Jan 3, 2009

First Homeowner's Saturday

Today is our first Saturday as a homeowner. We have done homeowner-y things. Bryan got up early and went to Shelby Farms for a long run. I slept in some and then got up and read in the living room for a while. After our showers we got dressed and straightened up (i.e. moved any unpacked boxes to the guest room, our current catch all). Bryan's friend from high school and college came by on his way in town with his wife to see the place and then we had lunch. Talked about homeowner-y things because they are in the process of buying a house. Then we went to a local lighting store that is going out of business to browse for potential light fixtures for the house. (Didn't see anything that really jumped out at me.) My sister-in-law told me that West Elm opened an outlet next to the Pottery Barn outlet (one of my very favorite things about Memphis) so I was dying to go. We cruised through West Elm, Pottery Barn, and William Sonoma. I seriously considered getting a stainless steel Kitchen Aid mixer as it was 30% off... but decided to wait. Bryan has been wanting a fire pit for the new back yard patio, so we went to Target to purchase on we'd seen last week. We also got baskets for the bathroom shelves and I found a super cute Thakoon dress. I also purchased over-the-door hooks for our towels in the bathroom. We treated ourselves to Jerry's snow cones (yet another thing to love about Memphis) and came home to put the fire pit together. I had to do most of it because Bryan was on the phone. We are now at a local cafe because the new house does not have free internet. Tonight we're going to have some friends over for smores over the fire bowl.

Every year I feel like I should have a resolution... which of course will never come to fruition. But I still feel the urge... although now that I think about it, I don't think I had any for the last few years. I was watching a cooking show this morning while we were waiting for the friends to come by. And I thought about the year of crockpot cooking or the living Oprah website and how they committed to doing something everyday for a whole year. I don't think I have the passion to commit to something like that right now, especially if I don't have a precise goal. But I would like to try to cook something new that I normally wouldn't try at least once a week.

When it comes to cooking, I often refuse to try things if there are too many ingredients, too many steps, or require ingredients that I've never used before. I'd like to branch out and at least learn some new skills and dishes. So I will try to put aside my fear of complicated dishes or fancy ingredients and embrace my culinary potential. I'll let you know how it goes.

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