Bon Appétit

I have been cooking. Haven't posted about it in awhile. But rest assured, I have been cooking. Some of my recent feats have been chocolate chip cookies, mannicotti, spaghetti and meatballs, pork stew with parsnips and butternut squash, apple cake, and that's about all I can think of right now. Sunday night's meal was Boeuf a la bourguignonne (AKA beef burgundy). It's a dish I have been wanting to make for a long time - just never got around to it. I was inspired to make it after finally seeing Julie & Julia this past Saturday night. Each of them make the dish in the movie and I decided it was time to give it a try. It is not a terribly difficult dish. It just requires some extra steps and care to develop the rich flavor. I also had the opportunity to use my Le Creuset dutch oven - always a pleasure to use.

Fall

Fall is the busiest time of year for us (especially me), as evidenced by the lack of blogging... It's a new school year, a new football season, and a new holiday season. And we have been making the best of it all!

I have been busy with my teaching assistant activities as well as my own course load. But, I still made time for fun. I took another pottery class - actually it was the same pottery class I took over the summer, but still lots of fun. I've also been spending extra time on campus, running. No, not running gels or samples (which I have been doing :), actual running. I even did my first 5K in October. Matt and I are training for our first half-marathon - 13.1 miles. A little scary...

In October, we celebrated Mom's 50th birthday at Epcot Food & Wine Festival. We had a lot of surprises for her and she had a great time. To kick-off the weekend, we went to the Polynesian Luau Dinner - they had great food and fire dancing. What more could you want! Afterwards, we went monorail bar-hopping. Not sure why we never thought of it before... We just hopped on the monorail and hit the bars at each hotel. It was a lot of fun. Will definitely do it again. The next day we surprised her with Kelley's 50th custom shirts - each unique in design with photos and captions - and we did the F&W Fest. One of our best ever!

We also recently joing the Gainesville SCUBA Club. First time in several years Gainesville had a SCUBA Club and we attended the inaugural meeting *exciting*. They have a meeting and an outing once a month. This month we went to Devil's Den - haven't been there since our check-out dives. But unlike our check-out dives, I carried 2 tanks! It was a short distance, but I did. The SCUBA workouts have been paying off :) This past week, for the second Club meeting, we attended a spearfishing seminar. Not sure how I feel about spearfishing yet, but Matt is excited about it. He wants the JBL 53" sawed-off magnum speargun. Maybe Santa will bring him one.

As for football season, this is my 11th consecutive year of season football tickets! So, we've been hitting the home games. And for our away game of the season we went to the SC game. We took a bus trip to Columbia, SC with the Fighting Gators Touchdown Club to cheer on the Gators. Always a great time! Matt has been busy with his Fantasy team. He will have to comment on that as I don't know much about it. He did say today 'fantasy football is the bane of my existance' - so I do not think he is having a great season.

And the holidays... We are hosting Thanksgiving this year. We are still finalizing the menu and gameplan. it will be good times. We will start decorating the house for Christmas soon. And Matt has been getting together MANY Christmas movies for us to watch this season. And for New Year's, we will go up to Georgia with some friends and visit the family. Can't wait!!

Tea Time!

Well, I haven't cooked anything interesting lately - been really busy with work and school and getting ready for our upcoming NJ trip :) BUT, I did make some really good tea!

If you haven't seen the signs of my tea obsession (and there are so many signs), then I must tell you that I have a tea problem... I've been drinking tea all my life (as most good southerners do) with little ill effect, that was until Jenny (McPepin) introduced me to Teavana -the really good stuff. She even supplied the paraphernalia!

So, I made some iced tea - Fruit Garden - and took it with me to school today as a treat, since Tuesday is now my looong day. I must say it was quite delicious. I know it is not really cooking, but you do have to get the water temperature and the steeping time right and make sure it is sweetened appropriately. So, I will call it my recipe for the week - or my tea of the week. Although I am way more excited about my tea of the weekend...

I will not be bringing my tea supplies to NJ as the airport security may find it suspicious - 'No, I swear it is just loose tea and an infuser'. However, I will not go without - me, Matt, and Momma Stanton have plans to go to Alice's Teacup! This is by far the best tea house I have ever been to and I am confident in saying that is my favorite in the world. I have not been to that many tea houses, but it combines TWO of my most favorite things - Alice in Wonderland and Tea - what is not to love. Erin took me to Alice's Teacup for my Girls' Weekend before the wedding and it was so much *fun*. The decor is awesome and the tea selection is impressive to say the least. They also have fabulous scones! Hmmm...maybe that will be the next recipe I tackle... Anyway, I am really looking forward to it - will post more next week!

What's Cookin' Part 2

I recently decided that I too, will feature recipe a every 1 to 2 weeks. I will attempt to cook the winning dishes from Top Chef, either the elimination challenge or the quick fire. That way, we'll see if the food really is as good as they say on TV. First up, Arctic Char with green stuff. It appears that Fabio from last season will help guide me through the recipe. Can't wait. Not sure where to find arctic char though...

What's Cookin'?

So, I have not forgotten about my plans to cook through the Joy of Cooking - just been really busy and have not had to time to blog :( I've been busy writing and Shawn came to visit for a few days and we celebrated Marc's birthday (in style I might add! - will blog about in the future, but need some pics) and we had an 80's weekend of Def Leppard, Poison, and Cheap Trick, and on and on...

Anyway, the first recipe I tackled from Joy of Cooking - I am going to start calling it JOC - was the Salsa Fresca. Now, I know what you are thinking - 'What is so special about fresh salsa?' Well, I admit it is VERY easy to make, but I have never made a real salsa. I have made corn salsas and fruit salsas and my avocado salad, which is a salsa of sorts. But I have never made a real salsa. The ingredients were brief - tomatoes, onion, lime juice, jalapeno, radishes (?!?), garlic, and cilantro. Just chop and throw everything together, salt and pepper to taste. And it was special in a way, we had some good friends come over and we enjoyed a simple meal outside on our new patio. Matt grilled some burgers with bacon, jack cheese, and guac and we had some fresh salsa with our chips.

And that is the point of my JOC mission - to enjoy some new recipes for our everyday.


And for our everyday this week...

Lentil Soup with Greens
I *love* making soup! It is so much better (and more fun) than a can. And this week is a soup week. Last night we had one of our fav easy meals - grilled cheese and tomato soup. I tried a tomato soup from the Martha Stewart Everyday Food site, the Classic Tomato Soup. It was quite good, but my current favorite from the same site is the Creamy Tomato Soup. If you have not checked-out this site for recipes, you must! I have loved everything that I have tried. So back to JOC, tonight I tried the Lentil Soup with Greens. This was a very hearty and yet healthy soup. You start with a mirepoix (onions, carrots, celery) and I added some bacon, and you just saute, then add the lentils, diced tomato, thyme and water. I also added some zucchini and kale towards the end. Finish with some balsamic and parmesan cheese. We had it with a green salad and some multi-grain bread. It was very satisfying. A good meal after a long day...

And that reminds me... All this cooking talk makes me think of one of the projects in my perpetual queue of craftiness - a decorative project for the kitchen. After all, our kitchen is *bitchin'*!!


This is from the book Subversive Cross Stitch. Shawn gave this book to me a few Christmases ago :)

Julie & Julia

So, have you seen the previews for Julie & Julia? If not, you need to check this out: Julie & Julia Trailer

Anyway, in the movie Julie is inspired by food and decides to cook her way through Julia Child's cookbook and blog about it. It gave me the idea to do the same thing, but with The Joy of Cooking. My Grandma Jen gave me the 75th Anniversary edition of this book a few years ago for Christmas and it is my favorite and most cherished cookbook (and I have many!). The 75th edition even includes a note from Julia Child herself. So, it must be meant to be.

Each month I will choose a chapter to experiment with and cook some of the recipes from that chapter. And then I will blog about it. I start next week. Stay posted :)

Love you Jen!

SCUBA Workouts??

So, last week I was talking about my new gym and how they wanted to know what my fitness goals were. And I tried to come up with some, but was told my goals were not original or specific enough. So, I started thinking that I want to be stronger. I really want to be able to carry 2 full tanks at once and of course my gear. So far, this has required multiple trips up and down the dock or Matt gets loaded down like a pack mule. Either way, I want to be able to carry my own weight in one trip. I plan on doing rescue training soon and I will definitely have to get stronger for that. Or start going to Judo so I know how to toss around people twice my weight. Anyway...

Yesterday, I was again asked my fitness goals (moving from a white card to a gold card - woohoo!) and I told the guy specifically what my goal was...

They are now customizing exercises for me so I can achieve this goal. He even went so far as to ask me how much the tanks weigh and the position that they are carried. I can only imagine what these exercises will be - a simulation - I am sure.

'Hold out these 50 lb weights at both sides, now hold them out a little - you don't want the tanks knocking into your knees and ankles - and walk... Oh, here comes the steps to the dock/boat/bar/etc. - now do some lunges. And don't forget to breathe.'

I can't wait!

1st Annual BBQ

Thanks to everyone who came out for our 1st Annual Summer BBQ! We had a great time and hope you all did too. If you couldn't make it - don't worry, we will have plenty more festivities :) Remember our Halloween Party is coming up...

Landscaping Done!

At least done with the professional work - Matt and I will also be adding our own touches. Eventually Matt will take the Christmas light clips off the roof too.

Landscaping Progress

As of 12:30pm today:

What has Mel been up to?

I know... I have not posted in awhile - the blog has been dominated by Matt. Well, I've been busy - in addition to my usual scholastic and professional activities, I've been working on some other 'projects'.

1. Gym - I finally joined a new gym. And I love it. I was asked to make some fitness goals... and then I was told that my goals were not original enough - not even my push-up and pull-up aspirations. So, here goes... I want to be able to carry my own weight when it comes to SCUBA. And I am not talking about the 14+lbs of lead to get me down, I am talking about ALL of my gear AND both of my tanks - full tanks - and of course the 14+lbs of lead. I want to be able to carry all of this in one shot no matter how long the dock. I am anxious for the next time I am asked for my goals - I think it is a pretty good one, and original.

2. Dyeing - I recently learned how to dye yarn and roving. The technique I am experimenting with uses a crock pot to 'cook' the dye. It's a lot of fun and the end product is always a bit of a surprise. There are more controlled methods of dyeing, but I am really liking this one. So, if anyone has an old crock pot they don't want anymore - let me know.

(blue and green blend shown below - haven't named the colorway yet)


3. Pottery - After many years of wanting to do the pottery wheel, I am finally taking a class for it. I even found a buddy (Mariellen) who has also been wanting to learn. So far we have had only one class, but it's been fun. However, I don't think there is any danger of pottery replacing my fiber fetish. (will hopefully get some pics this week :)

4. Plans for a new blog - 'Fiber Fetish' - still in the works.

5. And lastly - my new fiber fetish - I think everyone has heard me gushing about my new little pixie wheel, but just in case, I am now the proud owner of a Louet Victoria spinning wheel. She is a travel wheel, so she folds up and fits in a little travel bag. I just finished my spinning class, and I am *hooked*. I am so excited to start making the yarn that I want.

(wheel and hand-spun shown below)

Summer Cleaning

Mel and I are working hard to get the house ready for the 1st Annual Stanton Barbeque. In doing so, I'm hoping that I learned the lesson to mow the lawn every 7 to 10 days in the summer, otherwise it's twice the work. Probably not though. Barring rain, we're going to have the landscaping done at the house tomorrow. We're excited to see what it looks like. Here are a couple "before" pictures; we're hoping the after looks much better.

New Patio

Our new patio was finished last Thursday, just in time to enjoy the summer heat. Mel and I grilled some hamburgers and ate our first meal on the patio tonight, and we were only bit 2 or 3 times by mosquitos. Next time we'll set up a citronella wall.

4th of July

After a long day of weekend work for both Melonie and me, we went over to Jeremy and Melissa's neighborhood to enjoy some good food, company, and fireworks. Little did we know that the fireworks display would rival a major theme park. Attached is only a small sample of the evening's festivities.

College football

Going to Ocala tonight to see Lou Holtz speak to the Fightin' Gator Touchdown Club. Should be a good talk - if anything it will motivate us all to go out and play tackle football in the parking lot. We had Coach Meyer talk to the club last month so everyone is getting excited about the upcoming year. Mel and I are looking forward home games against Tennessee and FSU, and traveling up to Columbia to watch the South Carolina game.

Beer Pairing at Stubbies

In an attempt to show more school spirit and support, we recently joined the UF Alumni Association. The most recent event – a beer and food pairing at Stubbies – had nothing to do with our decision :) We were served some very tasty beers and some yummy German food. Here we are sampling a sausage and potato stuffed struedel paired with a Shiner Black Lager. Mmmm.

Monkey Socks

My Monkey Socks - well part of one anyway. I am making some socks with my exclusive sock club yarn for the month of June from Hank's Yarn and Fiber. The yarn is 'Perhaps Today is a Good Day to Dye' in the colorway- Sock Monkey. I am loving this pattern and the yarn even more. If you love the yarn too, it will be available for purchase in December and the pattern I am using is 'Monkey' by Cookie A - a free Knitty.com pattern.

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone for all the wonderful wedding gifts! Everyone was so generous and we have the best family and friends. You all will receive your 'official' thank-you's soon. However, we had a fun night (perhaps too fun) of wine and thank-you-writing, so some of your cards may be a little silly :)

Oreo

We bought Oreo some new play cubes last night. And we were very curious to see what he would do with them. Well, he seems to like them and he was quite a happy bun last night as he was hopping and binkying all about. He will hop in and out of the cubes and nudge them, but he is still being a bit cautious. We will try to post some pics and hopefully video soon...