30 Days of Thankfulness - Day 3

Today (should've been yesterday's post) I am thankful for modern medicine.

This almost seems too obvious but I think we often take advantage of the fact that doctors and hospitals are so readily available in the United States. I'm thankful for health insurance and the ease in which I can go to the doctor or hospital.

My dad had 6-bypass surgery a couple years ago and was able to go home after a few days. Prior to this surgery, his doctors did some tests to reveal that he had a "silent" heart attack, requiring the bypass surgery. Without modern medicine and technology, he probably wouldn't have made it very long without that procedure or the doctors who completed the test to reveal he had the heart attack in the first place.

There are still many illnesses and diseases that need cures, so we're not completely living in a perfect world, but to think that only 50 years ago, the first coronary artery bypass surgery was completed. We've made great strides to the type of procedures that can be completed with technology and through scientific research.

Thank goodness for good doctors, nurses, researchers and anyone else involved in advancing medicine.

30 Days of Thankfulness - Day 2

... just as a side note, these are not going to be in any particular order, nor are they of equal importance...

Today, I am thankful for Beecher's cheese :)

I'm thankful for good food in general, but Beecher's cheese is probably one of the best-tasting things out there. If you've never tried it, it's a must. Add it to your bucket list if you need to, the Flagship in particular.

A few more things I'm thankful for:

Stores that sell it in Arizona (I about passed out in the store when I saw it for the first time)

Pike Place Market - that's where it's made!

World's best mac and cheese!!

(Click here for the recipe)

My dad who went to Pike Place to get me the frozen mac and cheese so I could bring it to AZ and have it for dinner last night :)

30 Days of Thankfulness - Day 1

As the holiday season approaches, I thought I would follow one of my friends who is doing this on facebook.... hopefully I can just remember to do this every day for the next 30 days :)

Today, I am thankful today for my husband.

The past week I have been sick with the flu and still have an annoying cough that keeps me (and him) up at night. He came home from work whenever he could tell I needed something last week and when I came downstairs in the middle of the night because I didn't want to keep him awake coughing, he came downstairs and told me to come back upstairs because he knew I would be more comfortable in our bed. He made me all the soup and grilled cheese sandwiches I could ask for.... even after I told him "just one ice cube in the soup this time, 2 makes it too cold."

I couldn't be more thankful to have a best friend that is so genuine and loves me for who I am. I'll be the first to admit that I'm pretty stubborn, independent and like to be in control. He's made me realize that life isn't about one person leading everything all the time, and in a marriage, it's about a team effort. We've been a great team for the past 12 years that we've been together. Sure, we've had our ups and downs, but I couldn't be more thankful for a lifetime partner who I know I can always count on no matter what. He's the love of my life and I'm so thankful he's stuck around this long to put up with me. :)

Feathers!!

I've been obsessed with this trend since I saw it in Boulder about a month ago when I was there visiting my friend Holly. We were at dinner and I saw this thing in her hair and finally asked what the heck it was. 

Feathers. 

Then as we're walking out another girl had them in her hair. I instantly knew I had to have them.


When I got back to Phoenix, I was googling the heck out of "feather hair extensions" trying to find a place here that would do it. No luck. 

Boulder. Austin. San Francisco. Portland.

Wait----Portland?!?!?!?! You better believe I made an appointment... and I LOVE them!!! I have 5 bunches in my hair... a combo of teal/black and white/black. They're so fun and easy to put in! I'm gonna try doing it myself next time. Or maybe I'll ask Stefan to help... wait-- he's the one that called me Sacajawea as soon as he saw me.... nevermind, I'll be doing them myself.

Seattle & Portland

We had a quick trip to Seattle and Portland this last weekend.... about a million things planned and only 2.5 days to get everything done! We never get to do everything and see everyone when we go back, but we had so much fun, despite the rain. Here's a quick run-down of our trip:


Friday

• Mom picked us up from the airport, dropped us off at Stefan's parents
• Visited with his parents, the kids, and met their new kitten, Charlie
• Dinner/drinks at the Keg
• E-9, met up with our friend Ken, saw a few other T-town friends

Saturday

• Lindsey and Bryce picked us up in the morning to head down to Portland
• Had lunch at the Lucky Labrador
• Bryce and Stefan watched college football while Lindsey & I had appointments at the Gypsy Rose (for manis and feathers!)
• Had a drink with our friend Missy at the hotel bar before the wedding
• Got ready in 15 minutes for the wedding, hopped in a cab and arrived just in time!
• Went to Erica and Ryan's wedding at the West End Theater. Beautiful ceremony and fun reception!
• Met up with our friends Sean and Cara after the wedding to watch the Husky/UofA game at Blitz. Lots of people in Vampire attire.... kind of strange. 
• After the devastating loss, we walked in the pouring rain to Voodoo Doughnuts.
• Walked back to the hotel and devoured our maple bacon bars.... DELICIOUS!!!

Sunday

• Got up bright and early and drove back to Tacoma.
• Spent 10 minutes at my parents house before we left for the Seahawks game.
• Tailgated with our friend Colin and his family before the game.
• Yelled a lot at the game and enjoyed the win against the Cardinals!!!
• Had a drink at Elysian Fields after the game with Brian and Bree
• Drove back to Tacoma, visited with our parents, and went to bed.

Monday

• Flew back to Arizona
• Julie sick with the flu

60 years yesterday...

Yesterday would have been my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary... 

(Picture of their actual wedding napkins from October 14, 1950)

Both of my grandparents passed away in 2006, just a few months after they made it to our wedding in Washington. Some of my favorite memories growing involve my grandparents, especially all of the summers spent at their house on Flathead Lake in Montana. 


Just a few of my favorite memories....

~ Grandpa painting my fingernails

~ Grandpa reading the Sesame Street books to me (while golf was on TV in the background)

~ Picking strawberries in their garden 

~ Birthday parties for my dolls

~ Making dreamcatchers and learning about their meaning

~ Learning how to make Native American beaded art


~ Indian tacos

~ Making pictures out of wood pieces

~ Painting rocks

~ Dream boats

~ Grandpa always called me Lulie, until I told him I wanted my name to be Lisa, and then he started calling me Lisa until I switched it back to Julie

~ Boat rides until midnight, getting stuck in a swamp and trying to find the way back to the house by the location of the moon

~ Hot tubbing in the snow

~ Collecting rocks from the lake

~ Playing cards and getting frustrated when Grandma always won

~ Grandpa coming to my high school to talk about Native American history

~ And my favorite memory.... picking cherries in Montana. Grandma would always tell me to sneak a few extra bags of frozen cherries to take home and I never argued with her. Those are the best cherries in the world, and picking them made some of the best memories.  

Ever wonder why I have a tattoo of cherries on my foot? Now you know. 

I know my grandparents celebrated yesterday with a "short one" and continue to celebrate every day with each other. We love and miss you both every day!! 

A few other of my favorite pictures:

Ferry into Seattle...

Hot-tubbing in the snow

Grandma's Birthday

Grandpa's Birthday (cake and booze!)

Birthday card to Grandpa, from Lisa

Grandma's Birthday

My Birthday

And the last pictures I have of them were on our wedding day...

Photo Credit: www.Houseof5Photography.com

Photo Credit: www.Houseof5Photography.com

"Some of the best I've ever had"

Working from home has given me the wonderful opportunity (sarcasm) to learn how to cook.... on my own. Not that I don't like help when I'm doing something I'm not very good at, but when I'm learning how to do something that my husband is already really really good at, I prefer to do it on my own and learn from my mistakes. I'm not a huge fan of Stefan someone watching over my shoulder and telling me "I would do it this way" or "I don't know about that" with a look of disgust on his their face as I do it my way. Yes, my way may be completely wrong, but I'll learn that eventually.

Even though cooking does not top my list of Favorite Things to do, I figured since I work from home, the least I could do for my wonderful husband is to have dinner ready for him when he gets home. After all, he's been cooking for me for longer than I've known how to boil a pot of water... or make macaroni-and-cheese (without sweetened condensed milk).

Before I tell you about one of my big accomplishments of the week, I must make it clear that I absolutely cannot STAND raw meat.... the way it smells, the way it feels, and all of the "stuff" that needs to be trimmed off of it just grosses me out. So my first accomplishment of the week was cooking my very first piece of chicken breast. I know, I know, doesn't seem like a big deal, but this was a huge step for me. Cooking this chicken included all of the trimming, etc. (But don't worry, I wore rubber gloves, plugged my nose, and disinfected the entire kitchen when I was done). How did it turn out, you ask? Perfectly cooked. I guess watching over Stefan after all these years actually helped. This should prove that I actually DO pay attention when he's in the kitchen!!

My next accomplishment of the week? It involved Stefan calling his parents after he tried what I made! The conversation went something like this:

Stefan: "You're not going to believe what I'm eating. Especially when I tell you Julie made it."
M-I-L:  "Julie cooked?" (In a high-pitched French accent)
F-I-L:   "What did she make?"
Stefan: "I'm having a bowl of some of the best collard greens I've ever had."
M-I-L:   "Better than mine?" (In a very high-pitched French accent).
Stefan: "Well I haven't had yours in a while, but these are pretty good."

Needless to say, I couldn't stop grinning from ear to ear because this is the first time he's ever called anyone about my cooking. He's complimented some of the things I've cooked in the past, but it usually follows with "next time you should add more of this" or "I would've cooked it on a lower temperature." So it's sort of a backhanded compliment anyway. This time? Nothing!

I guess that's my cue that I can should do this more often since the food I cook is starting to become more edible. BUT..... I don't think it's time to quit my day job quite yet.