Sorry its been a while :(

So the issue now is my home computer died and I haven't really had time to figure out what to do next... I have a couple of options, one trying to reload the data on it by using the start up disk, I have a feeling my data will be gone which kinda sucks, or by just ignoring the fact there is a problem and hope it goes away. I have been doing the latter of the two but I feel I might just need to face the music and deal with the problem...


New News: Jose and I have decided we will be going to Europe next spring.We are planning on visiting the usual touristy spots, London, Paris, Marseilles, Venice, Rome, Amsterdam, maybe some places in Germany too. We haven't ironed out all the details but we are soo excited. We plan on getting an unlimited Eurail pass so we can have flexibility and be able to go every where! We are so excited in fact, that it is kinda overshadowing our New York trip. We are still pretty excited but the idea of going to Europe is even more so, for me especially since I have been to NYC a couple of times. Ideas on things to do or places to stay are definitely welcome. Also, if there is a place we must go to let us know, we are still looking into it.


The doggies are doing great! Blue is getting so big now that I can barely pick him up. When he jumps up on me his front feet reach my waist! (Keep in mind that he is only 6 1/2 months old...) We figure he will be about Bear's size when he gets fully grown but we think he will be meatier than Bear, which means Bear may pick on him now but he'll regret it later on! They are so cute together, they act just like brothers and Blue loves Bear so much he goes wherever Bear is and he likes to sleep next to him too. Bear is still getting used to that, but I know he likes having a companion.

Other than that, things are going ok. Jose, Steph and I will be working on renovating the house. We have soo many ideas and can't wait until we get the funds to do what we envision. For now we'll have to do only a couple of things but we are still pretty excited about that. When it is all done, we are hoping to have a place to escape the chaos of life and relax. Our goal is Summer but that seems to be getting closer and closer so it may be the end of the year.

Last, but not least, Sarah is getting married and it is going to be soon! I am soo happy for her and Adam. They are so cute together and I know they will be happy. So far, we know the wedding will be late summer and the bridal shower, sometime in August. Once the dates are finalized I will post them so you all know what is going on.


Live, Laugh, Love!

Roast Chicken - SOOO Delicious!

We had this last night and it was sooo good! You can use different vegis and use half of a roasting chicken if you don't plan on using leftovers.

It truly is a one dish meal!

1 whole roasting chicken

6 small new potatoes

3 large carrots

1 yellow onion

1/4 c low fat butter

3 garlic cloves

2 t oregano

1 t salt

1 t pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees



2. Remove all the extras in the chicken and rinse; pat dry



3. Place in large baking dish; either 9x13 or large oval roasting dish



4. In a small bowl, combine all of the butter and spices



5. Scoop some of the butter into your hand and stuff under the skin of the chicken breast. You can separate the skin by sliding your hand under the skin, above the meat. Do this to both breasts of the chicken.



6. Once that is done save the rest of the butter to put over vegis and legs of the chicken.



7. Cut the vegis into large chunks about 1 1/2 inches.



8. Stuff some of the onion in the bird, make sure not to stuff it just place about a quarter of the onion inside.



9. Place the rest of the vegis outside the chicken.



10. Put everything int he oven and bake for 2 - 2 1/2 hours. The chicken temp should be around 180 degrees, to be safe.



11. If you would like to make gravy with the juices, strain the juices and put in a sauce pan. Heat juices and sprinkle flour in until the color is a light brown (there is no specific amount because each chicken will let off a different amount of juice) I would say about a tablespoon to two... Make sure and whisk until thickens. It will be thick enough after it begins to boil. If gravy gets chunky, just strain it again.



12. Enjoy!

Sorry for the delay!

Sorry it has been a while since my last post. There hasn't been much I can write about except Sarah's news. I was sworn to secrecy, however, to ensure that she was able to call the family herself. If you don't know yet, I will post it next week.

For those who don't know, Jose and I have been on a diet. We have been going strong since January 19th. He has already lost 20 lbs and I a mere 10. I guess slowly but surely is the way to go but for some reason it just doesn't seem fast enough! Our weight loss has slowed down a bit but it's still going so that is good.

Valentine's Day is coming up and we are so excited to go out and eat. We haven't eaten out since Jan 19th so we are pretty excited. We are going to go to the Yard House, one of our favorite restaurants, and then he agreed to go see "He's Just Not That Into You" that evening with me. Isn't he sweet!

New York this winter is what I'm thinking about every day... I can't wait!!! It is going to be so much fun. The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center and the ice skating in Central park, just magical. It is truly what Christmas looks like to me and I can't wait! We are going to do our Christmas shopping there too! Nothing is more fun than getting random fun gifts for friends and family that can't be found anywhere else. Other than shopping we are going to see the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Ground Zero and best of all Macy's :)

Other than that, I have started to think about where we are going when we go to Europe. The idea here is to travel before we settle down and get married. After we get married we are going to be more settled but I'm sure we will still go and travel a bit but going to Europe takes a lot of money and time. It won't happen often so we are hoping to make the best of it. We will miss our babies but when else will we be able to go to Europe without worrying about our kids?

Regarding our babies (dogs), they are doing great. Bear is being very good but Blue is a little terror. Blue has his little ways of telling us he is upset, like when we close the door to the restroom he will find the rugs from the other restroom and take them into the living room or hallway... He does have his sweet side and he loves to snuggle but they enjoy sleeping on our Queen size bed with us and a German Shepard and Lab end up taking about half the bed, Blue is getting so big! We are trying to train them to not sleep on the bed with us but it's so hard to kick them to the floor when they look so cute!

Jose and I are both grateful that we still have a job and are able to make our bills but I have started to pay off school loans so that makes things a bit tight. We're making it through, thank you Lord. he finds ways of helping us out when we need it most so we know that we will be taken care of. We hope that Jose's parent's are able to move in with us soon but we are happy to have a roof over our head and food on the table. In times like these we need to make sure and just be grateful.

That pretty much sums it up... I pray all of you will not have too many troubles during this time and can try and enjoy the idea we are living in a historic time. I still can't believe Obama is president, it hasn't hit me yet :) I hope all goes well within the next couple of weeks and the people who are losing their livelihood will be helped.

Live, Laugh, Love