A Blind date 21 Years Ago Today

So, today marks 21 years ago that Mike and I had our first date.  I was working with his brother in law Wayne here in Sacramento and Mike was living in Fremont.  So Wayne set us up on a blind date.  We doubled with Debbie and  Wayne and went to eat at Diccio's Italian Restraunt in Carmichael and then we went bowling and then on to Carlos Murphys for some Kareoke entertainment.  Afterwards we went over to his sister Dana's  in Citrus Heights to meet her family.  When Mike dropped me off back at home that night he tried to kiss me....uh,uh,uh, no free kisses yet.....he had to earn them!  And earn them he did after he asked me to marry him a couple of weeks later. 
Then you couldn't get us to stop kissing...good thing he lived in Fremont and I lived in Sacramento...fun times!  I think we'll have something Italian tonight............. 

Annie Opens and Football lives on........

Last night was Stephen's last football game of the season. They played Jesuit H.S. and unfortunately lost to them. Stephen was not very happy about that however, he was invited to play on the Varsity Team next year for Pleasant Grove! Yay Stephen! We are so proud.

After the game we headed over to Adreani Elementary School to watch the opening show of "Annie" and these 2 lovely girls! 2 of our favorites, Courtney Newbold "Annie" and Sophia Guerrero "Grace". They were terrific last night! 3 more shows to go. What a great ending to a perfect night of Football and Musical Entertainment! Way to go kids!

Child of Light

So, I love to listen to EFY soundtracks and for some reason I woke up with this song in my head. This song comes from The 2004 EFY cd which I havent listened to in eons. So, I thought it was interesting that I woke up with it in my head because it just gave me such a good feeling to wake up to. Then later in the morning I got to go to the Temple.....It was a good day:)

Do you ever wonder who you are
Do you ever wonder as you stare into the stars
Where you began and how you got this far
From Home

Have you ever walked along the shore
Have you ever seen the water dancing back and forth
Did you look inside
To see if there was more to life, well

There's a dream taking wing
There's a voice that wants to sing
Even in the deepest, darkest night
The torch is raised to the sky
There are hands that hold it high
You were born to keep it burning bright
You were made to fly
You were meant to shine
Child of light

You will never, ever stand alone
You were never called to bear the burdens on your own
And where there is fear, love will take control
And lead you on, cause

There's a dream taking wing
There's a voice that wants to sing
Even in the deepest darkest night
The torch is raised to the sky
There are hands that hold it high
You were born to keep it burning bright
You were made to fly
You were meant to shine
Child of light

Elder Nelson going to Dee Why Beach!

G'day! Man I feel like I have so much to report on . Well, transfers are here! And guess what?

I'm going to Dee Why! I leave tomorrow. I've only heard good things about Dee Why, I guess the Ward there is awesome and it's on the beach! WOO! Christmas at the beach! Oooo Baby! But it's still in the city so I'll still be around heaps of people. Dee Why's in Greenich Stake. My companion will be Elder Modlik. He's from New Zealand and he is just finished training so I will be follow up training him..oh no..haha no I already met him at Zone Conference and he is the man. He was very prepared before his mission and he had a great trainer. Very sharp. But we're both pretty young so we'll see how it goes. I'm excited but nervous too because I'm still learning myself! Elder Summers is going to Woy Woy and that's on the beach too! We were only companions for 6 weeks so that kind of sucks but it'sll be nice having a new change of scenery. Yesterday we said bye to everyone and man I'm going to miss so many people. I've really gotten close to a lot of these members and their families. But, hopefully I'll still be able to keep in contact with them somehow and see them again later on.

Fa! Elder Nelesoni

Rex Allen Cool

Tamra and Joe had their baby! This is Rex Allen Cool. He was born on November 4, 2009.
Weighing in at 7lbs. 12oz. and 20 inches long. Wish Linda could be here to see her new beautiful baby grandson. I'm sure she's watching over him now! Just a bundle of LOVE!

Nacho Libre

Okay, so this movie is one of our family's favorites! My kids quote from it all the time. Michael's best friend Adam is serving a spanish speaking mission in Argentina and after he got out there and Michael was in Australia, this is what Michael wrote to Adam....."do you ever feel like Nacho Libre? "Why have you not been baptized?"...."because I never got around to it okay?, I dont know why you are always judging me...just because I believe in science." ..."I'm just concerned about your salvation and stuff....(bringing around the bowl of water) "PRAISE THE LORD! hahaha oh man!" Gotta love those boys! Adam calls me "Mama Lisa"


"Mama Lisa's Mexican Caviar"

10 roma tomatoes chopped small
1 can whole kernel corn drained
1 can black eye peas drained
1 can black beans drained
1 green bell pepper chopped
1 small red onion chopped
1 bunch cilantro chopped (leaves only)
2 limes (juice only)
2 ripe haas avocados
1/3 bottle of light Wishbone Italian salad dressing
1 large bag of Frito's scoops

Put it all in a large bowl, scoop with Frito's and enjoy!

Beef and Black Bean Chili w Toasted Cumin Crema and Avocado Relish

So, here is Mike's recipe for his Award Winning Chili!
It's kinda hot so make sure you slowly add the ancho and pasilla powder to taste.
Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/4 c olive oil
2 pounds beef, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (we use tri-tip)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large red onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 tablespoons ancho chili powder
1 tablespoon pasilla chili powder
1 tablespoon gound cumin
1 bottle dark beer (you can omit if you want...its still good)
5 cups homemade chick stock, or canned low-sodium or water
1 (16 oz) can chopped tomatoes, drained and pureed
1 tablespoon honey
2 cups cooked or canned black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Toasted Cumin Crema, recipe follows(we use sour cream, dont like this stuff)
Avocado Relish, recipe follows

Directions:
Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Season the beef with salt and pepper, and saute until browned on all sides. Transfer the meat to a plate and remove all but 3 tablespoons of the fat from the pan.
Add the onions to the pan and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 2 mins. Add the ancho powder, pasilla powder,and cumin and cook an additional 2 mins. Add the beer and cook until completely reduced. Return the beef to the pot, add the chicken stock, tomatoes, chipotle puree, and honey, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover the pan, and simmer for 45 mins. Add the beans and continue cooking for 15 mins. Remove from the heat, add the lime juice, and adjust seasonings.
Serve with a dollop of Toasted Cumin Crema and Avocado Relish.

Toasted Cumin Crema:
1tablespoon cumin seed
1c Sour cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Avocado Relish:
2 ripe Hass avocados, peeled, pitted and diced
1/2 small red onion, finely diced
1 jalapeno or serrano chile, finely diced
Lime juice
Chopped cilantro leaves
Salt and pepper
combine all ingredients in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper.