Saturday = Productivity

Saturday was a busy day in the Southern California Suhr household apartment. We slept in a little. Garrett made a delicious breakfast of eggs, sausage, english muffins with blueberry preserves and even a pot of coffee! We then finished Season 5 of The Office with Jim and Pam expecting a little one, and decided it was time to work on some projects that we've had lying around for a while. 

Garrett was busy sanding a desk that we bought on Biola's Classifieds. It's a little like a roll top desk, but it's more of a flip top desk. I love it because it can hold our messes a bit, and the top can just be flipped down when people come over, instead of constantly trying to keep the place kept up. :)

Here's a picture of the desk with the lid off. Garrett does good work.

I'm working on trying to figure out the best way to make a Magnetic Chalkboard. I realize I could probably buy one, but if I can figure out how to make them, and frame them cute enough, maybe I could sell them. :) And fund MORE crafting projects, eh? I bought a piece of galvanized steel at Home Depot (or maybe it was Lowe's?), some primer, and chalkboard paint. I sanded the steel to make sure it was nice and smooth, added a couple coats of primer, and then started in with the chalkboard paint. 

The only thing I'm not sure about are the lines. They weren't nearly as bad after it dried, but I think the paint brush I used left more lines than I was expecting. The paint has been drying the past couple of days, I think I'm going to try and roll on another layer of paint to see if a roller works better. 

I'll post some pictures once I've gotten the next coat on. 

I still need to find a frame that will fit a large, square piece of metal. :) 

It's fun to be creating, though. :) It's just fun to have a life back after such a crazy fall! 

Yeehaw!

Grilled Pizza. Oh. My. Word.

So, the other night, our dear friend Janae came over for a little hang out time. Garrett and I were talking about what we should make. I've had grilled pizza before, but only once and it's been about 2 1/2 years. Garrett just did a grilled pizza night with his RA's recently but I wasn't able to join because of work. Anyways, I thought it'd be delicious, and super fun, to do grilled pizza. My recent, and probably all time favorite pizza is Chicken BBQ. I am a HUGE fan. I can't even imagine what I would do if Pizza Hut's Stuffed Crust was combined with a Chicken BBQ pizza. Hold the phone. MAYBE THEY DO HAVE IT!!

*Quick break to check Pizza Hut's website*

No dice. They don't have it. Well, shoot. I got super excited there for a minute. Stuffed Crust just makes my mouth water. Well, not really...'cause my mouth doesn't water for some reason. Garrett's does. : )

Anyways. We got a bunch of ingredients, got them all prepared and chopped up and ready to go. Janae decided to make a Pesto Chicken pizza. I did the Chicken BBQ. And Garrett did the Pepperoni. So Janae and I heated our pizza with the sauce, set that aside. I got some cilantro, red onions, and cheese. We rolled out the dough, and then headed for the grill. :)

Chicken BBQ Pizza ingredients ready to go. 

Lucille's BBQ Sauce, red onions, cilantro, chicken and cheese (not pictured). 

We then laid our dough on the grill and let one side cook.

 Suuuuuuper excited! 

Once you flip the dough over, you have to be ready to put on all your toppings. It goes fast from here. Add your sauce, and the toppings you'd like, then shut the lid so that it cooks quickly. 

There may be a little extra time to take a picture or two. :) 

Garrett saved the day by coming through with the loads of cheese! 

The finished product! Seriously, Adios California Pizza Kitchen. 

This BBQ Chicken pizza was just as good! 

This is a whole new way to do Barbecues with friends.
Change it up a little. And let me know what you think. :)

For the love of dishwashing...

Ever since I was little, one of my big chores was always dishwashing. We didn't get a dishwasher in the Harrison household until we were well into high school, and even then didn't use it all that much. Mama still inspects all the dishes before they get put in the dishwasher. She pre-washes all of them. :) Doesn't want any clogs in her pretty little dishwasher. (Love you, Mama.)

Anyways, I've washed a lot of dishes in my day. I actually really love to do it. I love how everything starts out so, so dirty and ends up so sparkly clean. 

In all my years of doing dishes, though...I think this was my favorite turn-out. I have a wonderful dish stacker/dryer by the name of Garrett who made art out of a chore. Thanks, baby. You are my better half. :)

Ideal Morning

This morning was what I think I would consider ideal. I slept in. I had nowhere to be. I took my time getting ready and put on jeans and a favorite shirt. I came in the kitchen, put on some music, made some eggs an english muffin and a cup of coffee. Ideal. Why can't life just be like this all the time? :)

Here's to more of these kinds of mornings. Maybe I could be a morning person?

Sale!

This is just a little follow-up to my most recent post! :)

So we were in Santa Monica yesterday with the wonderful Mr. and Mrs. Paul and Dorothy Keisling, and we stopped in real quick to Banana Republic.

And they had a HUGE sale!
Everything on clearance was an extra 30% off!

Including...














So I dreamed big.

I waited.

And this wonderful little blouse went from $70 to $19.50.

Not. Bad. :)

Browsing Banana

Sometimes I spend, probably too much time, browsing my favorite clothing websites. One of those websites is Banana Republic. Though usually out of my price range (hooray for clearance racks!), it's still fun to dream, right? Here are some of my favorite looks from the current styles.

I guess what I can tell from looking at each of these pieces is that I'm digging the ruffles, the belts, the cardigans, and the tucked in look. It's frustrating to have caviar tastes on an anchovy budget.  I'm constantly looking at clothing, jewelry, and furniture and thinking, "I wonder if I could make that". I've recently been hoping to learn how to sew. Then maybe some of these styles would only be a little bit of fabric and a sewing machine away. :)

Bending and Adjusting

I'm cleaning out my email at work and just found this that I wrote to a newly married friend at some point last year. Thoughts on marriage. :)

It is very much an adjustment. Every part of it, too.

I don't eat on a normal schedule, just when I'm hungry. Garrett likes to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner  when they're supposed to be eaten.
I don't want my bathroom floor wet, but Garrett steps out of the shower without drying off first.
I like to stay up late, but Garrett likes to hit the hay a little earlier.
I like to sleep on the couch. It's not long enough for Garrett to fit on, too.
I like some salt on my food, but it's usually pretty plain. Garrett spices everything.

It's crazy! And I've never been in a relationship with someone (best friend, sister, parent) that so much affected me, ya know?

It's definitely a learning experience. A good one! But a hard one at times. :) It means bending where you're not used to bending and giving where you're not used to giving.

After re-reading this, I'm more and more convinced that marriage is worth every bend and ever adjustment. It just is.

Love you, Garrett.

Alaska Flowers

Just wanted to post a couple of my favorite flower pictures from Alaska. Isn't God amazing?

I need to post....

It's been forever. The same pictures of baking cookies have been staring at me, taunting me, telling me I need to post again.

It's been almost 3 months.

Ridiculous.

So here's a quick post.

What's been going on?

• I went on a pre-vacation vacation with GS1 (Gretchen). We flew the coup and headed to gorgeous Mexico for a week. We slathered on sunscreen, ate to our hearts content, read fictional stories, met some wonderful people, went snorkeling, got burnt, saw cultural dances from each of the states of Mexico, took a taxi ride (my first!), swam in the ocean, saw the Gulf Coast oil spill from the plane (sad face), went on 7 airplanes in 9 days, chatted about life and its ups and downs, haggled for souvenirs (she's got a much more convincing poker face than I do), played beach volleyball, lost a life jacket while kayaking, and just had an all around great time. Here's to 9 years of friendship, and many more to come!
• We're losing an entire Biola class, one that we've grown to love and will seriously miss. 
• That class that we're losing GRADUATED so we're also happy for them. We're happy for them. We're happy for them. We're happy for them. I have to keep repeating it so I don't selfishly fall back into the "I don't want them to leave" phrases. It was so fun standing and cheering for so many incredible students at graduation. We were awfully proud "parents".
• The students have since moved off campus. It's eerily quiet.
• We are babysitting. Four turtles and a handful of fish. Two tanks. 
•  Our humble apartment home is about to be vacated by GS2 (Garrett) & I, and then inhabited by two of our RA's. We've given them strict instructions to be nice to our non-stick pots and pans. :) 
•  G & I are finishing up work this Friday and then off for a 2 month vacation together and with our families. We're totally looking forward to the break, and the time together to be refreshed, learn more about each other, and see more of the country. Our vacation looks like this: June 8-June 21-Time in Roanoke with the Suhrs! Hanging out with Garrett's parents, as well as Jason and Rachel and the four kiddos. It's gonna be awesome to get some quality non-stop time with them. Garrett is so relaxed when he's at home, so I'm glad we're getting to do this first. We're planning on hiking a good bit of the mountains around Roanoke, so we're excited about that. We'll celebrate Father's Day with them, then we're heading up to Harrisonburg to hang out with my family and celebrate with them as well. We'll spend a couple of days in Harrisonburg, head up to Pennsylvania to see some friends we haven't seen in over 2 years (crazy!), head back to Harrisonburg for a night, then head down to Alabama for the annual beach week at the Gulf. It will be a little different this year with the oil spill and all. I'm anxious to see it firsthand and see how it's affecting everyone in that area. But we get to be with family, and that's the purpose of the trip. We'll be there for a week with my extended family, and then we'll head back home and spend a couple of days in Harrisonburg again before flying straight from there to Alaska! This is one of Garrett's dreams, and I'm excited to be going with him as he gets to see this part of the country for the first time. We're going to be doing some hiking and sightseeing, as well as just enjoying the views and wildlife (I'm hoping to finally see a Moose!). We'll spend about 2 weeks there, and then head back to LA. We'll have a couple of days before we start back up again for another year here. It's crazy that we're going on our third year in California. Time really truly flies. 

I'm missing my family more and more. It's hard being so far away. I'm looking forward to the time with them, but wish I got to experience the more day-to-day stuff.

I also get to see BELLA! She's 4 now and it's oh-so-hard hearing about all the wacky stuff she does and not being around her.

Anyways. There's an update. Life is crazy, but it's definitely good. Garrett and I are having a blast and really enjoying each other's company. This marriage thing can be hard at times, but it's so fun to be able to say "I'm looking forward to how much more we're going to grow together as a team this NEXT year!" It's truly a one-of-a-kind relationship.

.i can make cookies, too.

I know. The title sounds like a bratty kid.

It's not meant to.

Honestly, I am seriously inspired...inspired...by the some of the women who have families, husbands and children, and are able to keep up with their blog, watch their kids, take cool pictures, cook creative dinners, sew up all kinds of creations, bake seriously ridiculously amazing desserts, decorate their homes, and do all sorts of things they are passionate about. The list really goes on and on. How do they do it!?!

It overwhelms me sometimes to read how much others are able to do, given the same amount of time that I am. Let's face it. We all have the same amount of time to work with. 24 hours every day. We just each choose to spend it differently. I think recently I've started realizing that I spend a lot of my time observing how others spend their time. I don't want to be an observer anymore!

Put me into the game, coach!

I think the that I wish for the most is to know what it is that really makes me excited.

To know what it is that I LOVE to do and then to do it well.

So thanks, ladies, for the inspiration.

Here's to the first project.

Cookies.

Not just any cookies.

Pretty cookies.

So with the help of my friend Janae, who makes Sugar Cookies that are TO DIE FOR...

...as well as the creative talents of two of my other sweet friends Kara and Jess...

...we had a Girls' Night.

We chatted.

Drank coffee.

Laughed.

And friends...we made cookies.

Now I know they're not perfect. But I gotta tell ya, I left this evening just thrilled.

And now, not only did I make cookies, I blogged about making cookies.

I feel like I'm actually getting somewhere! :)

the.finish.line.

Final results are in! Janae and I were crossing the checkpoint lines at the exact same times, apparently.
2 hours and 45 seconds, right at a 9:13 mile pace.
I'm gonna go soak for a while. :)

Slacker-ish

I want to post more. I do! I just get behind and then get overwhelmed with how far behind I am and then I avoid it because I'm too far behind to even try. It's too much to handle!

Isn't that life?

I want to post when something funny happens. Something silly happens. Something sad happens. I find out interesting news. I find out ridiculous news. I find out news. I'm dissapointed. I'm happy. I'm lethargic. I'm hungry.

I want to post about random things that aren't big deal things and not feel like I have to have some huge revelation before it's a big enough deal to write about.

But I can't do it.

So tonight. I did it. Here's a random post about nothing. Because I wanted to. And had nothing to write about. But I did it anyway.

That's a milestone. Ha.

Oh. My first Half-Marathon ever is in two days. I'm a tad bit nervous, but more excited than anything! Bring. It. On.

Homemade Egg Rolls and Clogged Garbage Disposals

It has been a longstanding tradition in the Suhr household to make homemade egg rolls for Christmas.

When the boys were younger, Mr. and Mrs. Suhr welcomed several foreign exchange students into their home over the years. This was a great experience for both parties, and the Suhrs were taught some very valuable recipes that we now enjoy VERY much.

One of those recipes came from a couple of Vietnamese girls. Homemade Eggrolls.

d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s.

This was Garrett and I's first go at making the egg rolls. I'd tasted them at Jason and Rachel's house a couple of years back when I was engaged to be a Suhr. Last year we didn't try our hand at them, but this year, we thought we'd give it a whirl. We were a little late; they were more like New Year's Egg Rolls, but boy were they good (and secretly fun to make...as in...I actually enjoyed it!)

Here are some pictures!

The mixture you see is cabbage, carrots, tofu, sausage, bean threads, and a couple of spices.

(I think that's everything?)

Then you roll up the egg roll, adding a little water to the last flap to make it stick.

At the same time, you're heating the oil on the stovetop (or your husband is, in my case).

These are deep fried, of course. :)

The egg rolls start collecting on the side.

And then, when the oils at a good temperature (hot enough to cook 'em, but not too hot that it burns the outside without warming the inside), you drop 'em in...

 

Then it's a game of keep up. I was rollin' as fast as I could to keep up with Garrett who was fryin' as fast as he could...

That boy is a fryin' machine...

When all was said and done, we'd made 40 egg rolls.

35 with the regular stuffings.

 

4 dessert ones.

Stuffed with:

applesauce and cinnamon

peaches and brown sugar

apple butter

nutella, powdered sugar, and peanut butter morsels

and 1 that...didn't make it.

(Picture not shown)

All in all, it was a fun time, and a great dinner.

And leftovers were delicious, too!

And leftovers WILL be delicious again...

and again...

and again...

and...

The only thing that didn't work was...

our sink.

Apparently, I stuffed too many carrot nubs down the "in-sink-erator" and got it clogged.

Waaaaaaay clogged.

We plunged till we could plunge no more.

Nothin'.

We'll have to call facilities tomorrow.

After lunch.