March 30, 2010

Job Update

So many of you have been asking me what's the news on the job situation so I thought I'd share what I've got...

I have applied at a great private pre-school here in the area. I've had 2 interviews with them and it's gone really well. It's a wonderful facility and I would be really happy working there.

Also, the Katy ISD job fair is coming up at the end of April and there are some great positions becoming available. I've got my resume in the hands of some great people ahead of time, so hopefully we'll start seeing some movement soon!

Currently I am subbing in Katy ISD and have gotten some great experiences and got a chance to meet really neat people & kiddos. So it's been fun, but def. not a long term thing for me!

So keep up with the positive thoughts & prayers as I continue this long search for the perfect job.

Passover

Yesterday & Today Josh and I have to opportunity to spend lots of extra time over at his parents house to celebrate Passover. Last night we had a really lovely evening filled with tradition, lots of laughs, and yummy food. I even tried out a new recipe... it came out ok! I don't think I'd make it again... but it was worth a shot.

Toffee-Chocolate Matzah (Martha Stewart)

4 sheets of Matzah

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate chips



1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees

2. line baking sheet with parchment paper & place matzah in an even layer on baking sheet

3. melt butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add brown sugar and immediately reduce temperature to low. Cook, stirring, adjusting heat as necessary, until sugar has completely dissolved and begins to bubble. Drizzle toffee over matzah and spread to cover using a spatula.

4. Transfer toffee-covered matzah to oven and bake until toffee has a rich, shiny sheen, 10 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with chocolate chips. Tent matzah with aluminum foil and let stand 20 to 30 minutes.

5. Remove foil tent and spread melted chocolate over matzah to cover; sprinkle with sea salt. Transfer matzah to refrigerator and let chill at least 2 hours.

6. Break chilled matzah into pieces. Matzah will keep in an airtight container for up to 4 days at room temperature.

VARIATIONS...

Josh insisted that we use white chocolate. So I melted down the chocolate & spread over the Matzah. I also sprinkled walnuts on some of it, Heath Bar bits on other, & left some plain.


I didn't make anything special for tonight. But I may try out some new things for Josh for the rest of the week. I came across a really great blog today called Cara's Cravings. She's got a lot of great Passover Recipes listed. So we'll see what I get to the rest of the week.

March 29, 2010

Checking off my List

Well It's been awhile since I gave an update on how I'm doing on my 25 by 25 list- so here's the quick update....
1) I have lost 5lbs. Today I am actually starting a new program to help this along. It's called the Couch to 5 K .
4) Long-term Volunteer- Well I've always volunteered with Boy Scouts of America. But I've finally taken on a position of my own =)
5) Run a 5k - well the training begins today!! So I'll be looking for a race to partake in in a few months.
17) Read 10 books.... well I'm having trouble with this one. I've only read 1 book from start to finish so far. But I've read a few chapters of a couple different books, but they just don't keep me interested. So I'm going to work harder on my book selection. I wonder if cook books count! haha
22) Outside activities- we've been doing good!! Over the weekend we actually went fishing at a local lake. It was really fun.
25) still debt free!!

Ok that's all I've got on those. I'll be working harder & staying focused.

In other news... My friend Meredith came in town & we had a lovely visit. I've got my fingers crossed that she'll get this job. It'd be nice to have another friend in town.

Josh and I have a trip planned to to Austin in a few weeks. We are so excited to see our dear friends Jacob & Rebecca who recently got engaged. You may remember them from our wedding =)

Also, we got our wedding album in the mail & it's absolutely wonderful. I'll have to take some pictures of it to put up for you all to see!!

That's all I've got time for now. But I'll get some other things up soon. I've got lots of other things to share. Until then, I hope you all are enjoying SPRING! It's a beautiful time of year & reminds us all to appreciate the beauty of our wonderful world.

March 16, 2010

Local Biz Report

So I've sorta been MIA lately, and decided today I had some blog-worthy info to share. We had a ladies lunch (and shopping outing) today. We decided to try some new shops in Old Katy. And boy where they good!!

First we went to The Cottage Door for some fun shopping! They've always got a nice selection of Vera Bradley gear along with Brighton, Pandora, and many more!! They had a special going on today that if you make a VB purchase you can get a VB wallet for $15. It was a pretty sweet deal. So We purchased Brittany a lovely surprise (that she'll soon get in the mail), mom got a new pair of 'readers', and then we got 2 of the wallets (both in the same pattern). VB has some really classy new styles out. My new favorites are "Sittin' in a Tree" and "Poppy Fields"

After this we headed over to the Cottage Charm area for some food & dessert at some local eateries. We had lunch at a cute new place called Please&Thank You Home Cooking. It is really a lovely location. It has a combination of miss-matched tables, chairs, and centerpieces. I seriously LOVED it. It seemed as though the decor had been chosen by rummaging through a grandmothers garage. Very charming! After ordering our drinks we started our search through their pretty full menu (which is great for a new place). They've got a wide variety of soups, salads, & sandwiches. They've also got a casserole of the day along with a meatloaf place. So of course myself, mom, and Susie had to sample a little bit of Everything! I ordered the Meatloaf & a baked potato side. Mom ordered the baked spaghetti & a salad (with homemade buttermilk ranch). Susie got the Chicken Tortilla Soup & a Chicken Salad Sandwich. Everything was really yummy! I think my favorite thing was Susie's Tortilla soup. I'd heard their soups were good and they sure didn't disappoint.
Next we walked next-door for some Cupcakes from Frosted Betty. Mom and I tried 2 flavors last week. So today the 3 of us ladies purchased 6 cupcakes! haha. We did not eat them all though. We did try the carrot cake w. cream cheese icing (very yummy!! amazing icing), lemon cake w. lemon icing (also very good, not too sweet, and the cake part was perfectly moist), chocolate cake w salted caramel icing (this was alright... the salted caramel part was really yummy but the cake left a bit to be desired in terms of denseness&moisture), and lastly a banana fosters cake w. a lighter cream cheese icing (cake was perfection!).

We had such a lovely time at these Katy locations. We really hope to find & try more local businesses. haha I can say that this is one New Years Resolution that I've really kept up with... Support Local Business. No need for the chain stuff (except Target, Michael's, and Home Goods of course) haha.