Oh the Weather outside is Weather

So, all of our plans for this past weekend were thwarted by "SNOWPOCALYPSE 2009." Katie was not able to attend the Walker Holiday Gala in Virginia Beach, Matt and Eileen were not able to have dinner with their friends in DC, and despite the emphatic suggestions to drop everything and make haste for Deep Creek Lake, we decided to ride out the storm and adopt the policy of flex and press. Being snowed in was about the most fun ever...



Eileen and I pioneered the trek to the store for more baking supplies, pizza and firewood.

And the party would not have been complete without Shane, Karlie (and Hershey!)...it took an hour for us (ok, Matt) to shovel the Pathfinder out of the cul-de-sac.




I wish we had pictures of all the neighbors helping to get us down the hill or of me and Eileen pushing around the corner on Forest Drive and then running to jump in....






Turns out nothing beats baked goods and peppermint hot chocolate...




And games....



And wine...





And apparently the combination of all those things turns into this....







BEST DAY EVER.

Let's all say what we're NOT thankful for. Meghan: Say.

Thanksgiving this year was rather epic. It all started with a quote from Mom: "So it's just me, Dad and.....Lisa?" Yeah. And up in Shore Acres it was Katie, Meghan, Eileen, Matt, Mary, Joe, Kelly, Aunt Kate, Kathy Kelley, Uncle Joe, Shane, Karlie and Sam Dog...with celebrity appearances by Beckers and Galsters (and a partridge in a pear tree).

We started with a family run in Newport "Team Mimi: will run for PIE" and we won! Okay, not really...but everyone said our shirts were sooooo creative. We didn't really get it. It was the annual Newport PIE run so our shirts said PIE...





After we visited Mimi....


We went back to the house to get ready for a delicious Thanksgiving feast....by taking the sailboat out in Wickford cove....




Matt got a lesson from Uncle Joe on Varsity sailing with no wind....






We set dinner making records that night since we spent the entire afternoon out on the water....but it was a delicious and wonderful evening (Even though Matt "the Grinch" Graham wouldn't let us watch White Christmas!!)

We blew off steam the next day playing on the rocks, climbing the Navagation aids in the sound, throwing around a football, skipping rocks on the water (we have determined that this is a gender specific skill), going to a movie and out for our favorite stuffed Quahogs at the Rhode Island Quahog Company in Newport. The weather was cold and rainy, but kind of perfect :)









The highlight of the weekend was definitely the spontaneous tri-tip dinner courtesy of Uncle Joe along with the delish Cabernet Franc that he HID!! During the dinner, instead ofthe traditional round of "What are you thankful for," Meghan shared what she DOES NOT like about all of us...it had us laughing and crying - the perfect end to a wonderful weekend.

Meghan.....would you like to share your thoughts?
Love,
Scumscanner

ZERO!

So Meghan and I have been counting down the days until we get to hang out and today is ZERO DAY!!

We are sitting in my office in Bancroft Hall right now trying to make sure all the midshipmen on restriction have a family and a turkey for Thanksgiving (they cannot go home because they did not be-HAAAVE).....Meghan is being a huge help saying hi to everyone, she just got to meet the Commandant. We are going to go watch plebes chop in a minute and she is going to "discover" the midstore. Dad, she has your credit card. Just saying.



We are going to park on the New Jersey Turnpike, we may give up on Rhode Island and go ice skating in Rockefeller Center if we can't get through New York City....

Merry Kranzmas!

As you all know, the holiday season is upon us. As a strong supporter of Christmas Songs during thanksgiving week, I thought I would blog about all the things I love about Christmas, and finish off Oprah Style with my Christmas list :) Cause I'm the stereotypical greedy little sister. Just kidding...I really do love Christmas though.

And I'm stealing Eileen's stealing of Meghan's love of numbered lists. Its more organized this way.

Things Lalli Loves about Christmas
1.) Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (Grospetto Hargloid!!)
-there are probably videos or eyewittness accounts of all four of us
dancing in the basement to Feliz Navidad (pretending to figureskate...)
2.) Christmas Music
-The ever growing Kranz Christmas Jams playlist on my Itunes
...its two volumes as of 11/20/09.
-Steve Courtney Christmas Music
3.)looking at Christmas Lights...and listening to dad grumble about christmas lights ("one goes out...they ALL go out!!)
4.) coming up with the most perfect present to get everyone
5.) Babysitting (cause there is nothing cuter than a Kid at Christmastime)
6.) Our prelit fake christmas tree.
-We all fought it, we all wanted to do fresh trees for the rest of our
lives, BUT watching Mom and Dad argue about how to put it together
is cute, and now we don't have to vacuum and water our tree!
-and its funny when Mom and I call Christmas Tree Tech Support
7.) Decorating aforementioned Christmas Tree
-there is SO much family history in all of our ornaments!
8.)Watching Love Actually and The Family Stone
9.)snow and hot cocoa
10.) sally lund and clam chowder!!!


Now for my Christmas List!

1.) and itrip
2.)TOMS shoes. Its a pair of simple canvas flats and for every pair they sell they give a pair to a child in need.
I really like the red classics.
3.)Running things...like new shorts and things
4.)New Backpack, the kind on your back
5.) DVDs, (the office, 500 days of summer, and GLEE!)
6.) money for new tap shoes!! I need two new pairs for Tap Ensemble
7.) snow and ski gear, Scarves, flowy sweaters, floppy knit hats, fuzzy warm things for cuddling at DEEP CREEK!
8.) Snowboarding lessons from Mr. and Mrs Graham.

Eileen Bakes :-)

I don't have any good/meaningful/insightful/inspirational songs to show you all. When I need therapy, I bake things. Last night over a glass of mediocre red wine (it's hit or miss at TJ's), I made pumpkin-oatmeal-raisin-chocolate-chip cookies. Sounds delicious right? KIND OF! I accidentally added double the amount of pumpkin (thanks a lot, wine), and forgot one of the cups of sugar, so they're not the BEST things I've ever made, but they're also not the worst :).

I also made a big batch of mom's burritos and got homesick. It's a good thing I didn't make rice-mess as well, otherwise I would have been a complete basket case!

Burritos
4 diced onions
4 cloves garlic
4 cups diced canned tomatoes
3(ish) lbs. ground beef or turkey
4 (ish) cans of black beans, drained
1/4 cup (ish) taco seasoning (3 packets maybe?- season to taste)
2 jalepenos, finely diced
tortillas
sprinkle cheese

Brown the meat- as it begins to cook add onions and garlic to saute. Add salt & pepper to taste. Once meat is cooked through, toss in the tomatoes, black beans, taco seasoning and jalepenos. Simmer for about a half hour. Put a spoonful of filling into each tortilla with a sprinkle of cheese and roll up into little burritos. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes!


Pumpkin-Oatmeal-Raisin-Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 cup raisins

Cream together the sugar/butter/egg/vanilla. Sift together the dry ingredients and slowly add to the wet ingredients. Mix in the pumpkin, raisins and chocolate chips. Drop in 2Tbs heaps onto cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 10ish minutes.

The cookies WILL come out delicious if you obey and only put in ONE cup of pumpkin, and also don't forgot to put in 1 cup of brown sugar AND 1 cup of white sugar.

Happy Fall!

Lisa has a good songs too!

So if meghan gets to include her favorite song of the week, so do I. Cause I love this singer.

Her name is Ingrid Michaelson and she got noticed on MySpace by the Greys Anatomy Soundtrack people, and her first single "Keep Breathing" was on the season 3 soundtrack I believe.

Anyway, this song is off her newest album, called "Everybody" and its really cute.





Everybody

We have fallen down again tonight
in this world, its hard to get it right
trying to make your heart feel like a glove
what it needs is love, love, love

Everybody (everybody) wants to love
Everybody (everybody) wants to be loved
Love, oh, oh
Everybody (everybody) wants to love
Everybody (everybody) wants to be loved
Love, oh, oh

Happy is the heart that still feels pain
darkness drains and light will come again
swing open up your chest and let it in
just let the love love love begin

Everybody (everybody) wants to love
Everybody (everybody) wants to be loved
Love, oh, oh
Everybody (everybody) wants to love
Everybody (everybody) wants to be loved
Love, oh, oh

Oh everybody knows the love
everybody holds the love
everybody folds for love
Everybody feels the love
everybody steals the love
everybody heals with love :)

Just let the love, love, love begin

Everybody (everybody) wants to love
Everybody (everybody) wants to be loved
Love, oh oh
Love
just let the love love love begin

--Ingrid Michaelson

RUNNNNNNNNINGGGGGGG

Well, I ran my second marathon this weekend....the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC. And Eileen ran her FIRST in Maine 2 weeks ago! Meghan has been running Half-Marathons like a champ and totally beasted her last one, ALMOST broke 2 hours!! WOOOO!!
Our next race all together is going to be the Newport Pie Run on Thanksgiving Day up in Rhode Island. Team Mimi will be sporting new team shirts and running skirts. We WILL run for pie (and wine....)
Someday maybe Lisa will run with us!!!


Newport Beach Half Marathon in January 2008, the last one we all ran together...


Brian, Kate and Dan before MCM 2009.

Steph, the best cheerleader ever!!

Kate and friend Gary and Brandon before Marine Corps Marathon 2009.

My Husband wrote a song about me...

Micheal Buble Always knows what to say....

I'm not surprised
Not everything lasts
Have broken my heart so many times
I stop keepin track.
Talk myself in
I talk myself out
I get all worked up
Than i let myself down.

I tried so very hard not to loose it
I came up with a million excuses
I thought i thought of every possibility

And i now someday that it'll all turn out
You make me work so we can work to work it out
And i promise you ?kid? that I'll give so much more than i get
I just haven't met you yet

Mmmmm ....

I might have to wait
I'll never give up
I guess it's half time
And the other's half's luck
Wherever you are
Whenever it's right
You'll come out of nowhere and into my life

I know that we can be so amazing
And baby your love is gonna change me
And now i can see every possibility

Hmmmmm ......

And somehow i know that will all turn out
And you make me work so we can work to work it out
And i promise you kid I'll give so much more than i get
I just haven't met you yet

They say alls fair
in love and war
But i don't need to fight it
?????????fied it
we'll be united

And i know that we can be so amazing
And ?peal? in your life is gonna change me
And now i can see every single possibility

Hmmm .....

And someday i know it'll all turn out
And I;ll work to work it out
Promise you kid I'll give more than I get
Than i get than i get han i get

Oh you know that will all turn out
And you make me work so we can work to work it out
And i promise you kid to give so much more than i get
Yeah i just haven't met you yet

I just haven't met you yet
Oh promise you kid
To give so much more than i get

I said love love love love love love love .....
I just haven't met you yet
Love love love .....
I just haven't met you yet

Best For last....

I made you all wait this long...Now I feel this pressure, to write something profound. Well If I'm going to make it through this I'm going to have to make a numbered list. Maybe even an outline. I'm teaching my students paragraphs, but I myself can't stay on track long enough to complete a paragraph...

1. My name is Meghan.
A. Why are we introducing ourselves?
B. Who is reading this?
C. Isn't it just going to be us chatting with each other?
2. I'm a 3rd teacher in Kansas City.

A. Not a pilot
B. Not a doctor of people's feelings and ages.
C. Not a tap dancing drama queen aesthetics chair.
3. Unfortunately I'm the one left behind in KC.
A. I just can't get out.
B. Mom likes me.
1. I get yummy meals a lot.
2. It's nice to see her, she's lonely.
C. Hopefully I'll get out of here soon. I'm getting stir crazy.
4. Hobbies
A. Clearly I don't do many things that require time spent at a computer.
B. Dreaming about time spent with sisters.
C. Running.
D. Coffee with Friends.
E. Spending quality time with people that mean the most.

So that's all that I could conjure up during this fifteen minutes on my plan time. Love to all.
Life is Good, God is better and I love when we can see all the blessings in our life each day. Look around...I bet you'll find them too!