Regular Lives of the Rutherfords

Each time our turn comes around on the blog, I am excited to share what we have been up to and yet find that it doesn't seem too exciting all in the same sitting. I suppose many of us feel that way as we live our lives day to day, but really that's pretty good. There are so many people out there who have circumstances that make their lives exciting in a way that you don't really want or that are too lazy to be involved in their lives at all, so if day to day activities is all we have to report to one another, I'd listen in every day!

FROM NYC...

Not a lot of new to report.

***There's the Regular:
Kurtis is working at Cedar Lake, Mary is working with Jersey Boys, Nice Work If You Can Get It and the occasional sit in with Cedar Lake. We both love what we do and are mostly grateful to be doing it every day!

The beer is still brewing at our house. We are doing lots of batches now as it will get too hot over the summer to do much brewing - the beer will not have a cool enough temperature to actually work the fermentation process (no central air here). Both of us are working in the garden this year as Mary has planted tomatoes, basil, garlic, onion, chives, parsley, potatoes, has plans for peppers, and is pleased to see the horse radish return. Kurtis is trying his hand at hops, with four plants in the ground along our fence.

Cats are still in house and getting along like two siblings. Need I say more...

***Then, there's the good kind of exciting:
At long last, we have booked tickets to Australia! After we finished our European Adventure and the move to NYC, we started thinking about the next place we really wanted to go together. Having met so many wonderful people from Australia on the road and having lots of people that Grandma Johnston and my dad still know very well we decided that it would be a wonderful place to visit. We are often traveling to visit family and friends, but very rarely just to vacation together. This one is scheduled for 3 weeks at the beginning of August!!! Still lots of planning to do, but we are extremely excited to have tickets, which makes it much more of a reality.

To each of you and your regular lives, we send love and best wishes for a spring full of health and happiness!!!

Something old, something new, something not borrowed and something brown, not blue:

Something Old:
At the Givan house, we are still doing many of the same ole things.  Work, church duties, and some extra curriculas.

Something New:
Something new for me was taking Shona through a dog obedience class with Kate and Ben.  Oh, goodness I have watched Kate do this for years and it is not as easy as it looks.  In fact, I'm in trouble pretty much every week for doing something wrong.  It definitely is not a confidence builder. Kate and Benny of course make it look easy. Something else new are added job duties at the Cos.  I'm now operations coordinator which adds the front desk coordinating to my day.  We have a very good assistant front desk manager so it hasn't been a difficult job so far.  Mostly, I coordinate with other departments.  I have gotten the hang of selling tickets and one day I spent down there recently, I got more done than I do in my office!

Tim's something new is a new certification for his job.  He had to go to school for it and did decide that this could be it for the school learning.  It was rather stressful-the studying and taking tests.  He is also leading a new Bible study at church.  Oh, and he has discovered the joy of podcasts.  It is not unusual to find him "plugged" in to his ipod listening as he goes about the house.  Although, I have wondered if at times he is also using it to block Kate and I out!

Something not borrowed:
Well, we had our oven go out right before Easter.  I walked in the door with my frozen turkey in hand for Easter weekend dinner only to discover that  a power surge had taken out the oven.  Soooo.... you can't borrow someone's oven forever (although Gma and Gpa's worked to bake the turkey) so we now have a "new to us" oven.  It is very nice.  We also finally gave up on the washer.  If you were ever over here during the spin cycle you would have thought you were about to observe a shuttle launch.  Anyway, we now have a "new to us" washer.  It is amazing.  The clothes don't come out dripping water but are actually rung out.

Something brown, not blue:

Meet Ellie Mae.  Our something brown, not blue.  Ellie Mae is my very own pet.  Now you may think that is weird since we have several pets at our house.  You could also consider her to be my mid life crisis or maybe another attempt to find a hobby.  Whatever she is -she is very cute and loveable.  It is really fun to have a pet to sit with and greet you when you come home.  I plan to take her to an obedience class that Kate is co teaching this summer with the goal of doing Reading with Rover with her at the library.

Take care one and all and until next time.

Christmas Eve Potato Soup

Since the weather is so unpredictable, a soup can’t be too wild of a suggestion, can it? We just made this last week.

Christmas Eve Potato Soup

(This one has good memories for me since we ate it every Christmas Eve at my Great Grandma Tucker’s house, hence the name.)

5 lb potatoes
Onion to taste
2 sticks butter
16 oz sour cream with chives, or green onions to taste (we definitely prefer the fresh green onions!)
1 pkg bacon bits
milk to desired consistency
salt and pepper to taste

Peel and chop potatoes and onions (we use powder or none at all). Boil until tender, 20-30 mins. Drain. Add butter, sour cream, bacon and green onions (if using). Stir and add milk as needed. Top with cheese and enjoy!!

Uncle Tim G Recipes

Yummy and Easy Tilapia
4 frozen tilapia fillets
1 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP margarine
1/8 c. lemon juice
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 tsp garlic salt (or lemon pepper if you don't like garlic salt)

Salt and cayenne pepper to taste (I usually leave cayenne pepper off)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Spray baking dish with cooking spray
Melt margarine in microwave
Place tilapia in banking dish
mix melted margarine, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic salt and parsley
Pour mix over tilapia

Bake in preheated oven for 13 minutes, broil for 3 minutes

Chicken Foil Dinner
For one serving:  1 boneless chicken breast, marinated in Italian dressing overnight in ziplock baggie
1/2 cup minute rice, 5-7 baby carrots, 6 broccoli florets, 1 TBSP margarine or butter, 4-5 ice cubes

Place marinated chicken in in center of large foil square (heavy duty foil is best). Add rice and vegetables, butter and ice cubes.  Wrap securely and place on grill for about 20 minutes.  Turn a couple of times.