Cookies

Some girls can never have enough shoes.

For me, it's kitchenware. While shopping, I must physically touch every ceramic pitcher, platter, or bowl within 100 yards and comment to anyone who will listen - Oh my gosh! This is so beautiful! This time of year is especially bad, because stores are lining their shelves with new summer dishes. And while I'm not quite as bad when it comes to kitchen appliances, I did have a good ol' time at Target the other day, lifting each waffle maker up and down....(especially the one with the changeable grid so you can make duck or cow shaped waffles - ah!!)

Anyway, all that to say, a few weeks ago, when Jesse and I were browsing World Market and I spied a maple leaf cookie cutter, it was a no-brainer; I had to purchase. Think of all the events it could be useful for....July 1, Canadian Thanksgiving....

Okay, so maybe only 2 events, but still.

Since buying it, every time I opened our cutlery drawer, it made me remember that I had the cookie cutter and get all excited. But, life has a way of being busy, and I had not gotten a chance to use it.

Enter tonight....nothing on the books and I'm home alone with the pups. Definitely maple leaf cookie time! (It's in the spirit of the Olympics, after all.) I almost made royal icing and piped them in red and white, but that just seemed too Canadiany for an American gal who should clearly root for her own.


Why is it that shaped food is so happy? I remember one time when I was a kid, my mom made shaped pancakes, and it was so cool to have a letter N made just for me... and at Disney World, I may or may not begin my days with Mickey shaped waffles....

Canada day is only a few months away - I promise you this cookie cutter will get a work out.

Jada

Jesse and I ran some dinner over to my brother's last night and I got a non-phone photo this time! Jesse was quite content holding the camera while I held the baby. He is being true to his I don't touch babies rule.

An Eventful Saturday

This morning was full of fun events! Woke up to see a text message that my brother sent at midnight, letting us know they were at the hospital waiting for their first born to make an appearance.

I told them we could help out by going to get their dog, Jackson, and bringing him with us to Jesse's trail race, since they had no idea when they would be able to let the little guy out to pee or get some exercise. So, we got our own dogs loaded, picked up Jackson, and headed toward the race.

About ten miles into the drive we heard a loud pop. Two minutes later we were on the side of the road with a flat tire. Of course, we were already running slightly behind schedule since we made the extra stop to get Jackson. None the less, my trusty handyman had the SUV well stocked for a situation just like this, and within 10 minutes, the spare tire was on and we were back in action.

Got to the race just in time and Jesse and Monkey (who was in bib complete with her own time chip) ran down to the start line. The siren sounded before I made it to the start line with Horton and Jackson to see off the runners. Oh well, Horton was looking so handsome in his backpack, I was probably just being distracted by his cuteness.

I spent the next hour and a half walking around the park with Horton and Jackson while we waited for Jesse and Monks to near the finish line. Jesse will probably blog about this, but the trail was incredibly muddy, so I think everyone's times were a bit slower than anticipated. People were coming out with their lower half completely caked in mud. It was awesome. (Though Monkey needs a very serious bath now.) I tried to get a self-photo of Horton, Jackson and I waiting, but Jackson was a) too small, b) too fast and c) too squirmy to make it in any of the shots without just looking like a gray ball of blur. I did get this one of little bud and I that I really like though.


Anyway, we watched Jesse and Monkey cross the finish line, but unfortunately weren't able to stick around terribly long since Jesse still had to make it to work on time. He basically had time to collect his race loot and leave. This photo actually makes he and Monkey look pretty clean, but I can assure you, our floors tell a different story. =) (By the way, look how buff Jesse's calves have gotten.)


Back home, Jesse showered while I made his lunch, then out the door to work he went! After that, I headed over to the hospital to meet my niece, Jada Elsie. She peacefully snoozed away, so I held her until my arm fell asleep. I was silly enough to leave my camera in the car, so I have no non-grainy photos to show. But, rest assured, she's a cutie pie!


All in all, a good day! When I was out walking around the park with Horton and Jackson I was thinking about how I wish I could start every day with a long walk in the woods. Plus, anytime someone comes home covered in mud, that automatically means you must have done something fun. =)

Good ol' Ralph

Came across this today and liked it -

To know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived; this is to have succeeded. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Thirty!!

My favorite person ever turns 30 today!!! In honor of this, I give you my top thirty favorite Jesse memories/moments/admiration (in no particular order):

1. The way he told me he liked me, after having spent a looong day together. And I quote: I don't know about you, but I've never been able to spend 12 hours straight with just one person and not get REALLY annoyed.

2. Going to visit Jesse for the first time in Canada, and the way all the trees were in bloom in his mom's neighborhood. She has the prettiest trees ever!

3. Also on my first visit to Alberta, I had showered and gotten all ready for bed, and when I came out of the bathroom, I saw Jesse laying in his pj's snuggled up with Odie (his dog) waiting to say good night to me. I remember thinking at that moment that I had found the guy for me. (PJ's and a dog - does it get better!?)

4. I promised to never reveal this full story, but it involves eggs and our Dodge Aries in Texas. Makes me laugh every time I remember it.

5. The way he makes sure our dogs get a walk every single day, rain or shine.

6. The book/journal he kept for me while he was in Guatemala with Mercy Ships.

7. Valentine's Day when we were engaged - Jesse fell asleep while we watched the Wedding Singer, then woke up right after I turned the vcr off. Very angry, with sleepy eyes still half glazed, the conversation went like this:
J (very distraught): Are you going to let it run or shut it off!?
N: I turned it off.
J (even more upset): Are you going to let it run or SHUT IT OFF?
N (starting to laugh because he was making no sense): You're still sleepy, huh?
J: Big, heavy, frustrated sigh.
N (laughing): I don't know what you mean.
J (furrowed brows and declarative voice): YOU MUST BE TIRED!

8. The way he has a special chocolate chip cookie recipe, has memorized the cookbook page, and noted "good" on it.

9. Going to the Loose Moose when we were dating.

10. The first time Jesse showed me photos of his nephew, Trae. He was SO proud and could not wait to meet him in person. (We were in Kona when Trae was born).

11. How cute and fun he is on rides at Disney World. (In fact, I could probably throw every Disney memory of Jesse on my list of favorites.)

12. One trip back down from Canada, the border people took away our grapes. For the next three hours, I got to listen to Jesse sing a song about it. The best part? It was to the theme of Marcy Playground's "Sex and Candy".

13. Watching him open U2 tickets on his birthday.

14. The way he can fix anything without being shown how.

15. Getting to see him cross the line at his first marathon.

16. Upon hearing his first-born niece crying in the middle of the night a few months after she was born, Jesse wanted to comfort her. Yet, he has an I don't pick up babies rule. Sooooo....the obvious choice was for him to stick his pointer finger out, dangle it above her within arm's reach, and gently coo "It's okay, Hallie. It's okay."

17. Watching him ice skate or rollerblade. Gets me every time. He is so stinking good at it!

18. A nameless Colorado Sunday afternoon in our apartment. All I really remember is staring at our curtains while we were talking and laughing and thinking that it was a perfect moment/day.

19. The way he can think so critically and analytically; seeing every single angle of any debate and being able to find logic to back it up from any side.

20. The way he lets me decorate our house however I want. (And the way he repainted our living room all by himself as a surprise for me when I changed my mind about the color.)

21. The first day we spent with each of our dogs. For Horton, it was love at first sight, as he laid across Jesse and "claimed him". We felt like a family after getting Horton. For Abe, it was giving him Milk Bones at the Humane Society, introducing he and Horton, and gasping in awe as we brought him into our house and realized he was a BIG dog. And for Monkey it was a simple declaration from Jesse to me over the phone: "I have a dog and it's coming home with me."

22. The first meal he ever cooked for me - honey chicken. It was burned so bad, the pan was black, the condo smelled like smoke, and the chicken was nearly inedible. To this day, I remember it as a perfect meal.

23. The mental image of Jesse driving the Daytona from Denver to Fort Collins loaded down with 500 square foot of wooden floor planks.

24. Jesse introducing me to the wonders of Ikea.

25. The way he thinks all of my artwork is good, even when it's really not.

26. The way he thinks all of my cooking is good, even when it's really not.

27. The first time we met, he declared to me I don't care what you think of me. Three weeks from now I'll never see you again for the rest of my life!

28. The way he is compelled to put every food item in the freezer. I don't get it, but this is the way of Jesse.

29. Sitting on the King Kam stage late at night in Kona.

30. The way he has been willing to be adventurous with me, to move for silly dreams, to drive hours upon hours in a car with no a/c in the middle of summer, (or one with no heater in the middle of winter in Canada), and to explore all that life has to offer.

Cheers to the Birthday Boy!!