A great Summer BBQ Recipe- For dinner tonight

Ingredients: Boubon Glazed Pork Tenderloin
1 cup bourbon
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oil
1 cup prepared mustard
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
Freshly minced Garlic

Preparation:Combine all ingredients and mix until the sugar is completely dissolved. Marinate meats for 4 to 6 hours and grill on low heat for 2 hours until at least 160 degrees for doneness.


Serve with a side of Grilled Romaine Caesar Wedge:
Ingredients:
Romaine Lettuce quartered lenghtwise, fresh lemon, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper

Preparation: Coat lettuce wedges with olive oil, sea salt, and coursely ground pepper or your favorite vinaigrette dressing
Brush hot grill with olive oil and gently grill lettuce wedges for about 20 seconds.
Remove and serve with a sprinkle of fresh lemon with freshly grated parmesan to garnish.

The Drive up was worth it!

Finally Spring!

What do we know about the Mile High City?

Happy Easter everyone. I'm off packing for a quick trip to Denver. Here is a pop quiz about Denver. If anyone can answer correctly.....then I just might have a treat for you upon my return:

-True or False: Denver is the most populous city of Colorado
-True of False: Denver is nicknamed the Mile-High City because its official elevation is exactly one mile (5280 feet or 1609.344 m) above sea level
-Denver is located between what famous mountain range and the high plains to the east?
-What is the name of Denver's football team?
-What year was Denver founded: 1848 1858, or 1868

Obama/Richardson Ticket??

A few months ago, my instinct was that if a Democrat were to win the race to the White house, it would be the Clinton/Richardson ticket. Now it looks like an Obama/Richardson ticket may be the way to go. What are your thoughts. Watch this video from Portland Oregon on Richardson's speach endorsing Obama.

RINGING IN 2008!

Watching the crystal ball drop in NY Times Square on TV is a time honored tradition when celebrating the new year in the cozy warmth of your home.

My top 5 resolutions for 2008: If I can accomplish at least 3 of these, then I'm ahead of the game!

1. Lose 25 lbs- How? Eat less?? Oh no...exercise! (This resolution is so overrated)

2. Save Money- Shop less??

3. Start a Family - What am I waiting for?

4. Limit my Television shows to just: 30 Rock, The Biggest Loser, The Apprentice, & PBS

5. Take my dogs out more- Gabriel Park is right down the road from the house,
and Tryon Park is another great option!

Ski Bowl- Christmas day

Driving up to Mt. Hood, and skiing at Ski Bowl Government camp

Portland- New Urbanism (Business Week)

Check out Slide show:

Portland-Urbanism

If you cannot open this link, just highlight this and copy and paste into your URL to view.

Portland is one of Top 10 Cites to Beat! - Business Week
Also 2007's Top 10 Destinations in the WORLD to go to- Frommers Travel

A beautiful Song to end 2007

Puzzles

Currently laboring over a crossword puzzle at 12:43 am that has me and chris stumped. Here are a few clues that were given:

unproductive communication: 8 letters
Artist's medium: 4 letters, ends in an "S"
Singer Cleo: 5 letters
Scottish Town: 5 letters

If anyone knows the answer, let me know so I can fill in the blanks. Thank you :)

David & Julia's Wedding

Goody two Boots!

Looking forward to breaking in my new boots! Here is a song that was originally done by Nancy Sinatra, and later redone by Jessica Simpson:





"You keep saying you've got something for me. something you call love, but confess. You've been messin' where you shouldn't have been a messin'and now someone else is gettin' all your best. These boots are made for walking, and that's just what they'll do one of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you.You keep lying, when you oughta be truthin'and you keep losin' when you oughta not bet. You keep samin' when you oughta be changin'. Now what's right is right, but you ain't been right yet. These boots are made for walking, and that's just what they'll doone of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you.You keep playin' where you shouldn't be playinand you keep thinkin' that you´ll never get burnt. Ha! I just found me a brand new box of matches yeahand what he know you ain't HAD time to learn. These boots are made for walking, and that's just what they'll doone of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you. Are you ready boots? Start walkin'!"

I'm back!

Just learned today that a friend has started up her own blog. I'm glad to have the oppty to share in another person's sucess too! Well I'm back from KC. I can't believe how much I really missed home and how great Portland really is. I need to feel closer to the city, and being in KC in the land of Suburbia and highways is not my ideal place to be. Although, being with family was the most important thing, and for that I am most grateful to have celebrated my Thanksgiving holiday with those I love. Thanks Johnny, Ang, Tony, Julie, Aunti Happi, Uncle Hoang, Mom, Dad, and Laura for a great time. Love you all.

And Natty, thank you so much for taking care of my babies. You are a true friend, and for that I will never forget. Pictures of my brother's wedding will be up soon.

Thanksgiving Dinner served early!!

Since I'm flying away to go to my brother's wedding for the Thanksgiving holiday, I decided to cook my 12 lb turkey that I received from work. For this year's turkey, I decided to coat the bird with a sweet & spicy dijon grained mustard. I took some fresh sage and italian parsley and tucked it underneath the skin. Brushed Olive oil all over to give a nice dark golden color. For the stuffing, I made it simply by sauteeing celery, onions, golden delicious apples (Skinned), cranberries, and the following mushrooms: Morels, Oyster Mushrooms, Truffle, Chanterelles, & white mushrooms. My Gravy consisted of Turkey Stock which I made by boiling the neck bones, giblets, heart, and liver in some chicken broth and water. Seasoned with poultry seasoning. With the turkey stock kept aside, I would periodically baste my simple turkey with this stock, thus creating more pan juices. Once the bird was cooked (180 degrees doneness) I took the bird out and created my gravy by skimming extra fat and stirring in a 1/2 c. of tawny Port, more stock and remaining mushrooms. While this was simmering over the stove, I added roux (Butter and Flour mixture- the French use this method a lot as a thickening agent) to thicken the gravy and cook down the alcohol. (You can also use Corn Starch instead of Roux) Finish with either a little heavy whipping cream, or in my case, pure unsalted creamy butter. Voila! Turkey is served. Side acoutrements: Creamy mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce, stuffing, & sweet potatoes if you prefer! Hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving, and best of luck on your turkey.

Wicked Games- by Chris Isaac

Perfect song on a cloudy day.....I am dedicating this song to my friends and their significant other:

Natalie & Steven
Jill & Geoff
Elena & Lance
Juliadi & Bob
Laura (my sister)& Alan
Megan & David
Annette (my sister-in law) & Bob
Connie & David
Julia (my new sister-in-law) & David
Margaret & Joe
Jenny & Jeff
Clarissa & Perkins

Tired of being Sorry- Enrique Iglesias

On some days, this song sums it all up! Natty, can you show me how to actually post a you tube video on my blog?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jnk7NIeXUWs

The latest addition

Check out the new wheels!!

Rodin's "The Kiss"

Today is our 8th Anniversary.

I left work early to get ready for my night out with Chris. Came home and Chris had reservations for an eclectic restaurant in the SE side near Sellwood, featuring nothing but freshly made Pacific NW organic foods as Gabriel and John (Chef/Owners) would put it: Passion & Soul. Here is a sampling of their menu:

Appetizer~
RISOTTO FRITTERS Parmesan and aged cheddar risotto, breaded and deep-fried, served with roasted red pepper dipping sauce

Entree~
GRILLED LAMB SIRLOIN~rubbed with herbs and hazelnuts, plated on a bed of roasted shallots and pears, sauced in pear coulis

Dessert~
CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CAKE Decadent cocoa sour cream cake made with hazelnut flour and a hint of Frangelico, served warm with vanilla ice cream, topped with housemade caramelized local hazelnuts

If you think this sounds good, check out their Bistro restaurant on my list of links to the upper left of my blog entry.

1st Year Anniversary: Celebrated in a little seaside town: Melbourne beach/Florida with a Spa Package for deux

2nd Year: Went back to the Sundy House & Gardens where we married on October 30, 1999

3rd Year: Celebrated in Miami Beach at a wonderful Seafood restaurant named Joe's Stone Crabs

4th Year: Took a trip to Boston, what a fun trip that was

5th- 7th Year: Who knows! My mind is in a fog. In any case, it's good to at least remember your first years of marriage!

8th Year: A nice quiet dinner at Caprial & John's Bistro Restaurant

To my friends/family on the Eve of my Anniversary

2 car house hold!

We finally broke down and decided to purchase another car. Since leaving Florida a year and a half ago, we managed to handle our transportation matters by just having one car. So after a much great deal of thought, we decided to get Chris's dream car for his birthday- A beautiful Subaru Forester. Or is it my dream car? Will I still be taking the bus to work? Absolutely without a doubt! With the price of fuel jumping up to over $3 a gallon which is insane, public transportation is still the way to go. So you ask why did we bother getting a second car and going through the trouble of making another car payment and dealing with another monthly insurance payment? So we can have a car for the mountains, for winter ski/snowboard trips perhaps, cross country driving, camping in the summer with friends, and best of all....taking Bear and Lucky to the park on the weekends.