Misfit Thanksgiving

This is our first year in Indianapolis and we're not going home for Thanksgiving. It's too much flying in too short a period, and the airlines are always packed.

So we've got a number of friends coming over to share our Thanksgiving meal. My friend Rachael and her fiance Chris, our other friend Rachel and her son Ozan, and our friend Heather are coming so far. Rachael is bringing some traditional Pennsylvania Dutch dishes (Shoofly Pie and Potato Filling, if you're interested). Heather has offered to bring the turkey (YAY! I've been stressing about making my first turkey).

As I start to plan for the rest of our Thanksgiving meal, I cannot stop thinking about how blessed we are. This year especially, we have been given so much. Giving back to God and to our community has become more important to me than ever.

I was looking for adopt-a-family type things for Thanksgiving and came across the Mozel Sanders Foundation. They cook and provide boxed up Thanksgiving meals to thousands of people in Indianapolis. What a cool concept. I'm sure people would prefer to have a meal in their own home than some gigantic shelter.

Of course, we'll be supporting Wheeler Mission as well, which is a gigantic shelter.

I've always wanted to volunteer on Thanksgiving, but I remember from San Diego Rescue Mission that they have more volunteers than they know what to do with on Thanksgiving and Christmas. I figure they can probably use my cash more than they can use my time. *grin*

Turkey Chili

I made Turkey Chili last night. It turned out much spicier than I expected, but it was good!!! Of course, Aaron thinks it needs more turkey. I disagree. I am trying to conserve by using less meat in our dishes. Saves money AND calories!

Here's the recipe:
Serves 4-5
Prep: 25 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes

1/2 tsp vegetable oil (preferably canola)
1 medium onion chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic (or 2 cloves minced)
2 medium carrots, thinly sliced into rounds
1/2 pound lean ground turkey
1 heaping tbsp chili powder
1/2 tbsp paprika
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 medium tomatos, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup canned chicken broth
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 can dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup scallions, chopped

Instructions
Use a large pot over medium heat. Coat pot with cooking spray. Add oil and sauté onion about 5 minutes. Add garlic and carrots cook about 1 minute. Add turkey and brown, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks.

Add chili powder, paprika, red pepper flakes, cumin, tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, vinegar, beans and green pepper and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer about 30 to 45 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with scallions and shredded cheese if desired.

Aaron and I both had generous helpings (he had two bowls) and I have about a cup leftover for lunch today. Jiffy corn muffins are a PERFECT compliment to this chili.

Best part is that I have half a pound of ground turkey left over for Chimichangas later this week!

Our family

We don't have any human children yet, but we do have a furry family.

Ellie Mae
We got Ellie Mae in Sept 2005, right after hurricane Katrina. She was in a shelter in Louisiana and was shipped to California to make room for all the dogs they found wandering the streets. She was soooo shy when we first met her, she wouldn't even walk. When Aaron put her collar and her leash on her though, she got right up and walked out the door. She was Aaron's gal for a while, but I've spent a lot of time training her and she's totally MY dog now (this picture was taken when she passed her Canine Good Citizen test). We think she's a rottweiler, coon hound, beagle mix. Whatever she is, she has a super high prey drive (she's caught a squirrel and a cardinal since we have been in Indy) and she loves loves loves to go on walks.

Joey
Joey joined our family in Feb 2006. Ellie was very depressed when we would leave her home during the day, we thought she might like a sibling. I really wanted a little lap dog, but we came home with a 50lb pittie instead! We felt so bad for Joey because he was handicapped and had been in the shelter for almost 6 months. I was a little unsure of a pit bull at first, but he is seriously THE BEST DOG ever. He snuggles when you want to snuggle, he'll play fetch as long as you let him (or he falls down from exhaustion, whichever comes first), and he's such a silly guy. He does have issues with other dogs sometimes, but he LOVES his sister. Everyone loves Joey. Even our neighbor who is afraid of dogs loves Joey. I think I'll probably ALWAYS own a bull breed (pittie, bulldog, bull terrier, staffy bull) from now on.

Stanley
Stanley is our cat. We rescued him in March 2007 from the Humane Society. He's 6+ years old, black, and had some minor health problems so he wasn't going anywhere for a while. I fell in love with him right away. He is a big talker and loves to cuddle. He is a cat though, which means he's kind of a pain in the butt. Aaron alternates between loving him to pieces and wanting to stake him out for the raccoons to finish off.

Hannah
Just kidding... we saw Hannah at the Indiana State Fair. But I have fantasies that we'll have a big ol' piece of farmland someday where I can have goats and maybe some sheep and a cow. No pigs though. They are evil and will eat you alive.

To do for this week

I really need to print the response cards and start addressing invitations.

But first, I must finish my first ever Artist Trading Card DONE! and come up with a halloween costume for the party Thursday night.

Kids?

I had a terrible thought this morning.

We're having our wedding reception at an Irish pub.

What if children aren't allowed inside?

Oh my.

I'm sure it's like every other pub that serves food, and that the kids can be there until a certain time. And this is Las Vegas afterall.

I emailed the owner just to be sure. Hopefully he gets back to me soon.

Next assignment

Looks like my next stop on my "American Cities Tour" will be Roanoke, VA. I should start my project there on Nov 3.

I've never really been to the East Coast. I've been to Buffalo NY, but I've been told that counts as Canada.

I've been working in town for the last 4 months after 3+ years on the road. It's been really nice sleeping in my own bed every night, cooking dinner, making friends in our new city, getting involved with church and animal welfare organizations.

I called Aaron at lunch to tell him the news. I said sadly "I'll be traveling again in 2 weeks". His response "Awesome!".

I think he misses having the house to himself during the week!

Oh man.

I was so excited when I got home from San Diego yesterday. There was a big ol' box sitting on the front doorstep... and I had this momentary flash that it was my wedding dress. I was stoked because it was early AND Aaron was still on a plane, so I could have tried it on and taken pictures without worrying about him seeing it.

Alas, it wasn't the dress.

It was Aaron's stupid RCA Dome seats.

Wedding Invitations

Our wedding invitations were delivered yesterday. They are soooo cool!

I'm a little puzzled that they are cream colored and not white. Weird. I guess I must not have been paying attention when I ordered them.

We don't really have any "colors" but I'm wearing white/silver and Aaron and our guys are wearing white/black.

The reception hall, of course, will probably be overly decorated in green, considering it's an Irish pub and we're getting married 3 days before St. Patty's.

Houses Part Deux

Aaron got pre-approved yesterday for a home loan in the price range we were hoping, so it looks like we'll be buying a house sooner than we thought (and this approval doesn't even include my income as part of the consideration!)

Our lease at the rental house is up April 25, so we'll target early/mid-April for the move.

HOLY COW! We're going to own a house. WOOT!

Houses

Aaron and I went to a couple of open houses today. Realistically, we probably won't be buying until next summer/fall, but we wanted to take a look at some neighborhoods that an acquaintance recommended for us.

The house thing has honestly been a source of strain between us. Usually we are right on with our attitudes and opinions about life... but the house was polar opposites.

Aaron wanted to buy a new house outside of Indianapolis in a town called Westfield. It's basically surrounded by farms. While that is cool, I don't want to live so far from the city, since I will likely be commuting downtown every day. In addition, the new developments are so...sterile. There's no trees, no quaint little shops, no Mom&Pop restaurants.

I preferred the older houses in the established communities, about halfway between where we live now and downtown. Most of the houses are Cape Cod, Victorian or Arts & Crafts style homes. True, you have a smaller lot for the same amount of money, but they are established communities with their own personalities. And the trees... I love the trees! That's 80% of what I love about this town.

I'm not sure what sparked the change of heart in Aaron, but yesterday he agreed that we would focus primarily on the neighborhoods between Michigan on the east, College on the west, 42nd on the south and 71st on the north (Butler-Tarkington, Meridian-Kessler, Broad Ripple, Forest Hills for my info) . The prices are in our range, the neighborhoods are beautiful, the houses are older, very lovely and perfect sized, the trees are gorgeous and there's restaurants, shops, and the Central Canal within walking/biking distance. Perfect for starting a family.

I'm only going to say it once, but I earned it... I was right! Nah nee nah nee poo poo!

Dibs on Baby Names

We're calling dibs on the following baby names

Boys:
Andrew
Austin

Girls:
Madison
Piper

I can't IMAGINE we'll have more than 4 bio kids.

New Beginnings

Aaron and I are engaged to be married on March 14, 2009 in Las Vegas, NV. We've been dating since March of 2005.

Things are progressing. Our invitations were ordered and should arrive this week. My dress is ordered and should arrive in about 2 months.

At this point, we just have to find favors and create DVDs of music/pictures to be shown during the reception.

I'm getting excited, although I'm a little nervous too.