What I Miss....

John and I had a couple over the other night for dinner.  Lauren has lived down south her whole life.  She asked if I had ever been to NYC.  Immediately I felt nostalgic.  Being close to NYC is one of the reasons I loved living in the Lehigh Valley.  So, I got thinking about some of the other things I miss about living in Allentown.

I miss.....

- Being a 2 hour ride away from NYC
- Ocean City, NJ
- Bookstore Speakeasy...especially that Bookstore Burger
- Allentown Brew Works...especially the Bacon me Bleu Burger:-)
- SkyLounge
-My family
- Sunday afternoon lunches at my mom and dad's house
-My job.... oh how I miss this!  I would be getting my classroom ready this week....
-STeelStacks
-Allentown Fair
-Musikfest
- Cedar Crest BFC
-My friends!!!!!!!!!!!
-Driving through the city
- Spontaneous road trips....   SHout out to my Lisa
-Merge
-Small group
-Singing on worship team

I miss ALOT, but I am incredibly blessed with a man who loves me so much.  John is such an amazing husband, and has stood by my side during the crazy transition.

Grace Manor Inn, Richmond Virginia

John and I took two days to drive down to South Carolina after our wedding.  We stayed in Richmond, VA at the Grace Manor Inn. Lovely, Lovely, Lovely.......

We arrived at around seven in evening. Albert, the owner met us at our car and helped us carry in our luggage.  As we walked through the back gate, we were surrounded by a beautiful in-ground pool as well as a jacuzzi.  The backyard was absolutely beautiful.  There were lounge chairs, a patio with table, and gardens.   We walked in the house through the sun room into the grand parlor.  Albert gave us a brief history of the house.  We walked through the living room, music room and dining room.  Each room was beautifully decorated and had a very colonial feel to it.  The house was actually built by a man who wanted to give his wife a memorable 50th wedding anniversary gift.

Our Suite, the Fensterer-Davis Suite,  was located on the second floor.  Decorated beautifully in red hues, it was extremely inviting.  In one room was the queen sized bed, graciously decorated with a ton of pillows!  There was a flat screen TV as well as a Cd player, stocked with many great jazz tunes.  Love!
There was also a sitting room, that was connected to the bedroom by a small powder room.  The sitting room was also red, accented with royal blue chairs and an ivory couch.  The best part about the sitting room was the 3 ring binder that had at least 50 restaurants in alphabetical order.  EAch page told about the restaurant; what kind of food was served, how many miles from the Inn, hours.  On the back of each page was a menu for each restaurant.  This was extremely helpful!  We ended up eating at the Boathouse, which was located on the water.

Breakfast at the Grace Manor Inn was amazing.  Albert himself made the breakfast.  OUr first course was a berry medley with heaving cream served in a Martini glass.  The second course was a scrambled egg concoction served on a piece of bread.  We also had asparagus wrapped in prosciutto.   Yummy!  Our last course was two mini cream puffs.  Not to mention, we drank coffee, tea, and mimosas, and bellinis.

Albert's wife, Dawn, owns Carytown Cupcakes in Richmond, VA, so on our way out, we stopped to buy half a dozen cupcakes.  They were delicious.  The theme of the week at the shop was Italian deserts. You can only imagine......

Check out the Grace Manor Inn the next time you are in Richmond.  You will not be disappointed.
www.thegracemanorinn.com

I'm back! Smoky Stuffed Peppers

So... it's been awhile since I have posted, but I am back!  I just got married on Sunday and have moved away from my home town.  I have a little more time on my hands, so I thought I would try and get back into blogging.
I made a slammin' recipe last night for John and I.  It was the first dinner I made as a married women, and let me just say.....I knocked it out of the park!   This recipe comes from the recipe book "Eating Well, Serves Two" from Jim Romanoff.  If you find that cooking for two is hard, this cookbook is fantastic! The portions are perfect!

Smoky Stuffed Peppers

2 large bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded

4 ounces hot Italian sausage, removed from casing (about 1 link) 

3/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 large plum tomato, chopped 

2/3 cup instant brown rice

1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

1/3 cup finely shredded smoked cheese, such as mozzarella, Cheddar or Gouda, divided. 

1.  Position rack in upper third of oven; preheat broiler.

2. Place peppers cut-side down in a  large, microwave-safe dish.  Fill the dish with 1/2 inch of water, cover and microwave on High until the peppers are tender-crisps, 7 to 10 minutes.  Drain the water and transfer the peppers to a roasting pan.

  

3.Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Stir in broth, tomatoes and rice; bring to  simmer, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon.  Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice is softened but still moist, about 10 minutes.  

4. Stir basil and half the cheese into the rice mixture.  Divide the filling between the peppers, then top with the remaining cheese.  Broil until the cheese is melted, 2 to 3 minutes.  

I served the peppers with an Orange and Avocado Salad with a Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette.  Yum! Enjoy!

My creation!!!

I Finally Tried It.....

So I am sitting here and just as I am about to write about my chocolate covered bacon experience, Ace of Cakes comes on and everyone on the show is trying bacon flavored jelly beans.... and the verdict from even the bacon lovers is..... disgusting.  Well, my chocolate covered bacon experience wasn't that bad.  My cousins, mom, aunt, sister and lots of kids were walking down Asbury Street in Ocean City NJ last Tuesday.  It was a little overcast, so we didn't go to the beach, but instead went shopping... not one of my favorite pastimes.  I had separated from the group for a little bit because I was on a mission to find a journal.  When I met up with everyone again, my cousin Laura was in the fudge shop and everyone was saying, "Laura's getting something special for you.. just wait!"  She comes out with chocolate covered bacon!!  We saved in until we got back to the beach house during lunch.  We all gathered around the table, and Laura and I took the first bit from our chocolate covered bacon sticks.  My initial reaction was disappointment. I attribute it to the fact that the bacon tasted smoked.  I'm not a huge fan of smoked bacon to begin with, so right from the bat, my experience was tainted.  It almost tasted like beef jerkey.  It was definitely sweet and salty all at the same time.  I took two more bites and then passed it off..... that was all I could handle.  The decision was split..... half of the family liked it, half didn't.  I'd try it again with non-smoked bacon.  I encourage you to try it on your own... very easy to make at home. 

As Long As Your Happy... That's All That Matters....... Really?????

I had stopped by my parents' house the other day to pick something up and as I walking in, their neighbor two doors down was walking into her house at the same time. I hadn't seen her in awhile so we stopped and chit catted for a few minutes.  So asked me if I was still living in my apartment and if I had a roommate.  I told her, yes, I was still living in my life but had no roommate and and was enjoying living by myself.  She proceeded to say, "Well, as long as you are happy, that's all that matters right?"  I didn't answer back because I was actually overwhelmed by that statement.  Is my happiness all that should matter in life?  To that I say... no. Let's face reality... life is not always happy.  I do believe that we should try to find joy in every situation in life.  Even the Bible says, "Consider it pure joy my brothers whenever you face trials of many kind." But, my own happiness should not be the driving factor in my life; because when I put me first in everything, I have the potential of neglecting the needs of the people that I hold very near and dear to my heart.  I need to make sure I am making wise decisions and asking myself if the things I do are honoring to the Lord.  I will find complete happiness and joy IN HIM and nowhere else.

Smokin' Betty's

I was in Philadelphia today to volunteer at the Nartional Juvenile Arthritis Conference at the Downtown Marriot hotel.   This conference brings families from all over the country to network, discuss and learn about juvenile arthritis.    It was an awesome experience to be amongst kids from Texas, California, Missouri, Hawaii that have arthritis.  I bonded with a little ten year old boy name Daniel because we found out that we had the same birthday!
During our lunch break I met up with my friends Kate and Gia.  They live in the city so I knew they would be able to suggest good restaurants to eat at.  They agreed that we should go to Smokin' Betty's at 116 South 11th  Street    N.W. Corner of 11th and Sansome Streets  Philadelphia.  I immediately fell in love with this joint.  Very cute, not many frills.  I felt like I was stepping back in time.  Upon entering the front door my ear caught the crooning of Sinatra.  He was followed by many smooth jazz singers.  Definitely my kind of atmosphere.   We had the choice of sitting at a high top or regular table. We chose the latter. Our waitress was laid back yet bubbly and very attentive.  She even ran down to the bank when we asked for change.....wow.   I was looking over their regular menu....the fish tacos caught my eye.....fish of the day topped with shredded cabbage, pickled onions, avacado, sliced radishes, fresh lime and cilantro on flour tortillas.  Served with black bean, mango salsa.  However, it was brunch, and we were only allowed to order off the brucnh menu which was fine, because everything sounded amazing.  I ended up getting the chopped cobb salad... chicken, avocado, cucumber, egg, blue cheese, hickory smoked bacon, tomato and chopped romaine.  It was excellent!   Kate and Gia opted for the California turkey Sandwhich....avocado, sprouts, Jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, and honey mustard.  The sandwhich was enormous!  Smokin' Betty's is reasonably priced and very quaint.  I loved it.....I can't wait to go back to try the fish tacos!
http://smokinbettys.com/

You Are For Me

I attend a ladies Bible study on Monday nights throughout the school year, and two years ago we studied the Life of Moses.  Fascinating study.....  Moses was a murderer, complainer, excuse maker, yet God chose to use him to lead the Israelites for many years.  I loved studying the life of Moses because it forced me to read through books like Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers... usually books of the Bible that Christians shy away from because they tend to be boring.  However, they were included in the Bible for a reason, as all of its words are God breathed.  I think the thing I took away from reading Leviticus and Numbers, which if you have never read through them they are filled with a lot of details about sacrifices and ceremonies, is that I am so completely thankful and grateful that the blood of Jesus has covered my sin once and for all and that I don't have to worry about performing sacrifices and living under the Law.  I now live under grace and I thank the Lord for that....it's so comforting. 
One of my favorite scenes in the book of Exodus is when the Israelites have left Egypt and they come to the Red Sea. (Exodus 13 and 14).  They are freaking out because they see this huge body of water in front of them and they don't know how they are possibly going to cross it before the Egyptians catch up to them and overtake them.  So Moses, who at one point complained to God saying he wasn't a good public speaker gives this quick power-house speech that I think can apply to us today when we are feeling overwhelmed and consumed by our enemies or situations in our lives.  He says, " Do not be afraid.  Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today.  The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you, you need only be still."

I love this!  How comforting to know that God is fighting for us and we just need to trust him.  More on this thought later....

I wanted to share lyrics to one of my new favorite songs by one of my new favorite Christian artisrts, Kari Jobe.  Enjoy.. to see the music video go to:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbSMfL5LuSo


You Are for Me
Kari Jobe

So faithful



So constant


So loving and so true


So powerful in all you do


You fill me


You see me


You know my every move


You love for me to sing to you






I know that you are for me


I know that you are for me


I know that you will never forsake me in my weakness


I know that you have come down


Even if to write upon my heart


To remind me who you are






So patient


So gracious


So merciful and true




So wonderful in all you do


You fill me


You see me


You know my every move


You love for me to sing to you






I know that you are for me


I know that you are for me


I know that you will never forsake me in my weakness


I know that you have come down


Even if to write upon my heart


To remind me that






I know that you are for me


I know that you are for me


I know that you will never forsake me in my weakness


I know that you have come down


Even if to write upon my heart


To remind me who you are