Still reading

I've had A LOT going on lately, both good and bad. Unfortunately the blogging fell a tad bit behind as a result. I have continued reading the Harry Potter series though. I started and finished Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban shortly after the start of the new year. It was so good that I literally finished it and picked up the very next book (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) right after. Even though that book was pretty big I finished it in a week!

I am loving this series! Although I wish I would have given in to it years ago I do think it's pretty cool that the only wait I have between books is because of myself. I don't actually have to wait for the book to come out or anything like that. And a nice bonus has been watching each movie with my dh after I finish the book ;)

I blame it on my age...

and the fact that I'm getting old. I forgot to post December's "us" picture. So here it is, a little late but still. And in honor of me getting older and being forgetful this pic is from my 26th Birthday :)

Last post of 2009

What better way to say goodbye to a great year than to work on two more items for my blog?! Earlier today Rick and I decided to start the day off with a hike. We did this last year on New Year's Eve as well and thought it was a fun tradition to start. We decided to hike another train in the Mission Trails Regional Park-- Mesa Road. It wasn't as hard as the last hike we went on, but was still listed as a category 4 "challenging". It was a beautiful day for a hike, nice and cool weather still, but plenty of sunshine too. According to the website the hike is 2.2 miles one way. Some of the highlights of the trail were the pretty stream surrounded by rocks, and the "tunnel" that the vegetation formed.




After our hike we were off to lunch at Bud's Louisiana Cafe. I found this place on www.yelp.com and after reading all of the rave reviews I decided that this was the next place I wanted to eat at for my project. The first test was the sweet tea. It was sooo good! We knew that we were in for a treat. We ordered an appetizer of shrimp bourbon st- One dozen shrimp lightly coated with cornflour and cornmeal and flash fried, served with an orange marmalade horseradish dipping sauce. As well as our entree's...Grilled Chicken Po'Boy (Rick's)-Chicken breast dusted with Creole seasoning and grilled. Served with lettuce, tomato, and Caesar dressing. And Crawfish Etouffee (mine)-Crawfish tail meat pan sauteed with garlic, butter, thyme, and basil and tossed in our sauce of onions, celery, green peppers, and a light tomato roux. The food was outstanding! Even the caesar salad that came with my meal was awesome! We were left feeling very full and happy and both agreed that this was the best new restauraunt we have tried in a very long time. The only downside was that it was *tiny* inside, which made it feel kind of awkward to talk above a whisper. But we did overhear that they will be moving into a new, larger location.


All in all a great end to a GREAT year! See everyone in 2010!!!

#90 See a Movie Alone

This was an interesting task to complete on my list. Not necessarily a hard one, but one that does make a person slightly uncomfortable by putting you outside of your "comfort zone". But sometimes that is a necessary part of life. I think it's good to do things that cause a bit of discomfort every now and again. I'd like to think that it helps you grow as a person.

So I decided that today would be the perfect day to go see a movie all by myself. I've been wanting to watch New Moon again, I'm only working halfdays this week, and today was $5 Tuesday at the local movie theater in town. Everything just came together perfectly. I figured the theater would be empty and that would make this a little easier being that it was an early afternoon showing in the middle of the week.... well not so much. It was actually a pretty popular idea I suppose. It took me a good bit of time to find parking, and once I bought my ticket and soda I walked to my theater hoping that all the people were seeing the new releases. I walked into the theater for New Moon and was shocked by how packed it was.

Once I got settled into my seat though everything was fine. It did feel a little awkward trying to find a seat alone. It's always easier to have Rick with me, holding the snacks and leading the way. But at least I had no problem finding a seat for one. Overall it was a good experience. I'm glad I can say that I've seen a movie alone. Although I honestly wouldn't have ever done it if it wasn't for setting it as a goal on here.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

Let me just start out by saying I'm *not* a huge tuna person. I know a lot of people love it and can eat it all the time... but I'm just not one of those people. I'll eat it very occasionally on a salad, and will only have it as a sandwich if it's my pesto tuna salad. But that's pretty much about it.

For some strange reason though I decided I wanted to find a good tuna noodle casserole recipe to try. I don't think I've ever had one in my adult life, and I honestly am not even sure if I had it as a kid. But this recipe I found at www.allrecipes.com is soooo good! It's been a while since I've had a meal so tasty. And it made a ton! I wasn't sure the leftovers would taste as good as the first night, but they actually did.

Ingredients

• 1 (12 ounce) package egg noodles
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 1 (6 ounce) can tuna, drained
• 3 cups shredded American cheese
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup crushed potato chips
• 1 pinch paprika

Directions

1. In a large pot with boiling salted water cook egg noodles until al dente. Drain.
2. In a large bowl combine the cooked egg noodles, cream of mushroom soup, evaporated milk, tuna, grated American cheese, and chopped onion. Pour into a greased 1.5 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle the top with the crumbled potato chips and the paprika.
3. Bake in a preheated 425 degree F (220 degree C) oven for 15 to 20 minutes.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving Calories: 659 | Total Fat: 31.3g | Cholesterol: 139mg

Granted this isn't the healthiest recipe, but it's okay to splurge every now and again. :) Also this was great as is. I didn't really change a whole lot, except that I sauteeed my onion and used a little goya seasoning when doing so. Also I used kettle cooked chips for a little more crunch. YUM!

#18 Go ice skating

I love the holiday season for so many reasons. One of them would have to be the fact that the outlet center sets up their awesome ice skating rink. It's big, outdoor, and decorated for Christmas. They even have Christmas music playing over the speakers to really put you in the holiday spirit.

Last year was my first time ever ice skating. It was fun, but also a little scary. I didn't have any health insurance and was super paranoid about falling and breaking something. So I basically spent the majority of the time close to the wall of the rink for support. Not this time though. The scariest part is when you first get onto the ice. But after that you start to get used to it and it becomes like second nature. The biggest tricks that I learned are to keep moving...lol... when people start to stop for whatever reason they tend to fall. Also avoid the rockets-aka little kids. They seem to have no fear and will just shoot out in front of you. :)

I must say I absolutely love ice skating. I think it is for sure the best form of winter exercise. If only I had my very own ice skating rink....

#96 Buy a pair of Uggs!!!