Food!

May 30th
This could be a continuation of the blog about my mom and her delicious cake.
Since we couldn't go anywhere this holiday weekend because Brand had to work, we got a little day visit from the in-laws. And did they ever come bearing gifts! Brand's parents also like to take care of us in the sneaky way that parents do. They always send us home with a lot of food and always bring a lot of food. If they're not bringing us food they're taking us out.
Well not only did they bring food (LOTS of food) but they brought us a BBQer! They got it for pretty cheap and thought we needed one.
So we grilled it up today and the rain decided to hold off for at least one day so it was nice :) We had grilled steaks (Brand is a grillmaster so those steaks were cooked to perfection), potato salad, mac salad, fruit salad, baked beans, and bread. All washed down with some yummy rootbeer. We had coke but something about Rootbeer seems more BBQey to me.
Brand's mom also thought we should have some pretty flowers on our deck so we were able to make it a little prettier :)

Not a bad day at all :)

I dreamed a dream...a krispy, treaty dream

May 29th
Have you ever had something in your dream that when you woke up you just really, really wanted it? I've had it with clothes, babies, cars, jobs, celebrity friends, and mostly FOOD! I dream all the time about eating cupcakes, french fries, chocolate, etc. It is one of the most depressing things in reality is waking up and realizing it was all a dream.
The other night I had a dream I was eating Rice Krispie treat cereal straight from the box. I had not had this cereal since my trip to Coos Bay, OR with mom, dad, and Stephen (at this point Julie and Josh were too cool for family vacations...:-P) Stephen and I made up our handshake in the back of the Aerostar van and ate dry cereal to no end! So the fact that this ended up in my dream was quite a mystery. I woke up with one hand near my mouth as if it was holding something, and the other one by my side also with the same semi-fist.
I had to have those Rice Krispie treat cereal! But I didn't know if they still made them. I googled it and found a Kellogg product locator. You put in the product and then your zip code and VOILA they tell you where to go. Apparently only the Wal-Marts in my area carry it so I'm glad I just didn't hop in the car and head to my closest Safeway.
But I did get it. And it was even better than I remembered! And it got better as I took my spoonful with milk and it just kind of melts in your mouth.
I may have to fit this into my regular cereal rotation because dang..this stuff is good :)

Wedding season!

Wedding season has begun! We went to our first wedding of the season (and first wedding after our own) on May 28th. My coworker was getting married after quite the little quick love story. She had grown up in Cheney all her life (for those non-Washingtonians..that's where I lived for four years while going to EWU). She was homeschooled so she didn't go to the local high school but made friends at her church. Quick sidenote..she is proof that not all homeschoolers end up weird and antisocial..this girl is great! In the summer of 2008, she was accepted as an intern to a senior center in Ireland. So off she went! She is also the reason I have my job because I was offered it the day she told our boss she was leaving. While in Ireland, Jameson, a friend of her best friend Becca, had emailed Becca via facebook to see if she could hook him up with her "very good looking" friend Kalen. Becca had to inform him that she would love to but Kalen was in Ireland. But that didn't stop him, he got the courage to email her on facebook and they continued to write Facebook letters and real life letters back and forth. When she came home for Christmas they finally met up and started to date! He then visited her in Ireland and she came back that summer (and back to us at Meals on Wheels with a new position!) In February they were engaged and then married! They're quite a sweet couple and I know that may have bored you reading about someone you don't know but it's a pretty great example of how someone's courage changed their lives. And how sometimes you have to travel around the world to see the beauty in your backyard :) I was happy to attend her wedding and since I had known her long before we worked together, it was great seeing a girl who works so hard for everything and does it with a smile on her face and humility in her heart, get everything she deserved :)
I did take a pic of their first kiss but it was crappy..so here's a so-so pic of me and a great pic of Brand at the reception.

We should've had the kazoos in our mouths! Those were the favors :)
Well just two more weddings to go!

Strawberry Shortcake

I was asked to bake 24 servings of strawberry shortcake for a co-worker's wedding. She knew I'd like to bake so I said yes of course! This is the first wedding after Brand and I have gotten married so I felt especially sympathetic to her. I knew the feat she had before her (and she did it in less than 3 months!) so I was more than happy to help out in a little way. Plus, it was fun! I had never made shortcake before and have never had to knead. I called my mom and talked to her and my aunt to make sure I was doing it right and they seemed to agree I was doing fine. Turns out I was doing it right because it came out pretty yummy! And not burnt...yay!

I guess you never stop being a mom :)

Mom visits are the best. When she comes she spoils us instead of us spoiling her. When someone visits isn't it the host's job to spoil the guest? Well mom's are a different breeds...dads are too though. They want to help and spoil their child. I guess I can understand that. Especially when you don't live near them. They want to take that time that they have with you to use their natural parental instinct to take care of you. And my mom does a good job of that.
She visited us again for a couple nights because she had some work to do in Coeur d'alene. First she took us to Olive Garden and then on her last night here she cooked us chicken, potatoes, and baked us a yummy Jell-o Poke cake.
We had a great time and seeing her always makes me miss her more when she leaves. But at least I still have her yummy treats :)

You can't have a celebration without ice cream

Today was a day to celebrate. After all the tension at work yesterday, which got even thicker today, I've been rewarded for the hard work I've been doing. I've taken on more responsibilities at work (may be permanent may be temporary but either way I'm celebrating it). These extra responsibilities mean 10 extra hours a week which bumps me up to full-time. So not only will I be working more which means more money, but I am now eligible for medical coverage which means one less bill to pay. Such a  relief! Like I said it may be temporary, only because I've taken the responsibilities of someone else's job and I'm just not getting my hopes up that that will be permanent. If it becomes permanent I'll talk more about it.
The great thing about this comes when the co-worker I talked about yesterday continue to demean and disrespect me. Today she asked me out of the blue as she comes into my office to cut paper "Is this your first job out of college Allison?" I say "yes why?" and in her oh-so transparent and immature way she says "Just curious". My fellow office-mates were astonished and shocked that someone says something like that. And it's not just me it's to a lot of the others. The blatant disrespect and condescension that comes from her mouth will be shut off when my boss breaks to her that I have been entrusted with even more responsibility because I deserve it and have earned it. That's why I'm celebrating tonight. Because I've earned more responsibility and respect than she'll ever get in this office.
I decided I wanted to celebrate with some ice cream. So that's just what me and Brand did :)

I think Brand purposely did those crazy eyes haha.
So I'm excited to take on a new challenge and see how I can deal with doing two jobs. I think it'll be fun and stressful of course but fun too.
Wish me luck!

One word..YUM!

My mom was back in town for one night and will be returning in a couple more nights, and left us with some great parting gifts. Not only did she bring lots of towels for us, but she left us some yummy bread, bananas, and leftovers from Olive Garden. She also treated me to Glee volume 3 soundtrack and the Power of Madonna soundtrack from the Glee episode of the same name. Let's just say I've already horribly belted out "I Dreamed A Dream" 4 times...man can those ladies sing!
But she also left us with some strawberries...yay!
We decided to dip them in chocolate frosting and it was quite delicious. I unknowingly dipped mine and made a pretty little strawberry chocolate swirl. I had to capture the lovely goodness..

Maybe I should get into the chocolating business :)
Oh and this is definitely a nice treat after a horrible case of the Mondays. Really work wasn't bad because it was Monday, but because a long culminating event happened where I had to defend my actions of being "snotty" to a coworker who continually uses and walks all over me. Sometimes being nice only threads the beautiful threads of a nice rug for everyone to say oh how nice that is and then take their cheap ugly shoes and trample over it without a second's thought. And sometimes when you realize that being nice is only enabling laziness and dependence, you have to put up that wall to protect yourself and your dignity. I only have 25 hours a week to do a job that could quickly fill up 40, I do not have time to do anybody else's job. I have also quickly learned that people do not grow up. People don't really mature. We just get better on covering up our immaturity. It's okay to be immature at times, but when it comes to a job to be done and responsibility to be taken, it's time to grow up a little.
Sorry for the rant but it's been a long time coming and I'm not looking forward to the tension that will be hanging thickly in the air tomorrow. Hopefully things get better..and if not...I have more strawberries and chocolate :)

I feel Lost without Lost

Sunday was a day of love and loss. A show I love dearly was finally gone. I don't know why we as people get so devoted to shows and have such a hard time letting them go, but I definitely do. I know people bash on TV and there is a significant amount to bash on, but I've always been an advocate. It's our form of entertainment. Times before us had plays. Not too long ago it was only one movie released a month so it better be good! Now we have TV. And TV has definitely evolved since the early days. I feel that although some reflect a very easily amused population some still have heart and gusto, still have the brevity of the early forms of theater. Lost is a great example of that. It has mythology, spirituality, philosophy, psychology, physics, science, and much more. The Lost finale was an end to a fantastic show. It was not created to please everyone and we won't understand why certain things were the way they were. But I respect and admire that. Especially after the finale. The creators said it was to be left up to your own beliefs to interpret the ending, and really the show. I'm excited to re-watch that finale over and over again, and really the show. I feel it'll be a show where something will be new and revealed to you everytime. Especially now that we somewhat know the ending, we can see how things fit together the way they did. I know some people were disappointed at times but I don't think I ever was (even that horrible Nikki/Paolo episode had to be there to get rid of the biggest mistake the creators made). I loved learning about the island, the mythology, the history, the power and grip it had on so many people. I loved seeing the Dharma people and was intrigued about how they ended up there and what their purpose was and how did it seemed to twist from it's original purpose. I loved the sideways world which was a season long bow on a package. Because at the end of a show we care about, we want closure. We want to know that all our characters end up happy and end up where they should be. We don't want it to be revealed that it was all fake that all the devotion was someone's imagination's imagination.
Some people may think Lost was very discombobulated. It had the element of pure human survival, the mysteries of the island, it had the Dharma people, the hostiles, the time travel, the sideways world, and it had the past world that brought all our characters to this island. Maybe people think it's not connected, but I do somehow. Even if I don't completely understand how or why this had to happen or that had to happen. I loved Lost. And I'll miss it.
All I could do was take a picture of sadness that is the loss of Lost. It's staged but I didn't want to be fumbling with a camera at the end of the show because I just wanted to enjoy it. So here it is...our sad Lost faces...
We'll miss you Lost!

Natural state

My natural state usually involves a Coke can, a blanket, jammies, slippers, Netflix, and my netbook doing random internet things.
Brand's is well...this....

Time to get friendly

Last Friday was a day of friends. All day I helped good friends Jared and Amanda move into their wonderful new home. I got to put together my first crib! I've moved a lot so I know how appreciated help is so I was totally up for moving. Plus I got to play with baby James and that is no hard task..he's precious.
Then after a very tasty yet cold thank you BBQ from the Darrs I met up with some of the ladies (and some of the guys) for ice cream to hang out with our westsider Nicore! It was good seeing her lovely always positive face. She's a pretty awesome girl that I think everybody likes. She's got the biggest heart. So we took a little snapshot of our fun :)

That's Nicore in the glasses looking all cute and tiny to Whitney's beautiful face. (it's actually Nicole but I'm Arrison to her so it's how we roll). Henry looks like he's pretending not to know what's going on. Most of our guy friends do that.
All in all Friday was a great day of friends. We've all been so busy lately that I've really missed them so I'll be excited when school is over for them so that we can hang out again :)

Slackin'

Hey devoted fans (HA!). I have been taking pictures everyday but have failed to put them up yet. I will do that soon. Today was the Lost finale and so my heart and head have been on the Island...so soon you'll be able to see the pictures of the mundane life I lead. Just not right now...
Sorry to break your hearts.

Sacrifice

When you love someone so much it hurts sometimes you have to sacrifice things for their happiness. Things that mean a lot to you, that represent a part of you, things that you can't bear give up. Sure they're just things and you will heal from their loss, but it still is hard.
I had to do that this week. Almost unwillingly, but I knew it was for the greater good (the greater good).
Dexter has not had a toy in awhile to play with. He's been bugging us endlessly for attention because all his toys are in toy heaven. So Brand said that I had to pick one of my little stuffed animals to give to Dexter. Dexter loves his stuffed animals and carries them wherever he goes...so I knew that this would make him happier than anything else we could get him. I pleaded with Brand anyway to not make me choose but he didn't budge. My stuffed animals mean a lot to me. They all were given to me by someone I love or represent my childhood, it's hard to give that up. It came between a little penguin I got for free at one of those black Friday sales (which reminds me of Christmas as a kid..my happiest memories) or a pink elephant that both me and my best friend Alina got years ago...He let Dexter decide and he chose the penguin. The penguin that was used as Wheezey in my Toy Story games, the one that represented Christmas was now no longer mine. I'm happy Dexter's happy...but if we need to choose another animal...we're going to a garage sale and getting an orphaned one.

My flavor of the week

I love to read. I really do. It's just easier to watch a movie or a show. Plus, if I'm comfy like I am when I'm reading..I usually fall asleep. These are the reasons I do not read as much as I'd like. But I really like to read. And if I get a book I love, I will tear through it. The last great book I read was this summer and I read it in 2 days.
So my co-worker (the 50 something version of me..she's fabulous) lent me a book she thought I'd like. False. I love it! It's great so far. I don't want to talk about what it's about really because it kind of ruins the magic but it has slowly consumed hours of my day. Again, it is stopped because I fall asleep (and most of the chapters are about 40 pages long) but I'm excited to continue it.
I thought I'd take a snapshot of it because I love the title and the cover of it. I love book cover art...it's pretty fantastic how they can explain so much of the story into a little picture.

Also, this story is about two women (one British and one Nigerian refugee) and it is written by a man. I can only write about what I know and feel and my experiences, so the fact that he writes these women so beautifully is fascinating. I highly recommend the book and I'm not even halfway done with it :)

Here's lookin' at you kid

There's someone that has been in my life for almost two years now. We had an on-and-off again relationship through college but I finally settled down and we've been together ever since. I really do not see myself breaking up this relationship anytime soon.
This relationship provides entertainment, laughs, tears, education, history, gasps of fear, and a little romance here and there...just to keep things fresh and light :) Also, I can always count on this someone. Very consistent. Sure the relationship has had its ups and downs. Sometimes this someone doesn't quite deliver but that could be my fault. Sometimes I spend all day with this someone and neglect other important things (dishes? sunshine? vacuuming? a book? heck no). But for the most part this relationship has been well worth any price I have to pay. Don't tell this someone but...I think I get the better deal...ssssh :)
Who is this you say? Who would dare intrude on the wonderful relationship I have with Brand? Well let me introduce you to this someone....

I love Netflix. I truly do. I've been exposed to so many neat movies and great TV shows because of this little red envelope (and it's wonderful brother Instant). Sure I may have wasted a lot of time and the X-Box may be screaming for a break, but I don't regret it (okay a little on the beautiful days I've chosen to watch Weeds instead of enjoy the sunshine...I was sick anyway..). I've watched documentaries that have made me cry, laugh, and reflect on what history should teach us. I've seen shows that I can't get enough of that seep into my dreams. I've seen classic movies I've always wanted to see (Schindler's List, Funny Girl, The Piano) and new movies that I just couldn't make it to the theater to see (500 Days of Summer, Away We Go). I love coming home and putting that movie on and putting it right back into the mailbox the next day. I do not mess around folks. If I keep a movie for more than two days...I hold my head in shame. There's so many good movies on my queue to see (almost 300 on the regular and about 53 on the instant queue) that I feel like I'm wasting time having that movie sit there for days on end. I have shows that come from the depths of the seedy HBO, Showtime, and Starz that I would normally not be able to see. I've found one of my favorite shows because of Netflix..Dexter (still waiting on season 4 to come out...do not spoil anymore for me than what I already know). It's been great.
Alas...I will be taken a small break. Mainly laying off the instant queue in between mailed movies. Because I've found a book. A book that has swept me off my feet like a new lover. But the book like a spring fling will be done soon and I will go back to my always faithful, always there (save for a gap in movies or a bandwith problem)..Netflix...
More about this new lover later...this is about Mr. Netflix.
So Netflix, I thank you. You truly are the invention of the decade.

Our friendly neighbors...

...they are not humans. Yes are neighbors are pretty nice. We do know their dogs better than them since we're always chasing them back into their backyard when they get out but they're nice. But something about us must scream to the neighborhood cats that say "Yes we like you please come sit in our lawn". I don't mind coming home to three neighborhood cats sitting on our steps or surrounded by our grass. I think it's kind of cute that we're the house they rendezvous at. I've never seen all of them meet up together at any other house. Just ours :) They're pretty cute. We only know one of their names, Binx, but I don't mind...I just call them little orange kitty, big orange kitty, black kitty, and Binx.

There's three of them. Not long after I came inside I looked outside and the big orange kitty joined the group. Pretty cute huh?
Now the only crappy thing is Binx, and I'm sure the others too, think that our back yard is their litter box. We caught Binx in the act of digging, pooping, and digging...hopefully it doesn't get too bad or they probably won't be hanging out on our lawn when we start scaring them away from their poopy places...
But I'll accept them for now.
To be continued...

The taste of summer

What does summer taste like to you?
To me there are a few things that I think summer tastes like. One is quesadillas with tropical punch Kool Aid. I always had the dilemma of which to finish first because they went so well with each other. Don't believe me? Try it.
Another is strawberries. Strawberries are delicious and are definitely a sign of summer. Monday I will be attending a bridal shower potluck for work. I'm making my favorite strawberry spinach salad. Today I cut up 32 oz. of strawberries. It was a pretty picture. I took a couple of bowls for myself and Brand and sprinkled sugar on them for one of my favorite summer treats. If I had whipped cream lying around...I would've had an even better treat.
Another great thing about strawberries is how pretty they are.

As I was cutting this delicious produce I was thinking about creative God is. And how generous! He created these and we get to feast upon them. Dipped in chocolate, lathered in whipped cream, in milkshakes, on pound cake, waffles, pancakes...I could go on..these things are magical....
So what does summer taste like to you?

Judgment cat judges you

Bugg has very little pleasures in life. Purring loudly, wet cat food, cuddling when I'm trying to sleep or use my computer, chasing bugs, and sitting on his perch. The moment I pull up the blinds to let in the cool air or bright sunshine...Bugg hops up on his windowsill and looks down on the world in judgment.

Today was the Torchlight Parade or the Lilac Parade. We thought about going but people line up all day long and Brand didn't get off of work until 5 so we would've been fighting for a spot. Our neighbors went and still aren't back. I do like night parades..they're pretty fun. The only time I ever went to the Lilac Parade it rained like crazy and broke my umbrella so I'm still a bit bitter. So sorry for the lame picture of my funny cat. We were supposed to be camping this weekend too...but that didn't happen either.
Hopefully soon we'll be on our feet again so we can have adventures and stuff :)

Waiting, Wishin'...

Today Dexter and I hung out on my day off while Brand delivered yummy sandwiches. It was a bit lonely. But good knowing that though I can't work over my allotted hours, Brand was out working so we can at least make some of our bills this and next month.
And I must say, as I was helping Brand memorize the sandwiches they serve and Jimmy John's...it's made me really hungry for one. They sound delicious!! Lots of sprouts and avocadoes which I love! So when we have some extra money again I think we'll definitely make a trip to JJ's for a yummy beach club :)
But Dexter has not adjusted well to not being with Brand . When Brand was at SMERC, Dexter went with him to work. When Brand was laid off and he was at home, Dexter had him all day! So now that we're both working, it's the first time Dexter has been home by himself for most of the day. So I can imagine that the following picture that I snapped today is probably what he does a lot...

He's just waitin' and wishin' that his Brand will be home soon...

May 13th-A celebration of Josh

May 13th was Joshie's 29th birthday. I can't believe in one year he'll be 30! That's crazy to me.
Josh is the best big brother ever. While we grew up he was a big bully. Really mean to me. I think brothers are supposed to be that way though. And then he met Rheanne and she brought out the real Josh. The Josh that is sweet, caring, hilarious, and fun. It's been cool to see Josh grow from being a big, nerdy, mean brother to a sweet wonderful husband to Rheanne and daddy to Oliver. And he's become a pretty great brother.
One recent memory I have of Josh that showed me how sweet he had become was when I went skiing for the first time in years and I fainted in the lodge. Josh ran to me and comforted me as I was super embarrassed. It showed me how much he had changed into just an all-around good guy. And it's been fun to discover that out of all the siblings Josh and I are the most alike. Which is probably why we didn't get along very well when we were younger, but now we take the good parts of us that are similar and embrace those..like our hilarious jokes. Seriously the comedians of the family.
I must say, I have the best siblings ever so I think about them a lot on their birthday especially since I can't see them. So Brand and I decided to do a little Josh celebration. We decided to eat from his favorite food group...Sugar and more sugar.
In fact we had Josh's favorite meal, marshmallows. Ours were strawberry but we added some chocolate chips for some extra fun.

They're little marshfellows!! haha. Aren't they cute?
So a little HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSH!!
Love you!

Anonymously fantastic

Generosity. It's pretty awesome. I love being generous. Knowing I'm helping someone's life a little bit means a lot. I always wish I could do more. I think anonymous generosity is pretty awesome. You're able to help someone out without expecting any thanks. The only thanks you get it is seeing or hearing how what you did impacted someone's life.
Now when I'm on the receiving end of someone's anonymous generosity...it just makes everything pretty great : )
The only sucky thing is you can't thank the person who did it for you, but otherwise...it's pretty neat knowing someone thought about you and was so generous but does not want recognition for it.
I came into work on Wednesday and there as an envelope addressed to me. My name and work address were typed up and taped to the unaddressed envelope. The only clue I have is that it was mailed from Spokane. But even the distinguishing last three numbers of the zip code were cut off near the stamp. But that's okay. I understand the reasoning and the thoughtfulness of the anonymous generosity so I just humbly say thank you :) Anyway, in this envelope was a typed up letter that simply said "Now you don't have to think about groceries this week! P.S. Buy some goodies! Love you!" and two $25 gift cards to Safeway.
I almost cried right then and there. Just knowing that someone understands that we'll pay bills before we'll buy food is great. I'm so excited to go grocery shopping this weekend. It'll settle things knowing that after we spend all our money on bills (and still won't have everything paid) we'll have food to eat. Praise the Lord! :)

Good morning!

Dexter is doing one of two cute things when I wake up in the morning. Either he is lying peacefully on the couch all curled up waiting for me to wake up. Or he is lookin' like this..........

Pretty cute eh?
Hard to have a bad day when I wake up and see this waiting for me.

How to do a date night on a budget..

Date night tonight :
Very low key.
Made some Hawaiian chicken with pineapple and rice. Tasted delish :-)
Then we took a little walk with Dexter. It was pretty nice outside...little windy.
Then we finished our night off with some Californication. That show is about way more than some sex addict...it is pretty dang good. And I think Hank Moody and his girlie friend Karen are pretty BA. Love them.
Here's a pretty sunset from our walk :)

Don't mind the giant pole in the picture.....
Happy day!

A flower for a mother

Every Mother's Day at church, the kids bring flowers to every woman..despite if they're a mother or not. Since mom was in town she got one and so did I. And I got the chance to publicly acknowledge (embarrass :D) her.
My mom is pretty great so I was happy to say a few words to my church to brag about my mom.
Here are our pretty flowers :)

I got to keep my mom's flower since she would be in CDA all week and then back to Boise. I don't like saying goodbye to my mom. It's even worse on Mother's Day. But it was fun having her. I already miss her...

Granddoggy

To continue the Mother's Day Extravaganza...here is a pic of my mom with her granddog :)

Mom really loves Dexter. It's hard not to really. He's the best dog in the world and he just loves his grandma :)
Today we celebrated Mother's Day early since my mom has to take off tomorrow pretty early. I was able to make mom some creamy tomato tortellini soup because it's my fav thing to make and wanted to make it for her. She loved it :) Then we made a pot roast for dinner with some delish mashed taters. And mom wanted an ice cream cake..so we were not going to object :)
It was a pretty good weekend. I'm going to miss her when she goes back :(
Love you mommy!

Mother's Day weekend part one!

A mama weekend! Just a little kiss to my mama who is visiting this weekend :)

I love her :)

Hello cupcake!

Wednesday I attempted to do something for the first time, with a bad oven, with very limited time. Not a good idea.turned out okay though..
I offered to make cupcakes for Bible Study. Then I realized I only had 9 cupcake holders and thought I would make a cake. Then I saw my shiny, unused, giant cupcake pan. I thought I'd keep my promise and make a giant cupcake. Well since my oven bakes unevenly the top of the cupcake cooked way fast and the bottom part did not...long story short...I threw the top out and kept the bottom...partly frosted because I did not have time to frost the thing..and did not bring it to Bible Study...sad :(
But here it is...pretty ugly but it tastes like yummy cake :)

Warning...this may be too cute!

This is the second posting about my friend's animals. My friend Whitney has an adorable dog named Remy. Remy is very laid back and loves friends. He gets along great with Dexter (a little too great for his liking if you know what I'm talking about) and he cares for his adopted kittens like his children. He gives them kisses, cleans them, worries about them...it's quite sweet.
I was able to snap a little picture of Henry/Bruce/Mrs. Norris (Whatever his name is today) and Remy bonding over my converse sneaker.

Yeah they're pretty cute. Mrs. Bruney (yes he's a guy), was neutered earlier that day so was more lethargic but he still found plenty of time to play with everything in sight. I love animals. How precious are they?

May the fourth be with you.. Happy Star Wars day!

Sorry, not a star wars themed post. I was going to take a picture of Brand looking coincidentally Jedi-ey today (he didn't know what today was..AHH!) but Lost was so EFFING mindblowing I had to capture our faces of the utter shock and confusion that Lost is.

Besides words such as "destiny", "fate", and "Freckles" the common theme of Lost really is WHAT THE F**K! Yeah I went there. Lost has balls. I won't spoil tonight's episode for someone (mainly Rheanne) but Rheanne...get ready for a wild ride that season 6 is. There have been at least three all time best Lost episodes solely in this season. Tonight being one of them.
I read an article review about the episode on eonline.com, the writer happens to be neighbors with the creator of Lost, Damon Lindelof. He said he was going to borrow a cup of sugar and then ask some serious questions. If you are neighbors with the creator of one of the greatest TV shows of all time and you're a journalist..man you must have it easy...
Anyway, I love Lost. Rheanne, SO excited for you to see this season :)

Date night with Date Night

Date night is sponsored by the Darrs. For my birthday, Jared and Amanda Darr gave me a $25 gift card to the theater. We opted to see Date Night with Tina Fey and Steve Carell. It was hilarious! Those two are great together and it was funny seeing them resolve common marital issues with hilarity.

Here are some highlights of the night:

• Zip your vagina! -Steve Carell
• That's really nice Jeremy but I'm gonna go home and fart in a shoebox-Tina Fey doing the voice of some bored chick
• Why do you need muscles on top of your shoulders?-Steve Carell (talking about Mark Wahlberg)
• Tina Fey and Steve Carell acting like snobby New York hipsters that included Steve's jacket on backwards
• Seeing "Mark Walhberg's costumer" credited when all he wore was a pair of black pj pants...never a t-shirt. Easiest job ever
• And of course, seeing the big cardboard 3 for Toy Story 3!!

I LOVE Toy Story! One of our first date nights as a married couple was seeing the double feature of Toy Story in theaters in 3D. It was fantastic! And seeing kids whose parents were probably still in high school when the movies came out enjoy it was pretty neat. I'm very excited to see the gang at it again :)

Lazy Sunday

A very lazy day today. We didn't even go to church! For those that do not reside here in the Lilac City, today is Bloomsday. The largest timed race in America (or so they say I'm not really fact checking here). Our church leaders thought instead of having us all inside church while the rest of Spokane is out there running, that we should be out in Spokane being with the people of Spokane, either by running, handing out water, or doing something creative with your small group. We thought about doing something, I even set my alarm..but we just slept. Probably not the most productive thing, but oh well...
I did get inspired to make some homemade chicken noodle soup with the leftover chicken from my cheesy stuffed chicken breasts I made the other day. It turned out pretty good!
Here's a little picture of Brand "praying" with our biscuits, soup, and Kool Aid :)

It's been good to cook again. I haven't cooked a lot lately because of the lack of ingredients and that we can't afford to go get stuff just so I can try something new. I just cook with what we have and that's usually just meat and potatoes. I guess that's why Irish people just ate that, because it's cheap and easy.
Tomorrow, Brand and I will go on a proper date night..to see Date Night. Our friends Jared and Amanda gave us a gift card to the movie theater so we could go on a date outside the house. It was incredibly sweet and we are so grateful for it. We haven't seen a movie in a long time so we're pretty excited to finally leave our house and have a proper date :)

At the end of the day, I come home to you..

A wee bit late..I'm sorry!
This weekend was great! Having Cassie visit for my birthday is definitely the coolest thing that happened. We spent all day Saturday together. Her and Mollie were doing Bloomsday the next day (today) so we walked around downtown Spokane to get them all signed up. I'm kind of happy we didn't do Bloomsday this year. Last year was fun and worth the soreness..but it was nice to just chill at home while everyone else was running bahaha.
But anyway, I was so busy just hanging out I didn't take any pictures! So after being away from Brand all day, I really missed him...so here's another shot of Brand and me...these are our crazy faces :) So excited to see each other!

We will have good looking kids.

Happy birthday part two!

So I didn't get any good pictures of my costume. It was so dang hot I didn't have it on for too long.
But I was Severus Snape. I wore black slacks, a black turtleneck, a black blazer, with my black graduation robe. I then cut my long Morticia wig from Halloween pretty short for some Severus hair. It was pretty sweet :)
But I did get a pic of me blowing out some candles! Mollie made made a delicious ice cream cake with brownies, mint ice cream, oreos, and the hard chocolate shell stuff with sprinkles..YUM!

Mollie picked up the candles after I blew them out and they were hot apparently haha.
All-in-all it was a great birthday. We didn't get to play Quidditch like planned but we played some HP Scene-It, the game of things (awesome game), and made some highly inappropriate jokes..here's my fav from the night.
After guessing what spell Harry was casting which the correct answer was Periculum...I said well that sounds dirty.
Evan: Yeah like perinium
Mollie: What's a perinium?
Allison: Well I know what it taint!!!
Hahaha pretty great eh!
And one of the best things was that Cassie came to town for my birthday...so now I am off for some adventures with her and Mollie!