Emma's Fantabulous Blog

Devon & I are starting out on the long road of buying a home. Currently we have been preapproved for a mortgage and as of today, we just started working with a buyer’s broker, who Devon has worked with before, and who I already like. So this whole “buying a home” thing (which I always thought of as one of the most adult of actions) is something that we’re actually going to do. Scary.

When I talked to our broker today, he told me that D & I should make a list separately of things that we need and want in a house. In all reality, all we really need is 4 walls & a roof that enclose a space big enough for me, Devon & Fifi to sleep in, but we’re decided to sell out and become a little bit less punk rock. So I made my list.

Must Haves:

Single family home. 1 bedroom & 1 office. 2 full baths (or room to add a 2nd full bath). 2 car garage (or enough land to build one). A yard big enough for having a dog (although we don’t have one yet) and planting a little garden. Laundry area is not in kitchen. Gas stove hookups. 1400 sq ft +. A wall in a living room or family room that’s big enough for a 13 ft retractable projector screen.

Would really love:

A guest room. Lots of light. Exposed wood ceilings. A house w/ some personality/character/unique-ness. Nearish public transit: Bus, Subway and/or Commuter rail. In the city of Boston. Preferably has a patio, or deck. Not in a development. A fireplace or woodstove. A front porch, an open one preferred. An open floor plan. A BIG kitchen. Big closets in master bedroom. A hallway or front entryway coat closet. High ceilings.
Also, it wouldn’t hurt if it looked like either of these:

So, what would your “needs & wants” list look like?

I’m sick & sniffley. I started coming down with a cold on sunday. I came home early from work yesterday, and took today off. Stupid colds. I’m been nestled up in bed since I came home yesterday, and D made me chicken soup that was yummy…(I think, although I can’t taste or smell anything.)

I had a really awesome birthday, as I wasn’t sick yet, and Devon had some amazing surprises planned. He took us paragliding, which was totally amazing, although I still need to brush up on my take-offs and landings. For dinner we went to one of our favorite restaurants in downtown Seattle, and for dessert he ordered a custom cake from Central Market that featured a jungle scene with Fifi & the Lemur swinging from vines. You can check out the video of me starting my paraglide adventure and pictures of the cake at Devon’s blog post here.

Sorry I’ve been all MIA recently. A full time job kinda sucks the life outta me. All I want to do when i come home is eat dinner, unwind for an hour or so and then go to bed so I can wake up again and do it all over.

On the upside, and just to make this a completely discombobulated post(although I’m all hopped up on DayQuil, so that kinda explains it), we just got pre-approved for a home mortgage at a nice rate, so we’re happy and finally starting the “moving back to the east coast” process, which is really exciting.

Alright I’m gonna go back to drinking tea and juice and hovering over my Vick’s vaporizing humidifier thingie while watching Tivo’ed episodes of Lost and Battlestar Galactica….. <<sneeze>>.

Hey gang! I’m back in town! I have about 700 pics to upload and caption and I start back to work tomorrow. I had an amazing time traveling around Europe w/my bro. It was so awesome and we saw so many really mindblowing things that I want to share with everyone.

In the meantime (while i’m at work & working on uploading all my Europe pics & stories): Y’all should check out www.howgoodiwas.com. It’s a really great social networking site, created by my dad & his friend, and coded by D, set up to help you brag about your past accomplishments. I think it’s an awesome idea and set up my own profile, complete with pics and vids of my past endeavors of my swim team era days.

I promise I’ll bake pie’s for everyone who signs up via my blog.

Hugs!

In 1 week I will be in France…. In 2 weeks, I will be in Spain…. In 3 weeks, I will be in the Netherlands…. And in 4 weeks, I will be in Italy. I’m super excited! (except about the us dollar to euro exchange rate. That’s gonna utterly blow.)

Currently though, I’m in Seattle and there is some crazy wierd April weather going on, involving snow, hail and rain. D’s work contract is up next week and is currently job hunting, so he has a place to work once he gets back from our trip. Also his laptop just broke. Plus he’s having issues with his car’s brakes, meaning he has to take it into get fixed this week as well. And i have a crazy week of emotionally draining 10 hour workdays to wade through to before we leave.

SO yes. I have a busy week ahead of me. Work is still good. Still really depressing at times…. Devon has cut me off from letting me tell him any of the depressing parts of my day. He still tolerates the good stories though… Like the fledgling hummingbird that we got in, that is smaller than the size of my thumb… Uber cuteness.

But yeah. I’m pretty boring now… Just working and sleeping mostly. Today on my day off, I’m wearing pjs and have plans of trying to clean out my Tivo’s lineup. A lofty goal, I know.. But I think Fifi and I are up for the challenge.

So, I’ve had my job for about 3 weeks. I really love it, although parts of it are really sad. But It’s totally fascinating. I’m learning so much… How to deal with wildlife pest problems and concerns, bird identification & adult vs. babies, animal handling, public relations, geography of Washington state, referrals to other wildlife rehabilitator’s around the state and the country.

Parts of the job are really hard (I see lots of suffering and dying animals that are brought into us). U feel like I’m tireing out Devon and my parents when I tell them how my day is…. Some stuff really bothers me and I need to get it off my chest.. While other times I feel that it’s easily dealt with and I see the situation as a learning experience.

I work with some really amazing people. The wildlife receptionist who trained me, I feel, is a walking encyclopedia. She really seems to know the answer to any crazy situation. Our naturalist, Kevin, is a guy who I can go to with any animal question. For me, most birds in general tend to look the same, while our naturalist is able to identify different bird species when they are all naked nestlings. It’s really quite amazing. Our rehabbers are also really awesome. They know lots about human-wildlife cohabilitation, as well as animal identification, in addition to being able to figure out an animals problem with in a few minutes after coming in.

I really feel that PAWS wildlife center is doing something really great, and helping so many animals that wouldn’t have a chance otherwise. Although, like most non-profits, I wish that we were better funded so we would be able to more extensively help more animals….

However stories like this make me so happy to go to work, and make my work feel super fulfilling…. even if the hours suck.
(BWT, the raccoon mentioned in the above story is so beautiful. When I was a volunteer, I loved cleaning her cage just so I could see her. The situation broke my heart, as she seemed so fragile at times. Everyone at the center was so ecstatic when she was deemed able to be released, because we had all feared that she mightnever make it. But she was a fighter, and she now she finally has been.)

Really enjoyed it although gawd, I’m exhausted and my feet/legs hurt. I totally need a pair of those orthopedic nurse shoes.

Also, for the record… Kids: stop hitting animals with bb guns/dart/baseballs. Seriously… When has this ever been viewed as an acceptable way for your kids to be spending their time? (other than times of famine or whatever of course, when you really need to live off of wild animals.) But seriously guys. It makes me think that you’re a serial killer in training.

Alright. I’m going to get a glass of wine and go to bed.

So apparently hell has frozen over. I was offered and accepted a job at PAWS wildlife, doing reception and admissions. I originally thought that it was a seasonal/part time position… Well it is seasonal… But it’s certainly not part-time.

I start this Tuesday, working 9am-5.30pm, Tuesdays thru Saturdays. and then later in the season I’ll switch to 10 hour days, 4 days a week. Yeah… 40 hours a week is not part time, and I’ll have a new weird weekend. What good club nights does Seattle have on Sunday night? I think the scary Dawg Tagz bar/scary cinderblock building with no windows might have karaoke that night or something….  hehe but anyways, I’ll be making some nice duckets.

I’m excited, but a smidgen nervous. Devon is totally bummed that he won’t have a housewife to run his errands anymore… I’m psyched to have a househusband (yeah he has a job, but he works from home) to have greet me at the door with a cocktail and have dinner on the table. hehe. I kid, I kid…  Kinda…

1. I’m sick. Somehow I managed to escape Devon’s two plagues, only to come down with a cold of my very own… Yeay!.. (sarcasm abounds)

2. I’m thinking about re-entering the workforce and have decided to apply for a paid position at PAWS. It would be working in the Wildlife Receptions and Admissions. So I’d be manning the phone, telling the public that called in to not feed bears or try to pet cougars, ect… and dealing with animal intake when the public brings in injured or orphaned wildlife.

I’m excited about having a job again… But kinda nervous as I’ve never written a resume or had a job that required one… Not to mention the 4 year gap in my work history… But it seems that this job would be great for me… It’s customer service related, which I think I’m pretty good with, but I still get to deal with some animals.  I believe its only 4 days a week and it’s a seasonal position (march-sept), meaning that I’ll still be able to move back to Boston in the fall.

For the moment though, I’m focused on a cup of Throat Coat Tea (best medicine EVER for a sore throat) and some Nyquil.

It’s cold and flu season. My poor husband with an apparently beaten down immune system has had 2 nasty colds within 3 weeks. So I realized that it was definitely time to pull out my super awesome homemade Chicken Noodle Soup recipe again. I though you guys might appreciate a new recipe to add to your collection… Or at least compare it to your own version of this classic home remedy.

For me, homemade chicken soup is all about making your own stock if you have the time… I dunno what it is. Maybe it tastes better, or has more cold-fighting properties, but it’s possible that I just love it because it always makes my entire house smell amazing. Now if you’re in a rush or just not in a super patient mood, feel free to use cans or cartons of premade chicken broth from the store.

Homemade Chicken Stock Ingredients:

- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 16 cups or 4 quarts of water
- 8 Chicken thighs & 1 Chicken Breast, halved (w/bones & skin)
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 2 tsp. dried parsley
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 Tbsp. salt
- 1 tsp. thyme
- 1 ½ tsp. black pepper

Soup Ingredients:

- Chicken stock
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- ¾ to 1 package of Egg Noodles
- ½ cup parsley, chopped
- Hot pepper sauce, (ex. Tabasco)
- Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. To Make Stock: Lightly sauté onions and garlic in butter for about 2 minutes. Add water and chicken and bring to a boil. Skim off froth. Add carrots, celery, dried parsley, bay leaves, salt, thyme and pepper. Reduce heat to low/medium and simmer, partially covered for about 1 hour, or until juices run clear when meat is pierced.

2. Remove all solids (chicken, veggies, bay leaves, etc…) from the broth with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl. Separate bones, fat and skin from chicken. Pick apart or chop the good chicken meat and throw it back into the stock. Discard cooked veggies and leftover chicken parts.

3. To Make Soup: Add fresh onion, carrots and celery to stock & chicken. Cover pot and cook over medium/high for about 8 minutes.

4. Add noodles and cook uncovered for 8-10 minutes or until noodles and veggies are tender. Add more salt and pepper if desired.

5. When dishing out bowls season to your liking with hot pepper sauce (It sounds kinda weird but I highly recommend it! Even Devon, the “anti-condiment of any kind” man thinks that the soup tastes way better with Tobasco. Also for all my sickly homeboys & girls, it helps clear you up if you’re congested.) Top bowls with some fresh parsley and serve!

6. Eat your super awesome Homemade Chicken Soup and relish in the fact that you’re enjoying a cold remedy that tastes way better than that nasty green Nyquil. ☺

Go Pats!

I’ll be watching the superbowl. Mostly for the delicious spread of food that always accompanies watching the game at my parent’s house and for the new commercials that always air during the game… Oh.. and I suppose I have some hometown team pride.

Go Pats!