This is my 150th post!!

Most Sunday afternoons, my husband and I watch the end of whatever NASCAR race is on that day. Two weeks ago while we were watching the Daytona 500 I was absolutely horrified. A driver was caught speeding on Pit Road (going more than 55 MPH on the side road where they go to get their tires changed) and was penalized for it. However, later on in the race when a driver ran over a pit crew member, there was no penalty awarded. And then I realized that that is one of the reasons why I had not watched NASCAR before. You are penalized for speeding, but not for running over a human being with your car.

P.S.- The guy who got run over is recovering nicely from surgery.

Baby Octopus

On Sunday, we finally spent some time trying to figure out how to use our new camcorder that we got for Christmas. We took this video of the dogs playing outside. I uploaded it on YouTube (new for me) and now we'll see if I know how to get it in my blog...

11 days until Mexico!!

Given that the last 3 days of our lives have pretty much been dictated by the weather, I thought I'd give a recap of the effects it's had on Aaron and I.

• I woke up at 5:00 AM on a Saturday morning and couldn't get back to sleep, because I was worried about Aaron making it to work safely.
• Many of the celebrations planned for Aaron's grandma's 90th birthday had to be cancelled due to the weather. We didn't make it to the "Fern Food Fest" (potluck with her 'signature' dishes) on Saturday or lunch on Sunday. We did go down to Ankeny for cake on Sunday afternoon, but were unsure of whether our car was on the road or not about 50% of the time. Luckily, Aaron stayed outwardly calm and kept up safe!!
• We woke up at 4:45 AM on Sunday morning to the sound of a large tree branch crashing down. After determining that it didn't hit our house, we were able to go back to sleep. However, when a second branch crashed down at 6:50 AM, we were up for the day. That one did brush the side of our house, but the main part of the branch missed us and didn't do any damage.
• We were provided with endless fun watching the dogs play in the snow.

Every time they came in, the boys would be covered with snow. It's a lot easier to see on Steve since he's darker. I was always reminded of the "Family Guy" episode where Brian became addicted to Cocaine, because they always had a bunch of white powdery snow on their noses when they came in.
Nick doesn't like to be wet though, so he would crazily rub and roll around on the carpet to dry off.

• After uncovering both cars and scooping out the driveway, we had a great reason for some extra cuddling. We had to warm up somehow!!
• About 30 seconds after we moved my car back into the driveway, a huge branch fell off our tree and landed right about where my car windshield had just been. Again, we were very lucky!!
• The roads were a little shady on the way to campus today, but not too bad. However, when I got to ISU, they hadn't even started clearing the commuter parking lot (at 10 AM!!) and I got stuck. I was following other cars' tracks through the parking lot, but got stuck right as I was about to exit. Others were following the same tracks and were nice enough to help push me out. Then my husband met me at the Memorial Union and gave me a ride from the parking ramp across campus to my first class, so I was only 5 minutes late.
• R38 (our road from Ames to Slater) completely iced over during the day. As I started my trip home, I saw flashing lights. A deputy told me that they were pulling a car out up ahead, but that the road was complete ice and to be extra careful. That was the start of my 20 mile an hour drive home. The road was completely ice covered about 60% of the time, partially covered about 20% and clear the other 20%. However, I made it home safely!! Hopefully I'll be able to say the same for my husband later tonight!!

Hot Chocolate Chip Cookies...Mmmmm!!

If you haven't cleaned out your fridge in the last 6 months, do it today!! We started out just getting rid of leftovers this afternoon and it turned into an hour long cleaning project. We emptied all the food out and washed all the shelves and drawers in the fridge. It was absolutely disgusting, but now that it's clean, it looks pretty darn good!! We also moved the fridge out from it's cubby and washed the sides, swept and mopped under it and vacuumed all of the animal hair out of the air intake grill. Pretty gross, but a great feeling to know it's all clean now!!

Cornbread and Chili

Justin and I went over to Cedar Rapids last Saturday to hang out with my dad and Roarke. We had such a great time!! We took Roarke bowling for the first time ever. I thought it was pretty great because I got to bowl with the bumpers up (which boosted my score all the way up to 86!!) and Roarke had such a good time too!! Here are a few of the high points:

• Roarke was worried that if he actually threw the ball it might fall on his toes, so he very masterfully slid the ball down the alley. We thought the ball might stop a few times, but it always made it to the end.

• After giving his ball a big shove, he would stand up, move to the side of the alley, stick his hands on his hips and wait. He even did a little hip-wiggling dance a few times while waiting.
• Don't think that the dance had anyting to do with his success though!! When my dad tried to tell Roarke that he should do the dance so he could knock down all of the pins, Roarke responded by saying, "I know how to bowl Old Man. I don't need to do a dance!!" (Justin had changed our dad's name to "Old Man" on the display and we had Roarke calling him that all afternoon...)
• Roarke got soooo excited every time he saw his ball coming back and always wanted to hold onto it, even if he was just sitting there.

Overall, we had a great time. The weather was a little iffy for driving conditions. Justin and I counted 66 vehicles in the ditch on our way to Cedar Rapids, including 3 semis, but we made it and had a wonderful time.

Whoooo are you?? Who, who?? Who, who??

Does anyone want to adopt me for the latter part of next week?? I have been spoiled the past couple years and haven't really learned how to cook, because my husband is such an amazing cook. I help him with dinner many nights, but I take all my directions from him. There are a few things that I can make, but they're mainly casserole type dishes and definitely should not be made for just one person (there would be enough leftovers for a week and waste would ensue...)

My husband is going to be working or at work-related functions 4 nights in a row next week. We're trying to think of things we could make on Monday or Tuesday night that would produce some leftovers, so I could eat those a couple nights, but if we run out of leftovers, I have no idea what to make for just one person. And I don't cook very often, so I don't want to "waste" any of my cooking skills when Aaron's not even around to enjoy the finished product.

*big sigh*

87 days until graduation!!

Aaron and I had the coolest Super Bowl experience. By the way, is it illegal for me actually say "Super Bowl"??

Thong, better known as "T", a cook at work, invited us over to his house to watch the game. Upon arriving, we were given an authentic Vietnamese meal. Spring rolls, pork and beef soup, and egg rolls. There was a different sauce for everything and it was prepared fresh by T's wife. Aaron even had beer from Singapore called "Tiger". (It made us all very happy when we saw a commercial with Lions, because then there were "Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my!!"...I know, we're huge dorks!!)

Everyone who came to the party brought food as well, so we had all kinds of food to snack on during the game. Chips and dip (Mandy, from Colo), taco dip (us, from Slater), cake (Mandy as well, from Colo), chicken fried rice (Chau, also from Vietnam), shrimp salsa (Isabel, from Mexico), and a neverending supply of spring rolls and egg rolls...we definitely ate too much on Sunday!!

Salmon and Butternut Squash

I want a "work from home" job. You know, one where you stuff envelopes, construct CD cases or screw nuts and bolts together and they just pay you based on how many you get done, or getting paid to take online surveys or be a mystery shopper. But I have no idea if there are any legitimate jobs out there or if they're all scams. Any that I've seen advertised around campus require a "start-up fee" of $50 or more, which to me, screams SCAM!!

Ideally I could find a work from home job out there that requires 2 crazy dogs. If so, I'd be set!! :-D But I'll settle for something without a crazy dog requirement as long as it's legitimate.

Crescent rolls are yummy!!

We got some great photos from our wedding blown up and in black and white to go with some frames we got for the wedding. I'm so excited about how they look...

You've got to be kidding me!! A HIGH of zero?!?

So I'm thinking about donating plasma. At BioLife in Ames, you can donate two times a week for a total of $60 ($20 the first time and $40 the second). Aaron and I are lucky enough to be going on vacation in just over 5 weeks, but don't have a lot of spending money set aside. On top of the monetary incentive, I know it's a good thing to do and it can save lives.

However, I hate needles. When I was 6 years old and getting shots, I screamed at the nurse to "get that thing out of me!!" and my perspective hasn't changed much since then. So the idea of sitting for over an hour with a needle in my arm makes me very nervous. And I've heard that it can really start to hurt after a while because of scar tissue.

Has anyone had any experiences with plasma donation?? Tell me what you think...