1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9....10 YEAR REUNION!!

I received a request to post about my 10 year high school reunion and I can't let my blog readers down:) I don't have a picture to post yet, waiting on a friend to email it to me, but I'll let you know how it went.

I don't know about any of you, but I was super excited for my reunion. High school was fun for me and I miss a lot of the people I went to school with. I don't see many of them and only get to hear about their lives through Facebook. Yes, I think Facebook partially ruined the high school reunion:) But anyway, I began planning our high school reunion during the early summer months. Others joined in and we decided on dinner at the notorious "Sand Bar", followed by a picnic in the park the next day.

Attendance was good. We were missing maybe 6 or so classmates. The evening was filled with memories, updates on our lives and some great karaoke:) Our time at the "Sand Bar" came to an end, so the party moved to someone's house for an "after party":) My night gets a little blurry from here. I made a rookie mistake of mixing beer with liquor (never sicker is right!)

Needless to say, I was unable to attend the picnic (that I had planned) the following afternoon. Not only that, I didn't move or eat for about 12 hours. Now I know why they only have these every 10 years! I also realized, I'M OLD!

I had a great time and hope to see my classmates more often. Pleasanton was a great place to grow up. I'm lucky to not live too far away, but just far enough:)

Ham! Ham! Ham is everywhere!

So, based on the title of this blog, I bet you can already tell I'm going to be writing about HAM! We're a bacon and sausage lovin' family. Big fans of Saturday and Sunday morning breakfasts that force you to skip lunch and eat dinner at 4 pm:) So, we butcher a pig a couple times of year. The bacon and sausage last a couple months. Then our freezers are full of HAM!! I don't know what to do with all this boned ham, sliced ham, cured ham, smoked ham, HAM, HAM, HAM!! I like ham, don't get me wrong, I just don't know how to many anything with ham, except scalloped potatoes and ham. Actually, that's a lie, I don't make that, Cody does. It's awesome too. He uses a different recipe every time he makes it.

So, I'm on a mission to gather some recipes that involve ham:) Below is my first attempt at ridding my freezer of the pounds and pounds of ham that has been collected.

I will also spend a couple days, when it gets cold, making and freezing dishes. Preferably dishes that involve ham. On my list: ham, potato and corn chowder and ham and bean soup. I also plan to just cook a bunch of ham, chop it up and freeze it so it's there when I want to whip up a delicious meal of...HAM!!

Jalapeno Macaroni and Ham Casserole (my kids are gonna love it, not!)

What You Need

2 pkg. (7-1/4 oz. each) KRAFT Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

1 Tbsp. oil

15 slices OSCAR MAYER Deli Fresh Honey Ham, chopped

1 small red onion, finely chopped

2 jalapeño peppers, seeded, chopped

2 clove garlic, minced

4 eggs, beaten

4 KRAFT Big Slice Pepper Jack Cheese Slice, coarsely chopped

18 RITZ Crackers, crushed (about 3/4 cup)

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Make It

HEAT oven to 350ºF.

PREPARE Dinners in large saucepan as directed on package. Meanwhile, heat oil in medium skillet on medium heat. Add ham, onions, peppers and garlic; cook 5 min., stirring frequently.

ADD ham mixture to Dinners with eggs and chopped cheese; mix lightly. Mix cracker crumbs and parsley; stir half into Dinner mixture. Spoon into 2-qt. casserole sprayed with cooking spray; top with remaining crumb mixture.

BAKE 35 min. or until center is set and casserole is heated through.

I'll let you know how it turns out. FYI, I won't force my children to make this. Maybe just pull out a little of the mac and cheese and nuke a corn dog:)

Distance Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

It's such a bittersweet feeling being away from home for a few days. Actually there isn't much sweet about it, but being away does make the heart grow fonder. It makes me appreciate my boys and Cody so much. A little distance can give you a great perspective on your life. Sometimes during the day to day routine I forget to show and tell the people I love most how much they mean to me.

I think marriages or relationships in general can benefit from time apart. Cody used to travel for work and the time apart made the time together very special. Now, I would never want him to have that job because when you're raising kids you don't want to miss anything.

I'm very lucky to work for a flexible company that wouldn't force me to leave town if I were going to miss something in my kids' lives.

I'm leaving for home in a few hours and I'm excited for the coming weekend. Tomorrow morning the boys, and maybe Cody depending on if he has to pick corn, are going to a pancake feed and parade for UNK Homecoming. I love parades! The sounds, smells, people, cool weather, stocking hats, candy, hot cocoa! I love it all:)

My cousin, Kish, is getting married that afternoon and we'll also be attending a 40th birthday party for one of Cody's closest friends. Can't wait to watch the Husker vs. Wyoming game!! I think my boys would cheer for Wyoming if they knew their mascot was a cowboy!

Have a wonderful weekend and hug and kiss the ones you love!!

Monday Night Dinner Talk

Trevor, "mom do you know who got stung by a hornet at recess today?"
Me, "no."
Trevor, "Taia."

Tyson, "mom, do you know who was lining up in pre-school today and hit there head real hard against the wall and cried?"
Me, "no."
Tyson, "me."

Quote of the Day

Tyson stole a grape off Trevor's plate and ate it, we all laughed and Tyson said, "You want it back? Too bad! It's in my brain!!"

Phone Memories

I remembered yesterday that I always take pictures on my phone, but I never download them. So, yesterday I did just that! Here are a few and some of the funny stories to go along with them.This is a friend of a friend's dog , Baron, who was introducing himself. I was sitting in a chair and his face was level with mine. Huge!!

Trevor tried to pick up a lantern by grabbing the top of it - bad idea. This is the result. Fully recovered now:)

Trevor and I goofed around in the doctor's office before we found out he had to have surgery on his foot (April 2010).

First person to go potty in the new house. Found out after this that the water wasn't turned on and the toilet wouldn't flush. Oops...

Run, Jenni, Run!!

I started my goal for the month of September. On October 1st I'm going to run, yes run, not walk, in the Susan G. Komen 5K.

One of my co-workers was diagnosed with breast cancer about a month ago. She had a double mastectomy and is undergoing chemo now. Our company has really rallied around her and I think this 5K is another great way to show support for her and so many others.

My adventure started last night. I bought a sportband that keeps track of time, distance, pace, calories, etc... I've been "attempting" to run for a couple months now, but it's time to get serious! My goal is to run the entire 5K. Maybe not at a very fast pace, but I don't want to walk. So, last night I started with 3 mins walking and 3 mins running and I found myself not needing the 3 mins of walking to recover. But, an actual 3 mins of running is a lot longer than the 3 mins I used to keep track of in my head.

I have a good friend keeping me motivated, which helps a lot! Today is a break from running, so I'll do yoga. I'll keep you updated on my progress!