"Do you need a personal assistant?"

That was the question my friend/neighbor asked me on the way to Pilates class tonight. Ummm....YES!!!! What a week -- MANY clients, so ready for Friday. I love what I do, I love the variety -- I love the teens and young adults who need someone who believes in them, I love the anxious kids who need something to make their tummy aches go away -- love it all (well, most of it!)! But sometimes I just run out of energy and my brain seems to be lagging behind! I managed to vacuum tonight.....so that when Ericka (my friend/neighbor) comes over at 6:30 tomorrow morning to start our step DVDs she won't leave with a bunch of dog hair all over her shoes and step (really, it's not THAT bad.....but come on, I have labs. Enough said!).

So this is my Valentine's Day present for my sweet husband! I finished it tonight (just in time for the 25% off all photobooks sale at Shutterfly). It is 100 pages of our eharmony profile information, emails to each other during the "getting to know you" process (72 pages of emails!!), and pictures from the first time we met through the Christmas just after we got engaged in 2006. I LOVE that we have a record of what we were finding out about each other during that initial connection process. It is amazing to me how it just clicked with both of us that God brought us together -- having designed both of us individually with characteristics that were such a unique fit. I can't wait to give it to him!

The Inauguration -- from the perspective of an Annapolitan

It kinda feels like yesterday was the start of another new year. When I was finally able to sit down and watch President Obama's inaugural speech last night I was really inspired. I have such great hopes that there will be more care and concern on the part of our generation to step up and be a part of this nation. I have heard repeatedly from teens, college students, and young adults in general in the past few years that "it doesn't really matter what happens in DC or with government or what has happened in the past in history. It doesn't effect me." When Julian moved here from Orange County, California in October, 2005, he was shocked to find out just how much people in this area were aware of government activities. Sure, not everyone is involved, but there is more exposure and news overall (after all, "local" news is "national" news). Having grown up in Northern Virginia (yes, we kind of act like we're a separate state from the rest of Virginia), I feel like I have always been exposed to government. My family and I went to the inauguration of George H.W. Bush in 1989 -- it was incredible! I felt like such a part of history! For senior year Government class we were required to campaign for the party of our choice and put together an extensive project on the impact of those for whom we campaigned and their desired role in the government. Even though I've recently pulled away from Republican party affiliation and become more Independent, I was heavily Republican at the time and I remember campaigning for Tom Davis of Virginia. It really made me feel like I was a part of things. Then I move to Oklahoma in 1996 for college and I feel COMPLETELY clueless about what is going on in the world. It was just a bizarre feeling after living around the DC metro area since 1985. The same experience continued into grad school in Abilene, TX, then in Lubbock, TX. CLUELESS about government, not as easy to be aware since I'd been spoiled with local national news. Yes, I could still have sought out information....but that was a little too time-consuming while reading EXTENSIVELY for school.

So back to Julian. He had TREMENDOUS culture shock when he moved from Hollywood-infatuated Orange County to the Government/PC-infatuated DC area. It was really neat to see him start learning more and more about the dynamics of this presidential election, the electoral college, the various regional viewpoints, and the particular ballot initiatives for Maryland. Yes, he became quite harsh and forthright at times.....even downright offensive at times. It was still exciting to see him stretching his political wings, though :) Both of us were inspired by yesterday, though -- really wanting to become more involved in local service to the community and government activities, wanting to take more ownership of the economy and its effect on our bank accounts and future goals.....really wanting to move forward. It's nice to feel a part of things and inspired.....I guess I didn't expect it to come from the inaugural speech from our new President.....but God really can work in mysterious ways!

So while I didn't go to the inauguration it was still nice to be so close to it! This week I've had TONS of clients (which is a good thing)....just a little overwhelming as it makes me feel like I'm completely zapped at the end of the day (which, if it's Monday, Tuesday, or Thursday ends at 7 or 8pm) and I'm not worth much of anything to my sweet hubby. I'll write more about that later :)

Back to our new Pres......here are a few of my new favorite pics :) Enjoy!

LOVE this pic! LOVED her dress!!

Woohoo!

Already working hard. I'm excited about his new government transparency initiative
(to include transparency about salaries over $100K!)

And now back to work....

Enchilada Chicken

I just had to do a quick post on Julian's and my dinner tonight.....Enchilada Chicken, straight from The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook (with one thing added). So lately we've been trying to eat more healthy, include good fats (like those from almonds, olives, dark chocolate, avocados, etc.). I've been trying to really watch our portion size, up our intake of veggies (our fruit intake has been great for awhile now). All of that to say.......Enchilada Chicken was a big hit. For anyone who is interested, here's the recipe, with 4 servings (I halved it so that we could try it but not be stuck with the leftovers in case we didn't like it):

Enchilada Chicken

4 (4-ouncse) trimmed boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 teaspoons salt-free Mexican or Southwest seasoning (they suggest Mrs. Dash Southwest
Chipotle....but Safeway didn't have it so I used Mrs. Dash Extra Spicy and it was great!)

Olive oil spray

4 tablespoons mild, medium, or hot enchilada sauce (we used hot......my husband grew up in New
Mexico.....I've gotten used to hot :)

2 ounces (1 cup) finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese (they suggest Cabot's)

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro (I probably used 2 tablespoons on our 2 chicken
breasts)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Season each chicken breast evenly on all sides with the seasoning.

Place a large ovenproof nonstick skilled over high heat. When hot, lightly mist with the olive oil spray and add the chicken. Cook, turning once, for 1-2 minutes per side, or just until the chicken is golden brown on the outsides.

Remove the pan from heat and top each chicken breast with 1 tablespoon of the enchilada sauce, followed by one-fourth of the cheese and one-fourth of the cilantro. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for 4-6 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink inside and the cheese is melted (I cooked ours for 10 minutes).

Nutritional info per serving: 162 calories, 31 g protein, 1 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, 71 mg cholesterol, trace fiber, 230 mg sodium

* I added 2 teaspoons of sliced olives to the top of the chicken (on top of the cilantro, so that we'd be getting some good fats -- and because I knew Julian would like the inclusion of black olives to make it more enchilada-ish).

The result: A WINNER!! We both loved it and it was extra flavorful and healthy! We added 1/2 cup cooked wild rice (not mixed with any other rice, just straight wild), a tossed salad and green grapes as sides to round it all off.

Also, a special thanks to my awesome friend Stacey for her 3 cheese spaghetti recipe (that I added spinach to), that was also a big hit. We had that on Friday AND Saturday nights (and will probably have it again tomorrow night!).

2009......"Year of the BIG D"

Ahh.....2009! It doesn't feel like we've started a new year -- 2008 flew by way too quickly! I've been TERRIFIED of this year for a while now.....because of the big D. No, not divorce.....DISSERTATION. You see, I MUST finish (write the proposal, fly to Lubbock and propose, collect data, write up the data, fly to Lubbock again and defend) this dissertation by the end of the year....October, to be exact, in order to graduate and not use the credits I've completed toward my Ph.D. Knowing myself, I don't doubt that I can do this -- after all, all the papers I've ever written for school (high school, college, and grad school) have been completed "procrastination style"....which actually works well for me! I get the assignment, I think about it, I collect resources, I think about it some more....and then I write it the night, day, or weekend before it is due. I actually work best this way.....but I scare myself every time! My dad was actually in this position with his Masters Thesis....which he did not complete. Oddly enough, the topic of the thesis was Intelligence in the U.S.S.R.......which I remember him working dilligently on.....until he stopped......and then a year later the U.S.S.R. crumbled! Who knew?! So the pressure is on extra hard for me to NOT follow in his footsteps. I know he is very worried that I will carry on his legacy......just another reason to FINISH!

I'll write more later on in the week about Christmas and New Years.....I just needed a little pep talk to myself (still haven't picked up the articles to start reading again.....but thinking about it is still good, right?!)