Holidays » Mi Vida Ocupada

Traditional Japanese New Year

Jan 132012

For those of you who know me IRL or have followed this blog over the years, know that my MIL is from Japan and that we celebrate a traditional Japanese New Year every year. The menu changes somewhat each year but we ALWAYS have sushi of some kind that my BILs make….

New Years Day Sashimi

Spicy Octopus Roll

Kaibishira

Tuna Tataki

Teriyaki Chicken Wings

Tamago

Giant Prawns

Salmon Roe with Quail Egg

I love our tradition!
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On this date I have blogged about:

On 01-13-11: Read Would you go Ghost Hunting? (01-13-11)
On 01-13-08: Read Lunch with the girls…. (01-13-08)
On 01-13-07: Read Another new one :) (01-13-07)
On 01-13-06: Read Tagged-Twice! (01-13-06)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Over the Hill {Party for D-Relli}

Birthday Shout-outs, Holidays 3 Responses »

Jan 062012

Christmas is usually a busy time of year but can you imagine what it would be like to have a Christmas birthday?? My neighbor, Darrell, was born on Christmas Day. Black Baby Jesus!! lol Every year on Christmas night he and Denise throw a birthday party at their house and invite a bunch of friends and family. This year was extra special because Darrell turned 40!
A few photos I took that night….
Blowing out candles…

The birthday boy and his daughter Breanna

Birthday Boy with his old homeboy (yes, he put on the Vikes jersey just for this photo!)

Denise, me and Shannon (ugg, I hate flash!)

A few others from the night…

It was a fun night but kind of low-key compared to past years. We ate and drank a little, talked a lot.
Good times!

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Christmas 2011 Recap

Family Gatherings, Holidays 2 Responses »

Jan 032012

I am already all over the place since I posted Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, but posts will not be in chronological order and will definitely be retrospective.

So here we go with Christmas 2011…..

My cousin Zach and his family

Me and my Aunt Carol (my mom’s youngest sister & #8 of 8)

MacKenzie and her boyfriend

Carol and Chris

Carol has a Santa collection, here are a few of them

For Christmas dinner we went to my in-laws where we had roasted duck. After presents, etc we came home and relaxed before heading next door for Darrell’s Annual Birthday Celebration (he is a Christmas Baby). Separate post on that to follow…
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On this day I have blogged about….

On 01-03-10: Read Blue Moon on the Last Day of the Decade!! (01-03-10)
On 01-03-10: Read Pizza Time! (01-03-10)
On 01-03-10: Read Pharaoh the White Lion (01-03-10)
On 01-03-10: Read Photo Banner (01-03-10)
On 01-03-06: Read Starting the Year out COLD…. (01-03-06)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Hello 2012! {NYE 2011 Recap}

Holidays 6 Responses »

Jan 022012

Happy New Year!

Can you believe it is 2012?

2012.

Whoa!

This is not going to be a post about Resolutions, but rather a few pics from New Year’s Eve. The evening was low-key as it usually is for us. A snowstorm was predicted for after 9pm and sure enough, it snowed as they said it would. We had been “brown” up until this point… any other snow we’ve had has melted shortly after its arrival.

We went to the Lakeside Club for dinner with our neighbors (Collage made on Diptic App right from my phone!)

Preview of Lakeside Club

Drank some bubbly….

New Years Eve 2011

Then we ran around in the snow and watched the neighbor girls

Today we slept in and then watched the Vikings vs Chicago on TV, then headed over to the In-Laws for our traditional Japanese sushi dinner. More on that later!

Tonight I also reached One Million hits on the Twin Cities Restaurant Blog. Woo Hoo!

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Annual Christmas Eve Fondue

Family Gatherings, Holidays 6 Responses »

Dec 272011

Christmas is now just behind us and before I allow myself to get too far behind, I am going to get my pics up now! I took a combo of photos with my Instagram on the iPhone and with my Nikon.
As always, we spent Christmas Eve with my family up at my parents’ house in Chisago City. It was a treat to have Jeff’s fiance Amanda with us this year for the first time. She was given the honor of dipping the first fondue fork in the pot;)

I know I blog the same stuff about our Christmas Eve Fondue every year but I still gotta share our family tradition with any new readers I have picked up since last year ;)
For dinner we have large trays of marinated meats and several fondue pots filled with hot oil. We each get a handful of fondue forks to use. This year in addition to steak, chicken, pork and tuna, we also had mushrooms, cheese sticks, cream cheese wontons, empanadas, pierogies and waffle fries.

We had a nice evening visiting and interacting with the kids, then later opening presents.

Christmas angel

I got some very nice gifts including an iPhone from Jeff

and this cute hat hand-knit by Michelle

and these cute s & p shakers

Fat cats (Instagram)

We got the kids pajamas, interactive videos/games, and sunglasses. It was a nice time! Bonus: going home with caramel rolls
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On this date I have blogged about:

On 12-27-08: Read Christmas Eve….. (12-27-08)
On 12-27-06: Read New Banner/Scheme & Banner Give-away (12-27-06)
On 12-27-06: Read JT on SNL Skit: Too funny! (12-27-06)
On 12-27-06: Read Christmas Feasting (12-27-06)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Thoughts for Thursday: Elf on the Shelf

Holidays, Thoughts for Thursday 7 Responses »

Dec 152011

Elf on the Shelf

Have you seen this phenomena around Facebook or the internet??

A few weeks ago I saw a post on FB where my SIL Michelle posted this photo (below) and I had no idea what it was all about, but then I saw more elves doing more mischievous deeds and caught on to the idea.

It is the latest way for parents to bribe their kids into being good during the month of December. Apparently you tell your kids that Santa sent this Elf to watch you and every night he reports back to Santa. More info and ideas about Elf on the Shelf in this video (Youtube has hundreds of Elf on a Shelf pranks and ideas!)

Apparently you can find a ton of ideas for your Elf on a Shelf on various blogs……. IF YOU HAVE THE TIME to pull pranks (on behalf of your Elf) in the middle of the night. No? Check out what a blogger mommy at “People I want To Punch in the Throat” blog has to say about Over-Achieving Elf on the Shelf Mommies! Jenny posted the link to this article on FB last night and I thought it was simply HILARIOUS and had to share!! Even if you have no idea about this phenomena, it is a very funny read, go check it out!

What are your thoughts on Elf on the Shelf? Do you do this with your kids? What is your Elf’s name? What kind of pranks has he/she pulled?

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In the past on this date I have blogged about:

On 12-15-09: Read A Desperate Plea to Oprah’s Angels….. (12-15-09)
On 12-15-05: Read Who knows me? (12-15-05)
On 12-15-05: Read ScrapJazzy Awards! (12-15-05)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Giving Thanks….

Holidays 2 Responses »

Nov 242011

Today is a day to recognize those things we are thankful for. I’ll be honest, 2011 has not been a great year for me, but this is as good a time as any to count my blessings.

I am thankful to have a smart, funny and strong man as my partner
I am thankful for having my parents and the values they taught me
I am thankful for my brothers and that they are happy, with families of their own
I am thankful for my nieces Annika and Bianca, and my nephew Bennett.
I am thankful for having a large but close-knit family on both my mom and dad’s sides
I am thankful I still have my Gram & Gramp
I am thankful I still have Phoenix and Isis
I am thankful for the few close girlfriends I have
I am thankful for having excellent neighbors who have become family to us
I am thankful for all the blogging friends I have made over the years
I am thankful to have this blog as an outlet
I am thankful for my optimism and sense of humor. They keep me going in tough times
I am thankful to have my health. Even though I do have a few health issues, it could be a lot worse.
I am also thankful that I have health insurance
I am thankful for books and the ability to read and write
I am thankful for my education and the opportunities I have
I am thankful to have a job I love as a gifted & talented teacher at a great school
I am thankful to make a livable salary
I am thankful for the success and opportunities I have had with the Twin Cities Restaurant Blog
I am thankful I have a roof over my head and a car to get me around
I am thankful for my camera and learning how to use it
I am thankful for the internet and modern convenience
I am thankful for living in the United States and having my liberties and freedom

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Halloween Party 2011 {Mythical & Mythological}

Friend Time, Holidays 8 Responses »

Nov 032011

Ready to see party pics?! The theme of the Hillesheim’s Halloween Party this year was Mythical and Mythological Creatures. Most people adhered to the theme and it was fun to see some of the costumes. Unfortunately, my photos didn’t turn out very good. Nighttime party pics required me to use my flash and I was also using my kit lens so that I could have a wider angle. Not to mention I had a few to drink. Oh well, the night was still partially captured!
Our gracious hosts…. (Unicorn and dragon)

Some of the ladies…

Notice all the striped socks?!

I was SO EXCITED to see Heather. Whither the Tide had a show earlier in the evening and since her man is the lead singer, I didn’t think they would make it, But they did :)

Have you ever seen an Abominable Snowman??!!

A few more party people….

The Tooth Fairies….

Rosemary’s Baby (very creepy!)…

I laughed a lot that night…

We even had a couple of people dressed up as Vikings Super Bowl Champs… they fit right in since it is a myth that the Vikes would ever win.
“This party really sucks and that costume makes your ass look big!”

Fun times!
Thanks Matty and Colleen :)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Happy Halloween!

Holidays 5 Responses »

Oct 312011

Just poppin in for a sec to post a photo of myself in costume from the party I went to on Saturday night. It isn’t a very good photo but it is the only one of just myself that I have…..

I was a Dark Angel/ Goth Fairy. All my black lipstick has worn off at this point. I had a blast!

I will post more photos from the Halloween party some time this week :)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Halloween is Coming!

Holidays, Thoughts Wanted 8 Responses »

Oct 252011

Walmart sure is ready!

Halloween Candy Display at Walmart

I am attending the annual Hillesheim Halloween Bash this weekend, the theme this year is Mythical or Mythological Creatures. Still thinking about my costume and what I am going to be. Any great ideas?

Anyone else attending a costume party this weekend (or last weekend?) What will you dress up as?

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Labor Day {Family Get Together}

Family Gatherings, Holidays 7 Responses »

Sep 232011

Yes, I know Labor Day was weeks ago.

Better late than never!

As usual, we headed up to my parents house for Sunday Family Dinner. The weather was very windy so we didn’t get out on the boat, but we did a little fishing off the dock with Bianca and Bennett. We also went on a walk with Bianca. She thinks her Uncle E is really funny, they get along great. He loves those Squirrels (his nickname for A & B)
Here is Bennett lounging on the dock while watching Uncle fish.
Annika spent the time indoors, cuddled up watching something on TV

My Grandparents also came up for dinner. We had ribs that were fall-off-the-bone tender…. delicious!!

We also had corn on the cob, broccoli salad, bread, and fruit salad. My Gram makes the best fruit salad! I remember her making big Watermelon boats FULL of fruit when I was a kid. Love the memory :)

Ahh, I love Sunday Family Dinners :)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

4th of July {Party with the Koch Fam}

Family Gatherings, Great Outdoors & Weather, Holidays 6 Responses »

Jul 102011

I know it has been a week since the 4th of July but we have been so busy having fun all week that I am just getting to posting my photos. My cousin Daniel was in town from Tucson and in an attempt to get everyone together, Brian and Michelle threw a party up at their new lake home. We spent time out on the lake, hanging out, playing games, drinking and eating. It was a wonderful day, I almost didn’t want it to end. Only about 1/3 of the Koch clan was in attendance but we still had 30+ people.

The visuals……

Some photos taken on land….

Gram got on the John Deere and gave tractor rides like she used to do with us when we were kids. They loved it as much as we always did!

The food….

I forgot to take pictures of the desserts but my Gram made her famous Club Cracker Cookies. Yumma yumma yumma.

Hope you all had a great 4th of July too!

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Father’s Day with the Fam

Family Gatherings, Holidays 5 Responses »

Jun 272011

Last Sunday we celebrated Father’s Day up at my parents’ house. A special day to celebrate and honor our Dad, Gramps and Brian too, as they are all special fathers. Read this sweet little “Ode” that Michelle wrote to Brian.

We didn’t get out on the lake but hung out on the boat and fished from the dock.

I’m having Deja Vu…. I think I have seen Michelle holding a glass of wine on the boat before ;) lol

Jeffrey Cowabunga

Check out this whopper that my man caught ;)

Gram and Gramp came up for dinner as well. Here Jeff is showing off the book he made of His & Amanda’s Engagement Trip Down Under (Which is GORGEOUS and totally awesome. I want to make a book too!)

A few more of the family…..

We haven’t had a family photo with just us 5 in years

Gramps is doing okay since his stroke back in March. He is very quiet now, which is sad. He used to be the King of Storytelling. He still has his sense of humor though!

And because ya’ll always comment on the food at our family dinners and because I take photos of food, here is what we ate this year…..
Roast Beef

Roasted Baby Reds with fresh parmesan, dill and butter

Spinach Salad with strawberries, walnuts and gorgonzola

Broccoli Salad
Asparagus

And Strawberry & Blueberry Cheesecake for dessert. No picture of this but Bianca is eating it in the photo with my dad above.

After dinner we all drove about a mile down the road to check out Brian & Michelle’s new cabin. What a beautiful home! They scored huge with this place and Michelle has already been hard at work with the gardening. Excited to hang out there more often when I can this summer. Speaking of Michelle, she is back to blogging. If you were a follower before, you may want to revisit Curls, Spunk and Monkey Chunk to check out the latest with their family.

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

How I celebrated Cinco de Mayo {fajitas y margaritas}

Food and Drink, Holidays 1 Response »

Jun 192011

I know this was six weeks ago but I am trying to catch up ;)

Cinco de Mayo is totally an Mexican-American holiday, one that I have taken to celebrating every year with a yummy Mexican meal.

This year we had fajitas and margaritas with our next door neighbors. Underneath all of that guac, peppers and cheese there is steak. Delicioso!

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Mother’s Day 2011 {Gram & Gramps are Back}

Family Gatherings, Holidays 5 Responses »

May 112011

Did ya’ll have a nice Mother’s Day? Hope so, I did.

We started the day by taking my in-laws out for sushi. I tried Jellyfish for the very first time….very interesting. Doubt I will be eating that again but I can now add it to My List of Bizarre Foods.

Later in the afternoon we headed up north to my parents house to hang out and have dinner. My Gram & Gramp are now back in MN for the summer, it was great to see them. This is the first time I have seen my Gramps since he had a stroke back in March. He seems to be doing okay but you can tell the stroke has definitely affected him in many ways.

Here are the photos from Mother’s Day

Mom and Gram ~ Mothers Day 2011

Sauer Girls Mothers Day 2011

Michelle and Kids ~ Mothers Day 2011

Kristi Brian Jeff with Gram & Gramp

Gram & Gramp ~ Mothers Day 2011

Bennett on Bench

View of Lake Chisago ~ Mothers Day 2011

Down by the shore of the lake there were tons of carp spawning. Each of these fish were at least 12-15″. It was cool to see

Parmesan Dill Baby Red Potatoes

Greek Salad

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Cooking for Cinco de Mayo {Muy Delicioso}

Food and Drink, Holidays, Recipes 5 Responses »

May 032011

What are your plans for this Thursday, el Cinco de Mayo? If you’re like me, you have Mexican food on the brain this week. No doubt I will be eating something delicious and Mexican this week at some point (and probably enjoying my favorite beverage, El Margarita.)

Thought I would gather a few simple recipes for you if you haven’t made plans already.

How about some Fish Tacos with Fresh Chile? I love all the color in this dinner, so pretty and yummy!

Fish Tacos on Flour Tortilla

Another delicious option is Homemade Enchiladas. So many recipe options out there! I think the key is the sauce you use. Making your sauce from scratch will always taste better than from a can, but a can isn’t horrible if you go to El Mercado and buy something authentic (aka NOT Old El Paso or Ortega).

Enchiladas

Mexican-Style Beef and Potato Empanadas. Tons of options for fillings with these little pockets of goodness but these ones were super delish. The rice was awesome too, made with gandules aka pigeon peas. I will have to post that recipe one of these days but NiNi makes it different every time. lol

Beef Empanadas and Arroz con Gandules

What are your plans for Cinco this year?

Enjoy!

Margarita Trio

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Easter 2011

Family Gatherings, Holidays 6 Responses »

Apr 272011

If you watched my video blog the other day you might remember that I said I had a lovely Easter up at my Mom & Dad’s house with a bunch of my cousins, aunts uncles, etc. It was warmer than it has been lately and the sun was out!

A few photos from the day…..

Michelle, Amanda and Me (with my new “black cherry” hair!) I LOVE this picture!!!

The newly engaged couple, Jeff and Amanda

Brian and Jeff with our dad

Mom and Dad (I had intended to get a picture of my mom’s outfit because it was so cute. Ooops!)

Annika and Michelle

Annika and Bianca

Brian and Bianca

Bennett

More of the extended family…..

Easter Tulips

Dessert…..

I hope ya’ll had a nice Easter too!

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

New Years Eve 2010 {Steak & Put-n-Take}

Games & Entertainment, Holidays 4 Responses »

Jan 092011

The past few years we have gone out for a nice steak dinner and then played games with our neighbors on New Years Eve. This year was pretty much the same, but we had a ton of fun!

First we went to Kozlak’s Royal Oak for a delicious (and expensive!) steak dinner. I will be posting a review soon but for my records here….

Queen Cut Prime Rib at Kozlaks Royal Oak ~ Shoreview, MN copy

Pink Squirrel at Kozlak’s Royal Oak ~ Shoreview, MN

A group of us then got together to play the most fun gambling game that anybody and everybody can play…. Put and Take. Everyone starts with a designated currency (we used quarters), then everyone antes into the pot before each round. Each player takes a turn spinning the dreidel and has to do what the dreidel lands on…. take 1, take 2, Pay 1, Pay 2, all pay 1, or take all (the whole pot!). We used a 6 sided spinner but you can also get 8 sided ones. I totally need to buy this spinner so I can play with my family and other friends, everybody loves this game! I am pretty sure it is originally a Jewish game. Has anybody played it???

We also spent a good portion of the evening playing darts and sipping cocktails.

Fun times!

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

A Busy Christmas {The most wonderful time of the year}

Family Gatherings, Friend Time, Holidays 4 Responses »

Jan 092011

So what if I am posting my Christmas Photos two weeks later…. Better late than never, right!?

After sleeping in pretty late on Christmas morning (recovering from the delicious fondue of Christmas Eve), we stopped by my aunt & uncles house for the Sauer Family Christmas. I am glad that my aunt & uncle who were hosting this year live just a few miles from us, makes it easy to stop by!
Me and my mama

Mary and Angela

Susan and Katie

Some of the guys

Cousin Jane and her husband Ted (visiting from So Dak)

Jane & Ted’s boys

Cousin Nick, recently graduated with a degree in Education!

After a couple of hours it was time to head over to my in-laws house for our traditional Christmas dinner of ham, turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, etc. It was also delicious! Sorry, I never take photos of my in-laws (or my man for that matter), they just aren’t into it. Makes me sad because I love photos and they’re always missing :(

Later on Christmas Night after we got home, we went next door to D & D’s house. They always have a party late on Christmas night to celebrate Darrell’s birthday. He is the black baby Jesus, born on Christmas Day! At around 10pm we enjoyed our second dinner of the day, grilled steak fajitas!!

The birthday boy cooking up all the steaks….

Guests getting food

I didn’t take many people pictures because we were too busy having fun but of course I took some of the Mexican Buffet when it was time to eat!!

Fried spring rolls too!

A not-so-hot pic of me and NiNi. We probably had several margaritas at this point in the night ;)

It was another great Christmas, can’t wait to do it all again next year! The only thing that would make it even better is if Noemy and Traves are in town to celebrate with us at D & D’s :)

Thanks for reading, have a great day ;)

Christmas Eve Fondue {Family Style}

Family Gatherings, Holidays 6 Responses »

Jan 022011

As always on Christmas Eve, once again this year my family got together at my parents’ house for a delicious fondue dinner. (A look back: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) The meats marinate all day long and we cook them individually right at the table in hot oil (3 fondue pots). Not shown: cheese sticks and cream cheese wontons

New this year: Bacon-Wrapped Turkey Tenderloin and Bacon-Wrapped Tator Tots

There were at least a hundred presents under the tree….

Perhaps the best present of the night was this microphone that Jeff gave Bianca. Question is…who loved it more? Jeff or Bianca?!

Annika liked it too :)

I attempted a shot of Brian, Michelle and the Kids

Mom and Dad

Me and Jeffrey

There goes Jeff on the microphone again!

This may be the only pic I got of Bennett. He got at least five “monster trucks” or vehicles of some kind and was having the time of his life!! Ahh, boys and their cars.

It was a great time, hope ya’ll had a wonderful celebration with your families as well.