Greasy Magazine Pages

About once every 2 weeks, Kevin and I get inspired to make a nice dinner at home.  Sometimes Kevin participates, and sometimes he just watches football - since our tendency to cook something usually lands on a Sunday.

But, tonight, we made this super yummy recipe from the November issue of Real Simple mag.  As cool as people are on Pinterest, I usually end up following recipes from magazines.  Maybe it's the glossy pictures?

Anyway, along came "Pasta with sausage, arugula and crispy bread crumbs." Gotta love a recipe that tells you EXACTLY what your signing up for.

It was so good that I wanted to share with you all.  The combo of Italian sausage and thyme was a quite interesting twist to the typical flavors experienced in the Pisca household.  Plus, it was pretty easy to make, and only had a few ingredients.  So, I'm guessing this recipe will happen again!

Apologies for the poor photo.

I was going to type out the recipe, but here's the link instead:  http://bit.ly/RpjNmi

Obvi, we used mini farfalle (sp?) pasta instead of the fancy shmancy pasta found in the recipe (we shop at Target, people!).  Plus, in true Wisconsinite fashion, we had to add some cheese to the dish, so try a little Parmesan cheese sprinkled on the top.

Between this and the white chocolate macadamia cookies that are in the oven, I get an award for Best. Wifey. Ever. from Kevin, or at least I SHOULD!

Nom.

Dating a Diet

So...

Kevin came to me a few weeks ago and said, "Babe, I want to go on the Paleo diet." I was loading the dishwasher and nearly dropped a plate.  For ya'all that don't know - Kevin is skinny. Like REAL skinny.

I responded by asking why in the world he would want to go on a diet.  "So I can get in racin' shape, BABE."  Racin' shape = bike racing shape - like the guys in the Tour de France.  They are about his height but weigh about 20 lbs less.  In my mind, I cannot fathom how in the world Kevin would have 20 lbs. to lose...keeping in mind, it's likely that I only weigh about 20 lbs less than Kevin.

So, after some prodding, I finally got out of him that it's not about racin' weight, but instead, he was feeling sluggish all day long and wanted to try something new.  So, I suggested we just start out easy and try to cut sugars (beside what's found naturally in fruit and veggies and dairy) and carbs from our diets.  So, we embarked on it.

So far, this week, we've been doing well.  A big vat of Chili Monday night has made great left overs for lunch/dinners, and I made some pulled pork in the slow cooker.  We fill in with things like raw broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, eggs (every which way you can imagine), turkey bacon, plain greek yogurt - and I introduced Kevin to Larabars today (WIN!).  We indulge in sugar free fudgesickles ;)

But, you should have seen us tonight after volleyball league - super hungry because we had an early dinner.  We got home and went straight to the pickle jar.  It was quite a scene to behold.

I also had to send Kevin an email today that had the subject: "Confession - I ate a cookie."

Dieting sure is easier when your spouse is on board :)

Hey, Why not?

Today at work, in a conversation with Legal, we started talking about chain emails.  I thought to myself: I miss those survey-type ones!  So, I found one from an old friend of mine, so here goes!

Height: 5'6" - after being with Kevin for over 6 years now, he asked me how tall I am, and when I said 5'6," he called me short
Shoe Size: 9.5/10
Sexual Orientation: I like boys - one in particular;)
Age you get mistaken for: 24ish
Have Tattoos? Nope, definitely not.
Want any tattoos? I'm definitely not against tattoos - just can't think of something beautiful enough to put on my body forever. 
Got any Piercings? Just ears right now.  Had a nose piercing just a few years ago, and I totally miss it.
Want any piercings? Yes, I'd like my nose piercing back!
Best friend? the hubby
Biggest fears: Not going to lie - I'm afraid of dying or someone close to me dying
Biggest celeb crush: Right now, Ryan Gosling
Favorite Movie: Juno
I’ll love you if: You tell it to me straight
Someone you miss: My grandparents - all of them
Most traumatic experience: I was in charge of the store during my internship at Target and a girl had a seizure. I can't handle seizures.
A fact about your personality: I can be completely reserved or 100% transparent, it all depends on who else is in the room.
What I hate most about myself: My lack of patience
What I love most about myself: My general ability to quickly forgive and forget the small stuff
What I want to be when I get older: Content
My relationship with my sibling(s): Love my bro & sis :)
My idea of a perfect date: Strolling through a garden, on the beach - anywhere where we can focus 100% on each other/our conversation without interuption or distractions
My biggest pet peeves: When people use the 's inappropriately for plural's
A description of the girl/boy I like: Passionate & dedicated
What my last text message says: "On my way home" - a status to the husband
What words upset me the most: "If you come with the idea, it will get funded"
What words make me feel the best about myself: "Erin adds a lot of value to the team"
Where I would like to live. maybe Austin, TX?
One of my insecurities. My presentation skills - I have one tomorrow at 9 AM
My childhood career choice. I thought I wanted to be a Doctor.  But then, I was a lifeguard and sheer anxiety that someone might get hurt and that it would be up to me to help was enough to sway that decision.
My favorite ice cream. COOKIES N CREAM is where it's at.
Who I wish I could be. There's really no one person I'd pick.  Maybe bits & pieces here and there?
Where I want to be right now. I'm really itching for a vacation.
The last thing I ate. A Jell-o Sugar Free pudding cup. South Beach Diet Savior.
A random fact about anything: Someone told me that it takes more calories for your body to digest a raspberry than is actually in the raspberry. Don't tell me if this isn't true!

Sorry if this was boring but not a lot of readers. ha!

Baby Boom!

Lately, it seems like someone's announcing they're pregnant or they're having a baby just about every waking minute.  I suppose I am about that age.  I get sooooooo extremely happy and giddy knowing that a new little one is on the way or was just brought into the world.  In fact, I get a little jealous.  I love to babysit, and hold them in my arms, and let them curl up on my shoulder, and touch their little soft heads. But tell me:

How does a married woman in her mid/late twenties possibly keep the decision to have a child of her own a rational decision with all the adorableness (and peer pressure) going on right now!!??

In the beginning...

A'ight - so I accidentally signed in with a different gmail log in to blogger.com and realized that I started another blog a while back and had one entry.  So, I thought I would copy/paste it over to this one.  Here it is people...P.S. I didn't get my GMAT done this past winter ;)

Alright, all the cool/savvy newlyweds I know have a blog to keep everyone up to date on the couple's happenings.  I know we probably won't get many followers until we start having kids (or get dogs), but I figured if we start early, we'll be able to have some good content in the future (ha!).

I can't believe it's October already - but this has been a year of entering adulthood muy rapido!

We moved to Minneapolis from Arkansas and bought a house in St. Louis Park - which threw us instantly into a world of housework - and we have no clue what we are doing.  Thank goodness to our families for all the help and advice!

Then, we got married, and it was awesome. I'm proud of the party we threw, and even more touched by the number of people that traveled near and far to be a part of our day. 

After that, we went to Belize for our honeymoon and had the time of our life - and met some pretty cool people along the way.

Kevin started his part-time MBA at the U of MN.  He's working really hard - which means I have more time to...shop?  I suppose I should get around to tackling my GMAT test this winter, but for now, I'm just enjoying the MN fall, which has been a pleasant surprise.  I remember it going from 80 degrees to 0 degrees here!

Speaking of shopping - we had to go to repenish our winter coat wardrobe and didn't cut any corners going directly to REI to buy the real thing.  We're serious about staying warm after 3 winters in AR :)

Signing off to go to be productive...

20+ miles to work off the Haute Dish

Hi there -

It's been a while notgonnalie.

Don't worry - I've been crafting really detailed DIY blogs about my landscaping and double witty blogs about life that I'm just waiting for the right moment to post.

But, this weekend, we took a break from the yard work (considering it was pouring out) and just enjoyed:) We started with a Twins game, which was awesome because the Twins finally won, and ended with a 20 mile bike ride.

Yep, you read that right.  20 miles might not seem like a lot to you, but for a first time rider, it was a good challenge!  A few weeks ago, Kevin and I bought bikes.  They were hybrids - so good for moderate trail riding and street/blacktop riding.

It wasn't long until Kevin traded his in for a speed bike (thank you Erik's for your 30 day return policy), bought spandex with a maxi pad under the butt, a new jersey, and bad ass gloves (so his hands don't go numb, duh).

So, this weekend, he finally talked me into trying it out (pending my 30 day deadline) so we went in and tried out some bikes.  About an hour later, I walked out with a speed bike, and I'm glad I did.  How fun was it to cover some serious miles at a high speed?  It was almost as fun as destroying the landscaping (see future posts about landscaping).

Anyway, maybe I found a new hobby?

I also had a fabulous dinner at Haute Dish to celebrate a long time friend's bday!  We went straight for the serious, ordering a steakhouse chop salad (serious YUM - loaded with cheese and really flavorful dressing), mac & cheese (I'd give it an 8...too much crab/lobster if you ask me) and Tater Tot Hot Dish.  If I go back, TTHD is the ONLY thing I'm going to order.  I might even order two of them.  The beef was sooooooo tender and flavorful and the tots were oozing with cheesy goodness.

http://www.haute-dish.com/

I'd definitely recommend this place!  Get out your wallet, but the food was a great experience!

...and then we went to see Bridesmaids (again).  I caught a ton of stuff this time around that I missed last time.  Good flick people.  It's definitely a DVD I'll be purchasing:)

Til next time:)

E

Watch out - Weather Rant

Today is my breaking point.  After 3 winters in Arkansas, I figured that I just had unrealistic expectations of how fast Spring should come.  But, alas, IT IS MAY 1 and the temperature is 38 degrees!

Now, I have activated the coping methods I usually do when I get mad/angry about something:

1. Try to think about how things 'could be worse.'  Like, we COULD live in Alaska or we could be dealing with a tornado or earthquake.  Yes, things definitely could be worse, but none-the-less, this coping method is not working.

2. Distract myself.  Cleaning my house and doing laundry are NOT going to effectively distract me today. No way. Not even shopping can do this.

3. Look forward to something.  I have nothing to look forward to now that my Vegas trip has passed. 

As you can see, none of these are working.  So, I'm cranky today - just ask my husband.

If you're wondering - a rant online didn't help either :(

Thanks for bearing with me.

E