Ashland OR

Why hello there strangers! 
Here's my monthly post! : ) Veterans Day has given me one more day to prep, so I actually have a moment to give you a peek into the get-away Ry and I just took to Oregon these last two days.

Obviously life has been crazy for me especially these last few weeks with deadlines and conferences and projects and such. Ry, knowing we had to leave in order to actually rest, found a Daily Deals special up in Ashland Oregon for us venture to. I played my part and got sick on Thursday so that I could be a zombie and sleep during our road trip. Typical Naomi. 
Our space was pretty sweet though, very comfy  and cozy. 

I was thoroughly in love with the complimentary breakfast. There were so many options, and of course I had to try them all. It was free--duh. Ry had to persuade me to leave the first day. This morning I got up especially early not only because my coughing but my excitement for breakfast. I unfortunately had to wait an hour and a half for Ry to wake up.  



We saw the sights..

Found our local used bookstore~ bought a gift and a C.S. Lewis classic that we've both been wanting to read: Screwtape Letters

Found our local bakery... and lunch.. pizza with artichokes, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, and jalepenos. $2.50. dealio. 

Found our local coffee shop.

Read and graded papers for a few hours before we went to watch Perks of Being a Wallflower. It's interesting, last time we were driving up through Oregon, I was reading that book to Ry for one of my classes.  

Dinner was also compliments of our Daily Deals package. Most of the specials the waiter told us we couldn't understand, but dinner was delish and dessert was decadent. 

All of the elements to a good road trip! Despite my embarrassing coughing and snotting, it's just what I needed to get through this next week and on to Thanksgiving break. 

  

p.s. on our way home we stopped by a restaurant called dos amigos to eat. Ry enjoys texting these types of things to friends... What is "salidas diarias" he asks. 

When we walked in, both our waiter and hostess were Asian, which was somewhat surprising for a small mountain town in northern california. They seemed to notice, too, and even without playing the Asian card, the waiter said at the end of our meal that we didn't have to pay one of the additional charges because we're "good people and basically family, you know asian"... hahaha! yup.  

A good ending to a restful trip. 

Hope this finds you well. 

Naomi

Sushi and Such

Here are some of my most recent favorite meals. It's amazing that we are still cooking at the end of exhausting days. I have to give more credit to ryguy though... he has been pulling more of the load. 

Saturday morning breakfast:

Ever since I made this for my 4th graders, I've been on a kick. It's one of my favorite Thai deserts and even though I haven't quite mastered it, right now it's good enough for me. :)

That's all for now friends..the show must go on! A little more prep before I hit the sack. Hope you had a splendid Monday!

Naomi

A New Season!

Hello lovely friends and fam!
I hope you haven't given up on me yet! Thank you to a few of my dedicated followers who mentioned to me they've been missing me. : ) That makes me smile. 
Life has been a busy little juggling game. I haven't dropped too many of the balls, yet, but it is hard to know how to cut down on all the different expectations flying in the air in front of me. 
Teaching has been a joy, even with the times of chaos and the times of feeling deeply overwhelmed with curriculum and again the high expectations. I love my little shenanigans in room 14 and have high hopes for them. I had my first sub yesterday and as I sat in my meeting all I could think about was how they were doing and whether they were behaving. It was like leave my kids with a babysitter. Which I guess it is. 

Well, aside from my 24 hours at school, these last two weekends have been a joy as well because all my college roomies decided to come and bless me with their presence. Megan came two weekends ago. 
I unfortunately don't have a pic of her because when I had my camera out we were eating bfast in our pre-cute outfits~ pictures were banned by her, and then I forgot to snap one before she left. 
It was such a nice hang-out time. We went Labor Day shopping and we got our nails did! It was a teacher gift from her! 

This past weekend guess who pranced in from Utah?... yes, oh, yes. Ms. Kinnier. Actually we got both lady Kinniers! And to top it off, Caitlin was in town with her bff Andy. It was a splendid little gathering! In honor of dorm days we cooked up one of our favorites~ home-made pizza. 

I'm so glad people like to come back to Chico. Thank you, Chico, for being a place people love, and thank you roomies for visiting your long-lost juggling, friend. 

Hope all is well on your side. As always, feel free to drop a comment to let me know how you're doing!

Mucho amor

Naomi

Southwestern Twice Baked Potatoes

What a crazy few weeks it's been. I have a feeling that I won't be able to post as much as I did before, which makes sense but still saddens me. It's been a great two weeks, despite the craziness I really love my class and hopefully they're liking me, too. : ) I had my first back to school night last night and rambled on and on in front of 30 + parents. It was nerve racking, but I feel like it went well, despite a few technical difficulties.

We started our Wednesday dinner again with my cousins Rachel and Moki and our good friend Steven. Tonight Ry found this recipe after watching the documentary "Forks over Knives". It calls for tofu instead of bacon, but we decided to go without the tofu and had an option of bacon on top. I thought it was yummy and more hardy then our classic twice-baked potatoes. Good job Ry guy! 
Well hope you all are doing well! Much love, 

Na


Southwestern Twice Baked Potatoes

Twice baked potatoes have a notoriously bad reputation as a fried food, topped with bacon, cheese, and sour cream—no more. This version makes a hearty healthy meal, filled with black beans, corn and spices—well worth the effort.

Serves 6
6 large Russet potatoes
1 medium yellow onion, diced small
1 red bell pepper, diced small
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
2 teaspoons ancho chile powder
One 10-ounce package frozen corn
One 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon sea salt, more or less to taste
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup chopped green onion
One 12-ounce package extra firm silken tofu, drained

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Rinse and scrub the potatoes. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour. Let cool.

Saute the onions and red pepper in a large skillet 7 to 8 minutes until the onions start to brown. Add water 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time to keep the vegetable from sticking. Add the jalapeno peppers, garlic, cumin, and chile powder, and sauté another minute. Add the corn, black beans, sea salt and cilantro.

Puree the silken tofu in a food processor or blender. Add the tofu to the vegetable mixture and mix well.

When the potatoes are cool, slice in half lengthwise, and scoop out the inside, leaving a 1/4-inch wide rim. Divide the filling evenly between the potato halves and bake for 30 minutes.

and the fun begins..

Goodbye summer hello reality!!

Today was my first day of school! Everything went pretty smoothly, I'm excited for my class, even my little challenges and I hope and pray that we can brave it through this week and set great expectations for ourselves. It's so important to start on the right foot. 

Although I'm pumped, I'm thoroughly exhausted and need as much sleep as I can get. 

Hooray for new beginnings!

Naomi

A Summer Snack~Coconut Pudding

Hey Friends, 
It's been awhile since I've posted a recipe so I thought I'd share a nice little sweet snack I made recently that I've been pulling out of the fridge on the blasted hot days to refresh and rejuvenate. I got this recipe from delish.com: 

Coconut Arborio Rice Pudding


Ingredients
U.S. Metric Conversion chart
1 quart(s) whole milk
1 cup(s) arborio rice, about 8 ounces
1/2 cup(s) sugar
1 can(s) (14-ounce) unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup(s) coarsely shredded unsweetened coconut
Directions

In a large saucepan, combine the milk, rice, and sugar with 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until the rice is tender and suspended in a thick, creamy sauce, about 30 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rice is very tender and the liquid is thickened, about 10 minutes. Let cool slightly.
In a medium saucepan, toast the coconut over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and golden, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool.
Spoon the rice pudding into bowls, garnish with the toasted coconut, and serve.

Bon A petite~

Naomi 

As promised, 

Here are some lovelies from our trip to Tahoe last weekend. Still thinking about how amazing the weather was there as I sit in my Chico heat frying an egg on the sidewalk.

Day 1- everyone came in from everywhere. 

There was the reuniting of the Groot-Fitzes:

Then our classic bikeride:

 

 

Then the youngins were on KP and dinner prep:

Day 2- we headed to Camp Richardson Beach

Mari Had a Crazy knee surgery a few weeks ago, and Mrs. Trooper was wheeling it around Tahoe with the help of her buff brothers and padres. She's amazing!Cheers to this road to recovery Mar. 

The next stop is one of my favs--- The Ice Cream Parlor!

Take Heed--this was the kids scoop!

In addition to the shown events there was also some  feasting, catching up, fishing,fellowshiping, Olympic cheering.. and of course game playing..

This was our kick-off game of ro-sham-bo (jon-can-po!-- japanese version)

... and one of our youngest cousins was shaming us with her mad skills! It was entertaining and frustrating.

Then it was sweet goodbyes after such sweet hellos. 

Then this little stinker didn't just leave Tahoe but up and left the continent!! Bahhhh!...What a great visit we had with you Beth, you're bombtastic and way too far away. Blessings as you enter into the craziness of school and a bazillion activities you're involved in. Maybe sooner or later we won't be in different time zones. 

Farewell Tahoe, till next year, 

Na