And Recipes

So I went to Philly the other weekend to see my sister's new house/town. Ok, let me back up... My sis is moving to Philly (Jersey to be more specific- but right over the bridge so I'll say Philly). Her husband's company Godfathered him and gave him an offer he couldn't refuse. For those of you that don't know and are now thinking "that's great! you're in the same state now!" Ummm.. no. Philly and Burgh are about 5 1/2 hours apart. Not to mention their house is actually in Jersey which is just a tiny bit further. So it's not like we'll be hanging out every week or anything. It is closer than G-vegas so let's be thankful for that. Anyway, you're thinking Jersey Shore, right? Well, we did go there for the day but that's about 45 mins from where they actually live. They live in the burbs. Did you know that Jersey is a full service state? As in, when you get gas, they pump it. Not you. Literally, there are men standing around waiting to pump your gas. Seems legit. The big question is, do you tip them? Gas ain't cheap, friend. and it's not like you did something I'm not entirely capable of doing all on my own. I suppose you can guess which way I lean.

As stressful and sad as it is to leave the only home you've ever known, I think she/they will like it. Maybe not forever. But for now. Philly's cool and close to lots of other cool places so should be a fun little adventure. I'm sure I'll be going there quite a bit, so you'll hear more about it later. I will say that Atlantic City is somewhere in the middle on a scale of Mrytle Beach to Las Vegas.

All that said, my final verdict- Best. Cheesesteak. Ever.

Remember how I mentioned that Sparky and I are doing the "suprise" dates in order to get out and do things in our new community? Well, mine was last weekend and I was pretty dang proud of myself. We did glass blowing. Whaaaa??? Yes, blowing glass. It was super cool and fun and now we have some little glass pumpkins to show for it. The guys that do this are located in the eclectic, artsy Southside. The owner of the place (1 of the 2 guys working there) lives above it. But don't let that fool you. These guys are not artsy, fartsy pot heads doing a hobby. These guys are scientists. It is amazing what they have to know about heat disbursement, chemical reactions, and all sorts of things I have no idea what I'm talking about. It's a really cool process and I highly recommend it. And, below, TA DA, our pumpkins!

I've been trying to be a good wife recently. Okay, that's wrong. I'm always a good wife. I've been trying to be a better one. Yeah, that sounds right. Anyway, so my goal has been to try new recipes to spice up our meal life. This is step one in the amazing wife transformation. I think there are twelve steps total. Like AA. I've been doing pretty well. Some have been huge successes. Others not so much. Sparky does not have quite the sensative pallet that I do, so I can't always trust him to tell me if something is good or not. He will eat almost anything. Live octopus, bring it on. Mystery meat, sure why not. Leftovers from a month ago, yep. But you put a piece of pineapple in front of him and out come the "ugh! ewww! no.no.no" Odd. So if you're looking for good pineapple recipes, the only one I have is to mix the juice with Malibu and stir. Here's some of what I've made thus far and how it went over:

1. Chocolate chip Banana Oatmeal bread- enough said.

2. Skinny spaghetti- Ehhh...it's okay. If I'm out of real stuff to make, I might do it again

3. Crock pot chicken taco chili- Finger lickin' good times. So good!

4.  Baked Ranch and Parmesan chicken- I would give this 4 1/2 stars. Will make again

5. Roasted cabbage- No. Maybe we're just not cabbage people, but no.

6.No bake energy bites- I make these constantly. Can't get enough. No chocolate in mine.

7. Baked Egg Boats- The bread got inedibly hard so it was difficult to eat. Thumbs down.

8 Hasselback potatoes-Not impressed.Good in theory but didn't work out.Middle was raw

9. Turkey Chili- has potential. Next time will make a bit thicker but overall very good.

Thanks for stopping by for the latest edition of the Life and Times of Jess. Love to you all.