There Are Places I Remember

Since we moved almost a month ago I am getting the new place put together slowly. In the process I have found a few old pictures and picture frames with old pictures in them. It is really weird how one moment in your life can change so many things and relationships. I am not saying this is good or bad. Things change in your life for a reason. God has plans for our life that we may never understand. Which I struggle with time and time again. As I was looking at new and old pictures this lyrics of this song came to mind.

To my all my friends old and new, I LOVE YOU! Each person has some how made a difference in my life and I love you for that.

There Are Places I Remember - Beatles

There are places I remember all my life,

Though some have changed

Some forever, not for better

Some have gone and some remain.

All these places have their moments

Of lovers and friends I still can recall

Some are dead and some are living

In my life I loved them all.

And with all these friends and lovers

There is no one compares with you

And these mem'ries lose their meaning

When I think of love as something new

And I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before

I know I'll often stop and think about them.

In my life I loved you more.

And I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before

I know I'll often stop and think about them.

In my life I loved you more

In my life I loved you more

On Confrontation and Change

What you refuse to confront you cannot change.

American Idol

I LOVE IT!!! From beginning to end I love it. I have watched it almost every year consistently.

I remember the first year American Idol started I didn't start watching it cause I was on a business trip in Vegas (I know surprise, surprise). Once I got home I started watching and I got hooked.

Yes, I have an all time favorite contestant. From the beginning I loved Chris Daughtry. Chris and I both liked him for different reasons. We swore we would never watch again when he got kicked off but do you think I really lived up to that? NOPE! I did love Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood

American Idol is back and I can't decide who my favorite is. Chris didn't watch with me last year but he actually likes some of them this year so he has started watching again. We both really like David Cook. We will just have to wait and see. He also likes Jason Castro and Carly Smithson. I want to cheer for the girl from Oregon, Kristy Lee Cook but she just isn't as good as I thought she was going to be. She did have a good night last night but I don't think she will last very long. We are kind of hoping tonight Ramiele Malubay is voted off. I just don't think she has as strong of a voice as the other singer.

We will just have to wait and see. Who will be here next week?

Fusilli alla Caprese

Chris was watching Food Network again and decided to make one of the dishes he saw for dinner last night. It was so yummy and quick!!! I can't wait to make it again.

1 pound fusilli pasta
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered (about 1 1/2 pints)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves, torn
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, diced (about 1 1/4 cups)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta into a large bowl and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

In a medium skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, salt, and pepper. As the tomatoes cook and soften, smash them with a fork. Continue to cook until the tomatoes make a chunky style sauce, about 4 minutes. Transfer the tomato sauce to the bowl with the pasta. Toss to combine. Add the basil leaves and mozzarella. Stir to combine. Add the reserved pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, until the pasta is moist. Serve.

It was so good I wish we would have had leftovers for me to bring for lunch. As you can see Chris cooks more than I do. :)

Gray vs. Grey

Today the question came up while writing a technical email.

"How do you spell greyed/grayed? Is it with and a or an e?"

Why doesn't Outlook recognize greyed but does grayed. If it is just grey or gray it recognizes both. After many Google searches we have found our answer.

The reason for this is that one is an American spelling and one is a British spelling. The reason Outlook spell check doesn't recognize greyed. Gray is an American spelling and grey is the British spelling.

Gray is a color and grey is a colour.

There is our answer. :)

White Bean and Kale Soup

Kelle found this recipe in the Oregonian back in December. While I was in Las Vegas she made it and Chris loved it and has been wanting to make it ever since. He made it last night and it was oh so yummy so I thought I would share it.

Chris didn't add chopped tomatoes or ham last night. I think mainly cause we didn't have any but he also doesn't like cooked tomatoes to much. :) I am sure it will still be just as good. He also used white beans we got at WinCo in the bulk food bin. They just need to cook a little bit longer or let them soak an hour or so.

1 large bunch winter red kale
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 to 2 slices of pancetta or ham, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces (optional)
1 cup canned chopped tomatoes, drained
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 small bay leaf
3 cups canned cannellini or great Northern beans (about two 15-ounce cans, rinsed and drained)
1/2 cup chicken broth, plus more as needed

Topping:
1 cup fresh bread crumbs (We actually made our own croutons with french bread and boiled them for like a minute and they are REALLY yummy)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rinse the kale and shake off excess moisture. Remove the stems from the leaves and discard or compost stems. Stack leaves and cut crosswise into ribbons. In a large pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat and saute the greens, garlic and pancetta, if using, until kale is tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the drained tomatoes, salt, thyme, bay leaf, drained beans and broth and mix gently so as to avoid breaking the beans. If the mixture seems dry, add a bit more chicken broth. Spoon into an oiled 10-inch round or oval gratin dish and set aside.

To make topping: In a medium bowl toss the bread crumbs with the olive oil and salt. Spread the topping evenly on baking pan bake for 40 to 50 minutes.

Serve up in a bowl and add croutons to the top when finished.

It is very yummy for a nice dinner and leftovers for lunch. That is what I am having today. :)

It has been a while.....

I didn't realize how long it has been since I actually sat down and wrote a blog. Each time I start to write I stop to think maybe I should really blog about that. Today I thought I would write a few updates since I haven't in a while.

January and February have come and gone like they were weeks instead of months. January seems so long ago already I don't even remember what I did that month. I am just getting over the whirl wind affect of February that came and went.

I have actually been traveling more for work so I have been busy planning my trips and going back and forth from Arizona every other month. I also went to Las Vegas for 4 days in February. Actually found a few restaurants I loved and can't wait to go to again in June when and if I go. I don't mind traveling all that much I figure it builds up my frequent flyer miles that we can hopefully use soon.

For a few months now I have been looking for a new job. It isn't that I don't like what I do I just am struggling at the company I am currently working at. Mid January I found a job that I liked through Adeco doing pretty much exactly what I am doing now for a much larger company. I interviewed with them the first week of February and felt really good about the interview. About a week later I got a call asking me what my salary range was and I was still feeling pretty good. On the 15th I got the news that they offered the job to someone else that had a little smaller salary range than I did. I was very upset cause I felt so good about the job. After crying and being upset cause I didn't get it I realized that it wasn't the job God intended for me and that there was a better plan. That is easier to say now than it was 3 weeks ago. ;-)


At the beginning of February we made an executive decision between Chris and I that we needed to move to save money. We didn't want to because we loved our house and our Landlords but knew we were paying too much in rent. So the search began about the first week to find a new place. We were looking every where. From Hillsboro to Sherwood to SW Portland. If it was in our price range we looked at it. There were a few that we liked in Sherwood but didn't fit in our price range at all. Right before I left for Vegas we found a house in Beaverton that we really liked. The couple renting it seemed very nice and down to earth they were fine with Kona and weren't asking more for a security deposit. We filled out an application and we were excited to start the process. We were just waiting to here back. They never called so back to the search. We knew we had to be out by the 2nd so time was running out and quick. Monday the 25th we looked at a place in Aloha/Beaverton that we actually really liked. On the 27th we got a call that our application was accepted and we could move in starting the 1st. PHEW, just in time or else we would have been packing it all and living in a storage unit. :) Kelle, Joe, Mom, Dana and Kenzie came over and helped us move and we got it all done. Now to the unpacking for Taneha!!! I am still going room by room I think this is worse than packing.

So this is what we have been doing the last 2 months. I think I will start blogging more cause I have a lot of random thoughts lately. Also I have been finding a lot of new recipes that we have liked. Tonight Chris is going to try this new soup his Mom made while I was in Vegas. I can't wait to try it and I will post the recipe tomorrow in case anyone is in the mood for a new soup.

One last thing....Chris, thank you so much for supporting me in the decisions I make and standing by me. I know sometimes it isn't easy putting up with my emotional roller coaster and random freak out break downs. You always know how to make me smile and laugh my way through them even though you have heard the same thing 100 times.

There is so much more going on in my head but since I haven't wrote in a while I will save it for another day.