Boomer...

Who wouldn't want to go to a Dallas Cowboys football game?!? Me too, but unfortunately a college game was a lot more feasible. I had always wanted to go to an OU game. After all, I was born and bread a Sooner fan. I may have graduated from OSU but at a minimum I bleed red and orange. Kelly had been wanting to go to a game too so I seized the opportunity and got us tickets to the Baylor game for his birthday.

The score of the game ended up being too close for comfort but it made for an entertaining day. I did a horrible job picking out seats online and we ended up in the nose bleed section. It was still a great time. I prefer watching from the comfort of my own home though where I can lounge on the couch, drink a beer, and have a better understanding of what's happening with the game. You don't get to see a million instant replays when you are there live!

Tapas again

Eat tapas was on my list. I had some delicious tapas on a cruise we went on. I posted about it earlier. However, we were in Spain and I had the opportunity to have tapas at one of the oldest tapas restaurants in Spain, Quimet & Quimet. I decided to give it another go.

We got there and the language barrier really kicked in. The menu was all in Spanish and we could hardly figure any of it out. We tried ordering a sampling of tapas. They ended up bringing out plate after plate of seafood tapas. The only edible thing for me was the bagel and lox. The other items included cod liver and some thing that looked like a tongue! Kelly was braver than I and sampled most everything. After the second plate of food, we refused any more. We left starving and hit up the Burger King down the street. Seafood tapas = EW.

Eat [suh-vee-chey]

ce·vi·che
- noun
1.an appetizer of small pieces of raw fish marinated in lime or lemon juice, often with onions, peppers, and spices.

That pretty much says it all. I was pretty indifferent about it. Now I know what it's all about!

Two years have flown by and time is running out. In 10 days I turn 25 for the 5th time and have one year to complete my list. Better get moving!

Down and dirty

When I heard about the TATUR mud run a couple of years ago I knew that it was going on my list. When was the last time you got to play in the mud?! When I found out there was a costume contest, I was even more excited. We signed up as a team of five to complete the non-timed race: me, Kelly, Cheri, Jeff and Mollie. I had seen these fun costumes from the old nickelodeon show Double Dare and knew they would be perfect for the event. We would have a red team (me and Kelly) and a blue team (Cheri and Jeff) and our referee (Mollie). Cheri and I got together and created some pretty awesome outfits and waited around for race day to come.

Unfortunately, Mollie was unable to participate at the last minute. Luckily, Sam agreed to sub-in. We suited up race day and prepared ourselves for the challenge ahead. We really had no idea what we had signed up for. It was a sweltering summer day. The first part of the race consisted of running, followed by a slide, tire obstacles, and more grueling components. It felt never ending at one point but we persevered and completed the race in the middle of the pack. Did we win the costume contest? Of course we did! And Cheri even got her picture in the Tulsa World. It was a fun time and I'm glad to check it off my list!

Gobble, gobble

I'm not a big fan of change and I'm a huge advocate for keeping traditions. I'm an "if it's not broke, why fix it?" kind of gal. That brings us to the next thing on my list: cook with my mom for Thanksgiving. Being the baby of the family means I may never be solely responsible for Thanksgiving dinner, but I found it important to know how to make my mom's delicious meal. I've always admired and loved her simple homemade cooking. The older I get, the more precious time is and I would hate to miss the opportunity to learn all her secrets.

I stayed over the night before Thanksgiving to get started on the prep for the next day. We got up bright and early Thanksgiving morning and got to cooking. We prepared a feast! Turkey and dressing (I stuffed the butt stuffing), green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and gravy, rolls, coleslaw and a ton of tummy desserts. We got in some quality time together and both decided it would make a great annual tradition.; and I might just have to test my newly learned knowledge and cook a Thanksgiving in July meal.

Take an Unmapped Out Road Trip

Well, it feels good to break through the first 10 and on to 11 although I’m definitely losing steam! One Saturday afternoon in April, Kelly and I were lounging around the house being unproductive and bored. It seemed like a great opportunity to check one off the list. The kind of opportunities that are fewer and further between once you start a family. We loaded up the car for an overnight stay and headed out to nowhere in particular. We made a quick stop on the way out of a town at QT to stock up on some road trip snacks: Twizzlers, sunflower seeds and 32 ounce drinks. We drove in multiple directions for awhile, mostly east, and then made our first stop in Chouteau, Oklahoma for some Amish jerky, cheese tasting, and yogurt nibs. We saw some funny signs and stopped to pose with a few monuments along the way.

Yum.

Another one off the list! After Kelly’s grandma made us this insanely good but labor intensive lasagna a few years ago, I knew I wanted to tackle a Martha Stewart recipe. I came across one for Yankee Pot Roast. It sounded really good and gave me the opportunity to make my very first roast. Something about making a roast just feels very 1950’s housewife. I was looking forward to it and it gave me the chance to use my Dutch oven Lydia had gotten me for Christmas a couple of years ago. I took my time and slowly followed the recipe. After about an hour, it was all prepared for its three hour “roast” in the oven. I decided to invite family over feeling not right about Kelly and I tackling it on our own. It was huge success and we only ended up with enough leftovers for me to take to work for lunch the next day. If only I could share the smell! Buon Appetito!