Merry Christmas!

Wishing everyone a safe, healthy holiday and a prosperous New Year!

Ready for Christmas

Turkey left overs remain in the refrigerator and the memories of another Thanksgiving meal are fading away. All remnants of autumn holidays have been put away for the season and glimmering lights replace the warm tones of a season past. The tree is up, stockings have been hung, some gifts already wrapped, and we are on to the Christmas holiday!

Black Friday

A few years ago, I ventured out on black Friday on a whim at 5 a.m. in the morning and absolutely loved the energy of the crowds. It had been the first time ever to experience the craziness of black Friday. Last year I had not ventured out quite as early, but did attempt the crowds earlier than normal. This year I decided to get up before 4 a.m. and take my daughter out on this excursion for the first time. I believe we have started a tradition! The plan was to purchase a specific gift item and then just enjoy the excitement of the crowds. About 11 hours later, with 90% of my list purchased, and two sets of tired feet...we returned home. The main thing is we spent some much deserved girl time together. Something which I appreciate these days considering my daughter needs less mom and daughter time with me as she gets older.

Unfortunately, the one thing I did not do in the morning, was read Friday's ads and so we will return to the stores to exchange one gift item for a better deal today. Then on to Christmas decorating...another tradition I am hoping to maintain over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Thanksgiving

Today my family was thankful to be together, in our own home, enjoying a quiet holiday meal together. This has been a very stressful and crazy year for our family so to enjoy time together is what we all were most thankful for today. And, what an amazing day it was....with a just as amazing meal. There was a warm fire in our fireplace all day, mulled wine, a little PS3 action, the Green Bay Packers game on TV, and finally a table full of traditional Thanksgiving faire.

Sunday Dinner

We continue to eat dinner as a family at least one day per week and it seems to be Sunday. I love cooking and have decided to make this day my experimental day of cooking. Yesterday, my husband requested Swedish Meatballs for dinner, which is a family favorite. I determined I was not able to experiment much with this meal and tried to make at least one new item which was the Braised Red Cabbage. I found a great recipe from my favorite chef - Guy Fieri on The Food TV Network. It was fabulous even though no one else in my family likes cabbage. Accompanying the meal was butternut squash soup, applesauce, German style cucumbers, and for dessert apple streudel and ice cream.

Soccer

Although it is quite blustery outside, the kids are still playing outdoor soccer. We had two days worth of games this weekend and now we are on to indoor practices for the season. This year is a new experience with trying out a club team for the first time. If I recall, we might get one month off before starting the year over again. So far our son loves it and can finally say he is on a winning team. On to basketball season next!

Cancer

When Matt went to rent his tuxedo for the black tie event in Chicago, he thought it would be most appropriate to go with pink. Apparently, they call him pinky at work because of his pink golf balls used at company golf outings. But more importantly, he took this opportunity to help support the cancer foundation.

Just about a couple months ago, Matt's step-sister was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is only 42 years old and has two young children. Fortunately, the cancer was caught early enough through a routine mammogram. However, doctors did find cancer cells within her lymph nodes, which meant surgery. The good news is they have not found the cancer spread to any major organs, and she has been advised by some, not to react too quickly on deciding whether or not to have a mastectomy at this point.

She is recovering well after going through the removal of lymph nodes this past week. There will be some ongoing problems with her arm on the side they took the lymph nodes. The good news is she can live with those problems and now has more time to determine whether or not to have a mastectomy. Chemo and radiation treatments will be next with the hopes she can be completely cured of the horrible disease which has taken over her life.

The 42nd Annual Gambol

My husband received an invitation from the president of Fair Oaks Farms (his employer), Mike Thompson, to attend the Gambol. The Gambol is an annual event which helps to benefit the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Greater Chicago. This was the first black tie event, aside from our wedding day, we had ever been invited to and it was quite an honor to be guests. Mike Thompson was recognized for his hard work with the foundation. There was an incredible video presentation of his dedication as well as the work of the foundation. Matt and I realized just what a great individual Mike is in this world. If you ever have the opportunity to meet Mike Thompson, he is a genuinely kind person, and an amazing businessman. While attending the Gambol, we both realized just how amazing Mike is, and what a perfect addition to society he really is.

The event was held at the Hilton on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. There was a fabulous appetizer buffet including a lamp chop station, silent auction items, champagne and just about any other beverage you wanted. Dinner was outstanding! The menu included:

Smoked sturgeon with egg mimosa and salmon roe caviar
Salad of butter and Lola Rosa lettuces with citrus and sun-dried cranberries dressed with pomegranate vinaigrette
Grilled petite filet mignon with red-onion marmalade in a red wine reduction paired with bronzed mahi-mahi
Chunky cherry tomato, caper and kalamata olive compote
Fall root vegetable smash
Bundled green beans and butternut squash mousse
Artisan dinner rolls

The dessert platters were alternating between guests (so you could share with your spouse):
Vanilla sponge with white chocolate mousse and fall berry compote
Bailey's Irish Cream mousse paired (the mousse was in the center of a white chocolate dice) with a chocolate espresso tartlet

Wine pairings:
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir
Robert Mondavi Private Select

After dinner there was dancing, a voice auction, the presentation and then we were invited to gamble and eat more desserts with a full buffet of finger desserts and an incredible copper cappuccino machine.

I did not want the night to end, but all good things must come to an end. Matt headed home with his co-workers on the private coach they rented and I made my way back to my brother's in Oak Park, IL.

Inspiration

Part of my daily ritual includes reading a page out of the book 365 Prescriptions for the Soul Daily Messages of Inspiration, Hope and Love. This book provides a great start to my day in the right direction. A good start to the day always helps to soften the bumps in the road during the day.

Today's quote is created by Joseph Campbell -

The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.

Solution of the day -

Spend some time in the dark today.

Warm Breakfast

Fall is a great time of year to cook up a warm breakfast and oatmeal is one of my favorites. I decided there were just way too many oats in the cupboard to let go to waste, so I searched the web and found a recipe for Baked Oatmeal. I added chopped apples to this recipe and used raisins instead of the dried cranberries. The oatmeal was good, although a bit on the dry side. I would add less oats or more milk to the recipe the next time I make it. When reheating a bowl of this oatmeal, just add some milk into the bowl and heat thoroughly in the microwave.

Fall Comfort Food

Families no longer have dinner at a family dinner table due to schedules gone wild. Instead of quality family time at home, family time has now become racing from one activity to the other in the family car, and dining on McDonald's while in route. Our house is no different. In fact, this has been a crazy fall, with coaching, volleyball, soccer practice, or some school activity literally every night of the week since August. Although I am quite exhausted by the weekend, and we are still running around to activities, I am attempting to bring back dinner table time on Sundays. There is something very meaningful about sitting as a family at the dinner table on a Sunday.

This past Sunday, I decided to take advantage of the huge pork loin in my refrigerator, and the tons of sweet potatoes and squash in my pantry. I surfed the web for recipes that looked worthwhile trying and was quite pleased with my findings. On the Epicurious site I found a wonderful recipe for Bacon-Wrapped Maple Pork Loin, which was a fabulous meat dish, and all the flavors of fall. Next for a side dish, I found a scrumptious recipe for Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Gratin with Manchego Cheese. One thing I would maybe add to this dish is some Yukon Gold potatoes to cut some of the sweetness from the squash and sweet potatoes, but even as is, the dish was yummy.

What is a Sunday dinner without dessert? Fall brings a harvest of great apples, therefore, I could not resist trying an apple crisp which I found on my favorite foodie site - Food TV Network. I chose an apple crisp recipe created by the Neeleys. The recipe was easy and quite flavorful, however, I did not care for the green apples in the original recipe and would definitely use McIntosh apples the next time I make this recipe. With a dollop of caramel dipping sauce, some whipped cream and a side of hot apple cider to sip on.....our Sunday family dinner was complete.

A Reflection In the Mirror

On October 11th, I turned the ripe age of 45 years old. It is a known fact that I have never liked the 'fives'......25, 35, and now 45. I feel as though I have climbed to the top of the hill and now I am on my downward travel to yet another decade and one closer to the end of life. My personality is one of a child....even at 45 years of age. However, the mirror does not lie.

As a woman, I notice all the changes taking place to my body and my mind. There have been days I looked into the mirror and had no idea who it was staring back at me. Yes, the wrinkles and sags are starting to become the norm. Gray hair is in abundance. And, well, quite honestly things are moving downhill fast.

Don't get me wrong. Being a forty-five year old woman does have some advantages. In the workplace you are much more respected. Younger generations call you "ma'am" (which I absolutely hate). People tend to listen to a forty-five year old because you have the experience of life. Salaries tend to be higher because of your experience. Positives, yes, but I still don't want to grow up nor do I want to deal with the changes age has to offer to me as a female.

With my entrance into what I like to call "the center of life" stage, I have been doing a lot of reflecting. What I have found is that something is still missing and I don't quite know what it is yet. Even though I feel completely blessed, satisfied, and happy with my daily surroundings, I feel an underlying pressure to save the world, or make a difference, be known for something great, find success, and find the true me. A bit ADD....definitely.

Focus has not been a strong characteristic for me recently and seems to be more difficult for me as I age. So focus is one area I am going to work extremely hard to fix. With that said, I am also going to record my journey into "the center of life" stage and beyond, working hard to post more and hope to create a captive audience. Join me on my journey....I have no idea where it is going to take me.....but it is going to be a bumpy yet fun ride.

Cheers!

In Memory of Phoenix 1/10/95-9/26/09

Sadly, this past weekend we laid our yellow lab to rest. He had lived quite the loving life in our home, but arthritis and age had begun to get to him the past several months. Although he probably could have gone another several months....maybe even years....we determined his quality of life was just not what it should be and decided to put him out of his misery and onto a better life.

Putting Phoenix to sleep was one of the most difficult things we have done as a family. For my husband and I, Phoenix was literally our first child. We married on 8/6/04, and on 3/25/95 we used our tax refund to purchase a lively yellow lab which became our beloved Phoenix Rising Sun. He proved to be the typical lab, chewing everything in sight, running away, getting into trouble, but mainly just being lovable. Before he turned a year, he decided to run from the yard at our first apartment, and was hit by a car. Needless to say, he survived without anything but a tire track across his tongue and his back leg. Not sure how the car was after that collision.

After we had our daughter in 1997, we purchased our first home, which gave us more room and Phoenix a large, fenced yard to run in. He loved it! Phoenix loved watching out our big bay window in the living room, and one day, when our daughter was only 8 months old she decided she needed to get over to her doggie at the window and took her first steps to Phoenix. He was her pal, but no so much our son's pal as Phoenix's tale always got the best of our son when walking through a door or down stairs together.

Phoenix loved going to the dog run in our city and even found a special friend "Chica" while at the run. Chica was in Phoenix's puppy training class as well. One day while at the dog run, the Root River was raging after a large amount of spring rain, and Phoenix and his friend Chica decided to go explore. Phoenix came running over the hill and barked at my husband and I and Chica's owner, ran back toward the river, and then kept running back to bark at us. We knew something was wrong, and sure enough, Chica had gone into the river and was stuck on a branch. My husband jumped in after her, bringing her onto land, and Phoenix was just thrilled to have helped in the rescue.

Over the years, other lab owners would tell me their lab lost it's puppy mentality at 2, 5 or 7 years of age -- not Phoenix! He finally lost his puppy mentality at 12 years of age, but after that he aged quickly. He proved to be a great family dog and true companion. We loved him dearly and will miss him forever!

Byron's Dogs

Back in the late 80's and early 90's I lived in Chicago and in one of the best neighborhoods of all time - Wrigleyville! This past month I have been blessed to make three weekend trips to Chicago for either family events or a soccer game. While returning home one weekend evening, I decided to take a bit of a detour....okay, maybe a really huge detour. I drove home from Oak Park, IL to Chicago through Wrigleyville and all the way back to Racine via Sheraton Road. On the way out, we stopped at my favorite hot dog spot while living in Wrigleyville - Byron's. They truly have the best Chicago style dogs on this earth. I literally lived about three blocks from Wrigley Field and would spend my Sunday afternoons during baseball season, watching the Cubs game on TV, windows opened so I could hear the crowd and announcers, and always had a Cherry Slushie, Chicago hot dog, and cheese fries from Byron's for every game. THAT WAS HEAVEN!

Racine Zoo Classic Car and Bike Show

Today is officially the last day of vacation for our family and we kind of went in two separate directions. My husband took our son to his soccer tournament in Waukesha and I headed down to the Racine Zoo to help out a friend selling 50/50 raffle tickets at the annual classic car and bike show. To be quite honest, I am not much of a car fanatic, and definitely not into classic cars. However, I think I may have changed my mind a bit. It was quite the exciting event and I saw how thoroughly into the cars some of these people are and what a beautiful art form some of the vehicles actually take on.

I must say I am a bit of a geek when it comes to the types of cars I enjoyed because they were not your typical souped up hot rod or classic vehicle. I absolutely fell in love with a 1966 Volkswagon Van and a decked out Mini Cooper. There were some pretty cool motorcyles, of which, I fell in love with a lime green, skull laden chopper.

Red Star Soccer Club

Our son is a huge soccer fan and has played soccer since he was five years old...all but the one year dad talked him into trying football. This is the first year we will be experiencing club soccer as he made the Red Star club team which plays all year round. Practices have already started, but they have not played an official game yet, until this weekend when they went straight into tournament mode. They had one game scheduled each day - Friday through Sunday - in Waukesha. So the finish of our vacation was spent at soccer tournaments. He did well, but he does have a ways to go to catch up to the boys which have played at club level for a long time. They won one game out of all three they played.

Milwaukee Zoo Ala Carte

Now back from Chi-town, we had tickets to the Milwaukee Zoo Ala Carte event thanks to one of my husband's vendors - Pieper Electric. We have been invited to this wonderful event for the past several years, and were once again very thankful to attend. Pieper Electric has their own tent set-up in the Maple Grove picnic area outside the zoo where you can talk to your contacts, drink beer, and this year they even added food. We mingled for a bit and then Matt was given a stack of tickets to go inside the zoo to enjoy more food from several local restaurants. None of us were able to move much once we made our way around the complete zoo. We tried things such as chocolate covered bacon, gazpacho, sour cream and chive french fries, carrot cake, Firecracker shrimp, chocolate covered strawberries and so much more. There was great music and all the food you could ever want to eat all within the zoo. The highlight of our night was the Birds from Down Under display where we were able to feed and touch parrots, cockatiels, and parakeets.

Chicago Fire Game

FINALLY...we have taken a vacation as a family. However, with the economy how it has been, we decided we could only do a stay-cation this year. Not really a good thing when you run a business out of your home and your husband is within driving distance to his job -- we both ended up working. I finally decided not to check my e-mail or even bring my cell phone with me. This was a vacation I needed to take and was determined to erase thoughts of business from my mind.

We were lucky enough to get some tickets to a few events and actually left the comfort of our own backyard to go enjoy some real vacation time.

Our first excursion took us down to Chicago to see the Chicago Fire game against LA Galaxy, and we were able to get enough tickets to bring my brother and his family. Unfortunately, Beckham got himself a suspension in an earlier game and was not playing. LA definitely did not miss their all-star player as they ended up winning. It was still a very enjoyable evening away and spending some time with my brother and his family. Not to mention, our son particularly enjoyed watching his favorite sport - soccer.

Happy 15th Anniversary

Hard to believe my husband and I are celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary today! It seems like only yesterday we were walking down the isle, and here it is 15 years later, and our home is still filled with lots of love --and two beautiful children, animals and lots of stuff we have accumulated together.

Cheers to us on our 15th anniversary!

Happy 5th Birthday Squirt!

Today our youngest German Shorthair Pointer turned 5 years old. He is our handful, with lots of puppy still in him, and a metal plate in one leg to prove just how full of energy he can be. In celebration of this special day, all three dogs were given a Dairy Queen baby cone, which is what Squirt is inhaling in this picture.

Robin's Nest

Not really sure if we have a really smart Robin or a really dumb Robin, but regardless, we gave babies gradually hatching. About a month ago, my kids kept telling me there was a bird in our garage. Not surprising, but okay, I just didn't pay much attention until I saw the Robin flying around. And then, I noticed the nest on top of our garage door motor, which is a problem considering I have two German Shorthair Pointers which hunt birds. I thought the dogs scared mama Robin, but she has been back and is sitting on eggs. Just today, my daughter captured an image of one baby just hatched. Stay tune for more images unless we are not able to get close to the nest. I think with the dogs scaring the mom, we will have many opportunities for some cool photos.

Market Shares Tumbling Down

I know most of you won't care about this post, because you are probably going to say, "yes, so what, I lost big on the stock market too". However, I just had to share this moment of realization which has been hitting me on the head since the first week of 2009, but now I am really listening and concerned.

Today, in the mail, I received statements for both of my kids education funds. Not a happy sign. I have held myself back from peaking at my funds, but opened these packets, and pretty much came to the conclusion there just will not be any hope of college unless my kids get financial aide.

I have heard of how the economy has hit so many individuals around us either through job losses or budget cuts, but now this has hit my kid's futures. When will the insanity stop?

Eat Your Vegetables!

At dinner this evening, I decided to create a new rule for my kids at the last minute, which went over not all too well. So I added a bit of incentive. Starting Jan. 1st, I implemented chore schedules and an allowance plan for both kids. You see, I am really bad at keeping track of this stuff, and even worse at allowing anyone to do anything that I know I can do much better. So basically, I have created a lesson for my kids, and therapy for myself. To help convince my kids they really do need to start trying their vegetables, I told them each night at dinner they have to taste at least one vegetable, and that this is also part of earning their allowance. Tonight we had green beans. My kids are like most other kids, if it is green, then it does not taste good.

My son decided he might want to take advantage of the new rule and negotiate a deal with me. In a calm, and very lawyer-like fashion, my son said, "if I eat all the beans do I get a raise?" Without hesitation, I stated, "If you eat ALL the beans on your plate, I will double your allowance this week." Do you think he ate them, you betcha. My daughter, however, is not convinced anything green is worth any money and chose to eat one.

I might at least have a 50/50 chance to change one child's eating habits, but I might go broke in the process.

Marley and Me

If you haven't seen the movie Marley and Me, you have to see it! I went with my daughter on New Year's Day and we loved every minute of the movie. In fact, the last ten minutes of the movie there was not a dry eye in the theater. The movie was funny, entertaining, cute, realistic, and sad....just a great movie to go with a date, friends, or your family. And since we have a naughty, yellow lab of our own, we could completely relate. I have seen Phoenix go through all the same phases Marley went through in the movie. In another four days, Phoenix will be fourteen years old, and we are pretty sure this may be the last year we have to enjoy the old guy.

A Sign

This past Sunday evening, when returning home from Mequon, two deer ran out in front of my vehicle while driving down a country highway at about 45 mph. Thank goodness for new brakes! For those that know me, I absolutely love deer, and although I am thankful I did not hit the two deer....I am a bit mad at the deer population right now.

As if Sunday evening were not enough to elevate my blood pressure a bit, Monday morning after dropping my kids off at school, my vehicle had a bit of a war with a metal pipe. Again, up went the blood pressure, and my nerves are completely fried.

After two incidents in a matter of two days, I am sitting back and taking a breath. In fact, I might even take two breaths...their free.

New Year's Eve Menu

Appetizers and Drinks:
Juice of a Few Flowers (Barefoot Contessa Bake to Basics Cookbook)
Vegetables and Ranch Dip
Buffalo Chicken Dip with Ranch Crackers

First Course:
Baked French Onion Soup
Italian Salad (Paul Newman's Italian dressing, shaved Parmesan cheese, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, proscuitto, gourmet cherry tomatoes, and croutons)
Butter Flake Dinner Rolls

Main Course:
Pan Seared Red Peppers and Asparagus
Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower
Bacon Wrapped Filets and Portabello Mushrooms
Steamed King Crab Legs
Boiled Lobster Tails
Twice Baked Potatoes
2001 Stone's Throw Sonoma Reserve Merlot
2004 Rudolf Miller Eiswein

Dessert:
Flourless Chocolate Cake with Haagen Dazs Amazon Valley Chocolate Ice Cream

Celebrating the New Year

My husband and I have celebrated New Year's Eve in so many different ways over the years. Once kids came along it became a bit more of a challenge to really celebrate all that much, but we have always managed to keep the entrance of a new year interesting. Early in our marriage we would enjoy a prime rib dinner. When kids came along we continued that tradition, but didn't stay up to see midnight. The 4th of July and New Year's Eve are my two very favorite holidays. I am terrible at creating traditions for my children since I am such a creature of change and keeping life interesting. BUT, these two holidays are definitely about tradition for me, and I have found ways to keep New Year's Eve interesting all while keeping with my traditions.

Although my favorite New Year's Eves have included parties with friends either at their home or my home, the last couple years have brought us back to early traditions of food and family. For the past two years, we have decided to stay in and just relax with our kids, and make a fantastic surf and turf dinner. And last evening, this is what we did....relaxed and had a grand dinner. As my husband stated, "dear, you out did yourself this year", and I must say, I did.

My husband works extremely hard, harder than anyone I know, even harder than my father did. And New Year's Eve, and even today, he is working. And he will be working all weekend too. So I decided I needed to give him a great meal, better than anything we have ever done before, and a way to celebrate a year of hard work -- for our whole family. I guess we kind of celebrated the fact he is also one of few employees that can say they actually are still working in our difficult economy, and although we are blessed to be able to celebrate, we are definitely without struggles like any other middle-class family today.

Ringing in a New Year has always been a spiritual experience for me in that I reflect on the year behind me and then refresh myself for the journey into the year ahead. Happy New Year!