superbowl party

...i may have forgotten a romen numeral I....


but that's okay... cause ben made one out of a chip!


yummerz

3d glasses! i was a little disappointed... anyone else?

brrrrr... it's cold outside!

this is a little against the IHC theme, but in light of the recent weather conditions i feel the need to post my chili recipe for anyone dying for some comfort food!

chili

2 large white onions, chopped
1 tbsp. minced garlic
2 jalepeno peppers (chopped… only seed 1 if you like your chili to have a kick to it)
¼ cup canola oil
3 lbs chuck tender roast, cubed
¼ cup chili powder
1 tbsp. cumin
1.5 tbsp. cocoa powder
2 tbsp. paprika
1 tbsp. dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. dried red pepper flakes
14 oz. can chicken broth
3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
16 oz. tomato sauce
sharp cheddar cheese, chopped onion & sour cream to top

in a medium pot, saute onions & garlic in oil until softened. add meat and jalepenos, sear until meat is steel grey. add chili powder, cumin, cocoa, paprika, oregano, red pepper flakes and bay leaf. cover and let simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. add chicken broth, tomato sauce and vinegar. simmer 1 hour uncovered, stirring frequently. serve hot with chopped onions, sour cream and sharp cheddar on top... or whatever you like!

taste testing... doggie style

i am sort of embarrassed that i actually did this... but it was a suggestion from a professional! i am switching scooter's dog food to an all natural grain free diet and i was given 4 different samples from 2 different brands. so, i set up a taste test. i can't prove there is any science to why, but he did choose one over the others!... until he moved on and ate another, and then another. but oh well, the ranking system worked and we have a winner. core wellness original canine formula. i'm sure everyone was dying to know this piece of information.

hiking in freezing weather :)

this is our favorite hiking place in okc!





rarrrr miniature tree!


elephant trunk tree

pac man and girlfriend

cute cake by staci schnorrenberg!

staci schnorrenberg made this ADORABLE cake! she is one of my few friends who loves baking as much as me... i also just happen to love the orange flowers :) i'm excited to see what's to come next! she and her husband are the cutest couple ever.

vote for simon!

everyone go and vote for simon in the spay day 2009 online pet photo contest! every $1 donation you make goes directly to Volunteers for Animal Welfare in OKC to help spay and neuter pets - and gives simon another vote in this contest!

https://photocontest.humanesociety.org/contest.html?page=viewInd&id=8576&contestId=1

THE guitar hero!

yep, he beat guitar hero on expert level. i'm praying he'll move on... maybe to a real musical instrument.



yes tristan, i'm SO proud of you. :)

fun things

i love fredflare.com. thank you, kendall, for introducing me! it has the most amazing things... case in point: cupcake beanie. too bad it's sold out :(

http://fredflare.com/customer/product.php?productid=3978&cat=366

also, the other day robyn & i were at francesca's in edmond and i found a candle that smells like birthday cake -- it was delicious and i must have one.

also...

i'm trying to convince tristan to start a blog. he has a lot to say! his excuse is having nothing to write about... any suggestions? surely there's some sort of topic to get him going. i suggested "the diet struggles of tristan adler" as he is notorious for his hardcore dieting strategies... only until he falls of the wagon and i find him in the pantry pouring a bag of chocolate chips in his mouth. lucky for him, he is still extremely good looking and has a great body. needless to say he turned down that topic.... but i am not giving up!...

for those who care: update on scooter

he's fine :) last friday he had to go into the vet to have some "oral" work done. they put him under anesthesia and pulled 2 puppy teeth that never fell out {by the way, i had no idea dogs even had puppy teeth, and especially didn't know they fell out!... i'm sure he ate all the ones that did. yum.} anyway... i guess the permanent teeth grew in and there was quite a bit of tartar and buildup with all the crowding. they pulled them and then cleaned and polished all the rest. WOW. what a big difference!

he acted like nothing even happened! he was just excited to see us and get away from the strangers @ the vet. we let him lick our faces as much as he wanted until it was time for him to eat. i'm pretty sure that was the happiest moment of his life. if you know me at all, you know how TERRIBLE his breath was before. all gone! they also microchipped him, which is pretty cool. it was so cheap, i would definitely recommend microchipping your pet if you haven't! although i can pretty much guarantee scooter is never getting away unless someone breaks into the house and steals him. all in all, definitely money well spent.

countdown to april... lots of activities!

95 days until the okc memorial marathon! (sunday, april 26) i just realized there is no quarter marathon, so it looks like i may have to suck it up and do the half marathon with tristan. that's ok, what a good excuse for me to walk a portion! anyway.... everyone should sign up too! it's a blast.

http://okcmarathon.com/

even before the marathon is the redbud classic (sunday, april 5th)... it's just a 5k going through nichols hills in okc. we'll definitely be running this one as well.

http://www.redbud.org/home/

and for all my fellow cowboys (and others too!) the "remember the 10" run in stillwater is something i've been wanting to participate in but there have been conflicts in the past. it's on april 18-- i'm really excited about this one since it's a first for us!

http://www.remembertheten.com/races/

last, but not least.... my birthday is april 4th! what a great month. i guess i better get my lazy ass on our new treadmill :)

plan on running with me? leave a comment!

just for fun!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHg5SJYRHA0

random caking...

...for no particular occasion!



blank canvas.



homemade fondant = lots of powdered sugar.



fun cut outs!





sort of winter-ey, right?







finished :)

guest blog: janice vizarelis!

my friend janice made these gorgeous cakes recently, they definitely deserved some recognition on i heart cake!


this red shoe cake is so impressive!!


adorable girls' birthday cake

way to go janice :) so glad to have another friend who loves making cakes!

christmas.fun

some fun pics from the holiday!

tristan with our new toys! the ultimate combination of guitar hero/dance dance revolution

the boys excited to see us home!

simon and his new blanket (mid meow... of course)

wendy's house -- holiday island, ar

tristan & bodie

my awesome new socks

joey & the little guy!

christmas cutie :)

dad & joey in the helicopter!

new collection!

so i've started a collection of the handpainted lolita martini glasses... i have been wanting to start for quite a while and tristan surprised me with 2 for christmas! even better, his mother gave me another to make it 3! i am very excited... they each come with a martini recipe painted on the bottom- they are so cool!

shopaholic martini


cosmopolitan martini


birthday cake martini

delicious cranberry salsa!

a woman i work with brought this for our christmas party -- it was too good to keep to myself!

cranberry salsa:

1 bag fresh cranberries
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 bunch green onion
3-4 jalepenos, seeded
juice of 1 to 2 limes

you're supposed to grate the cranberries then chop all the other ingredients in, but if you just blitz all the ingredients in the food processor it works just as well! let it sit out for a while so the flavors can steep... refrigerate leftovers. it was really good with chips & crackers, but i also tried it with celery and it was REALLY good. enjoy!

wow, i need to make a cake soon... or i may forget how!!

in the meantime, aren't my boys cute?

*marathon aftershock*

Well, we finished the quarter marathon!

Finish Times:
Emily 1:36:43
Tristan 1:03:12

So it took me a little longer than him... but I ran the whole thing! So right now I'm focusing on Downtown in December's Sandridge Santa Run! [my FAVORITE 5k!]

http://www.downtownindecember.com/Default.aspx?tabid=176

Please feel free to register and run with us :)

Happy Winter!!



this lasted 5 seconds... and then of course simon MUST be on top of it. ahh... cats.

pumpkin whoopie pies!

this is a delish recipe from rachael ray--- perfect for fall holiday festivities!

http://momcooks.net/2007/09/19/pumpkin-whoopie-pies-with-cream-cheese-filling/

i added an extra 1/2 tsp vanilla extract to the cake batter and also added some milk to the cream filling to make it a little fluffier. but these are really good, and super easy to make!

just caking a living!

so you may call me a traitor, but i prefer the term sellout. a girl's gotta get paid! still exploring with the whole fondant thing. happy birthday to lance, my former boss.

...typing in orange in hopes of redeeming myself!

route 66 quarter marathon!

my friends & i will be running in the route 66 quarter marathon in tulsa on november 16. stay tuned for pictures!

sign up today! http://route66marathon.com/