Blizzard

Holy snow storm! With all luck, my office will be closed. It'd be like having a snow day in school again!

Not too much else going on, just crafting like crazy to get Christmas gifts done.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I just started preparing my 2nd ever Thanksgiving feast; Nate has to work Thanksgiving again. The turkey is brining, and I'm making a cooking schedule for tomorrow. Because we all know how much I like "To Do" lists and schedules :). For the first time, I'm making an entire turkey. Last year, I just made a turkey breast. See here. I had to have Nate remove the giblets from inside the bird for me. I can't make myself eat the neck or heart, so my giblets have been reduced to the liver. And the only reasons I'm even doing that is because I'm hell bent on recreating my grandma's stuffing. With a little help from my cousin and great aunt, I have the recipe! Apparently it's my Great Grandma Rapp's recipe--I had no idea! I also had no idea that I was eating giblets for almost 20 years.

And a little Thanksgiving humor:

Differences from last year at this time:
1) I didn't just find out 2 weeks prior that I have a brain tumor.
2) I'm not having brain surgery next Tuesday.
3) I won't be getting any needles shoved in me for at least another 2 months.
4) I'm not on steroids and don't look like I'm wearing a fat suit.
5) Since I'm not on steroids, I'm having some wine with dinner!
6) And most importantly, said tumor is almost gone!

Speaking of wine, my new favorite store is World Market. And coincidentally it's right across the street from work in Greenway Station... along with Archiver's and Michael's :D. <= Happy girl! Apparently this wine called Beaujolais Nouveau is "fermented for just a few weeks then officially released for sale on the third Thursday of November." It's a French wine, and it's promoted as a Thanksgiving wine in the U.S. Obviously it's released before Thanksgiving day because I bought it last week. I thought it'd be a nice wine to try for turkey dinner.

This year, I'm thankful for:

1) Nate

2) Family

3) Friends

4) Doctors and Modern Medicine

5) My Job

6) People's Generosity

Well, that is all for now.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

P.S. Jinx is already taking his post-Thanksgiving dinner nap.

Catching Up

The weekend of the 9th, I flew out to Steamboat for my friends' wedding. Beautiful, and so them! Their vows was my favorite part. "Jim, do you want to marry Steph? Yes! Steph, do you want to marry Jim? Yes!... You are married!" It was perfect for them. And luckily, the weather decided to cooperate since the wedding was at the Botanical Gardens. I stayed with my friend Lisa. It was so great to hang out with her and Shawndra again. We also got to have a Girls' Night on Friday at the Rio and Ghost Ranch. I miss being able to see them so much!

View from Lisa's back porch
View from Lisa's front porch. What an awesome spot!

Steph and Jim, look at him just look at her :) They've been together for 10 years.

Shawndra and Lisa at the reception

Me and Lisa

What a blast! I was sad to leave my friends.

The family was here this weekend. It was great just chillin' with them, doing a little shopping, and playing with Jinx. I think they wore him out; he's been sleeping ever since they left!

Bri and I discovered that my new hair holds dye REALLY well...I was a redhead for a little bit! And after some dark brown over it, it's kinda burgundy. It's alright, it'll fade.

That's all for now.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

The Omnivore's 100

The Omnivore’s Hundred is an interesting list of 100 items that Andrew Wheeler, co-author of the British food blog Very Good Taste, thinks every omnivore should try at least once in his life. He offered this list with the following instructions:

1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten
3. Italics any items that you would never consider eating.

Try it out!
The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison - I live in WI, c'mon. ;)
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos Rancheros
4. Steak Tartar
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp - No way!
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras - You don't need to eat every part of the animal.
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese - Again, you do not need to eat every part of the animal.
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters - Too slimey
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl - Don't like clams
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float - I haven't had one in years!
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O - In shot form?
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects - And some things should just not be eaten
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more - Johnny Walker?
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal - I have never eaten a fast food burger, and never will.
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill - The car in front of us hit a pheasant, only one wing was damaged. And it was delicious.
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers - Dandelions count?
89. Horse - That is dog food.
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam - Unfortunately.
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor - One of the best meals I've ever eaten!
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake - Hell No! Snakes are one of my biggest fears.

Meet Jinx!

The new addition to our apartment is sitting on my lap, purring, as we speak. Nate and I got a tuxedo kitten named Jinx. He's a little devil, but we love him!

Spazzing out

Spazzing out again

Nap time!

Hiding out

On another note, I love fall weather! However, this rainy, cold crap can stop anytime.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

Bark/Missinne Wedding Weekend

Nate and I spent the weekend in Rice Lake and Spooner for the Bark/Missinne wedding. It was a gorgeous day, and a beautiful wedding. I was so happy to be a part of your day. Congratulations Amy and Eric!

First Dance
Bridesmaids bar hoppin' before the reception

On another note, I start my new job tomorrow at Madison National Life Insurance. I am NERVOUS!

That's all for now.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

Quick Update

Some quick highlights from the last week.

-Nate and I had a blast at the Fosse wedding last weekend. It was at St. Croix National Golf Course in Somerset, and it was beautiful!

-I went to Duluth last Saturday for Amy's bachelorette party. It was so great to see the girls again and go out in Canal Park.

-I've been working at the Oakbrook Companies as a temp property accountant. I found out today that unless someone quits, I'm just a temp for a couple months.

-I had a really good interview today for a Financial Reporting Accountant at an insurance company. I'm really interested in this job! It's permanent full-time, and they have amazing benefits.

-I really like living with Nate. It's so nice to be able to see him every day.

Nate and I at the wedding

That's all for now.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

P.S. I am determined to finish unpacking and organizing this weekend.

So Thankful

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who helped and/or came to the benefit on Sunday. Every donation was so greatly appreciated! It was a great success.

I absolutely loved seeing everyone too. There were sooooo many people that I haven't seen in YEARS. It was wonderful to catch up with everyone.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

And the biggest "Thank You" of all to my friend Tiffany. She undertook this idea and organized the benefit. Thank you, sweet girl, for being an amazing friend.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

Another Vacation

Nate and I got to go on vacation again, July 24th-29th. We went to the Florida Keys with Nate's family.

Highlights:

• Limo ride to dinner in South Beach and delicious food Friday night
• Beautiful house in Marathon (Side note: the guy who owned the house was the Northwest pilot who invented wheeled luggage)
• Key West is a fun place! We explored Duvall Street and all the shops. Nate and I said we'd like to go back there.
• Nate's parents rented a boat for a day, so we went snorkeling, saw a bunch of dolphins, and went fishing off Key West. A bunch of firsts for me, I'd never seen dolphins or fished in the ocean before.
• It was roasting hot in Key West, but Nate, Nick, and I went parasailing. It was a blast! I stopped being a chicken and just did it.
• Despite being stuck in Memphis, we went to Corky's and had some delicious barbeque ribs.

Lowlights:

• Wicked thunder storms a lot of the time, but we still had fun!
• Nate and I had to spend Wednesday night in Memphis, after missing our flight because of storms in Miami. I will be packing a toothbrush, deodorant, and change of clothes in my carry-on from now on. There's only one flight from Memphis to Madison every day, and it's at 7:00 pm. Nate had to work at 10:00 pm that night. Everything would've been okay except our flight was delayed, and we didn't take off until 9:00 pm. Poor guy was so tired the next morning!

View pictures here:

http://www2.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=1918752013/a=123328029_123328029/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/

I Made It!

I got to Madison on Saturday afternoon with Mom and Dad. We got everything moved in, and now I just have to finish unpacking and organizing. It's a little cluttered right now.

I spent a couple days at home. It was so nice to see my cousin and her little guy! I can't believe how much he is talking.

I had two interviews yesterday and today, and I think they both went really well. I got very good feedback from the first interview via the recruiter at the staffing company. I should hear back more info on Monday for both of them. *Fingers crossed*!

Nate and I are heading to Miami tomorrow morning. We're meeting his family there, and then we'll head to Marathon, Florida Keys on Saturday. Yay! :)

That's all for now.

Love Always,

Kaitlin

P.S. I have no idea why it posted twice.

I Made It!

I got to Madison on Saturday afternoon with Mom and Dad. We got everything moved in, and now I just have to finish unpacking and organizing. It's a little cluttered right now.

I spent a couple days at home. It was so nice to see my cousin and her little guy! I can't believe how much he is talking.

I had two interviews yesterday and today, and I think they both went really well. I got very good feedback from the first interview via the recruiter at the staffing company. I should hear back more info on Monday for both of them. *Fingers crossed*!

Nate and I are heading to Miami tomorrow morning. We're meeting his family there, and then we'll head to Marathon, Florida Keys on Saturday. Yay! :)

That's all for now.

Love Always,

Kaitlin