My Valentine

Victoria and Albert Waterfront, Cape Town, South Africa

Zanzibar, Tanzania

 

New Orleans, LA

Wallowa River, OR

1300 feet above Baldwin County (Foley-ish?), AL

Engaged.

Honeymoon. Lincoln City, OR

What? We got married and moved to Austin, TX??

Where ever we go, what ever we do, I know that I'll always have the world's best Valentine.

I love you, Andy!

Roasted Chicken Experiment

I read a few cooking blogs like this one and this one. The second one featured this post about how to eat for a whole week on a roasted chicken. In the interest of trimming our food budget (which I am failing miserably at so far) I decided to try it. I was terrified. The scene from Christmas Vacation just kept running through my head (you know, where he cuts into the beautiful turkey and it deflates with a puff of smoke).

Here are my thoughts on the roasted chicken experiment:

1. It is SO worth it! I don't know if I'll ever just buy chicken breasts again. They cost twice as much and only make 1 meal. The chicken I bought was less than $5.00 and it made 4 dinner meals plus left overs for lunch.

2. Why was I scared? What could be easier than spending a few minutes preparing the bird and then sticking it in the over for a couple of hours?

3. I would say that it did not significantly decrease our food budget for the week. Either we already spend too frugally for it to make a difference, or the food we buy for lunches is way to expensive.

Here's what we ate for the week (I guess that's presumptuous of me to assume that you care, but I'm going to tell you anyway because I was very proud of my developing home-maker skills):
1. Roasted chicken and veggies (using the lemon recipe in the blog post above)- DELICIOUS
2. White Chicken Chili (also featured in the blog post above and very tasty, especially the next day)
3. Homemade Pesto Chicken Pizza (probably my favorite of the "leftover" meals...spinach, artichokes, tomatoes, yum)
4. Chicken Enchiladas (I followed this recipe but I used canned sauce and was not overly impressed. I also did not realize how much work they are, no wonder my mom hardly ever made them!)

And, because I know what's really important- the pictures:

Who wouldn't want a bite of that?!

Even Andy was excited, putting his photography skills to work. Mmm!

Week in Weather

Last Sunday (Jan. 30): 78 degrees and sunny

Wednesday ( Feb. 2): Highs in the 30s and lows in the teens, rolling blackouts (Malawi-style...well, not really because the power was out for a few mintues, not a few hours/days)

Thursday (Feb. 3): High of about 29, low of 17ish, two hour delay due to previously mentioned blackouts (which only happened on Wednesday)

Friday morning (Feb. 4): 20s and SNOWY, no school

Friday afternoon (still Feb. 4): 50s and sunny, no more snow

Sunday (Feb. 6): 65 and sunny

I guess that 78 degrees and snow in the same week are par for the course in the South, but it's still pretty crazy to me! We took some pictures in the snow:

Our new truck. It looks like a lot of snow. I think it's because the neighbor kids immediately began stealing snow from our truck and knocked it all down there.

Winter Whirlwind

We have had a whirlwind Christmas break so far. Our Oregon trip flew by, but it was nice to be with family for a few days. We took zero pictures. Oops. The day after we got back Andy's parents got here. We had a blast showing them around Austin. Here they are at Rudy's. Mmm, brisket and smoked turkey.

 I got Andy a new camera for Christmas. We had our Passwater Christmas when we got home from the airport. This pic is at about 1:30 a.m. on December 26th in front of the tree which is already back in it's box for next year.

 We got a dining room table at Thanksgiving and our dining room has also been our office since then. I couldn't take it any more. So we rearranged all day yesterday (which is why the tree is already down). If you look closely you can see my proudly displayed Dedza pottery. The surviving pieces, that is. We packed a bowl in our carry on bags and then they took it away because we flew on a little plane. And my favorite bowl shattered. So sad. I have another picture to hang in that big white space, and then our dining room will be oh so cozy.

Last, please pray for the Passwater family. Andy's grandmom passed away yesterday. Praise God that she is with Him now, and pray for comfort for those who will miss her here on earth.

Oregon!

We're off to Oregon for Christmas! It promises to be a whirlwind trip full of clouds and rain. Good thing I love my Oregon friends and family so much, because we're leaving 70s and sunny Christmas for 40s and rainy.

We'll be back on the 25th, in time for Andy's parents to come spend a few days with us. Yay! It's fun to have visitors!

The bad news about all this fun and excitement is that it's going to make Christmas break fly by and before we know it we'll be back in school.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Mugabe and the White African

Andy and I just got done watching the movie Mugabe and the White African. We put a bunch of Christmas movies on our netflix list, but they were all delayed so we got this movie sent to us. Not exactly on par with It's a Wonderful Life. But very good.

In many ways, I don't understand how the world can allow what has happened, and what is happening in Zimbabwe. But I know that I am guilty of forgetting or turning a blind eye, even though I know people who have been driven from their farms and families.

Why do these things go unnoticed by the majority of the world? Andy says it's because it's a different kind of story. We want to believe that colonialism was righted when countries were given their independence. It wasn't. I don't claim to have the answers, but this movie provoked plenty of questions.

Interesting that it was only short listed for the Academy Awards and a movie about saving dolphins won for best documentary instead. I like dolphins as much as the next person, but I think the message and story of Mugabe and the White African is one that needs hearing long before a message about dolphins.

last few weeks...

Here's what we've been up to:

1. Buying a new truck. A Nissan Frontier. It's black. We really needed another vehicle so that Andy doesn't have to ride the bus. He was spending almost 4 hours a day on the bus, making his part time job a full time job. Now, I can come straight home after work so I get home way earlier too!

2. Thanksgiving in Houston. We spent Thanksgiving with Andy's aunt and uncle and their two girls. We had a great time relaxing with family, doing puzzles with the girls and playing with the sweetest little dog!

3. Listening to Christmas music on Pandora. We made a compromise this year. No Christmas music until after Thanksgiving (Andy's rule), but LOTS of it between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We also set up our little tree. It was so fun to begin our own family traditions.

4. Baking lemon cheese bars to take to all Christmas events that include food. My aunt gave me the recipe and they are so easy. They also make a nice change from all the chocolate-y rich deserts that usually accompany Christmas parties. Here's the recipe if you want to try it!

• 1 yellow pudding cake mix (the Betty Crocker kind says "pudding in the mix")
• 1/3 C oil
•1 egg

Mix together (will be very crumbly). Reserve 1 cup. Pat remaining mix into the bottom of an ungreased 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350 for 10-15 min, until slightly browned.

• 1 8 oz. package cream cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/3 C sugar
• 1 tsp. lemon juice

Blend all ingredients until light and smooth. Pour on top of the bottom layer. Sprinkle with reserved cup. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Cool and cut. Refrigerate.

Mmm. Don't eat too many, they do make you sick. I know that from experience. :)