Matthew Perryman Jones

If you don't know the music of Matthew Perryman Jones you are missing out.  Here is one of his many awesome songs.  I especially love the last verse.

Josh Garrels

I can't get enough of this song- AWESOME!!

Improvements to Our Hacienda

 Matt and I have wanted Mexican saltillo tile for as long as I can remember and we are finally having it installed in our Tucson Hacienda.  Here are some pictures of the project so far.  It is not yet finished but we can already tell how beautiful it will be when it is done.  Our tile installer and favorite handyman, Tavo, is doing a superb job and even adding to the Mexican-ness of it all by etching Mexican pictures into some of the tiles.  I will add more pictures once it is done.  I can't wait to see it and one day, Lord willing, live in this Hacienda!

Christmas

This was the first actual Christmas that Matt and I have ever spent with my family.  We headed up to my Mom's on Christmas Eve after I got out of work and stayed over for two nights.  Christmas day was spent lounging, feasting, laughing, playing games, and singing Christmas hymns. 

Jax's first Christmas

Libs loved her Tangled backpack

Levi loved his Star Wars sticker book

Jax in his new monster hat, covered in Lib's groovy girl dolls

Grandpa Joe loved his treat basket

My Mom's delicious Christmas spread

Our Christmas wines

Singing Christmas hymns together

Mad Skillz!

Matt built us this beautiful wine rack, and just in time for Christmas.  This husband of mine has mad skillz! Our new favorite place to sit will now be in the basement facing this beauty!  Thanks, honey!

Ron Paul, the Military & Foreign Policy

Ron Paul is the only candidate to vote for. His foreign policy throws many people off... until they actually give it some thought and then realize they have been feeding on the war propaganda of Washington.  Our first clue is to see who our men and women in uniform are are supporting.

One other thing to take note of- when a candidate is ferociously hated by all the corrupt politicians and the corrupt mass media (who do not report with journalistic integrity but rather are all about pushing their agenda - yes I am talking about FOX, CNN and the rest) this should also clue you in on who to vote for!

Winter Has Arrived

We had the first real snow of the season yesterday.  I had been telling Matt that we probably wouldn't have snow until December but he didn't believe me.  I am glad it held off this long and hopefully we won't get dumped on this year the way Minnesota did last year.  We found out today that snow blowing isn't as fun or as easy as it looks.  Some of this might have to do with our particular snow blower which we bought used off of craig's list.  The other part of it is that we don't know anything about snow blowing and are finding out as we go things like wet snow clogs up the blower and you have to go super slow in the lowest gear.  Who knew? The worst part of it all is that we have many, many feet of sidewalk we are responsible for which might as well be an ice skating rink.  Luckily our nice neighbor from across the street came over to tell us where we can get a free salt and sand. 

Wine for Normal People

I have been learning tons about wine over the last month.  Wanting to better serve my customers in my new job I threw myself into wine research.  I have found an extremely helpful wine podcast that I highly recommend called Wine for Normal People.  It can be downloaded for free on itunes.  I have been listening to that as well as reading the couple of wine books I have.  I also had to attend a wine tasting last week for work with 50 wines from around the world.  The goal was to find some new wines for the store- a tough job but somebody's got to do it!  On top of this tasting I also get to taste wines just about daily at work.  And sometimes I even get sent home with wines like this  Steltzner Claret.  Again, a tough job...

The Return of McMom

McMom can't get enough of Minnesota!  And now that I have taken her to the best craft store ever- Hobby Lobby- she is sure to return for a third visit in the future!

This was a lightning trip but was very fun and productive as she bought me a beginner's sewing machine for my birthday and taught me how to sew- yippee!  We sewed blankets, napkins, bread cloths, and furry-fringed legwarmers for the upcoming Minnesota winter.  I also learned about button holes and zippers.  I can't wait until I am making my own beautiful curtains!

We also had another visitor come down to see McMom- my Mom. She slept over one night and we had a ball.  We took the moms to my work so they could see the store and meet my bosses.  My boss Peg surprised me with great kindness when she gave me 2 bottles of wine and not just any two bottles but my favorite two- Souverain and Castello Gabbiano's Chianti Classico.  This was say thanks for Matt's help as he came in a few days and helped around the store before it opened.  So that was very nice.  And because my work research must continue we took home two additional bottles- one German Riesling called Funf and an Old Vines Zinfandel for Matt who loves the Zins. 

We then went home where we feasted on McMom's famous roast and Yorkshire pudding- yum!  And then came the highlight of the evening, Spades.  Matt and I have not had anyone to play Spades with since we left Arizona so this was a real treat for us.  The moms were good enough to oblige us in this though they didn't know how to play.  We played Team McReynolds against Team Likes.  A hard battle was fought and I am sad to say Team McReynolds won... though it was by the skin of their teeth.  The best part of the game was the last hand where my Mom made a bad move and I merely responded with some slight indignation and for some reason this caused a severe fit of uncontrollable laughter. To preserve the dignity of some at the table I will just say that I stress that the laughter was uncontrollable!

Work Research...

I didn't really start drinking wine until we were living overseas.  I mean we would have wine with Matt's dad when he would take us out to eat at nice restaurants but I really didn't appreciate it and often times it just made me sleepy.  Living in Ireland and taking multiple trips around Europe changed all of that.  It started with wine tastings and turned quickly into full  blown love for wine.  I remember the first time we went to Italy, drinking carafes of wine that were filled from spigots on the wall in the restaurants.  Though the atmosphere was so cool I remember thinking Italy's wine odd.  Then somehow Chiantis became my favorite and sangiovese my grape of choice.  

When traveling we tasted wine almost everywhere we went and were even fortunate enough to do wine tours in Bordeaux, France and in Tuscany.  These I will never forget as seeing vineyards and chateaus in the Tuscan countryside is nothing less than stunning and eating a multiple course French meal with fresh cheeses and wines is unforgettable.  My mouth waters even now at the thought of it and my heart fills with joy!  

Most women like sweet white wines- well, not me.  The bigger, the bolder, the redder, the better!  Give me Chiantis, Cabernets, Zinfandels, Tempernillos, and  Portugal's best reds.   Give me any red wine from Italy and I will love it.  Give me a full bodied, fruit forward, dry, smooth wine but do not give me sweet.

I know what I like but now working at a wine store I see how deficient my knowledge is in wine (particularly in whites) and I am excited to learn more, taste, read and share with those who come in.  So I've pulled out all my wine books and have started tasting wines I don't normally drink (as you can see in the picture above I had a Chardonnay with dinner last night which is unheard of in my house).  The wine vendors that come into the store will no doubt also be of great value in my wine education and I've already met my favorite vendor who carries my favorite wine of all time which is a Cabernet Sauvignon called Souverain from the Alexander Valley.  I am trying to talk my bosses into carrying this wine so the vendor is going to bring it in for them to taste.  He is also bringing a great Chianti called Castello Gabiano.  We visited this gorgeous vineyard while in Tuscany.

Valleyscare Weekend

Extreme Swing

Matt and I headed up to the Twin Cities over the weekend in order to join Reegz, Cbass and Janni in their spooky evening of Valleyscare and to surprise my nephew Jace with the dresser we recently painted for him.

"Valleyscare" happens each October when Minnesota's beloved amusement park ,Valleyfair, fills the park with spooky haunts.  I hate all things scary but since Matt loves them and never gets to watch scary movies with me I thought we should go.  I did not go in any of the scarey attractions with my group but I did indulge myself in many a ride.  Valleyfair was part of my upbringing as my dad took us every year for Regan's birthday.  I loved it then and love it still.  Even though each year I find myself more and more afflicted with motion sickness (can't watch some TV, movies, and most all video games) I can still ride the wild rails of rollercoasters, thank God!  This year I braved the "Extreme Swing."  Words can hardly describe the feeling you get when you're falling forward from the top, other than to say I thought I was gonna die, but this ride is awesome!  The rollercoaster "Wild Thing" was also a favorite.  I did not have whatever it takes to ride the wicked looking rollercoaster "Steel Venom" but Matt, who will brave any ride, enjoyed it.  

We were happy that Jace was gone for the weekend- not because we didn't want to see him- but because we wanted to sneak his new dresser into his room while he was away so he could come home and be surprised by it.  It turned out pretty well me thinks.  Good job Matt!

Before

After

Mayo Foundation Gala

Matt and I got to go to a formal dinner last night at the Mayo Foundation House for his work.  The house is pretty much a castle and used to be occupied by Dr. Mayo and his wife.  We had wine and h'orderves on the main floor and then moved up 2 floors to a grand wooden paneled banquet type room where we had a 3 course meal staring filet mignon which could be cut with a butter knife.  The dinner ended with pumpkin cheese cake and then cordials and chocolate dipped strawberries on the way out.  I think this was the first time in my life I ever ate with real silverware.  Anyway a good time was had by all and the best part of the night was getting to see my handsome husband dressed up and getting to wear a gown myself- always fun!

I Don't Know Why He is So Fat!

Sharptooth thought he was in cat-heaven when I refilled his food storage container and left it down for a few minutes so I could take his picture.

First Fruits of My New Labor

I got a part time job at a wine store!  

Don't worry, I am not giving up domestic engineering.  I just thought it would be fun to use my extra time to work in a field I love such as wine.

I am excited but not as excited as Matt.  We stopped in to the store today so he could see it and meet my new boss.  By the end of the conversation Matt was offering  to come in and help out at the store.  He was thinking he was going to help with stocking or something of that nature but my boss said Matt could come in and help out with wine tasting.  I mean we do need to make sure this store is selling the most delicious wines.  Then he sent us home with a bottle of wine to test out...  I like this job already!

New Blog Alert!

As many of you know I love to blog.  I have more than one blog.  The one you're currently on is what I consider to be my personal blog.  My second blog, The Traveler's Table, is one I started while living overseas.  It is dedicated to food and recipes particular to countries or regions.  I got the idea for this blog when I started seeing how different food was when you have it in the actual country it comes from.  I have now started a third blog called With My Hands which I have given the tagline "creating, restoring, and all around homemaking."  This new blog will concentrate on things that I (and we) do around the house including furniture restoration, cooking and baking,  DIY projects and will also include more things as I learn them, Lord willing, such as sewing, gardening,  and a bit of homesteading, etc.  I hope you'll stop in for a visit!

Birthday Shirt

I received this shirt as a birthday gift from mi buena amiga Yunuen.  She is from Morelia, Mexico.  We have been friends for about 5 years now and she knows how much I love Mexican food, music, houses, architecture, decorating, colors, furniture, culture, etc.  She knows I am really Mexican inside so she had this shirt made for me.  Everytime I look at it I can't help but smile!  Thanks Amiga- I will wear it with pride... or shall I say orgullo!

Birthday Weekend Extravaganza

What a wonderful Birthday weekend I had! Saturday morning we headed up to the Jerry Robinson seminar which was very interesting, informative, and at times scary. Robinson is a brilliant guy and he fears the Lord. I learned a lot and especially liked the session where Robinson explained the petro dollar system- which clarifies so many things about American politics and our foreign policy. It was also cool to meet Robinson after listening to his podcast for the last couple of years. He remembered us contacting him in the past as the couple who was "listening over in Ireland while sitting on the porch with wine and cigars"!

After the seminar we headed over to the Booya with the family. Booya is a stew that my uncle makes by cooking it for 2 days in this giant drum.  There is so much he gives all the guests ice cream pails to take booya home with them.  The booya is full of homegrown veggies, beef, pork and chicken as my uncle lives on a farm. Delicious!

 Everyone takes pictures in the oversized chair after they are stuffed full of booya.

It was Jax's first booya.

After the booya we headed back to Regan's where we had a fire pit with some friends which was also fun.  Lots of talk about the seminar, Ron Paul and the like. Then on Sunday after church my Mom started cooking the birthday feast- turkey and all the goes with it!  It was the best birthday meal I ever had.

After dinner I didn't have to do any dishes but got to snuggle up with Jax instead.  He loves me and and thinks of me as his favorite auntie.

All in all it was a great birthday.  Thanks to my loving husband and family (including my third sista Cbass)!

Birthday Spoil

Today is my birthday and I woke up to find one wrapped present in bed with me, one wrapped present in the fridge, and one more wrapped present on the TV stand.  My husband is so darn cute!  And he knows what I love most- books!  He got me these three books which I have been wanting real bad.  Thanks honey!

This is going to be a fun birthday weekend.  Tonight Matt and I will have a delicious dinner and wine and then tomorrow we will head up to the Twin Cities where we will be attending a day seminar with our favorite economist Jerry Robinson.  And I am so excited that Regan and Pete are joining us for this.  After the seminar we will be heading over to Wisconsin to my uncle Tommy's farm where he is having his annual booya.  For those of you who have never heard of a booya think giant, delicious stew.  My dad's side of the family has been having booyas every year for as long as I can remember but because I've lived away I haven't been to one for years.  I am excited to see my Uncle Tommy who my sisters promise me looks and talks just like my dad. After the booya we are having a fire back at Regan's with some friends. We will sleep over and then Sunday after church my mom is cooking me my favorite meal for my birthday which is Thanksgiving- turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberries, green bean casserole, fresh bread, pumpking pie... YUM!

 Update: A few hours after I wrote this post I found another wrapped present in my car!  Another book from my wishlist- yippee! Thanks honey!