Pearls' Pantry Challenge!!!

On Sunday night, Chops made Zataran's Dirty Rice for dinner. I didn't eat any because I decided to drink my dinner at happy hour instead...a choice I clearly regretted at work on Monday morning! Since the Dirty Rice mix makes a fairly large portion, I figured that we would have leftovers for dinner on Monday night. That was my plan!

As I'm pulling out the tupperware last night to start the reheating process....Chopsticks proceeds to tell me that he accidentally left it out on the counter all night long with the words..."Do you think it's still okay?". Well....no...I don't think ground beef and cheesy rice is okay after being at room temperature for over 12 hours.

Since we don't really have much food left after the weekend, I figured I would have to go pick something up...which James HATES to do on a weekday. He chooses to gourd himself at lunch everyday with his coworkers and prefers a home cooked meal at night. He also doesn't like to spend $6.95 on a bowl of pad tai noodles from Fire Bowl because it might just break the bank.

Since I wasn't okay with eating a plain ham sandwich and 4 kiwi's for dinner, I started getting annoyed. Well...apparently Chopsticks knows all the tricks in the book because he immediately switched the TV channel to Food Network (my fav!) and announced Pearls' Pantry Challenge!!!! I had 30 minutes to use whatever ingredients we had in the pantry to make something for dinner!

Everyone knows I love a good challenge. Well.....I got HYPED and ran straight into the kitchen to get to work.....while James immediately switched the channel back to Monday Night NFL Countdown...and patted himself on the back for his little accomplishment. I'm in the kitchen making a home cooked meal..and he will not have to spend a penny.

Over the next 30 minutes, he randomly yelled out my remaining time left....as I scurried around throwing canned goods into various pots...and chopping up what was left of our remaining vegetables. It helped that my neighbor randomly brought over some fresh ceviche and shrimp for us to try....more ingredients for me to use!!!! Is it sad that I actually thought about not using the ceviche because it would be against the "challenge" rules?

Well, when all was said and done...I was over my time limit, but had a fulfilling free meal!! MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!! I'm ready for the big leagues!!!

Vegetarian Taco Salad
with Black Beans & Spanish Rice

NOTE: Rice was made with rotel instead of diced tomato's....I had to improvise! I was a true competitor and thought outside the box.

I tried to take a picture of my masterpiece, but Chops dove in too fast. I guess his double patty cheeseburger and fries at lunch, and the mid-afternoon beef jerky snack wasn't enough to tie him over til dinner.

Bobby Flav - Email chopsticksandpearls@gmail.com if you are interested in having me on your show. Clearly, I am experienced enough for your competition.

Happy Anniversary, Chops!

Three years ago today, James and I tied the knot! In honor of our celebration, I dedicated the cake I made last night in my "Cake Decorating 101" class to our anniversary.

Complete with our wedding colors and everything!

NOTE: Last night's class was more about the proper way to ice a cake and less about the actual "decorating". Please note how evenly its iced. :) We added the decoration the last 2.5 minutes of class.

For a recap of our experience in Wilton's Cake Decoarting Class 101 at Micheals, go to "Life is Glam & Fab". She explained the evening fairly accurately. :)

Our original wedding cake:

This was us eating the top of our wedding cake 2 years ago~ sorry for the blurry pictures! Once we took all the disgusting flowers off the top, it was actually quite good!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, BABE!!!
To many more years of wedding bliss! :) haha.
Did I really just say that?

Too harsh?

Dear Neighbor –

I just wanted to send you a quick note about your dog. I know I’m not telling you something you don’t already know, but your dog barks constantly when it’s outside. It’s a very loud bark too! Over the past two months, we feel like the noise has gotten worse….especially in the early mornings. It’s become the topic of conversation among the neighbors.

Over the past few weeks, your dog wakes us up 45 minutes before our alarm actually goes off. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is….especially on the weekends, our only days to sleep in a bit later. I just wanted to bring this to your attention. I realize our schedules are quite different. I understand that you need to let your dog out before you head off to work. I am just asking that you bring your dog inside when he starts barking constantly or train him bark less. Our last two house guests also made comments about the noise and encouraged me to write this note.

The next sentence in purely for dramatic affect....it is NOT true. Simma down.

We will actually be expecting our first child in a few months and I can already envision this being a bigger problem. Please take into consideration your surrounding neighbors. I LOVE dogs and I completely understand the trials and tribulations of being a dog owner. Hopefully, this will not be a problem for much longer. I hope you understand.

Thanks!


My plan is to put this note in their mailbox this afternoon. As long as it looks like they are NOT home. I'll be quick. Its going to be anonymous, but I'm not going to put "From, Anonymous"...because I don't want to sound creepy. I hope it gets the point accross because it's ridiculous and makes me and Chopsticks grumpy EVERY morning.

We've thought about calling the cops for a noise violation, but you have to reach a certain decimal for it to qualify...and I don't think they sell noise readers in the dollar bins at Target, so I'm out of luck. And besides....I'm about to call them to report a broken down truck on our street. I don't want to be "that girl" who always calls the police...I would hate for them to look up my parking ticket record...or we might have a bigger problem on our hands.

Hopefully, this letter is the perfect solution!

My only questions:

1. Does the last part of the letter ...."Hopefully, this will not be a problem for much longer".....sound like I might DO something if it does? Because I don't want it to sound threatening in any way. I would NEVER do something like that.

Update: I've been told by a few people that this sentance sound a bit threatening. So...how about: "I hope this situation will be remedied soon."

2. Is it possible to train your dog not to bark or should I take that line out?

Update: Apparently, traning your dog not to bark is possible. Some suggested ideas include: cold water, shock collar, and putting them in a kennel.

Your suggestions are encouraged.

I'm a little tired this morning, folks!

Okay - I would like to re-hash a little "experience" from last night.

12:14AM The Lee's are sound asleep in their cozy bed.

12:15AM Carbon Monoxide Detector goes off. The detector is in our room. It. is. LOUD.

12:15:01AM We both jump up out of deep sleep.

James' reaction: gets out of bed, rips the detector right out of the wall, pulls out the battery, puts the disassembled contraption on the book shelf.....and gets right back into bed and goes to sleep.

Allison's reaction: Start smelling for gas, blow my nose so I can smell better, run into the kitchen to check the stove and oven (both are off)....come back to our bedroom to find James sound asleep.

I mean....WHAT? How is he not worried that there could be gas in our house? Mr. OCD himself isn't worried that we could die in our sleep?

Well....I woke him up so we could analyze the situation. He somehow convinced me that it was just because the battery was low, and that I should calm down and go back to bed.

After laying in bed for about 10 minutes, I had convinced myself that I was breathing differently, and that it had to have been from the gas in our house. SO....I woke him up AGAIN and made him research our smoke detector online. He patiently read through the entire users manual online, while I paced back and forth....debating on whether I should call the fire department and have them come check out the situation. (Several of us remember the time we smelled gas in the pi phi house!)

After ~20 minutes of reading the "fine print" in the manual, we decided to plug it back in the wall and see if it went off again or registered any alarming levels. Well....of course...it didn't. No signs of gas - We were fine.

12:45 AM The Lee's are soundly back asleep, and my breathing feels normal again.

Another reason why I have a wonderful husband! :)

On Wednesday night, I saw "He's Just Not That Into You" and I swear that the scenario last night could have been straight from the movie!!! haha.

Someone got flowers at work!

I have the best husband in the world! Love you, babe!

We have a wedding on Saturday, so James and I will be celebrating Valentine's Day tomorrow night. Instead of going out to dinner, we are going to cook at home and enjoy our new house and new floors. I am going to plan our gourmet meal today and go grocery shopping after work.

Anyone have any good suggestions? I really want a valentine's day themed dessert!

I got THE BOOT.

Working downtown can be nice…fun restaurants at lunch, a million happy hour places after work, and the pure excitement and energy that comes from tourists visiting the capitol every day. However sometimes it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. There are several disadvantages that come along with working in the Capitol complex. …the PARKING.

Our parking garage is THREE blocks away from our building. UPHILL. No lie. I have worn out several pairs of expensive heals, sweat through my suits in the summer walking to the office….not to mention the trials and tribulations when it rains or hails. You get my point. It’s not ideal. The only benefit is that I get the satisfaction that I’ve burned of a few more calories a day than planned.

Every now and then, I have to load my car with materials for an event I’m planning (gift baskets, signage, binders…you name it). When this happens, I park my car in a “loading zone” in front of the building. I REFUSE to take several trips to load my car THREE BLOCKS away. No ma’am. That was NOT in the job description.

On a few occasions, I’ve left my in front of the building until the end of the day. I received ONE parking ticket from the Capitol DPS last year and protested the fine. They are always so nice. So when I didn’t hear back, I assumed they just took it off my record.

Well friends…several weeks ago I tested my luck again and got the BOOT. Apparently, the ticket from the previous year was not removed. Well, my coworkers thought it was so funny that they took this picture from our office of me in complete panic mode.

The only real unfortunate thing was that the coworker who took the picture knows James….and had already emailed it to him at work with the subject line “she’ll never learn”. Awesome.

I ended up paying the fine. They took off the boot, and I got on with my day. Moral of the story - Did I learn my lesson? Sure…pay your parking tickets. Will I ever test my luck again and park there again? Probably so! :)

Bling, Bling!

Note: This is NOT a picture of James.

Oh yes, my friends…James has a new tooth. Several people have heard about James' tooth drama over the past year. The bone was decaying and he had to get a tooth extracted. This is not something that can be fixed with one easy appointment. This is a year long process.

About a year ago, he got the tooth and some of the bone extracted. He was put under anesthesia during this process. Some of you might remember my story about waiting for James to wake-up in the recovery room. While he was still a little woozy, he asked the nurses SEVERAL TIMES if he could keep the tooth they removed, asked me to “steal” more gauze when the nurses weren’t looking…”just in case”…AND did fist pumps out of the doctor’s office IN the wheel chair when they told him that he could keep the tshirt they put him in during the surgery. It was a circus to say the least.

About six months after that, he had the post put in and got fitted for the crown. Well, yesterday was the BIG DAY…the Grand Finale of this crazy tooth journey. I was pretty excited to have this over with, and so was our bank account. The insurance company has barely covered ANYTHING.

On Monday night, this is how our conversation went:

James: I have that dentist appointment tomorrow to finally get my cap put on my tooth.

Allison: That’s awesome! This whole thing will finally be over.

James: Yeah. It will be weird having a tooth there.

Allison: Oh, you won’t even notice. They make them look and feel so real these days. You won’t even be able to see it in your mouth.

James: Yeah I will….it’s gold.

Allison: GOLD?????

James: Yeah, it was the cheapest option. The white ones were super expensive.

Allison: What?? You CHOSE gold??? Even over SILVER?? Are you crazy???

James: Well..the gold tooth is a stronger metal than the silver tooth. I figured it was better to get the stronger one. Besides, it’s a back molar..you can barely see it.

Allison: Whatever. It’s your mouth.

Case and point. The difference between a man and a woman. James chose the gold because it was the stronger of the two metals. I probably would have chosen the more expensive white one and pretended like it was my ONLY option to James! : )

My Little City Slicker

Not only did I have a big weekend, but James did as well! He was asked to go to the “ranch” or “hunting lease” with his boss. When your boss asks you to go on a trip like this, you can’t really say no. Neither James nor I grew up in a family that hunts, farms, or ranches…so we didn’t quite know how to prepare or pack for a trip like this. Like the typical wife, this suddenly becomes my stress of the week!

I figure that my main job was to make sure he at least looks the part. So I had James ask his boss what a city boy like him needed to bring on this trip. His reply was: beer, cash for poker, sleeping bag and work boots. Work boots? We don’t know the first thing about “work boots”.

I suggested that we go to the Red Wing outlet to find some good quality work boots. James felt that Red Wings looked too much like cowboy boots and that Asians don’t wear cowboy boots….even though they apparently have no problem putting in a dip. Hmm. After trying on almost every pair and over analyzing each look, we settled with some high-top hiking books that looked similar to “work boots” when you wear them with jeans.

As for apparel, I was pretty excited to get him a Columbia fishing shirt. I just think they are so cute with all the pockets. He already has the bathing suit shorts that match. I’ve been trying to get him one for a while and this was the perfect opportunity. When I brought it home, he took one look at the $50 price tag and said “no way, take it back”! Little does he know that $50 won’t even buy you a shirt at the Gap these days.

I finally convinced him to at least pack it for the weekend and I would take it back if he didn’t wear it. That’s always my rational when I buy new clothes. Well friends….not only did he wear it, but everyone the exact same shirt. My goal was accomplished…my little city slicker fit right in at the ranch. To top it all off…He said it’s the most comfortable shirt he’s ever worn.

All in all…he survived and had a good time “roughing it”. He only came back with one chigger bite and $80 bucks for winning poker. Just enough to cover the cost of his new “designer shirt” and take his wife to dinner!

Like the good wife that I am....

James has been counting down the days for the new iPhone to come out. For a tech guru like him, he has never had a nice phone. His current phone has the worst service, doesn’t receive text messages, and has a battery that barely lasts a day. So…I’ve been encouraging the purchase of this phone for weeks. On Friday, the infamous day they went on sale…..he went to the AT&T store, & the Apple Store in the Domain….no luck. In fact, almost all of the AT&T stores sold on within the first day!

On Saturday night, he looked online and saw that the Apple store in Barton Creek still had some! When he told me this….I don’t know if my next thought came from one too many glasses of wine….or out of the kindness of my heart, but my response was, “Hey honey, why don’t I go to the mall early in the morning and wait in line to get your phone…I have to return a few things down there anyways.”. WHAT? What was I thinking? He even said that I didn’t have to go because he probably wouldn’t do the same for me. Ha ha.

When my alarm went off at 9am on Sunday morning, I popped out of bed, threw on some comfy clothes and was determined to get this phone! I got a big sonic diet coke and stopped at Walgreens for several/ALL the latest gossip magazines to keep me busy for a few hours.

I got to the mall around 9:40am and the doors were open to my surprise. I had already mapped out the closest door to the apple store. I “brisk walked” to the store and there were only ~15 people sitting in line. Score! Within the next few minutes, the line had doubled.

I made my little station in line….coke…check….magazines…check....blackberry...check! A few minutes later.…the Apple store lights turned on…a few “apple genius's’” walked out and address the group, and then they announced that they were going to go ahead and open at 10AM! I waited ~30 minutes and walked right on in to purchase the phone! I was hyped…James was hyped!

I walked out of there at 11:15 AM (it takes a while to set everything up and activate the phone)…and then I had to wait another 45 minutes for Nortstrom’s to open to return my shirt…the initial reason for offering in the first place. Go figure.

It was worth it though – James did all the laundry, yard and house chores for the rest of the day!