Life in Denim and Flip Flops

I've had a few birthday cards to buy recently. I go through phases where I'll buy cards from one company or in one design for a while. Recently it was the freshink cards. I'm in the middle of a Hoops and YoYo phase. They're Hallmark characters. I love them. I bought my dad a birthday card that had them talking about a dingo eating his birthday cake, complete with the song " D-I-N-G-O, D-I-N-G-O, D-I-N-G-O and Dingo ate your birthday cake." They have downloadable audio on their website. Some of these might just have to be my new ringtones. Love them!!

Wow. A Things I Love Thursday, actually on a Thursday :) Red Glove --I just finished this book this week. I tore through it once I started it. It's not bad for the middle book of a trilogy. Enough plot to keep me interested. Plus I just love Cassel. I mean how can you not? Plus I really love the urban fantasy feel. It's a great warm up for the Welcome To Bordertown anthology that's near the top of my to-be-read-as-soon-as-I-get-my-hands-on-it list. my boss--There are so many reasons to love Mary Anne. This week it's been funny and wacky stories at lunch and during meetings. You should not have as much fun with your coworkers as I do. Seeing both Gretchen and Amy in the same weekend--On my way home from Apple Valley, I stopped by in Clear Lake to see Gretchen. She, being the amazing former roomie she is, fed me and then went out for ice cream and coffee with me. Sadly she didn't take me up on my offer to drive me home. I mean it's only a 3-hour drive back to ...

It's officially that time again. I need to go on a no fast food/Panera Bread kick again. I've been eating out a lot lately. My decision to go what essentially becomes "not eating out" is partially financial and partially health-conscious. This doesn't mean I won't go out with friends, but I'm cutting back on the fast food which is rarely good for me. Also it gives me a good excuse to do more cooking. Since I started on Monday I've made a pretty stellar simple stirfry, and this weekend I hope to try and replicate the potato and leek curry from the cooking class I went to. What I need to make sure I don't do is slice open my finger again. I managed to nick it pretty well tonight on my veggie peeler I was using to slice Parmesan cheese for a salad. I'm not a fan of blood, especially my own. Gonna take that one a while to heal back to normal. In the mean time I think I'm going to need to stock up on some first aid supplies. I am woefully low ...

Last year about this time I bought a new purse when I came to visit Amy. I traveled it with last summer and have loved that bag ever since. I once again find myself in Minnesota visiting Amy and near The Container Store. It is clearly too much of temptation. We ended up there tonight. I've been digging through their website looking for a shoulder bag my laptop and work stuff would fit in. I couldn't decide based on the pic from the site and wanted to see them in real life. And that's when I fell in love with this bag . I now own it. It was on sale, so I don't feel so bad. But how cute is it? Shoulder strap and everything. I've managed to shove everything I brought with me except clothes in that bag and still have room left over. It looks like I own a new overnight bag, which I actually need. No more packing into a suitcase too large for the weekend. :)

Hey remember when I said I'd get out of my habit of blogging at the end of the week? Yeah, me neither. Athenian Grill--A cute little restaurant a few blocks from where I live. I don't frequent it often, mostly because I feel like once I get in the habit of going there I'll be there all the time. However, early this week thanks to my broken car, I was without groceries or any good way to get them. So off to the restaurant it was. It's under new ownership. The older gentleman behind the desk was adorable and sweet. (He gave me free chicken noodle soup because he liked my laugh!) And the food was a good as I remembered it. reconnecting with old friends--I have quite a few people I'd call friends that I don't communicate with on a super regular basis. Two of those people contacted me this week and we had a nice chat. That is always a great way to make me smile. watching Manda graduate!!--I got to see my little sissy graduate with her master's degree this la...

Due to rain today, Amy and I decided to hit the Minnesota History Center . You know me and a good history museum. I was excited to see the George Washington exhibit which was great. And then we checked out the underwear exhibit, also awesome, but in a slightly different way. We meandered through the Minnesota 150 and turned a corner. And that's when we found the best exhibit ever. It was the history of a house . They traced it back to when it was built in the late 1880s. The history of building was then told as you walked through a replica of the building. The first room of the building was set up like the original owners. You pull open drawers to view more info, or discover a story they uncovered while researching. The next few families were represented by clothing with census records or building data printed on it. So freaking cool. Not like anything I'd seen. It had interactive elements like video screens in a table under glass plates so you sat at the table to watch the v...

Today was my 27th birthday. I feel this post is sufficent. Back to regular blogging tomorrow. Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

This was the best idea ever. The food was amazing, and I totally picked up some new skills and ideas. There were 8 of us there plus the instructor and the owner of the shop who was acting as his assistant. I sort of felt like I was watching a cooking show live. Sunil was totally comfortable in the kitchen, probably thanks in part to his day job as a chemistry professor. I managed to get a seat up front about an arms length from the stovetop. Perfect seat. Especially once the recipe manipulation started. He didn't quite follow any of the recipes he printed out for us, so I spent a lot of the time scribbling notes all over mine. So before I offer to show you them, I'll need to translate it myself! Menu for the evening: Mango Lassi Indian style chicken wings Bitter Greens (kale) curry Leek Potato curry Spicy Yogurt rice Vegetable crepes Tamarind Ginger chutney Fresh Fruit with Lemongrass-cardamom cream I really loved everything he made. The tamarind ginger chutney was...

Today has involved some good news. First I found out there will be a new Blue Skies album just about in time for my birthday. In case you are interested, here are 3 songs that will make an appearance on the album. I think Wildflowers is my fave so far. Wildflowers by BlueSkies In the car A vague moment of clarity So the next fun thing was learning I'd won some Ralph Lauren sunglasses in a raffle. I love winning random things. And these are cute sunglasses. See?? Yay for good news on the week of my birthday :)

I got home late enough last night that I just didn't have the energy to blog this, so you're getting it today. buying gifts early--I've purchased part of a birthday gift for the end of June, a Father's Day gift, and a birthday gift for Nov 7 already. I'm never this ahead on shopping. Ever. Oh and my sister's graduation gift? I've had most of that purchased since early April. I finished up on Wednesday.  dinner with the YWA ladies--Last hurrah of the semester for them was a dinner off campus. IT is never a dull moment with those ladies. The storytelling started before we even made it to the car. getting Manda settled in her new place--Moving is never my favorite thing in the world, but the idea of getting settled in a new apartment and city is a nice feeling. Especially when it has such good food. Speaking of which... Fat Bruce's and Rippin' Good Cookies --If you are ever in Ripon, WI...and why would you not be, right? You must eat at Fat Bruce...

Last night after work I bucked up and made a decision about my cooking class conundrum. Thanks to all those of you who voted here, on Facebook, or on Twitter (some of you twice... Michael ...I'm looking at you!) I decided that Indian food sounded fun, yummy, repeatable, and something a few more of you might enjoy eating when you visit. So I drove myself over to the store (ended up buying 2 other things because I cannot get out of a cooking/kitchen gadget store without something!!) and signed up for the class! It's paid for which helps the whole, I'm too tired to do anything excuse that will inevitably come up next week. I really am looking forward to it. Now for all of you who were stoked about the paella, if I like this class, I'll probably sign up for that one too. Expensive little 3 weeks there, but it's the only other class in the near future that I'm interested in. A decent investment I'm sure. Onto part 2 of this blog post. Indie bookstores. If you w...

I need your help. I'm feeling like I've been slightly less (read not at all) social in Dubuque since I moved here. For those of you not in the know, that was 3 years ago June 5-ish. I was never one for much of a social life (again read...mostly not at all), but I feel like it's my duty to get out of my apartment/work and interact with people. Now I get out of my place on weekends in Dubuque a lot, but it's mostly to coffee shops and parks, i.e. places where I am alone. So after 3 years, I'm going to be good and do something. I've decided that something is to do a cooking class. Me plus cooking? Perfect, right? The local kitchenware/cooking store does classes. And that's where you come in. I can't decide which one to do. I'm thinking I could still get into the one next Thursday. Or there's one coming up May 24. Next Thursday is Spring Indian Cooking, Thursday May 12th 6p-9p. $35.00 Enjoy the wonderful flavors of Indian cuisine with Sunil. A...