Mr & Mrs Peters

Yesterday something very, very exciting happened. I mean REALLY exciting…. Ready for it??

Our cruise info came from Princess! We received some info from the travel agent when we payed the deposit, but now that everything is “official” (ie we have signed our lives and financial status away to Princess) it is for real! Wahhhooo!!

They sent us our luggage tags (few people besides me would be excited about luggage tags), a bunch of legal forms, and a cool booklet with specific info on food, entertainment, and all the other cool stuff on the cruise ship. Because neither of us have been on a cruise, all this is new to us. Justin is most excited about walking on a glacier, but I am really looking forward to having breakfast delivered in the morning and eating on our balcony! (Thanks Aunt Patti for the idea!)

Approximately 66 days to go… Are we there yet?

photo courtesy of Thomas Cook Cruise Magazine

My dear husband reminded me last week that I have not done my Sunday Six in a long time. He is right… And in fact, if someone were to grade me on my blogging attempts lately I bet I would receieve an “I” for incomplete. Thankfully, I don’t get graded on my blogging regularity!

But, I have missed writing about my Sunday Six. So here, my friends, are six things that I am so very thankful for this week.

1. Flexibility at work… I feel very fortunate to be able to leave work early when needed and make up my time when it works for me (ie coming in super early). I definitely don’t take advantage of this but it comes in handy once in a while.

2. Yesterday morning I woke up and had to stay quiet until Justin “naturally” woke up. (I say naturally because believe it or not, I may have been guilty in the past of doing things to “accidentally” wake him up… ie intentionally sneezing, coughing, walking loudly) I decided that I was going to re-read one of my favorite books, Pretense by Lori Wick. Seriously people, read it NOW if you haven’t. It’s just amazing. Isn’t it sometimes nice to just focus on a book you already know and love?

3. On Friday my Dad retired from his job after 32 years. Hoorah Dad!! We celebrated on Thursday and Saturday and there is still one more party to go I am so very thankful that my Dad made it out of the police department with all his arms, legs, and brains! Thank you God for protecting him throughout his career.

4. It is such a nice blessing to have great neighbors! On Tuesday Jarod and April invited us out for ice cream… We had a great time and continually thank God for bringing them to be our neighbors.

5. Doesn’t it feel good to finally have a reason to wear summer clothes?!? I have worn several sun dresses this week and use every possible opportunity to break out my flip flops. And I give you all permission to remind me of my current joy a month from now when I am complaining about the heat!

6. Justin and I have been working on a lot of plans this week. Mostly they are boring, tedious plans that make me wish I could just curl up and be a 12 year old again. BUT… as much as I hate dealing with things of the financial realm, I am so very thankful to have Justin by my side as we figure things out together. He is patient to explain things and keeps me on track when I start to zone out.

Have a wonderful week my friends! I promise to be back with a new recipe on Wednesday… (or maybe if I am feeling particularly bold I will even do another post in between!)

I love you so much. Happy Father’s Day!

You taught me how to burp, love Disneyland, and have a good time even while grocery shopping.

Because I don’t want to be one of those dog moms (in Karen’s words) I try not to write about little Radar too much. Trust me when I say that I could fill most of my entries with stories about him (and of course my precious girl Skyla).

It seems like it has been way longer than three weeks that he has lived with us. It is even harder to believe how different he looks now! In just the past week his coat has started to grow in with the coarse fur of an adult dog (some puppy fuzz remains, hoorah!). His tail is getting freakishly strong, and he learns funny new habits every day.

Some of the cute things Radar does:
Runs into the (closed) screen. So he isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed… He has his good looks!
Makes a cute grunting noise when he lays down.
Makes funny noises when he dreams.
Likes to be right at my feet and puts his head right on my toes.
Gets so excited about eating that he occasionally tips over his food bowl.

For the most part, he is an amazing puppy. We still have the very rare indoor potty accident but I think he mostly knows to go outside. He also has a little trouble with the “come” command, but we are working on it. He sits like a champ and now takes his brushings and baths with much more patience than his first week here in the Peters household. Everyday when I get home I am so excited to see “my babies.” I call Radar my little monster, as he sometimes seems like a little Ewok/Stitch (from the Disney movie Lilo and Stitch).

I will leave you all with this lovely photo, taken tonight as Radar was running around like a wild animal.

We all had that band. You know, the one that as a youngster you pledged your undying love and support to and secretly thought that somehow, someway, it would work out for you to be best friends, or maybe more?? Maybe for you it was The Beatles or David Cassidy or even Menudo…

For me, it was the Newsboys. They were (and still are, but with some different group members) a Christian rock band who was really popular in the 1995-2001 ish era. I would assume that they still are today, but I don’t follow their music much. If you were at my wedding, this is the band that my sister referenced in her toast.

You will remember that several months ago I visited Nashville to see my friend Chloe. While there I found out from her Uncle Dave that Phil Joel, member of the Newsboys, goes to their church. You can imagine the squealing that came out of me at this revelation. Anywho, we weren’t able to go to church as planned but we may or may not have driven by his house for a quick photo (don’t worry, I didn’t leave the car). Well, you can imagine my surprise when precious Dave sent me this video yesterday…

Watch me!

This video is proof of 2 things:

1. Dreams DO come true. Honest to goodness, if I were 13 still, my heart would have literally exploded today. Fran and I used to talk for hours about how we could meet them somehow, and how I could end up marrying Jeff. Sad, but hey- it was a phase. We all go through them, right? Today, the 13 year old girl inside of me has had her day in the sun.

2. I love the Krikac family. And I am not just saying that because they are Greek! Honestly, they are just about the best people ever. It all started out with Clo, and now I love her, her parents, her aunts/uncles, their pets, etc. Every single person in her family that I have had the great fortune to meet is kind, loving, generous beyond belief, and I could go on forever. Dave, thank you for making this girl’s day!!

This year is some sort of weird abnormality. We have had no weddings to go to. Zero.

Last year, we went to six. The year before that, I think the number was four.

You see, I really like weddings. I will admit, after my own wedding I was a bit burnt out and might have been a little overwhelmed at the multitude of ceremonies in 2008. But this is 2009 and I am ready and willing to partake in another wedding.

Here’s the real issue, folks. I really want to be a bridesmaid again. Slight problem- none of the friends who might realistically ask me to be in their bridal party are getting married anytime soon. Boo. Don’t you think it is a bit selfish of them to take so long “enjoying their independence??” Boo again. Get on it girls.

Sissy’s Wedding (Maid of Honor, wootwoot)

P.S. I really like this photo as I feel it truly shows one of my prevailing emotions from the day, ie, “Mess up my special day and I will cut you.”

My Wedding (Bride… Like being the head Maid of Honor)

Leesha’s Wedding (Bridesmaid)

You would think that eventually I would learn my lesson and stop going to the Post Office near my work. I mean, really, how many times am I going to be burned before I learn to not put my hand in the flame?? (Okay, that’s a bit dramatic but work with me here) I suppose in this regard, I am really living out the infamous definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

Here’s what happened this time around:

This particular post office has a number system instead of a line. So, you pull a number and wait for them to call it. Simple, right? Yeah, maybe it would be if they weren’t nutso there. You see, in addition to the number system, in the past they also have had a non-number line for people who just have one transaction to complete.

When I arrived there were two other people in the lobby. Both were already being helped. I didn’t bother to grab a number because I knew they would call it before I was done addressing my package. When I finished sealing up my box-of-love for the Utah Peters I noticed that the worker standing at the no-number-line did not have a customer. I walked up and we started to chat.

Her: Did you happen to grab a number?
Me: Ummm, no.
Her: It really is important that you take a number, so that things are done fairly.
Me: (looking around the lobby that is empty save for a man standing in the corner talking on his cell) Oh, ummm, ok…
Her: Blah, blah, number, blah, you must in the future, blah…

This lady was scolding me for something that wasn’t even an issue! I went to a cashier who didn’t have a line and didn’t have any customers to deal with and I got in trouble!

These people are going to drive me to drink.

This week I have chosen to share a very delicious, yet simple, recipe with ya’ll… This is an easy dinner to make and so far it has been very popular!

Baked Ziti (serves eight)
courtesy of All Recipes, with changes

1 (16oz) package ziti pasta
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
2 (28oz) jars spaghetti sauce
6 oz sliced provolone cheese
6 oz sliced mozz cheese
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup chopped basil (fresh is preferrable, but I have also used dried basil in lesser quantities)

Turn on oven to 350
Cook pasta for approximately 8 minutes, drain
Brown beef in skillet, add onions and saute
Drain fat and add spaghetti sauce (Let simmer for 15 minutes)
Using your big casserole dish, add about half of the pasta and mix with sour cream
Top with layer with half of the provolone and mozz cheeses
Spread layer of spaghetti sauce mixture
Repeat steps with remaining ingredients
Sprinkle top with Parmesan cheese and basil
Cook in oven for 30 minutes

Enjoy
Last night I made a half batch of this which worked well too! I didn’t have all the necessary ingredients and it STILL turned out yummy. This is also a recipe that works well with substitutions.

It was my freshman year in college. My mom had moved out of state several months before. Honestly, her leaving hadn’t been the emotional upset I sort of assumed it would be… I think that moving into the dorms for the first time and living the fun “college life” distracted me from the fact that she was missing from my everyday life. I didn’t see my Dad or Colleen every day either, and they were just 30 minutes away.

One afternoon we decided to eat at the schools’ hamburger place for a break from the typical cafeteria lunch. I ordered a Grilled Cheese Sandwich and waited patiently. My number eventually popped up on the electronic screen and I hurried back to the table where my older sister/best friend/soon to be rescuer was already sitting. I took one bite of the Grilled Cheese Sandwich and burst into tears. You see, growing up, Mom’s Grilled Cheese was a comfort food- always served with hot tomato soup. This Grilled Cheese was “gourmet,” i.e. made with two types of cheese. Who wants two types of cheese on their Grilled Cheese?? What was wrong with these people and their fancy Grilled Cheese Sandwiches? Didn’t they know that Grilled Cheese Sandwiches were a simple meal, meant to comfort and soothe?

As I became more upset and distraught, Fran took me back to the dorms. (I cannot even begin to imagine what the other students thought of a young freshman blubbering wildly over her sandwich plate) It was as if every change and every adjustment from the past few weeks caught up to me in that moment. I cried not just because I missed my mom, but because life was different and new and strange… I learned my lesson and never again ordered a Grilled Cheese without properly specifying my desire for one cheese type only.

Today I had a Grilled Cheese Sandwich for lunch and smiled as I recalled this memory.

Growing up my Dad forced us into watching old movies during our famed Family Movie Nights. There were times that we grumbled about having to watch something in black and white… but now I sure am glad for this exposure to some really wonderful movies!

As I have mentioned before, we don’t have TV here in the Peters’ household. For this reason, we end up watching a fair amount of movies. Netflix is amazing and I highly recommend it to anyone. Recently we received “The Best Years of Our Lives” in the mail. It was the 1947 Best Picture winner at the Oscar’s. It tells the story of 3 men returning to their lives and families after serving overseas during World War II. I was amazed at how, despite the fact that this movie came out over 60 years ago, so many of the issues it brings up are still relevant to our country and our homecoming soldiers. If you are looking for a good movie, (one that will make you laugh, cry, and think) give this one a try.

A small word of caution: at just shy of 3 hours it is quite a long movie. We watched it over two nights.