My Movie Star!

As you are well aware, my beloved Missy was used in a locally-shot movie before we got her. My mom and I went to the "premier" back in September and while the movie is cheeztastic, it was still so fun to see my puppy dog on the big screen! During the Q&A session at the premier someone asked "what happened to the puppies". Then there was a big hub-bub and barrage of questions "How big is she!?" (Small). "Why didn't you bring her?!" (cause she's crazy). "How did you get so lucky to get her?!" (We just are. We just are).

Well I finally got my hot little hands on the trailer. Apparently the DVD comes out some time in 2009. You can bet we'll be getting a copy or two. It's totally a kids movie, so there's hope that my children may enjoy seeing their puppy on TV someday.

Enjoy for yourselves.

Matchmaker Mary Trailer from Pure Flix on Vimeo.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Zach and I are headed to Sioux Falls, South Dakota tomorrow morning. It will be my first official Christmas away from KC. I'm a little upset, but I'm sure it will be fine. There are new traditions to be discovered. I will miss my Missy and George horribly though. Miss will have fun at Gma Gpas and George will get to roam around without having to worry about a dog putting their slobbery mouth completely over his head.

Ho Ho Ho!

Brown Sugar Cookies

So I think I'm finally done making cookies now. I've made 6 different varieties of cookies this year. That's for sure a record for me. I think last year I made 3. I'm pretty much cookied out. These were a last minute add because I realized that I had to give cookies to 3 more families than originally planned and I didn't want to run out. I had all the ingredients for these Brown Sugar Cookies at home and they seemed pretty simple, plus I love brown sugar, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. They were easy and are quite tasty!




Brown Sugar Cookies
1 cup butter; softened
1 1/2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Decorator sugar crystals

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.
Gradually add brown sugar, beating well.
Add egg and vanilla, beating well.
Combine flour, soda and salt; add to butter mixture, beating just until blended.
Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness between 2 sheets of waxed paper (this wasn't working too well so I abandoned ship and just left the dough in the bowl)
Cut with 4-inch cookie cutters (couldn't get the dough to cut right so I rolled dough into quarter sized balls and flattened with my hand)
Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets (I greased mine).
Sprinkle cookies with decorator sugar crystals.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until golden.
Let cool for 1 minute on baking sheet then remove to wire cooling racks
Yield: about 2 1/2 dozen. Mine made about twice that but I made small cookies.

They taste similar to a chocolate chip cookie without the chocolate, just a bit more caramelly- Very tasty. They are also on the crisp side, but I lik that too. Zach said they remind him of his moms caramel rolls in cookie form. He kept trying to steal some away, so that's always a good sign!

Happy eating!

Run it, Run it.

I remember one time when I got what I thought were some cool new Nike Shox and went to immediately try them out at a local park. I got there and they hurt my feet. Really bad. So bad that I actually had to check to make sure they were on the right feet. My feet were going numb from the pain. I hobbled back to my car and drove home, cussed a bit, but then changed into my old running shoes and went BACK to the park to finish up my 4 miles.

That was back when I had this thing called MOTIVATION. I can't even fathom driving home for new shoes then driving back to continue my workout nowadays. I'd probably just give up and eat pizza.

So I need to get back to it. I need to start pounding some pavement (or treadmill until it's warm enough). Working out is addictive for me. Something happened when we moved to our new house. The gym moved about 10 miles away. Driving to the gym is such a chore. Add on top of that a needy puppy and husband in school, I barely ever have the time or patience to go to the gym. That all is going to change. We are going to switch gyms so I can go to one that's a little closer. While it might not be a fancyschmansy 24 Hour Fitness that I've grown to love, it is still a gym with all the same stuff and similar classes. I'll make due. Plus it's nearly half the cost of 24 Hour. Hell, when I was a poor wedding consultant I worked out with old people in room no bigger than my living room with 2 treadmills, 1 elliptical and a couple old weight machines. I'd never been skinner.

I've also outlined my race plan for the Spring/Summer. It's pretty ambitious. I'm half tempted to go ahead and actually sign up and pay so I can't back out.

Here Goes:
-April 26 - Trolley Run (4 miles)
-May 25 - Amy Thompson Run (8K)
-June 6 - Hospital Hill Run (10K)
-October 12 - KC Half Marathon (13.1 Miles)

Wish me luck! I'm gonna need it.

Kisses

So I've been baking. A lot. Every Christmas I tend to go a little overboard with my cookie list. It runs in the family. You would not believe the sheer amount of cookies my mom makes every year. I can think of at least 7 kinds right off the top of my head. So far I've made 4.

I've been trying to document my baking adventures (mostly to see if/how much I improve from recipe to recipe). Zach does not understand this. I'll be in the kitchen snapping away and he'll go "did you just take a picture of the beaters?" He doesn't get it.

Anyway, so these aren't my most favorite cookies, but they are quiet the crowd pleaser, so I make them every so often. They make a ton, so plan on sharing!



Peanut Blossoms
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar - packed
1 cup butter
1 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla
3 1/2 cups sifted flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
Hershey's Kisses

Cream sugars, butter and peanut butter together. Beat in eggs, milk & vanilla.
Sift flour, soda & salt together and stir (I never sift, pain in the rear) into cookie batter.
Chill throughly for best results.
Shape into the size of walnuts. Roll in additioal sugar.
Bake on ungreased (I grease) cookie sheet.
375 degrees for 10-12 minutes
Press kiss in middle while still hot
Makes SEVEN DOZEN!




This cute picture was taken at my wedding....awww.

Christmassy Weekend Recap

Well Christmas is almost here and I'm so not ready. I still have cookies to bake, presents to buy and cards to address. I have a feeling some people will be getting "New Years Cards" Hey, they say "Happy Holidays" so that counts right?

This past weekend was jam packed full of Christmas fun. Friday I went and visited with some cousins in from out of town. We all grew up together and I still absolutely love getting back together with them whenever they are in town. While we don't all have the most in common anymore, I still enjoy it. This time we played Cranium and drank wine. Fun times!

Saturday was my cousins baby shower and then my mom took me and my brother's girlfriends to The Nutcracker. Very neat! I haven't been before and quite enjoyed myself. I love me some dancin! Afterwards we drove Ward Parkway and looked at lights. Very festive!

Sunday was "Girls Christmas". Presents at my house and then lunch at Peachtree. YUM!


Yesterday Zach and I got free tickets to go see Neil Diamond. I know he's a legend and all, but to me it was just kind of "eh". So far every time I tell someone that, they look like they want to punch me in the face, so next time someone asks I'll pretend it was awesome.

It's been a snowy week here too. It iced/snowed last Tuesday and that was a nightmare. I got to experience a totally fun 3 hour bus ride home. Then today it snowed again. The bus ride to work was a swift 2 hours (45 minutes of which was spent sitting in the bus lot because our bus broke down, it was awesome). Tonight it took just over an hour to get home. Pretty good! I'm a bit worried about Thursday though. I seriously might stay home if it ices like it's supposed to.

Missy is loving it though!

Merry Holidays!

So we are in the middle of the holiday season here. I gotta say, this is one of the least holiday-esque years I've experienced in some time. I'm just not that "into it" this year for some reason. Oh well, I suppose I'll get there.

We stayed here in KC for Thanksgiving. Just went and had dinner at my aunts house (where everyone either had a baby or was pregnant...seriously, like EVERYONE I know is having a baby right now). Dinner was actually pretty tasty! I made a pumpkin roll and some apple spice bars. The pumpkin roll turned out great (on the second try anyway. I kinda forgot the SUGAR in the first batch. Whoopsie). The apple spice bars didn't seem to cook all the way though. So I just cut out the edges and took those. People still seemed impressed, so I guess that's good.

Now I'm in the middle of my Christmas cookie baking. So far I've done my famous M&M Bars, Double Chocolate Chews and Pinwheels. I feel like I need to make a couple other varieties, but I'm not sure what yet. I'm thinking maybe plain ol' sugar cookies. Or those ones with the Hershey's Kiss. We shall see how much time I have. Next weekend is pretty packed....

Friday night I'm headed over to my Aunt Kathies house to visit with my cousins who'll be in from all over the country. I'm pretty excited. I always seem to have a good time visiting with them. Then Saturday I'm co-hosting a baby shower for one of the said cousins. She's due in February. She's the first cousin on that side of the family to have a kid, so it's a pretty big deal. Then that night I'm going to see yet another cousin (I feel like I need a flow chart or something) perform in the KC Nutcracker. I'm pretty excited. My mom is taking me and my brother's girlfriend's. Should be interesting.... Then on Sunday it's "Girls Christmas" here at the house. My college friends and I always get together one day in December, exchange gifts and go out to lunch. It's a little more tame than the days where we used to exchange gifts, go to dinner then get wasted. Ahhh memories.

So yeah, it's been pretty busy. My workouts have taken a serious backseat, but I'm trying to bring them back bigger and better than ever. It's just finding the time... Stress!

And now, some cute animal pictures.....

What? Like you didn't think I would... Right.

Try to ignore my awsome college pajamas. I know you are jealous of how hot I look.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Can I make a Thanksgiving resolution? Yes? Ok, I resolve to blog more.

I'm Thankful for:

My husband, Zach. He puts up with a lot of my crap and still loves me. Plus I think he's pretty cute too :)



My Missy Dog
Aka: "The Crazy Banana" and "Miss Moo"



My George Cat
Aka: "Mr. Furry Bottoms"



Plus I'm thankful for my family, friends, health, new home, good job, happy life and everything else that I've been given.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Louisburg Cider Mill

A few weeks ago, Zach and I went and did something I've always been pestering him about doing - a small little outting. It was a beautiful day and due to a complete entryway painting failure we had a free Sunday! So we hopped in the car and headed to Louisburg to go to the famous Cider Mill.
The drive was nice, the trees had all turned and we enjoyed the ride out there. The Cider Mill, and the whole area was a lot smaller than I had thought it would be. But, it was packed! We weren't really sure what we were supposed to "do" since they don't have tours on Sunday (figures), so we went and peeked in the glass window and watched a few apples be pressed. Kinda boring, and really, not sanitary.

So then we went in the store and Zach was feeling extra nice and everything I said I'd "always wanted to try" he bought for me! It is very rare that his reply when I say something seems mildly expensive is "so what, we came all the way here, buy it!" OK! So we got some cider (duh), apple bread mix and apple butter! We also had to get some hot cider and apple cider doughnuts! De-lish!

We sat outside and sipped our cider and swatted the bees away (Ok, we never swatted the bees, just got up and moved every 10 seconds. Bee's 1, Zach & Stephanie 0). The whole time I sat there there was one pumpkin that kept calling my name. I told Zach and he bought it for me! Yay! It had character.

We didn't stay long, but enjoyed our time there. After that we went and had lunch at Red Robin with Kristy and James, then made the drive back home to watch the Chiefs blow yet another lead.
Oh , apple butter is yummy!

KC Marathon - The 5K Version

All week I've been fighting some sort of weird cold thing. I've been exhausted, stuffy and my head feels like it's about 3x bigger than normal. So I hadn't worked out in exactly one week when the time for my 5K came around yesterday.

I went back and forth and back and forth on if I should even go or not. The thought of waking up at 5am to drive 45 minutes to crown center then stand in the freezing cold for an hour then to try to huff and puff my way through 3.2 miles didn't sound all that exciting. But, once I hit packet pickup on Friday, I knew I had to go. There's something that gets me every time I go pick up my race day t-shirt and 'champion chip'. I knew I had to do it.

So I went to bed early and got up at the crack of dawn to make the trip to Crown Center. I love the atmosphere before a race. All the excitement and the fact that there are thousands of other 'crazies' like me who love the thrill of race day and will work so hard just to get there. It gets me really pumped up. The music, the crowds, the focus on everyone's faces. I LOVE IT. I think that's why I keep going back and keep training to get better and go further. I want to be one of those 'awesome' runners.

I felt pretty lame doing a measly 5K at the KC MARATHON, I won't lie. I wish I would have been more focused this summer and been able to attempt the half, but I wasn't. I was just worried about finishing my 3 miles.

The Marathon and Half Marathon kicked off at 7am. So after sending them off, I had a good half hour to try to stay warm and loose before my race started. I did some stretches, some fast walking and a lot of jumping. I was pretty pumped for the race.

It was a good course. Pretty flat, not a lot of uphills but a good amount of downhills. I've gotten much better at pacing myself. I've also learned how to 'coast' the downhills. I felt awesome the whole race, even with my tight chest due to my cold.

The downtown race went from crown center, down grand to 17th street. East on 17th to the Paseo. North on the Paseo to 18th Street and we headed west back to Grand. North on Grand to 13th street then south on Main and a few quick turns to end at the Freighthouse.

Here are my stats:
Time: 29:40
Pace: 9:33
Overall 422/1169
Division (Female 25-29) 60/173
Females: 169/731

So not super awesome, but definitely not bad at all considering how I felt. I was pretty happy with the results.

After the run, I got my 'champion chip' cut off, went through the food and drink line then hiked it from the Freighhouse back to my car at crown center. Nothing like a long hike after an exausting race!

Getting back home was a total nightmare. Every single road I tried was closed for the marathon. I think it took about an hour and a half to get home.

But it was worth it.

Next up: Jingle Bell Run 2008 - 10K baby!

Secrets DO make friends.

On the eve of my 1 year wedding anniversary I got some really sad news. I still haven't really been able to shake it. My friend Michelle said it best here.....

'OJ' and I had big plans to become running partners and train for the 10K together. I met her (in real life) for the first time on Friday and I was super stoked to have a new running partner. I'm pretty sure she won't be up to the training right now, but I'm still going to run it. If not for myself, but for her.

It's strange how my "secret society" friends (as Zach calls them), have really managed to become such a part of my life. I suppose in this age of online dating, why not do "online friending" as well!

So here it is. I'm a "realie".

Shhh. Don't tell.

I'm still alive!

Well it has clearly been a while since I last posted. I don't generally like to write at work because I get really distracted. Then by the time I get home I've lost all motivation to write or Zach is monopolizing the computer doing "homework". Stupid school. He does have straight A's so I guess I shouldn't complain.

So what's new....

The Crazy Banana (Missy dog) is 7 months old now! She's still sneaky and a bundle of energy, but we love her to bits. Who can't love a face like this...

We love her even when she gets into the mud and comes out looking like this.....

We have started leaving her in the kitchen all day like a big dog and she's doing well! They grow up so fast! *sniff sniff*

Our 1 year wedding anniversary is on Monday!! I can't believe it's been that long already. It's been a good ride and I'm looking forward to many fun years to come. Love you Zach!

My current obsession is getting back into shape. Before we moved to our new house I had quite the routine going on. I worked out pretty much 6 days a week for hours at a time. I was in fantastic shape (even though I thought I wasn't). Since we've moved I've gotten a little more lax on my schedule. It takes longer to get to the gym and after a long day of work and riding the bus home the last thing I want to do is drive to the gym. But that has to stop! I've started training for a 10K race that will happen in late November. I'm not a runner by any means. I actually pretty much hate running. I only started doing it because it's the only thing that gets me to shed pounds quickly, that's the main reason I run. The next reason I run is the way I feel afterwards. There is such thing as a 'runners high'. It's awesome! I feel so refreshed and calm. Plus it's when I get in my best 'thinking'.

So I found a 10K in Lee's Summit on 11/22. Yesterday I went to sign up and the damn thing was canceled!! I was super pissed. But I found a few others to choose from so it looks like I'll still hav my shot. The training isn't easy and it's definitely going to be a lot of work, but I need to focus on something. If I can do a 10K this year I might, just might think about a half marathon next year.

Yeah. I'm crazy.

Summer Time!

I knew I'd be bad at keeping up with this thing. There's been lots of times where I want to write, but can't seem to find the time to sit down and do it. Here's a brief recap.

I completed the Hospital Hill Run 5K. I had planned on doing the 10K, but slacked off on my training. I'm pretty mad that I couldn't do the 10K, but there's no way I could have even completed it. Plus it was my birthday so I wanted to be able to enjoy the rest of the day. I went on a shopping spree. Zach bought me a DQ ice cream cake and we hung out at the Lee's Summit Downtown Days festival and watched some of the Eve 6 concert. All in all, a decent day. Plus I got to spend some QT with my new buddy, Missy girl!

We went to Zach's sisters wedding two weeks ago. It was nice. Not as dramatic as we thought it would be, so that's always nice. It was a pretty simple wedding and sometimes I wish I would have done the same, as I'm still paying for my own wedding that was 9 months ago. Anyway, I helped out as much as I could with Alicia's wedding and had a lot of fun doing the day-of coordinating bit. I think it might be something I'd want to do as an actual job some day, but we'll see.















I've also started a new exercise regimen. I'm trying the Jillian Michaels "Making the Cut" program. I feel like I've gotten into a huge rut as far as working out goes. Since we've moved I don't feel like I've had the time to work out as much as I did before, especially now that we have Missy. I hate feeling fat and not looking my best. I've struggled with how I look for my whole life and this is probably the worst I've felt about myself since college. So it was time for a change. I started a www.sparkpeople.com membership and that's how I'm keeping track of my caloric intake. According to Jillian, I'm only supposed to be eating around 1400 calories per day. That's not very much, but so far I've been doing alright (ignoring the 4th of July weekend that is). I also have been doing Jillian's workouts. It's a 30 day plan and I'm to do cardio 5-6 days a week along with 4 days a week of her workouts, which so far have mostly been weights and strength training. I like it so far. It mixes things up a bit. I just need to up my cardio. It's going to be hard, but I'm pretty determined. I'll update my progress as I go. Hopefully I'll look like Jillian some day! ha!


Other than that, things have been pretty normal. Zach started a new job, so he's loving that. My job is alright, very busy right now, but that's ok. The house is still here. We (Zach) just got a big ol' TV today. We were 'stimulating the economy'. I still have major landscaping, painting and decorating plans so look for those things to come.

I'll leave you with this sweet face:See ya later!

Meet Missy!

So here she is! Our new little furbaby!

Her name is Missy!


She is very loving and sweet, but she has some allergies. We noticed that she was scratching a bit the day after we got her but figured it was just a dog thing. The next day she was scratching even more and that night she barely slept (and neither did I). When morning came I noticed she couldn't go 20 seconds without stopping to furiously itch something. So we called the vet on call (it was Sunday). He told us to give her some Benadryl and we should be good to go. Well then her eyes looked a little puffy, then her nose looked swollen and finally her ears puffed up!

So I got all freaked out and hysterical and called the vet back. We took her in for her first (and hopefully last) emergency visit. We went through everything that she ate and the vet seems to think it's a food allergy. I really believe that it's the two hundred million weeds in our grass-less back yard. But anyway, she got a cortisone shot, some prednisone pills and we were told to give her benadryl a few times a day. Poor puppy!

The swelling went down by the end of the night, but the Benadryl completely knocks her out. I hate giving it to her, but if this is the only way to make her better, then so be it. I just hope it works. She still scratches every so often, so only time will tell.

In the mean time, she's busy becoming friends with George. He hated her at first, but he's coming around. He puts up with a lot, so he's being a great big brother!
Training has proven to be difficult. Especially house training. Especially w/ prednisone pills that make her drink like a camel and pee like a race horse. She also likes to bark a lot, jump and is extremely stubborn when it comes to "Come here Missy!". She won't do it.

But just look at her. She's so cute. We just love her to bits.


Get better soon Missy! We want to start playing!

See ya around!
-Stephanie

It's Puppy Time!

Everyone knows I've wanted a puppy/dog forever. Now that we have a house and a big fenced in yard, the time has come!

Last week I was bored at work and decided to check out the Wayside Waifs site. I found a litter of 6 adorable Lab puppies and sent a picture of one to Zach. Usually he just says "yeah that's nice" and tells me to "forget about it". But this time he was interested! We decided to go see them Thursday night. There were only two there when we got there and thankfully the lady who fostered the mom and the puppies was there! We started talking to her and found out that the two puppies that were still there had been adopted. You see, they are all a part of a movie that's being filmed in Kansas City called Matchmaker Mary. Starring Dee Wallace Stone (the mom from ET!) and Jeff Fehey (some guy from Lost). So most of them were adopted by the crew and actors (including Dee Wallace!). But she told us that there was one more, Misty, who was still filming and would be done Saturday. So we put our name on the "wait list" and hoped for the best. Since the actors and crew got first dibs we thought we wouldn't get her. But they called us Saturday evening and told her that nobody claimed her, so we get her!! She had her surgery today and we can pick her up Thursday!! I'm so excited!!


I found this blog about the movie and a picture taken Friday. Since Misty was the last one to film, I assume this is her... If not it's one of her litter mates.

Tonight Zach and I are going to PetCo (where the pets go) to get all of her supplies! Crate, Bowls, leash, collar, Kong, toys, balls!!! She's going to have it all (don't tell Zach)!

We still aren't sure of the name. We've toyed around with Missy (Misty is a stripper name in our opinion). But I think we'll have to meet her to decide. We'll keep you updated.

We'll also post some more pictures that don't have complete strangers in them!

See ya later!

-Stephanie

Dear Shutterfly,

F-YOU!

I sat down, all prepared to write this really neat entry about this really cool tradition that Zach and I have and Shutterfly has ruined my whole plan...and a lot of other potentially cool entries.

You see, I've had a digital camera for about 2 years now and I have uploaded every single picture I've taken to dear ol' Shutterfly and deleted them off my craptastic computer to save disk space. So apparently Shutterfly now has this "cool new website" that PREVENTS YOU FROM COPYING PICTURES!!!!! I've been trying to right click, ctrl+c, and any other copying techniques I know (ok, so those are the only ones I know) and nothing happens!!! SOOOOO no pictures of cool things that have happened before today on my blog (wedding, new house, cool traditions, drunken stupors..) :-( Sad day. Maybe I'll be able to figure something out. But until then...

So long Shutterfly. You bitch. We are through!
-
-
Oh but Zach, Congrats! I love you!!

















Yeah, I already had this gem saved to my computer. Enjoy.

See ya around!
-Stephanie

And....Five! Six! Seven! Eight!

*Jazz Hands* and Pose....

Oh here I go again. This whole "blogging" thing. Which, by the way, I totally abhor the word "blog". But whatever, it is what it is.

I'm not exactly sure what's going to take place on this blog. I'm sure there will be some pictures, some stories, some ramblings and some complaints. I guess whatever strikes me, I'll write about.

Some background on me:

I just got married. (Ok, 6 months and 3 weeks ago). But I guess you are a "newlywed" for a year right? Shortly after getting married, we began looking for a house and found one fairly quickly. It is brand spakin' new and we got it for a steal. The whole "house buying process" was horrific and therefore we'll probably end up staying at this house for quite some time. But we love it. We just got another fabulous deal on a privacy fence and had it installed this week. Next up - a Fido! I also started a new job at the first of the year. I'm still not sure how much I'm going to divulge on here about my job, but you could say I'm kind of a big deal. Ha! Not really.




So here you have it. My first entry. Awesome huh? Hopefully my next one will be even more captivating!

See ya around!

-Stephanie