• I am so excited to have my daughter back.  She was diagnosed with an ear infection on Sunday.  (Yes, my doctor’s office is open on Sunday, is that not awesome?)  She has been screaming and playing the diva to the utmost for a few days when it finally dawned on me that it might be her ears.  
• In fact, she ate almost three plates of food for dinner last night.  I knew for sure then that she was back.  That girl loves to eat!
• G and I made it to the very last big bad guy in Luigi’s Mansion on the Gamecube yesterday.  Then the inevitable happened.  He reformatted the memory card.  Yup, all was lost.  *sigh*
• You have no idea how big of a deal it is to make it to the very last big bad guy in a video game without Chris’s express assistance.  It’s never happened.
• It probably means it’s an easy video game, but shhhhh…don’t tell me if it is.  I am enjoying the moment.
• I want another Golden Retriever.  I miss Goldie and I miss having a dog as part of our family.  
• I have one piano student right now and he continually amazes me with his talent.  Wow.
• Leslie and I have a playdate tomorrow – for our kids and each other!  Yea!  I get to have adult-speak in real life during the day!  What ever am I going to do with myself?  I’ve been so blessed reading her blog and her story.   What a neat gal.  I am really looking forward to getting to know her.  And the name of her blog?  ”Wild Olive Shoot”  Love that, too.  Look for her blog post about the meaning behind the name.
• A close friend recommended Crazy Love by Francis Chan the other day – and she’s not the first to recommend it to me at all (HeatherT, I know you did as well awhile back).  I’d like to pick it up and read it.  Have any of you read it?  What did you think?  And most importantly, do I check it out from the library or will I want my own copy to underline and make notes in?
• Going for 101 in 1001 list update:
  • 9.  Roasted a whole chicken!  Completed!
  • 65.  Learning about wine and food pairings.  In progress.
  • 95.  Participating in two blog carnivals now.  In progress.
  • 8.  I am two books of the Bible away from completing this goal.

Going For 101 in 1001, Going Nowhere

From my Going for 101 in 1001 goal list:

9.  Roast a whole chicken.

I have been wanting to do this for a loooooooooong time.   I have bought plenty of whole chickens, fully cooked and delicious, from the likes of Boston Market or Publix, our local grocery store.   However, to be true to my stubborn-do-it-myself nature, I wanted to someday try it myself.  

But whole…raw…chicken…with legs…???  Each time I thought about it, I teetered dangerously close to the edge of swearing off meat forever.  

Then I met Jennifer at church while at rehearsal and I heard talk of roasting a whole chicken.   I leeched as much info as I could from her and with her cheerleading, I took the fateful steps…I bought not ONE, but TWO whole chickens from Costco.   I either like to live on the edge, or I was saving one in case of initial failure.  I’ll never tell.

Today was the day.

My ingredients.  There is a lemon hiding behind the thyme jar.   I am very nervous at this point.   I kid you not, it took me ten minutes alone just to figure out the parts and pieces to the broiler and roasting rack pan-thingy that came with my stove, including googling the instructions to the stove.  Thankfully, the original owners left it all behind.  The purchasers of our last house were not so lucky, I think.  Oh, well…

Can I tell you how gross  it is getting it ready to cook?  Bleh.  Double bleh.  I was almost pushed over the edge of that vegetarian precipice when I cleaned out the inside, but I held fast.  I had a goal.  The insides emptied, the wingy-tips touching on the bottom just like the two opened cookbooks said to do, and the drumsticks and tail tied together and we were ready to roast.

Oops, forgot to tell you – I sprinkled it with lemon juice, stuffed that half-lemon inside the, uh, empty space, then rubbed olive oil all over the chicken, followed by lemon pepper and thyme.   Let’s not talk about the fact that it took me a couple of minutes and picture comparisons to figure out which side was the breast so that it could properly face up, per the directions.  Love me, please.

Thermometer inserted and ready to go…180 degrees reached…

Forgive the less-than-professional photos, no fancy-schmancy camera here.  But….voila’!  It smelled yummy!!  Chris declared it was better than Boston Market.  I am a happy woman.  

Cauliflower was on sale this week so I made a cauliflower dish from my Southern Living cookbook.  The recipe reminded me of something my uncle Craig had made for us a while back.  The picture really does not do it justice…it was beautiful.

Steamed, sprinkled with lemon, then doused in butter with basil and parsley.  Cauliflower has never tasted so good.  It is usually a tasteless veggie to me and I have never understood its inclusion in cold vegetable trays, but I have a new respect for cauliflower now.  

Do you usually roast your own chicken or purchase it from your local grocery store hot and ready-to-eat?

Going For 101 in 1001, Gone Cookin'

I thought I’d entertain you all today with my explain of the following goal in my Going for 101 in 1001 list:

12.  Resume my “Valentine” journal for my hubby and present to him as a gift at the end of this project.

A year or two after we got married, I purchased this oh-so-unique journal from Barnes & Noble.  Yes, my husband accuses me often of having a memory like an elephant.   I remember exactly where I bought it.

Isn’t it cute?   In my newlywed bliss, my grand plan was to start a journal listing all of the things I love about my husband – qualities, things he does for me, anything that comes to mind, really.   At our five, ten, or fifteen-year anniversary, I would then present it to him as a gift. and I would be showered with countless words of love and appreciation, diamonds, and…and…and…  

(Self-less humility is something the Holy Spirit and I are working on.  Bear with me.)

One fateful night, a few months after said journal was purchased, an argument ensued between us head-over-heels-in-love-except-when-you-do-this lovers.  (Hey, we were still learning about this thing called marriage.)  Here is where my elephant-sized-memory comes into play.  

The argument was progressing nicely until Chris said the ill-fated words, “You never appreciate anything I do!”

I saw red.  Then I saw a red journal.  With a heart on it.   And a list of things I had already written.

To show him how much I appreciated him.  Yes, I sure did, too.  I all but threw it at him.

Guess who won that argument?  One guess.

Anyhow, I was uninspired to continue writing in that journal after that incident.   It was a few years before I found it again after moving.  I wrote in it some more.  We moved again.  I found it again.  The cycle continues.  Then along comes The List.  

I have resumed The Great Love Journal Project.  He knows about it, but he’ll forget about it again by the time I decide it’s time to give it to him.  He has a wonderfully terrible memory that way.

Going For 101 in 1001, Growing Up

The list is finished.  

I need a nap.

Check it out here.

Going For 101 in 1001

Ever since I read this post on a friend’s blog, I have not been able to get it out of my head.  Could I do it?  Could I even come up with 101 things?

Just in case you do not want to click over, let me sum up for you.  There is a project (with a website here) about doing 101 things in 1001 days.  They are very specific goals, a list you come up with yourself, to be completed in under three years.

I like lists.

It’s an obsession.  To clean, I use the list from Motivated Moms, and I am on my third one in fact.  At the beginning of each week, I make a list/calendar of recipes for the week.  Next, I complete the shopping list, then the list of random list of things that need to get done.  And just in case you did not notice, I like my Randomness lists and lists of websites and interesting articles I post for my handful of devoted readers (hi, mom and dad!).

It seems like a perfect fit, does it not?

I’m wondering if I can include items already in progress?  Hmmmm….  I will probably get ideas from other lists as well.  101 is a lot.

I’m going to go ahead and post this and edit as I go to add to the list.  Items in black are still to be completed.  Items in red are in progress.  Items in blue are completed.  Let’s see how we do.  I will probably do periodic posts to explain the background behind some of my goals.

What about you?  Are you up for the challenge?

1. Write a note-for-no-reason to people I love twice a month for a year.  2 months of 12 completed.
2. See the Grand Canyon in person.
3. Complete the family video for 2006.
4. Start and complete the family video for 2007.
5. Start and complete the family video for 2008.
6. Read Pride and Prejudice.
7. Learn and memorize a new piece of piano music (”classical”).
8. Read the Bible straight through. (Took 14 months to complete, admittedly began before this list…it was my goal to complete.)
9. Roast a whole chicken.
10. Make a loaf of bread.
11. Finish this list. (I’m serious – this is hard!)
12. Resume my “Valentine” journal for my hubby and present to him as a gift at the end of this project. You can read the story behind this journal here.
13. Work on a missions project, whether locally, within the U.S., or internationally.  I’m leaving the specifics vague on purpose.  I never know how God is going to work.
14. Finish G’s baby scrapbook album that my friend Jennifer put together so beautifully for me.
15. And the same for S’s.
16. Sponsor a Compassion child.
17. Go on a weekend camping trip with my family.
18. Cook one new dessert a month for two years. 2 of 24 completed.  (Jan. – Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies; Feb. – Apple Crisp; March – Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits)
19. Take the kids to the zoo at least once a month, if not more. (Zoo membership, gotta use it!) 4 of 12 completed.
20. Grow my own herbs. (This one is scary, I do not claim to have a green thumb in the least!)
21. Put together a complete wedding video with music, video and photos from our wedding.
22. Adopt another Golden Retriever.
23. Need a new goal...
24. Go on a weekend away with hubby three times during the course of this project. 1 of 3 completed.
25. Go skiing.  (something I’ve never done before)
26. Be debt free.
27. Visit a museum, any museum.
28. Repaint the kitchen.
29. Make curtains/drapes for the master bedroom windows.
30. Need a new goal...
31. Finish the entertainment center, living room remodel, and front room remodel.  0 of 3 completed
32. Buy a houseplant and keep it alive and healthy for at least six months, preferrably ongoing.  (This is probably necessary before attempting #20.) (And don’t laugh, this IS a reasonable goal for me.)
33. Take the family to a blueberry farm and let them go crazy over blueberries.
34. Grow my own vegetable garden.
35. Eat at The Melting Pot.
36. Get started on obtaining 501(c)(3) status for Out of the Valley Ministries, Inc. Need a new goal…
37. Take the kids to swimming lessons this summer.
38. Host at least six Girls’ Night Out’s at my home during the course of this project.  0 of 6 completed
39. Buy at least six more board games, adult or family (not children’s), during the course of this project.  The kind appropriate for dinner parties and having friends over.  0 of 6 completed.
40. Relearn and re-memorize a piece of music for piano from my college days.
41. Redo my front flowerbeds with actual pretty and colorful flowers. 0 of 3 completed.
42. Likewise, place two nice planters with pretty and colorful flowers, seasonally, on either side of my front door.
43. Mail a care package to a college student.
44. For one year, personally handmake gifts or purchase gifts handmade by other moms for all the birthday, Christmas and shower gifts of adult friends.  (1 of 12 months completed)
45. Watch The Music Man and My Fair Lady.  (No, I’ve never seen them.)
46. Read four C.S. Lewis books I have not yet read.  0 of 4 completed
47. I and my kids make handmade greeting cards for all occassions (except Christmas) for one year. 1 of 12 months completed.
48. Read a Shakespeare play that I did not read in school and watch a corresponding remake on film, even if its an adaptation, then blog about it.  Here is my blog post about it.
49. Express to a manager in person or via a handwritten note of the exceptional service of a particular employee(s) at least six times during this project. 1 of 6 completed
50. Go visit a faraway friend just because.
51. For one day at least once a month for twelve months, do not touch my computer.  (Oh, the horror…)  o of 12 completed.
52. Do this service advent calendar for one of the Christmases during the course of this project.
53. Attend a concert.
54. Attend a Deeper Still or another Living Proof Live event.
55. Memorize two scriptures a month for the next year.  2 of 24 completed
56. Attend a musical.
57. Send a handwritten encouragement note (one each) to pastors/ministers/staff at our church during the course of this project.  1 of 10+ completed.
58. Sign up for a walk for a cause close to my heart.
59. Begin piano lessons with my 4 year old with a preschool piano method series.
60. Learn how to french braid.
61. Go hiking in the mountains.
62. Start recycling on a regular basis.  (I know, I know…)
63. Either stay in a cabin in the Smokies or go home to Kentucky, but somehow find a way for my children to play and sled in the snow!
64. Watch the movie Pride and Prejudice.
65. Become more knowledgeable about wine and food pairings.
66. In order to do #61 and #58, I need a regular exercise program in place.
67. Do some kind of thankfulness/praise project for one year…listing them out on a daily basis.
68. Have a family movie night and slumber party on our living room floor.
69. Do an art or craft project with my kids once a week for the next year.  2 of 52 completed.
70. Learn how to make good cheesecake.
71. Learn Spanish (or rather, re-learn what I learned in high school) along with my husband, and teach our kids some in the process.
72. Pay for the food of someone in line behind us in a drive-thru.
73. Buy a new dress and go out on a dress-up date with my hubby.
74. Learn John 3:16 in Spanish.
75. Take an online class.
76. Research the possibilities for training a dog to be one of those dogs that visits people and kids in the hospital – a therapy dog.  (Although, the hubster would say that might be too much for me, I’ve always thought that was such a neat ministry.)
77. Read books that I own that I have not read yet.  1 of ?? completed
78. Plan to go on at least one date night a month for the next two years.  (5 of 24 completed)
79. Write out my and hubby’s love story – how we met, dating, etc.  Much older versions of our kids and grandkids may be interested.  And I may need to be reminded in my old, old age.
80. Try new combinations of eye shadow and blush and actually wear them in public.  (You have no idea how much this prospect terrifies me.  I tend to stick to old favorites.  It really does need to be a goal, don’t laugh as much as you want to.  Ok, go ahead, laugh.)
81. Go on a boat ride through a swamp.  A real, classic, big-trees, still-water, snakes-and-alligators swamp.  (I know, totally random, but it fascinates me for some reason.)
82. Volunteer with hubby at a Habitat for Humanity project.  (Don’t you love how he is being enlisted throughout this 101 in 1001  project and does not even know it yet?)
83. Plan a surprise party for someone.  (No, I do not know who yet so don’t get your hopes up.  Just sounds fun.  Do you think God had surprise parties in mind when He gave us the Thou-Shalt-Not-Lie commandment?)
84. Have friends over for dinner or lunch or dessert or something at least nine times during the course of this project.  1 of 9 completed.  (Why nine?  I don’t know, random number.  I’m getting list-delirious at this point.)
85. Write a “Letter to the Editor” to a magazine or a newspaper or some online publication expressing my respectful likes or disagreements with an article or feature.
86. Replace the flourescent light fixture in my kitchen with something not flourescent.  Anything not flourescent.  Flourescent lights are evil.  I hate them in my kitchen.  (Yes, I feel strongly about this.)
87. Expand my musical horizons by acquainting myself with the music of at least one or two new artists a month for a year.  Any style.  0 of 12 months completed.
88. Attend a play.
89. Celebrate the half-birthdays of each of my children so they can experience a summertime birthday party.  At a waterpark.  Or something like that.  0 of 2 completed
90. Renew our passports and get passports for the kids.
91. So we can go visit another country whether it be via a cruise or other type of planned vacation.
92. Give some hot coffee to the trash collectors on a cold morning when they are on our street.
93. Participate in a blog giveaway carnival.
94. Start my own bloggy carnival/meme.  (I know…a girl can dream, but it’s worth trying, isn’t it?)
95. Participate on a regular basis in at least three blog carnivals.  3 of 3 completed
96. Watch one Academy Award Best Picture movie a month for twenty-four months.  2 of 24 completed. (Feb – Out of Africa, 1986; March – West Side Story, 1962; April – Amadeus, 1985)
97. Watch the entire Godfather series.  (Nope, never seen those either.)
98. Finish a cross-stitch project that I started years ago. (Sad…)
99. Give a plate of homemade cookies or brownies to a crew of construction workers.  (They work hard!)
100. Attempt to make homemade ice cream.  (Of course it came to mind when I mentioned brownies…)
101. Send flowers or a card to someone in the hospital or rehab whom I do not know and who really needs some encouragement.

Wowzers!  I reached the end!  You have no idea how hard that was.

I reserve the right to edit this list at any time.  Right now, I am going back to the top to check off #11.  I have to start off feeling like I’m accomplishing something, right?

Here’s my deadline:  Friday, November 4, 2011

Cool:  11/4/11

Going For 101 in 1001