Julie's nonsense

Maternity Leave

2009-05-09T06:06:00.000-07:00

It feels very strange being home on a Monday. The Friday off wasn't that strange but I keep feeling like I'm supposed to go back to work at anytime.

I'm keeping busy and have chores to do each day. I got out to return some stuff on Friday and today I ran to Walmart to pick up a new lampshade and a bunch of other stuff. Then I get tired and come home and rest. :)

Now I just do my chores around the house and wait... like I said it still feels very odd. I worked at State Farm almost 10 years. Before that I worked in an office for 4 years. It's been awhile since I didn't work or go to school...actually I can't remember ever not doing either.

Kitty 1993-2009

2009-04-04T04:11:00.001-07:00

We lost our beautiful outdoor tabby, Kitty, this morning. It was expected, she was 16, and lived far longer then most outdoor cats, but we're still sad. She was very sweet and extremely independent.

Kitty as a kitten

With her daughter Bear at my old house

Helping me plant bulbs last year

I'm glad we decided to move her, it was always nice to come home to her friendly face. We'll miss her.

New Car

2009-03-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

We got a new car yesterday to replace my Ford. Here's some photos:

http://gallery.boom.net/julie-2009nissanquests

I got weepy when I uploaded the photo of my Ford. I'm blaming the pregnancy, but it was the first car I really bought myself...first car loan and I got it all by myself. I think it was like the first grown up thing I did. Yes, it was when I was like 27, but I got lucky with the car my parents passed onto me out of High School and kept it 11 years. The Explorer is 9 years old...and was starting to show it's age, so I know it had to go, but I am still a little sad. LOVE the new car though, and I don't want my husband to think otherwise. I'm sure it's mostly just heightened emotions from the hormones.

Walgreens Savings

2009-03-04T19:58:00.001-08:00

I'm joining the line of coupon shoppers. I went out Sunday, got the newspaper and clipped all the coupons that I thought we could use. Then I looked at all the weekly ads for the stores and found the best way to save. My first shopping trip was to Walgreens. Got this:

Includes:

3 Boxes of Puffs Plus 72 count
2 Olay Ribbons Body Wash
2 10.3 oz Dawn Dish Detergent
3 pack Gillette Venus Razors
6 cans Campbell's soup
325 ml Vasoline lotion
3 Dove 3.15 oz soap bars
60 oz Cascade dish detergent
Vasoline cocoa butter smoothing body butter (Marked down from $8.99, to $4.59)

The retail on the product total was $71 and I paid $41.40. I know people who get more savings, but I'm just starting out, so I'm sure I'll get better as I get going. I also got a $2 register coupon from Walgreens so I'll be able to use that next time. I have a spreadsheet started, a shopping list and my envelope of coupons.

Cannelloni

2009-01-08T06:34:00.000-08:00

We had a Cannelloni meal from Dream Dinners last night. Quite good, but I realized after I had put the meal together I forgot to spray the bottom of the pan with cooking spray...oops. Didn't turn out too bad, just stuck a tiny bit. We were supposed to have 2 pieces each, but I ended up just having one, a salad and some cherry tomatoes. Worked out just fine. Don't have a description, sorry... I have quite a few meals left, but will probably make an order from SS at the end of this month. I've enjoyed the convenience of the meals.

Pecan Crusted Pork Chops with Garlic Mashed Potatoes

2008-12-28T07:16:00.000-08:00

Had this last night. This was one of the more high maintenance meals. Here's the description:

"Our boneless pork chops are tenderized in a seasoned buttermilk mixture to moisten and sweeten, then sprinkled with crunchy pecans and crispy bread crumbs. Serve this easy baked dish with our fluffy mashed potatoes (provided) for the perfect end to a busy day."

Johannes liked it a lot. I liked it, but the crust was a little dry. I think I'd have sprayed it a little more with the pam so it oven fried a bit more. Still a success. The mashed potatoes were quite good and I admit I was really surprised by that.

Flank Steak with Horseradish Sauce

2008-12-28T07:13:00.000-08:00

I'm behind on my reviews, but only two meals behind. We had this one a couple weeks back. Here's the description:

"Satisfy your steak craving with this lean and tender version, flavored with fresh lemon juice, Dijon mustard and garlic. The juicy steak tastes great on its own, or for an extra kick and authentic steakhouse flavor, serve it with our zesty horseradish sauce. Grill or Broiler – 15-20 minutes if thawed, 25 minutes if frozen."

It was very good, but we didn't use a lot of the sauce because Johannes isn't a fan of horseradish. I like it, but the steak was marinated enough it didn't really need a sauce. Also, the flank steak was folded, and I didn't realize it and cooked it partway rolled up. It seemed to still work. :)

Chicken Marsala with Mushrooms and Mashed Potatoes

2008-12-09T19:46:00.000-08:00

Tonight we had a dinner from Dream Dinners and here's the description:

"Tender all natural chicken breasts are cooked until golden brown then topped with a savory mushroom & Marsala wine sauce. Serve with a side of fluffy home-style mashed potatoes (provided) and you have a restaurant quality meal you can serve at home."

Apparently when I was putting together the meal I missed the bag of mashed potatoes, because there weren't any in it. My fault though...I guess since it was my first time I can be forgiven, especially since I had some instant in the pantry. I also did a side of steamed veggies in the microwave that turned out pretty good.

The chicken was really good, although I will say the sauce cooked down a lot more then I'd have liked. Still it tasted great. This was one of the more complicated meals to make, I had to brown the chicken, then cook the sauce, then heat them together, but it was still easier then making it from scratch. Johannes really enjoyed it as well. Another success I'd say.

Lobster Ravioli with Creme Fraiche and Herbs

2008-12-07T18:53:00.000-08:00

Tonight we had a dinner by Super Suppers, Lobster Ravioli with Creme Fraiche and Herbs. I took it out of the freezer at around 2:30 yesterday and it was thawed and ready to be baked tonight. Here's the web description:

"Beautiful Lobster Ravioli served in a wonderful béchamel sauce favored with white wine, Parmesan cheese, garlic, and Italian herbs will make everyone say O! La! La! All you have to do is pop it in the oven and bake until it's hot and bubbly."

Well, again this meal was bought intended to please my husband. I'm not usually a white sauce kind of girl on pasta, we usually compromise and get vodka sauce. This pasta though was very, very tasty. I really enjoyed it. Made some green beans and garlic toast to go with it. I have a feeling Johannes liked it, because not only did he tell me he liked it, but I had 4 pieces pf ravioli and he had like 12. That's ok, usually I eat most of the green beans. Definitely a successful dinner from Super Suppers. We're going to try the Chicken Marsala with Mushrooms and Mashed Potatoes from Dream Dinners tomorrow, and I'll get a real test on how it is to come home from work and prepare the meal.

Raspberry Stuffed French Toast

2008-12-07T08:18:00.000-08:00

This was our first Dream Dinners meal. I didn't bother putting it into the freezer yesterday because I figured we'd just eat it soon. Here's the description from the website:

"Holiday brunch is a snap this Christmas season with a little help from your friends at Dream Dinners. This delicious brunch pairs thick slices of French bread with raspberry jam and cream cheese. Topped with a streusel topping of brown sugar and almonds, ready to bake."

So, the preparation was very easy. Just warm up the oven, uncover the tin it was in and put it on a cookie sheet. Bake 25-30 minutes. Did so and it was all ready to go.

I'll say for me, it tasted just fine, but it's a bit rich for my taste...but I did pick this meal with Johannes in mind. He likes fruity sweet breakfasts. I would prefer an omelet. But, like I said it tasted good. Johannes said he liked it, but would have preferred less cream cheese and more raspberry. Another matter of just taste. It was definitely a success for a weekend breakfast.

Self Assembly Meal places

2008-12-06T14:42:00.001-08:00

So, I was invited to a Dream Dinners party, for today. I've been intrigued by these places...mostly because when I come home from work I'm usually too tired to make a meal and I resort to premade packaged stuff, which of course isn't very healthy. So, I accepted the invitation and picked out my food online. Then, I decided I kind of wanted to try another local competitor, to compare price, food, convenience, etc. I went online and found Super Suppers in my area. I figured I wouldn't really have the time to do the self assembly for them, so I arranged to pick up 6 meals on Friday (Yesterday). I did so, and found out they didn't even offer the self assembly option anymore, which honestly, is quite ok with me. I'd probably switch to having Dream Dinners assemble the food for me in the future anyways.

So, I picked up my 6 meals from Super Suppers yesterday, and loaded them in my freezer. The staff at SS was really friendly and helpful, but did trash DD a little. Whatever, he wants to be successful...I'm just not one to trash other insurance companies when I sell a policy. Seems tacky.

Today I met my friend and some others at Dream Dinners. I had prepicked the 6 meals I was going to assemble. If I'm being honest, it was nice to see my friends, but a pain to assemble the food myself. I kind of prefer the pre assembled option, which Dream Dinners also offers. Most of the assembly was pretty easy, but it took about an hour. Compared to time at home, I'm sure I save a bunch of time, but I can't imagine doing this once or twice a month. If it were with friends I could see that, but I had three friends there, and really didn't get to chat with them at all...you are too busy making sure you are following the recipe. The food did look really good when I was done. The true test will be in the tasting when we make it of course.

Has anyone else tried the self assembly food places? What are your thoughts?

Oh

2008-11-03T19:24:00.001-08:00

Oh, and about 15 minutes after I picked my Mom up this morning she decided that she left the front door unlocked at the house. I begrudgingly agreed to go back after work to check. I know I should just do what Mom wants, but this turns my 12 minute commute into a 45 minute one, and I like being home. That and the time change...my body thinks its an hour later. Just whining I guess... Oh and when I went to my Mom's house the front door was indeed locked.

ugh

2008-11-03T08:02:00.001-08:00

Had to take my Mom to the airport at 5:30 am this morning. I'm thankful to the time change because my body thought it was 6:30 am. Not a great start to a Monday morning...

Luke's first bath

2008-11-02T08:33:00.000-08:00

Luke had his first bath this morning. He came in from "going potty" covered in mud. We threw him in the shower, Johannes held him down and I bathed him. He was shaking...it was sad, but after we toweled him off and he was fine and playing again. I would have taken photos...but it was a two person job.

Saturday

2008-11-02T05:59:00.001-08:00

Saturday was pretty nice. We went to Bed Bath and Beyond and bought 3 woven rugs to completely blanket the family room. We are hoping to save the carpet from puppy accidents. We also bought a new rug for the kitchen, as the one we have in there is falling apart, and finally bought two runners for the dining room. We have a problem because our step down into the dining room is almost camouflaged because it's wood going down to wood. We got a dark runner with a light pattern so hopefully people can see the step now.

After that Johannes had lunch with a friend in Santana Row so I had some puppy quality time with Lady and Luke. They both pretty much slept the whole time, and Luke even crept into his crate to sleep for part of it. Very cute. My Mom brought my nephew and his step sister over to see the puppy. Michael pet Luke for a little bit and then asked if I knew how to set up the Wii. :) So, they went back to Mom's house to color and play with her primitive Playstation 2.

Last night we met Jesus and Dan in Downtown San Jose at La Pastaia. Jesus had won a gift cert for the restaurant at a charity auction, which I thought was odd considering he lives in San Francisco and there are so many great restaurants there. He said he bid on it because it was in San Jose and that would make him come meet us for dinner, so that was very nice. Dinner was just ok...not the best I've had honestly, but we only had to pay $26 for our portion so it worked out. Course, on the way back to the parking garage Johannes realizes, in the rain, that he's lost the ticket...so tack on $15 to that dinner bill for a lost ticket fee. Could be worse though, I thought it was going to be like $30.

Today we're going to brunch with friends at Pedros. I'm up extra early since the time changed and watching some of my shows. The pups are snoozing around me. Seems like it's going to be a nice day.