Turkey Recipe

This recipe is from my 5 year old nephew Robbie. He told his teacher how to make turkey and she wrote it down. He then asked his mother who would be making the turkey this year and she said "Yaya". Dori was instructed by Robbie to call me and give me his recipe so I could make it on Thursday.




Ingredients:
Chicken
Meat
Eggs
Squid
Turkey

Directions:
Cook it in the oven for 19 minutes

Oven Temp:
19 degrees

It's my Birthday and I'll cry if I want to!

So, it's my birthday and ONCE AGAIN I am sick. It seems like bronchitis again. Seriously, it's ridiculous. It makes me want to cry.

So, one of my staff (a massage therapist from Thailand) brought this in for me today. I THINK she meant to say "Happy Birthday Kara Tull" but I'm not certain. It's funny and very kind all the same. I unfortunately won't be eating any today but will save it for tomorrow when hopefully my throat won't feel like I have swallowed several daggers.

I also recieved a dozen long stem peach roses that are EXQUISITE! They were sent from my friend Rob who knew that the very best gift I could get are flowers. I love them. They make me happy.

Other than the fact that I am sick, this is a GREAT birthday.

I see a pattern here.....

A good friend of mine sent this to me and said it was me to a "T".....(of course, one part of this is yet to be determined....read on)

A Fixed Water sign, Scorpios are said to be stable in character, but also very sensitive and emotional. Scorpio is emotionally the strongest and is considered the most profound and intense character in the zodiac sign of the Zodiac. Scorpios are considered to be gifted.

Scorpio is ruled by Mars, the planet associated with activity and power. Scorpios are dynamic, powerful, and passionate. The Scorpio is one intense little creature, with enough poison in its own tail to disable or kill a much larger opponent. Scorpio personality can sting when hurt or angered. They never forget a wrong act towards them and usually seek revenge, even if years later. Otherwise, however, Scorpios are extremely loyal and can be quite compassionate as well as passionate.

The Scorpio can be the toughest enemy as they are often one step ahead of the game with their powers of perception, steely intuition, and suspicious nature. Their intuition can be so developed that they border on the clairvoyant; yet, outwardly they can look as if they don't suspect a thing. They are the supreme chess players of the Zodiac. Often showing an extreme sense of calmness and stability, Scorpios are infamous for holding their emotions within. Thus, they appear calm and stable, but could really be ready to burst at any moment.

Scorpio is a very sexually driven sign and is the most passionate of the Zodiac. They are extremely powerful in bed and can overtake a less courageous partner. Making love for them is a spiritual act and partners feel they are taken to a higher level as deep emotion and physical action are involved. Scorpions are fiercely loyal and love one partner only. Beware however, cross a scorpion in love and you will regret it.

Scorpions are well known for their intense and powerful natures. Scorpios are very passionate, causing them to be exciting and magnetic to other people. In other words, they are extremely likeable for their intuitive traits. They are rarely found in the center of the activity but will always know just what is going on. They watch and take mental notes. Their deep sensitivity makes them the best and the most loyal friend but the same quality makes them the most treacherous of enemies. They excel at everything and anything, when they combine their energy, self-confidence, ambition and generosity toward others. They can be demanding of others but will never ask someone to do what they won't be able to do themselves.

Their passion and intensity lead them to lofty and important goals and anyone who has not earned their respect will fall to the wayside. They like to take charge and can effect changes with nothing but their sheer will.

Scorpions are a go anywhere type of bunch that love to travel. Scorpios prefer interesting places where things can be learned to places with pretty scenery and landscapes. Scorpios should never be taken lightly. They are dead serious when it comes to learning about others and will not stop their investigations into anything until they get to the absolute bottom of things. You won’t get much out of a Scorpio about themselves, though, as they are complex and secretive and too much prying can push them away. They live in a black and white world with no use for a grey area.

Scorpios are extremely resourceful in every sense, whether it is money or ideas and are ideal to have around in a tight situation. Their determined take-charge attitude can cause others to follow without realizing they are being led. Scorpios are fearless and determined to succeed, focusing on the beginning and ending of things and not much in the middle. They work hard to feel satisfied and have an uncanny ability to find the truth. They lead by example and if their aggressiveness can be controlled, Scorpios can accomplish and achieve anything they set their mind to. Challenge and competition are the Scorpion’s strengths.

It's a Wonderful Life

The first fire of the year. This makes me so happy. I love coming home from work and making a fire, putting on music and making dinner. It's a wonderful life.

Of course, Dori and the kids were there to share this with me as they are with most events in my life right now. I don't know what I would do without them. It's true bliss.

A Few of my FAVORITE things

This past Saturday was quite a busy day for me. I hosted a bridal shower for Megan who is as close to me as a sister. I love her dearly and will miss her as she begins her new life in Oklahoma!






She will kill me when she sees that I have posted a picture of my gift to her. (but doesn't she look GORGEOUS?)
Anyway, we had about 22 women over and it was a lot of fun.

My sister Dori made the cake - it feeds 60 but I saw a picture of this cake and wanted her to make it. Needless to say, we have some cake left over.






After the bridal shower, I changed gears and set up my dining room table for a dinner with my sisters and mother. Every month we meet for "Granny's Goombata" (Goombata in Italian means "special ones" and my mother formed our group after my step-father passed away last year. It has been great - just the women in my family meet once a month for dinner. We have a great time) This particular Granny's Goombata we were going to celebrate my birthday (since it is on the 19th) and I wanted to eat dinner at my house instead of a restaurant. I thought it would be nice and more intimate so we orderd take out from The Cheesecake Factory. One of my favorite restaurants. I was very happy.

I got my FAVORITE cake from Pastries by Randolph (in Arlington). It's a raspberry buttercream and it is DIVINE. My sisters and mother got me my first thing ever from TIFFANY'S. I absolutely love it.






From Left to right: Cameron, Mom, Dori, Mandy. Usually my sister-in-law Shawnie comes but she was on her way back from a week in Cancun with my brother. They bought a time-share! I'm glad they had a great time.






This is one of the pictures I love from the night. It's a classic Tull Sisters moment.





This is typical Cameron. I grew up sharing a room with her until I went to college. I get my silliest with her. There was one year where my mother banned us from sitting next to each other at holidays from that time forward. (We were in our 20's too.....laughing fits are pretty standard with us)







Okay....Dori had this strange alfalfa thing going on. We couldn't figure out why she had this crazy piece of hair that stood straight up! I couldn't stop laughing.











This is Robbie and Shane. They came over after dinner and spent the night with me. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day. I am sure you can see why all of these things are a few of my favorite things.

Forbidden Fruit?

I went out last week to get Chineese food and my fortune said "Forbidden Fruit causes many jams."~

First of all, that's not really a fortune as much as it is a foreboding. Don't you agree?

Second of all, I prefer jam over jelly any day.
Just a thought.

DISCLAIMER: Not to worry....this is not a confession. I just like jam.

One of those days...weeks....years????

So, I'm just going to call it like it is. 2007 has been an "off" year for me. Among ALL of my sicknesses, deaths in the family, sickness among family members etc. etc. I am ready to lay this year to rest.

Today has already been an interesting day. (it's 9am) I have to say, what I am about to share with you is probably one of the DUMBEST things I have EVER done. With that said.....let me tell you about my LOVELY boots I just bought. Macy's has GREAT shoe sales and I happened to be at the mall when the sale was going on. I have been looking for a while so when I saw these boots I was very happy..they were just what I wanted. I tried them on....well, right foot only and KNEW they were perfect. The next day I wore them to a party. When I put the left one on, it felt VERY tight and I thought to myself...."I know my left foot is not THAT much bigger/wider than my right" and thought it was so strange that it hurt so badly after about 3 hours of wearing the left boot. I wore them to work on Monday and by the end of the day could not believe that the boot did not stretch one bit and that my left foot was killing me. So this morning I go to put my boots on again (yes...I will endure PAIN for fashion) and I realized that my left boot was very stiff - unlike my right one. I stuck my hand in my boot and this is what I pulled out.


CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? I mean, how dumb can I be AND how the (insert your own swear word) did I NOT REALIZE it was in my boot. I mean REALLY.....
So, I pulled it out, put my boot on and it was Heaven. No pain, not even a little discomfort...imagine that.


So, after that little epiphany, I get in my car to drive to work. Those of you that know me, know that I listen to music (sometimes rather loudly) in my car. At this particular moment, I was listening to Michael Jackson's BILLIE JEAN and I noticed an odd beat in the song. I then realized that it actually wasn't coming from my iPod - it was my car. So I turned off my music to see if I could hear it better. BOY HOWDY - it sounded like I had a flat - but my car was not shaking, and my steering was fine. I've had enough flats to know what they feel like. Nevertheless, I pulled over and got out to inspect my tire. I was almost expecting to see a dead animal stuck in the wheel or something. Lucky me, no dead animal and I could not see anything wrong....so, I got back in my car and continued on my way to work. Well, the noise seemed to be getting louder and people in their cars were looking at me so I called work and spoke to my friend Carlos. I even stuck my phone out of my window so he could hear the noise. He heard it and said maybe something had come loose. We just couldn't figure it out.

I called my mechanic and he said I could come in around 11am. I drive an Audi and they are expensive to fix and you have to go to a certified mechanic. Anyway, I have a mechanic that I really like. So, I came home and came inside to clean my house etc (it's what I do when I have a day off) I ran back out to my car to get a bottle of water and decided to look at my tire one more time to see if I could find anything. Lo and behold....look what I saw.


That thing is so big no wonder it sounded like I had a dead animal in my wheel. So, I called my mechanic and told him there was a STAKE in my wheel and he could kill dracula with it. He laughed his arabic laugh and told me that he would order a tire and he could have it by 2pm. So, alas, everything will be alright and I'll be back on the road tomorrow. With the way this year has gone though, I'd be afraid...very afraid.

My new Goal

Well, I have a new goal. I want to visit each of the 7 continents sometime in my life. I have been to Northern America (of course) and Europe. I ALMOST made it to Africa when I was in Spain but decided not to go. Now, I really wish we had gone. I just looked up cruises to Antartica and it's not nearly as pricey as I had expected. This is a very attainable goal and I am excited to complete it!

So there you have it. My new goal in life. Wish me luck. I am going on a cruise in 2 weeks (Grand Cayman, Mexico, Honduras, Belize) and then to the Czech Republic in the Spring....so after I get through those vacations, I will definitely work on my goal. Anyone who wants to come with me to one or more of the continents, let me know.