An assortment of things on my mind...

Good food is a big part of my life. From my favorite dinner at Carraba's to my love affair with Coke, I am always on the lookout for good things to put in my mouth. And now a note to a friend...

Dear Chad,

After finding the bliss that is the Candy Cane Joe-Joe at the Trader Joe's near your home, I find that I crave them on a regular basis. I have shared their deliciousness with our mutual friend Peter who has since become my personal Trader Joe's shuttle bus when he visits California.

(thanks Pete!)

I truly thought that a store-bought cookie could not get any better. I mean really, I can never eat an Oreo again without thinking of how inferior it is in comparison. Then you brought me the gift to mankind that is the dark chocolate covered peppermint Joe Joe. I knew they would be good. How can you go wrong when you combine this tasty cookie with dark chocolate. Oh. my. gosh. I was not expecting them to be THAT good!!!

Thank you for what is probably the best Christmas present I have ever recieved!

Love, Alta

And now, a note on a personal victory today. Scott and I (after shoveling what felt like 200 feet of snow off the driveway), rearranged the crap very important stuff in the garage so I could park my van inside. This became necessary as it turns out that the sliding doors freeze shut EVERY time it snows. We had this problem once or twice with our Kia but I guess Toyota's are more susceptible.

So we've been in this house for 2 years and now we can finally park both cars in the garage. Yay for me!

And now I will share with you a quick, easy, and delicious dinner that my friend Susie introduced us to. We call it noodles with tomatoes and cheese because it is just that.

Ingredients:

elbow noodles
diced Tomatoes
V-8
cubed cheddar cheese

First you boil elbow noodles to your desired softness, drain the water, then dump in a can of diced tomatoes (juice and all), and a can of V-8. Serve with cubed cheddar cheese. Really, it's that easy!