Dreams Coming True...

This should actually be the last picture in the story of our dream car tour because this is the AFTER photo of Daniel's happy face :) No words can truly explain my feelings about this experience we shared together. I am beyond grateful and happy that we created an opportunity for Daniel to pursue his passion, meet people who thrive in this car world too, and that I was able to join him in his adventures. :)

This is the OMG that was amazing face! :)

20,000 square foot PALACE anyone? We'll throw in the lambo at this point. :)

Unbelievably ecstatic...jumping out of his skin at this point. Here we're in the LP 640 coupe driving back roads and getting close to the expressway...he hadn't even gotten to put that peddle down yet and look at that smile!

Filming crew...nuts. That's all I have to say. He was nuts.

Getting ready to be gracefully whipped around by Mr. Balboni :)

Im driving over the bridge!

This was my turn through Bare Mountains in NY. Gorgeous drive!

I had nerves like I have never had before...cant you tell!!!?!?! :) I LOVED DRIVING THIS CAR. Very hard to drive the taurus after that! But I have always had a love for speed and I crave more of this now! My turn was too short! Ok, next year we'll go again! :) ha ha!

Can hardly contain himself! Cant wait to start driving! NERVOUS!!!!!!!!! WOAH!

The famous Valentino Balboni and happy Daniel shaking hands - so excited to drive!

An eject button for when you arent appreciating your passenger anymore!!!!....ok JUST KIDDING. :) This is the engine start button. Cool huh!?

Doors swing up to open! Cool!

Since the pictures are in reverse order, this is the BEFORE happy face on the day we are going on the Dream Car tour.

Montclair New Jersey where we stopped for dinner and a movie on a rainy day :)

We saw Oceans and it was so inspiring!

An amazing all vegetarian Chinese restaurant that tasted incredible! The seitan faux meats were incredible and sure fooled us!

Their message was:
"You are what you eat. As people become more conscious about their health, vegetarian food has become a very popular and healthy alternative to the traditional foods we have been eating. The chefs here at Veggie Heaven use an eclectic array of ingredients in our vegetarian dishes to simulate the appearance and aroma of Chinese cuisine's favorite meats and fish. All our dishes are prepared entirely with vegetables and vegetable derivatives. Our "meat", "poultry" and "seafood" are made from ingenious blends of bean curd, taro root, wheat gluten, mushrooms, yams and other vegetables. Moreover, we only use pure olive oil and other healthy, nutritional vegetable oils, we do not use MSG, artificial preservatives or flavorings. In other words, we serve 100% natural vegetarian cuisine with no cholesterol, and no saturated fat. A meal with healthy food will make you feel good and happy."

Celebrating Rob's birthday at a rooftop bar overlooking Manhattan. We were so lucky and excited that we happened to be here for his birthday and could get together! He graciously came out of his dorm to spend time with us and show us this lovely location and view after he had been locked in his apartment for 2 weeks straight studying for his med exams!

Fabulous vegan dinner in SoHo.

Greenwich Village

The cocktail party to welcome Mr. Valentino Balboni. Unfortunately, due to the vulcano his flight was delayed 9 hours and we didnt get to meet him that night. It was alright because the best time to meet him was driving his gallardo anyway!

A photo of the table I am destined to have in my home :) Looking forward to it...though a bit more polished up maybe?

The LP 550 Valentino Balboni limited edition Gallardo

...More to come.

Sassy Beans & Quinoa

Ingredients:

2 cups dry quinoa

2 15oz cans black beans

2 carrot stalks, chopped

1 pablano pepper, chopped

1/2 large onion, chopped

olive oil

1/2 cup salsa

1/2 cup cilantro

2 tsp hot sauce

4 T white wine vinegar

Pepper

Sautee the onions, pablano pepper and carrots in olive oil. Meanwhile, cook quinoa according to directions. I used a 2.5 cup water/1 cup quinoa ratio and added some salt and pepper to the water. I brought it to a boil and then reduced it to a simmer, uncovered, until the water was evaporated. Mix up 1-2 T olive oil, hot sauce, cilantro, pepper, salsa, and vinegar. Stir beans, quinoa, cooked vegetables and sauce together in a large bowl and enjoy.

Pea & Potato Soup

Apparently my husband *LOVES* peas. I had no idea! I discovered this after making him this yummy last minute dinner I threw together out of some leftover ingredients in the fridge. We both really enjoyed it so I thought I'd share!

Ingredients:

5-6 Large Russet Potatoes, cubed
1 bag Frozen Peas
3/4 cup of crushed tomatoes (I had part of a can leftover)
Olive oil
1 Large Onion, chopped in large chunks
3 cups Frozen Cabbage, chopped in large chunks (I did this last fall)
2 Bay leaves
Pepper, Salt
Coriander

Sautee the onions in the olive oil. When translucent add in cubed potatoes and cover with water. Stirr in crushed tomatoes, and seasonings. Bring to a boil and cook potatoes for 5-6 minutes. Stir in cabbage and peas and heat through. Just before serving, using the back of a spoon, crush some of the potato chunks against the side of the pot to thicken the broth. Serve.

A Very Happy Easter Sunday

First we went to Battle Creek and found a park on the Linear Bikeway path. I was so excited to see the white geese and the blooming trees!

Pretty pink and purple flowers covered the fresh green grass. Did anyone else notice that with the sun and rain this week that the grass is vibrant green for the first time this year!?

We went on 3 geocaching adventures by bike. 1 successful, 2 stumpers. :)

Looking hard but in all the wrong places....The beautiful Kellogg Manor house. Ill live there! :)

...ok, I'll live there if we can move it to somewhere outside of Battle Creek :)

Friendship Park and Battle Creek

Back home in the evening we read a book in one of our little "parks" and played on the large artwork. :)

My FAVORITE tree downtown! I think he's so cute!

A Geocache Adventure

Ta Da!

We LOVE how much more calming and natural the color is! Right now I am using my red candles and green and red apples for color decoration, as well as my crayon drawing of some poppies :) But with this color I can change my accents every season and they will pop against the background! I almost cannot believe how much more open the room feels!

Ps. we also changed the lighting! Now it feels more like daylight when we have to be here during light hours. The old yellow lighting made us feel nuts and our eyes craved more light! :)

Morning Widsom

From my Yogi Tea:

Those who want to be prosperous must first make others prosperous.

Sweet Seat

Dan and I went to Salvation Army before we moved out to Kalamazoo and we were pleased to find a bunch of really neat items like silver tappered candle holders an old piece of luggage and one really cool chair and foot stool. The only thing wrong with the chair was that the fabric (above) was very worn and dirty and needed replacing.

When we first bought it I riped the old material off and kept the fabric to use as "stencils" for the new material. Here is what I found underneath - a basic thin white fabric covering the springs and foam padding. The seat of the chair was a little worn out and the springs were not tied so tight so i spent a few hours taking apart the underneath of the chair and restapling and tieing down the springs and burlap (?).

Oh, when after I pulled off the original fabric I stained the arms and legs in a rich dark brown to give it an updated modern look. It was, originally, a walnut color.Once I had that much done....I CHICKENED OUT. I had no idea how to redo the top half of the chair. The original cover had been sewn on and I couldnt figure out how to do it and make it look nice so for 5 months its been sitting in our livingroom like this and Oliver has been enjoying it. See the upper left hand corner...yah, he enjoyed it as a scratch post as much as a sleeping spot.

:( About 3 weeks ago Daniel got a bug in him and said, "ok its time to recover the chair." I was like, I would but I dont know how. I'd already gone out looking for fabric to cover it with many times. I wanted something thick like the old fabric and something with a tight weave so that the cats wouldnt destroy it with their toenails. Anyway, Daniel said we could do it together and boy are we glad we did! It was definitely a two person job!

Here is the fabric we chose. Its a granny smith apple green color and a lot of fun! Really strong, too, which makes me happy becuase the cats destroy everything otherwise! When i went to go buy it the amount we needed was going to cost us around $80+ so I asked the lady if it would go on sale soon and thankgoodness I did! That following Sunday Daniel picked it up for me for just $40! :) Make sure to ask for sales! Recovering section one....so far so good!

Whala! doesnt it look fabulous! We really needed four hands on this project and we did a great job! We are both so happy with it! and look how much fun the color is in that corner! It makes a great litterbox hider :)

Whole Wheat Pasta & Broccoli with Creamy Mushroom Dill Sauce

1 Lg box Whole Wheat Noodles

1 Head Broccoli

1 Tray Mushrooms

2 Small cloves Garlic

1 Onion

Olive Oil

1/4 cup FRESH Dill

2 cups Milk or Milk Substitute

3 T Whole Wheat Flour

1.) Chop mushrooms (in quarters), pull apart broccoli flowerettes, and chop onions and garlic.

2.) Boil noodles for 8-10 minutes in seasoned water. With 5 minutes remaining add in broccoli to blanch.

3.) Heat oil in skillet and add onions and garlic for 5-7 minutes or until translucent.

4.) Add in mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned - 5 minutes?

5.) Add 3 tablespoons wheat flour to the cooked mushrooms and onions and allow it to coat them. Stir around.

DRAIN PASTA AND BROCCOLI WHEN READY

6.) Pour in 2 cups cold milk and begin stirring while pan is on med-high heat. You are making the sauce.

7.) When sauce is thickened add in about 1/4 cup freshly chopped dill. Use your scissors to cut it up - its easier. Stirr for a min and then serve over drained pasta and broccoli.

MMMM MMM GOOD MIMOSAS :) For dinner Daniel mixed us up mimosas and they were amazing! I know champagnes are different but we used the Vueve Cliquot and it was yummy. :)

D resurected our kitty from behind my steering wheel. It was given to us by Bea in Germany.