Dinner With The Parents

A few weeks ago we invited my parents over for dinner.

It was a chance to bust out our new china,

and show off our new apartment.

We tried to fancy things up a little and set the table pretty.

We watched some pre-season football on our Ginormous television.

And we ate some really good food.

Cross Rib Roast.  So SO good!

Chive Biscuits

Roasted Potatoes

Brussel Sprouts - served with Parmesan and Pine nuts

Ready to eat!

Lemon Cake with Raspberries

Afterwards, we convinced my parents to watch a 3D movie on our new TV.

And not just any 3D movie,

but a Kelly Slater surfing movie.

I can honestly say I never thought I'd see the day when my parents watched a surf movie.

But it happened.  Wanna see the proof?

It was so great to spend a nice night with my parents

and to say thanks for all they've done for us

(ahem, like throw a wedding).

We're totally even now, right?

Fill In The Blank Friday

Beautiful Lake Tahoe

Another week has flown by and I'm lovin' that it's Friday.

Especially since the 90 degree weather has given way to the perfect 75 degree day.

I hope it lasts through the weekend!

Time again for some blanks.

Join in over here if you want to play.

1.   Somewhere someone is     thinking about you  =)

2.   Yummy food    is/are my muse.

3.  It would suck if   the internet   was no more because   what would I do with my free time? 

4.   Cooler but sunny weather   is/are my favorite thing about today.

5.  Life is kind of like     high school all over again, full of awkward moments.

6.  If I could have anything I wanted I would want   to know for sure that we'll be financially stable forever.  wouldn't that take away a lot of stress?

7.  A funny thing happened the other day...    when the little girl downstairs said that my cat Cheeto probably didn't taste like a Cheeto, he probably tastes like cat.

Yum.

Wedding Wednesday - Saying "I Do" (Part 3)

Our ceremony was one of my favorite parts of the whole day, which makes sense since it's the most important part of the day.

In all, I think the whole thing lasted maybe 20 minutes.  Honestly, I had no concept of time at that point.  I don't even know if we started on time.  I had read comments from other brides that they tried to be "in the moment" and note every little thing.  Sadly, that was not me.  Walking down the aisle is such a blur.  A friend had once told me to look at my guests as I was walking down the aisle, to see their faces, smile, and realize these people were all here because they love us.  I remember seeing familiar faces, and smiling at them.  I remember thinking we were probably walking too fast, and being afraid of tripping.   Before I knew it, we were at the head of the aisle standing in front of my groom.

I hugged my dad before he "gave me away" to my groom.

Our officiant did such a wonderful job of crafting a ceremony that was personal to us, funny and touching, and overall extremely meaningful to us and our guests.  I had several guests stop me at the reception and comment on how much they loved the ceremony.  My parents' friends commented that they felt that they really got to know us through the ceremony.  I was so happy to hear that because it was exactly how I wanted it to be.

When we first got up there, she had us face our guests for a little bit.  It felt a little awkward being up there in front of everyone, but I tried to look around and see the face of my friends and family. 

Then she had us go to each of our parents and thank them.  I remember being worried about tripping over my train.  I hadn't planned on having to move around once I was up there.

She talked about how we met and started dating.  She recited the things we had said we love about each other and talked about our dreams for the future.   And she told funny stories about us and our cat Cheeto.   I remember my feet hurting as I was standing up there.  I was trying to shift my weight back and forth, but then got worried that people would notice.  Also, I apparently scrunch my shoulders up whenever I laugh.  Sometimes you don't know these things until you look at 1,200 photographs of yourself!

Then it was time for our vows.  We had each written our own vows and kept them secret from each other.  At this point I was pretty calm and cool.  But the second I started speaking I got choked up and had to stop for a second before continuing.  And again, I apparently make awkward postures when trying to keep from crying.

I think this is the part where I referenced So You Think You Can Dance

Next it was his turn.  He was very calm and cool, at least on the outside.  His vows were funny and thoughtful, just like him.

After our personal vows, we recited traditional vows and exchanged rings.

I love the look on his face here.  Like, "holy cow we're married!"

Then she made our guests vow to support us.  This is us looking out at the crowd thinking "You'd better say I do!"

Then we made it official and kissed!

The guitarist played "Good Lovin'" as we made our way back down the aisle.

We stopped for another kiss and some random bystanders looked on.

And celebrated with some high fives!

Next, it was almost time to party, but not until a few more photographs were taken.  Stay tuned for more formals under the arbor and in the park.

All photos by Kristen Grinnell Photography

Other Wedding Wednesday posts:

Getting Ready With The Girls

The First Look

Family & Group Photos

Ceremony Part 1

Ceremony Part 2

End of Summer Tomato and Zucchini Tart

It's Labor Day weekend, which means that summer is coming to a close.

Pretty sad considering we've had maybe two hot weekends here on the west side.

But it also means that there are an abundance of tomatoes and zucchinis in my dad's garden to use.

My parents are literally drowning in tomatoes.  They came for dinner the other night and brought this...

So what do you do with a huge batch of tomatoes when you're going out of town in 4 days?

First, you give some away to coworkers.  Then you start looking for recipes that use multiple tomatoes.

Which led me to this tomato and zucchini tart.  Recipes like this have been all over the blogosphere lately so I decided to jump on the bandwagon.

This recipe is a mixture of three or four that I found online and I think it turned out pretty well.

Tomato and Zucchini Tart

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

2 small to medium zucchini, sliced

3-4 medium tomatoes, sliced

8 oz mozzarella, sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 eggs

2 tablespoons heavy cream

4 oz goat cheese, crumbled

a few sprigs fresh basil, chopped

salt & pepper

1.  Heat oven to 350.  Roll out puff pastry dough to about 12"x12".  Line a tart pan with removable bottom with pastry.  Trim edges and poke holes with a fork to prevent it from puffing up too much in the oven.

2.  Line the bottom of the tart with mozzarella slices

3.  Arrange the tomatoes and zucchini slices on top in concentric circles, or whichever pattern your heart desires.  Drizzle with olive oil.

4.  Whisk eggs and cream together.  Pour into the tart pan.  

I was worried that this wasn't enough egg mixture to hold the tart together, but it worked out fine.

5.  Dot with chunks of goat cheese.  Sprinkle with basil.  Season with salt & pepper.

6.  Bake in 350 oven for about 30 minutes, until eggs are set.

 Yum!

Fill In The Blank Friday

Have you seen the Scrabble Cheez-Its?  

How fun are they??  

Two of my favorite things together in one,

allowing you to leave sweet messages in the morning

(Although I had to dig through the whole box to find a "Y")

It's been a few weeks since I've done the whole fill-in-the-blank thing

and I admit I had to break out the dictionary to answer the first one.

Sad, I know.

If you want to join in the fun, head on over to Lauren's blog and link up.

Without further ado....

1.   One thing that is completely superfluous, but that I could never give up is     my iphone and Google.  I'm addicted, just ask my husband.  Part of his wedding vows talked about how "tech savvy" I am.  I really cannot handle not knowing the answer to a question, and since we have Google at our fingertips why not look up the answer??

2.    Meeting new people      makes me feel awkward.

3.  I can't    bake    without,    butter and sugar.  No healthy desserts coming out of my kitchen!  Give me the real stuff.

4.    Wheat Thins and cream cheese   is my favorite snack.

5.  Lately I've been     flossing my teeth every day.  Having a root canal will do that to you.

6.  If at first you don't succeed    cry or pout a little bit, get a big hug, then try try again .

7.  Fall is    my favorite season!  Makes me think of cinnamon, crock pots, and my birthday!  

Have a great weekend!