Happy Birthday Grandmother!

Another free digital greeting card by Smilebox

All Hallows Eve!

Mr. R and I had a pretty eventful pre-Halloween so we were all about taking it easy today. After all I am still ecstatic he is back in town!

We spent today celebrating my Grandmother's 84th birthday...

And watching massive episodes of Scooby Doo (a Republican Halloween tradition!)

And eating the chocolate we supposedly bought for the trick or treaters....

And in case you are wondering how the pups spent Halloween... the evidence is below :)

Our Halloween Murder Mystery Rocked!

We mourned the death of Royal T.

We found out Indy Jonas was bankrupt.

And Nicole Wilton is a two timing girl friend...

Toyoka the fashion model made a dress out of serrated knives.

Fiona Finestein turns in her friends to the IRS....

And Gracie Lou Freebush works for the CIA!

Luckily, the murder was identified and brought to justice! Mr. R and I were are so lucky to have awesome friends who dress up in crazy costumes, spend hours analyzing clues, and don't mind their pictures posted in the blogosphere.

The real photog last night was my favorite partner in crime Danielle. She is truly the Shirley to my Laverne. I will post more pics when she gets a moment to upload her collection. Hope you are having an AWESOME Halloween!

And the best Costume prize goes to THE CAPPS! A Christmas Story is a favorite movie around the Republican household and you cannot top a real life leg lamp!

THE DOG DAYS ARE OVER

Mr. R is home!

We are hosting a party tomorrow!

My Halloween costume is awesome!

Stay tuned for the amazing-ness to come :)

My last night as a single girl...

Thursday was a marathon day for me! 5:30 AM wake-up call, teaching all day, marathon parent meeting, lots of grading, a trip to the dog park, a visit with my grandparents, and finally home by 7:30.

My evening from that point was VERY EXCITING (read sarcasm)! It consisted of a very long, very non-environmentally friendly shower... pajamas and a bowl of healthy nutritious milk for dinner.

Did I mention the milk also had lots of sugar and cookie dough in it?

Dear Dad,

How's life in DC?

We are living it up here in St. Auggy. We are getting so much attention from the neighbors and G&P.

And we have taken over the couch, the poang chair, and we now have our own side of the bed.

No more being smooshed in the middle for us.

Oh... and mom keeps cleaning, organizing, and throwing stuff away...

You might want to do some inventory when you get home... just sayin'.

Love and kisses,

Simon & Soph

Somedays just call for carbs...

I grew up in a Native American household. And in my house carbs came in the form of vegetables, more vegetables, and bread. My mom made her fair share of pasta, but it wasn't until college (when I lived in the land of Italians) that I fully understood the power of carbs.

In fact, the mother of one of my dorm mates swore women should eat MORE carbs because... carbs "help soothe the hormones".

Crampy, eat some ravioli...

Moody, have some gnocchi...

Irritated, eat a slice of pizza...

I am not sure what my "deal" is today/tonight. But when it came time to rustle up dinner. I NEEDED carbs. Ok, I didn't need the carbs in fact my thighs, bum, and belly could have used celery sticks instead of the carbs... but I wanted the starchy goodness nonetheless.

Hence, tonight's single girl dinner.

Pizza Margherita and pesto pasta.

Y-U-M!

And the final photo is for Sharon.

After I commented on your post about the new poang chairs.

I found him comfortably seated in ours!

Totally made my Tuesday...

Love is all you need.

The Republicans way back in 2005

Mr. R is currently in DC, but we are finding ways to stay connected. Whether its just a phone call, text, or quick email to say Hi.

Mr. R works in Northern Va and his commute revolves around route 66 the main highway for Arlington & Fairfax, Va. When we both lived in DC, we would leave the apartment at the same time and I would follow Mr. R onto the highway and we would stay together until he exited onto Route 7 and my drive continued for another 20 minutes. Right before he would exit, I would wave and blow a kiss. Silly I know, but it was our routine. Just a way we stayed connected during long work days and crazy grad school night course schedules.

Today Mr. R made the same commute and said he missed my little scion following him down the highway this morning. He missed the excitement of the blown kiss and my crazy waving as I passed him.

Our little routine was simple... our wave and kiss were silly at best... but the memories we made and the connection we have now, totally made my day!

And us again in 2006

Oh Dear Me!

I am in lurve...

with caramel apple bread pudding.

Mr. R left me with a batch prior to his DC departure and he made me promise I would save him a few bites. Unfortunately for him I don't think that is very likely. It's just too good!

If you would like to make some use this recipe. Martha never fails! Until you have your own, feel free to stare at the picture and imagine the amazing goodness that is apples and vanilla caramel bourbon sauce! It's even better if you top it with whipped cream and eat it while watching DVRed episodes of GLEE and Better with you.

Productivity is my middle name...

6:00 AM: Up and at'em

6:30: Morning stroll with two very sleepy pups. I think they much prefer their 11 o'clock walk with Mr. R

7:00: Attempt to leave for school, but Sophie had other plans and makes a break for the neighbor's yard. We end up playing chase for the next 20 minutes.

8:00: Arrive at school for uninterrupted grading, lesson planning, and parent emailing.

I am planned out until THANKSGIVING BREAK!

Can I get a hallelujah!

Noon: Girl's lunch filled with old stories, celebrity gossip, nonsense, and silliness.

3:30: Arrive home and pick up the pups for a trip to the dog park.

4:30: Exhausted pups and a one mile walk completed!

5:30: Laundry going, paella cooking, two clean freshly bathed pups

Four loads of laundry taking over my dining room table!

6:30: TIME TO CRASH!

12 hours of solid productivity might just kill this girl!

Single Girl Paella

I can't take credit for making this. It's a Costco prepared foods purchase, but its seriously good! This is not a meal Mr. R would go for. Too many things are mixed together... And when you mention paella his only response involves the Castanzas and a few other Seinfeld references.

Single Girl Sunday...

I am husband-less for the week as he stays in DC to finish up a few work projects and attend the BIG yearly goal setting meeting. I am excited to have a week on my own eating what I want, taking over the ENTIRE bed as I sleep, and completely hogging the bathroom sink and all the clean towels.

But at the same time I miss him. Mr. R keeps me balanced. He makes me laugh. And he makes the best hot apple cider you have ever had. I also have no one to finish my leftovers or fold the laundry :(

Single Girl Greek Salad

Romaine Lettuce with Kalamata olives, tomatoes, red onion & Ken's light Caesar dressing.

I stocked up on single girl food so cooking will be at a minimum this week... but I do promise more posts than last week plus a few teacher style files. I have been experimenting with my closet and I have a few work pieces that I think are blog worthy.

Single Girl Uncle Ben's Rice doctored with Sargento Shredded Italian Cheese blend.

Hope you are enjoying your last few hours of weekend freedom!

It has been one month...

...since I did my hair

...put on make-up

...wore heels

...spent the evening in a fancy dress

As a teacher you can get away with no make-up and braid/bun on a daily basis.

The kids are kind and tell me I am pretty anyway.

But, I wanted to see if I could still pull it off.

And we can.

Here's to a night out with Mr. R.

Wordless Wednesday (Almost)

I AM...

Dreaming of...

the mini vacation we will take in November.

Did you know the Anthro flagship store is in Philly?

Thinking of...

Training for a 10K. Short fast distances may be my new LOVE!

Planning for...

The murder mystery party we are hosting in two weeks! Clue cards are taking over my living room!

Cooking up...

Legal Seafoods clam chowder from COSTCO. I may be just heating it up and serving it with salad. But at least it's not takeout.

Totally Made my Tuesday...

Sometimes it's the little things that make your day.

...Today its as simple as surviving the students.

...Keeping my lunch down.

...And getting an ICEE at Target.

It was a red ICEE though... and I am finally done grading papers... and I am currently watching MadMen... in my pajamas

Thank you Jesus today is over!

The Best Thing I Ever Ate...

Memory edition...

Jenna of Eat, Live, Run posted one of her most memorable meals. And it got me thinking about those memories that I cherish... that are dotted with or centered around food.

My favorite memory or the one I am focusing on right now is set in Mykonos, Greece. On a sandy Mediterranean beach complete with cabanas and striped yellow and white chairs.

Mr. R and I were 5 day old NEWLYWEDS.

We were starving and feeling adventurous... we also may have been a little tipsy on ouzo. We walked to a sandwich shack for a gyro. Giant roasted cuts of lamb and beef roasting in pits, homemade pitas cooked over coals, fresh tzatziki...The mixture of salt, meat, and fresh tomatoes and cucumber was amazing. We could have stayed belly up to that food stand all afternoon.

That was our first Greek gyro followed by several others in Santorini, Kusadasi, Rhodes and Athens. Greece has amazing food... moussaka, souvalaki, and dolmas, but the gyro will always be my ultimate favorite. And my most favorite vacation food.

The last bite!

Guess who's coming to dinner...

Elva & Johnny that is!

Tonight we hosted my grandparents for a casual Monday night dinner. It as great to see them and catch up. We live less than 1/2 a mile apart, but the weeks don't always allow enough time for a proper visit.

I wanted to make an easy people pleasing dinner so I opted for pasta salad (minus the egg) and pizza pockets (subbing pepperoni for the sausage). It's a great meal that can be served at room temperature and doesn't contain anything spicy or out of the ordinary.

We ate, we talked, we laughed... we dissected all of the outcomes of election 2010. We have bets going that the Republicans will pick up 50-55 seats in the house and 8 in the senate. The Morris clan also feels like Harry Reid will bite the dust and this will be the last we see of Mrs. Pelosi and that 21 million dollar plane.

I don't know where you stand politically, but you should give this dinner a try... it's republican, democrat, and independent friendly. And that's a promise that you can actually believe in. YES WE CAN!

**The photos of my grandparents are from Christmas and the food photos are from the amazing-ness of Eat Live Run & Giada. Happy Eating!

Happy days are here again!

The skies above are clear again

Let us sing a song of cheer again

Happy days are here again

Altogether shout it now!

There's no one who can doubt it now

So let's tell the world about it now

Happy days are here again

Your cares and troubles are gone;

There'll be no more from now on

Happy days are here again

The skies above are clear again

Let us sing a song of cheer again

Happy days are here again!