Chopped

A few weeks ago my sister Lisa and I participated in a "Chopped" competition at my school. Chopped is a competitive cooking show on Food Network. I watch it often, and show it occasionally in my catering class. One of my seniors who is planning on going to culinary school wanted to host a live competition in our classroom for her senior project. She organized it beautifully. She chose 3 teams, each a teacher at NVHS and a partner of their choice to compete in a 30 minute entree round using 4 secret ingredients. One team was chopped after that round, and the remaining 2 teams competed in a 30 minute dessert round with another 4 secret ingredients. The winners of the dessert round were crowned the "Chopped Champions".

Preparation: A few days prior to the competition, Charity (my student), sent us each a letter disclosing the secret ingredients and listing all available items that would be at our disposal in the stocked pantry. In the meantime, she purchased all the ingredients (and was able to use a few staples from my pantry) and literally transformed my classroom into a Chopped studio. We even had a little audience to add to the pressure and intensity! She put together baskets for each of the teams, we spent hours in the kitchens getting them organized for the big event,  and her ENTIRE family (mom, dad, sisters) showered her with support and helped us set up tables, took pictures, made refreshments, and cleaned up. Finally, once the judges showed up it was time to get cooking!

The Competition: I chose Lisa to compete with me because I knew she would bring so much to the table...and she certainly did! Our entree ingredients were sole (a small white fish), french bread, sweet potatoes, and pomegranate juice. We served a baked, parmesan breaded sole, roasted sweet potatoes with a balsamic pomegranate glaze, and mixed greens with a similar balsamic pomegranate dressing topped with french bread croutons. It was superb, and we made it to the dessert round! For dessert, the secret ingredients were fresh mango, coconut milk, blue corn tortilla chips, and cayenne pepper. We put together a mango bread pudding and cooked it in individual ramekins for the judges. The sauce over the bread pudding was so incredibly delicious, and to top it off we incorporated the tortilla chips by grounding them up and adding butter, cinnamon, and sugar for a streusel topping. A dollop of real whipped cream, and it really was SO delicious. We ended up winning the competition! The bread pudding was truly sublime, and I feel like all of our food was full of flavor, technique, and of course love! It was nerve racking, stressful, and tough, yet so much fun! Both Lisa and I are chomping at the bit to do something like it again :-)

Family News

Our 1st prenatal ultrasound today confirmed a baby and a beating heart! That's right, the Day family is going to become a family of 5 soon! We found out in Maui, and now I'm 9 weeks along and due September 7. We are very excited, and a little nervous too. God's timing is amazing though, and we are just so hopeful and prayerful for a healthy baby come the end of summer. I've been miserably sick since about 5 weeks along, so the last month has been quite difficult. It's all I can do to get through the work day and then tackle the routine at home. Thanks to Rob, my routine has consisted of scrounging whatever I can stomach for dinner, then laying down on the couch! We'll both be better off when I'm through the first trimester! We just told the kids today too. We wanted to see that heartbeat before we told them the news. They both seem really excited, and I'm just glad Jack finally understands why Mom "keeps getting sick." He's definitely noticed, and the other day we saw a Lysol commercial and he said, "Mom, we need to spray down our house with Lysol so you stop getting sick." Ha!

Snow Days

How nice to have such an unexpected break at home with these kids. We sure didn't do much, but it's been amazing! I love this picture of the two of them. It shows what great friends they've been lately.

Maui

Maui. It's now nothing more than just a distant memory. Sad. How quickly routine and cold winter weather can snap us back into reality.

We arrived to our condo the first evening just in time for sunset.

Jack became a boogie boarding pro very quickly. I was too afraid to take his water wings off though...it is the ocean after all.

These sand toys were already in our condo when we got there, and they provided hours of entertainment.

Sand mer-man Jack. He wanted to be buried as a mer-man so bad...don't ask me why...

One of our pool days at the house my Dad, Beth, and Adam stayed at. Jack loves the pool. Jovie just likes to watch.

Jovie's best friend, Hula girl Sally.

Jovie's turn to be a mermaid.

Jovie turned 3 on the 3rd!

The princess in her throne. Rob created some cool things for the kids in the sand.

After the huge, steep, trek down to the blow hole, we thought we'd take a sign by the warning post saying we made it!

The next picture shows just exactly what happens. It's quite dangerous really...a gaping hole in the rock with violent waves pushing the water through like a "blowhole"...hence the name.

Woosh! The picture does NO justice. It's so powerful and breathtaking. The ground rumbles. And a rainbow is formed almost every time. I was happy to catch it on camera though because it lasts only a second.

Ken...thinking he could handle those waves out there. Yeah right Dad! They'd eat you up. These waves were massive.

Man-made or natural? We weren't sure, but it wasn't there 6 years ago, so I'm guessing man-made.

By this time my camera lens was covered with sea-spray, which is why this picture is so blurry, but from left to right, Ken, Adam, Almira, Beth, Jack, Rob, Jovie, Joelle

Our last night :( Everyone was pretty sad, despite the smiles.

What an amazing trip. One I will remember for a lifetime. We had such a nice time as a family on this trip. We did very little, which was exactly what I had in mind for us. Beach, pool, beach, pool, a scenic drive or two, and lots of yummy meals in and out. Pineapple pancakes at the most wonderful outdoor breakfast cafe overlooking whales and turtles swimming in the ocean...that's one of my favorite memories. The kids seemed to have so much fun. They were so good, and played so well together! They were troopers on the plane...even through horrible turbulence on the way home which kept us in our seats with our seat belts on the whole time. I know it will be some time before we can get back there again, but mark my words...it won't be too long.

Christmas Day

Rob's family came to our house this Christmas, which I loved because it meant the kids got to just play and enjoy their new toys at home. We had our traditional morning of presents from Rob and I to the kids and stockings from Santa. It was perfect. The kids loved their surprises and were so grateful for new things to play with and put together. We had a nice dinner. I fixed up some cornish game hens, apple-cranberry-sausage stuffing, and sauteed green beans with bacon...wish I could have some more of it right now ;)

Puzzling with Grammy Day and Aunt Sara!

Archeologist Jack...looking for dinosaur bones. If you want a toy that will provide hours of entertainment (and your child will sit that long) you've got to try this!

Christmas Eve

This year our Christmas break took on a totally new meaning. With Rob's last day at Semiahmoo, and my last day of school before break both being the 16th of December, we had lots of time to spend together during the holidays. It was so nice to have his help for the preparation of Christmas...wrapping, last minute shopping, preparing food, packing up for parties.

Christmas Eve is always spent with my side of the family. This year marked the 2nd Christmas we spent without my mom. She is greatly missed during our Christmas celebrations, but at the same time she is greatly missed every day. I constantly need to remind myself of where she is and what she got to celebrate this Christmas. What a glorious sight Christmas in Heaven must be!

I LOVE this picture! How sweet these two are together (most of the time) and this picture really shows it.

Later that night we set out cookies and milk for Santa...always a big to-do at our house.

Jovie couldn't take her eyes off the cookies for 5 seconds to take a picture!

All Dressed Up

And somewhere to go! That hardly ever happens these days. Last week we got to go to the Larson Gross Christmas party. It was so nicely done. We have never experienced anything like that before. A company that actually cares about their employees and wants to celebrate the year...and Rob hasn't even started yet! My Dad so graciously watched the kids, and Rob and I had a great time mingling with people and just being out together.

I need to stop taking pictures with my iphone! They're so blurry, but it's just so easy...

Marathon Club, Rob's New Job

Last night Jack ran the last 1.2 miles of his "marathon". It's a program the elementary school PE teachers in Lynden put together to encourage kids to choose exercise for life. It started in the end of September, and works like this...students can choose to run during their lunch recess two days a week. They have a track set up around the playground at school, and 5 laps=1 mile, 5 miles=1 card, 5 cards=25 miles. Students who complete the 25 miles are invited to the Lynden High School track to run under the lights and receive a medal for completing a whole marathon. When Jack first started, I was concerned he wasn't going to make it to the "final mile" at the high school. He started pretty weak...running only 4 laps at first. We gently reminded him that if he wanted to make it to the high school, he'd have to run at least 5 laps each time. Boy did he show us what he was made of! His average was 6 laps a time, but twice he did 7, and once he even did 9 laps (almost 2 miles). We thought that was pretty impressive for our laid back 6 year old. Fitness-type activities have never really been Jack's strong point, but in the last few months, we've really made this more of a family goal, and he's turned into quite the active boy. He's leaned out a bit, and it seems like on the days he runs, he's happier, which I can certainly relate to. We're very proud parents.

As for the latter part of this title, yes, starting in January after our Maui trip, Rob will have a new job! He was offered a job at LarsonGross, a local accounting firm. He was hired on as a staff accountant, and has said goodbye to Semiahmoo! They part ways on December 16! We are so excited, and feel so blessed for this opportunity. The hard work Rob has put forth to finish his accounting degree has paid off with this job offer. Rob is very excited...in fact he's been giddy with excitement since he got the news.

Spokane, Wenatchee, Friends

I could post these all separate, but come on, let's be honest. That would take me over a month!

To continue on with my "October Trips" here is Part II...

A fun-filled family trip to Spokane. Rob had a Seminar there, so we all packed up one Friday afternoon and headed out. We got to the Davenport hotel at 1:00am Saturday morning, but it was well worth it! The kids and I just laid around the hotel room and swam while Rob had his seminar at the WSU Spokane extension. Then later when he got done we hit up River Park Square for some awesome shopping and PF Chang's for a yummy dinner. The only pictures I got the whole weekend...the kids outside of PF Chang's enamored with the huge horse statue. I love downtown Spokane. So laid back, people are friendly...nothing like Seattle! Rob and I miss it from our college years. We'll definitely be going back to the Davenport again soon.

On the way home from Spokane, Rob and the kids dropped me off in Wenatchee for my annual Washington Association of Family and Consumer Science Educators conference. In other words, I get to take two days off of work, stay in a hotel, and catch up with all my awesome teacher friends. It's always a great time. No pictures.

I got home from my conference Tuesday evening, and began preparations for our friends Jason, Sydney, and their baby Tate to come visit. To say we had the most wonderful time with our dear friends would be an understatement. Words cannot describe how happy my heart and soul is after a weekend visit with them. We packed in all sorts of fun and tradition. Sushi, games, a Halloween horror film, and lots of great conversation and playing with the kids.

What a month! It was so nice to reward ourselves for our hard work. Even though October seemed crazy at times between work, school, flag football, weekend trips, friends, pumpkins, halloween...and the list goes on...it was such a fun month for us!

October Trips Part 1

October has been such a fun-filled month! With Rob's job finally slowing down enough for him to take some weekends off, we've taken full advantage of it. Towards the beginning of the month we took our long awaited trip to the Great Wolf Lodge. We had rescheduled this trip twice previously...so it was much anticipated. The kids had a great time! We left early one Saturday morning, and made a stop at Cabelas on the way down. I had no idea that would be an attraction in itself! The kids loved all the animals and ducking into all the tents that are set up all over, which apparently you're not supposed to enter. What's the point of that? Once Cabelas wore off, we headed on down to the Great Wolf! We took advantage of their early park check-in. In other words, you can't check into your room yet, but you can use the water park. When our room was ready, so were we! After the long drive down and then playing in the water, we were wiped! The kids were so excited to check out their "wolf den" bunk-beds. Rob and I were glad to be able to sit down and open a bottle of wine. The most priceless moment...Jovie fell asleep at the dinner table in the restaurant. She all but face-planted into her macaroni and cheese. Fortunately Rob intervened seconds before that would have happened. The second day we took full advantage of the park again, and then sadly had to turn around and come back home. What a short, but fun filled weekend!

They've been howlin' like a couple crazy wolves ever since this trip!

What a set-up! After a long day, they were so happy to have their own special space in our room! Every family hotel room needs a "wolf-den"! We put on Smurfs for the kids, and Rob and I got to watch The Hangover 2!

Welcome Fall...Translation Busy-ness

I love fall so much and hope to capture some great pictures soon, but for now, this is all I have. Jovie is sporting our typical Sunday attire...outfitted in Cardinals gear from head to toe...literally. Thanks Aunt Syd for the adorable Cardinals hair clip. It goes great with the jersey and looks so cute. We're just hoping it brings the team some good luck soon. It's been a pretty rough start with only 1 win and 3 straight losses...close losses, but losses nonetheless. 

Our weeks continue to be busy, and the weekends just aren't long enough! Jack is playing flag football and loving it, and between my new job and getting used to our new routine, I feel like the day is over before I even have a chance to get on top of anything. My new job has been very challenging. The schedule, the amount of preps I have (different classes), and feeling like I don't want to disappoint anyone leaves me absolutely exhausted at day's end. However, I'm able to get Jack from school most days and then after we get Jovie, we're home by 3:30 at the latest. This is a major improvement from my days at MV, and while it doesn't feel like anything has really calmed down (in fact my job feels busier) at least I don't waste 2 hours of my life in the car every day, and I have an extra hour of sleep every night.

1st Grader

This past week was a huge week for all of us. First and foremost, Jack started 1st grade! He was very excited and took to the new routine like a champ. When I picked him up after the first day he said it was the "Best day ever!" On the second day when I asked him he said "It was great!" On the third day he said, "Why do you keep asking me that? Every day I go to school is going to be a great day!" We'll see how long that lasts...hopefully until the end of the year!

It was a big week for me too. Even though I've been working for weeks in my new classroom at NVHS, my first day with students was Wednesday. I was so nervous and anxious. I hardly slept...thinking about every detail and everything I wanted to say. Wednesday was a blur, Thursday was a little more memorable, and finally Friday I felt like I accomplished something. My students are great, and I'm so excited to be a part of the Nooksack community. The staff is so wonderful and supportive.

Jovie had to begin a new routine too. Prior to me getting the job at Nooksack, we had no idea what we were going to do about childcare for her. Our wonderful nanny from last year took a different job (one that she could have year-round), so we were back to square one. Little did I know that I wouldn't have to do any looking or figuring at all. God's hand were at work orchestrating a schedule that I couldn't have dreamed up. My friend Brooke (who also works at NVHS) was looking for someone to do a nanny share with, so there you have it. Problem solved. I was a little nervous about how Jovie would handle going somewhere she had never been, playing with kids she had never played with, but so far so good.

September and October will continue to really busy and fun-filled for us, and since fall is tied with spring as my favorite time of year, I'm so excited for lots of family fun and excitement! Stay tuned :-)