Here we go again!

And it's off!

That right there is our next giant packet of fun (aka: immigration paperwork) on its way to the Vermont filing center! After 2 years of being a permanent resident of the United States, Leo's about to get his next Green Card.

Basically, his first card is only good for 2 years, and this paperwork (and the ginormous enclosed check) will hopefully bring us one that's good for another 10 years. But as part of the process, we have to prove once again that we actually like each other and are a real-live married couple who entered into matrimonial bliss for love's sake- and not just to keep him in America. We included tax documents and bills and apartment leases and insurance claims and sworn affadavits from family and friends (thanks guys!!) and lots of other boring stuff that proves we live under the same roof and pay the same bills and have the same credit cards and are even covered under the same car insurance! We even threw in several cards and envelopes that were addressed jointly to both of us. Who knew your kind greetings would go to such good use?? :)

But by far, my most favorite pieces of "evidence" are the pictures. They're not even considered hard evidence, because apparently we can easily hire people to pose for us... But I can vouch for the validity of these and the people in them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



That's even more pictures than we sent in with all of our original applications back in 2010! But they make me smile, and I hope they'll do the same for the sad USCIS official whose job it is to go through all the paperwork... Such fun times over the past 2+ years! With just a touch of: "Man, we've come so far." Oh, and I included the one of us, the bear and the longhorns as pure comedic relief. Who would fake a picture like that?!

It feels good to have it sent, but it's a little terrifying at the same time. All we can do now is wait. And while we hope and pray that all of this goes through without incident, we can start dreaming up ideas for the epic CITIZENSHIP party we get to throw next year! Ohhhhh yes.

For the love of reuse.

I am downright giddy to share my latest purchase with you all!

Everyone, meet our new reusable produce bags--

And produce bags, meet everyone. :)

Aren't they fantastic?!

They're functional and they make me happy and they equal less plastic use at the grocery store- and therefore, I love them! I rarely use produce bags for anything anymore... Do you really need a plastic bag to keep 4 apples together? And letting your oranges and mangos interact won't hurt anything... But for things like broccoli and onions- which tend to shed- these little guys come in very handy. Machine washable, big enough to hold whatever, color-coded tabs for whatever the heck I decide to color-code. Seriously, they're awesome.

Even the checkout girl today complimented me on them! And this was at Wal-Mart, people... where they hate pretty much anything reusable at the bagging carousel.

It's the little things.

Holiday Happiness

I started writing this back on December 12th-- our 2nd wedding anniversary (yay!) and also my last day of school for the Fall semester (double yay!). And yes, it's taken me THIS LONG to finish it. This Christmas break has gone by freakishly fast... It's been a blur of family and excitement and relaxation and fun and eating and all things wonderful. But even before that, Thanksgiving kicked things off right.

Leo and I realized we had about four days off together over Thanksgiving, and in true Rangira fashion, we hit the road and found a new place to explore. Neither of us had ever been to the Texas panhandle, and I'd heard stories of a magical place called Palo Duro Canyon just outside of Amarillo. Coupled with Cadillac Ranch and a chance to see real, live Texan cowboys, we decided to head west.

To get there, we drove through oil country, and then through cotton country (who knew Texas had cotton?!), and then through cattle country. To help break up the drive, we stopped in Wichita Falls and visited the World's Smallest Skyscraper and a pretty waterfall.

The "skyscraper" was built by a conman in Wichita Falls back almost 100 years ago. Basically, he drew up the blueprints in inches instead of feet and gave the rich oil tycoons a tiny 40 ft structure instead of the promised 480 ft. He was long gone before they figured it out, but the building still stands. It makes me giggle every time!

Amarillo smelled faintly like manure mixed with oil for most of our stay, but that in no way hindered the fun. We hiked Palo Duro Canyon on Thanksgiving day and enjoyed a couple of turkey sandwiches at Lighthouse Peak (its signature rock formation).

We ate Thanksgiving dinner at the Big Texan that night and stuffed ourselves silly, and then left our mark at Cadillac Ranch the next day...

...and got back home just in time to conquer our finals and start off Christmas break!

On school breaks I tend to have a few key areas of focus: Baking, Traveling & Relaxing. Oh, and reading great books that are in no way connected to my program. And this Christmas delivered in all areas. It was heavenly! In the days I wasn't working a ridiculous amount of overtime at the hospital, I baked up a storm. (My co-workers particularly appreciate this piece of my relaxation ritual.)

I did have to work Christmas day, but ended up getting sent home early. (Just in the nick of time to get out of Dallas on not-icy roads!) We arrived to San Antonio in time for dinner and more Christmas baking... And fun times ensued! Leo and I got to catch up with family and see old friends and got in some quality nephew time with Colt.

 Photo by: Sarah

We hit up the San Marcos outlets on the day after Christmas, where we actually found a parking space(!) and finally invested in a slow cooker of our very own. Of course, you never go in intending to buy a lot, but Calphalon hit us especially hard and we found some great deals.

We've only used the slow cooker a couple of times so far, but we are already head over heels IN LOVE.

We got to cheer on the Spurs and also went to the Alamo Bowl, where the UT Longhorns were playing the Oregon Beavers. And yes- I did cheer for the Beavers. They were severely outnumbered and being bullied, and frankly, I like their orange better. (Please still be my friend.)

Also, we got to celebrate Leo's 31st birthday! He got a brand new pair of Nikes and ate his weight in my Mother's banana bread... which equaled a very happy birthday boy. :)


We drove home from San Antonio on a Sunday and left Monday morning for the great state of Florida! I was feeling like crud the whole way there and never came so close to using an air sickness bag in my life, but none of it deterred me from vacation fun! First up: Miami! We got to our hotel around 5pm on New Years Eve, and took a nap. Yes- we took a NAP.  It had been a long week already and did I mention I felt like crud?? So yes, we napped up until about 8:30 and then decided to order in pizza from a great little local place right up the street. We finally got decent and stumbled out into the night around 11:15pm, because I had heard rumors of a fireworks show down on the beach at midnight.

After walking about a mile to where we thought it should be, we basically followed the crowd out to the edge of the beach. Not really knowing exactly what time it was, and what exactly to expect, both of us were completely shocked (and frightened) when the show kicked off. First off, there were no barricades or anything telling us where to stand and how far back to be, and it was darn near pitch black out there so as we wandered around in the sand with about a million of our newest friends, we had no idea where anything was going to happen. We were soooo very close and when the first big shells went off, I literally shrieked in horror- thinking the beach had exploded or South Beach was under attack!

Luckily, there was no attack in progress... we just happened to be standing wayyy too close for comfort, but once our eardrums adjusted (they may have just imploded and given up), we definitely enjoyed the kickoff to 2013!

We had such a blast in Miami (after my stomach decided to cooperate)-- we hung around South Beach, went and visited the Everglades, rode on an airboat, and even ate some alligator!

As we picked up our rental car around day four, Leo said it best: "Miami, we're not finished with you."  But it was time to head south along Highway 1 and make our way to Key West! The trip is typically around 4 hours, but we made it an all-day adventure, stopping whenever and where ever we pleased along the way.

We found the "Coral Castle" and stopped at an amazingly delicious fruit stand called "Robert is Here." We never did meet Robert, but we thoroughly enjoyed his shakes and petting zoo and then got back on the road.

Around the halfway point, we stopped at a beach-side cafe and ate lunch with our feet in the sand. Overall, the Overseas Highway did not disappoint.

After a long day of driving and sight-seeing, we made it to Key West, turned in the rental car and headed out!

Key West in a word was: delicious. We ate every ounce of seafood we could find, walked approximately 30 laps around the island, made sure the beach stayed in place by sitting on it for hours at a time, went out snorkeling and got to see pretty fish (and a shark!), and I developed a new personal motto: there's always room for anything key lime. Oh, and I also learned never to drink Cuban coffee before taking a stroll in the sun. The combination may lead to heat stroke.

It was pure, laid-back perfection. 

But alas, play time had to come to an end, and back to the grind we came. School officially started back up for us this week. And so it begins. No official plans yet for May, but if we can just make it 'til then in one piece, we'll see what comes next. :)

Squash- it's what's for dinner.

I discovered a new vegetable today- the Spaghetti Squash. How I've gone this long without knowing its deliciousness is beyond me... But we've been brought together now, and our dinner repertoire will never be the same.

I bought two, since I wasn't quite sure how much one football-sized squash would yield. But after almost slicing off a few fingers cutting it in half and then baking it for 40 minutes with some olive oil, salt and pepper, I was very happy I'd only done one.

Holy spaghetti squash, Batman! That is one very large plate, with an even larger pile of squash! Easily enough for four people, even considering how much my husband can put away. Sorry there aren't more prep pictures. I had no intention of blogging about this, but it just turned out so darn tasty, I couldn't resist. After sprucing up some plain sauce with fresh basil, mushrooms, black olives, bell pepper and garlic, I ended up with this:

That bowl is ginormous and makes it look smaller, but that's two cups of squash and about one cup of sauce in there. Holy crap it was delicious!! And filling. AND barely over 200 calories! I'm shocked at how good it was. Leo hasn't tried it yet, but I'm thinking I'll let him eat it and then tell him what it is. Prejudgement will only cloud the response from his taste buds. :)

It's just sew nice!

For quite a while now, I've had the urge to start sewing. This is especially ironic because I cannot even count the number of times my Mother tried to teach me when I was younger, and now that we live many hours apart, I want to learn. I know, I know- my timing is impeccable... but alas, I still want to learn! I mentioned this to her awhile back, and asked if she had any old sewing machines lying around. You never know what my parents have stashed up in the attic, and I didn't need anything shiny and new if she had an old one I could learn on. She said she didn't, and I dropped the subject for the time being, thinking maybe I could ask Santa for one for Christmas.

Little did I know, Mom had other plans. About a week after I asked, I got a rather large package in the mail. And guess what was inside??

A beautiful new sewing machine of my very own! Its arrival happened within about 48 hours of all the pricey shenanigans with the car, and I got just a wee bit teary eyed when I opened it up. Just the pick-me-up I needed. And the funny part was- Leo apparently has secret sewing knowledge! As I pulled the pieces out of the box, he began to tell me all about how it's important to put pleats into skirts so they hang better, and how you're supposed to put the two nice fabric sides together and then turn them inside afterward to make it all look nice... Say what?! Such a handy guy. :)

Not long after, I found myself at Joann Fabric. Again- this is ironic since fabric stores were some of my most despised locations as a child. (My sisters and I would often end up in the craft section, practicing our batting with styrofoam balls or launching things over the aisles to whoever was standing on the other side...) But I needed the proper accessories to get started, so away I went. I may know nothing about sewing, but I do know fabric and thread come in handy. And lucky me- I found a perfect little starter kit that would put me on the right path!

Unfortunately, being in the middle of a school semester and all, I have about zero extra time to devote to my new hobby, but through YouTube instructional videos and my dear friend and quilter extraordinaire, Amy, who was in town visiting not long after my new little machine arrived, I have made progress!

That's right ladies & gents- I can now sew a STRAIGHT LINE! Alert Vera Wang she's got some new competition. I'm not willing to disclose just how long it took to actually thread that bobbin- but the point is: we were successful!

I have a long way to go, and I can't imagine ever reaching the ranks of my Mother and Grandmother, but I guess everyone has to start somewhere, right?

Let's catch up, shall we?

Hello readers!

I won’t even try to explain where I’ve been for the past 2 months… but just know it’s involved a lot of books and hours spent in the computer lab and quizzes and tests and blah blah blah. I’ve basically given up on blogging regularly and have come to accept that as reality. BUT- I do get a chance to jot down random ideas from time to time as things occur, and the next few blogs (however sporadically they’re posted) will probably revolve around past events.

First up- the washer.

Our amazingly beautiful washer and dryer were hands down my greatest craigslist find to date. I picked them up in San Antonio, shortly after arriving back in the States, from an Air Force family who was in the process of moving. They were about 4 years old at the time, in superb condition, and I got them for about ¼ of what they would cost retail.

High efficiency, great condition, pretty color, with fun lights to watch and buttons to push? Ahhhh… love.

Now, as a set they’re beyond incredible, but really- the washer is my true love.  I honestly miss having a clothes line and wouldn’t mind using one full-time. (Nothing beats the smell of sunshine.) But in the apartment world, they’re frowned upon. So the dryer definitely serves its own important purpose. But the washer makes me happy like nothing else. After hand-washing in Botswana for 2+ years, I get downright giddy every time I fire up that beautiful blue beast and consider it a prize when the clothes come out all clean and fresh. (No bleeding hands required!) We had a lovely, perfectly functional relationship… up until about 5 months ago.

Suddenly, the washer turned on us. After all the loving compliments and singing of praises, it began to throw what can only be explained as tantrums.  The drum which once handled bulky comforters and sheets and towels with no problem whatsoever began thumping and bumping and trying to walk across the floor during nearly every use! If even one t-shirt ended up on the wrong side during the spin cycle, look out! After dealing with it for a few months, we finally called Sears. And after some consideration of our options, we chose to go for the 1-year warranty contract that basically covers any and all maintenance expenses for the year it’s in effect. So we scheduled a service call.

Unfortunately, it happened to fall on a day I was at work, and it didn’t end as planned. The technician apparently showed up, did a load of laundry, and everything worked absolutely perfectly. (Of course.) After months of memorizing the sounds and movements of the washer and going so far as to set the timer on the microwave to dart in there just in time to avoid it walking across the floor and upsetting the neighbors… Frustration doesn’t even come close! We’d already shelled out the cash for the year-long warranty, and I vowed that even if I had to take a HAMMER to it, we would get our money’s worth!

So then we got busy with the semester and all of this went on the back burner. We continued to set the alarm on the microwave and generally deal with it. And then one night, I jotted down this little nugget:

“Leo has sent me to the bedroom to cool down. He walked into the apartment and found me yelling obscenities at and threatening to kill the washer. And you know what? IT DESERVED IT. It continues to be off balance and drive me insane with every cycle. I would take pleasure in launching it off the balcony, to die a quick and painful death on the pavement below, and then claim innocence tomorrow morning when our neighbors find the carcass. But unfortunately, Leo is much too level-headed to help me with the murder… Not only is the machine stupid, it’s sexist, too! It goes all nutso 100% of the times I start it, but Leo has a much better track record. Therefore he doesn’t fully understand when he walks in to find me cursing like an especially foul-mouthed sailor or whispering “I will kill you” to it after I’ve had to open the lid and rearrange clothes for a THIRD time.”

Yeah.

It wasn’t pretty.

For a while, we resorted to turning off the spin cycle all together. Do you know how WET clothes come out when there’s no spin?? Definitely not an ideal fix. So eventually, we scheduled another service call. On a day I would be home.

And that’s when Mario entered my life. Mario, my new BFF from Sears. He was in the apartment for literally 5 minutes and knew exactly what the problem was. The suspension was shot. Up until that point, I had no idea washing machines even HAD suspensions, but apparently there was a lot I didn't know. He dealt with all of my ridiculous questions, passed on all sorts of knowledge and hilarious stories from his 25 years on the job, and most importantly: FIXED THE WASHER!!! There was jumping up and down and cheering when it hit its first spin cycle without incident. After months of tense relations, our friendship had been restored. We were on good terms once again, and I apologized for ever fantasizing about its death.

I gave Mario probably the best online review of his life, and Leo, the washer and I lived happily ever after.

A labor-free Labor Day.

I woke up this morning with a full to-do list on the brain. I was going to go to the gym, take a few minutes after to get cleaned up and then head up to campus for a day-long study session... Maybe with a trip to the grocery store during a study break. But you know what I did instead? NOTHING. Absolutely NOTHING. And it was heaven.

I rolled out of bed at 8:30 and Leo and I enjoyed an amazing breakfast:

Mmm... The omelettes were so good and so filling and who were we to force ourselves off the couch and interrupt the digestion process? So we sat around and watched frivolous TV and got absolutely nothing accomplished. Then we took a nap. And then watched more meaningless TV, argued over which houses the shoppers should choose on House Hunters, and snuck in a movie or two on Netflix. We are still in our PJ's and have not set foot outside the apartment door even once. In our defense, we did manage to wash a couple loads of laundry and clean up the kitchen. So there's that.

Yes, I will absolutely regret this come Wednesday morning as I surely fail my pathophysiology quiz, but for now, I'm not budging.