Independence

Can I just say how amazing it is that we get to live in the blessed land? I, for one, feel extremely privileged and am so thankful for our forefathers and their inspiration. That being said, here is how Americans in Kansas celebrate the day we became a free state:

Step 1: Wear Red, White, and Blue all weekend




Step 2: Family, Friends, and Dogs



Step 3: Street wide BBQ



Step 4: Buy an inordinate amount of fireworks


Step 5: Watch the most amazing fireworks show of all time


That's how we roll in America

Craving

Today I am having a MAJOR craving for Coco Bolos' Cajun Tilapia Fillet. It's so delicious. Now, normally I would just go and buy it, but it's expensive and I am trying not to do that as much anymore. So, instead, I found a recipe for spicy tomato cream sauce on the internet and I am just going to make it myself. Yay me! I'll let you know how it goes. This is what it should end up as:
FRENCH QUARTER TILAPIA
Fresh tilapia filet dusted with creole spices and
sautéed, finished with a spicy tomato cream sauce.
Tossed with linguini, and served with sautéed fresh
vegetables.
Hopefully it actually ends up resembling this. Maybe I will make this my new thing; finding things I love at restaurants and figuring out how to make them myself, because believe it or not, I think I am actually pretty good at cooking.

p.s. I have A LOT of pictures and lots to say about the 4th weekend, so look forward to that!

UPDATE:
It was delicious.

twenty-three

Well, my birthday was yesterday. I have to say, this was one of the best birthdays I have ever had. A huge part of it being amazing was that Dan was actually here for it. This is the first time in three years that he's been here on my birthday, so he really went all out.

The day started with my mom driving up to Manhattan and taking me to eat here. Delic. I had the tilapia and it was incredible. Then, I went to see this with my mom, Kim, and Katee. It came out on my birthday and so I figured I should see it on my birthday. Ha! It was so much fun! I love those girls. My mom had to go home after that, but I went over to Katee's for a little while and we had some root beer floats and some girl talk. LOVE that woman. She made me this.
Yum



The absolute best part of the day was Dan's present. He is so adorable. He set up a game show and had me play to see what my presents were.

What the game looked like:



I had to choose which option to uncover and I could either keep that option or sideline it so I could see what the other options were. Obviously, I wanted to see all of the options and I did get to keep everything. :) So creative!

first present:
Chocolate!!


second present:
dinner and a movie of my choice


third present:
I get to plan a trip to anywhere I want in the continental U.S. for a week in September! So many possibilities.


what I won for playing:
So that we can take pictures wherever and whenever we want. I am calling him Albert the Photographer.


After I won all my prizes I attached my camera to Albert and had a really good time figuring out all the different ways to take pictures. :)




I love Dan.

Sewing

Wow. It's been a long time since I've posted anything. I miss the good ole' days when I was doing the wardrobe challenge and had something interesting to say and post about. Maybe I can come up with another project like that one. My sister-in-law, Blaire, turned me onto this girl's blog about making her own outfits each day. She gets to spend a dollar a day and then makes her outfit from really terrible things she finds at flea markets and stuff. Plus, she is doing this for a whole year. I have spent the last like 2 hours looking at all of her posts and am completely blown away. I wish I knew how to do all the things she can. Someone get me a sewing machine because I am inspired and totally pumped! I want to do something like this, not exactly sewing, but something that will take up my time and will give me a hobby. Any thoughts? In case you're interested in this woman's year adventure look here. I would do another wardrobe challenge, but what's the point? You've already seen all my good stuff. I just want to be crafty and busy. Let me know if you have any ideas.

Thank You Notes

Did you know that I have yet to send out thank you notes for all the gifts we got for our wedding? I still have all the cards and all the lists of people and also a bag full of thank you cards, but I haven't done it yet. Pretty bad right?
To somewhat redeem myself, I have made a huge effort to send out thank you notes for any graduation gifts I have received as soon as I get them, but I keep forgetting about these last two notes. I really need to do that today.

I am so thankful for my family and, right now, most especially thankful for my extended family. Everyone has been so nice and so generous and I feel so blessed because of how wonderful they have all been. I am thankful also for my in-laws. How blessed am I that I know, love, and get along great with my mother and father-in law. Not everyone is as fortunate as I am to have such wonderful, loving, and understanding in-laws. How did I get so lucky?

I am also super thankful for all my friends. Where would I be without all of your support and uplifting words? I'll tell you, nowhere.

And, of course, I am thankful for Dan. He is so good to me and I often feel like I don't deserve it. He is always taking care of me and making sure my needs are met before anything else. He really is the kindest, most charitable, and most loving person I know.

Sorry this post was so sappy. I would update on my life as of now, but it consists of:
-going to work for a couple hours in the morning
-watching lots of TV shows and movies on the couch
-sometimes cleaning or running errands
-watching more TV or movies
-making dinner

all month birthday

Today my mom:
- took me shopping and bought me cute new shirts and shoes
- bought me lunch
- took Dan and I to see The Killers at the Old Town Theater (which is awesome. look it up)
- started planning our fun day tomorrow

She has decided that because I may not be here for my birthday, that she is going to take advantage of my being here and pretend like it's my birthday. So, since my birthday is not until the 30th, it feels like I am having an all month birthday. Pretty Sweet. More later.

Derma-cation

I love Dermatology. Let me tell you why:

1. Dan doesn't have to be there until 8 or 9 every morning, as opposed to 6 or 7
2. Dan is home by 5pm everyday, sometimes before
3. There is no such thing as a "dermatology emergency", so no more nights on-call
4. When he gets home at night, he doesn't have to study until he goes to bed for the next day
5. We get to spend all our evenings and all our weekends together.
6. Dan has to wear shirt and tie everyday to work now. LOVE that. SO hot.

So, I love it. It feels like I have my husband and best friend back, and that is fantastic. This is going to be a pretty awesome 3 weeks.