I made a vegetable beef soup on Monday. Seems like a pretty normal, maybe even ho-hum dinner ... except that I look at my bowl of soup and see so much more than just veggies and beef! First, the beef came from a grass-fed, pasture-raised cow from Cedar Summit Farm, less than 45 minutes from our house. Since I am reading Omnivore's Dilemma, I am doubly grateful that this cow didn't eat corn or live in a feedlot!
The beans I pulled out of the freezer were grown in my garden, as were the carrots, which I pulled out of the ground fresh. The corn was purchased at the farmer's market from a local farmer; when I bought it in August, I blanched the corn and cut corn off the cob for freezing.
For added flavor, I added homemade tomato sauce, made from all the tomatoes in my garden in September. My tomato sauce tends to be juicier than a commercial sauce, with chunks of tomatoes and tons of fresh basil (also grown in our garden) ... it almost tastes like a soup itself, so I knew it would be a great addition to my fall and winter soups!
Oddly enough, the only thing in the soup with unknown origins was the onion! Other than that, it is a very local, very delicious, all organic and healthy meal! It makes me so much more excited to eat dinner :).
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Scrapbooking Weekend
Last weekend was the annual fall scrapbooking retreat that my mom and I have attended for years. A bunch of women gather at Superior Shores in Two Harbors, where a huge conference room is dedicated to scrapbooking ... 24 hours a day.
This year Matt tagged along so he could spend the weekend photographing along the North Shore (sorry, Matt, it's not a "coast"!). His friend Jamie wanted to spend the weekend with Matt (both of the guys went last year as well), so his girlfriend Becky joined the scrapbooking ladies.
Matt and I had the most fabulous room! The hotel ran out of two-bed rooms (so many scrapbookers were women who requested two beds) so we were given one of their Lodge Suites. Full kitchen, two gas fireplaces, huge jacuzzi tub - beautiful! We felt really spoiled.
And of course, Hannah came along! This is a super dog-friendly hotel. We shared doggie duty, so Hannah spent many hours in the scrapbooking room with me, laying under the table. She was such a good girl! She barked at people who tried to pet her, of course (so hopefully fellow scrappers didn't get too annoyed), but the rest of the time she was quite content to lay under the table. I wish I had gotten a picture of my four-legged scrapbooking buddy to post here! Unfortunately I didn't take any pics of the weekend.
This year Matt tagged along so he could spend the weekend photographing along the North Shore (sorry, Matt, it's not a "coast"!). His friend Jamie wanted to spend the weekend with Matt (both of the guys went last year as well), so his girlfriend Becky joined the scrapbooking ladies.
Matt and I had the most fabulous room! The hotel ran out of two-bed rooms (so many scrapbookers were women who requested two beds) so we were given one of their Lodge Suites. Full kitchen, two gas fireplaces, huge jacuzzi tub - beautiful! We felt really spoiled.
And of course, Hannah came along! This is a super dog-friendly hotel. We shared doggie duty, so Hannah spent many hours in the scrapbooking room with me, laying under the table. She was such a good girl! She barked at people who tried to pet her, of course (so hopefully fellow scrappers didn't get too annoyed), but the rest of the time she was quite content to lay under the table. I wish I had gotten a picture of my four-legged scrapbooking buddy to post here! Unfortunately I didn't take any pics of the weekend.
NKOTB
I had heard rumors about the NKOTB reunion and concert tour, and when I saw a news article a couple weeks ago about the Twin Cities concert, I laughed and thought, "oh my god, I've got to send this to Brooke!!" Brooke and Sarah are my cousins that I was a nanny for in the summers while we were growing up...and the kids were corrupted by my New Kids fanatacism from an early age! I knew that Sarah was studying hard for a big exam and was too far away for a Tuesday night concert - but about a week after I sent her the article, Brooke texted me and said that she wanted to go!
Last Tuesday was the big day. We had arranged for Brooke, her husband Ryan, and Ryan's sister Jessie to meet me at The Liffey - which, by the way, was a great place to hang out before the concert! When they arrived, Ryan walked in wearing my NKOTB jacket that I bought years ago and that had been unearthed from my parents' basement! It was hilarious to see him wearing it (I have to say, Ryan was a great guy for going to the concert with us - and NKOTB credited the few guys in the concert as being some of the smartest guys in the state!).
We were in a secluded corner of The Liffey, and an hour or so later we girls decided to hit the restrooms. We came around the corner and all had to laugh at the site ... an entire bar, jam-packed almost solely with women in their late 20s/early 30s. How often do you get to see a place filled with one demographic group? And so many of them were wearing vintage New Kids t-shirts, many of the women with make-up and hair circa late 80s/early 90s. And my jacket got many compliments :).
Of course, the bathroom line at The Liffey was looonnnnggg - so many women! One woman was smart and wrangled up a spare toilet paper roll, and passed it along the line so we could be prepared when we got in the stall and keep the line moving (thankfully the Xcel Center had foreseen the restroom issues and had resigned some of the men's rooms as "Women").
Concert time came, and we found our seats - decent seats with straight-on views of the stage. Opening acts took about an hour, and then ... the New Kids came out on stage to thousands upon thousands of screaming women!! The roar was absolutely deafening - I've never been to a concert this loud (and yes, I was at a New Kids concert back in 1990 as well as many concerts since). From there, it was two solid hours of great entertainment - new songs, great hits from the past, and you never knew what was going to happen next! From the gang appearing on a rotating stage in the middle of the floor for a couple songs, to costume changes and solos, to Jordan appearing shirtless and Donnie grabbing his crotch (well that part I could have done without ...) ... Brooke and I agreed that it was a great show and we had a ton more fun than we thought we would! I've never been so entertained by a concert ... too many of them just don't keep you interested for the length of the concert. I'd gladly pay the fifty bucks to go again.
My friend Nina was at the concert, too ... so she and I spent part of the evening texting each other. She was interested in seeing my jacket and suggested I wear it at our lunch date the next day - so wear it I did! My friend Chad took this photo of me in Byerly's with my fabulous jacket.
Last Tuesday was the big day. We had arranged for Brooke, her husband Ryan, and Ryan's sister Jessie to meet me at The Liffey - which, by the way, was a great place to hang out before the concert! When they arrived, Ryan walked in wearing my NKOTB jacket that I bought years ago and that had been unearthed from my parents' basement! It was hilarious to see him wearing it (I have to say, Ryan was a great guy for going to the concert with us - and NKOTB credited the few guys in the concert as being some of the smartest guys in the state!).
We were in a secluded corner of The Liffey, and an hour or so later we girls decided to hit the restrooms. We came around the corner and all had to laugh at the site ... an entire bar, jam-packed almost solely with women in their late 20s/early 30s. How often do you get to see a place filled with one demographic group? And so many of them were wearing vintage New Kids t-shirts, many of the women with make-up and hair circa late 80s/early 90s. And my jacket got many compliments :).
Of course, the bathroom line at The Liffey was looonnnnggg - so many women! One woman was smart and wrangled up a spare toilet paper roll, and passed it along the line so we could be prepared when we got in the stall and keep the line moving (thankfully the Xcel Center had foreseen the restroom issues and had resigned some of the men's rooms as "Women").
Concert time came, and we found our seats - decent seats with straight-on views of the stage. Opening acts took about an hour, and then ... the New Kids came out on stage to thousands upon thousands of screaming women!! The roar was absolutely deafening - I've never been to a concert this loud (and yes, I was at a New Kids concert back in 1990 as well as many concerts since). From there, it was two solid hours of great entertainment - new songs, great hits from the past, and you never knew what was going to happen next! From the gang appearing on a rotating stage in the middle of the floor for a couple songs, to costume changes and solos, to Jordan appearing shirtless and Donnie grabbing his crotch (well that part I could have done without ...) ... Brooke and I agreed that it was a great show and we had a ton more fun than we thought we would! I've never been so entertained by a concert ... too many of them just don't keep you interested for the length of the concert. I'd gladly pay the fifty bucks to go again.
My friend Nina was at the concert, too ... so she and I spent part of the evening texting each other. She was interested in seeing my jacket and suggested I wear it at our lunch date the next day - so wear it I did! My friend Chad took this photo of me in Byerly's with my fabulous jacket.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Pics from the Arboretum
Yay, the pics are in! You can see the gorgeous pics from the Arboretum on Matt's flickr page.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
The most gorgeous fall weekend
The colors are simply amazing this weekend. I found myself today standing in the most perfect golden stand of maples ever created, staring up at the layers of branches and thanking god for maple trees!
The whole weekend has been golden, actually. Friday night Matt’s colleague Bryn and her husband Andy came out our way for a portrait session. While the three of them were at the Arboretum doing photos, I was home organizing and cooking up a storm – and loving every minute of it. My menu included balsamic chicken, butternut squash risotto, and apple crisp with ice cream for dessert. Mmmmm! I had only met Bryn briefly (at Erika’s wedding, where she worked as Matt’s assistant), and had never met Andy … and Matt and I really enjoyed our evening with them! They’re both very wonderful people. Good food, good wine, great company – it was the perfect Friday evening.
On Saturday my coworker and friend Chad came over, and I took him touring around Chaska and Victoria. As planners, we often discuss various developments and towns we are familiar with, so we looked at historic downtown Chaska; Jonathan, the new town development of the 70s; Chevalle, the new conservation development; and a few other places along the way. It was also great to have Hannah come with us, so she got to enjoy the beautiful day as well. After Chad left, Hannah and I tackled a lot of clean-up work in the garden, before coming inside to relax and enjoy a movie.
This morning Matt and I enjoyed my favorite type of Sunday morning at home: a homemade breakfast, great coffee, the Sunday paper. We finished our summer task of staining the deck, and then journeyed over to the Arboretum for fall colors. While it was frustrating to have to get through the crowds on every path and street around, it was also easy to see why they were all there. The Arboretum was in full regalia – stunning colors everywhere you looked, and that gorgeous fall smell, and mounds of leaves on the paths to enjoy walking through.
Matt took some beautiful pics but they aren't available yet - I'll try to upload some soon!
The whole weekend has been golden, actually. Friday night Matt’s colleague Bryn and her husband Andy came out our way for a portrait session. While the three of them were at the Arboretum doing photos, I was home organizing and cooking up a storm – and loving every minute of it. My menu included balsamic chicken, butternut squash risotto, and apple crisp with ice cream for dessert. Mmmmm! I had only met Bryn briefly (at Erika’s wedding, where she worked as Matt’s assistant), and had never met Andy … and Matt and I really enjoyed our evening with them! They’re both very wonderful people. Good food, good wine, great company – it was the perfect Friday evening.
On Saturday my coworker and friend Chad came over, and I took him touring around Chaska and Victoria. As planners, we often discuss various developments and towns we are familiar with, so we looked at historic downtown Chaska; Jonathan, the new town development of the 70s; Chevalle, the new conservation development; and a few other places along the way. It was also great to have Hannah come with us, so she got to enjoy the beautiful day as well. After Chad left, Hannah and I tackled a lot of clean-up work in the garden, before coming inside to relax and enjoy a movie.
This morning Matt and I enjoyed my favorite type of Sunday morning at home: a homemade breakfast, great coffee, the Sunday paper. We finished our summer task of staining the deck, and then journeyed over to the Arboretum for fall colors. While it was frustrating to have to get through the crowds on every path and street around, it was also easy to see why they were all there. The Arboretum was in full regalia – stunning colors everywhere you looked, and that gorgeous fall smell, and mounds of leaves on the paths to enjoy walking through.
Matt took some beautiful pics but they aren't available yet - I'll try to upload some soon!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Cutest dog collars!
While reading the latest installment of one of my favorite blogs, Pampered Pooch Playground, I learned about a local company, Bark+Biscuit. Their collars and leashes are so cute! I so wish I could get one for Hannah, but I think Matt would not understand such an impractical purchase!
Monday, October 13, 2008
feelings about the hunt
I shot my first grouse on Saturday!
After adopting our Brittany, Hannah, I knew I wanted to see if she enjoyed hunting. Even though I grew up in a hunting family and enjoyed following my dad and brother through the woods, I hadn’t ever hunted. But this year I bought a license (trying to buy a license from Gander Mountain was an adventure in and of itself!), and on Saturday brought Hannah to my family’s hunting shack to hunt with my brother, Adam, and his dog, Molly.
On our first walk of the day, Molly scented a grouse in the fields just to the west of our shack. Adam saw Molly flush the grouse into the tree, motioned for me to follow him, and then pointed to it and said “it’s in the tree – go ahead and take it!” One shot later (thank god for that summer of skeet shooting a couple years ago so I was at least comfortable with the shotgun) and it was on the ground.
What an adrenaline rush! It was so crazy to have that experience. I was pretty proud of myself, and of Hannah, who, despite earlier indications that she’d be terrified of the gun shot, didn’t whine, cry, or try to get closer to me. She ran right up to the bird on the ground and was very excited to smell it!
The rest of the day was much quieter. Lots of difficult walking through the woods (note to self: think twice before following Adam into the woods again! :P). Seriously, it was great to be in the woods and learn from my bro. We heard/saw two more grouse that day, but had no chance of shooting them.
I always wondered how I would feel if I actually shot something. My dad (rightly so) deemed it imperative for kids in a house with guns to take firearm safety … I passed with flying colors, but never wanted to kill anything. And that morphed into my vegetarian/animal rights phase in college. I still believe strongly in animal rights, but as I’ve become focused on sustainability and the local foods movement, I’ve come to regard hunting as one of the most sustainable food choices possible. Wild game is local; it lives off the land and does not need the incredible inputs that animal farming does; populations are managed; it forces people to know where their food comes from and to get close to nature; and it is very healthy.
Was I sad to end the life of a fellow creature? Immensely so. This was a beautiful bird, running through our woods, simply living its life. I love birdwatching and keep a bird book at my desk; actually, I simply love the fact that we share this earth with so many beautiful, engaging creatures. It is not like me to want to kill things … yet we cannot live on this earth without killing things. Whether we eat beef from the store, pollute the water, or simply take up space that used to be habitat for multiple species (instead of just humans), our mere existence means we kill things. It sucks. But it’s the way life is. I don’t want to shield myself from that fact by always eating packaged foods that are no longer recognizable as the creatures they come from. I was very sad for this bird, and sent up a prayer of gratitude for its life. And I recognized the importance of experiencing where our food comes from. And believe me, when I eat it, I will be one hundred times more grateful for that piece of meat than for something I bought from the store. So, I will continue hunting, at least for now, and will work on making myself less squeamish about the cleaning! I will respect myself more if I can stand the gory details of what it means to be an animal on this planet.
After adopting our Brittany, Hannah, I knew I wanted to see if she enjoyed hunting. Even though I grew up in a hunting family and enjoyed following my dad and brother through the woods, I hadn’t ever hunted. But this year I bought a license (trying to buy a license from Gander Mountain was an adventure in and of itself!), and on Saturday brought Hannah to my family’s hunting shack to hunt with my brother, Adam, and his dog, Molly.
On our first walk of the day, Molly scented a grouse in the fields just to the west of our shack. Adam saw Molly flush the grouse into the tree, motioned for me to follow him, and then pointed to it and said “it’s in the tree – go ahead and take it!” One shot later (thank god for that summer of skeet shooting a couple years ago so I was at least comfortable with the shotgun) and it was on the ground.
What an adrenaline rush! It was so crazy to have that experience. I was pretty proud of myself, and of Hannah, who, despite earlier indications that she’d be terrified of the gun shot, didn’t whine, cry, or try to get closer to me. She ran right up to the bird on the ground and was very excited to smell it!
The rest of the day was much quieter. Lots of difficult walking through the woods (note to self: think twice before following Adam into the woods again! :P). Seriously, it was great to be in the woods and learn from my bro. We heard/saw two more grouse that day, but had no chance of shooting them.
I always wondered how I would feel if I actually shot something. My dad (rightly so) deemed it imperative for kids in a house with guns to take firearm safety … I passed with flying colors, but never wanted to kill anything. And that morphed into my vegetarian/animal rights phase in college. I still believe strongly in animal rights, but as I’ve become focused on sustainability and the local foods movement, I’ve come to regard hunting as one of the most sustainable food choices possible. Wild game is local; it lives off the land and does not need the incredible inputs that animal farming does; populations are managed; it forces people to know where their food comes from and to get close to nature; and it is very healthy.
Was I sad to end the life of a fellow creature? Immensely so. This was a beautiful bird, running through our woods, simply living its life. I love birdwatching and keep a bird book at my desk; actually, I simply love the fact that we share this earth with so many beautiful, engaging creatures. It is not like me to want to kill things … yet we cannot live on this earth without killing things. Whether we eat beef from the store, pollute the water, or simply take up space that used to be habitat for multiple species (instead of just humans), our mere existence means we kill things. It sucks. But it’s the way life is. I don’t want to shield myself from that fact by always eating packaged foods that are no longer recognizable as the creatures they come from. I was very sad for this bird, and sent up a prayer of gratitude for its life. And I recognized the importance of experiencing where our food comes from. And believe me, when I eat it, I will be one hundred times more grateful for that piece of meat than for something I bought from the store. So, I will continue hunting, at least for now, and will work on making myself less squeamish about the cleaning! I will respect myself more if I can stand the gory details of what it means to be an animal on this planet.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Tailgate Away!
As part of a committee I'm on at work, I was one of the people in charge of our Tailgating Event today. Kick-off was scheduled at 12:00 noon, and the sun came out just before everyone poured out of our building! It was a gorgeous day with golden leaves blowing across the parking lot.
We grilled a barbecue lunch, and sold tickets as a fundraiser for Second Harvest Heartland. Everything followed our tailgating theme - the tickets looked like Ticketmaster tickets, everyone was encouraged to wear their team colors, we had a special tailgating area for people to park, and the highlight of the day was a Little Smokies Eating Contest - so much fun!
The excitement today made up for my frustration last night ... when Matt called me while I was out shopping to tell me our crazy psycho puppy had broken into my office, strewn files and chewed up crayons around the room, and then took books off the shelves and chewed on them - she's never done this before! We are completely puzzled about why she chose to be this destructive yesterday, and why of all things she selected Matt's Star Wars books off the shelves to destroy.
Tonight she and I are up north visiting with my mom before heading to the hunting shack tomorrow. The colors up here are gorgeous!
Monday, October 06, 2008
Does ice cream cure headaches?
My husband came home with a pint of chocolate ice cream today, and put some in a dish for his wife-on-the-couch-home-with-a-headache. I thought nothing could make me feel worse so I dove in ... whaddya know, within about four bites I was feeling better!
I actually went into work for a few hours this morning before succumbing to the headache and accompanied nausea (blyech). I did have to laugh when I came home, though, and saw the surprises Hannah had left me! Matt had done the morning ritual of Hannah-clearing the house (trying to put away everything our dog can get in to). He put a loaf of fresh baked bread (sob!) behind the stand mixer at the back of our counter. Well, Hannah has gotten bread from back there before, and sure enough, she did it again and gobbled up the result of hours of baking yesterday. He also missed the grocery bag on the floor, and Hannah dug into an entire bag of tortilla chips. Oh, our devil child ...
In other news, I had a pretty productive weekend. After coming home from officiating a bike race on Saturday, I felt motivated enough to start painting the laundry room. I've wanted to paint this room ever since I moved in, even more so after Hannah's redecorating last year. I had some leftover paint my mom had given me, so I started in with the long process of spackling, sanding, washing walls, and painting! I got two walls done ... two to go! It's now a nice, soft yellow color - and looks great, if I do say so myself!
Matt was busy with photography, as always. He photographed a wedding on Saturday and the Twin Cities Marathon yesterday. He put some pics from the marathon on his blog.
I actually went into work for a few hours this morning before succumbing to the headache and accompanied nausea (blyech). I did have to laugh when I came home, though, and saw the surprises Hannah had left me! Matt had done the morning ritual of Hannah-clearing the house (trying to put away everything our dog can get in to). He put a loaf of fresh baked bread (sob!) behind the stand mixer at the back of our counter. Well, Hannah has gotten bread from back there before, and sure enough, she did it again and gobbled up the result of hours of baking yesterday. He also missed the grocery bag on the floor, and Hannah dug into an entire bag of tortilla chips. Oh, our devil child ...
In other news, I had a pretty productive weekend. After coming home from officiating a bike race on Saturday, I felt motivated enough to start painting the laundry room. I've wanted to paint this room ever since I moved in, even more so after Hannah's redecorating last year. I had some leftover paint my mom had given me, so I started in with the long process of spackling, sanding, washing walls, and painting! I got two walls done ... two to go! It's now a nice, soft yellow color - and looks great, if I do say so myself!
Matt was busy with photography, as always. He photographed a wedding on Saturday and the Twin Cities Marathon yesterday. He put some pics from the marathon on his blog.
Thursday, October 02, 2008
Happy October everyone!
October is my favorite month of year. It’s still sunny and nice enough to spend time outside, and the air takes on a crispness and freshness, combined with the lovely earthy scent of decaying leaves, that is refreshing after summer’s heat and humidity. October is sunny and alive, and yet, with its early sunsets and cool evenings, also invites you to relax by the fire with a book (in my mind, this is a crackling fire that feeds the soul, not the fake flip-on-a-switch gas fireplace we have!). I am so happy that the month is here, and hope it is a joyful month for all of you.
In my last entry I wrote about the hundreds of geese flying over our house. Today I took a walk over lunch and watched all the geese congregating around the ponds and lake along Carlson Parkway. I wanted to say to them, “you guys are so lucky. Sure, you have to migrate long distances and survive predators … but look, you get to sit out here, on the grass and in the water and in the sun, all day long! No bills to pay, no offices to sit in … heck, you don’t even have to worry about doing laundry!” Yes, I was jealous of creatures who get to follow nature’s patterns and their own instincts.
Of course, October is hunting season. My brother and his dog, Molly, have already been out hunting several times. He sent me this picture of all the burs Molly collected after one day of hunting:
In my last entry I wrote about the hundreds of geese flying over our house. Today I took a walk over lunch and watched all the geese congregating around the ponds and lake along Carlson Parkway. I wanted to say to them, “you guys are so lucky. Sure, you have to migrate long distances and survive predators … but look, you get to sit out here, on the grass and in the water and in the sun, all day long! No bills to pay, no offices to sit in … heck, you don’t even have to worry about doing laundry!” Yes, I was jealous of creatures who get to follow nature’s patterns and their own instincts.
Of course, October is hunting season. My brother and his dog, Molly, have already been out hunting several times. He sent me this picture of all the burs Molly collected after one day of hunting:
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