noT mUch haPpening...

Well, as the title suggests...there isn't a whole lot happening. Jason is studying his brains out for the GRE. He is literally one of the most disciplined people I know (though he would deny this fact completely). I'm seriously in awe sometimes. When in college my grades actually improved by meeting him. Most people when they add a relationship to the plate in college have their grades drop. Nope. Not me. See, the thing is...I didn't study before I met him. Ok, I mean I did for tests but really....I STRIVED to study the very least amount I could and still do OK. Sometimes it worked...sometimes it didn't. Jason on the other hand was so diligent to study. There were a lot of times when we were dating where he would only hang out with me if we studied. Usually, I lasted about half the time he would and then would practically beg him to do something else...anything else. BUT...it was more studying then I would have done on my own! hehe. So, that's a tangent if you couldn't tell. So, Jason is studying for the GRE. :)

On another note...I'm working...and I like it! yep. Working is always good. Working produces money. Money produces rent, food, and etc. Rent, food, and etc. produces....mmm. Not sure. Independence? yep. Independence is good. We are still looking for a house. Trying not to be picky knowing that this will be our home for about half a year but we also don't want to live in a dump. So, that's where we are at. Jason is studying because he is diligent (and he needs it for Grad school). I am working because I like it and we need money. And money is good because we need to pay rent, food, and etc. And that folks...is likely the lamest blog post yet! lol. oh well. :)

A Very "wordy" Blog post!

First off...does anybody know what twitter is? I keep hearing it but I have no idea what the point of it is or what it's for? I mean, I know it's online...haha, but that's about all.

And now...onward.

So, Jason and I have been back from Chile for about a month. The month has completely flown by and has left both of us wondering, "what exactly have we been doing with our time?" The conclusion...we have no clue. I guess in the hustle and bustle of all things festive we kind of just lost track of time. Not sure. Jason has a few deadlines creeping up for grad school. It's weird to think that in 6-8 months we will, Lord willing, be living somewhere else. It's funny that I wasn't really nervous to move to Chile but am a little nervous to live in another city within my own country? Maybe that goes along the same lines as being more nervous to return to the States than I was to go to Chile (yes, this is true). We really could be moving anywhere this summer...San Francisco, Los Angeles, Arizona, etc. I guess we will have to see.

So, a confession on my part is that I seem to search and recognize the hand of God so readily and often abroad. When I return to the USA...I get caught up, I get smothered, distracted, and tempted. I want so badly to change this. It drives me crazy about myself (it happens each time I return to the USA). It's wrong because God is just as active here as He is abroad. The fault lies in me and the distractions I place between Him and my every day life. bah. It's frustrating at times. Pure honesty is that since we have been back I have read the Bible about 6 times...in a MONTH! That's embarrassing. While in Chile it wasn't abnormal for me to read 2-3 times a day (granted I love to read and that was the only book in English that I had! hehe). Anyways, that being said, I miss Chile. I also recognize though that the Lord has us here in the USA for a reason. I don't want to pine for something that is not realistic, but embrace the time here and live it fully. So, I guess that's my mission for now. Push aside the things that aren't that important and focus on Christ in my life, and what Christ can do in other people's lives.

On another note...not sure who knows about Ravi Zacharias but...he's a genius. He is probably part of the reason why I became a Philosophy major. Never really thought about it but I'd say he definitely contributed to the decision. Anyways, Ravi...yes, I call him Ravi...like he's an old friend...Ravi is a brilliant man and I have read...welllll...a lot of his books. Not all of them but most. haha. Anyways, this October he is speaking at Berkeley. I have never had a chance to hear him speak but have always wanted to. So, I've decided that if I can convince Jason to go to grad school in San Francisco than I could easily go hear him speak. What a plan huh? Very unselfish... :) Ok, maybe that's not the best reason to pick a grad school. oh well! It was worth a try.

Oh, and one more thing. Jason...in all his vocabulary wisdom, (studying for the GRE has helped with this considerably :)) informed me today that the word for when your pupil becomes larger in your eyeball is "dilate." Seriously, I thought it was "dialate." I'm pretty sure that most people pronounce it like "dialate" and not "dilate". Hmmm. Just something to think about! ;)

OoOoh! I want it!

So, Jason and I were in Barnes and Noble looking for GRE books. I mozied on over to the cook book section to check out what they had. I came across a very large book called Larousse Gastronomique. It was big, looked official, and had a vaguely familiar name. I flipped it around...looked at the price $90. WOW. Seriously, I didn't know you COULD spend $90 on a book outside of a dumb university book that you get to sell back for $20.

Well, I'm ashamed to say that now that I have done some research online about it...I want it. haha. I will never spend $90 on it but one day...I will find it...and it will be cheaper. One day! And when that day comes I will cook some delectably delicious french yumminess, and it will be a good day :)

I must say that I have been at a loss for "blog worthy content". I'm not sure what to write about. Hmmm.

Well, here's a little about what's been going on since we have been back:

-We have been looking for jobs (oh joy :) )

-We have been looking for a CHEAP house to rent...which we need to find jobs for first.

-Signing up for health insurance, car insurance, car registration, and etc....can we say BORING!?

-Jason (and I as a cheering fan on the sidelines) have been searching and applying for grad schools. Crazy! There are so many out there. How do you choose? We don't want to go insanely in debt but we want a good school. *sigh*. So many choices, so many options. Yet I know that the Lord knows EXACTLY what school Jas should go to. I take comfort in that...and yet still worry too much about which one he should go to. haha. oh well.

-We have been thoroughly enjoying exercise on the great Central Coast. I mean, I miss Chile but I definitely enjoy the great outdoors here and I am taking full advantage of all that I can before we have to leave!

-I have been drinking a lot of coffee. yup. Life's good! :)

-We have been thinking about rekindling some activities that we haven't done in a while (yeah, did I mention I love the outdoors here?) even before we left for Chile. Jason gave me some money for Christmas to go experience the new and improved SLO-OP climbing gym. I'm super excited about that (we quit for a while because I mangled my ankle and then right after Jason hurt his shoulder...then we got married). Jason also invested with some Christmas money in a pair of new surf booties! woohoo. I think surfing some St. Anne's may be in store for us (you need booties because one, there's a rock reef under you in the water. Two, you walk out on a rock jetty that has a lot of creepy sea creatures on it and then jump off the end into the water...it sounds way more hardcore than it is, haha!)

And that's all for now. You have been officially updated on Jason and Anna's life as of now!

I can't think of a title...

Last week I made this recipe...http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/lasagna-tart-recipe.html. It's vegetarian and it's delicious! :) (I added de-thawed frozen spinach, salt, pepper, and lots of minced garlic to the ricotta.) The sauce recipe she gives is so-so. For the same price you could buy some TJ's marinara and it would probably be quite yummy. Oh, and I'm not a vegetarian. I think I could be...but, there's things called Filet Mignon and Tri-Tip. These meats tend to push me off of the vegetarian bandwagon. :) Oh well.

In other news. I can't find our camera. Not sure where it is but I will tell you that there are some awesome pics to come. For a teaser they involve semi-automatic weapons and a pumpkin. Yep. Awesome.

And yeah. I think that's it. Really I'm just bored. Jason is on a ride and I'm waiting for him to come home. Maybe I will send him some subliminal messages..."Come home...I'm bored. I am way more fun than mountain biking........."

today i...

went from jason's parent's house and ran up madonna mountain. good to know i haven't...yet, given up the marathon dream :). (my marathon training was being sorely neglected there for a while)

spent a lot of time looking at this amazing site. http://www.101cookbooks.com.

ate brussel sprouts for the first time in....a long time. and i liked them.

looked at my fabric box and realized that i am such a "starter". there are things in there that i don't even KNOW what i was trying to make. including two adorable baby booties (seriously cute) for a friend who's baby isn't so baby anymore. two baby booties as in two DIFFERENT baby booties. i think i was more interested in trying out cute combos of fabric than actually finishing them.

cut the fabric for a phone pouch for my new celly. i would like to go from being a "starter" to a "finisher." :)

did laundry...seriously...i think i'm always doing laundry and we don't even have kids!

packed for going to my parents house for christmas tomorrow. yay!

$10 gifts, Freezer Pies, & a Tortilla Recipe

Well, 2 pies later (let's call them "rent", haha) and a shower has landed me here in front of the computer typing a blog. Really, I need to be working on Jas's Christmas present. He's not here so now is the perfect opportunity to finish it. Speaking of presents for one another. Jason and I agreed on a $10 limit this year (funny how lots of traveling and living abroad depletes the bank account). We weren't going to exchange presents at all but that just sounded so...sad. It's our first Christmas as a Mr. and Mrs. and so SOME sort of exchange...no matter how small needed to occur! :) So, Ross Dress for Less was my BFF this Christmas season and I will try to post a picture of the finished product once Jason opens it up!

So, as I said, I made two pies. A peach and an apple. Believe it or not I really wanted to keep baking. I might have if I could have thought of what else TO bake. But I couldn't. I think I have TOO many Christmas treats in my head...I just couldn't pick one (and I didn't want to go to the store to get missing ingredients). Oh well. So, the pies are in the freezer (unbaked but assembled). It's a bit of an experiment. Basically, I volunteered to help make a couple of pies. I volunteered though before realizing that Jason and I go to my parents on Wed. So, bringing a pie on Christmas Day that was baked two days ahead didn't sound so yummy. I thought, hey, why not freeze them? I looked it up, found out it was do-able and popped those pups in the freezer. So, I'm thinking if it works than it will be a GREAT way to get ahead on Thanksgiving and Christmas in the future! And that folks is my 2 cents on $10 Christmas budgets and frozen pies!

Ooh, guess what...I now make homemade flour tortillas and they are awesome. Basically, I love burritos. While in Chile though it was one, hard to come by tortillas and two, when you did...they were expensive! So, I searched out a recipe and good old AllRecipes.com helped me out with this one. These things are EASY too. Granted...I use shortening (well I used lard in Chile since they didn't have shortening). So, if you are not a fan of that this may not be the recipe for you. I wasn't into the idea until I checked the ingredient label of the tortillas I buy from the store...partially hydrogenated oil. So, if I'm going to eat it I'd rather at least have less preservatives (though I'm sure you could use butter if you want...heard though that they are harder to make thin but probably still super yummy) Also...I want to try it with whole wheat flour too...hmmm.

Homemade Flour Tortillas
4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tbl. lard (or margarine, butter, shortening)
1 1/2 c. water

1.Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Mix the lard (or whatever you substitute the lard with) into your bowl of dry ingredients with your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Add the water and mix with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together; place on a lightly floured surface and kneed a few times until smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.

2.Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a well floured rolling pin to roll a dough ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the hot skillet, and cook until golden and bubbly; flip and continue cooking until golden on the other side. Place the cooked tortillas in a tortilla warmer; continue rolling out and cooking remaining dough.

**Here are some of my own notes regarding this recipe though. First, 24 balls create VERY small tortillas. I thought that dividing it into 12 parts was better. It's also a bit hard to get them perfectly round. I found that if you flattened the dough balls with the palm of your hand...as flat as you can make it and THEN roll it out...it came out rounder. I also didn't have a tortilla warmer...or a rolling pin in Chile. haha. I used the a plate in the oven on the lowest heat as my "tortilla warmer" and a drinking glass as my "rolling pin". Worked just as well! :)