~Andy's Birthday Party~

So, today was Andy's birthday and I planned a surprise party for him...we had tons of fun!! Our friends 'kidnapped' Andy so I could get the house ready for the birthday bash. I told them to do whatever they wanted to him...like put make-up on him...little did I know that they would actually do it. Here's a few pictures of what he looked like when he came home...I thought it was soo funny!

For dinner we had Hawaiian Haystacks. It was yummy!! I LOVE Hawaiian Haystacks. But, while we were waiting for it to finish cooking, we played a small game to surprise Chris...his birthday was last Thursday but he had strep throat..so his wife had asked us to include him in the party...so I agreed...of course, that meant we had to do something to him as well. So we played a game called 'koochi koochi koo.' What you do is sit in a circle and pinch your neighbor's cheeks several times while you say koochi koochi koo...the goal is for that person to not laugh...but, there is one person who will put lipstick on his or her figures to get it on your face without your knowledge...so that's what we did. The outcome was awesome!! He didn't expect it at all!

Anyway, we all had a great day and I'm glad I could surprise my husband...he totally didn't expect it. :) If you want to see some more pics, Andy has posted them in his online web album. http://picasaweb.google.com/kinsio/AndySBirthday06?pli=1

Key Lime Pie!!

So, I had mentioned in my previous post that Andy and I decided to participate in the gourmet club. Anyway, here are pics of my very FIRST key lime pie...notice the nice decoration with the limes...hehe..I was pretty proud of myself. Of course I called Dorothy a few times to see if I was doing it correctly...since I wasn't sure how the texture was suppose to be. People at the dinner said it was good...then we had friends over to finish up the second pie since we didn't use it at the dinner..they said it was good too. Let's just say I was glad it turned out... :) I'm curious to see what the menu is for the following month.

Joining Special Interest Groups

Since moving here to Rochester, I've gotten to know several of the members by joining groups. When I first got here, I joined the recipe group. Each month, 3 or 4 sisters are in charge of the group. They choose a theme and they prepare the dishes for us to try-basically, it's a dinner because so much food gets prepared. Then we get a copy of the recipes. It's a great way to get recipes and to be able to try new things. This month will be a Halloween theme. I'm excited to see what types of food they will have. :)

Last month, I joined the book club and we read a book called The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck. I guess several people were required to read this book in high school..but I had never heard of it.

Pearl Buck offers a view of China during the reign of the last Emporer as seen through the eyes of a honest farmer namd Wang Lung. She does a really good job of taking you through the ups and downs of life that the farmer experiences. I really enjoyed this book...once I started reading it, I didn't want to stop. The book was rich in culture and in history...I also got mad at the main character too because of the choices he was making...I don't want to mention the details because I think it's a book everyone should read... :) This month, we are reading a book called Once Upon a Town. I'll give an update on that when I'm done.

I've also joined the Gourmet Club. Basically, this is the LDS version of an interest group at Mayo Clinic. Basically, you have about 4 couples (those with kids usually leave them at home with a babysitter) assigned to a group and a family will be the host. There's a set menu with the recipe and each couple chooses what they want to make. Then, you decide what day to get together and everyone brings the assigned dish. I thought it sounded like fun. Saturday night will be the first time and I'm in charge of making a Key Lime Pie and --if I dare try-- a French Silk Pie. I'll have to let you know how it goes.

Chicago Trip!

In the early monring hours of Saturday, Andy and I took off for Chicago Illinois. This is a picture of the sunrise. It was beautiful!

Traffic wasn't bad until we hit the very last toll booth...We were stuck in traffic for another 45 minutes..oh the joys of city life.

There were several cool things to see in Chicago. The archetecture was amazing and they just had some neat stuff to see. In the picture, you can see a glass mirror object thing...also, there was a water area and they had an image of a lady...she would eventually 'spit' water out. The kids there loved it!

~ Wicked ~ Finally, a dream come true! After waiting for 2 years, I finally got to see the musical Wicked. It's about the Wicked Witch of the West and it was very good. If you ever have the chance to see it, you should. The music is FABULOUS! The performers were great too.

Chicago!!- View from the Planetarium

We went to several places...the Field Museum, Planetarium, Chicago Temple, China Town..which is where we ate some very yummy chinese food and had zhen zhu drinks...and the Museum of Science and Industry. We were very busy every day and spent hours looking at stuff.

This is the body of a mummified little boy...amazing huh?