Learning

Every once in a while I come across tutorials that help me develop my skills in the programs I use. This little ditty is one I've been working on the last couple of days. So fun!

I Heart Long Weekends

There's nothing better than a long weekend. Knowing you get that extra day makes all the difference in the world. We did nothing on Saturday. I literally mean nothing. We did manage to do the dusting and "swiffering", but other than that we didn't do much. We went out to Rolfie and Anne's (my uncle and aunt) Saturday night for some grilling. We had hoped for a bonfire, but the wind was terrible so that was a no-go. But it was still a fun night and the food was great! Thanks again Rolfie and Anne!

Sunday morning we awoke to a hail storm. That was fun. I thought a tree was going to come crashing through our roof or something. But by the time church was over it had turned into a beautiful day and shortly after lunch, we were on the lake!

Lake Sinai

Lake Sinai

The fisherman (?)

Dustin fished (if you can call it that, he didn't catch anything!) and I read my book. I've never been a lake person and I'm starting to wonder if that's because we never had a boat. Now, I think I'm a lake person. It was gorgeous and so peaceful out there. I love to waterski, but that's not an option for me this summer. I don't think my doctor would approve! But if all I can do is sit out there and read, I am more than okay with that!

We saved the lawn work for this morning. I mowed the front and Dustin mowed the back. Our neighbor told us this morning that our lawn looks the best it has since they moved in about 10 years ago. Dustin is quite proud!! He always says his dad had a nice lawn and he intends to have a nice lawn as well. So thanks, Jeff!!

Tonight is grilling at Mom and Dad's, which I always look forward to. I hope everyone had a great long weekend and Happy Memorial Day!! Thank you to all those who serve and have served.

Random

Let's see ... hosted book group last Thursday and made my weird food. It wasn't bad, but it certainly wasn't great! I don't know that I'll make it again, but at least I can say that I made some Afghanistan food to go with the book. Ha!

Did some yard work this weekend and I've decided that I need some plants or flowers or something on my patio. I have to find things that won't mind if I forget about them ... I have a tendency to kill any type of flower or plant I come in contact with. Mom, this is where you come in. We might have to hit up Medary Acres or something this next weekend.

Went out to Jessica and Josh's Saturday night for supper. It's always so nice to go out there and just hang out. We had a very informal supper (and discovered that we both like grilled cabbage) and then had a fire and listened to the coyotes. It's so peaceful out there.

Just realized today that RibFest is next weekend. I'm not quite sure how summer managed to sneak up on me, but I'm sure glad it did. Mom pointed out that it's been so chilly lately that it's hard to believe summer is on it's way. Also realized that I don't have to work a week from today. Good to know ... I probably would have went to work. ;-)

I ordered a couple new books from my book club (Doubleday) and they arrived today. Yay! Except I realized that I already own one of the books that I purchased. I must have really liked it! I know exactly how it happened. James Patterson has a new women's murder club book and I thought I ordered that one. I didn't. Oh well.

I think that's about it. Not much else is going on. I've had a couple doctor's appointments and everything is going great. We go again in June and I've been told that we'll have another ultrasound. Dustin and I purchased a new printer for our computer and it's also a copier/scanner, so I'll be able to share the ultrasound with everyone!!

Book Group Menu

I think I have a pretty good idea of what I will serve my book group Thursday night!

Noodles with Yogurt and Mint and Kofta Nakhod (meatballs with chickpeas). You can click on either dish to view the ingredients.

Hopefully I can find all the ingredients ... shouldn't be too hard. Our grocery store is pretty good about stocking ethnic items. I'll be sure to let you all know how it turns out!

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful mothers in my life!

May Book Group

So, if anyone pays attention to "What I'm Reading" you might have noticed that the picture hasn't changed in a while. This would be the time of year that my reading takes a direct hit, as I find myself with a million things to do. Needless to say, I haven't quite finished the book from last month. For the month of May, I'm supposed to be reading The Kite Runner.


Luckily I have already read this book (and I highly recommend it ... you should also read A Thousand Splendid Suns). It is my turn to host though and book group is a week from tonight. I need to figure out what I will serve. We try to have foods that relate to what we just read, so I'm looking for Afghani dishes. I'm hoping to find Naan, which is quite popular throughout the book, but I'm not really sure about anything else. If anyone has any ideas please let me know!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Dustin and my dad planted a tree for us yesterday
Dad says in about 5 years we'll have a really pretty red maple towering in our yard!

America's Pastime in America's Capital

On Sunday we went to a Washington Nationals game. While no one is a die-hard 'Nats fan, it was fun to see them take on the Cubs. And they won, which I'm told doesn't happen very often! The ballpark is brand new this year and it's probably one of the nicest ballparks I've been to. There were "Welcome Home" signs everywhere ... seems the folks of D.C. are very excited to have their team back in the city. And no, the main display you see above is not from my company. :(

Vacation Photos

Washington Monument

Korean War Memorial

WWII Memorial

WWII Memorial

National Air and Space Museum

National Air and Space Museum

The White House

Vacation

Last Thursday, Dustin and I headed out east to visit his parents. Jeff and Cindy moved out to the D.C. area a few months ago and we had been anxiously awaiting our trip out there. After a delay in Sioux Falls (thunderstorms) and a mad dash through the Minneapolis airport (not fun), we finally made it to D.C. Jeff and Cindy treated us to some surf and turf that evening ... steaks and lobster tails, shrimp and scallops ... delicious!
The next morning we had a tour of the Capital building. Dustin's sister-in-law's cousin (got that?) is an intern with a Senator from North Dakota and she was able to give us a tour. Very cool.
After the tour, we had some lunch at Union Station and then hopped on the Metro and headed to the Mall. We walked down around the Washington Monument to the Vietnam Memorial, stopped by the Lincoln Memorial (where we got trapped in an elevator) and then stopped at the Korean Memorial. While at the Korean Memorial, the coolest thing happened. There was a lady standing next to the monument, pointing to a picture (there are pictures engraved all over the wall of the monument). Turns out, the picture she was pointing to was her! While I can't remember what she did during the war, I did manage to ask where she was from. She's living in Anchorage, Alaska!


Next we headed down the path towards the WWII Memorial. This Memorial is new since the last time I was in D.C. It was awesome. Then we headed back to the Metro and made our way to King Street, also known as Old Towne Alexandria. Jeff works on King Street and we quickly discovered that it will be a good long while before I can ever afford anything from the shops on that particular street! But it was still fun to walk down the street and look at all the shops. Jeff and Cindy then took us to one of their favorite haunts, Chadwicks. We had a couple beers (mine of the non-alcoholic variety) before heading back to the apartment, which we affectionately called the hotel! I kid you not, their complex is pretty much like a hotel. It's awesome!
On Saturday we got tickets to tour the Holocaust Museum and also went to the National Air & Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art. We quickly discovered that while we had 80 degree temperatures, SD was getting 10+ inches of snow!!
We also walked by the White House and stopped at the Iwo Jima Memorial before heading down to the Marina. Jeff and Cindy took us to a fish market and then we went to Phillips, a seafood buffet. This place was huge and had the best crab legs!! We got home just in time for a cool thunderstorm and lots of rain.