Me and my lovely ladies. What else can I say?
The flowers for the wedding were purchased from Costco the day before and were lovingly arranged principly by our friend Marcella, who did an amazing job.
Robin referred to this as “the boob shot.”
She also encouraged us to do all these silly poses. “Look surprised!” “Everyone make a funny face!” “Okay, now everyone do something silly!” “Jazz hands!”
After we were ready, Ruch, Neeru, Way, and I headed to Balboa Park. Robin and the boys came over to meet us for the big Mike-Music reveal (our first time seeing each other all dolled up for the wedding), and we did some pictures of just the (beautiful, lovely, kind, special) bridal party.
I felt so pampered! Everyone was really nice to me, and helped make sure I looked my best before Mike saw me.
This is Mike, seeing me for the first time. I, of course, am crying. Because I’m a girl, and that’s what I do.
We took pictures all over the Park, including in El Prado:
Then we moved over to in front of the Botanical Building.
We did some silly pictures, too, like this Charlie’s Angels-inspired shot.
After Robin came to the house to take pictures of the girls getting ready, she met the guys in Balboa Park to take pictures of the groom and groomsmen.
My handsome husband:
Surrounded by his brother, my brother, and his best friend:
I’ve decided that since, to a certain degree, having a blog is about indulging your vanity, I am going to post a series of pictures of our wedding day. These photos were taken by Robin Wood of Wedding Day Reflections, and I think they’re lovely.
Up first: the girls getting ready.
Rey has been exhibiting some strange behavior lately, spending a lot of time chewing on himself and licking his fur. He seemed to have a particular issue with his nether regions, and Mike caught him doing the “boot scoot” the other day. When we first got him, we learned that the scoot could be caused by worms or… bear with me here… by problems with his anal glands. Yup. That’s right. Anal glands.
According to the LovetoKnow website,”dog anal glands are two small glands located on either side of your dog’s rectal opening. Each gland holds a small amount of a noxious smelling liquid brown substance that your pet uses as something of a doggie calling card… Whenever your dog urinates or defecates, the anal glands receive a small amount of pressure, and a tiny bit of the fluid is released, along with your dog’s custom blended scent… Many dogs never seem to have a problem with their anal glands, but the opportunity for infection to take hold is always there. When the anal glands are not sufficiently expressed, bacteria is given the chance to build up, and this can lead to numerous problems. Your dog can develop an infection, which if left untreated can progress into an abscess. The abscess can then rupture through the skin, leading to further complications.”
So this morning, I made an appointment and took Rey to the vet. It turns out that he was having problems with his anal glands– one needed to be expressed– and he also had a staph infection. Rey’s skin is dry and that vet thinks that he has sensitive skin and allergies, as many terriers do, and that he probably scratched at his dry, irritated skin so much that he opened a litlte wound, which bateria then got in and infected. Poor guy!
I left the vet lighter in the wallet– as always– and heavy on products. Rey now needs antibiotics twice a day, antihistimines twice a day, and a topical spray “lotion” twice a day. Additionally, I was given special capsules to break open on his food once a day and a special shampoo I need to use once a week. Fortunately, the vet thinks it may just be a seasonal thing, and hpefully once we get him back in fighting shape, he shouldn’t have any issues for a while.
Mike told me a bad joke today. It’s so bad, I had to share it.
Q: What’s brown and rhymes with Snoop?
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A: Dr. Dre!
He told me another bad joke yesterday, which I’ll also share.
Q: What’s blue and smells like red paint?
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A: Red paint!
Wocka wocka wocka!
Mike and I have decided to start banking his income and live of mine, with the idea that in 20 or so months, we’ll buy another rental property here in town. We need to save enough money for a down payment and to fund a renovation (since, like with the property we bought last year, it will be a fixer upper), and there are a lot of things that can happen between now and then, so who knows how long it will actually take us to move forward with the plan. In order to support our efforts, we’re cutting back on eating out (which has the added benefit of being more healthy) and on frivolous spending, and trying to keep our eye on the prize of more units. I think we can do it– and I love the challenge aspect of it; it’s like a contest– but it will definitely be interesting as bills come in and the holidays come around and time goes by. I’ll be sure to share our exploits and triumphs on thee blog, so stay tuned!
I had leftover pumpkin from the muffins I made earlier in the week, so when I came across a recipe for pumpkin white chocolate chunk cookies, I had no choice but to bake before bed! This recipe, from the Amber’s Delectable Delights blog, can be done with chocolate chips or raisins, and with or without nuts. We didn’t have white chocolate chips (though we did have regular chocolate chips); I decided to go with the raisins because I thought they’d taste better with pumpkin. The cookies are cooling now, but I did manage to sneak a bite of one– pretty darn good!
Pumpkin Raisin Walnut Cookies
Makes about 3 1/2 dozen
Ingredients
2 ½ cup ap flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
pinch nutmeg
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup chocolate chips or raisins
½ - 1 cup pecans or walnuts (optional– I used walnuts)
Directions
Preheat oven 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.Whisk together flour, leavening, salt and spices.
In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugars. Beat in egg, then vanilla, then pumpkin. Add flour mixture and stir until just incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips and pecans, if using.
Drop by tablespoons and bake for 12-14 minutes at 350F. Bake them until they’re lightly browned at the edges, but not dark.
Remove to a wire rack to cool.
Okay, I promise mikeandmusic.com isn’t going to turn into a cooking blog. It’s just that lately, we’ve been cooking, and some of the stuff has turned out really well, so I have to share! Tonight, Mike and I make a really easy recipe for tomato soup; he liked it so much, he’s talking about serving it next time we have people over!
No pictures this time, but here’s the recipe:
Creamy Tomato Soup with Herbs
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion (for about 1/2 cup chopped)
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic (we used fresh)
2 (14 1/2 ounce) cans chopped tomatoes seasoned with basil, garlic and oregano
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup low-fat milk, whole milk or half-and-half
1/4 cup grated or shredded parmesan cheese
Plain or garlic croutons, for garnish (optional)
Heat the oil in a 4 1/2-quart Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Peel and finely chop the onion and add it to the pot. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Meanwhile, open the tomato and tomato sauce cans.
Add the garlic, and stir and cook 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes with their juices and the tomato sauce. Raise the heat to high, and bring the soup to a boil.
Reduce the heat to low. Stir in the milk and parmesan cheese. Do not boil the soup after the milk has been added. Stir and cook for 2 minutes.
Remove from the heat and serve at once, garnished with croutons, if desired.
Last night, Mike and I prepped stuff for a slow cooker recipe, and after plugging in the crock pot this morning, I’m happy to say that we’re now on the verge of a delicious dinner. The recipe, for a simple version of coq au vin, is from Real Simple. We’re serving it with mashed potatoes and a broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, and carrot casserole.
1/2 pound sliced bacon, diced
1 4- to 6-pound chicken, cut up
1/2 cup dry white wine (or 1/4 cup dry vermouth plus 1/4 cup water)
1/2 pound small white mushrooms
1 cup frozen small white onions, thawed
6 garlic cloves, chopped
3 sprigs fresh rosemary (or 1 tablespoon dried rosemary leaves)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium-low heat until crisp. With a slotted spoon, transfer it to a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker. Pour off all but a light coating of fat from the skillet. Add the chicken and brown over medium-high heat; transfer to the cooker. Pour the wine into the skillet and scrape up any browned bits; add the skillet contents to the cooker, along with the mushrooms, onions, garlic, rosemary, and salt. Cover and cook on low heat for 6 hours, or on high for 3 hours. Transfer the chicken, bacon, and vegetables to a platter; keep warm. Pour the sauce into a small saucepan. Combine the water and cornstarch; stir it into the sauce. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Pour over the chicken.
Yield: Makes 6 servings
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Mike and I doubled the recipe so we’d have ample food left over to eat during the week, and used chicken breasts instead of a whole chicken, as well as whole fresh oonions instead of frozen pearl ones. That worked out well for us, and may for you, too.