Liveblogging during American Idol

1. Anoop - not his best performance, I usually like his voice though.
2. Meagan Joy - yuck, yuck, yuck...not a good song choice, and she has weird vibrato...the tattoo is really distracting as well. I haven't ever liked her, but I know some people do...
3. Danny - it was ok, but I was surprised at how much they liked it. There were a few out of tune notes, but overall I liked it pretty well. I can see him possibly making it to the finals.
4. Allison: I hated her outfit, and she's a little raspy for me. She has potential, but she was sort of screaming. I can see her making it to the finals though.
5. Scott - I liked his performance. I thought he did great! Best performance for him so far.
6. Matt- Shaky, raspy, I guess it's a good song choice for him, but not my favorite of the evening so far. I thought the higher stuff sounded better than tonight.
7. Lil - she was good tonight, I liked it for the most part. She has a good voice.
8. Adam - well, he's kinda creepy, but he hit the notes perfectly as far as pitch goes, even when he was "screeching" but hmm...not a huge fan. He did really well for him.
9. Kris - it was "safe" but he did well.

My vote: hmm...I have no idea! There wasn't one that just stood out to me...I'm not as impressed.

Who did you vote for/would you have voted for?

My Food Blog

Because I find it chaotic to have both the food and the updates on the same blog, I decided to create a separate food blog! It has different lables at the top to browse my recipes I have already added. I went through and re-posted what I had on this blog on that one. It will be a sort-of online cookbook. :-)
Enjoy!
http://lizscucina.blogspot.com/

Carmen is over, and now Madison will be busy until May...

Well, Carmen is finally over...I put so many hours into that opera! It was really nice that Madison, Danica, Jason, Suzanne, and Nowell came for the Friday night performance. I am extremely tired! I had a wedding yesterday that I played in, so I have been putting in lots of viola hours lately! I was so happy when our performance was over today...I am ready to get that music out of my head! It is continuously stuck in my head!

Well, Madison has his 30-page brief he has been working on a ton for a long time. It's due in just a few days, so he is wrapping it up and revising everything. After he turns that in, he starts studying for finals, along with his daily reading for class. From here on out until May, we won't see that much of each other. I am thankful that I have been through this once before now (Christmas exams) so I know how difficult it is going into it, but how rewarding it is afterwards in so many ways. I have really learned how to hold my tongue whenever I want to tell him something, I just write it down for later. It's really difficult, since he's one of the only people I have here, but at least it's temporary. I have been so busy lately, so I haven't really felt the difference in our communication on his end yet, but I know it's coming. I cannot imagine having to retain everything from the whole semester and study for a final that equals your entire grade...yikes!

I started a new student last week, and I am starting another new student on Wednesday! I cannot believe that I am still building my studio with how terrible the economy is! It's quite exciting! I am babysitting for a friend from law school. Her nanny quit, so I'm filling in until something else comes along for them. I have Mondays and Fridays off every week (my orchestra moved days) so I babysit from 9-6 those two days. Charlie Mac is 3 and Willa Ann is 1. They are really cute and fun.

The diet is going well! I already feel a tiny bit better, my jeans are sagging a bit, and I am not feeling dizzy or anything anymore. We are enjoying the low fat recipes from my low fat cookbook, and I am entering in my daily intake and excercise at myfitnesspal.com which is a free site that you can figure out how many calories you should eat for how much weight you want to lose, and if you add all your foods in there, it keeps track of how you are doing. I put in all the ingredients to what I made tonight and it figured out all the details of what I ate. It's really nice to have! My cravings for bad foods have finally stopped, and I don't feel like ruining my diet which is a great place to be! The only time I sort-of cheated was when we went out to dinner with friends...but even that was okay because I had such a light lunch, that my calories were hardly over...now I am being completely good though!

Well, I better get everything picked up since tomorrow I will be babysitting all day!
Liz

Pad Thai

Even if you're not incredibly adventurous, you really should try this pad thai. It is SO good! I love it. I make it every so often. This is day 1 of our diet. I planned all of our meals out of my diet cookbooks (I have low fat cookbooks, etc.). This one is from my sister. It is really good and under 300 calories per serving. Even Madison loved it! I highly recommend it.
A hint: do all prep work before you cook everything in your wok or skillet...otherwise you will be stressed, trying to do stuff while things are cooking. Get lots of bowls out and prep everything ahead of time and place in the different bowls. I have little silicone prep bowls, but even cereal or small mixing bowls work well.

All these ingredients were at Kroger - I found most ingredients at Dominick's and Whole Foods when I lived in Wheaton. I know Wal Mart wouldn't have everything, but just about any grocery store will. It may sound gross, but I promise it is good :-)

Yield: 4 servings
----
2 quarts water
3/4 lb. mung bean sprouts
6 oz Rice noodles
----
Sauce:

3 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons katsup
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce or fish sauce (I use soy sauce...)
----
3 tablespoons Peanut oil or vegetable oil
3-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed (or 2 teaspoons minced garlic)
1 tablespoon fresh chile (I used a jalepeno pepper) or 1 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 cups carrots; grated (I use a food processor grater, but you can grate w/ a cheese grater)
4 large eggs, lightly beaten with a pinch of salt
2/3 cup peanuts, chopped
6-8 scallions; chopped (about 1 cup)

In a covered pot, bring the water to a rolling boil.  Blanch the mung bean sprouts by placing them
in a strainer or small colander and dipping it into the boiling water for 30 seconds.
Set aside to drain well. When the water returns to a boil, stir in the rice noodles and cook for 3 to 5 minutes,
until tender but firm. These noodles stick easily, so stir often and put salt in the pot.
Drain the cooked noodles, rinse them under cool water, and set them aside to drain.       
Prepare the remaining ingredients and have them near at hand before you begin to stir-fry.
Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet.  Add the garlic and chile, swirl them in the oil for a moment, and stir in 
the grated carrots.  Stir-fry for 1 minute.  Push the carrots to the sides to make a hollow in the center.  Pour the
beaten eggs into the center and quickly scramble them.  When the eggs have just set, pour in the sauce mixture
and stir everything together.  Add the drained rice noodles and mung sprouts, and toss to distribute evenly.
Stir in the peanuts and scallions, and serve at once. Enjoy!!

Grating the carrots
 Patting the carrots dry:


Adding garlic & chile with oil in wok



Boiling the noodles:

Adding everything to the wok:

Jobs

Since I will be in Oxford for sure this summer and I can fit all my students into 1-2 days (since they are out of school, I can work mornings or whatever works with a new job if I get one!), I am applying for some part time jobs. I did a lot of job searching this afternoon and gave it a whirl. Teaching children is so rewarding and I love it, and I still have a ton of room for new students if and when the come along. I just feel like I'm wasting so much money when I sit here all morning/afternoon before I work at my teaching job. I'm not going to name any jobs I'm applying for just because that's not very professional, but I am sort of excited about the idea. I feel like I would enjoy some type of part-time secretarial work or the like. That's basically what I'm applying for.
Life is very expensive...we definitely could use some more money...so that's obviously the main reason I'm most likely getting a second job. I can't believe I found a few jobs... I look close to every day and usually the jobs listed are for degrees/training I don't have, like nurses or counselors, etc. there just happened to be a few good ones posted finally.

I'm having a little bit of a hard time with my orchestra kids with scheduling conflicts and have lost 2 good players. It's really hard to see them go, and I have lost quite a big chunk of what I was planning on making because of it. Things are just tough right now and I am praying that a job will come through soon. We will be fine, things aren't scary or anything, it's just the normal newlywed bit...most of my friends work a few jobs, if not a full time job. I'm up for it...we'll see what comes of all of it.

Florida was a blast. It was so nice actually getting to see my husband when he's not highlighting a textbook or typing a brief or something. Of course he had a 30 page appellate brief he had to work on a chunk of the time, but it was definitely a good time seeing him more than I usually do, since he didn't have class to read for or to attend. It was nice getting away from this noisy place (yes I do have a countdown until we move...) and it was a good time. A huge answer to prayer: We were possibly going to have to pay double rent during June to secure the house...it was literally the only thing we could find and it was perfect for us! It's cheaper, so we will save money and all, but then we found out we had to pay for the month of June here and there...well, to make a long story short, the house we're going to rent is now not going to be available until a week or so before our lease here runs out! yay! no double rent! :-)

Well, I'm tired and Madison is still doing some homework...so I'm going to go to sleep!

Watch what you put on the internet...

http://www.savvysugar.com/2946793

Crock Pot Pot Roast

I never ever have made pot roast, and I don't cook with beef much...so this was a new experience for me! This will definitely be a recipe I keep and use on occasion. It had a lot of flavor (I don't really like the taste of plain beef without lots of spices, etc.). This recipe is from my friend Jordan - she's a great cook and has a lot of great recipes on her blog. It's also incredibly easy - you just throw it in the crock pot before you leave for work, and dinner is ready when you get home!

Jordan's Crock Pot Pot Roast

INGREDIENTS
2lbs Stew Meat
4 Carrots, chopped into big pieces
2 Stalks of Celery, also chopped
12 Small Potatoes (white or red)
1 Medium White Onion (I used small boiling onions, whole)
1C Water
1t Worcestershire sauce
2 Cloves garlic, whole
1/2T Oregano
1 Bay leaf
3/4T Salt
1/2T Black Pepper
1/2t Paprika

DIRECTIONS
Put everything into crock pot, stir just enough to mix spices. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high 4 to 6 hours. Serve with homemade biscuits and you’ve got a warm and comforting meal.

Away from internet

I will be away from internet for a week. Lots of updates & pictures will be posted a week from now.
Hope everyone is well!

Back from Birmingham

Well, we're back from Birmingham! It was quite the short trip, but we had a fun time. We were able to see Tully which was fun. She took us to one of her college hang outs. We had a fun time! Birmingham is a cool city. I'm kind of happy to be back in this small town without crazy traffic and all though...although it would be nice to live somewhere with lots of stuff around someday, I am enjoying this time to live in a small town...something completely different to what I am used to!

I have a relatively long day of teaching tomorrow from 2-6:30, then I am hosting our Bible study here at home so I have a lot to do! We're in the middle of a HUGE laundry mess...it was one of those times where everything just kind of exploded in here with the laundry...our laundry room is too small to even step in, so folding usually takes place on the table and around the living room...making it a huge ordeal when more than one load is going on at once...plus, I had to get everything ready for the interviews, etc. so all that stuff needed to be cleaned...so I left the house a mess...oh well! We'll get it done tomorrow no big deal...at least the girls will only see the front of our house :)

Nothing new to report. I'm going to try doing shorter, more regular posts and see how that goes.

Not like I eat anything close to this nasty, but now that I'm dieting, reading this blog definitely helps me stay away from nasty stuff...haha enjoy...
http://thisiswhyyourefat.com

Almost time for Spring Break!

Since I am a teacher and all my kids have the same spring break, I do get spring break! Although I am very excited about it, it is a little bit of a forced pay cut that week...but, I will enjoy the break most definitely!

My friends went to Florida, and I enjoyed a call from them the night they got there. I admit, it was incredibly hard to sit there, thinking about how much fun it would be if I could have gone. There's no way that I could have, no matter how bad I wanted to go. I tried just about everything...but, at least I did everything I could...maybe next time I will be in the position to be able to see them (and they may come visit me!!! :-)) I still really miss friends & family...being this far away from everything continues to be difficult at times, but of course I also am very happy here.

We are absolutely officially moving this summer, and this is what our cute little house looks like:


Madison & I are going to Birmingham tomorrow through Wednesday to attend an interview for a summer position for him. I moved all of my lessons, since we only have 1 car anyways, and all my friends work during the day! I might as well go, since I would not be able to find a way to work and back home and back to work, etc...(I have a sporadic schedule!) Plus, I've never seen Birmingham, and we get to see Tully (Madison's sister) tomorrow night, so that'll be fun. If Madison decides on a job outside Oxford, I will still be teaching here and just squeezing all my students into 1-2 days...I can't just leave my students or anything, and we decided not to worry about it until we know what we're doing! (having 1 car may be a little bit of a challenge!)

Madison & I both have Friday off! I'm very excited...we are going to see the Wheaton College Symphony Orchestra on tour in Birmingham! I get to see a bunch of my friends, and Debbie! Madison & I just decided tonight for sure that we are going to his grandparents' beach house in Florida! So, we will most likely stay in Birmingham or something Friday night, then go to Florida from there! It's like a 6 hour drive to the beach house from Birmingham so not bad at all! (it's in the pan handle). I absolutely hate riding in the car and get carsick very easily (I can't look at magazines, read, or even look at directions). We will meet his Grandparents there, and then they're headed out the next morning. We just plan to play it by ear, but will most likely stay there until the following weekend. It will be our first non-honeymoon vacation together! And I was really sick, throwing up by the end of our honeymoon, so I will actually be well for this one. It will be a nice time and I cannot wait to get a tan :-) I'm going to bring battleship and some movies, and just enjoy the warmth outside (not like I'm not able to enjoy hot weather right now here too, but I don't want to lay out because we live next door to a few creepers!)

I had a colonoscopy last week - since mom passed away of colon cancer and I have had my share of stomach problems here lately, I was extremely concerned. But my results were clear!!! I feel so much happier and have so much more energy. I really think that was most of the depression I feel...it was really dragging me down. I'm a bit of a hypocondriac, but this was just the most worrysome experience for the past year or more, and SUCH a huge relief to know I'm okay!!! Every time my stomach hurt, I thought the worst...Praise God it's just normal sensitive stomach or maybe because I'm lactose intolerant and I don't follow a cheese/milk free diet whatsoever. (that's what lactaid chewables are for...when I remember them!)

Well, that's enough news for now!
Liz