Alberto and Annika...

On our way back from San Antonio, we stopped to see Sved and Arizbe and their month old twins, Alberto and Annika. They are very tiny! Alberto is much bigger than Annika...he weighed 5 pounds 14 ounces and she weighed 4 pounds 5 ounces...we know who got all the food!

San Antonio...

We went to San Antonio to celebrate our first anniversary. We drove down on Friday and stayed at O'Casey's Bed and Breakfast, a cute little Irish place in one of the historic districts. On Saturday we went to Sea World and saw several shows with otters, sea lions, beluga whales, killer whales (not Shamu) and water skiiers. It was really hot, and we got very tired walking around! We had breakfast at the Sharks/Coral reef. Fisher was extremely excited because he was surprised that we were going to have breakfast in a big aquarium! After breakfast we fed the dolphins a couple small paper trays of fish that were slightly larger than sardines. The dolphins were so "soft," mostly I think they were just slick and smooth which made them feel so soft! They were so friendly and cute! We had great Mexican food for dinner, and passed out from exhaustion that night, after a trip to Amy's for ice cream! On Sunday, we slept in and went to the zoo. They had lots of birds and reptiles (snakes, ick). I got easily bored of the birds...especially since the wild herons that stop at the zoo every year made their presence known by "littering" all over the sidewalks and making the zoo very, very smelly. We saw a huge tortoise and we (secretly) fed him leaves from a nearby bush he was nibbling on. He was at least six feet long and three to four feet wide. We don't have any pictures because I forgot to bring batteries with me to the zoo! After this tiring day, we went to dinner at J. Alexander's. A nice, but casual restaurant. Then we went back to the B&B and ate our cake with milk. Yum! It was a nice, relaxing weekend.

Anniversary Cake...

Here's our anniversary cake...it's a "remake" of the top layer of our cake. Our baker does this to keep people from eating a year old cake that could possibly make you sick. It's not an exact replica looks-wise...we didn't have the monogram. But it sure did taste good...just like the original!

Happy Anniversary to Us...

We're celebrating our first fabulous year of our marriage! We're so thankful to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for bringing us together to serve him and for all the many blessings he's given us the last year!

San Antonio...

Or bust! We're going to SeaWorld and the San Antonio Zoo. I feel like we should have a kid or two in tow for such a "family" trip! We're going to have breakfast with the dolphins and we'll get to feed them! Fun!

Course Two Final Cake...

This is the cake I made on Tuesday. It's my final cake for Course 2! It was strawberry flavored and shaped like an oval. All the flowers were made from royal icing and the birds were made from color flow. Both icings get hard and the flowers last for weeks. I'll be learning fondant next course!

Weird thing about me...

I always thought I was the only person who likes to lick envelopes...here's an IM conversation with a friend.

Friend: I spent all lunch printing letters and stuffing envelopes
Me: for Amazon?
Friend: yeah
Me: cool
Friend: now my tongue is dry
Me: LOL
Me: you don't have one of those "lickers" at work
Me: like a small sponge or something
Friend: I don't personally
Friend: don't know anyone that does
Me: Weird thing about me...I love the taste of envelope glue
Me: especially Hallmark envelopes
Friend: depends on the envelope for me
Me: HOW WEIRD IS THAT?
Friend: these were ok, but after a while started tasting bad
Friend: oh no I totally understand

I feel vindicated now.

So sleepy...

I've stayed up past midnight the last two nights, and was up late over the weekend. When did I get so old that midnight is considered late?

Back in the real world...

Now that I've officially finished Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows, I can return to the real world. I read so much over the weekend, and finally finished this AM. Wow, 759 pages in about 48 hours. Of course, I didn't read continuously!

Tonight's the night...

For Harry Potter! Look at this funny picture of the boxes of Harry Potter books waiting to be opened (courtesy of AFP/GettyImages/File/Yahoo.com). Notice in the red bar on the boxes "Attention Muggles - Do not deliver or open before July 21st." A muggle is a non-magic person! I think this is hilarious!

Also, since Fisher is going with me and he severely dislikes shopping...but in addition to that he can't stand parking at busy places, traffic and standing in line. Being the good, caring wife that I am, I sent him this email:

Hi The Boy--

Just so you know, tonight, when we go to the mall to meet Sned:

1. There will likely be traffic getting to the mall, even at 11PM
2. It will be extremely difficult to find a parking space
3. There will be tons of people in one store after one item
4. There will be an enormous line that we will have to wait in (should move fast though)

Love,
The Girl

Fisher's "normal" again...

Just wanted to update everyone that Fisher is back to his normal self! He was still a little under the weather on Wednesday but was being silly! By Thursday he was back to being goofy! I'm so thankful he's not a grumpy sick person!

Cuppy cakes...

I made a batch of cupcakes tonight for the release of Harry Potter! I put a royal icing (just learned to make it) lightning bolt on each cupcake to represent Harry's scar. This was the first time I sliced the cupcakes is half and filled them with icing! It's also the first time I striped the decorating bag to get they yellow effect on the icing swirl. I also baked them directly in the muffin pan without the liners. They popped right out, I was thrilled!

Star Trek...

So we've been getting episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine on Netflix. It's actually not that bad of a show once you figure out what kind of creature they are and what their role is in the scheme of things. The creatures have some funky costumes though...and I'm not a fan of the Klingon singers! Ugh.

Prayer request...

Please pray for us and the rental house. Please pray that God will provide a buyer, if it is His will. Also pray that the tenants will be cooperative with the house being shown while they live there.

Sick Boy...

Fisher's been under the weather since yesterday (101.2 degree temperature last night). He stayed home today from work and went to the doctor. Just an infection of some type, he got an antibiotic. He slept for almost 12 hours yesterday. I hope he's getting some rest today! I have cake class tonight, so he'll get some rest while I'm gone. That way I'm not checking on him every 30 minutes and waking him up!

Nacho Joe...

Here's the recipe for our take on the "Nacho Joe" pizza. Fisher's favorite from "Happy Joe's." It's a pizza place in Illinois where Fisher worked as a teenager. This pizza is for those who aren't fans of tomatoes!

One Boboli pizza crust
One can Campbell's Fiesta Nacho Cheese Condensed Soup (or jarred queso)
One pound beef, sausage or combination
One package taco seasoning
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook beef, sausage or combination according to directions on the taco seasoning package. While meat is simmering in taco seasoning, spread 1/2 can of soup onto pizza crust. Spread cooked meat mixture onto pizza crust. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake until cheese is melted. Slice and serve. You can serve with crushed up tortilla chips, lettuce, tomatoes and sour cream on top as well.

Ciao!

Airy Pottah...

Did you know I could type with a British accent? Anywho...Friday's the night! We (Fisher, Sned and I) are going to the "Midnight Magic" party for the release of book seven of the Harry Potter series at Barnes and Noble. Don't be jealous! LOL. For those of you who aren't into Airy, this is the final (or so the author says) book in the series. I'll report back on Saturday about the number of children that kick, pinch, punch, bite, maul or otherwise harm us.

I've been spotted...

with primer. Word to the wise...if you're priming a wall, it's a lot harder to get primer off your skin than paint. Two days and several baths later...I still have spots on my arms and legs. Thankfully, they're small and inconspicuous, for the most part!

Sned's blog...

Wanted to let everyone know about our friend, David's (yes, another one) new blog. His site is http://sned-amazon.blogspot.com/. He's going on a mission trip to Brazil in November and created this blog to journal his journey! Check it out!

Soreness abounds...

It's days like this that I realize how much I need to get back into the gym! We painted at the house yesterday, and I'm super sore today. Fisher worked outside all day, and he's sore too...also a little red! At the end of the day the kitchen looked fabulous and the yard looked better than ever! Let's hope it all lures the buyers in by the boatloads!

Toilet to go...

Did you know that you can buy all the pieces of a toilet in one box and it's called a "toilet to-go?" Can't they just pass these out in a paper sack at the drive-thru of a Home Depot?

To move or not to move...

That is now the question!

Icing is evil...

I have a tub of homemade, vanilla/almond flavored icing at my desk for cake class tonight. I brought it up from the car so it won't melt and separate. I've ignored it all day...until the 3PM munchies started. I've taken a few "tastes" over the last little bit, but I want more! Tell me to stop!

Does gum count as "groceries" or "allowance"...

These are the difficult questions that one must answer when making a budget! I'm trying to figure out how to work "new jeans" into the grocery budget! Maybe if I buy them at Target, which has a grocery store in it, I can get away with it! Mwahahahahahahha!

Now...

This simple three letter word strikes fear into the boy...simply because it's usually followed by a decree from the "Little Dictator."

Budgets are rotten...

Who would have thought fixing up a house would require such sacrifice? I've never had to live on a budget before. Maybe that's why I'm so rotten, sometimes! At least we'll get to have a nice house that will be the future down payment for our possible "dream" house. Or close to it! I'm making moving such a big deal...you would think it's a totally serious problem the way I act!

Bi-Polar...

Yesterday, I was sort of sad about having to leave our really cool apartment. Today, I'm crazy-finding-furniture-drawing-layouts-lady.

This is the current couch I'm in love with for the den, and thankfully, the only "couch" we need to buy. I normally don't even like sectionals! However, I can see my self where that lady is on the pic reading, napping or surfing the 'net. Oh, and I don't want the coffee table ottoman. Our $40 IKEA special will do just fine.

We're Moving...

Fisher and I made the decision today that we're moving into the Dallas rental house! It was a very difficult decision that has been in the making for quite some time now. Our plans are to live in it, fix it up and then sell it. So, mark your calendars for early October to help us move! And any one that can paint or lay tile, please feel free to let us know.

For those who help out with the house, we will allow you to use the newly re-plastered pool!

Please pray for us!

Another reason I'm a Longhorn...

I went to Freebirds today, and I can never unwrap my burrito properly. I'm missing the backwards F chromosome. I do have to admit that I love this Aggie place. It's way better than Chipoodle.

States I've been to...

create your own personalized map of the USA
or check out ourCalifornia travel guide

Lazy Day...

This evening was really lazy. I made a quick dinner, then took a nap for about half an hour. We talked to my sister-in-law, I did the dishes and I made Orange Almond Bars for Friday breakfast at work. I hope it's good! I didn't follow the recipe exactly, was supposed to use apricot jam, but I used orange and cherry and substituted almond extract for vanilla. So, we'll have to do a taste test in the AM...if it's not good, I'll be running by the donut shop, and blaming it on a "bad" recipe! LOL Fisher folded laundry, washed a load, unloaded the dishwasher from yesterday and played Eternal Lands. He did more than me! Have a great night!

Happy Fourth of July...

We watched fireworks tonight and had yummy snacks! The fireworks were really close and beautiful! We could see four or five different shows from our balcony, but the Richardson fireworks were definitely the best! Here's the patriotic snack I made...red velvet cupcakes with store bought cream cheese icing. Some of the cones fell over and the icing smooshed...I had to put icing on the plate to make them stay in place. The "real" icing I normally make would not slide off so easily!

Our apologies...

To the BP gas station in Little Rock for attempting to drive off while your regular pump was still in our tank! Oopsie! Thankfully, you have a safety mechanism that breaks free and shuts off gas to the line when something like this happens! Also, thanks for the big laugh! Our apologies also go out to the man who was pumping gas on the other side, and seemed frightened and left as fast as he could after the incident. We also apologize to the "super" pump that got knocked off during the melee. Thanks to the girl who worked at the station for not charging us to repair the pump!

Long time, no post...

Wow! It's been almost a week since my last post, so there's a lot of catching up to do:

-Arkansas was fun! It was nice to relax with my parents! We did lots of "home improvement" projects: painting, hanging blinds and curtains, scrubbing paint of the floor with a tootbrush (I felt like Cinderella), moving big things, taking down/hanging up ceiling fans, cleaning and dusting. We accomplished a lot! Of course, we didn't do this alone...my parents helped too!
-We found out Fisher is allergic to mosquito bites...he had a bad reaction to some bites. They are healing now.
-It was confirmed that my mom is allergic to wasp stings. She got stung on her right ring finger out by the shed at the old house trying to get a planter out for my aunt. Her hand puffed up so big
that it looked like a blown up latex glove! We called it "Puff: The Magic Hand." There was even a song for it!
-We had a big family gathering at my aunt and uncle's on Sunday. I made red, white and blue cupcakes and put them on my cupcake tree. I'm pretty sure I'm officially addicted to this cake decorating thing!
-We tried out the new frozen custard place near my parents called Andy's. Yum!
-We went to the local Aldi (in Kennett, MO) to stock up on "boy cereal." We stock up every six months or so. Whenever we're near an Aldi: Kennett, Memphis, Illinois, etc. But only when we're driving and can haul back 5 boxes of cereal! I also loaded up on cheap powdered sugar and 29 cent taco seasoning! LOL I wish we could bring the cold stuff home! This place has such awesome deals!
-We ate out, a lot.
-I made beef stroganoff one night for dinner, and pecan crusted pork chops the next. We wanted my parents to try some new dishes. Although, beef stroganoff is not new to them.
-We visited my cousin Derek's garden. He lives across the street from my parents. I saw the garden on the second day of our visit and there was a quarter-sized watermelon, when I checked on it again (three days later) it was slightly smaller than a baseball! He's growing watermelon, tomatoes, squash, zucchini, sunflowers, eggplant and cucumbers. It looks like he's going to have a bumper crop of tomatoes and cucumbers! It's a small garden, but he's very proud of it and I'm very impressed by it! Of course, I have a black thumb, so I can't grow anything...but mold! LOL ;-)

I'm writing from the car, thanks to Cingular's Edge service. I should go now. We're getting close to our exit! Woohoo! I'll post pics later once I download them from my camera.

Oh, and Happy 4th! We're watching fireworks from our balcony tonight! The Richardson (our city) fireworks show is at Breckinridge Park which is conveniently located near our apartment complex, and our balcony faces the right direction to watch from the comfort of our own apartment, and we don't have to fight traffic! Of course, we can't get satellite TV because of the balcony direction, but we can see fireworks!


Later gators!