Just trying to keep up...

Whoops! I'm not the best blog owner. I should probably be posting more than once a month. I had told myself weeks ago that I wanted to post pictures from Trevor's and my anniversary, but I'm just now getting around to it. Better late than never, I suppose?

Trevor and I have officially been married for a year now! Crazy... It doesn't feel like it's been that long, but then again it kind of does, haha. In that first post I did, it was really nice to look back and think about all the fun things that we've done over the last year. Some of them weren't very big or major, but we've been able to get out of town and enjoy ourselves. I feel like that's when we're at our best; when we aren't worrying about work and money, and we're not being boring on the couch. When we can just pack a bag and leave and just BE with each other.

We were able to do just that a few weeks ago for our anniversary. My parents have had season tickets to the Seahawks for the last several years, and they were nice enough to give us tickets to the home opener against the Cardinals. We made a weekend of it by riding the train up on Saturday afternoon and staying the night. Not having a car was really nice! We didn't have to worry about parking and we were able to stop at any restaurant or store that we saw along the way, instead of just driving right by it. We walked from the train station to our hotel, dropped off our bags, and then walked to Pike's Place...

 and then the Space Needle...

We rode to the top at about 7:00 when it was still daylight. We each sipped on a drink while circling the top and enjoying to view of the Sound, Queen Anne's Hill and the stadiums. We even caught the tail-end of someone's proposal! How cute. :) By the time we made it back down, it was dark. I forgot to mention that the weather was PERFECT-- just like it was on our wedding. It was nice and warm and sunny on Saturday and we were able to wander around comfortably.

Anyway, after the space needle, we hopped on the monorail and rode it back into town. On our way back toward the hotel we saw a really neat-looking restaurant and put our names on the list. There was an hour and a half wait (!) which gave us enough time to head to the room, get a little dressed up, and head across the street to a snobby little bar where we had fancy drinks (mine had a piece of orange peel floating in it that the bartender roasted for a few seconds over a flame. ooOOOOooo...) By the time we were done, our table was ready at the restaurant. It was awesome! I HIGHLY recommend the Purple Cafe. A little spendy, but if you're out on the town, why not?! Trevor surprised me by agreeing to paté for an appetizer (sooo good!) and he EVEN order the wine pairing to go with it! I had some incredible lemony, parmesany, shrimpy pasta and Trevor had a fancy pork chop with fruit compote. *sigh* I love food so much. One of my dream jobs would be to be a food critic. More on food later in the post.

Sunday was pretty laid back. We slept in, checked out of our hotel and then headed toward the stadium. It was a little drizzly, but overall turned into a decent day. And the Seahawks won! Couldn't ask for more than that. :)

Snapped a picture before the game:

When the game ended, we just went straight to the train station, hopped on our train and headed home! It really was a perfect Seattle weekend. Hoping to plan our next getaway soon. I'm thinking a lazy beach trip may be next on the list.

Aaaand, just to throw in another picture, last week we had our cousins, Sara, Bryce and Leila, over for dinner and a game. So fun to be able to see them a bit more often lately! It will be pretty sad when Sara and Leila move to Texas to be with Justin, but I'm excited for them.

So the real reason why I finally became motivated enough to post a blog is that I have another recipe to share! This one, you guys... This one's a winner. I'm obsessed with it. If you know me well (Peggy.) you know that I love me some soup, salad and breadsticks at Olive Garden. And the Zuppa Tuscana is one of my favorites. Weelllll, my mom found the recipe. I was a little hesitant because a) I thought it would be complicated, and b) how could it possibly be as good as the real thing? BUT IT'S EASY AND IDENTICAL! No joke. You must try it:

Zuppa Tuscana
Serves 6 (I ate four of those servings.  Seriously.  Three of them were within the last 12 hours...aaand I just had the last bowl of it for breakfast.)

1 lb Italian Sausage
2 large baking potatoes, sliced with the skins on
1 large onion, chopped
1 jar Real Bacon Bits
2 cloves minced garlic
2 cups kale, chopped
2 cans chicken broth
1 quart water
1 cup heavy whipping cream (I used half and half and it was just as good)

Cook and drain the sausage.  Place onion, potatoes, chicken broth, water and garlic in a large pot on medium heat until potatoes are done.  Add sausage, bacon bits, salt and pepper to taste, then simmer for an additional 10 minutes.  Turn to low heat and add the kale and cream.  Heat through and serve.

It's a perfect fall soup (rich, creamy, a little spice).  If you want to go all out (I'm not crazy, I swear...) you can go to Olive Garden and buy a bottle of their salad dressing.  Lettuce, olives, a few slices of purple onion, croutons, tomatoes, pepperoncinis if you got em, and then the salad dressing.  Boom.  Whip up some breadsticks and alfredo sauce.  Boom.  I'm telling you, I may never need to actually GO to Olive Garden again (besides to buy bottles of their salad dressing).

Ok, I'll stop.  :)  I just can't NOT tell people how amazing that whole dinner was.  I think it will be in the regular rotation around here.

Until the next big news!
Signing off...
B♥

Oh Boy.

I have discovered a new website obsession.  It's a combination of a wish list/collage/blog.  It's fantastic!!  And I want more people to know about it and join so I can share it. :)

Warning: OOONLY click on the following button if you have several hours to spare and some serious creativity to gain.

"Hey, this is pretty good..."

When I hear that, I know I've won. 

I looove to cook, and I love to try new things; I happened to marry someone who is a little apprehensive when it comes to both of those things.  Cooking is like an art form to me.  It combines math and science and color and flavor...  When you combine 10 ingredients to make one, awesome creation, it's exciting!  I'm proud of what I've made, and I get anxious to show it off and get other people's opinions.  Sooometimes (sometimes.), I don't get the response I'm looking for.  Usually it's a half shoulder-shrug and a higher-octive "Yeah, it's good," which I follow up with a lowered-brow "...really?" and he responds with a "No!  I like it!"

Sure.

But eeevery once in a while, I get a "Heeyy...this is pretty good!"  A reaction that's not provoked.  It's natural.  And it's meaningful.

And so, because he enjoyed it, I will post a recipe that I made tonight for the first time.  One that I grew up with and that we will probably have again in the Whittle household.

(FYI- I'm not a measurer.  I'm an eyeballer.  So some of the measurements are best estimates.  If you like more onions, add more onions!  If you like more spice, add more spice!)

Mexican Chicken Corn Chowder
Makes about 6-8 servings

2 chicken breasts, cut into small cubes
1 large baking potato (OR several smaller potatoes), cubed
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, diced
3 tbsp butter
1 can chicken broth
1 1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
2 cups frozen corn, OR southwest veggie mix (corn, black beans, peppers, etc.)
1 can creamed corn
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chilies
1 cup shredded cheese (Monterey jack or cheddar- whatever you're going for)
2 cups half and half
1/2-1 cup canned or fresh diced tomatoes (I used fire-roasted canned tomatoes with garlic)

Boil the potato in the chicken broth until the potatoes are soft.  Meanwhile, brown/saute the chicken and onion in butter until the chicken is no longer pink.  Add the garlic and saute for one more minute.  Add the chicken and onions to the potatoes and broth.  Add the cumin, crushed red pepper, and frozen corn, stir, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the creamed corn, diced chilies, cheese, tomatoes and half and half.  Stir frequently for another 5 to 10 minutes until heated through.

If you wanted, I'm sure you could top with some more cheese, sour cream or cilantro.  OR ALL THREE!

Yuummm!

Here We Are! (...But Where Are We?)

THIS.  Is the product of a sick day.  I've always wanted to start a blog, and think it will be a great way to really keep in touch with family and friends.   Hopefully it will prompt us to take more pictures and videos, and it's a bit more in depth and personal than a random "status update".

Believe it or not, Trevor and I will be celebrating our first anniversary in less than 2 weeks!  I can't believe that it's already been a year.  I just keep thinking that I want to do it again!  That was the best day and greatest party that I have ever had (and probably will EVER have).  

Trevor and I are doing well; just working (him at Home Depot, me with a property management company in Portland), keeping our little home that we share with my brother, Jackson, and spending time with our friends.  We've gone to Sun River, the beach, Disneyland and to the Puget Sound in the last year (Wow!  That sounds ways more exciting than I felt like we have been!).  My goal is to save for one or two much larger-scale vacations before we have kiddos, like a cruise or a trip somewhere tropical or European....*sigh*  Guess I need to start watching Groupon.

At the Deschutes Brewery on our honeymoon (which happened to overlap Trevor's birthday!  Lucky guy!)

Mickey!

 

 

 

 

At the Red Hook brewery after a day of ferry rides through the Sound with my parents in July.

 

Aaaand we have THIS guy!:

Max.  He's part good, part evil, part superhero.

Overall, we're kind of in a transition phase.  Neither of us are making quite enough money to save for a house or big trip or anything yet.  Neither of us are doing exactly what we had planned on doing.  But we're working on it, and I can feel big things coming soon which is a really great feeling.  For now, we will celebrate our first anniversary with a train ride and a Seahawks game, and we'll continue to enjoy each others company and grow into our still-new life together.