screening of About Time. I wasn't sure what to expect, all I knew about it was what I read on the poster above. But I like all of the movies that were mentioned, so I figured what the heck. We met the boys parents for dinner, at Sammy's, one of his favorite places. They do have excellent pizza. The boys parents just came back from a cruise and New Orleans, they had a great time and a ton to tell us about. We actually had not seen them since August, so it was good to catch up with them and celebrate the boys birthday finally. Plus, we went back to the theater with the really comfy seats, let me tell you, that is the way to watch a movie! So comfy. In fact, so comfortable that the boys mom even fell asleep!

I really like Rachel McAdams anyway, but this was such a cute movie, with a really sweet story line and just enough twists to make it unique! It is definitely a love story, but a love story on so many different levels.

I had not seen Domhnall Gleeson in anything else before, but I really enjoyed him, the chemistry between he and Rachel, was just perfect for the story line.

I would definitely recommend seeing this film, it is a chick flick, just so that you know what you are getting yourself in to, but an enjoyable one. And if you can find a theater with really comfy recliners, well, that is even better!


Monday, November 05, 2012

On the Menu Monday (MPM) - Week 45

Time has just been flying by lately, I don't know where it seems to go. We had a busy weekend, I don't feel like I got anything accomplished and now I get to play catch up this week. The Ta-Da list is a mile long. 

It was a total working weekend for the most part for me. Friday we went to dinner with a co-worker and his wife at Parma 8200, which is definitely a favorite of ours. Good conversation, wonderful dinner. Saturday morning came way too early. I had an all day conference, leaving the house at 7:30 and not getting home until 5:30. It was a really good conference though, learned a lot, met some new people and even ran into some old friends. Quickly ran home to change and get the boy, and then we met up at the hotel where co-workers were staying and 8 of us headed out for dinner and a night on the town. We had a really good time, great team building, lots of laughs and fun to get to show them another part of the twin cities. Sunday was brunch with co-workers early (I heard someone say something about an extra hour of sleep, I think I must have missed that) then a trip to my parents house to get my mom's computer up and running. We also had to make a pit stop at Michael's to pick up some card stock to finish the holiday party invites, those will be out today.  I had to swap out her hard drive and put it in some new hardware. This is just a bandaid, while the hardware is in good shape and her hard drive should be okay for a while, she really does need a new laptop. The problem is, everything is coming loaded with Windows 8 right now, which is vastly different from anything she has used. So I figure before I have to support her, I should probably start using it myself. She is also is thinking about a tablet or an iPad. I told her I would take her out shopping and we would spend some time looking at her options before she just buys something. It took about 30 minutes longer at my parents than I had planned (I had to fix my dad's tool bars on his laptop too), then we were off to meet the boys parents for the Vikings game, late of course, but we finally made it. 

The boy is kind of in the dog house at the moment. It was kind of a frustrating day for the two of us yesterday. Do you ever just have those days? I really wanted to see his parents and spend some time with them, so did he and it had been a while and they had just come back from a trip. He let them know that I had a conference all day Saturday, and originally we were going to celebrate my nephews birthday with him Sunday, but because of everything going on, we are going to do it in two weeks. But he didn't update his parents. They wanted us to meet them at a sports bar and then go back to their house to watch the Amazing Race, but it was just too much and too far for us, especially this weekend. His dad never really gets this. His parents are both retired, so their time is theirs, where we really have to plan ours carefully. The boy also chose to ask his parents if they were coming to our house for Thanksgiving, in front of his sister and niece, whom his father asked if they could come as well. Things are complicated there as there were two more kids and a boyfriend who were not there, so adding another five for dinner, when we are already looking at 14 is not that easy. Especially since his family does things much differently then mine does. If it is just his parents, it would work, but if we start adding others it gets complicated and changes dynamics and plans already set in place. I know plans can change, and I know I should just roll with it, but they don't make much of an effort to be all that inviting or cordial, I don't want to be uncomfortable in my own home when I have to tend to dinner and guests and just want to enjoy the day and family.  The boy, of course, being a boy, doesn't think or really get this, drives me nuts. I guess especially because he doesn't really have to do anything that day, except for clean, it is harder for him to put thought into it. Ugh. I am really frustrated today. Sorry, had to vent!

This week is busier than I would like, but gotta keep moving forward!

Monday
Plans - HOME! I have a mountain of laundry and I have to go into the office for a meeting from 2 to 3, plus I have to get the invitations for the holiday party completed and get some laundry done. Plus clean up from the tornado that tore through here this weekend. 
Dinner - Pasta night, I am not sure what I am going to make yet, either a butternut squash gnocchi or a chicken alfredo.

Tuesday
Plans - Election day, definitely voting and then watching the returns come in with neighbors.
Dinner - Making a taco soup from a new recipe in a magazine which I will post later.

Wednesday
Plans - Going to see the screening of Lincoln, we didn't make it last week
Dinner - Out, not sure where yet

Thursday
Plans - Out with friends
Dinner - Keegans - fun Irish Pub

Friday
Plans - Wine Event
Dinner - Not sure what I am going to bring for the wine event, but I am looking for a fun, hearty appetizer recipe. I may make the cranberry dip with cilantro and cream cheese. 

Saturday
Plans - We do not have any plans at all this weekend, and I can hardly wait. I have so many things I need to get done at home. We need to re-do the lights for the outside of the house for the holidays, that will be a big job for the boy. I want to get the tables set and ready for Thanksgiving, I am traveling all next week, so that will be a big thing off of my list. I don't need to put plates and everything out there, but just get the logistics down, and get placecards printed and placed. Have to finish going through clothes and drop things off at places for donation. LOTS to do this weekend. I have started shopping too, I have gotten a few things for the boy, a couple of things for the rest of my family, I would like to get the majority of it done so that I can enjoy December. LOTS to do, but I just need to be organized, so I will work on that this weekend as well. 
Dinner - Pig and Fiddle - the boy and I have not been there yet, and I think we need a date night out. They don't take reservations, so we will have to time this right. 

Sunday 
Plans - A day of rest? I doubt it. More of the same and getting ourselves organized. For me this means packing for the upcoming travel. I have to remember to pack snow gear this time. 
Dinner - Not sure if we are going to leave Sunday night or Monday yet, so dinner will be a game time decision. 


If you are looking for some good recipes and more meal plans, check out Stone Gable and the Orgjunkie. Sorry, the next two weeks are pretty lame for me with traveling and such, but I will be back to post some recipes later this week. 



Thursday, October 25, 2012

Thanksgiving - Planning

We are hosting Thanksgiving again this year. My sister said, "You're the cook, makes sense". It went really well last year, I am looking forward to it again this year. Of course I need to start planning now though of course. 

Cooking will of course start earlier in the week of course and I like to plan things out pretty precisely. I am going off of last years plan and making some adjustments. Here is a snap shot of what last years plan looked like. 


Recipes
Green Bean Bundles
Apple and Turnip Dish - Cathy
Creamy Mashed Potatoes
Stuffed Baby Portabella Mushrooms
Parmesan Crusted Goat Cheese with Basil Oil
Balsamic Glazed Brussel Sprouts with Pancetta
Cranberry Pear Sauce
Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip

I liked all of last years recipes, along with this we had turkey, stuffing and gravy of course as well as pies. The Cranberry Cream Cheese dip was by far the biggest hit, and I made it for our annual holiday party as well. 

I have started looking at recipes, our guest lists is close (still waiting to hear if the boys parents are joining us) to being complete, the linens are ready and pressed and of course we know the date. 

I still need to finalize the timeline, inventory what we already have, create the shopping list, order the turkey, play with different tablesettings and print the placecards. Deciding what to wear is key too, don't need to be running around looking for something that morning. 

I use Evernote to store the plan, which works pretty well since I have it with me the majority of the time. I also have a Pinterest board created to help come up with some recipe ideas.  

More to do of course. . . what is on your menu?

Friday, August 24, 2012

Animal Week

Finally back home after almost two weeks away. Pretty exhausted from all of the work and traveling and of course we have a full weekend of social fun.

The past couple of weeks have given me the opportunity to see a wide variety of animal life. Some of the pictures I wasn't able to capture of animals were the deer and the big gigantic turtle that was crossing the road on my way back home yesterday.

Here are few that I was able to capture!

Little Miss Stella was dearly missed while I was gone and has not let me out of her sight for a second since I have been home. But she certainly was a little stinker before I left.
We passed these cattle on our way into town from the lake and I had to take a picture for a co-worker.

Kimchi joined us up at the lake, such a cute little dog!

Can't forget the fish!

After a rainy night, we had to watch where we sat to make sure we didn't sit on any of these guys!


This is Larry. Larry is a mix breed dog that my cousin thinks is Basset Hound, Wiry Short Hair and Lab. He loves "unique" dogs. Larry was so friendly and happy and is now best friends with Banjo the Australian Shepard. 

I stopped by the farm while up in TRF for work and checked out what was in my cousins chicken coop. He has turkey's, chickens and geese. He also has two hens that are each sitting on about 15 eggs, so we may be seeing some new chicks soon!

The donkey. The donkey doesn't have a name, just donkey. 

Taz. There are five horses at the farm, this one is a little feisty and they are still working on breaking him, but he loves to nuzzle, especially if you have sugar cubes. 

Cruze. Cruze is a trail horse and helps mow the grass.

My little cousin Kitty riding donkey. 

It is always so much fun to go out to the farm and check things out. My mom grew up here and was actually born on the farm. One of the last babies born at home. Love this barn. My grandfather built it in 1952. My cousin wanted to tear it down, but my aunt had a new roof put on it instead. It does have a lot of character, but I can see where a new barn is probably needed.
No matter what, I am always happy to come home to this little muffin. 

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Mom and Dad

Left for Arizona this morning. . . or tried to. . . they left at 5:30 this morning, good early start. Forty minutes into their trip, a coach bus traveling in front of them, lost two tires. Unfortunately my parents car found one. They drive a mid-size SUV that literally went over it and completely took out the undercarriage of their car. All four airbags went off and my dad was able to get it to the side of the road.

My dad had it towed to a dealership not far from my house. They gave them a rental car and my parents spent the day at my house on the phone with insurance, family and friends and the dealership. Ultimately the car was completely totaled and they had to head out and purchase a new vehicle. They had dinner with the boy and I and went back home to get a good nights rest before getting on the road once again tomorrow.

I always miss my parents when they go away for the winter, but there have been a lot of  "what ifs" running through our minds today. I am so happy that everything worked out okay and that my parents are now home safe and sound tucked in. I hope they have a wonderful time down there, and a very safe trip of course, but I am hoping the worst is past them!

Here they are with their rental car for the day, a little different than the SUV they are used to driving. My dad called it his roller skate.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Meal Plan Monday - Week 48

I just had to go and count and make sure that there are really that few of weeks left in the year. Seriously, where does the time go?

I really did mean to post this yesterday, but again, it is that whole time thing, it gets away from me sometimes!

We had an absolutely fantastic long Thanksgiving weekend. Ups and downs, but mainly ups. We were really organized and had the food prepped really well for Thanksgiving dinner which was nice and having a couple of non-family members was really nice too because it added a different dynamic to the day. There were 11 of us for dinner, 8 adults and my niece and nephews. Rearranging the dining room and moving it to the formal living room a few months back proved to be a wonderful idea and afforded us nice space, with all three leaves in the table, we still had plenty of room which was nice. The mashed potatoes I think were my favorite part.

We started with some wonderful appetizers. Ran out of time to make the stuffed mushrooms, but the Cranberry Cream Cheese dip was a huge hit and will be on the list to make for the party this weekend!
The adult table. . . .
With menu and place cards (I purchased these from Etsy last year, they are printables and wonderful!). The turkey was from an estate sale my mom dad, I added the flowers of course.
The kids table, they had their own flowers and decor. . . . 
The buffet all decorated.
Carving the turkey, do they look worried?
Everything turned out really good though!

We had my niece overnight and the next day I took her to see The Muppet Movie. We both really enjoyed the movie and it brought back memories of going to see The Muppet movies when I was a kid and even watching The Muppet Show. Always one of my favorites.

We did a little Black Friday shopping. Really we only bought a few candles at Bath and Bodyworks, spent enough to get the VIP Tote to give to her mom for Christmas. Then it was home for some relaxation and to wait for the boy to get home. We grabbed some dinner at Smashburger (a nice change from Turkey) and then headed to see Arthur Christmas.

But, good times came to an end when we came out to my truck and found a dead battery. The roadside assistance people were there quickly and got it jumped and we were back on the road. The next morning the boy went and got a new battery and we were good as new again. It is getting to be time for a new vehicle though, I just hate having a car payment. . . .

Saturday we worked on decorating the house and getting the outside decorated. The weather was pretty mild this weekend which was a bonus. Saturday evening we checked out a restaurant we had not been to in St. Paul called i Nonni. I had read a ton of reviews on it and they have won several awards over the years and it did not disappoint! They have a tasting menu, which is what we both decided to go with. It give you a choice of a starter, a pasta course and an entree. The portions are a little smaller, but they were perfect. This was one of the best meals I had eaten in a LONG time and the ambiance and service were excellent!

I started with the Rucola which is micro arugula, speck, apples, gorgonzola, black walnut, warm apple-bacon vinaigrette, delicious!
The boy started with the Tonnato which is slow roasted pork, seared tuna, arugula, crispy capers, lemon aioli, wonderful and fresh!

For the pasta course the boy had Pici - braised rabbit ragu, rosemary, treviso, caprino which was wonderful, but we didn't get a good picture of it. . . but SO good and I had Tortelloni - pheasant confit-rutabaga stuffed house-made pasta, pheasant liver pan sauce, pecorino. This was I think my favorite course. The flavors were incredible!
For his entree the boy chose Braised Short Ribs which were wonderful!!!
And I had the Hanger Steak which was excellent, I am sure this looks really rare in the picture, but it was a perfect medium rare and delicious!
After a wonderful dinner, we met up with the boys parents and his brother who was in town for Thanksgiving for a movie. We had wanted to see The Descendents, but it was sold out, so we opted for Jack & Jill which was okay, nothing tremendous but it was entertaining.

Sunday we spent the day with my parents for my dad's birthday. We started out the day at Jax Cafe for brunch, which was wonderful and then went back to my parents to watch the Vikings (lose again) game and to have some dessert. It was the perfect end to a long relaxing weekend.

This week is busy getting ready for the annual holiday party, but other than that, not too much on our schedule which is good.

Monday
Plans - Relax at home, plan menu and shopping list for holiday party
Dinner - leftovers, shepards pie

Tuesday
Plans - Finish decorating, clean house
Dinner - Pairings (easier to grab something on the way home with the boy working late)

Wednesday
Plans - Shop for party
Dinner - Most likely a frozen pizza by the time we get home

Thursday
Plans - Start prepping appetizers, clean out fridge
Dinner - Leftovers (see above clean out fridge)

Friday
Plans - Finalize appetizers, run out for any last minute items (hopefully we don't need to do this)
Dinner - Chinese or leftovers

Saturday
Plans - Holiday Party - YEAH! Really looking forward to this years party. We have about 45 friends coming and it has been a while since I have seen some of them! I am having my hair done that morning, and there will be some things that we will need to pick up that day. Also need to plan my outfit! At least that part I am close on!
Dinner - I need to remember to eat something decent BEFORE the festivities begin!

So much to look forward to this week, not a lot of cooking dinners, but I will be posting the menu for Saturday soon! Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!!

Friday, November 11, 2011

The Farm

The past few weeks, I have been doing quite a bit of traveling for work. Back and forth to the town that my mom grew up in. It is about 5 1/2 hours North of where we live now, a small town of about 9500 near the Canadian and North Dakota border. I spent a lot of time as a child up here, especially during the summer and I still have a lot of cousins who live up here.

My aunt now lives at the farm that she and my mother grew up at. It is nice to be able to get to spend some time with her and to reminisce about my childhood and adventures we took together.

Her older son, my cousin, also has a house on the same property. His daughter is quite the horse enthusiast and my cousin is a former rodeo star and is a true cowboy.

When I leave in the morning, this is what greets me, kind of a nice change of scenery.



Thursday, October 27, 2011

Alison Scott

This past Tuesday we got out to see the boy's cousin's wife, Alison Scott and her band play at a theater not far from our home. A couple of the boys aunts and uncles came by to see the house and visit before the show which was a lot of fun. We have become very fond of Alison and her band and have ventured out on quite a few occasions to see them.

This summer we saw them at the MN State Fair (also known as the Great MN Get Together) which is always a great venue!
The boy loves the variety and different types of food at the fair. This year he tried the Pot Roast Sundae which is a new favorite, and I am sure we will be back for it next year!
Ali is a wonderful performer and singer/songwriter. Her music crosses a lot of generations and personalities. If you ever get a chance to go out and see her, please do! For more information on her and her band, check her out here I know we are looking forward to her holiday show in Anoka December 22nd. I am hoping to take my niece as well as my parents!


I will post two of her videos as my favorite songs as well!



Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Weekend Adventures with Wine and Music!

After our brown bag night, we had a big day planned. We started off at the University of MN football stadium for Taste! the Minneapolis/St. Paul Magazine wine event. It was an absolute blast. The big phenomenon in the Twin Cities this summer has been all of the wonderful food trucks. They have been written up everywhere and a ton of people have raved about the food. They brought in about 15 trucks and had a contest where people voted for their favorites. All I have to say is I was so excited that they chose to do this so that I could sample a little bit of everything at once. It was hard to choose a favorite. It was also nice to get some food in our stomachs before hitting the wine after the night we had before, the food was definitely appreciated.

We also got to go down onto the field and check things out.
Here are a few of the favorite wines from the day!



After the Taste! event, the boy and I headed home for some rest before my sister and the kids came over. My brother in law has a good friend that he grew up with that plays in a band. The Suburban Cowboys. The best part, the band is from Chicago, but they were playing a mere 15 minutes from our house!
It was so much fun to see my brother in law having such a good time with such an old friend. They were both just grinning from ear to ear like this the entire night!
We loved the band, they played some great music and we had a TON of fun! Would love for the band to come back up again!
For more information on Suburban Cowboys, check them out here!




 
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