Adventures

 

Larry and I took Sara down to Huntington Beach on Saturday. It was a perfect day! The weather was warm and we enjoyed a yummy meal followed by a nice stroll. It was definitely the kind of day that makes me grateful to live here.

Tonight another adventure begins as Sara and I head off to Germany with Tanja and Ryan! We'll be visiting Susi first, and then we're off to introduce Sara to her ur-Oma (great grandma). Sara has a bit of a cold, so let's hope she does okay with the travel and the time change!

While I'm up...

I finished The Namesake a few days ago. Hmm. I liked it, but I didn't love it. Maybe it was built up too much by my friends' enthusiasm? I liked the story, and it was well-written, but it was too much narration for me. I mean, the narrator told just about everything and showed too little. I wanted more dialogue and a little less commentary. But that's just me.

I haven't decided yet what I'll read next. Any suggestions?

Into the Wild

Larry and I just finished watching Into the Wild. You know, I read the book almost eight years ago, when Larry and I were engaged and he was living in the apartment in Huntington Beach. I remember that we watched an Imax movie about an Everest expedition, and thereafter I promptly read Into thin Air. I loved it so much that, upon my sister Susi's recommendation, I quickly followed with Into the Wild. Honestly, the book haunted me for a long, long time.

Tonight, the film haunts me in the same way. There's something incredibly eerie about it, but it's also heartbreaking: the idealism, the naivete, the loss. The movie is painfully beautiful.

Recipe review: Jerk Chicken with rice, black beans, and pineapple

I improvised a lot on this one. I realized that I had forgotten to buy pineapple, plus the sauce tasted too acidic to me when I followed the recipe. After the chicken was cooked, I threw two chopped apples and a handful of sliced scallions into the pan and cooked until the apples were soft. I also poured about 1/8-1/4 of a cup additional jerk sauce into the mix.


The end result was good. Larry said he liked it and gave it an 8 out of 10. I agree and will definitely make this again in my improvised style. :)

Jerk Chicken with Rice, Black Beans, and Pineapple

1 cup long-grain white rice
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup spiced rum or orange juice
2 tablespoons jerk sauce (such as Pickapeppa Sauce)
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
4 6-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Kosher salt and pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
8 ounces fresh pineapple, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 bunch scallions, sliced

Cook the rice according to the package directions.

Combine the vinegar, rum, jerk sauce, and ginger in a measuring cup or small bowl; set aside.

Pound the chicken to an even thickness. Season it with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from heat and add the vinegar mixture. Return the skillet to low heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes.Divide the chicken and sauce among plates.

Stir the beans into the rice. In a medium bowl, combine the pineapple and scallions. Serve both with the chicken.

Tip: The chili peppers in jerk sauce shouldn't overwhelm the other ingredients. Taste yours before adding it to a dish. If the sauce is too spicy, cut the amount you use in the recipe by half.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 542(10% from fat); FAT 6g (sat 1g); SUGAR 7g; PROTEIN 40g; CHOLESTEROL 66mg; SODIUM 357mg; FIBER 11g; CARBOHYDRATE 73g

Source: Real Simple, February 2008

Fun times!

Brian, Melissa, and Zoey came over on Saturday for a belated birthday celebration for Brian, and then Tanja and I took the kids over to Claire's today. Both occasions were tons of fun!

Things I love about you that I don't want to forget

I'm finding parenting to be like marriage in the sense that you always love the person, but sometimes that love is more invigorating, inspiring, intoxicating than at other times.

The past thirty hours or so have been especially sweet. It doesn't hurt that Baby Girl has been in a really great mood today, but it's more than that. Right before my eyes, she is changing. She is sitting up more easily, exploring her world more, becoming ever more alert.

So I want to write this down RIGHT NOW. I don't want to forget or get too busy and find the moment has passed.

Things I love about you that I don't want to forget
The way you shake your head back and forth before you settle down to fall asleep
When you nuzzle into my neck as I rock you
How your eyes roll back into your head during a nursing session
The way you pull off the breast and smile up at me
The shudder-sigh you let out as you let go and sleep
The profuse raspberries you like to blow
Your little squeals
The way you bicycle your legs with excitement
Your intent furrowed brows
The half suprised, half pleased look on your face when you roll yourself over
Your adorable expression when you cry that makes me half not want to rescue you
The way you pull your legs up when you're sleeping restlessly
How your face lights up when you see your daddy
Your little shy smiles (smile-look away) that you do with strangers
The way you splash in the bath
The way you smell
The way you touch my face and smile

How small you were when we brought you home
When you were my tiny, swaddled papoose
The way you used to purse your lips
How tiny your little lips were
How you used to sleep on my chest
The way you used to look off to the sides all the time
The way your arms used to reach out in uncontrolled little movements
Your snarling head shakes as you would try to latch on to nurse
The curious expression you would get when we would feed you with the dropper
How you looked exactly like your daddy when you slept
Your first smiles
That unbelievably thick hair
The way you smelled

And even before that,
The way I could feel your bottom up under my ribs when you were still inside me
How you would seem to "float up" after a meal
How you would turn and kick
That time you grew still as I sang to you

"I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living, my baby you'll be."

Yes, I'm turning into a sappy mushpot... Where's my good ol' snarky self when I need her? ;)

Zoo Day

Larry and I watched Ryan last weekend so Tanja and Eric could go to Vegas. Larry had the brilliant idea to take the kids to the zoo, and Brian and Zoey decided to join us. It was actually a lot of fun, but it was soooo hot! Most of the animals were just lying in the shade, trying to stay cool!

It was a good time, though. Next time we'll just make sure the weather is cooler.