Books Read in November 2011

1. Real Men Will by Victoria Dahl (NOTE: This book was the last book in the Donovan Brothers Brewery series. The order in which to read can be found here.)
2. Sweet Jiminy by Kristin Gore
3. Room by Emma Donoghue
4. Christmas in Lucky Harbor by Jill Shalvis (NOTE: This is a 2-in-1 book that contains the first two books in the Lucky Harbor series - Simply Irresistible and The Sweetest Thing. The order in which to read can be found here.)
5. Small Town Christmas by Jill Shalvis (NOTE: This book is am additional book in the Lucky Harbor series. The order in which to read can be found here.) The other authors in the anthology are Hope Ramsey and Katie Lane.
6. Holiday Hideout by Jill Shalvis, Vicki Lewis Thompson and Julie Kenner.

Decent month for books. I really enjoyed Real Men Will. Sweet Jiminy and Room were library books. I liked Room, but it was a tough book to read. The Jill Shalvis glom is, as always, fun.

Movies Watched in November 2011

1. The Muppets
2. The Walking Dead
3. Hot Tub Time Machine

Little Miss and I attempted to see The Muppets in the theater. We missed the very end, but it was enough to count. I know The Walking Dead is a television show, but I’ve been watching through Netflix Instant Play and thought to make record of it. I enjoyed the first 6 episodes. We’ll see about the second season.  I actually kind of enjoyed Hot Tub Time Machine.  I watched it on Netflix Instant Play last night and it was a good relaxing-on-the-couch movie.  Everyone looked like they had fun and the clothes were hilarious.

Korean Style Short Ribs

Photo from this website

I made Korean Style Short Ribs in the crock pot this past weekend. It tasted pretty good so we saved them for dinner tonight. We're eating them over rice. It's a bit sweet, and I have a feeling it'll be heavy on the garlic, but it's tasty and easy, and we almost have all of the ingredients at home excluding the meat and green onions.


Korean Style Short Ribs
recipe adapted from Blisstree


Ingredients:
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup packed light brown sugar
4 tablespoons sesame oil
4 tablespoons rice vinegar
4 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
I head of garlic, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
5 lbs beef short ribs, uncut whole ribs
1-2 stalks green onions, sliced thin for garnish
1/2 teaspoon white sesame seeds for garnish


Directions:
Mix soy sauce, sugar, oil, vinegar, ginger, garlic and red pepper in a small bowl. Place ribs in a 5-quart slow cooker and pour sauce over. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Remove ribs from crockpot and serve hot over a bed of rice with a garnish of green onions and sesame seeds.


*Alternately, if you don't have a crockpot/slow cooker, simply place the ribs in a foil lined baking sheet and baking in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1-1/2 hours until cooked

Weekend Update - Super Saturday

On Friday, Husband and I did our grocery shopping before Little Miss came home so we would have a nice, quiet evening with her. On Saturday, we had a big day.

Little Miss and I got up early and met Sister and Nephew at the mall for holiday pictures. Then, we picked up some lunch and went to my Parents' house to eat. Little Miss and Nephew played and then we met Husband at our friends' house for their son's birthday. They have a daughter who is Little Miss's age, and Little Miss loves them. Also, Brother-in-Law, Sister-in-Law and Nephew showed up. Little Miss had a blast and then passed out cold on the way home and didn't wake up until the next morning.

On Sunday, I slept gloriously late. We had a family breakfast. Then, Little Miss and I took a walk to the library. After the walk, Little Miss and I took a nap. Then, we woke up, had dinner and pretty much went back to bed. A perfect Sunday.

"Reading"

Little Miss has started pre-reading where she can identify letters and will ask what certain words are on the page. She will also memorize entire books and then "read" them to us. We're not long before she reads us bedtime stories which is only sad because I was never a good person to sit and listen to a story. I'd much rather be reading it myself. Anyway, tonight, I recorded her reading Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. It's in two parts because I didn't realize she knew the whole book, and she was kind of bummed that I had the camera off. It's a bit lengthy and some of it is fast so she may be hard to understand, but she knows almost the entire book.  You certainly don't have to watch both lengthy videos, but if you don't watch the second, how will you know how the story ends?

Here is the second video:

Weekend Update - Wedding Bells

Last Friday, I left work to drive Little Miss from one set of grandparents to the other where she spent the whole weekend which included a sleepover with Nephew.  So, she had a blast.


On Saturday morning, Husband and I drove to NJ for a wedding. We made good time, had a quick lunch at a diner and then attended the wedding and reception. It was a really good time with good friends. Unfortunately, Husband wasn't feeling well on Friday and got worse on Saturday, but he made it through the wedding and 3/4 of the reception.


On Sunday, Husband drove us to the Parkway and then I drove the rest of the way home (so you know he was sick!) I dropped him home and then went to pick up Little Miss and spend a little time with my grandparents. It was a crazy busy and fast weekend, but it was a lot of fun by all.

Friday Story

So, a man accidentally threw away his wife's engagement ring. Then, with Waste Management's help, dug through a lot of trash to find it. You can read the entire story here. Do please click on the link because the first comment is my favorite. "Let's be honest here - did he really have a choice? LOL" Seriously, I think Husband would dig through 9 tons of garbage over listening to me nag, yell, and scold him for the rest of his life.

Report Card

If you have trouble viewing the photo, you can click on it and bring up the larger image.

I can't believe it was our second parent/teacher conference. Last year, we were a bit nervous, but this year, I think the report went just as well as we expected. There were no surprises.  Sometimes, I think these report cards are a bit arbitrary at this age, and it's mostly the teacher assuring the parents that their kids aren't little crazies.  Husband had concerns about Little Miss's listening skills (or lack thereof), but the teacher assured us that she is fine or normal for her age and, of course, she listens to other people better than her parents.

So, good progress.  Hopping was difficult for her last year so it's funny to see how much she's progressed from last year over concentrating on the things she is still learning.

Weekend Update

Last weekend, we had a good weekend with Brother-in-Law, Sister-in-Law and Nephew.  I forget what we did on Friday, but I'm sure it was low key. 

On Saturday, Little Miss and I went to the library and chose new books.  Then, we came home for lunch, and she took a nap.  Afterwards, we went to Brother-in-Law and Sister-in-Law's apartment.  We chatted and ate and watched the kids and ate and then got pizza.  We tried to keep Little Miss up later than usual so she could adjust to the time change the next day, and she handled it ok.

On Sunday, we met Sister-in-Law and Nephew at the mall for holiday portraits.  This is the first year that Little Miss was absolutely perfect.  Poor Nephew is entering the phase that his cousin just exited.  Still, I think the pictures came out well.  After, we grabbed some lunch and then head for home.  Little Miss napped on the way home and then wouldn't nap once we got home which is fine. 

Good weekend overall!

RIP Bil Keane

Bil Keane passed away. My mom and I were always big fans of the comics. We knew all the characters like they were family. Though we weren't the biggest Family Circle fans, there were always heartwarming comics that captured our hearts and attention or at least gave us something to discuss around the breakfast table (or lunch depending on the time we got around to reading the paper).

And Sometimes, It's All Worth It

I would never categorize myself as messy, but I don't like to clean or tidy so I go as long as possible without doing it.  With limited space in our apartment, our living area becomes messy within a day if there is no cleaning or tidying.  So, when we went 2 weeks including a deluge of presents from Little Miss's birthday, it got pretty bad.  So bad that Husband cleaned floors and did his part last weekend (we divide the chores).  As it happens, if I do a big cleaning, Husband will follow so conversely, when he breaks down to clean, I follow with my jobs.  So, last night, I finally put away Little Miss's changing pad from the top of her dresser and put all her knick-knacks up there.  That freed space in her bookshelf to put actual books.  Then, I picked up the toys and changed the sheets and put away the clean clothes.  Little Miss came home and ran into her room and gasped.  "Mommy, you made this place look wonderful!"


So, there may be days where being a grown-up is a thankless job, but sometimes, it's all worth it.

Cupcake Vodka?

I am sure my best friend, Grey Goose has nothing to fear, but I read Cupcake vodka is coming to America. It comes in different flavors and there are drink recipes. The apple one seems like a good idea for Thanksgiving, but it also sounds kind of gross. Either way, it seems like the cupcake gimmick isn't as strong as it was years ago, but I guess with the popularity of the whipped cream vodka, this was bound to happen. Anybody hear anything about it? Think it's worth trying?

Movies Watched October 2011

1. Ides of March

With new television on air, there is a lot less movie watching. However, Husband and I went out for our anniversary and saw Ides of March. We really enjoyed it. So, quality over quantity this month.

Books Read in October 2011

1. Chasing Fire by Chasing Fire
2. Only His by Susan Mallery (NOTE: This book is part of the Fool's Gold series. The order in which to read the series can be found here.)
3. Bad Boys Do by Victoria Dahl (NOTE: This is part of The Donovan Brothers Brewery series. You can find the order in which to read here
4. More Than Words Volume 7 by Jill Shalvis, Carly Phillips, and Donna Hill
5. Lover Unleashed by J.R. Ward (NOTE: This is part of the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. The order in which to read can be found here.)
6. Ape House by Sara Gruen
7. Covet by J.R. Ward> (NOTE: This is part of the The Fallen Angels series. The order in which to read can be found here.)
8. Animal Attraction by Jill Shalvis (NOTE: This book is the second book in the Animal series. The order in which to read can be found here.)

It was a really great month for reading with most of it happening in the first week of the month. I read all electronic books and continued borrowing books from the library for my nook. Very pleased with this month’s books overall.