Happy April 25th

Know what brings a smile to my face? 

This FB post on my wall this morning. 

Love my cousin. 

He's creepy and I'm good with that.

We have a date on Saturday night and I'm pumped. 

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when I was in Oklahoma

One time, way back when, my tall friend said something about Oklahoma. I told her I'd never been to Oklahoma. Later on I said "when I was in Oklahoma..." and she got really confused. Actually she just called me a liar, but who's counting? She's an accountant. Pun intended :-) The truth is, I was in the play Oklahoma in high school, but had never been to fine state. Confusing, huh?

Well this weekend I decided to finally make the trek. Hubs is still working redic hours, so I decided to pick up and head out of town to see a great friend. One of my bridesmaids to be exact. There were only two that weren't family so you know she must be cool. We never went to school together, haven't lived in the same city since high school, and only talk a few times a year. Even with odds against us, we always seem to just pick up where we left off. I knew the quick trip would be worth it so I drove down Saturday morning and back Sunday afternoon. I was only there for 24.5 hours, but we had a great time.

The skies were blue the whole way there and the fields were a rich green as things are just starting to grow for the spring.
"The skies were blue and everything was so green and fragrant I just had to be a part of it!" Not from Oklahoma. That's from SoM. 
It was so pretty! Yes, you just heard me refer to the drive through Kansas and Oklahoma as pretty. Am I imagining things? Have my standards gone down? I need to get to Europe, or at least Colorado, stat. Regardless, I had a good time.


What did we do? Nothing. We ate fabulous bagel sandwiches and caught up on life. We went shopping but I was completely distracted by the KU game.

I ended up watching the play by play on ESPN mobile. I quite literally jumped up and down and might have been potentially obnoxious when Taylor made the final point for the win. Then I thought to myself  I just watched the play-by-play of a college basketball game on my phone for the last hour and a half and didn't look at any of the beautiful trinkets all around. What has my husband done to me?! Oh dear sweet alma mater, I love thee. Within 15 minutes of the winning shot I walked out of a store with $100 worth of clothes. I must shop when I'm happy.

The next morning I got coffee with an old friend from church. Remember the reasons why I love coffee? Yep, still true. It was a great time :-)

Other highlights from the weekend:
Painting my nails lilac
Eating watered down instant rice
Introducing my friend to The Help
Sixty five degree weather
Walking across a wooden bridge and fearing we might blow off
Getting 33MPG there and back

All in all, a great way to spend 24.5 spare hours.

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Enchanted

It just makes me smile. A lot.
 

Please tell me you've seen it.
If you haven't I'd be happy to have you over to watch it again :-)

And if you want to see how this little dandy of a movie is a direct parody of some of the most classic Disney movies of our time, take a scroll through this little blog.
http://stratoblog.wordpress.com/tag/enchanted/

Disclaimer: I didn't read any of the words, I just looked at the pictures, so I shouldn't be held responsible for the test in that link.

Read some of the lyrics to this song. I swooooon...

How do you show her you love her?
How does she know that you really, really, truely love her?
...

It's not enough to take the one you love for granted
You must remind her, or she'll be inclined to say...
"How do I know he loves me?"
...
Well does he leave a little note to tell you you are on his mind?
Send you yellow flowers when the sky is grey? Heyy!
He'll find a new way to show you, a little bit everyday
That's how you know, that's how you know!
He's your love...
...

You've got to show her you need her
Don't treat her like a mind reader
Each day do something to need her
To believe you love her
...
Well does he take you out dancin' just so he can hold you close?
Dedicate a song with words in
Just for you? Ohhh!

He'll find his own way to tell you
With the little things he'll do
That's how you know
...

Because he'll wear your favorite color
Just so he can match your eyes
Rent a private picnic
By the fires glow-oohh!

That's how you know he's your love

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the heat is on!

I have this thing. Some might call it a problem. That might be fair, but I just like to call it a habit.

I never leave once.

When I leave my house, and especially my parents house and sometimes hotels and other times client sites, I leave things behind and have to go back to get whatever I left. That's why I like to say that I never leave once. That's called a euphemism. Or maybe not depending on how you view my presence... but since it is me talking I will call it a euphemism. Actually can I change my mind again? Cause its actually very annoying. I lose things. Well not lose exactly, more like misplace. Another euphemism.

Well anyway, most recently I have misplaced my credit card and my iPod. It's official. They've been gone for about a week and a half. And I have to say it seems extremely unlikely that they are together. I haven't had any fraudulent activity on my card so that's how I know it's just misplaced and not lost. Haven't checked the activity on my iPod cause that's not possible. Get this though... I have my wallet, but no credit card. I have my earbuds, but no iPod. Who does that?!

I wish I was like Winnie from Hocus Pocus and could just call out to them like she calls for her book... I mean I do call out to them, but they don't answer.

But the heat is on because next week is Thanksgiving and I don't have my gym music (so naturally I can't go work off the gunk I'll eat) or listen to any- *swallow*- Christmas music! And I also don't have my card for to begin Christmas shopping with. I just ended a sentence in a preposition. Oh help... 

Name that movie. I didn't give you enough to work with, did I? Well I'll just tell you. It's the Sound of Music.

Where have I not looked?!

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Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

Have you ever made risotto?
Wait, back the truck up.
Have you ever eaten risotto?
Please tell me you have. Eaten it and made it. Cause it's delish. One of my top most favoritest comfort foods.

I feel obligated to tell you that risotto isn't good for you. Not bad for you like mac and cheese with sausage, but just not great for you cause it's just pasta and cheese and stuff. Anyway, you still need to do it. Not all the time. Just, you know, enough of the time.

Remember how I told you my sister and her bf like to cook and they are really good at it? Well last year for my birthday they made me Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto. It was soooo good. And I was craving it this Sunday. So I made it. And would you believe I even remembered to snap a few quick pics along the way? You can thank me later.

Also, aside from the fact that risotto isn't that great for you, it is also pretty laborious to make. Not hard, just takes a while. So on a beautiful fall afternoon it was a purrrfect way to spend a few hours.

First, you take the graham...
Just kidding. But I love that scene. Name that movie!

First you borrow a dutch oven from your sister and her bf because they have two and you have none.

Being bitter is not step 2. Being grateful is step 2.

Step 3 is slicing and dicing (less the dicing) up a butternut* squash and roasting it in the oven for 40-50 minutos.
I meant to type butternut but I was moving too fast and typed buttnut and thought it was funny. But then realized in the context of a lesson on food it wasn't funny. But then told you about it anyway.

Then saute the onions in a pat o' butter. There's garlic in there too I think.

Meanwhile heat up a lot of chicken broth. You know the phrase "a watched pot will never boil?" That's why I didn't take a picture of heating up the broth.

Then add the arborio rice. I know it seems weird to add rice to a dry pan, but just do it.

Moving right along... (this is where it gets tedious, so that phrase was intentionally ironic or something) begin adding the broth, 1/2 cup at a time until the broth is absorbed. This will take a long while. Do this with your right hand and with your left hand make banana nut muffins. 

The pot will get deeper, and creamier, and more lovely. 

Cutting to the chase now. Eventually you'll skin and chop up the butternut squash and toss it in along with some loverly seasonings including fresh sage and plenty o' parmesean reggiano. The recipe calls for spinach but I left it off. I've had it both ways and they're both great.

In summary, enjoy. 

Oh, and don't forget to take the muffins out of the oven before they burn!

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don't worry, it's just family

On Friday night we had some friends over for dinner. I was cleaning before they came and hubs says to me "Don't worry too much. It's just the Klines."  

Normally I don't use real names around here, but since it's their blog name I figured I'd go for it...

Anywho, this is really a great complement. Because isn't is true that we clean our house the least for our dearest friends? Who mops before their sister or brother comes over? No one. At least no one that I know.
Correction, my Texas friend would, but she's a neat freak so she doesn't count.

Isn't it true though that we are riskier with our closest friends (and family) than we are with acquaintances? We don't try to look quite so put together. Because they knnooow we're sooo not.

Here's where I'm goin with this, kids...

This weekend hubs and I played in a charity softball tournament with the Klines and bunches of other dear friends.

It.

Was.

Terrible.

I don't play sports.

I don't play baseball.

I can't catch or throw a ball.

And I certainly can't hit it.

I was easily the worst one on the team. If it were 7th grade track they would have rotated me through all the positions and just made me team manager... just like they did in 7th grade.

But I played*

I'm using the term "played" loosely here, folks.

And I was really terrible.

And really embarrassed.

But I played.

And I rarely hit the ball. And I have bruises from playing catcher. And I never made it to third. And I certainly never made a run or an out. And I sweat. 

(Yep, you read that correctly, this kid actually sweat. It's rare.)

But we don't clean up so much with friends. We just leave the junk on the table.

Good thing I like you people...

But for future reference

I will never. 

Ever. 

Again.

Swing a bat or throw a ball. 

Hubs says I built character this weekend. And I did. So there's that.

So there's that. I guess I have that.

Movie trivia! Hint: Zach Braff.

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Mom and Dad's music

I just love it.

How could I not?

A few days ago "Desperado" came on the radio in the car.

My pal got to listen to me sing along to the entire song.

He loves when I sing in the car, dontcha know.

It was follwed by "Boot Scootin Boogie"

I was a complete gonner.

I said "SING ALONG!"

He said "I don't know the words"

Poor kid, he doesn't know a lot of lyrics to a lot of songs

But I was all like "You don't have to! Just figure it out!"

Because really, the words to that song just roooollll off your tongue.

Like an offer rolls off the tongue of an auctioneer. Duh.

Just now "The Longest Time" came on my Pandora.

Heyooooo buddy! You know I was lovin it!

I'm totally a toe tapper at work.
And a chair dancer.
And a hummer.

Sometimes I hum to the music when I have my headphones in.

Or hum in the elevator in the middle of a song playing in my head.

It's perfectly normal.

Everyone does it.

Besides, no one can hear me.

That's what I tell myself.

You wish you could be like me.

"I can't seem to stop singing wherever I am.

And what's worse, I can't seem to stop saying things

anything and everything I think and feel."

We are so alike, Maria and I.

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101 dalmatians

You know the scene at the beginning of 101 Dalmatians when Anita is sitting with Perdi and watching all the people pass by
... or maybe Roger was with Pongo...
whatever I don't know.

Alls I knows is that the dogs matched the peoples! And I always think of that scene fondly. Can't you just guess what type of pet some people have? It's like when you meet someones parent and its like YES! They soooo go together!

Sometimes couples are like that too. Today we walked into the eye doctor to look at prescription sunglasses and the doctor, she's so great I like her a lot, says "you two are finally together! I always see you separately! But it totally makes sense!" We've each seen her twice. Maybe more, but definitely not a lot. So it was cute.

We're odd in the same kinds of ways, my bestie and I. Like when hubs hangs up the phone and I ask what the person on the other end said (because otherwise he'd never tell me). He usually responds "He said you're ugly and you can't read good. But I told him don't you say that about my wife!"

Well today I was thinking about the park scene in light of the wedding season that is upon us. Then when hubs sent me an email asking "what did so-and-so-say?" you know how I responded. "He said you're ugly and you can't read good."

It's like YES! They soooo go together!

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Rando.

Rando post. Consider yourself warned.

We had a busy weekend and we survived.
I'll spare you the details and give you just a few pics.

Laura came to visit. This pretty well sums up our relationship. She's great.

Sister-in-law graduated from the KU School of Art. Exciting!

Hubs and I decided our kids must go to KU.

We talk the campus and our eyes tear up.

We love love love that place.

We went to the Royals game con mi primo y mi madre.

His b-day present from my parentals.

It was a glorious day for it!

Also, I'm an athlete. Did you know that?

Bah ha ha. PSYCH!

However, yesterday I did run 2 miles in 15 minutes.

I'll let you guess which part of that statement is a lie.

My new name middle name shall be Forrest, I think.

And then we did Ab Ripper X. It's a doosie, I tell ya. A doosie!

I'll be ripped in no time at this rate.

Well, I would be if it wasn't for my sweet tooth...

There were approximately a million other things in between all of that, but thats all for now.

"Enough is as good as a feast."

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Spanish

Ya know when someone is explaining something and they are being detailed and speaking slowly and you're just not getting it? It's not even that it's going in one ear and out the other, it's just not going in.

Today the partner on this engagement was trying to describe something to me and it was like the teacher in the Peanuts. I just don't understand a word you're saying! And he didn't understand a word I was saying either.

We were both frustrated. It sounded something like...


(Link)
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Rush Hour Sound Clips

and
Chris Tucker Sound Clips


Finally I said
"I think we're saying the same thing, I'm just saying saying it in Spanish, and you're saying it in English, and we're not getting anywhere."

And we agreed and moved on.

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Iowa Kansas Kentucky...

Ok so this post has nothing to do with Kentucky, nor does it have much to do with Kansas, but thats just how the song goes, okay?

I've missed you my dear blog. "I shall miss all of you. I shall miss the money I could have made with you!" Name that movie...

Well here's the rundown since I've been gone.

• Thursday night Mother's day celebration on the patio with salad and wine. The blue cheese stuffed bacon wrapped figs would have been good too if we hadn't left them in the oven too long.
• Friday morning- Saying goodbye to my pod-buddy at work. Very sad.
• Friday afternoon- ROADTRIP

We went with some great friends to visit some other great friends in Ames, Iowa. We were pretty excited to see their new dig since they moved and bought in January, but mostly it was wonderful to see them. These are the kinds of friends where you dont have to force conversation, you don't have to be afraid to tell them you don't like bowling, and when you mess up and put together the "5 Minute [Ceiling] Fan" all wrong and it takes 3 hours and causes sore arms and necks and wounds your pride you can still laugh your way through the frustration. The kind of people that make you enjoy looking at geo-thermal tubes and not mind walking through cobwebs. The friends that don't laugh at you when you ask what a PHD is. The friends who do amazing impersonations of Alf and Stephen Hawking in charades. These are our friends. And we love them. Pictures to come soon!

We put the pedal to the metal last night and got back just in time for my baptism. I'll tell you about that soon. Then we had small group at another friends adorable new house, raced to get my back packed, and was off to the airport early this morning.

This is my life as a 24 year old.
I am 24, right?
It's crazy. But every day is a new day. And a gift. So cool.

"This is the day that the Lord has made.
Let us rejoice and be glad in it."- Ps 118:24

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Poll: The Little Mermaid

Me [2:29 PM]:

how does the little mermaid start?

Friend [2:29 PM]:

uhhhh

Friend [2:30 PM]:

i just remember not liking it much. like, it wasn't my fave

Friend [2:30 PM]:

isn't there a mean person in it? (i mean, i guess there are in all of them)

Me [2:31 PM]:

yes there are in all of them

Friend [2:33 PM]:

btw, why were you asking? you wanted to know? or wanted to see if it was common knowledge?

Me [2:33 PM]:

well i was having a casual debate with my neighbor the other day about how it starts and we have differing opinions but we're going to watch it together so i cant look it up so i was taking a poll

Friend [2:34 PM]:

Oh. what's your opinion?

Me [2:34 PM]:

     one of us says it on the ship. the other says its at the concert.

Friend [2:34 PM]:

maybe its a concert on a ship

Me [2:35 PM]:

haha. nope. the concert on the ship comes much later

Friend [2:35 PM]:

       ohhhh

To you, my friends, how does it start? Don't cheat and look it up! That will ruin it for all of us.

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the beginning of the end.

My last few posts have seemed kinda sad, but this one isn't sad. Well, mostly not sad anyway. This is good news! It's the beginning of the end of my sugar addictionl.

Effective today, I have given up desserts Monday through Friday for the next four weeks. If you're reading this you know me therefore you know that this is like saying I'm going to try to not sleep for five days straight, four weeks in a row. It seems that impossible. But it's not!

And four white mice will never be four white horses, such foll-de-rall
and fidddle-dee-dee of course is
Impossible!
But the world is full of zanies and fools who don't believe in
sensible rules, and won't believe what sensible
people say,and because these daft and dewey-eyed dopes keep
building up impossible hopes, impossible things are happening
everyday! 

Point of this story? I'm the daft and dewey-eyed one. The impossible will come true!
In the meantime, I will keep lemonade mix at my desk at work to quell my cravings and gum in my purse. (See the previous post on diet and exercise.)


And I will survive... I will survive... hey hey!

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