Oddly Relevant Fortune

Happy Thursday Everyone! I trust your week is going well! Plus, it's almost the weekend!

This week has been busy to say the least, but I totally am loving keeping as busy as I have been.  Plus, I am proud to say that I've made dinner for us every night this week.  Talk about saving the big bucks! 

Today for lunch, a group of coworkers and myself went to The Rice Bowl for lunch.  It's a local Thai restaurant that is just a gerbil tube walk away from our office.  The gerbil tube is a "bridge" that connects our building to the building across the street from us.  We call it the gerbil tube because it literally looks like a gerbil tube: round, clear and very plastic-y looking.

As is always part of getting any Asian cuisine, the meal comes with a fortune cookie as part of your dessert and my fortune cookie today was oddly relevant to what I've been going through.

Because I have been "sick" for the past two months, I have been feeling a large amount of stress.  Let me tell you, there is nothing worse than not knowing what is wrong and going through a slew of tests to only be told they still do not know what is wrong.  Thankfully I will know more tomorrow at my appointment in the afternoon.

On a completely unrelated topic, I bought some new pens today!

Aren't they so awesome! I know, I know, I'm a total nerd, but there is just something so exciting about writing in a color other than black or blue.  I will have to make good use of these pens on our calendar at home! Nothing more exciting than color coating everything!

I will make sure to give you all a follow-up post when I get my butt to the doctor for the next (and hopefully final) time! Have a wonderful rest of your day!

Question of the Day:

What is the best fortune you have ever received in a fortune cookie?

I love 1st Birthday Parties (plus doctor update)

Happy Tuesday Everyone! I trust that you are having a wonderful day! Right now, the sun is hiding but it is warm and in Michigan, we rejoice for warm weather in April!

I wanted to give you all a quick update from the doctor's office.  Last Thursday I went to the doctor to have an ultrasound done on my upper abdomen.  From what I understand, the doctor was looking for me to have an issue with my gall bladder.  This morning around 11:00 I received a call from the office telling me that my results were basically normal and that I needed to come in to discuss what is next.  What in the world does basically normal mean? Of course, being the worrier I am, the I automatically go to the worst possible situation, but I have a feeling that I am just over thinking everything.  On that note, I will be going in Friday afternoon to get my results and to talk with the doctor about what is next.  Once I know something, I will make sure to share it with you!

Have I ever told you how much I love going to 1st birthday parties? I really do love going to them! There is just something so fun about watching the little one open their gifts and smash their cake (if they're not too shy anyway).  On Sunday, Justin and I attended a zebra and pink themed 1st birthday party and I thought it was just the cutest thing ever! 

Everything matched! The table cloths, the banners, the balloons and even Aubrey, the birthday girl's, outfit matched.  I absolutely loved the theme because it matched all of the other parties Ashley had from her bridal shower to her baby shower, but it was tweaked just enough to be perfect for her little girl.

Ashley and Harry did a wonderful job coordinating everything even down to the outfit that Aubrey wore.  Aubrey had the cutest little headband and tutu that matched the whole party.  I cannot wait until the day that I get the fun and joy of playing my child's first birthday party.  It will be wonderful.  

Ashley and Harry did a wonderful job planning everything! We had a delicious lunch of pasta and other deliciousness along with some of the most frosting covered cake I have ever had! 

Luckily, Aubrey's cake wasn't quite so covered in frosting, but that definitely was her favorite part.  She kept putting her little fingers in the cake and licking the frosting off of her fingers.

I had a wonderful time attending this party and cannot wait until the next big event happens!

Questions of the Day:

What is your favorite party to attend? Baby showers? Bridal showers?

What theme would you use for a first birthday party?

Bowling at Cherry Hills North

Hello All! How was your weekend? Mine was super busy, but also very fun. 

Friday night, Justin and I headed out to go bowling with some of our friends and it was super fun! For $13, you could do unlimited bowling (for 2.5 hours) and rent a pair of shoes, so that is exactly what we did.  I have to be honest and say that I am terrible at bowling.  I mean, one game I got a whopping 40-something points, I'm that bad.  But none-the-less, I love to go for the fun of playing.

We decided to divide the teams into boys and girls because otherwise the guys would have whooped on us. The girls we so excited when we got over 80 points in a game where the guys have that by the 6th or 7th frame.  Justin is pretty good a bowling and I always love to watch him play because he gets really into it.

At around midnight, after 4 (or 5 for the guys) games and 2.5 hours of bowling, we made our way out into the very unexpected snow that was falling.  Sometimes I really hate Michigan because of the weather.  Friday night we had snow and strong wind, then Sunday we had 40 and sunny.  Such a strange mixture.

Question of the Day:

What is the highest score you've ever gotten in bowling?

Another Doctor Appointment

Happy Friday Everyone! I trust that your week has gone well and you've been able to enjoy yourselves!

Yesterday I had another (and hopefully my last) doctor appointment to figure out what has been going on with my rib cage.  Because my bone scan did not show anything, she ordered for me to have an ultrasound on my abdomen to take a peek at what's going on in there and hopefully be able to get the issue resolved.  So yesterday morning I got my butt up and headed out to the doctors office.

Unfortunately, because of the nature of the test, I was not able to take any pictures (plus the technician was a bit picky) but I have to say that overall the ultrasound wasn't too bad.  There was only one part where I experienced a great deal of discomfort and that happened when she pushed on the sore part in my rib cage.  She did confirm that the sore spot was right where the Gall Bladder is, so maybe that is a good sign.  So now what?

I have to wait about a week to get my results back.  In the mean time, I am ordered to continue taking Prevacid to help with any possible acid re-flux I might experience.  So let the waiting games begin.

After my appointment yesterday I made a quick stop to the car wash to get it washed since it had been (I think) at least five months since my last wash.  Hermes was looking great after that wash and it felt good to check that off of my very long to-do list. 

After the car wash I headed home so I could start working for the day.  One of the blessings of my job is that ability to work from home when necessary and it has been a major blessing over the last few months with all of the doctor appointments I have needed.  Another blessing I felt yesterday was the blessing of the sun.  As most of you know, Michigan's weather is notorious for being all over the place, so when it was 65° and sunny, I made sure to take advantage of it by opening all the windows in the apartment.  It seems the kitties loved it too!

They were being super cute all day cuddling up in front of the door watching the birds fly by.  But once it started thundering, that was it for them.

I also took advantage of being home by spending some time working on one of my New Years Resolutions.  I am excited to say that I completed one of my Resolutions! Check that baby off the list! Once I have a few minutes to grab some pictures, I will make sure to share with you all what I was able to do! 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend! We will be keeping ourselves busy with bowling, get togethers and first birthday parties!

Question of the Day:

What New Years Resolutions have you completed?

What New Years Resolutions have you not completed, and why?

Chocolate Lasagna Recipe

What You Need:

• 1 package regular Oreo cookies (Not Double Stuff) - about 36 cookies
• 6 Tablespoon butter, melted
• 1- 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons cold milk
• 1- 12 ounce tub Cool Whip, divided
• 2 - 3.9 ounce packages Chocolate Instant Pudding.
• 3 1/4 cups cold milk
• 1 and 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips

How to Make the Lasagna:

Begin by crushing 36 Oreo cookies. You can use a food processor for this part or you could place them in a large Ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin. When the Oreos have turned into fine crumbs, you are done.

Transfer the Oreo crumbs to a large bowl. Stir in 6 tablespoons melted butter and use a fork to incorporate the butter into the cookie crumbs. When the butter is distributed, transfer the mixture to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Press the crumbs into the bottom of the pan. Place the pan in the refrigerator while you work on the additional layers.

 

Mix the cream cheese with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add in 2 Tablespoons of milk, and sugar, and mix well. Stir in 1 and 1/4 cups Cool Whip. Spread this mixture over the crust.

In a bowl, combine chocolate instant pudding with 3 and 1/4 cups cold milk. Whisk for several minutes until the pudding starts to thicken. Use a spatula to spread the mixture over the previous cream cheese layer. 

Allow the dessert to rest for about 5 minutes so that the pudding can firm up further.

Spread the remaining Cool Whip over the top. 

Sprinkle mini chocolate chips evenly over the top. Place in the freezer for 1 hour, or the refrigerator for 4 hours before serving.  And Voila, you have a delicious dessert that is guaranteed to please! 

**I could not find mini chocolate chips at the store so I used regular and they worked just fine**

Original Recipe

Catching Up from the Weekend

Hello Everyone! Happy Hump Day! I hope your week is going well so far.  This week has been rather busy, but the weather has been wonderful which is boosting everyone's moods!

Last time we talked, I mentioned that I got my results from my bone scan and everything was looking good! I was relieved to hear that my bones were a'okay but I also knew that it would mean that I would have to do more tests.  So what's next? An ultrasound.  I am going tomorrow morning to get an ultrasound on my lower abdomen.  I guess the doctor is going to be checking for gall stones.  Once I know what's up from that, I will make sure to follow up with you!

Last weekend was absolutely crazy, wonderfully, busy and that is EXACTLY how I like it.  Saturday Justin and I devoted our day to hanging out around the house cleaning and relaxing until we needed to head out for the evening.  The plan was to run to JoAnn so I could buy some fabric for a project I was working on Sunday afternoon.  I also ended up buying this super cute gift box for a baby shower I am attending next weekend. 

After JoAnn, the plan was to stop by my in-law's house to pick something up from my mother-in-law, then go to my parents house for dinner.  

My mom made some delicious Lasagna with salad and rolls.  It was so yummy! I wish I knew how to cook lasagna like she does.  After dinner, we played a round of Russian Rummy and I ended up losing REALLY badly, but it is just a game and I still had a great time! 

On Sunday, Justin and I got up pretty early to get the house ready for the company we were having Sunday evening.  I spent the morning grabbing groceries and making delicious Chocolate Lasagna! I will share the recipe in a separate post.  As I've shared before, I try to have my girl-friends over once a month so that we can guarantee seeing each other at least once a month.  This month's "theme" was sewing and Sarah and I spent the afternoon sewing tunics (will share the results later) while Caroline and Danielle baked cupcakes with the same yellow cake recipe I had made Janelle's birthday cake last weekend.  

Have you ever heard of SnapChat? I hadn't until Sunday when the girls showed me and we spent hours snap chatting each other and having a great laugh.  

We also spent some time playing with the make me fat app that takes your face and makes it look much larger than you actually are.  I have to say, I laughed for a straight five minutes when Danielle showed me this picture:

We still cannot figure out what happened to Sarah's face, but we laughed pretty hard.  I love getting together with these girls because I always have fun and always get a great laugh.  Plus, I have received non-stop SnapChats from them since Sunday.  So much fun!

Questions of the Day:

What fun traditions do you have with your friends?

How often do you plan to see them?

Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting Recipe

What You Need:

• 1 Cup Butter (room temp)
• 1 1/2 Cups White Sugar
• 8 Egg Yolks
• 3/4 Cups Milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla
• 2 Cups Cake Flour
• 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt

How to Make the Cake

Preheat your oven to 350°.  Prepare your round cake pans by lining with parchment paper and spraying with nonstick cooking spray.  Sift together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and set aside.

In your mixer, combine the butter and sugar and blend until creamy.  Beat in egg yolks one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.  Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing well.  Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until cooked all the way through.

Original Recipe found here: Yellow Cake

For the Frosting:

• 2 3/4 Cup Confectioners Sugar
• 6 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• 6 Tablespoons Butter
• 5 Tablespoons Evaporated Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla 

How to Make the Frosting:

In a medium bowl, combine the confections sugar and cocoa powder and mix well.  In a large bowl, cream butter until smooth then gradually beat in sugar mixture alternating with the milk.  Add the vanilla then beat until light and fluffy.  If necessary, adjust consistency by adding more evaporated milk or sugar.

**I should note that I ended up adding 2T evaporated milk to mine to get it to thin out.  Otherwise the frosting was more like fudge**

Original Recipe: Chocolate Frosting

Once your cake has cooled, frost your cake with your delicious chocolate frosting, serve and enjoy! 

Scattered Week

Hello Everyone! I trust you have had an excellent week and have been able to get everything on your "to do" list done.  The past week has been rather chaotic and has been all over the place for me.  So much so that I forgot to share some things that have going on!

Last Sunday Justin and I went to his parents house to celebrate my sister-in-law, Janelle's, birthday.  We have a tradition in his family of all of us getting together to have pizza and cake in honor of the birthday person.  Last year I started the tradition of making the birthday person a cake of their choice and Janelle's pick was yellow cake with chocolate frosting.  After doing some research online, I found a recipe that looked delicious and decided to go that route.  

I will add the recipe in a different post

I love getting together with Justin's family (especially his sister) because I get to see my niece and nephew.  They always bring me so much joy when I get to see their little faces.  I always try to grab a picture of them when I see them because they grow up so quickly and every time I blink they seem to be so much bigger.  J.P. was not having it this time, so I only grabbed a picture of McKenna while she was playing with Papi.  I just LOVE her blue eyes! 

 

After eating pizza and cake, we managed to watch an episode of The Voice.  Typically, that is not something Justin and I would watch, but I really enjoyed listening to all of the talented people sing and watching the judges react to their talent.  If you haven't watched it before, I would recommend watching.

Question of the Day:

What birthday traditions does your family have?

Satisficer or Maximizer?

Have you ever read a book that just keeps giving you awesome insights that you find yourself constantly writing down or taking note of? I know I have! 

I am just about to finish the book The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin and I have fallen in love.  Every chapter is a different month of her happiness adventure and I am always finding myself mimicking the things that she does for that month, but I wanted to talk specifically about the month of July or "Buy Some Happiness."

http://www.happiness-project.com/

For the month of July, Rubin discusses the topic of "buying happiness" and this one struck me pretty strongly because of the fact that she argued that you could, in fact,  buy happiness.  Such a strange concept when the world has been telling us, "Money cannot buy happiness."  She discusses how money cannot buy the happiness itself, but by investing some of our money (or indulging in a modest splurge), we can help build our happiness.  But that is not specifically what I wanted to discuss from this chapter.  I wanted to discuss the question: are you a Satisficer or a Maximizer?

A Satisficer is someone (when related to spending money and making decisions) who make a decision or take action once their criteria are met, while a Maximizer is someone who wants to make the optimal decision (Rubin 2009).  If I had to classify myself, I would say that I lean more toward the Satisficer side of the coin but when it comes to making big decisions, I tend to fall on the Maximizer side.  

According to Rubin, Satisficers tend to be happier than Maximizers.  This is because Maximizers spend a great deal of time making decisions and once a decision has been made they tend to feel anxiety over whether they made the right choice.  That is why I would say that I fall on the Maximizer side of the coin when it comes to making big decisions because I often find myself worrying that we spent too much money on one thing when we could have used it elsewhere.  Plus, I often wonder if the big decision I made (like dropping out of graduate school) was the right decision in the long run.  When I Google image searched "Satisficer vs. Maximizer" the image below is what I found and it seemed rather fitting as a way to describe a Maximizer (and it made me giggle).  

So here is my question for you: 

Are you a Satisficer or a Maximizer?

Bone Scan Adventure

Hello Monday! Boy did you ever creep up on me! I trust that everyone had an excellent weekend and was able to have some fun.

Last week was rather stressful for me because of all of the stuff we had going on on top of the impending Bone Scan that I needed to have done last Thursday.  Everyone told me that the scan would not be all that bad, but being who I am, I stressed myself out 1000x more than was necessary.  

Thursday morning, Justin and I actually were able to sleep in a bit because the test did not start until 8:30 am.  It was nice to sleep in until 7:30 instead of getting in the car and heading to work.  For the first half of the test, I had to go in to get the tracer injected into my arm.  I have to say, of everything, this was the most scary for me.  I REALLY do not do well with needles, but with Justin by my side, it flew quickly by. 

It takes a few hours for the tracer to get fully into the bones, so we went home and relaxed until 11:00 when we needed to head back.  Unfortunately, Justin got caught in a meeting so he was unable to take me back for the second part of the test; however, Danielle was available and was able to take me back.  Thank God too! She grabbed quite a few pictures.

For the second part of the test, I had to lay on what felt like a diving board and sit perfectly still while the "camera" moved from my head to my toes taking hundreds of pictures of the bones inside of my body.  I have to say, sitting still was more difficult than I thought it would be, but not as terrible as I thought I would be.  Plus, once the camera got passed a certain part of my body, I was allowed to move that part.  I guess it's a good thing they start at the head, otherwise it would have been scary quite in there.

Don't I just have the prettiest bones? It was weird to see them appear on the screen.  From what the technician could tell, everything looks pretty good, but the scan will have to be observed a bit more closely.

So what are the results you ask? I do not know yet.  All I know is that it is a good thing I have not heard anything yet.  This means that they were not able to find anything of great concern in the initial viewing of the bone scan.  I'm glad to hear that! 

I will make sure to keep you posted once I hear more!

Question of the Day:

What is the scariest test you've had done at the doctor?

Easter Bird's Nest Dessert

What You Need for the Nests:

• 1 Cup Peanut Butter Morsels
• 1 Cup Chocolate Chip Morsels
• 1 1/2 Cup Chow Mein Noodles (or Rice noodles)
• Jelly Bean Eggs (or small candy egg of your choice)
• Muffin Pan
• Non-Stick Spray
• Cupcake cups of your choice

How to Make the Nests:

Spray the muffin pan with the non-stick spray until thoroughly covered.

In a microwave safe pain (or double boiler) melt your chocolate and peanut butter together as directed on the bag.  

Once the chocolate and peanut butter is melted, add the chow mein noodles and stir until completely coated.

Begin placing spoonfuls of the chocolate covered noodles into the muffin tin.

Shape the 'nest' into your desired shape and place them into the refrigerator until the chocolate has hardened.

Once the chocolate has hardened, remove the next from the muffin tin and place in your cupcake paper of choice.  It should fit almost perfectly into the cup.

Drop the eggs into the nest, serve and enjoy! 

Original idea found here: SavedbyLove