Chilly Weather, Chili Cookoff, and "Are joo a JEW?"

Hi everyone :) Six more days till Mark and I arrive in Seattle and I can't wait. Of course, it's gonna be kind of a hectic of a visit, trying too see everyone and fit in everything we want to do. But I am committed to making enough time to relax. Even if it is a whirlwind of a vacation, it should be really fun and defiantly much needed.

It's freaking COLD here. We are talking -15 with a wind chill people. It doesn't feel that bad because it's been getting colder and colder over a period of time, but it's definitely the coldest temp I have ever felt. My good friend Tessa states it accurately when she says this about Wisconsin winters: "It feels like Brain Freeze all over your body" Yeah, its true, you get that "Oh My God, it is soooooooo cold" feeling, and like brain freeze, you just want it to end. But, I'm glad I can come back to Seattle for a while and get a break from the cold and snow. It's been snowing all day here, it's all quite and sparkly outside, I love that, but the cold? no thanks :)

Mark and I are gonna have a chili cook off at our house in the spring (Some friends of ours host a chili cook off every year in Seattle and we wanted to bring that tradition here to Wisconsin). So we have been getting ready and looking at recipes. Last night I made a great chicken chilli and I think I'm gonna enter it in the cook off. If you want the recipe it's posted in the October section of my blog. It's unlike chili's I have made before because it contains sweet potato. You grade it up and put it in, you cant really taste it much but it gives the chili a really nice consistency. Very cool. Give the recipe a try :)

All my Hanukkah and Christmas shopping is done. So that's a relief. I did a lot of it on-line this year which worked out quite well, but I still went into all the malls so I guess I didn't avoid all the crowds. In fact, I was in the mall last weekend, getting a book I have been wanting and some cards for everyone, and it was quite insane. Lot's of people and crying kids, man I have to deal with that at work, why do I have to be around crying kids on the weekend? But, anyways, you know how when you go to the mall there are those kiosks in the middle of the lane? Well, the East Towne Mall in Madison has soooo many of then and the people who man then are aggressive as hell! You'd think you were walking through a bazaar in a foreign country with everyone shouting at you and wanting you to try this lotion or buy this rug! It's crazy.

Anyway, there is this one guy who always works at this kiosk which sells flat irons for straightening your hair, and as you can imagine when I walk by he always gives me a hard time. he is always like " Jou! miss! voud jou like me to strayteen jour hair?" I'm not sure where his accent is from, but one day Mark and I were walking by and Mark said to me "Is his accent real?" "I don't know" I said. It does sound sort of put on, but maybe I'm being too judgemental.

So this weekend I went to the mall and happened to walk by this Kiosk. It seemed as if the man who works there jumped out form no where and said to me in a loud voice trying to attract my attention "ARE JOO A JEW?" I heard this and waved him away with my hand as to say "I'm not interested in the crap your trying to sell me." and walked on. I was wondering how he could tell I was a Jew and what a rude thing to ask a stranger in public. Then I realized I was wearing my gold Jewish star necklace my mother had given me, and it all made sense. Still! "Are joo a jew?" Come on! kinda rude, fake accent guy.

Ice on the Windows

So, you know that in places like California and Seattle people buy those cans of white frosty stuff that they spray around the windows to make it look like they have ice building up on them. it's one of those silly winter traditions that, non the less, gets people in the mood for the holidays. Well, I was very surprised to see a few homes and businesses do that here, because for the last week our windows have looked like this, and I think it's gonna stay this way all winter.

I like it really, it's kinda pretty. Mark is going sledding today with people from his department, I was invited but declined the offer, as I work late and am still getting over being sick. I am feeling better, but am very tired. My tummy is still not sure about food, but I'm trying to eat anyway.

I'm off to work. More blogging soon :)

Yuck, I Got The Sickness

It's true, I got the dreaded Noroirus last night at about 2:00 in the morning. I am probably to sick to be blogging right now and don't have very many positive things to say other then, thank god for group health urgent care because they took great care of me (they were really nice and even gave me pain killers and anti nausea meds not to mention 2 bags of IV fluids, they were life savers) and also I'm so glad Mark stayed by my side and drove me (through the snow) to urgent care and got me ginger ale and apple sauce, he was a great nurse and toke the time off school to be with me. Really, this virus is crap, if you have ever had it you understand, it's basically a really bad case of gastroenteritis. Y U C K. I'm glad its almost over.


Other then being sick for the past 24 hours things in Madison are well. I'm busy with work and having a better time at it. It's been snowing here for a few days now and it's really beautiful. I really do like the snow, don't know if i will like 100 inches of it. Oh well, you cant fight the winter, it's here wither you like it or not :) I think I'm gonna take up cross country skiing again because I here there are some great trails around here. i will take some pictures of the Wisconsin snow soon and put them on my blog.

Ok, this was a short blog, but I promise to write more later when I'm in better health.

Thanksgiving Recipes and The Norovirus

My bubbies Thanksgiving Turkey from two years ago

I'm not going home to Seattle for Thanksgiving this year (sorry family, I will see you soon, less then a month :) So Mark and I decided that we would have people over to our house for Thanksgiving. I've never hosted a Thanksgiving on my own before, or cooked a turkey myself, so this is all new to me. But, I love the holiday and have many great memories of sharing it with my family back home and especially all the GREAT cooking the comes of it. So this year I am attempting to make stuffing, green bean casserole (which I have never had) and my good friend Kathryn is coming over to cook our 15 pound turkey! mmmmm! We are going to inject it with butter! I'm so excited.

Now all I have to do it not get the terrible stomach flu that Mark has been battling for the past 24 hours. Poor guy, I have been taking care of him all last night and all day, we didn't sleep last night at all. He was so sick we had to go to urgent care this morning at about 8:00. But now after 3 bags of IV fluids, blood tests, medication, fever reducers, soup and Gatorade he is fast asleep and feeling a lot better. After he fell asleep I went on a disinfecting rampage though out the house, sanitizing door knobs, cleaning the entire bathroom, taking out the garbage, and I have been sure to wash my hands a whole bunch. MAN! You do NOT what this thing, it totally made him feel like death. His lips were purple people man, purple! and he had a bad fever too. Anyway, it's called the Norovirus and it's been going around Madison. Let's hope I don't get it in time for Thanksgiving, otherwise all bets are off and my guests will have to go elsewhere.

Sooooooo, I am in charge of the stuffing and the green bean casserole.

I'm making this Green Bean Casserole (courtesy of Paula Dean and the Food Network) Here is the recipe if you want to try it yourself

Green Bean Casserole

Ingredients:
1/3 stick butter
1/2 cup diced onions
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 cups sliced green beans
3 cups chicken broth
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (2.8-ounce) can French-fried onion rings
Pinch House Seasoning, recipe follows
1 cup grated Cheddar

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Saute the onions and mushrooms in the butter. Boil green beans in chicken broth for 10 minutes and drain. Add the green beans, mushroom soup, onion rings, and House Seasoning, to taste, to the onion mixture. Stir well. Pour into a greased 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes, then top the casserole with the Cheddar and bake for 10 minutes longer, or until the casserole is hot and cheese is melted.
House Seasoning:
1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder
Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.


Here is the Sausage, Dried Cranberry, Apple and Stuffing recipe:

Ingredients:
1 pound mild bulk breakfast sausage
4 tablespoons butter
3 cups sliced leeks, white and pale green parts only, cleaned well (about 2 large leeks)
2 Granny Smith apples, cored and chopped
1 cup chopped celery with leaves
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 cup dried cranberries, re hydrated in boiling water for 15 minutes and drained
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
6 cups boxed bread cubes (croutons)
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 to 3 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons ground black pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Saute the sausage in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat until cooked through, crumbling coarsely with the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage and drippings to a large bowl. Melt the butter in the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add the leeks, apples, celery and poultry seasoning to the skillet and saute until the leeks are soft, about 8 minutes. Mix in the drained cranberries, sage and rosemary. Add the mixture to the sausage, then mix in the croutons and parsley. Next add the chicken stock a little at a time until the stuffing is very moist. Be sure not to overdo it; it shouldn't be mushy. Season with salt and pepper. Place in a casserole dish. (The stuffing can be made to this point 2 days before Thanksgiving, refrigerated.)
Bake in a 14-inch oval or 9 by 13-inch rectangular casserole dish and place, uncovered, in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until the top is crispy and the center piping hot. Remove and serve immediately.
*Cook's Note: If stuffing a turkey, the stuffing must be cold before being placed in the bird.

Choral Union Performs Tonight :)

It's been far too long since I've blogged, so to my regular readers, I apologize. I guess I've been busy with work and choir rehearsals in the evenings. Which leads me to the topic of this blog, tonight is the Choral Unions first concert. I have to leave home in about an hour and go warm up for the performance and look over my music, so I don't have too much time to blog. But I just wanted to say that I'm excited and nervous because our pieces aren't really ready, they are very tough and we didn't have enough time to practice them, still I hope they will be great. Also, Mark and a bunch of people from the department are coming to the performance. I hope they like it! Wish me luck!

Here is a copy of the press release, just to tell you a little about our music and the choir:

"The UW Choral Union and Chamber Orchestra join forces under the direction of Beverly Taylor on Saturday, November 22, at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, November 23, at 7:30 p.m. in Mills Hall. The program presents three works: Nänie by Johannes Brahms, Flos campi by Ralph Vaughan Williams and Mass in C major by Ludwig van Beethoven. The soloist for Flos Campi is violist Sally Chisholm. The soloists for Mass in C major are sopranos Saira Frank, Merrin Guice and Kristin Schwecke; mezzo-sopranos Bridget Duffy and Jennifer Sams; tenor Ryan Veillet; and basses William Bremmer, Simon Lank and Gregory Schmidt.

Brahms composed the music for Nänie in 1881 as a tribute honoring his German artist friend Anselm Feuerbach, who had recently died. Nänie means -song of mourning- and laments the death of all things beautiful or perfect.

Flos Campi is a suite for solo viola, wordless chorus and chamber orchestra. The piece is divided into six movements, played without pause, each of which is headed by a verse from the Song of Solomon intended to be read by the listener but not actually sung by the choir.

Beethoven composed the Mass in C major on a commission from Prince Nicholas Esterházy II for his wife's name day in 1807. The first performance took place the same year but the mass was not published until 1812.

Chisholm is the violist for the Pro Arte Quartet and professor of viola at UW-Madison. She has been featured on more than 20 CDs in works by Mozart, Beethoven, Fauré, Schumann, Strauss, Mahler and Hindemith. She is a founding member of the Chamber Music Society of Minnesota and performs annually in the Festival der Zukunft in Ernen, Switzerland. Next summer, she will perform as senior faculty at Marlboro Music in Vermont.

Choral Union is a 150-voice auditioned ensemble with membership from both university and community. The highly selective Chamber Orchestra consists of 43 undergraduate and graduate students led by music director James Smith."

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday! Yeah! Happy Birthday Mom! I wish I was in Seattle to be there with you on this special day. We could do more of this...

You are very much loved and appreciated :)

Heidi's Family Apple Sauce and My Weekend

I've had a great weekend. I think it's partly due to the fact that I'm feeling happier and more at ease here in Madison, and well, it's the weekend and I always feel better on the weekend. Plus, I did some fun stuff which always cheers me up.

Yesterday I went shopping with friends Kathryn and Courtney from Mark's department. They picked me up at 10 in the morning and we drove out to EastTowne Mall which is only 3 miles from my place. It felt really good to pall around with the girls and shop. We first went to The Boston Store, new to me since we don't have 'em in Seattle, and bought some Cuddle Duds, which Kathryn raves about. Basically, they're nice long underwear and keep you very warm. I got about three pairs and have been wearing them all day today, it was very good timing because it's been snowy and 30 deg.

Then we had lunch and walked around the mall. We tried on clothes, mostly sweaters because anything else doesn't really make sense right now, and went into Victoria's Secret and talked about how we shouldn't buy any more shoes. Then after being burned out on the mall, which happens very easily for me, we went to the surrounding strip mall to an Old Navy. I didn't get anything for myself, but got Mark a sweater. All in all, I was really happy to hang out with the girls and be social. I'm also glad we weren't at a bar for once and could hang out during the day, I feel like you can really see someones personality better when your not partying or in a big group. Also, it was nice to have girl time, something which I haven't had much of since moving here, being far away from all my good girlfriends has been challenging in this way.

Later that night Mark and I made dinner, an amazing pizza we did ourselves, and we watched a movie on the FIXED TV! Yeah!! All Mark had to do was open up the TV and jot down the dimensions of the broken glass, then the glass shop down the street cut a new mirror the proper size. Then Mark picked it up and installed it into the TV, where the broken one had been, and it's as good as new. The nice thing is we didn't have to pay the 250.00 to the TV repair place for labor. Mark just did it himself and it was easy. Now that the TV was fixed we decided to celebrate by watching a movie I have been wanting to see for a few months now, Serenity. It's a movie made by Joss Whedon, its an extension of his infamous television show Firefly, which I watched this summer with Mark and really enjoyed. Great movie, but if you are gonna see it, I suggest seeing the TV series first.

Then, today I made applesauce from Heidi's family recipe and it turned out great. I was really surprised how easy it was to make, I just used my apple peeler which actually cut and cored the apples too and then threw them into a pot with a cup of water and let them simmer down until the they became saucy. I added lots of cinnamon, brown sugar, and apple pie spice at the end and now it's cooling in the fridge. I took some pictures of my process.

These last two are a reflection of myself in the cooking pot. I like the way they tuned out :)

Gotta run! I have a ton of dishes to do and laundry to fold :)

Snow

It's been snowing all day here. It's not sticking, but maybe it will tomorrow. I do like the snow though and I am happy for the cooler weather :) Snowmen maybe closer then I think. This just reminds me that I really need to get some new tires on my car this weekend.

I will be blogging more this weekend. Tune in :)

A Big Change

I'm still in a daze from what just happened in our nation. This is huge! Not just for us but for the world. Obama is our president elect. It's amazing! I guess I became so disheartened over the past eight years. I never felt proud of my government or like my vote counted in the past (yes, I voted for Nader in college), but today is completely different. I am happy that change is coming to our nation. I am proud of our new president and I have hope for our nation and it's leaders once again. I never thought it could turn around like this,it felt as if we were going to be under Bushes thumb forever. I was ready for more of the same, I came to expect it, to expect disappointment from our government. Now the day has finally come, the day so many of us have been waiting for. The Bush years are over! We fought, waited, cried, and laughed at his stupidity and now it's all over.

I know Obama is up for the task, and it's no small one. He has a big mess to clean up, but he and his staff can do it. I just cant believe it's all happening. It's all happening :)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Have a great time tonight. Let me know how many creepy Sarah Palin's you see. I already saw one last night at a bar. Man, this Halloween is gonna be scary :)

Tonight, I Vote.

Tonight, I fill out my absente ballot and send it in. Cross your fingers :) only 6 more days.

My 50th Post

This is my 50Th post! Happy 50Th to me. This seems like a good time to say that I'm grateful for this blog and for a consistent way to communicate with you all. And it's also been a therapeutic release for me, a nice way to write about what I think, feel, and do. So, thanks for reading on this my 50Th blog entry.

Also, IT SNOWED TODAY! HOLY CRAP! I have never lived in a place where it snows in October. This is crazy (people have been telling me today that it doesn't snow here in the month of Oct and that this is abnormal) So, I understand this doesn't happen very often. Still I couldn't believe it when I drove to work in the snow today. By the way, it melted. That's fine, I will have many more months of snow very soon.

Lastly, I wanted to give a big shout out to my sister whom just finished the first day of a three day test for dental school. You can do it Becca! I believe in you! :)

We Are Coming Home (for the holidays)

Yes, it's true. We just got our plane tickets to come home for the holidays. I'm really excited to come back to Seattle and see my family and friends. It's been hard out here with out them, I'm just use to all the support and love, and I don't get to talk on the phone with everyone as much as I would like. So it will be really nice to have a good long visit. Things I look forward to: eating pho, having a girls night, a fondue party, spending time with my family, going to Moonpaper tent and saying hi to everyone, spending time with my bubby and papa, escaping the cold Wisconsin weather, Hanukkah with my fam, Christmas with Mark's family, Starbucks coffee, drinking on the hill, going to Gabi's new house, and more :)

We arrive in Seattle on December 21st, Sunday and leave for Wisconsin on January 2nd. We will be in town for about 2 weeks. Weeee!!! It's gonna be great.

OK, I gotta run. I have some phone calls to make and I need to finish some cleaning before bed. I love you all :)

Sarah

Pumpkin Carving Photos

Today Mark and I went over to a friends house and carved pumpkins for a few hours. It was a nice time, we carved in the basement on the floor and ate candy and chatted. I don't have a picture of the one Mark carved but I do have some of the two I carved. One is a pirate ship and the other, a spider. Enjoy :)

Yes We Carve

http://yeswecarve.com/ Check this out if you enjoy all things Obama :)

Friday, Yeah Friday!

I'm so glad it's Friday! Even though this week has been a good one, I'm ready for the weekend. However; I'm not excited about going to work today. Both of my co-teachers in my room are absent today. So I have one sub and a teacher from downstairs helping me out. I anticipate a challenging day, not because the people whom are helping me aren't great at what they do. It's just that anytime the consistency of the program is tampered with, the kids get very confused. My kids are very tough and when they don't have their regular teachers they act up. Anyway, I hope it goes OK today and that we can get to our programing. I will just have to go with the flow of the day. But, tonight after work, I'm going to a fondue party, which should be fun. One of the people from Mark's department is having it over at her house. I bet I will have some pictures to post later.

This weekend we are gonna go to a concert and do some cooking and cleaning. I'm also gonna do some classroom planning.

Sarah

My Cookin' Skills

Well, I'm pleased with my cooking skills these days. I have been really busy in the kitchen. I made pumpkin bars this weekend, that were to die for. I brought them to work and gave them away to my co-workers and Mark and I have been munching on them all week (If you want the recipe, look further down on my blog.) And tonight I made a potato, Cheddar, and leak casserole, I kinda followed a recipe, but made up the rest. I will post it on my blog so you can try it if you want. It's not done cooking yet, but I can't wait to eat it. I'm so hungry and it smells so good. Also, I still have like 20 pounds of apples that I collected from this weekend. I plan on making Heidi's amazing apple sauce and canning it and maybe a pie or two.

I think cooking has been a really good activity for me lately and I find that I'm always more interested in cooking when the weather is colder and have someone to cook for (not just myself) Further more; I enjoy being creative in the kitchen and having a direct outcome to my creative efforts. It's nice because I enjoy the process as well as the meal that I've created. I use to be an visual artist growing up, but haven't done much visual art since college. I got kinda discouraged from the visual art world when I applied to art programs for college but didn't get in. So, I feel somewhat discouraged from creating visual art, but not from cooking. Also, I haven't been doing much acting or teaching any theatre these days so it's nice to focus my creativity into an activity rather then just let it go dormant. In general I'm feeling better and more motivated, and I can tell because I'm excited about using my creative energy.

In other news, Obama was going to be coming to Madison on Thursday, but cancelled his trip so he could be with his sick grandmother. I wish he would have come so I could see him speak, but I'm glad that he chose his grandmother first. Also, I just talked to Rylin tonight and she said my absentee ballot arrived at my old apartment and she is going to send it to me. Yes, I haven't been this excited about voting in a long time.

Ok, I'm off :)

Sarah

Appleberry Farm Pictures

Today Mark and I met up with some friends from the AOS Department at Appleberry Farm for some apple picking and good times. Here are some pictures on my flicker account. Check um out :)

http://flickr.com/photos/16570504@N02/sets/72157608158520606/

Also, I got Uggs today at the Westown Mall. I'm so excited because I've been wanting them for a while and as it gets cold here I'm thankful my feet will be nice and warm.

Night night,

Sarah

We Finished the Puzzle!

We finished the first puzzle! Hurray! It took quite a long time towards the end. It was super tedious trying to find all the proper places for the black pieces, but we did it. I hope to start the next puzzle this weekend.

Tonight we are relaxing at home, it's been nice to just chill this evening. During the week we have both been busy hanging out with new friends and being social, so it's nice to finally have an evening that's just low key. This week I had a girls night with some of the girls from Mark's department and also went out to dinner with some co-workers of mine from the creative learning preschool. I'm glad that I'm being more social and getting out there. It feels nice to finally make some new friends. So, it was a social week, but tonight is just for chillin. Plus, I'm gonna make some pumpkin bars this evening. I hope they turn out well :)

This weekend we are gonna go apple picking with about 10 other grad students. We're going to a local orchard that's over on the west side of Madison. I haven't been there before but a few of the other students have and they say there are many different variety's of apples and other cool activities to do at the farm. Should be good times. I also plan on getting some Ugg type boots this weekend as it's really starting to cool off here. I'm also gonna do some lesson planning on Sunday with my co-teacher Erin. She is super nice and we get along great. Other then that, some sleeping, house cleaning, homework, and so on.

Enjoy the weekend everyone!

Sarah

Debates and Surprises

Hi All,

It's been a good day today. I got a care package from my family in Seattle. Mark and I were very surprised when we opened it up to find all sorts of goodies inside. Some include candy, Halloween stuff and cookies from my bubby. Thanks family! I love you! I appreciate you thinking of me and helping me cope with the home sickness. Also, Ba kitty thanks you for his bird, as soon as I took it out of the box his eyes got wide and he went after it. Aw :)

In other news, I just watched the last installment of the presidential debates. Man, was John McCain feisty tonight or what? He knows this was his last chance to pull out all the stops, however; I don't feel like Obama did a very good job defending himself. He still did a great job, always cool under pressure, but he didn't really fight. I guess that's his style, but it would have been nice if McCain didn't get away with all of those asinine statements. I still think Obama won though. Yeah Obama!

I was super happy that they finally talked about Roe vs. Wade. I was wondering when they were going to bring that up, if ever. For me, the candidates really showed their true colors in that portion of the debate. McCain= pro-life Obama= Pro-choice, need I say more? This is a hot button issue for me. I can't have someone in office that can't protect women's basic human rights to a safe and legal abortion. McCain would be more of the same, don't let his politics fool you. (Sorry to any of you readers whom are voting for McCain, I'm not trying to hurt feelings, just expressing what I believe.)

Deep Breath. Ok, I get heated about women's rights. I minored in women studies, my mother works in Perinatal care as a nurse, and my papa is an OBGYN. Theses issues effect me, my family, and my friends. So, that's all :)

Not too much else has been going on here these days. I have been fighting a cold that keeps coming back, which hasn't been much fun. Work is going well, still stressful, I think this job is just gonna be like that. But my health insurance kicks in in about two weeks so I'm very excited for that. It would be nice to be covered. Choir is going well, our concert is soon! We are totally not ready yet :) It's finally fall here and it's beautiful. I love that it's a little cooler outside now and love the color of the leaves.

Tonight I'm going to a girls night with some of the lady's from Mark's department. We are gonna eat pizza, drink wine, and watch a movie. Should be fun, it's a nice chance to be social anyway :)

Bye for now,

Sarah

Treinen Farm Photos and Ba Goes Outside

At the end of the corn maze! Julia, Mark, Marc, and Steve
Mark with the Haul
Me in the Corn Maze

Yesterday Mark, Steve, Julia, Marc, and I all went to the Treinen Farm for some pumpkin picking and good times. We were hoping more friends would join us on our adventure, however; there was a Bager game yesterday so everyone was in football mode.
I had a wonderful time and the weather was so great, it was the perfect day to be outside. Of course, it will never compare to the pumpkin patch we went to back in Seattle, that day was priceless :) But Treinen Farm was really fun and it was great to share that experience with new friends. If you want to see all the pictures I took, follow the link.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16570504@N02/sets/72157607962498400/

Today Mark is at school studying for a test and I'm hanging out at home and running a few errands. Tonight I'm going to make Elizabeth's pumpkin curry soup and I'm super excited to see how it tastes.

Also, I let Ba kitty out for the first time EVER today. I totally had the feeling a parent must have when their kids goes to the first day of school or off to college (well, maybe not that drastic) but, It was as if he were leaving the "nest". I know it's good for him. He has been feeling board and couped up in the new house and he is completely adjusted now so I feel it's OK if he ventures out a little bit. PLUS, it's 74 degrees today. It's still so warm here and as long as the weather is good, I will keep letting him out little by little. I think I draw the line at 30 degrees.

Love,

Sarah

I'm going to the Pumpkin Patch

Ok, as of late, my blog has been mostly about pumpkins. Um yeah, it's not stopping anytime soon :)
On Saturday Mark and I are going to take a bunch of new friends to Treinen Farm. They have a huge pumpkin patch and an even huger (don't worry, it's a word according to me) corn maze! I will post pictures and write more about it later. But I'm soooo excited! I love Fall!

A Very small picture of the farm

The ride to the pumpkin patch

This years maze

Julie's Pumpkin Bars

So, I don't know Julie, but damn! she make a mean pumpkin bar!

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups sugar
1 cup oil
1 16 oz can (1 ¾ cup fresh) pumpkin
2 cups flour
2T baking powder
2T cinnamon
1T salt
1T baking soda

Frosting:
4 oz. cream cheese
1 stick butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
2) Mix the eggs, sugar and oil and pumpkin
3) Mix and add: flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking powder
4) Bake in jelly roll pan for 25 minutes
5) Mix frosting ingredients, smooth over baked pumpkin bars

Update from Madison (My Day)

Hey :) Just felt like giving you all an update on life here in Madison.

It's been a good week so far. Mark and I finally hooked up the new PlayStation I got him for his birthday this year. We have been sending our evenings playing Soul Calibur 4. It's such a great game we we are almost tighed in our wins. I have 17 wins and he has 16 wins. It's nice to be good at a video game:) And I'm excited to get a few more games, also to watch a blue ray movie (the PlayStation plays blue ray disks)

Most days are good. I wake up and do some homework for my class (it's kinda hard) and listen to NPR. I play on my computer and then off to work. Work is OK. It's a little stressful at the after school care program. Some days are good and then some days the kids just go nuts and have a very hard time listening. Ack! It sucks to go to work and get walked all over. Some times I have to remind myself that I can always go out and get another job where people actually respect me and listen to me and I don't have to fight for it. ah, that would be nice :) But, my favorite part of the day is still the evening when Mark and I can be home and relax. We enjoy making dinner together and chatting. Sometimes we will go to a lecture or an event on camps or hang out with a friend or two. But other then that evenings are slow and it's my fav part of the day.

I have been fighting a constant cold that wont go away. I am totally going to get the flu shot this year! I just know I will get it from the kids at the preschool or the elementary school. I'm taking lots of vitamin C, D-3, B complex and such. My therapist recommended I take 5-HTP to boost my serotonin (which makes you happy :) and boosts your immune system), but I'm kinda freaked out to take it because it has been taken off the market a few times for making people very ill. Anyways, I know I should it just kinda scares me.

Mark and I still haven't finished our first puzzle. The last little bit is really hard, its all black pieces so it's challenging to see where they connect. But we will finish it soon and start our new one, which has a very northwestie motif.

To keep with the topic of hobbies, I just started reading a good book called Marley and Me. It's about a family who gets a spunky yellow lab puppy and their life together. I think Hollywood has made the book into a movie and it's coming out in the winter. It has Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. I'm not too far along in the book yet, but I like it so far and it's just nice to read something that doesn't make me think about my life or all the crap going on in the world.

Tomorrow I have a weekly planning meeting where I meet with my two co-teachers and we plan the next two weeks after school curricula for our room. I enjoy the meetings, its always nice to have some adult time away from the kids. We can talk regularly and relax. Also, we are going to be working on the Halloween curricula and that will be super fun :) I have some great ideas about cool projects we can do.

Ok peeps, I'm off to bed, it's 12:38 here is Madison. I need to be better at going to bed early:) Thanks for all the great recipes! Keep sending them to me and I will post them! I'm also gonna post more of my own in the next few weeks :)

Love,

Sarah

Shannon's Chicken Noodle Soup

Here is a great chicken noddle soup recipe from Shannon Gates (a awesome girlfriend of mine from college) Also Congrats to Shan and her husband George! They are proud parents of a little baby girl! Their little girl Charlotte Frances was born 3 and 1/2 weeks ago!

"When the weather changes, there is nothing I crave more than chicken noodle soup from scratch. Make a chicken stock: I like to do mine in the crock pot over night. One whole chicken carcass and rough chopped onions carrots and celery. Water to cover. Add the fresh spices you like best, I always use thyme and a few bay leaves, lots of salt too. Now heres the fun part. Noodles are EASY but take a little time! no pre purchased noodles please.

3/4 C all purpose flour in bowl, make a "well" and add 1 egg that has been barely combined with 1T water 1/2t salt and 1t oil. mix with hands till dough can be balled and comes clean from your hands. Knead for 10 min, no cheating! let it rest, covered, for an hour.
While dough rests, make your soup. Strain broth and add fresh veggies and chicken pieces from strained carcass.roll out dough, stretch it till nearly paper thin and translucent! sprinkle flour on dough as needed let "dry' for 30 min then roll dough up like a scroll and cut noodle strips, as if cutting a sushi roll. Cook noodles in rapidly boiling salted water for ten min and then add to soup. YUM! Hope you enjoy trying this recipe!"

Recipes from Elizabeth Archer

These two great pumpkin themed recipes are from Mark and I's friend Elizabeth Archer. She is a great cook and a very knowledgeable "foodie". She's got street cred. I can't wait to try them out! Thanks Elizabeth! (check out her blog about traveling/living in Chile and Argentina, it's listed on the right hand side of the page.)

Curried Chicken Pumpkin Soup

1 lb chicken,
cubed1 3-5 lb sugar pumpkin
Chicken or vegetable broth
1 medium sized onion, diced
several cloves garlic
curry powder (Indian variety)
masala and/or turmeric
cumin
Cinnamon
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Combine the cubed chicken with several tablespoons olive oil, a generous amount of curry powder, two teaspoons cumin and Cinnamon, a teaspoon each of garam masala and turmeric (optional, adds depth), and salt and pepper to taste. If you're into spicy foods, you can also add cayenne, your favorite hot sauce, or red pepper flakes (I always use the latter). Set aside to marinate.
Cut the pumpkin into wedges. Scoop out the seeds (reserve if you're into roasting them - incidentally, these same spices make for great roasted seeds). Arrange the slices flesh-up on a cookie sheet or in a casserole dish. Sprinkle with curry, cumin, cinnamon, and salt, then drizzle with olive oil. Roast at 375 for 25 minutes or until, you know, baked (i.e. a fork should go in easily). (Alternately, you can boil the pumpkin, spices and all.)
Let the pumpkin cool until you can touch it. If you're lucky, the skin will peel right off. If not, well, you'll just have to deal with it until you get it all. In a food processor, blender, or with a hand mixer, purée the pumpkin (you can add a little broth to make it easier).
When you add the garlic is up to you. It depends on how garlicky you like it. I often puré the raw garlic with the pumpkin. You can also chop and sautée it with the chicken, or add it at the very end for an extra kick. You can even do all three!
In a non-stick soup pot, sauté the onions on medium heat (in olive oil or butter) for a few minutes before adding the chicken. Once the chicken is halfway cooked, add the pumpkin mixture and one cup broth. Bring to a simmer, then add more broth until you're satisfied with the thickness. Let simmer for 20-30 more minutes so the flavors marry and the chicken cooks. Add fresh ground pepper at the very end. (Low-fat option: add a half cup of cream at the end, too.) Serve with crusty bread. Reheats nicely!

Perfect Pumpkin Dessert

This is super easy and incredibly delicious. Always a big hit at dinner parties.
1 3-4 lb sugar pumpkin
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups water
salt
vanilla ice cream

Directions:
Cut the pumpkin into 5-6 wedges and remove the seeds. In a large pot, arrange the wedges around each other like half-moons (so the flesh is touching the bottom of the pot). Add brown sugar, then water. Cover the pot and let simmer for 20 minutes or until pumpkin is cooked through. Remove pumpkin and reserve the syrup. If you're lucky, the skin will peel right off. Sprinkle pumpkin with sea salt* and serve warm over vanilla ice cream. Offer syrup on the side for drizzling pleasure. (Note: this pumpkin-flavored syrup will keep in the fridge and is GREAT on breakfast foods!)*The salt is not optional in this recipe. Trust me, it's much better this way.

My Favorite Pumpkin Cheesecake

Pumpkin Cheesecake (I have made this three times and its AMAZING!)

Ingredients
Serves 12

FOR THE CRUST
1 1/4 cups graham-cracker crumbs (from 10 whole crackers)
1/4 cup sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

FOR THE FILLING
4 packages (8 ounces each) bar cream cheese , very soft
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons pumpkin-pie spice
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, room temperature

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in center. Assemble a 9-inch nonstick springform pan, with the raised side of the bottom part facing up.
Make the crust: In a medium bowl, mix cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter until moistened; press firmly into bottom of pan. Bake until golden around edges, 10 to 12 minutes.
Make the filling: With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar on low speed until smooth; mix in flour (do not overmix). Add pumpkin puree, pie spice, vanilla, and salt; mix just until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until each is incorporated before adding the next.
Place springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour filling into springform, and gently smooth top. Transfer to oven; reduce oven heat to 300 degrees. (you can put the cake in a water bath to ensure its cooks evenly) Bake 45 minutes. Turn off oven; let cheesecake stay in oven 2 hours more (without opening).
Remove from oven; cool completely. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours. Unmold before serving.

Slow Cooker Chicken Chili

Here is a great chili resepie I found:

Slow Cooker Chicken Chili

Ingredients
2 pounds ground chicken, coarsely ground preferred (or turkey)
3 tablespoons chili powder, plus 2 teaspoons
1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15-ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed
2 (28-ounce) cans diced fire roasted tomatoes
1 medium sweet potato (about 10 ounces), peeled and shredded
1 (15-ounce) can low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup instant tapioca (recommended: Minute tapioca)
1 to 2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce with seeds, chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 teaspoons granulated garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
Pinch ground cloves (optional)
1/2 to 3/4 cup lager-style beer, optional
Toppings: Sour cream, shredded Cheddar or Jack cheese, chopped scallions, and chopped pickled jalapenos
Directions
Put the chicken in the slow cooker. Add 3 tablespoons of the chili powder and all the rest of the ingredients, except the beer. Stir everything together, cover, and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours.
Just before serving, stir in the remaining 2 teaspoons of chili powder, the beer, if using, and season with more salt and pepper, to taste, if desired. Divide the chili among warm bowls. Serve with the topping of your choice.
Know-How: Stirring in chili powder right before serving brightens the flavor of the chili.
Copyright (c) 2007 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved.

Enjoy!

Ode to Fall

I love fall! It's my favorite time of year, hands down! And this year I get to do all kinds of cool fall/ Halloween themed projects with all the kiddos! Like make apple sauce and carving pumpkins. Also, there is no school here on the 30th and the 31st so I think we are going to take the kids on a field trip to a pumpkin patch, which should be fun :)

Another thing I like about fall is it's the perfect time to try out all those cold weather recipes I have stored up. I plan to make some yummy dishes in my crock pot and to try a few casserole recipes in the oven too. I'm getting more into cooking and find myself excited about trying new dishes. So here is what I propose: If you have a good fall recipe you would like to share, you can post it in a comment or e-mail it to me and I will post it on my blog (telling everyone it is from you of course) I thought it would be a nice way for us to share some good fall cookin with each other. So, post or email away, and I look forward to your fall recipes. Also, I will post some of my own ones too :)

Take care!

Sarah

Jewish New Year

Last night Mark and I almost finished our puzzle. But, we don't have a new one yet, so we stopped in our tracks. I'm going buy a new one this evening. I hope to find a good one at the local toy stores. Actually I live a few miles from a Toys R Us and they seem to have a ton of puzzles, so I will try them first.

What else, I went to temple last night to celebrate the Jewish new year (Rosh Hashanah) Mark came with me, which was very nice of him because I know he doesn't prescribe to the Jewish religion. But I think we both went for the learning experience and to try some thing new.

We went to a Reform Temple called Beth El which is located on the west side of Madison. It's a nice building near a park in a residential neighbourhood. And I didn't get to look around inside the building very much because it was kind of a rush in and rush out sort of deal, but inside the main room there was beautiful stained glass with light behind. It was a pretty standard Rosh Hashanah service, I knew the songs and the stand up sit down routine and it felt kinda like my old temple in Seattle. But my family wasn't there, which felt strange to me, because I associate temple with family. I never went to temple in Bellingham, and so, never went to a temple with out the presence of my family. So, it was new, but felt familiar.

Hey, for those of you who are reading this and don't know much about Rosh Hashanah, here is a little bit of info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosh_Hashanah

I need to run off to work.

Happy New Year :)

Sarah

He Loves It: The New Couch

My cat has found his new favorite spot. He loves to sleep on the left arm of our new couch. He also has taken a liking to sitting there and looking out the front window onto the main street. Here are two pictures of him in his classic pose. By they way I am sooooo glad we have a couch now. I feel like we can finally have some people over, now we will all have a nice place to sit. And it's been great for chilling and watching or broken T.V. Ok, it's late and I'm off to bed. Love you all!

Sarah

The 33 Days Project; Puzzle

Wow! Mark and I have really been busy on our puzzle for the 33 Days Project. In fact, we are doing so well and are so into it that I think we are going to finish the puzzle early this week. In fact we are almost done, we only have the edges left now. I think we're going to get another puzzle in the middle of the week. That means Iwill have to change my goal. Originally my goal was to do one 1000 piece puzzle in 33 days. But, now I have to change it to three 1000 piece puzzles in 33 days. I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for a Halloween themed puzzle next time I'm out. Oh, that would be sweet! I'm really excited about fall this year and am gearing up for fall activities and projects.

By the way, for those of you who haven't read earlier posts, Mark and I are completing this puzzle as part of a cancer awareness project called The 33 Days Project which was created by my friend Brynn who is a rockin breast cancer survivor. Here are some photos of our progress:

It's Late

I was trying to get to bed early tonight but, instead I stayed awake with a headache and read web comics. man my head hurts, but the web comics are so funny! Ouch. ahhaha Ouch

The 33 Days Project and Missing Home

Hi everyone. I'm totally missing home today. I dreamt about family, friends, and places in Seattle all evening, it seemed like. I think homesickness is one of those things you have to let run it's course. I think it gets better with time, but also with the establishment of community and friends. A friend of mine suggested writing letters and or postcards to combat home sickness, it seems like a good suggestion and a fun activity. However; I don't have many of your addresses. If you're interested you can send me your address in an email and I can write you. :) Also, I just started a new project today, in solidarity with my friend Brynn who is giving Breast Cancer the smack down. She is an amazing, strong, brave, and creative woman. Read on :)

A friend of mine whom I use to work with at The Seattle Children's Theatre has started a support project related to her recovery from breast cancer this year. It's called The 33 Days Project. She is going to get radiation every day for 33 days Monday-Friday, taking Saturday and Sunday off. This is a direct quote from her blog that explains how the challenge works:

"Here is my challenge for you. Do a specific action every day for 33 days in a row (taking the weekend off). The only stipulation is that it can't be something you already do (brushing you teeth doesn't count) and it should take you between 5-30 minutes. Cause, getting zapped should only take me about 5 minutes total, but the whole experience takes about a half hour."

If you go to her blog (link on the right) you can read more about the project and see what people are doing for 33 days. I have decided to participate in her project and document the progress of my activity. I'm working on a complicated 1000 piece puzzle called The Shakespeare Poster by James Christensen. I hope to finish it in 33 days. I'm also gonna take pictures of my progress and put them up on my blog. I just started the puzzle last night and it's going well so far. It took me like an hour to turn all the pieces right side up. man. But, it will be fun.

In other news, I'm working on a post about local Madison food. It's taking a while to finish, but It will be up soon.

Love,

Sarah

Recent Hobbies

Here's a post that's not about jobs and cat's and choir and blah blah. It's just about what I've been doing in my spare time this summer/ beginning of fall. Enjoy Enjoy:

I am crazy about this internet role playing game that Mark told me about a few months ago, back in Seattle. It's called The Kingdom of Loathing. Basically, you create a character and adventure in the land of loathing. You get sent on quests by the city council and you advance in levels. So the game gets harder as you go. Also, one other cool thing about it, is that you collect alcoholic drinks and you can make your own. You and drink them and have drunk adventures. But, one time I drank too much and the game told me I was too drunk to play. haha. It also doesn't take itself very seriously, it's very funny in it's descriptions of what happens on your adventures and fights. Anyways, It's super fun, and if you are looking for a great way to kill time then I suggest giving it a try. It's free.

Here is a list of other things I have been into lately:

T.V.

Greatest American Dog

In this weeks issue of Entertainment magazine they took a poll of their readers to name their favorite new network show this summer. 7% said their favorite was Greatest American Dog. I was surprised that it wasn't higher. Because I thought the show was great, it was defiantly my guilty pleasure of the summer. I just watched the session finale last night, and I wasn't very impressed, but the rest of the show was really fun. I liked the premise of having a reality TV show about people and their dogs. They all live in this mansion and compete in competitions to see who's dog is smartest, bravest, loyal, talented, and so on. You get the picture. Anyway, all thought it was cheesy at times and some of the challenges were not geared towards K-9 behavior and talents (in one episode they had dogs make paintings on large canvases and then kicked off the dog and owner who's painting wasn't very good) I ask you? can you really kick a contestant off because their pooch can't paint? And another down side to it was my favorite contestant got kicked off half way through, Laura and her white pom Preston.

But, I still liked the show as a whole. I really just enjoyed seeing all the great dogs do great things :)

Firefly

I watched the entire season with Mark and loved it! I wish it wasn't taken off the air. I can't wait to see Serenity when we get our T.V. fixed, which will be god knows when, maybe on a few weeks. But, Firefly, if you haven't seen it, is a Sci-fi western written by Joss Whedon. He also recently made this little gem, which is also super funny: http://www.hulu.com/watch/28343/dr-horribles-sing-along-blog N.P.H. kills me.

You Tell Me...

Hey All!

I was just wondering... what should the topic of my future blog postings be? It's all well and good that I blather on about jobs and such, but I want to hear from you about what you would like to read. Plus, it will give me a new and exciting topic to write about. So, leave a comment with your question and or topic idea. Thanks :) I must give the readers what they want.

Sarah

Boo

I have a cold, already! It's not a bad one just makes me really tired and my nose is running, a ton. I blame the little darlings at the preschool. With their little runny noses. Boo. Now, I'm off to work. See Ya.

This Week's Up-Date

Hey Peeps,

Things are shaping up over here. It's been a really busy week for sure, and factor in being sick, well it takes it's toll.
I had my first class of women's choir on monday. Some really good singers, haven't really meet any of them yet, but I hope to make a few friends there. That evening I had my first Choral Union rehearsal. I have a nice little car pool arranged with my friend Kathryn from the AOS dept. It will be cool to do a choir with a friend. I got all my music and we are singing some hard stuff. The sight reading is really tough right now because I'm out of practice, but I will get better. Mark also has a key board here at home so I can practice here. I wont have to go all the way to school for a practice room.
Also, I got that job I was going for with the Red Caboose. Lisa, the director, called me last night and offered me the job. I said I wanted to take it, but also wanted to come and observe a day at the center before I made my full commitment. It's very important to see a program in action. So I went this afternoon and saw a basic day. Feel free to ask me in more detail how it went. I can say it went well, but don't want to put too much info out there on the WWW. You understand :)
Anyway, I will be a lead teacher for a after school program at Laphaum Elementary School. I started training today and will be in there with the kids next week. This week I have a sub job at C.L.P. so I wont be at Laphaum till Monday. I'm excited to have the work and glad that it fits in with Creative Learning Preschool and choir practices.

Other then that, Mark and I are going to go to a meditation class soon. I think our minds are over loaded with all the changes, school, work and so on. So, here's to mellowing out and becoming more centered.

P.S. I love the comments :) Thanks so much! It feels good to have the support and know that people are reading my blog.

Early Childhood Education Classes

Hi :) I don't now if I mentioned this, but I am also signed up to take a few classes in Early Childhood Education and Development. These are courses that all teachers in Wisconsin, who teach ECE, have to take. They are actually correspondence classes so you sign up and they send you a packet in the mail that you must read, complete, and send back to them to get graded before you can pass.

The classes are though The Education Station group and the titles of the three I'm taking are: Introduction to the Child Care Profession, Skills and Strategies for the Child Care Teacher, and Fundamentals of Infant and Toddler Care. I'm excited to take the classes, especially for the infant and toddler care because I don't have much work experience with that age group, and I will be assisting with one year olds at the preschool. AND, the cool thing is, now that I'm permanent status at Creative Learning Preschool they pay for me to take these classes. I was going to pay for them my self but then I was reading my contract last week and found out the school will pay for them. Very cool to have your education paid for. Not to mention that once I am done with the classes, my pay goes up like 5 extra dollars an hour! which is really great.

So, I will write more about this later an dhow my classes are going.

Tomorrow Mark and I are going to a local park for a dog owners picnic. It's specifically for Aussie Shepard owners. So we will meet other dog owners and ask about breeders and such, not to mention play with some dogs. Here are some pictures, oohhhh they are super cute!