My Cooking Blog...

Since I have a lot of free time, and I spend most of it experimenting in the kitchen, I've decided to start a separate blog that chronicles my cooking/baking adventures. The link is http://chefjessie.blogspot.com. Feel free to leave comments and feedback on the recipes!

Best Friends

Kristin, who has been my closest friend throughout college, came to visit last weekend after eight months of separation! We got to meet her boyfriend Brody (who was on the east coast for the first time ever) and introduced them to the south with some BBQ and sweet potato fries at Buz 'n Neds.

Her visit was way too short and we can only hope that unforseen circumstances will leave her homeless and we will be forced to take her in to our spare room permanently.

A Few Hours in the District

Over the holidays we took a quick trip into DC. It was a gorgeous day and we stayed just long enough to shoot some photos (see below).

We visited the World War II memorial (a first for us), wasted a good amount of time trying to make ourselves look like giants in front of the Washington Monument, discovered La Promenade where we dined on take-out beneath the city (unfortunately fast food doesn't taste any better just because it's underground), and trekked by foot to the capitol (this was when Amber jumped out in front of a moving car and we discovered how loud our mom can scream) only to realize we didn't have enough time to actually go inside and see anything. So we left D.C. regretting that although we only live 20 minutes outside the city, it is a very strange and foreign place to us, and that it would likely be a very long time before we have another such fantastic adventure again.

To celebrate on New Years Eve our parents treated us to to dinner and live entertainment at Medieval Times in Baltimore. While waiting for dinner we toured the museum (or rather hallway) of torture, which contained ancient devices of cruelty and death (and described their use in vivid detail), and thus lost our appetites. But by the time the jousting began we were slurping soup and devouring massive chunks of meat and potatoes in the dark sans silverware. We cheered for the black and white knight who rocked the tournament and saved the magical kingdom from evil invaders. We were mesmerized by the sword fights, and slightly disturbed by the dancing horses. We even came away with an overpriced family photo with a real medieval princess. What a perfect evening.

Christmas Morning

All of our wishes came true on Christmas morning (Dustin was really excited about that plunger!)...

Amber and Katelyn (yes, they're twins)...

Waffles after presents (Dad and Brooke)...

Kitchen Transformation

Our big project this fall was remodeling the kitchen...and it's finally (mostly) done! Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures of its original state...yellow walls, tacky floral border, dirty linoleum, etc...but here are some photos of the transformation!

Dustin and I spent hours scraping leftover glue off of the cement in preparation to tile (Hint: KrudKutter works miracles.)

Starting to tile...
Almost done...

Dustin getting soaked by the tile cutter...

And now for the finished product (post painting cupboards and walls)...

Chopped It Off

Me minus 5 inches of hair. (It took a lot of hard work and patience to reach its previous length and it was all gone in a matter of seconds.) But its now healthier and lighter and (so far) I don't regret it.

Family Time

This Christmas I miss my brother. Our usual family traditions felt a little empty without him around. The house was definitely quieter and life a bit more dull. We got the chance to talk to him on Christmas morning--it's so weird that he is across the world in a freezing, bleak, desolate country (Ukraine). His Christmas gifts didn't arrive on time (and even if they get there they will have been rummaged through and half missing). But he was still cheerful and seemed unaffected by his situation. I sit here in my warm home with food abundant and piles of presents and realize how lucky I am. We wish we could have spent Christmas with you this year, Jacob.

With my brothers and sisters on our wedding day...

Siblings this summer before Jacob left on his mission...

We also missed not being able to be with Dustin's family. They were spread all over the West for the holidays this year. We can't wait to come out and visit!

With Dustin's Family on our wedding day...