15 Before '15

15 things I'd like to do by the end of 2015:

1.      Find a career "big-girl" job that I enjoy

2.      Travel somewhere I’ve never been

3.      Cook a fancy meal for our parents

4.      Get a pet

5.      Have a best [girl] friend

6.      Have a real Christmas Tree

7.      Visit another country

8.      Get rid of all the clutter in our house/life

9.       Be healthy again: start eating clean[er] and also exercising on a regular basis

10.    Run a marathon

11.    Pursue my creative dreams

12.    Evangelize to someone I’ve never met

13.    Figure out how I take my coffee (“Miss, how do you take your coffee?”)

14.    Finally watch the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies

15.    Find peace.

Holy Crock Pot!

Tonight we unwrapped a most dangerous wedding gift--our crock pot.  We hadn't cooked anything in it before tonight, but after tonight we are surely addicted and will likely be using it for almost every meal from here on out.  Plus, while the weather remains quite toasty, it saves us from having to heat up the house by turning on the oven and/or stove full blast.  Question to the crock pot pros (see: Moms): Does running a crock pot do any serious damage to your electric bill?  Because that's pretty much the only thing preventing us from using it every day....

Tonight/this morning I wanted to try something simple, and since we LOVE buffalo sauce in this house we decided to try a Pinterest recipe for slow-cooked Buffalo Chicken.  It was the easiest thing ever, but James gave it an A++, which means a lot coming from such a picky eater.  We did them sloppy joe style and piled it on some toasted burger buns, but boy was it delicious!! Also, as an aside, normally we use mild buffalo sauce for everything (because it's just that, mild), but when using buffalo in the crock pot it amplified it about 5 times more and we ended up going through over a half gallon of milk trying to cool our tongues during the meal!

This morning I put 6 [thawed] chicken breasts in the crock pot with 1 whole bottle of Frank's buffalo sauce.  I also added 1 packet of dry ranch dressing mix.  Placed the lid on top and let it cook the whole time I was at work.. anywhere from 7-9 hours on low heat was recommended so I gave it 8.

 

Once I got home (our house smelled delicious) I removed the chicken and shredded it on a cutting board, then dumped it back in the sauce and added a little bit of bleu cheese and 2 tbsp of butter.  Then I let it cook for about an hour more until James came home from work.

I removed the buns from the oven where they were merely warming and I piled the marinated chicken on top.  Armed with our milk glasses we dug in, and it was all gone in 10 minutes.  I repeat, I got an A++ on this dish, and James said it was one of his top 2 we have ever made!  It was so simple I couldn't believe it!

We are excited to try more "difficult" recipes and will definitely be putting this crock pot to good use in the [near] future...

We have been having friends over almost every other night for dinner these past two weeks and our menu is rapidly expanding.  Besides buffalo chicken (which we did make in our traditional style), we've made lemon-garlic pasta, chicken parmesan, 7 cheese ravioli (okay, we didn't "make" these, Costco was a big help), and for my vegetarian friends I made tortellini and zucchini boats with tomato, garlic, and cheese.  All of these dishes were delicious (or so we are told).  We have also been dangerously experimenting with desserts and lets just say, our pants are feeling a little tight around here.  Curse you, Pinterest desserts!!

My first stab at a vegetarian meal... I got two thumbs up!

Tis laundry week this week in the little Doskocil house, which means washing it on monday, folding it on tuesday, complaining about it on wednesday, and ironing it on thursday.  I just really like to drag it out for masochism's sake.  Kidding.  I just don't have a whole day to devote to this type of thing!  That is one thing that has changed exponentially since being married.... two or three times as much laundry as before (more towels, more sheets, more napkins, more clothes), and my husband wears dress shirts 3 or 4 nights a week!  That's a lot of ironing....but I'm getting quicker at it ;]

My Tuesday view.

We've also gotten to go on a couple fun trips lately--most notably to Bishop and home to San Diego.  Short but sweet, cuz that's all we can afford :P

Road Trippin

Tending his fire...

9,500 feet

Bristle Cone Pine forest

Pt. Loma Seafood before the Padre's Game.

Beautiful San Diego

Wedding Politics (and Leaders)

So yesterday we had a great breakthrough; we finally found our venue!  We have always wanted to have the ceremony at the church, but we could not find the perfect place for a reception, until now.  I don't think we're going to disclose it just yet (sorry!) due to the wonderful, wedding politics.  I had heard a lot about these, but it wasn't until I was engaged that I realize how oppressive they are.  Whether it's making final decisions, creating a manageable guest list, or even just idealizing the day, SO much goes into each choice, and it creates a lovely web of intricate complications.

If it was up to me (you're thinking, It is, isn't it? actually, no..), I would invite everyone, but alas, budgets and family relationships and dates and times limit everything.  I guess all I'm trying to say is, if you're reading this, you're probably someone I want to invite, but if you never see an invite, it's only because of wedding politics, not because of anything personal.
BLlleeeeeehhhHhHhhgggghh.   -_____-

On a brighter note, aside from the fact that we booked a venue last night, we also picked our officiant!  It was a bit of a tough decision (again, wedding politics! We have SO many great pastors in our lives!), but I am proud (and extremely overjoyed) to announce that Jeff Levine will be officiating our wedding!  Even before James and I moved up to The Fold (the young adults/post college group) we had enjoyed Jeff and Lauren's friendship, but once we moved up we grew even closer.  Jeff and Lauren are a couple that we admire for their kindness, genuineness, honesty, and for the way that they incorporate God into their marriage.  We love how real they are, and we have always had respect for them for that, even if sometimes we think they're kind of quirky.  ;]  As we continue with The Fold and as we grow in marriage we know that Jeff and Lauren will be there to help and support us, and we couldn't be happier about that.  Great advice, great cooking tips (kudos, Lauren!), and a lot of great times ahead, I'm sure of it.

(On a side note, this past weekend Jeff and Lauren helped us organize and execute our first day of registry shopping.  We spent a few hours at Macy's, then returned home where Lauren gave me a thorough rundown of her kitchen basics/necessities, and then taught me how to make her spaghetti carbonara in minutes.  It was delicious!  The meal was coupled with some great pre-marital advice, and James and I both left their house smiling from ear to ear.)

 Cheers, to finalizing a lot of stressful decisions, and to great friendships!

January came and went, like a first breath of fresh air.

Tomorrow is the last day in January, and can someone please tell me where all the time went?  I swear I was just blogging about New Year's....

So I guess you're wondering what's up?  Here are the happs--I will tell you all that I can remember, but don't count on it being in order:

At the beginning of the year my little sister got married.  My LITTLE sister got MARRIED!  It was no small ordeal.  Let me tell you, she looked BEAUTIFUL (the most beautiful I can ever remember seeing her) and the whole day was just wonderful.  I am so happy for Kayla and Shayne (perhaps a bit jealous too) but I can't wait to see what great things God has in store for them.  It was great to see all of my [extended] family who made it out to California, and it was a treat for James to get to meet them all (I don't know to what extent he would agree with that, my family is kind of "unique," but it was a treat for me.)  In order to spare you from photo-barfing (and since I'm quite sure many of you have seen the pics on Facebook) I'll just post these few:

(Trying to take pictures of pictures is never easy.)

The happiest maid-of-honor to be found :]

Following the wedding I returned to Long Beach for my last week of work at Jamba Juice.  It was bittersweet for sure.  While I was glad to get out of there for numerous legitimate reasons, I will/do miss a lot of my coworkers and even my regular customers (and CBTL baristas).  But I cannot lie--the time off since then has been THE BEST.  My last day of work was the 17th, about 2 weeks ago, and since then when I have not been in school I have been: a) sleeping, b) watching movies, c) cooking, d) going home to San Deigo, e) catching up on numerous girl chats with friends I had placed on hold, f) studying the Bible, g) going to the gym(!), and/or h) spending time with my favorite guy (pictured above).  It's been wonderful.  As much as it looks like I've become a lazy slob, I think I really needed some time to slow down on work and catch up on life, remembering all the things that bring me joy.  And now, after this time, I think I am ready to go back into the work force.  (Which, for those of you who don't know, begins next Tuesday the 7th!)

Out to dinner at Le Creperie to celebrate after my last shift, and [little did we know] Deb's promotion!

Going goth for Starbucks.

When I say I have been spending some time cooking, I mean I have been SPENDING SOME TIME COOKING (cooking, as opposed to fast food, takes a long time).  I got a great beginning cookbook for Christmas from James' sister Laura and we have been going through it making a bunch of new dinners.  I have also been learning the breakfast plates and even some of the snacks, and I'd say I feel pretty proud of my jump in skillage.  Our favorite dish to make (by far) is Buffalo Chicken Sub Sandwiches.  We have made it for quite a few people (always trying different modifications and getting feedback) and we also like to make it for ourselves so that we can have leftovers for James to bring to work for lunches.  It is SO DELICIOUS, if I do say so myself.

Our first attempt.

Buffalo Wild Wings sauce, keeping it authentic.

Mid-prepping.

When we have the time, we now prefer to cook instead of takeout.  It is expensive to buy the fresh [bulk] ingredients, but I think in the end you get more meals out of what you buy, and it's usually at least a LITTLE healthier than eating out...  Here are a few pictures that happen to be on my phone, since I take pictures of things I'm proud of...

The Chef

Chicken Parmesan

Cheesy Quinoa and Peas (our first healthy dish!)

Balsamic & Garlic Chicken

For those of you who live under a rock, next weekend is the Superbowl, or as I prefer to call it, the official-end-to-football-season-weekend.  I think I served my term well; I have been a faithful girlfriend to the end, watching almost every single game that we were around for, but in all honesty, I'm so glad to have our Sunday's back!  (Plus it is getting warm and sunny again (no wind!) so we can start disc golfing again.)  This weekend James' friends (my friends too now [: ) and all the girlfriends are doing a somewhat epic Superbowl weekend celebration, starting on Thursday night and ending with the game on Sunday, with a little bit of Disneyland and game nights in between.  I'm excited!

Taking the Packers game very seriously.... 

My very best girlfriend Deb has been kind enough to teach me some Photoshop tricks and lately I have been nothing short of obsessed with this program.  I mean, Jamanda's bed time is still a faithful 10pm (if we can even hold out that long), but this half of the monicker has been staying up a little later these days (and paying for it when I remember I signed up for an 8 AM CLASS!! What was I thinking?!).  These were my first PSE10 creations from last week, of which I was a little bit proud!

(Sometimes I wonder what he really thinks of me.)

Deb aslo taught me how to make espresso! I'm sure I will be able to pay her back, once I learn the in's and out's of Starbucks..

Last Thursday I got a root canal and a crown replaced (and it unfortunately took three hours to complete) and as a result I have been unable to chew on the left side of my mouth for five days now.  My tongue is all shredded up from the new crown (and still tastes of enamel) and I can't sleep on that side of my face (or the other side, thanks to my aggravated ear piercing) and so I just toss and turn all night till I find something that works.  OH if you only knew how uncomfortable it is.  I feel like the muscles on the right side of my jaw are going to get super buff and I will look like an asymmetrical monster by the time the three weeks are up.  (I have to wait three weeks till I go back and get my porcelain crown.)  I think I still have a headache from all the drilling.

As I mentioned before, I am back in school, at 8AM(!) on Mondays and Wednesdays.  It is awful and I regret it every time my alarm goes off, but then I remember that this is the last time I will be a full time student and then I brighten up immediately.  I spoke to my advisor last week and I am all set to graduate after Fall 2012, assuming I do my internship practicuum and final HDEV class next semester.  Not even a year more and this girl will be done with CSULB.. :]

Tomorrow night James and I are starting a new class on the Parables in the Bible and we couldn't be more excited.  Studying the Bible together is one of the best and most fulfilling things we enjoy doing together, and it only gets better as God allows for more and more perception and understanding.  In addition to our new weekly class, we have officially moved up to The Fold at church (the new young adults group) and after the first meeting, we are very excited.  It was great to see so many old familiar faces that we haven't been around since being in the college group.  For the first time in a long time we are actually the youngest people in the group and we are in a place where we truly need the community of these believers that are in similar life stages as we are.  It's like no group I've been in before, which is good and bad, but we are happy with the change and we are looking forward to what the Big Guy has in store for us in 2012...

With that said, I think I am off to the gym! (Trying to work on my NY resolutions!)
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--t.C.R.

The New Year

2012 is here and I could not be more excited.  2012 holds big things, I just know it.

Last year I made these NYResolutions and I am proud to say that I kept most of them! I did not text and drive (or talk on the phone without a Bluetooth) for the whole year, I didn't buy any new books (I'm trying to read the ones I already have first), I got out of multiple unhealthy relationships, formed new loving ones, and reclaimed my GPA.  Sure, there are a few that I didn't get around to, but there's always time in 2012.

On a more somber note, I hate watching so many of my family and friends acting and trying to be someone they are not.  Whether it's in social interactions or on the internet, it's the most repugnant thing.  I don't know if I do this (I probably do to some extent) but I don't want to do it, and I think that will be my New Year's Resolution--to be myself and be authentic.  I know I will be making a lot of decisions in 2012 that people (including family and friends) might not be too enthused about, but having multiple conversations about this topic with [true] friends, I have cemented myself in that I will not live my life to please other people.

My other New Year's Resolution will be to read the entire Old Testament.  Funny, I used to think that the OT was just a bunch of history that was essentially unnecessary for someone who knew all the Bible stories, but oh how wrong I was.  The OT holds do many secrets and treasures it is now more fulfilling for me to read that than the New Testament.  So here's to my perseverance and dedication to getting through the whole thing, and understanding it in a new and amazing way.

My other practical goal is to learn how to make one good dish.  Really well.  So that I can invite people over and make it for them and know ahead of time that it will be a success.  I would like to begin to cook my own food and improve as a chef in general.  Going hand-in-hand with cooking food (as opposed to buying fast food), I would like to eat healthier and lose some flab.  I want to exercise more and stay under my goal weight.  That's pretty vague, but I'd like to convince myself that it's not about a number but about being healthy on the inside from doing the hard work and self-discipline that results in a happy, healthy body.

2012 is going to be such a fantastic (but crazy) year.  I am nervous and excited and overwhelmed and it's only January 3rd.  Here's to new and exciting things, brought to you by your favorite caffeinated redhead. :]