Taco Soup

I think I've posted this before, as well. Also another H. family favorite that I am making this week. This particular recipe is the best one I've tried.


Taco Soup
1 lb. ground meat (beef or turkey)
1 can corn
1 can pinto beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can rotel
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 pkg. ranch dressing mix
Brown meat and drain. Add contents of cans, without draining and add contents of packages. Can be heated on stove or in a crock pot. Simmer for 50 minutes on stove, adding a cup or two of water if desired. Serve with crushed tortilla chips.

Grilled Fish with Cilantro Lime Butter

Mike loved this the last time I made it.... think I forgot to bring over from my livejournal account, but I am making again this week. For some reason this tasted really good with a little bit of capers in the pan, wild rice and baked sweet potatoes.

4 (6 ounce) fillets halibut (I use tilapia since it's cheaper)
1 lime, cut into wedges
salt and pepper to taste
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS
Preheat a grill for high heat. Squeeze the juice from the lime wedges over fish fillets, then season them with salt and pepper.
Grill fish fillets for about 5 minutes on each side, until browned and fish can be flaked with a fork. Remove to a warm serving plate.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic; cook and stir just until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in the butter, remaining lime juice and cilantro. Serve fish with the cilantro butter sauce.

Ya hey dere!

Spent a fun long weekend with the Marquette ladies at Karen's family condo in Door Co, WI.

The majority of what we did was read magazines and chat, but we did venture out a few times for some shopping, ice cream eating and for a hike at Peninsula State Park.


Going back to the Midwest is sort of surreal to me. Seeing the adirodack chairs along the blue water, feeling the chill in the air in my run along the bayshore... and chatting with some folks with good old fashioned midwestern values is not something I get to do every day any more. We were talking a bit about how much we've changed since college. I feel like I've gotten a little morose... quiet and wise, but maybe not as fun as I used to be? Whereas past chicks weekends were full of dancing and drinking in excess, I now felt sort of out of touch with my former life where i enjoyed the camraderie and support of these women so much. They are lucky to live close to each other, but I am far away. I am blessed and happy that I got to go though. I even think my WI accent of yore creeped back in. Oh yah dere! Coupled with "ya'll ready for dinner?" Reunions are interesting. It's interesting to weigh your past versus your present and pick up where you left off with old friends....

I am a boater!

We launched the boat this weekend for the first time on our own. It was relatively painless, even. It was a peaceful weekend. Mike's uncle Tommy and his wife Becky were staying with some friends at the Fish Inn. They invited us out and we saw all three waterfalls on Lake Buchanan. Here is a picture of one.... they are amazing! You'd think you were in Hawaii, no?



I am very blessed.

I am on Q&A with the People

Don't know where Z got that chubby pic of me, but check out the latest interview on Q&A.... http://www.drodd.com/qa/mb2.html

Letting go

It has been another interesting week. Lately I've really been struggling with the idea of letting go. There are plans and timing that I had in my mind for myself for my life. You know, how you think you're going to be married by 25 and babies by 27 and all that? The older I get, the more i am realizing that ultimately I am not in charge. There are small things that I can do to change my destiny, but big-picture, things are not going to be 100% the way that I think should be. They are going to happen in God's way, in His time and when I try to get involved and be in charge, it only leads to anxiety and disappointment. Just let go. I think your life is definitely more peaceful if you can do this.

I am really enjoying Sven the Volvo so far. Yes, I am one of those people who names my cars. Currently sitting at truck place waiting for them to attach the hitch so that when we go to the lake this weekend, we can launch the boat ourselves. In the two years we've had the boat, we've never done such... always had to rely on Mike's brother. It will be nice to be in control of when and where we go from here on out.

Decided yesterday to make last minute trip to WI for Hot Chicks Weekend. One week from today I will be reading magazines, drinking margaritas, painting my nails and having lots of girl talk in Door Co. with 83% of the 6 Chicks. It really feels like I'm having an overindulgent year so far, but I got an extra bonus, so it is even, but I still am guilty- house/Hawaii/Europe/Sven/this?. But, you are only young once, right?

Got a 4am-composed note from sis in Paris, who is a few days into her 6 week stint in Europe. She is having the time of her life and surprised at how expensive everything is. No kidding!

AC: Honesty

The times, they are a changin'....

I am getting a new car after work. Turning in the keys to single girl navy blue convertible in favor of a safe and reliable family vehicle to tow kids, boats and more "stuff"....

I am officially in a new stage of life. And, I like it.

AC: Strength

Put a little love in your heart

We spent quite a bit of time last night at WSF talking about forgiveness and broken relationships. I thought the topic in Purpose-Driven life was pretty self-explanatory, but we actually got into some good discussions over the points in the book. For one, if you are supposed to take the initiative to repair broken relationships, when should this happen? It seemed to me like the book was saying you needed to immediately take action to restore peace when conflict arises. I would disagree. Sometimes I think you need to get to a place in your heart where you are ready to deal with the conflict... and not necessarily to lead to resolution, but reconciliation. Some of the people in our group talked about how they had been feeling guilt over a lost relationship for years. This got me thinking about how recently I've made a distinct effort to try to simply accept that friendships, by nature, will wax and wane and sometimes end. In my 20's I beat myself up a lot that I fell out of touch with people. The truth is that it just happens. You don't have to be friends with everybody.

I think it's amazing to think about how peace really needs to start with you. Maybe it's terribly idealistic, but this Chinese proverb has always spoken to me:
"If there is light in the soul, there will be beauty in the person. If there is beauty in the person, there will be harmony in the house. If there is harmony in the house, there will be order in the nation. If there is order in the nation, there will be peace in the world."

Here are Rick Warren's Biblical points, in case you're interested. Do you think this works? Are you taking the inititive for reconciliation? It's a hard thing to do!
1. Talk to God first, then the person.
God at times will change hearts as an answer to prayer, which then makes social engagement unnecessary. If not this, then it can prepare the peacemaker’s heart to be appropriately receptive. God honors heartfelt (genuine) prayers of faith, and nothing should be addressed without first speaking to God about the matter.
2. Always take the initiative.
To be a peacemaker requires quick action. Time only deepens wounds and causes spiritual damage to both parties, no matter who is at fault. Always take the first step. Restoring fellowship between disgruntled believers must take priority over worship. Frustrated Christians who hold unkind thoughts about each other will only grieve the Spirit of God, which materially affects true worship.
3. Sympathize with expressed feelings.
When addressing a person in conflict, allow him to “unload” emotionally without being defensive. Emotions often produce inappropriate conclusions and actions, but emotions are always real to the person within whom they exist. Not to recognize and allow their venting over efforts to provide a quick solution is a grave mistake. When a person is allowed to emotionally unload, it often is a pressure-release and creates a calming effect that allows for clearer thinking. Plus, it assures the person that the one listening actually cares for him, which is critical if a solution is to be fully accepted. And most importantly, it is Christ-like to patiently absorb the “hurts” of a fellow believer.
4. Confess personal faults in a conflict.
Always begin resolution to a conflict by admitting (confessing, owning up to) one’s personal faults pertaining to the disagreement. This takes courage, but one may be certain that confession and asking for forgiveness is a sure and quick way to defuse conflict.
5. Attack the problem, not the person.
Address the problem; do not affix blame. This entails the words and the attitude one conveys when addressing it. It is as important to be kind and tactful when speaking to a disgruntled brother in Christ, as it is in what is actually said. Being defensive is never the answer. Be kind and thoughtful….and sensitive to the brother’s feelings. Find common ground that is consistent with Bible doctrine.
6. Compromise as much as possible.
Compromise robs one of pride and self-centeredness; it should always be practiced as long as there is no serious conflict with Bible doctrine.
7. Emphasize reconciliation, not resolution.
Unity among brethren within the family of God should always take priority. There will always be disagreements and different ways of thinking regarding certain issues, but they should never be permitted to allow disharmony between believers.

Southern Fried Chicken

I got a little ambitious after looking at this month's Williams-Sonoma catalog. The recipes in there always seem pretty doable. I am sure they are just a ploy to get your average Midwesterner to buy panini pans or a $300 frying pan, so their plotting somewhat worked. I, a native Midwesterner, decided to make a Southern Fried Chicken using my non-WS cookware. When I say ambitious, I mean that I decided to follow their recipe to a tee and bought a "fryer" that is a whole 4 lb chicken. Let me tell you, I have never cut up a chicken before and I'm never doing it again. It is harder than it looks. I actually had to call Mama H. to get some support and I giggled a lot as she kindly talked me through it. She is a native Texan and knows these things.

Anyway, this recipe is good. I suggest adding 2T of tobasco to the buttermilk. Oh, and buying the chicken already cut. Maybe next time, I'll make this with panko or cornflake crumbs.

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/recipedetail.cfm?objectid=50257BE7-BDF8-52C0-BB6BB5C8CC318EFE
Mike said it was awesome. We made it for Musicals in the Park and ate it with biscuits and wine... before it started pouring down rain. Guess I'll have to make it again so we can see the whole show!

Happy Friday

We won free tix to go see As Tall as Lions tonight at Stubbs. Pretty cool.
Never heard of them, but it's been forever since I've been to Stubbs and I'm ready for a night out.

Just found out that my assistant was offered an internal position by another department. Interesting.

7-11s to Become Kwik-E-Marts to Promote Simpsons Movie

This makes me wish I lived in Dallas:

I would kill for a Squishee or Buzz cola...