A Call For Visitors

Come one, come all, come y'all! (Alee came up with this :) )
This is our official invitation to family and friends to come visit us. Our apartment finally has enough furniture and decorations that it feels like a home and we're ready to show it off to you!
So, take a vacation day, catch a flight, and come play with us. Okay, so I know it's not that easy for most of you, but know that you're welcome to come visit us - we'd love visitors...or house- warming gifts (also Alee's idea - but I support it :) )

January was a success!

I have made progress on all of my New Year's resolutions in January...most notably working towards running a half marathon in March and trying out new recipes.  

I was so impressed with this chicken enchilada casserole recipe (maybe I just didn't have that high of expectations in the first place?) and thus I am going to share it with everyone.  It was really quick and simple and doesn't make a whole bunch which is perfect for us (it was out of my Cooking for Two cookbook), but it could easily be doubled for a more hungry family!

Try it out!

Chicken Enchilada Casserole (for two)

1/2 cup shredded cooked chicken (you can even get it in a can!)

1 small can diced green chilies

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1/2 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup sour cream

4-5 tortillas (it calls for corn but I use flour)

Mix all ingredients- except tortillas- together in small casserole dish.  Tear tortillas in to 2" pieces and fold into mixture.  Bake at 350* for 30 minutes.

Can you believe it is that simple!?!  We used the whole can of soup (what are you going to do with another half?) and were just a bit generous with everything else and it worked out just fine.  We ate ours with lettuce, sour cream, tomatoes, tortilla chips, olives, etc.  It was yummy!

Husband of the Year!

I think I may nominate Nicholas for husband of the year :)  He is very helpful and thoughtful and each time he does something spectacular I make a mental note to give him another "Husband of the Year" point.  Because my mind is also full of all sorts of other things and I definitely do not want to forget all that he does, I am going to post on the blog when he does things to prove he deserves the nomination.

(This picture was his first day at Transwestern...I forgot to include it in my last post!)

So here are a few examples:

Husband of the Year point #1- Nicholas went with me to Hobby Lobby and picked out silk flowers to decorate the top of our kitchen cabinets.

Husband of the Year point #2- I had to work Monday afternoon and Nicholas had the day off (MLK Day).  So while I was away at work Nick did the laundry, ran to the grocery store, and prepared dinner for us both.  It is not a role reversal that I would like permanently, but it was so nice to not worry about home-things while I was at work...for at least one day!

Husband of the Year point #3- Last night I returned home dead tired from work around 10:30pm.  I entered our room to find that he had switched our "night stands" to the correct sides of the bed (something I have been meaning to do since we switched our bed around a few weeks ago), had cleaned off the desk, and was waiting for me with a candle lit and quiet music playing.  After having a couple of long days it was sure a nice way to come home!

Stay tuned for more of his "Husband of the Year" points.

Nicholas works at Transwestern!

We feel very fortunate at this economically challenging time that Nicholas has found a job with Transwestern, a commercial real estate property management company, as a project accountant.  So far he has been learning a lot and really enjoying his work managing a few properties in California.  His office is in the Galleria area of Houston- a very chic part of town (all but the traffic!)

Last Friday, our three month anniversary, I was lucky enough to go down and meet him for lunch and get a sneak peek of where he spends his days.  I met his boss and co-workers, all of whom seemed very warm and friendly and complementary of Nicholas...of course!  I did the typical wife thing and made him pose for a few pictures (one at his desk, one of his name plate, and one of him outside the building- he works on the 12th floor).  Enjoy!

WOO HOO!!!

No mom, no Nick, no ipod...just me.  I ran five miles all by myself this morning.  Just me and my thoughts and a point 2.5 miles away from our apartment.

WOOHOO!

Contest photos!

These photos are in response to KatieMayer Lewis's contest on her blog at www.notesfromaveryredkitchen.blogspot.com.  

Nick uses his apron all the time; we have our recipe book holder out 24/7 on our counter (I am not sure if that one counts because Bryan made it but it was from Katie...); Nick needed to clip his nails-over the trash can; I own, read, and love The Little Prince; I have many pictures of me and Katie...this is a favorite; I can do something impressive- you sniff your upper lip until it plugs your nose! (or at least look funny trying!)

Enjoy Kati! (I did not misspell it- that was her Spa

nish name!) 

A New Year, A New Resolve

I know that my goals will be more likely to be achieved if I am accountable for them; thus, I am going to let everyone know about my New Years resolutions so that I have extra encouragement to do them this year.  

1. Try one new recipe a month.  

I get pretty comfortable with my staples (frozen french fries and pasta) and I would like to expand our options this year...not to mention that I want to use our spice rack and some of the many cookbooks we got for our wedding!

2. Do service.  

I came up with this one as I was walking from my apartment to my mom's house- there was trash along the road and I thought that if I had a bag I would have picked it up...but maybe not.  At BYU I got comfortable with a service project coming to me quite often- I think I am going to have to work a little harder here.  

3. Take more/better pictures.

Photography used to be something I was very active in and I miss it.  I still see an artistic shot here or there, but I don't really take the time to take them; and even if I do nothing really comes of it!  

4. Run a half-marathon.

I have been building up my daily jogs (this morning I went the whole five with my mom) and I think that a half-marathon is an attainable goal if I keep running consistently.  The one I have my eye on is in March which means that there might be an opportunity to run another one later in the year if I recover!

Now I feel more responsible for the goals I have set- people know and now I can't back out!  Wish me luck!

YEE HAW!

I am a bit behind on my blogging...here are my parents all dressed up for their Halloween party!  They make good cow-people, eh?