Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! It's been a great holiday so far. We have seen a lot of old friends and spent time with family. Winston has been playing nonstop with his cousin, Thor. I'll upload some pictures of Christmas 2006 early next week.

We are opening presents tonight and having a big holiday meal tomorrow. I have to work on Tuesday, which is a bummer, so we are enjoying the holiday while it lasts.

Congratulations to Lisa and Kevin on beautiful baby Jacob, and to Laura on her wedding.

Thank you to God for sending Jesus to be our Savior and Merry Christmas to you and your family from Tiffany, Rick, and Winston.

RFJ

I saw my brother's band, RFJ, in "concert" for the first time the other day. They were playing at a cool coffee house I had never been to, but really enjoyed. They had a great chai tea which is my new favorite hot drink. It doesn't taste anything like tea. It is sweet with cinnamon and milk, I think.

RFJ's lead singer has a great voice. They write their own songs and they do covers. The lead singer will also make up funny songs on the spot, which is cool. After a while I wasn't paying attention to the band because I was losing pretty bad at a game of checkers with my hubby. I didn't realize the song they were making up on the spot included me. After a while of me not paying attention the lead singer said "Hey Tiffany I'm talking about you", which caught my attention. I quickly turned bright red and listened to the song which was about the game of checkers we were playing with chess pieces (because we don't play chess but that was the only game there).

You can listen to RFJ here: www.myspace.com/rfj

First Traffic Ticket

I got a ticket for running a red light a month ago. I am pleading Not Guilty. I had a meeting with a prosecutor today. I was open to settling out of court if the fine was low and it wouldn't be on my record. She offered to keep it off my record, but the fine was pretty high. So I decided to gamble and take it court. If the judge finds me guilty he gets to pick what the fine will be and it will be on my record. So worst-case scenario is that I end up paying more than the prosecutor offered today and it is on my record. Best-case scenario is the cop doesn't show up or the judge dismisses the case. I am REALLY hoping the cop doesn't show up and I don't even have to plead my case, but the police station is next to the municipal court building so the chances of that may be low. There isn't much I can do except show up to court and tell my side of the story. The rest is out of my hands, so I am trying not to worry about it.

The prosecutor was very polite to me, which was a relief. I had heard that prosecutors can be mean and tell you that you are guilty and have no chance in court. I wish she had offered me a better deal, but at least she wasn't rude.

Once I go to court I'll let you know how this thing turns out.


City of Austin gets tough on crime

Christmas Recipes

I like to bake and the holidays are a perfect excuse to whip up treats everyone will enjoy. Baking is good because when working with sugar, chocolate, etc. you really can't mess up. The dessert may not look perfect, but will taste good no matter what.

I have found two really easy holiday recipes that have gotten rave reviews. I plan to make them again this Christmas for family to enjoy. I recommend them to anyone looking for an easy, yummy dessert. Merry Christmas!

5-Minute Fudge Wreath

• 12 ounce package semisweet chocolate chips



• 1 cup butterscotch chips



• 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk (save the can)



• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract



• 8 ounce can walnuts, plus more for topping



• candied red and green cherries to decorate top (like holly)



• softened butter to grease an 8 inch round cake pan

1. Grease an 8-inch round cake pan with softened butter. Pour the chocolate and butterscotch chips, condensed milk and vanilla into a medium saucepan. Put the pan on the stove and turn the heat to low.



2. Cover the empty condensed milk can with plastic wrap and put it in the center of the round cake pan.



3. Stir the chips and milk until they melt together, about 3 minutes. Stir in nuts. Scoop the fudge into the cake pan all around the plastic-covered can in the center to form a wreath or ring shape. Let it be all bumpy on top. Keep pushing the can back to the center if the fudge moves it away from there. Cut the red cherries in half with scissors and the green cherries into quarters. Use the green pieces to make leaves and the red to make holly berries. Decorate the fudge with several groups of holly berry sprigs made from the cherries and garnish with walnuts between the sprigs.



4. Put the fudge in the fridge and chill until firm. Remove the can from the center, then loosen the sides and bottom of the fudge with a spatula. Cut the fudge into thin slices to serve. To give the wreath as a gift-wrap in cellophane and secure with a bow or ornament.

Chocolate Caramel Pecan Pie

• 25 Caramels


• 2 Tbsp. milk


• 1 cup chopped toasted Pecans


• 1 Graham Pie Crust (6 oz.)


• 1 pkg. (8 squares) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate


• 1 tub (16 oz.) COOL WHIP, thawed, divided

1. PLACE caramels in medium microwaveable bowl. Add milk. Microwave on HIGH 2-1/2 to 3 min. or until caramels are completely melted, stirring after each min. Stir in pecans. Pour into crust.


2. MICROWAVE chocolate in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 to 2 min. or until chocolate is completely melted, stirring after each min. Add 2 cups of the whipped topping; stir with wire whisk until well blended. Spread evenly over caramel layer in crust.


3. REFRIGERATE at least 2 hours. Let stand at room temperature 10 to 15 min. before serving. Top with the remaining whipped topping. Store leftover pie in refrigerator.

Getting ready for Christmas

We have almost finished Christmas shopping! We have two gifts left to get and then it's just stocking stuffers. We usually buy gifts for people throughout the year so it isn't so much to buy in December, but we didn't do that this year. We started our shopping on black Friday and will hopefully finish soon. I like it a lot better when we shop throughout the year. It doesn't seem like such a big expense and you can splurge a little on your loved ones without it being a big deal. Hopefully we learned our lesson and in 2007 we will do a little better.

Here's a pic of our tree and our really good son who has outgrown unwrapping presents when no one is looking. :-)

Things to do before I die

I've always been interested in peoples' "Things to do before I die" lists. I've given my own list thoughts from time to time, bet never actually sat down and made my own list before. It's a scary thing to do, because if I write something down and then don't do it, did I fail? On the other hand, I probably won't do everything unless I write it down and refer to it from time to time. Also, it will be a lot of fun to cross an item off my list once I do it. That will be a great feeling of accomplishment.

Things to do before I die

• Go on a hot air balloon ride
• Travel to another country with a lot of culture/history (like Spain) or that is completly different from the U.S. (like Japan)
• Play in a major poker tournament like WPT or WSOP
• Go on a cruise
• Perfect a signature dish (entree or desert) I want my family to say, "Mom makes the best _____ in the world".

Things that used to be on my list that I have already done

• Go to New York City - I've been there twice! I would like to go again in the winter time and skate at Rockefeller Center, see Central Park with snow, or see the Macy's parade live; but going to NYC is officially off my list.
• See Jerry Seinfeld in person - I saw him perform in San Antonio, it was awesome.

What are some things on your to do lists? I'm sure I will add to mine throughout the years. My instinct is to fill the list up with a million dream travel destinations, I LOVE to travel, but I have to exercise some self control here. I don't think it should just be about things I would do if I had all the time and money in the world at my disposal. It should be things that I can look back on when I'm old and gray and really smile about.

Happy Birthday!!!!

Happy 50th Birthday Dad!

Way to live for 50 years, I hope you live for 50 more.

First Blog

Hello friends and family.

I enjoy reading my friends' blogs so I thought I'd start my own. Not sure yet what direction I'm going to take as far as what I am going to write about, so we'll have to see what ends up happening. I'd like the blog to be about what's going on in my life, but I can't give away to much personal information, as this is the Internet.

I am married with one son, a Boston Terrier named Winston. I've been married for 4 and a half years, and my spouse and I have been a couple for 11 years. I have a younger brother ( and new sister-in-law) and a younger sister. I'm a computer programmer in Austin and my husband is a small business owner. I'm pretty sure everyone who would read this blog would know everything I just said but I thought I'd give some background info just in case.

Look for more blogs to come. For now, here is a picture of my son.