By The Light of the Moon

We held a bonfire party last night. It was a beautiful night, an almost full moon, a toasty fire, good food and even better friends.

We laughed, we talked and laughed some more. The comment I heard the most this morning was "my cheeks hurt". That's the sign you had a good time!

We sipped on pink bikinis and love and peace:

Everyone pitched in with the food and drinks. We had quite the spread, from fruit and veggie trays to jalepeno boats, chocolate pie, pasta salad, lucky salsa, banana boats and s'mores.

After everyone left, Mike and I sat alone by the fire. We shared thoughts about our jobs, our society, the Bible, and our future family.

 His sentiment "And then there were two", brought a quick tear to my eye, as it was a modified version of one he shares with his army buddies, "The Triad", as they call themselves.

It was a fitting end to a magical night.

And it all happened underneath the Pennsylvania moon. (which strangely enough, when you're with the right people feels just like home)

2nd 101/1001

The following is my second 101/1001 list. I completed aprox. half of my previous list. This list is not a list of must dos, but rather a list of things I'd like to do. The list serves as a way to keep me focused. I have until December 10, 2015 to complete my list.(How fitting that it ends on my birthday!) At that time I can reevaluate.

The italized items are in progress, the completed items are italized and bold.

TRAVEL (0/14)

1. Go to Vegas with Mr. Groom
2. Visit the Bedford Village
3. Take a couples trip
4.  Visit Cake Boss Bakery
5. Take a road trip
6. Lay plans for a recoccuring girls vacation/get together
7. Go to a concert
8. Go to the beach
9. Visit Boston
10. Go to Philadelphia
11. Visit Baltimore
12. See wild horses
13. Renew my passport
14. See the locks

EATING AND DRINKING (0/4)
15. Tour a winery
16. Go to a fondue restaurant
17. Make a cocktail not from a mix
18. Have a pizza making competition

COOKING (0/9)
19. Make truffles again
20. Make Smores with homemade graham crackers and marshmallows
21. Bake 3 inventive cupcake flavors
22. Try 15 new dessert recipes (0/ 15)
23. Try 15 new non dessert recipes (0/15)
24. Make homemade icecream
25. Make deep fried cupcakes
26. Try a Cupcake Project recipe
27. Try a Brown Eyed Baker recipe

WRITING (0/6)
28. Finish Westbound Hope
29. Finish Imag
30. Submit Imag to a Publisher
31. Finish Wives book
32. Submit Wives book to Publisher
33. Attend a writing workshop or seminar

CRAFT/CREATIVE  (0/7)
34. Create postcards out of pictures I’ve taken
35. Take a card making class or a cake decorating class
36. Make a travel scrapbook
37. Finish my wedding shadowbox
38. Finish tshirt quilt
39. Learn to use my sewing machine
40. Finish my writing desk

DOMESTICNESS (0/6)
41. Host a dinner party
42. Get Mr. Groom a personal Christmas ornament
43. Buy personalized stationary
44. Wrap a gift with a Bobo scarf
45.Host a Southern Comfort Theme Party
46. Grow vegetables and fruit


SPIRITUAL (0/6)
47. Write out bible verses that inspire me and post them around the house
48. Read the entire Bible
49. Attend an Easter Service
50. Attend Christmas Eve Service
51. Strengten my prayer life
52. Share my faith with someone

BODY (0/3)
53.Get in shape (be able to run a mile, nonstop, under x minutes....be able to go up and downstairs without getting out of breath. boost upper arm strength)
54. Get new glasses
55. Have retainer removed

GIVING BACK (0/8)
56. Participate in Operation Christmas Child
57. Volunteer at the soup kitchen or food pantry
58. Volunteer with Girl Scouts
59. Be a Girl Scout Leader
60. Send a gift to Morningside
61. Adopt a soldier
62. Send Christmas Cards to St Judes every Christmas (0/3)
63. Look into being a foster parent or adoption

ORGANIZE (0/7)
 64. Load all pictures on my camera onto cds
65. Sell my prom dresses
66. Put all my books on shelves
67. Put all my printed pictures in an album
68. Clean out my room at my parents house
69. Hang artwork
70. Have my wedding dress preserved

FAMILY AND FRIENDS (0/11)
71. Go on a double date with Hotglue and her man
72. Host a holiday celebration
73. Host a holiday celebration where both sides can attend
74. Have a niece or nephew stay the night
75. Have my sister spend a weekend or so with us
76. Continue to send snail mail to my friends
77. Give family history books for grandparents and parents to complete
78. Pray for my futrure children and thier spouses
79. Get  Mike a pet. And not a rock
80. Make recipe dish towels for family
81. Plan something special for our 5 year anniversary

THINGS (0/4)
82. Buy a new laptop
83. Get my camera fixed
84. Start a charm bracelet
85. Get a Nook case

FUN (0/12)
86. Take pictures in a photo booth again
87. Get another massage
88. Play laser  tag
89. Go outlet shopping
90. Host a craft night party
91. Have a bonfire
92. Go on a picnic
93. Host a murder mystery party
94. Host a girls night in
95. Makeover
96. Attend a scrapbooking weekend
97. Have boudoir shots made
98. Learn to braid

PROFESSIONAL  (0/3)
99. Start a business
100. Send my freelance writing resume to 5 places
101. Learn Sign language

Woot Woot!

Celebrate!

I have a few reasons to be extra happy this weekend!

1. My husband is feeling better and knows what has been causing him pain and worry. And has a way to ease his pain! Praise God!

2. Our new dining room set came today! We got a really good deal. We bought the table and chairs for $599 and it came with a queen sized mattress and box spring set! It's not the best quality mattress but it sure does beat sleeping on the couch and chair and half. And, we plan on moving my parents old bedroom set up this summer for our guest bedroom. So when that happens we can move the free mattress on to it and buy ourselves a nicer mattress.

3. I've been writing pretty steadily for the local paper and started my training at the grocery store last week.

4. Yesterday was sunny and warm enough that I was able to sit outside and read my FREE subscription to Better Homes and Gardens!

5. I've knocked a few things of of my 101/1001 list lately. The latest item was not as hard as I thought it would be. "Cook 15 new non-dessert recipes." And I did it! Suprisingly, before the similar goal to cook 15 new dessert recipes! You can check out my Kitchen Adventures page to check out the recipes I've tried and liked enough to blog about. A few more should be coming this week! Knocking that goal off my list means I've completed 32 of the goals on the list!

What good things happend to you this week?

Messy, But Yummy!

Last night we had a little taste of summer with bacon pineapple burgers with homemade buns! Because I forgot to reform the patties after they soaked in the marinade, they fell apart some on the grill but still tasted awesome!

Use 1lb ground meat for every four burgers.

Mix meat with three tablespoons of italian dressing and salt and pepper. Form into patties. Press pineapple slices into each patty. Cover with marinade made from 3/4 cup BBQ sauce, 1/4 cup honey 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1 tablespoon pineapple juice. Let soak at least two hours in the fridge. Reshape patties into tight balls and grill to perfection! While you're grilling, cook up some bacon to sit on top.

Now, about those buns! I used this recipe, but my buns didn't come out as neatly as hers did. And they were denser than I'd expected. Maybe, I didn't punch the dough down enough? We were able to use them, and I've been eating the smaller sized leftovers with honey, pb and banana for breakfast and lunch.

going into the oven:

coming out of the oven:

Midweek Food Review

Since most of the recipes I'm making this week and next are new to us, I ask Mike everynight after dinner if he likes the dish enoough for me to make again. Here are his comments:

Monday night was breakfast, a meal we both love to eat for dinner (and sometimes late night snacks), so it's a no brainer that we want to have this again. And there were plenty of leftover pancakes for us to eat throughout the week.

Tuesday night was chickenburgers served with fries and baked beans. Mike's comment? "They feel like crabcakes. Next time let's have them without the buns." So next time we'll have chickencakes. You can find the recipe here.

Wednesday night we had  Inside Out Stuffed Peppers served over kidney beans, instead of the recommended rice. We both really liked the dish and will probably make it again, although it wasn't as filling as it would have been with the rice. So I  made homemade texas toast from leftover hot dog buns to go with it.

Yesterday we had slow cooker spicy meatloaf. I almost burned it because it was done an hour earlier than the recipe said it would be, but the meat thermometer was reading 200 F so I scooped it out of the crock pot, and into a loaf pan. I put the pan in the oven to keep it warm until Mike came home. And it was a hit! Mike loved it although it wasn't as spicy as I thought it would be. It had a nice flavor though so I hope to post the recipe later.

Red Beet Eggs

My husband loves to eat these as a snack and as a side with his meal. I think they smell, but he loves them so I thought I'd try to make them since they are so expensive in the store.

Ingredients:

1 cup white sugar
1 cup vinegar
1 can of red beets
hard boiled eggs, shelled

Boil eggs and then shell them. While they boil, mix the sugar, vinegar and beets into a bowl. It helps if you have a big bowl with a lid. Make sure the sugar is dissolved and add in the eggs. Cover and let them sit for 2-3 days, stirring/shaking/sloshing twice a day to dissolve the sugar. You know the eggs are done when  you cut the eggs opne and they are a pinky purple all the way through.

Crossing Off

I've accomplished several things on my list lately.

I've...

gotten married...which means I perfected my vows, and gotten comfortable enough to dance at the reception and been on a girls getaway, met Mike's mom and gotten my makeup done for a natural look. Also, my new social security card came in the mail today so I've offically CHANGED MY NAME !

I sent out Christmas cards that I made and had a real Christmas tree in my new home.

Only 80 more items to go!

My First Ever Peanut Butter Pie!

Mike's family is coming over for lunch today and knowing that Mike's dad loves PB pie, I decided to look up a recipe and make one.

Here is what happened:

I made a graham cracker crust with crushed graham crackers and melted butter.

Then I whipped up the good stuff.

Ingredients:

8 oz softened cream chz
1/2 c creamy pb
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
8 oz whipped cream
pb cups

Mix the cream chz, confectioners sugar and pb until smooth. Fold in whipped topping.  Spoon over crust and let chill overnight. Decorate with pb cups.

(If my phone would let me upload pics I would have a pretty picture to share.)

Making Progress on My List!

This morning I bought really cute address labels with my new address on them! That was item number 7 under "Domesticness" on my list of 101 things to do.

The address on the labels is for our new townshouse. All I've seen of it so far is pictures from a cell phone, so I'm very excited to get up to PA and see it and startign setting up our home.

But I have heard that its a two bedroom, has big closets in the master bedroom and has all new flooring and paint and a new dishwasher. Sounds good to me! I'll do a post with picutres once I move in!
Mike has moved in already so that he can be closer to his NEW JOB! But the poor guy is sleeping on the floor and watching two TV channels. Hopefully the couch delivery will come through on Friday, and they will hook up the phone, internet and cable on Saturday so he can have a little more convienences- and so that I can actually have a conversation with him- there is no cell service that covers the area so we haven't been able to talk very much. But, only a little over a week and we'll be married!

25 Books to Read

One thing on my 101/1001 list is to make a list of 25 books I've been meaning to read. Here's the list (in no particular order):
1.Problems Men Started- Nikki Hardin  (This has been on my to read list for quite some time and I'm determined to read it this go around!)
2. Animal Farm- George Orwell (I loved 1984 but never ventured to read Animal Farm)
3. Retribution- Jilliane Hoffman (My mom loaned my this this summer and I've yet to finish it)
4. The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott- Kelly O’Connor McNees (I won this in a giveaway)
5. The Last Song- Nicholas Sparks (This one may change)
6. Traveling with Pomegranates- Sue Monk Kidd (I love the other books of hers I've read)
7. The Lost Hours- Karen White
8. As if I am Not There-Slavenka Drakulic (I discovered Drakulic last year and can't wait to devour more)
9. Daniel X- James Patterson (Another loaner.)
10. A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table- Molly Wizenburg 11. Outlander- Diana Gabaldon (recommended by mom)
12. The Distant Hours- Kate Morton
13. The House at Riverton- Kate Morton
14. The Glass Castle- Jeanette Walls (several recommendations)
15. The History of Love- Nicole Krauss
16. A Jodi Picoult Book
17. The Abstinence Teacher- Tom Perrotta
18. American on Purpose- Craig Ferguson (I love Craig Ferguson. Not enough to stay up every night though)
19. A Good Mule is Hard to Find- Kirk Neely (Dr. Neely is my pastor)
20. The Murder of King Tut- James Patterson (I love Patterson!)
21. A Bill Bryson Book (I love reading Bryson!)
22. In Cheap We Trust- Lauren Weber (seems interesting...subject to change)
23. House of Sand and Fog- Andre Dubus (I loved the movie)
24. Barbie and Ruth- Robin Gerber (I'm curious)

25. A Movable Feast- Hemingway (I recently read an excerpt for class and its gotten me hooked)
What do you think? Did you love/hate any of these? Any suggestions for a specefic book where my list is vague?

O is for Organized!

This past week has been so busy!

But, thanks to my organization skills it was as painless as possible.

Before I left for South Korea I packed for college and made a list of thanks that would need doing right after I got home. A few weeks before coming home, I scheduled dentist, eye doctor, florist and catering appointments for last week.

My last week in Korea, I added to my to-do list (things like make smore brownies) and created a list of things that needed to be shortly after I moved back onto campus.

Because of my lists, and the fact that I packed most of my things before I left for the summer, I was able to take a second trip to the caterer, volunteer at Girl Scout's twlight camp and visit with both sets of my grandparents.

Check out all of mail I sorted this week:

I unpacked yesterday, and knocked out a good deal of my errands this morning (one of which was sending my engagement notice off to the paper), so now I have the afternoon to relax before classes start in the morning.

Thank goodness for lists!

Wedding Planning and An Easy Recipe

Whew. Friday was a busy day!

I made cookies for my sister in the morning and then went to lunch with my grandparents. After lunch my dad and I went to the florist and ordered bouquets.

We picked minature red carnations, roses, fresia, baby's breath, and star of bethelhem. My bouquet has the red flowers on the outside and the white flowers on the inside, and the bridesmaids bouquets have the white flowers on the outside and red in the middle.

After flower shopping my dad and I went to a local boutique and created a wedding registry there. Basically, I just tell them my china pattern and silver pattern and they look it up and order it for whoever comes in wanting to purchase a gift.

For a little fun, I made smore brownies to take back to college and share with my roomies.

I used a brownie recipe from my friend Mary at Food Floozie, and tossed in a few handfuls of chocolate chips. (To make it easy just use your favorite recipe or boxed mix).

Before pouring the brownies into the pan I made a graham cracker crust from crushed up graham crackers and butter. I poured the brownies on top and baked them for three minutes less than the time the recipe called for.

 I pulled the brownies out, covered them in mini marshmallows and then put them in for the remaining time.  Once the brownies were done I pulled them out and sprinkled really fine graham cracker crumbs on top of the marshmallows. And mmm-mmm, they were good. Hopefully, I won't eat them all before Sunday!

Here's a picture:

This is the first recipe of my goal to try 15 new  dessert recipes on my 101/1001 list.

Wedding Planning = First Thing Off The List

I'm still working with the caterer to get a price for my dessert reception. But I have gotten some things done since I've been in South Korea. Today I ordered my wedding invitations from American Wedding! I didn't order the satin ribbon with it because I thought it was way overpriced so I'm going to try to find some ribbon half off at Hobby Lobby, and if not I can easily order some from American Wedding when I begin addressing envelopes and have it delivered by the time I'm ready to tie them up and seal them.

 I also broke down and purchased my wedding earrings. They cost more than I think earrings should ever cost but they are very lovely and match my dress perfectly. And because they cost a bunch I'll always have an excuse to wear them (I like to think of things in terms of per use costs).  I got them here, at etsy, of course. And guess what? *GASP* Buying/Making my wedding earrings is #74 on my  101/1001 list. So yay! I'm making progress!!! Woot!

Help Me Out With Number 40?

Number 40 on my 101/1001 list is to make a list of 25 books I want to read. I am being very picky about the books I put on the list. I am trying to choose books that I have wanted to read for a while but haven't gotten around to it.

I don't want to finalize the list until I am back in the USA because I keep a running notebook of recommended reading that I want to pick a few books from. I think I want to try and stick mostly to fiction books

But all of my list probably won't come from that notebook. Thats where you come in. What are your favorite books of all time? Have you finished a really great book recently?

Here is the list I've got so far:

1. Problems Men Started- Nikki Hardin
2. Animal Farm- George Orwell
3. The Tipping Point- Malcolm Gladwell
4. Housekeeping-Marilynne Robinson
5. Suck in your stomach and put some color on-Shellie Tomilson
6. As If I Am Not There- Slavenka Drakulic
7. The Year of the Flood- Margaret Atwood
8. The Lost Hours- Karen White

Thanks for your suggestions. I'll let you know if any of them make the list!

101 in 1001

I've heard many people making a bucket list and I've seen several bloggers (especially this one) make a 101 things to do in 1001 days. I'm making a list, but I need some inspiration. I've got big things like visit Vegas, and small things like make a scrapbook. But I'm stuck on number 75. I need 25 more goals. I want to focus on more smaller or inbetween things because I know I'm getting married in 100 and so something days and after that our finaces will be tight. BUT I don't want to stop myself from dreaming big, so I do want bigger things on the list.

Have you made a list? Whats on it? What things do you want to do in the next 1001 days? If you've blogged about it, please leave a comment sharing your list. If you haven't- what are your top ten things?