Summer Eats...

One thing I miss about my summer vacation is that I had a desire to cook/plan out meals. When school starts, dinner becomes a quick/ what do we have/ what do we feel like/ how fast can it be made.

This summer's ingredients of choice were:

-tomatoes

-fresh mozzarella

-fresh basil

I just like how light they are. Perfect for the heat. So I made chicken sandwiches with the mozzarella, basil and tomatoes with balsamic vinegar drizzled on. I got the concept from "Real Simple." I thought it turned out nicely.

When my family was here in February, my mom, Camille, and I went to this little restaurant that we just seriously stumbled upon. I got this pasta dish that had none other than mozzarella, tomatoes and basil. It was amazing! I, sadly, have not gone back to get some more but one summer evening I thought I would have a go at recreating this dish that I have placed on a pedestal.

Here's my take....

Michael said there were too many tomatoes. (Waaah) But I left my plate on the coffee table to get a glass of water and came back to our puppy devouring my food. So, since she liked it so much, I let her finish off my plate and I got a new plate and fork. If she likes it, that's a compliment, right?

...Even if she does eat grass sometimes.

So now, help a girl out. I need some school year worthy/basic meals. Any tips?

Ramblings of Randomocity

So I feel now that school has started our lives have hit a new boring level. True we had our anniversary. That's a pretty exciting event. But, that was two weeks ago and I had lost my voice and caught a cold from the first week of school. (I know- my school year starts super early. But, we get out for summer May 15- so fair trade.) We were pretty bummed because we had to miss one of Michael's cousin's wedding and a family reunion because school had just started and Michael has no more days off work. So that was a let down! That's a sign the summer is truly over when we can't just go and do the things we want. Ouch!

The heat hasn't been as bad as it was last year and my class has been a lot better than the start of last year. Both of these are major blessings. However, the heat is hot! I think I've built up some tolerance because I know that September isn't going to be any cooler, but I'm sick of sitting inside bored or standing outside sweaty! Something's gotta give!

Michael's been loving inexpensive golfing rates in the heat and he's been doing really well. He's also starting his MBA with Arizona State this week. So we're pretty excited about that, but man, weren't we just finished paying tuition and books and studying? C'est la vie!

Friday, I made Michael watch, "Beastly" with me. Quite the gem...

I think he's going to hold that one against me for awhile...Totally worth it.

Saturdays are now SUPER lazy. Our house usually looks like a wreck by the end of the week so It's nice to actually do the dishes, make my bed, clean my clothes...you know. The basics that I was so good at staying on top of during the summer that are now making me feel like I'm drowning in my own house. Bless Saturdays!

And today, all of my nursery class was 18 month olds and only one 3 yr. old. That meant the 3 yr old said a lot of prayers as she is the only one who can talk. There was a lot of drooling and chewing on toys today. And a lot of spills during snack time as they are used to sippy cups. It was quite the adventure.

And that, I do believe, sums up our random dealings this week. Here's hoping that now that I have been teaching four years my immune system steps up and covers the germs this fresh batch of students brought. Bring on the Orange Juice!

PS I got to see, "The Help" with Alicia last weekend! LOVED it! Go read it! Go see it!

Happily Ever After...

Three years later and our happily ever after continues to be a lot of fun. We had a lot of adventures this past year, and I'm sure our next year will not disappoint!

Well, it's here...

The final sunset of my summer freedom has come...

Good thing it's a beautiful one! Now let's hope all the nightmares about my students, me forgetting to sharpen the pencils and me forgetting certain articles of clothing do not come true. Oh boy...I'm nervous!