Off to the NW

Well, it appears it’s that time again. The time when I get the urge for someplace new and pack my bags. I’m still 5 months out, but can hardly control how excited I am to be returning to the place I call home. The Pacific NW is truly my first love. I think this time I’ll stay for good. I’ve already made some incredible memories here in Maine and can’t wait to round out the last 5 months with a few more. From the family time, to the people I’ve met, to the places I frequent it really has been a great experience. Not sure what’s next for me by the time I get home. Definitely some catch up time with old friends and I guess a pretty big birthday in September. So, Vancouver/Portland I’ll see you in August and Vegas I’ll see you for my dirty 30! I’m sure it will be a birthday I’ll never remember with people I’ll never forget!

Family and Quilts

It’s almost the end of another year, I can hardly believe it. I have moved from WA to LA to ME and have enjoyed every stop along the way. Moving to Maine was by far the best move I have made. Not that I didn’t enjoy and learn from other places I have lived but because I realized how important family really is. I feel blessed really. I have a wonderful family that loves each other and gets along great. Having the ability to move to Maine to get to know my niece Hannah has really been the cherry on top. The smile I get when I walk in the door from her is priceless. I want her to always know me.

It’s getting colder and that means more inside time. I’ve already started venturing into the crock-pot world and think I might try out some more difficult recipes soon. I’ve also decided to set a goal for myself. By the end of 2011 I’ve decided I want to make a quilt. It may not be the best quilt but I’m feeling pretty confident that I can create something…well functional 🙂 I’ve started researching, ordered a couple of books and have found loads of blogs and informational tutorials that are a great start for inspiration. If any of you know websites, books, or videos that might be useful or if you have any tips of your own please feel free to send the information my way!! I know my sister-in-law Sarah is a craft master and I’m hoping I can steal some of her knowledge. Maybe trade babysitting for lessons? I’ll keep you in the loop and if it goes well I am hoping to set a goal for 2012, one new project/activity a month. I will take all your suggestions! Until next post…

Color Me Maine

Do you ever have those days when you wake up and just want to be somewhere else in your life? A new job, a new location, a new house, have a family, or maybe just a new shirt? I think I am having a week of the “wants”. There are lots of things I can not change, lots of things I don’t want to change, but this weekend calls for a small change…a new wall color.

I have been in Maine a little over 4 months now (I know! Time is flying) and I have yet to make the apartment feel like home. Maybe it was a lack of motivation or money(moving from WA to ME is expensive!) but I think I always tread carefully on new locations because I never know how long I am going to stay. I ordered a couch last week. To some people that is just part of a new place, for me it was a small (but potentially large) commitment to Portland, well at least the East coast. Not only did I order a couch but an area rug as well. I know, I know, HUGE! The goal is to paint the living room this weekend so when the couch and rug arrive we’ll be ready. We (my sister and I) are thinking a blueish/greenish/grey type color. Specific, right? Something on the lighter than the darker side, most likely muted or understated. I’m sorry Pat and Sarah we are stealing your wall color, or close to it. After that all we need to get is a coffee table, tv, and entertainment stand (a few minor things). Art for the walls is also a must. I have some ideas on making custom wall art but will need to get my hands on some pictures from my sister-in-law. One thing at a time I guess…

Side note: Utilizing the crock-pot again today. Pulled pork goodness tonight!

Crock-Potting It Up

So I bought this Crock-Pot a couple weeks ago and have been on a mission ever since. Tuscan White Bean soup…check, Guinness and Beef stew…check, Chicken (minus the noodle) soup…check. Today I am attempting  pulled pork. Who knows if it will turn out as amazing as I think it will be, but I have serious faith in this machine. It’s like you can throw in anything, set in on low, and in 8 hours it’s a little pot of Heaven.  And the metallic red color? Love at first sight. Here’s a recipe for Beef and Guinness Stew we loved.

-I found this recipe in The Gourmet Slow Cooker and adapted it to what I thought was good-

Grocery List:

¾ cup all-purpose flour

2 ½ pounds lean stewing beef (cut into 1 ½  inch cubes)

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 to 3 large potatoes (peeled and cut into bite sized pieces)

2 to 3 carrots (peeled and cut into bite sized pieces)

2 large yellow onions quartered (I used sweet onions…really good)

1 to 2 sprigs thyme

2 cups Guinness

1 teaspoon salt

Chopped fresh parsley for garnish (I didn’t do this)

(I added celery and garlic but that is not in the original recipe but was awesome. I also added a little bit of beef broth(Maybe a cup). I guess it just depends how thick you’d like it.)

Place the flour in a resealable plastic bag. Add the beef to the bag, several pieces at a time, and shake to coat completely.

Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the oil. In batches if necessary, add the beef and cook, turning, for 8 to 10 minutes until browned on all sides. Using tongs, transfer to paper towels to drain.

Place the beef, potatoes, carrots, onions, thyme, (celery and garlic) in the slow cooker and pour the beer over top. (If you prefer the vegetables with more texture, let the stew cook for 1 hour before adding the vegetables.) Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or until the meat is very tender. Season with salt. Remove and discard thyme.

Transfer to serving bowl and garnish generously with the parsley.

I added jalapenos to mine instead of parsley, which might sound weird but it gave it the kick I was looking for.  Try it out and enjoy!

Upcoming task for the weekend: painting the living room.

A Pan Am Bunny

What’s with all the new 60’s shows coming out now? Pan Am and The Playboy Club have me wanting to fly the skies in a bunny suit. Well, on a serious note I did look at flight attendant jobs online today, but I’m a long ways from being small enough to jump into a bunny suit!! Either way it makes me wonder what else is out there. I need to travel more. Goal before the end of the year: obtain a passport.

Let’s Do This!…Again

I’ve decided it’s time to get back into my blogging world but not the long and lengthy posts I’ve done in the past. Short and sweet, maybe even a couple a day.

Here it goes… In September I went to the beach with my whole family, I turned 29, and I bought a boogie board. In October my Aunt Christine came to visit, I made my first trip to the Portland Children’s Museum(my cash was stolen), and I bought a couch.

I’ve decided bars are probably not the best place to meet Mr. Maybe and that time is really all you need to get over things.

Irish Pubs and Rain Boots

So I guess it’s been awhile since I’ve been on here…

Life has been moving ahead as usual. Since we last spoke I have attended Hannah’s first birthday party, seen some great local bands, and met some wicked fun people (haha).  Needless to say I am exhausted and in need of a serious recharge! Lucky for me I can do that next week when my family flies over and we all head up to the beach house for a week. I can not wait for some relaxing on the beach, boogie boarding and family game nights. Oh and it’s my birthday on the 8th. The big two nine. One more year of 20’s. Looking forward to my 30’s. Pretty sure it will be my most formative decade yet. Either way I’m so excited to spend it with the whole family in Maine, if only Penny could have come…

Found another spot we love to go to called Ri Ra. It’s a chain Irish pub, but since there are only like 5 in the U.S. it doesn’t really seem super chainy to me. Great food. Seriously the Guinness beef stew is heaven on a cold day and of all the times we have been there (I think 5 times in the last two weeks) the spinach and artichoke dip has been a high priority. And I love everything potatoes so this place is the best.It totally helps that all the bartenders are friendly and hot. It’s just not right. And hell, half of them have our names down and know that I want a Smithwick’s and Em wants a Guinness… hmmm I’m starting to think a pint tonight sounds great! Although we should probably take care of some business before this storm rolls through.

Ahhh the storm. It seems people are going to extremes with Ms. Irene. Not that being prepared and safe are a bad thing, I just don’t think it will be that bad when it finally hits Maine. Might as well keep that between us or the poor news reporters here will have to go back to talking about lobster catches and airport grants. We’ll see I guess. Should buy a flashlight and some bottled water just in case. Probably should have already had those…

Maine has definitely been growing on me and is feeling more like my home than a vacation. I’m excited for the trees to change color and for me to splash around in my new rain boots. Damn I love Fall. This will be my first in New England and I can only imagine how great it will be. Looking forward to apple cider and pumpkin scented candles. Oh snap, I think a trip to the Yankee Candle store is in order! Maybe I’ll wait til Seany gets here…

Lighthouses and Lobstah

I’m back!! I know it’s been awhile since I posted last so here’s the quick and short of the last week. Worked a lot, drank a lot, burned a lot, played  a lot. Ok now the stories. Most of you know that I work for ACS and a few of you know that I write policy and procedure manuals for them. Well over the last two months or so there have been some changes so the work we have done is somewhat on hold and headed a different direction. Not a bad thing and actually I really like the people I am working with. Just a learning time for me. SIPOC? What is that?! Spreadsheets oh boy. I enjoy the challenge and will be writing again soon I hope.

Crystal came down from NY this weekend which was a ton of fun. It has been 10 years in September since the first time I met her at Western. Blue hair no more but still the same up for anything personality I loved back then. Friday was a night of drinking at, where else, Rosie’s. I guess we did manage to find our way to RiRa’s and somehow ended up alongside a bachelor party. Oh Russell! (Facebook me, poke me, whatever haha)

Saturday we stocked up on water, beach towels, and a beach umbrella (thank you Walgreens) and headed out to the beach. Emily, Crystal and I all enjoyed playing in the water, collecting shells and sparkle rocks and getting a little burnt.

Ok, some (me) a lot burnt but well worth it! Took my first real dip into the Atlantic Ocean and let me tell you, no it was not warm!

After all the sun we were starving a little dinner and dessert was enough to knock us out.

Today was another great day. We decided to take an hour and a half day lighthouse cruise around Casco bay. Lots of fun, even our local Mainard friend Tyler joined us. 

After the cruise us girls decided to grab a bite at J’s Oysters. Now this was fun for a couple of reasons. The first, one of my favorite shows (Anthony Bourdaine’s No Reservation’s) filmed here when they visited Maine, second I love seafood, third it was Emily’s first real seafood adventure, and fourth…did I say I LOVE seafood?? It may not be the nicest place in town but the food was delish! The placemats even tell you how to eat a lobster…or lobstah as me and Emily so lovingly refer to it now!

I had a platter of fresh scallops, shrimp, crab, lobster and oysters. Can you say yum!? Emily was very brave and gave them a try. I was pretty proud considering a newbie was eating it raw with me and she didn’t gag once 🙂 Ya Em, we’ll get you some cooked scallops I’m sure you’ll like them better.

I’m loving the lobstah but I think king crab is still my favorite. One day Alaska I will be back! Or maybe I just need to eat more of it….I’ll try the later and let you know. Next week is Hannah’s first birthday party and I can’t wait for that! More posts and pics to come. Until then. XOXO

Special K and Blueberry Jams

Every morning I wake up to the smell of breakfast being prepared somewhere below me on the streets of Commercial or Fore. Now this wouldn’t be a bad way to wake up except that it’s not for me! Sadly my Special K with Red Berries does not come close to whatever is out there. Why do you tease me Maine?

Another beautiful day out there, and as soon as I am done working I plan on stealing myself a piece of it. I love living so close to the ocean. When the breeze hits it’s the smell of salt water and seafood filling my apartment. If I could only hear the ocean from my little room it would be my own sound machine.

Since I can’t hear the ocean from my room and I am stuck in here at my computer for 8 hours a day working I have found that music is a constant companion. I was introduced recently to Turntable.fm and love it! Up to 5 people can play music from a list they create. If you like a song you can click the “Awesome” button. When this happens the person gets points. Score enough points and you can change your avatar. Sorry you can’t “Awesome” yourself. I have just recently reached bear status. Join a room already created or create your own. Blueberry Jams is where it’s at…just sayin.

If you have a facebook account you can try it out. It’s a pretty great way to hear music you love and to introduce you to music you don’t know already.

Looking forward to the next couple weeks. Lots of exciting stuff coming up…

Ice Cream and Grape Graveyards

What a wonderful weekend! Like most weekends I try to do something with family or friends and hopefully that also involves some nice outdoor weather. I was lucky enough to have both. On Saturday Emily and I made our way out to Pat and Sarah’s to spend the day playing with Hannah, chatting about plans, and making some homemade ice cream. I love watching Hannah play in her little pool.  She could care less that at times there may be a few leaves in her water or that she plans on getting you as wet as she is. All she cares about is having a good time. Fill it up with a couple of toys and off she goes.

The final event to our evening was making some homemade ice cream. After some deliberation about what ingredients are in the house we decided on a simple vanilla with Heath bar mixed in. It was anything but simple! The whole family enjoyed watching Pat make his first batch of homemade ice cream. I’m sure, no, I know there will be much more to come. But what was even better is the whole family enjoyed eating some of Pat’s ice cream!

Sunday was another beautiful day and another trip out to Gorham. We got there early and walked over to Sebago Brewing for brunch. The food was great, unfortunately it was their last brunch ever. Not sure why. Maybe not enough business. Who wouldn’t want to go to a brewpub at 9 AM?! Wake up Maine!

After a big breakfast and a power nap for Hannah we made our way over to Crescent Beach State Park down in Cape Elizabeth. It seems everyone had the same idea we did. The beach was flooded with people but it seems everyone was having a good time. We popped our beach hut and sat out in chairs. Chatting over grapes and popcorn, enjoying the view. Dipped our feet in the cold Atlantic Ocean and scooped up a couple cool rocks to take home. After a few hours it was time to go and say goodbye to the beach and Hannah’s grape graveyard. You know, the half-eaten grapes covered in sand… probably only edible to Hannah and the seagulls.

Loaded up, and headed out. Another successful weekend. A little burnt but well worth the fun.