Lazy

We've been doing fun stuff... check out Katie's blog for details :) This is my favorite way to post!!

Home Improvement Projects

Are finally complete! The tiles in the master shower have been replaced and our front door has been painted. Yay. As soon as our new couch comes in, we'll be ready to entertain!

Ah! A very satisfying tie.

I'd call that a successful challenge :)

Soup Off 2010!

What do you do when your sunny paradise freezes? First you think, how much farther south do I have to go? Key West? South America? Then you succumb to the cold, begrudgingly retire your flip-flops, and dust off those cold weather coping skills you thought you'd left in Pennsylvania: stay in, watch movies, and make a TON of soup. To that end, Matt and I decided to mix it up a bit and challenged each other to Soup Off 2010. The objective: make a new soup that's better than your opponent's. The judging: each contestant will taste both soups and choose their favorite. In case of a tie, pictures of the challenge will be taken to document the event and our loyal blog followers will decide whose soup looks/sounds like it tastes the best. And so, it begins.

Matt's entry: Paula Deen's Poblano Chicken Chowder.
Whitney's entry:Grilled Tomato Soup from The Joy of Cooking.

Read our accounts below, take a look at the ingredients and preparation in the slide show, and vote in the comments section :)

Matt: As I'm sure you guessed, we are divided. I believe my soup to be the best and Whitney her's. We need your help. Whose bowl of divinity will you choose? Mine is a hardy chowder, touting a superb balance of spice and creamy-richness; just what you need after coming in from the cold. The poblano peppers, cumin, and black pepper reignite your ice laden soul, while the heavy cream and rib-stick'n grilled chicken, carrots, onion, and celery quiet your stomach's aches and pangs. Campbells can suck it!

Whitney: If you've read the captions on the photo album, you'll see Matt likens his soup to a taste of heaven. Bullshit. If you knew how much cream and butter were in it, you'd liken it to a sinful meal hastening your trip straight to hell. Mine, on the other hand, is an uber healthy, ultra-flavorful vegetarian delight. Grilled tomato, EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), garlic, onion, lemon and basil. Simple and flawless. Add a couple slices of french bread and put me in a guilt-free food coma for the night. I'm the clear winner.

Now it's your turn. Tell us which soup you think should be the winner. And none of that pansy-ass, "Ohh, they both look good." Pick ONE.

Stuffed

My most recent facebook status read as follows: "A 15 lb. turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, fresh cranberries, rolls and a pumpkin pie. Two people. Overkill?" Well, now you can be the judge. Here are pics of the feast Matt and I prepared for ourselves. And it was D. Licious. We've been cooking turkeys for the past 5 years, but this year, with the help of America's Test kitchen, we finally mastered a juicy and flavorful bird without the help of a deep fryer. Check out the recipe for yourself. We promise it works!

Cruise!

Matt and I went on our first Disney cruise last week and it won't be our last. When we have more time, we'll elaborate with some stories. Until then, here are some pics to satisfy the relentless nagging by Jennifer and Katie :)

It's been a while

Wow, has it really been 3 months since our last post? Well, we have been busy. How 'bout a top five recap...

1.) The house is shaping up. Painting is complete. Furniture is moved in. And when my parents came to visit in September, they helped us paint the patio floor and set up our indoor-outdoor Florida living space! Check out the slide show on the previous post for the latest pics. We do still have a few projects underway... we ordered a new front door that's supposed to be installed in the next few weeks. In our zest as DIY-ers, we thought we could re-grout our master shower. I won't bore you with the details, but we're now getting quotes from a couple of contractors and handy-men. :)

2.) Met our first niece, Taylor Kate! She's adorable and, sorry Seth, but she looks exactly like Lindsey. Linds just called yesterday so we could hear Taylor talking... no actual words yet, but she definitely a noise-maker.

3.) Went to our 10 year reunion. I did have to twist Matt's arm to get him to go with me, but we had an amazingly good time. And like all classy Kentucky gatherings, this one ended with a field party and a little moonshine.

4.) Trip to Clearwater. My long-lost BFF from high school lives just down the road in Clearwater, so we spent a long weekend with her in October. The beach was a little chilly, but a good cup of Starbucks helped us last for a good 1.5 hours. We went to the Tampa Improv in the old Cuban district of Tampa, Ybor City. We sat right next to the stage and Jennifer even made it into the act. An awesome $16 evening. To top it all off, we spent Sunday in Tarpon Springs, sponge capital USA. We bought loofahs, ate seafood, tasted Greek wine, and topped it all off with some pastries from a Greek bakery and a little HGTV back at the apartment.

5.) Our first trick-or-treaters! As apartment dwellers, we never had any trick-or-treaters. Now we know that spooky little kids begging for sweets are a luxury saved for suburbanites. We're now qualified candy pushers! Last night we had 30+ kids stop in. We were out of candy by 8:10 PM. Awesome.

We're homeowners!

It's official! Matt and I closed on our first house on Friday, exactly one year to the day after we moved to Florida! Great deal, great interest rate, and a tax credit = great timing for us.

We're pretty tired after our first day of painting, but we thought we'd post a few pics as a preview. Enjoy!

Kentucky in the Spring

Last weekend, Matt & I took a fabulously exhausting trip home to Kentucky. The excursion was jam packed with early birthday shopping, the infamous Derby Day party, and Lindsey's baby shower! It took us several days to recuperate, but it was great to see all of our favorite people & celebrate for 3 days in a row. Here's the slideshow recap:

New Car... her name is Flip

When you're driving and you apply the brakes, your car should never complain, "I don't feel like stopping." But for the last week, that's exactly what our '99 Ford Explorer had been doing. We took it to the repair shop and the mechanic, who we really like by the way, said something along these lines when he called:

"Uh, this car looks like it's been driven up North... like New York. You're looking at about $1000 in brake work. I don't want to worry you, but this will be a lot easier to explain when you come in to the shop. I can show you exactly what I'm talking about."

Up on the lift, with the tires removed, the brakes looked as though we had driven through wet cement and parked for about, I don't know, a thousand and one years. The mechanic couldn't rotate the front driver's side rotor without a pry bar for leverage. We laughed nervously and asked, "Is it safe enough to drive home?"
"How far is home?" he asked.

Well, we drove it home. And then, we drove it 119 miles more to trade it in at a Toyota dealership, with Whitney clutching my arm anytime the distance between us and the car in front of us shrank beneath the length of a football field. Her anxiety wasn't entirely unfounded. You could literally hear the rusted rotors grinding as the break pads made contact. People were staring.

Now for the happy part. We arrived safely, obviously, and purchased our newest family member. (Wow, that sounds awful!) Meet Flip. She is a 2009 Toyota Yaris 3-door hatchback. The pictures say everything...with help from the captions.