Adventures in Cooking

This week has been an interesting cooking week.
Monday I made Steak and Pasta for dinner, the noodles had a weird texture to them, and I attempted making Pesto sauce. Karl and I each ate a few bites of the noodles before deciding I probably shouldn't make it again. The steak was one of the toughest pieces of meat I've ever eaten. I think I chewed my first piece for 2 minutes before giving up.
So I took Kaleb on a drive with me and got hamburgers from Rocky Mountain.

Tuesday I made a roast in the crockpot. It was ok, but not as tender as I was hoping. Next time I'll put in it a little earlier.

Last night was Enrichment. I had signed up to bring soup. So I made Chicken Noodle soup. My goal was to have it be like Brick Oven's. That didn't happen, but it was pretty good. I even used my Kitchenaid slicer to slice the celery and carrots. The carrots worked fine, the celery, not so much. It was really nice as I was going through the line to hear people say: ohhh that one looks really good and see that they were talking about mine. Karl agreed that it was good and told me to remember how to make it for next time.

Yesterday I finally bought butter so I can make cookies!!!

Mother's Day

This was a pretty good Mother's Day. We did the usual visit everyone that we do on holidays. Yesterday I went shopping with Karl's Mom, while Karl and his brother made the weeds in the backyard shorter and then sprayed them with weed killer. Hopefully we'll get it tilled and some sod in before too much longer.
After the work was done we had a barbecue and just enjoyed being together.
Today after church we went to have lunch with my Mom and Dad, and Emily and girls. Then we went to visit Karl's Step-mom and Grandma.
It made for a long day, but we enjoyed it anyway. And when we got home Karl gave me my Mother's Day gift:

Karl has wanted to get me one for awhile, but we never had enough room for it. Now I finally have room for it, so I got one!! I'm really excited, if I wasn't so tired I'd use it tonight. The question is: Is this just a ploy to get more cookies?

Grades are in

Well, the semester has been over a couple weeks and grades are in. I have an A in my Africa class (whoohoooo!!!) and an A- in my Research Methods class. That gives me a GPA of 3.85 for the term and an overall GPA of 3.74.
We learned about getting rid of negative thoughts at Weight Watchers today so instead of focusing on that stupid little - sign I'll focus on the A's and tell myself that a 3.85 is really good and most people would be thrilled with it.
Hopefully I can keep my grades in that same range for the next year and a half so I can graduate with honors. I think as long as I can call my free tutor (Thanks Drew) whenever I need help I'll be able to do it. :)

Funny Terminology

Here's a copy of an email I got. I thought it was funny. But of couse I would NEVER use these phrases...

(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the
game before helping around the house.

(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

(5) Loud Sigh: This is not actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer
back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

(6) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to add in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're
welcome'. that will bring on a 'whatever').

(8) Whatever: Is a woman's way of saying DANG YOU!

(9) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.

Energy

Kaleb wants me to say that Von is silly.
I am finally getting my energy back! I've been slowly feeling better and am slowly getting things done. Karl and I had some really grand plans for our yard, but after pricing them all out we decided not to do them all right now. Instead we're doing the things that really need to get done, and eventually we'll get around to the other stuff.
The first thing to tackle was storage. We were planning on getting a Tuff Shed, but in order to do that we needed to level out a spot big enough, pour concrete and then put up the shed. So instead we decided to buy a cheaper shed that we could put on the level ground next to the carport and that doesn't need concrete underneath. Because of this decision we won't be able to store boxes in the shed, it will only be for garden tools. So I needed shelves to put some of the stuff I was going to put in the shed.
Yesterday Dad and I put up some shelves in my laundry room. That means that I watched him and told him that they were level. There's just not much the second person can do when you only have one drill. I've put some stuff on them already and I'm excited about them.
We also bought the shed, which is waiting in the carport for me to put it together. Hopefully I can have that done by the time Karl gets home today so we can go pick up the lawn mower we bought a week+ ago.
While I was tired last night, I wasn't as exhausted as I have been in the past few weeks. Hopefully this energy sticks around for awhile, I like getting stuff done.

Dr Appointment #1

Yesterday I went to see the doctor for the first time this pregnancy. They did the typical "yearly" tests, answered questions, and of couse, tried to hear the heartbeat. Luckily my uterus is tipped forward, so he was able to find the heartbeat even though I'm only at 10 weeks. It is so awesome to hear that little tiny heart beating. I asked the doctor how big the baby was and he misunderstood and said that the heart is about the size of a grain of rice. That is soooo tiny!!! I found out that the baby is about .9 inches long and that the heart is only 2 chambers now, but it was beating. I think it is incredible that inside my body is a little tiny baby that will grow to be a person. WOW!
As the doctor left the room he told me to go get my blood drawn and then set up my next appointment. I was feeling so good that I forgot about the blood part until I was about 5 minutes away, so I had to drive back and do it. I guess that's the pregnant brain working for me...

Visiting Teaching

I had something wonderful happen yesterday. My Visiting Teacher came over. To some this may not seem like a big deal, but I really like knowing I have a VT who actually cares enough to come every month. I was trying to figure out why it's so important to me, and I realized it was because of Sherri. About a year after Karl and I were married we moved to a new ward. I was having pregnancy problems and had been put on bedrest. I also had gestational diabetes. Karl was home a lot, but I was still bored, and I was feeling very lonely.
About 3 weeks after we moved in I got a call from my VT. She asked if she could come over and meet me. I said sure and she said she would come over later that afternoon. A few minutes later our Home Teacher called and asked if he could come over and meet us. I thought it was funny that we hadn't heard from either until that day and then suddenly they both called. Later I found out why.
My VT showed up and introduced herself, Sherri, and her husband Josh. They had been on a trip to Hawaii and had just gotten back. They had both called their HT and VT families and were planning on dropping by to see them all. As they were walking they discovered that we were on his HT list and I was on her VT list. They even brought us a box of chocolate covered macadamia nuts from Hawaii.
After some talking we realized that Sherri had gone to high school with me, and that Josh had gone to high school with Von (though Josh was older than Von). We hit it off and Sherri offered to bring us dinner some night so Karl wouldn't have to cook. I was amazed that she would be so willing to help us.
Sherri continued to be my VT until a few months later when she was reassigned to teach someone else. I remember getting home and seeing a new VT assignment on my door and being really sad, until I read it and saw that I was now companions with Sherri! She was one of the best companions to do VT with because not only were we friends, but she was proactive, so it wasn't like pulling teeth like it usually is.
When we moved from the ward I was sad to leave her, but I was grateful for the experience of having a VT that cared so much for me.
A few months after we moved I was at the hospital after Von's birth. He was in the NICU and I was having a really tough time. My parents and Emily visited me. Karl came whenever he could, and my brother Von stopped by often since he worked at the hospital. One day I was sitting in the NICU watching my son lay under the biliruben lights. I heard someone say my name and I turned around and saw Sherri. She was a nurse and was working in the NICU that day. She came up and gave me a great big hug.
For the rest of the time in the NICU she came to see me whenever she was working, and did little things for me that meant so much. She got me crushed ice, which only nurses have access to, and bought me a chocolate dipped pretzel and some lotion from the gift shop. I don't think I can really explain how wonderful it was to have someone I wasn't related to come and show me they cared.
Sherri is someone who really showed what a Visiting Teacher can do.