Seattle

Vegas... And other nonsense

So this is us before the shuttle picked us up and took us to the Ontario Airport... Oh and in case I did not mention it, we are going to Vegas for Paul's 40th Birthday!  It was such a nice time away from our lives and work and not thinking about all the nonsense that can weigh us down.  We stayed at the MGM Grand and wondered the strip looking for excitment for 6 days straight.  Paul had his entire family as well as mine with us to celebrate.

This is us in the Le Reve show... Before we had to stop taking photos.

This is me at the Wynn, after the Le Reve show.  And below is the canoe sculpture outside of the Aria Hotel... So neat and such a simple idea.

This was our Madore Family dinner at Canelletto... Totally yummy and well worth it!

One of Paul and my favorite places, we have eaten there on our wedding night and on the night that we got to Vegas and again here, two nights later.

And then when I thought that I was doing well at Keno with my $40 win, these two had to go and top me like it was their job.  Oh and Paul won $500 as well... What the heck?!?

All in all it was a wonderful week.  Once that I will remember forever and hopefully Paul will as well.

Happy 40th Birthday Baby!!!!

Long Week

It's been a long week.  No words truly describe all that I have been through in the past 7 days, and the wierd thing all work related.  I rarely find myself so spent over work, but I really am.  I will say this though, it was a very valuable experience and I have learned more in the last week about business and what motivates people and proper management, than I have learned in the last 12 months.  So I guess that was a good thing, but I still want it noted that I am tired and more than anything I need the 6 days that I have coming up in Vegas!!!!

For the record, 67.25 hours worked this week.

Loving the overtime on this one... Oh the silver lining!

Jay-Z & Beyonce Perform "Young Forever" at Coachella 2010

I love this song and more so I love me some Jay-Z and this is at a whole new level.  I am not the biggest fan of Beyonce, but man she sure belts it out on this one and for some reason it makes me want to be her friend.  And on a side note, they are kind of cute together and I love her little shorts and her random shirt.

Who's Idea Was This?!?

I'm just going to say it... What is this and why did ANYONE think it was neccesary?

Baked Artichokes with Gorgonzola and Herbs

I figured that it was time to try something new and ran across this recipe in my Giada De Laurentiis " Giada's Kitchen " cookbook.  I have often wanted to make artichokes, and though I am not certain I think that I made them at some point but nothing that I would serve again.  This time I was determined to make something that was edible and fun.  So here is the recipe for yummy, baked artichokes.

Makes 4 Servings (though I made only one)

4 artichokes
3 lemons
10 ounces of gorgonzola cheese, at room temperature
2 tablespoons of heavy cream
2 teaspoons of chopped thyme leaves
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 garlic glove, finely minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons plain bread crumbs
1 tablespoon olive oil

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and add salt when water starts to boil.  While water is coming to a boil, trim the artichoke.  Cut the stem at the bottom close to the base of the artichoke and so that it can stand up.  Then cut about an inch from the top and trim all the spikes off of the leaves.  Drop the artichokes into the boiling water.  Halve the lemons and squeeze the juice into the water, and toss in the lemons.  Cook artichokes until tender, or about 30 minutes.  Drain the artichokes upside down on a clean kitchen towel.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the gorgonzola cheese, cream, thyme, 2 teaspoons of the parsley, the garlic, salt, and pepper.  In another small bowl, stir together the bread crumbs and the remaining tablespoon of parsley.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spread the artichokes open with your fingers and use a small spoon to scrape out the center choke.  Stuff the cheese mixture into the artichokes and arrange them in a baking dish.  Sprinkle the artichokes with the bread crumb mixture and drizzle them with olive oil.

Bake until the artichokes are heated through, the cheese is melted, and the bread crumbs are crisp and golden, about 25 minutes.  Move the artichokes to a serving dish and serve.

It was so good and now that I know how to make it, I will be doing it again and again!

** As a side note, I realized half way through that I was missing like 3 ingrediants, so my loving husband ran to the store and got them for me.  Sometimes in the most unexpected ways, I am reminded that I am a really lucky person to have such a wonderful person in my life. **

Earthquakes & My Anxiety - Totally Best Friends

I have a history with earthquakes and I don't mean that I have gone through them and they are great and no big deal to me.  No I mean that I hate them, no matter the scale they are awful to me.  I hate the feeling that the room is going to either shake off of the structure or that we are going to roll out into the road.  But most of all I hate sitting there letting my anxieties get the best of me, convincing me that it will never end and we are all going to die. 

Today was no different.  I was sitting in bed on the lappy and then I felt it start, tried to stay calm, thinking I must be wrong but it got stronger and kept going.  So I took off under the table with Paul in tow and once sercurely under the table I look up to see my cat Moe sitting on the bed looking at us like we were the crazy ones.  What!?!  Aren't animals supposed to be all senses and feel stuff before it happens so that they can warn you, clearly Moe is no Lassie.

So instead I sat under a table for 5 minutes, paniced, cried and then finally moved all my stuff under the table, since I was convinced that we were going to have another one.  I am a mess, I don't pretend to hide that fact.  I hate earthquakes and once I popped a little pill and made a fort under the table, I think that I am on my way to feeling much better.