Day 29: Ten Books on Your Book Shelf

I am just giving you a warning ahead of time, I will definitely exceed ten books.  I love to read, and so does Andy.  So I am going to share a little bit of everything...

Day Twenty-Nine:  Ten (or more) books on your book shelf

Andy and I generally have very different taste in the kind of books we like to read.  Andy usually likes non-fiction or political thrillers.  Something with history behind it or that's informational, as well as entertaining.  While I, on the other hand, love fictional stories that I can dive into and finish in a couple days time.  AKA an easy read.  I do love  historical novels (even non-fictional ones) but I am usually drawn toward cheesy or inspirational stories.

Here's a list of some of Andy's books as well as some of mine.  Then, just for the fun of it, some religious books and our recent/current reads.  Hopefully you don't get bored!

First up,  Andy's Library:

1.  The Book Thief by Markus Zusak  2.  The Road by Cormac McCarthy 

3. Ghost Wars by Steve Coll  4. Franklin and Winston by Jon Meacham  

5. Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins

Next, Melissa's Library: 

1. The Memory Keepers Daughter by Kim Edwards  

2. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

3. The Host by Stephanie Meyer  4. The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare

5. Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer

6. The Hunger Game Series by Suzanne Collins

Religious Books: 

The Book of Mormon (request a Free copy here)

The Continuous Atonement by Brad Wilcox

Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage

Raising Up a Family to the Lord by Gene R. Cook

To Draw Closer to God by Henry B. Eyring 

Recently Read:

City of Fallen Angels (Fourth Book in Mortal Instruments Series)

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

And Lastly, Currently Reading: 

Nurture Shock by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman (Melissa)

Paris 1919 by Margaret MacMillan and Richard Holbrooke (Andy) 

Day 28: Tell Us About Your Spouse

This is an easy one...there is a lot I could say about Andy...but I will keep it simple and share just  a few things....

Day Twenty-eight:  Tell us about your spouse

Andy is the best father.  You can see how much he loves his children just by the way he looks at them.  He loves to play and wrestle with Noah.  Loves to take him running and be outside with him.  He loves to bring home little surprises for Noah and he loves to hold and talk to Clare.  I love how he talks about what the future will be like and all the fun things he can't wait to do with his kids.  

He is the perfect husband (for me anyway).  Andy would never claim to be perfect...but he is a perfect match for me.  He never hesitates to apologize if we have a disagreement or if he feels like he has hurt my feelings.  He always tells me he loves me and is always there to help me out if I need him.

Andy is very smart.  I remember when I went to visit him at West Point one trip.  He was headed up to Cornell University to compete in an essay contest about Eminent Domain.  His professor was kind enough to let me tag along with the group (being the only girl and non student there).  Anyway, Andy competed on this particular subject along with at least 10 or more other students from surrounding universities.  He was the last to give his presentation.  As soon as he was finished I knew he was going to win.  There wasn't a doubt in my mind.  About a week later he received word that he had, in fact, won the competition and a $200 reward for his presentation.  His professor also submitted Andy's essay into a national competition where he won 2nd place and an $800 reward.  He is just one smart feller. 

He is patient, honest, kind, hard working, funny, laid back, well spoken and genuine.  He is too self critical but always working hard to be a better person, and because of him - so am I.  He is the bestest (and that is totally a word). 

Beware....

Beware, beware.  This post will contain a lot of pictures.  A LOT.  Looking at pictures is the best part though, right?

Our week with Chelsea and Nash went by way too quickly.  We had such a great time though, and Noah already misses his little buddy Nash.  They played fantastically together, but it only makes sense - since I love his mom so much.

Here are some of the fun things we did....
Walked Chambers Bay (It was too foggy to take pictures, but I will snap some sometime so you can see just how beautiful it is), went to the mall, saw Kung Fu Panda 2, played at the park, had a picnic, ate Popsicles and enjoyed the ONE sunny day we had.  Here are just a few pictures to document our exciting week!

Popsicles (shirtless)!

We also spent quite a bit of time at the park.  Thankfully both Noah and Nash love the park (but then again, what child doesn't)...so on days where we weren't sure what to do, we always had the park (as long as it wasn't raining!).

Whew!  Can you tell which day was the sunny day (as if it isn't obvious)!  We also spent a lot of time at home.  Making (and eating) yummy food, playing with all of Noah's toys and dancing to music.  I am not sure who taught these guys to dance, but it looks somewhat like a gallop! haha.  They crack me up.



We also had to make a little fun of our own...crazy boys.

Lastly...we found one of the prettiest spots near our house, and not a moment to soon.  I accidentally left my camera in the car, and Chelsea's camera battery died....so these were the ones we could get.  I am glad Chelsea remembered her camera!

We had such a great time with Chels and Nash here.  I think I only did the dishes once the whole week (thanks Chels)!  We sure love you guys, and can't wait for our next rendezvous! 

xoxo.

Playing Hard

This week my BFF Chelsea and her little boy Nash have been here visiting!  Noah is in heaven.  Nash and Noah have been two peas in a pod.  Nash even brought Noah and himself matching Mater shirts.  They are too funny.

It's amazing how kids can find entertainment out of the simplest things...like jumping on an air mattress....

We even took them to the mall in their matching shirts...and yes, people asked if they were twins. haha.  

Don't worry, this is just the beginning....there's plenty more fun to come!

A Recipe, Or Two

I am, like, on a blogging role or something.  However I better not speak too soon and jinx myself!

A while back (over Memorial day) we went to a little BBQ at some friends house.  One of the gals brought a salad that I just couldn't get off my mind.  I recently asked her for the recipe so I could make some here at home...and she was kind enough to share!  Since I am not sure what the official name of the salad is, I will call it the Jana Salad (since Jana is the name of my friend who made it), clever I know.   Anyway, if you make this - I can pinkie promise that you won't regret it.  Seriously. It's really good.

Jana Salad
Romain lettuce, cleaned and chopped
cooked and crumbled bacon (I used turkey bacon, but either way is still delish!)
dried cranberries
fresh, sliced avocado
candied almonds
Brianna's poppy seed dressing

Candied Almonds
2Tbsp Butter
Approx. 1 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup to 1/3 cup white sugar

Melt butter in pan over medium to medium high heat.  Add almonds and sugar...stir continuously!  If you leave them for even a second they will burn (trust me).  They will begin to brown quickly.  Cook to a nice dark golden color.  Spray a plate with cooking spray and sprinkle almonds on plate to cool.  Once cooled crumble up and add to salad.

As Noah would say, 'ummy ummy ummy'.  I ate some of this for dinner last night and again for lunch today.  Andy and I both love it and even Noah ate some (it may have been because Andy told him that the almonds were candy, but we take what we can get).  

You can also find the roll recipe HERE at Mel's Kitchen Cafe.  They were great, except I left out the cheese in the middle...I am sure they taste wonderful both ways.

Enjoy!

Photo-A-Day Dropout

So remember in my summer to do list, how I said I wanted to take a photo every day of Noah and Clare?  Well, I've already failed...but not by much - and I have been trying harder to take more pictures.  SO, I thought I would share the ones I have captured from the last week or so, just so you (and the grandmas) can enjoy them!

Bubbles Bubbles.  I decided to invest (a whole $7.99) in a bubble machine for Noah.  I guess I should say it was more for me, so I didn't have to keep blowing bubbles out of that silly little stick anymore.  It was a worthwhile purchase, and has proved to be a hit!

Clare got some enjoyment out of it too, or at least she appeared happy!  I will take that as a yes!

This is what happens at 6:45pm when Noah has missed his nap for the day.  Nothing could wake him at this point, and I am perfectly ok with that. 

Clare on the other hand is enjoying a tasty treat of sweaty palm and finger lint (you know, when babies get fuzzies in between their fingers).  Not my thing, but she sure likes it! 

Noah loves to crawl on things he shouldn't, and loves to get caught.  It's happened several times (as my regular readers know)...some things never change...

Later in the day we went to a little birthday party at the lake...we sure had fun.  Noah played in the dirt and took a little dip (and a couple slips) in the water ...hence his dry shirt in one picture and wet shirt in another.  Silly boy.

And Clare, our sweet Clare.

Lastly, I actually caught some pretty cute pictures of the kids before church.  Since we have 9am meetings you can see just how amazing that is.  They both were tolerant of me, even though there are a couple pictures where you can see how Clare really felt about it all...