Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja

This dish was inspired by my Best Friend and this week just so happened to be her birthday!(We celebrate for more than just one day!)So a humungous Happy Birthday to you!!!

While we were living together in Delray Beach, she discovered what would become one of our favorite restaurants. Her parents had come down for a visit and she took them to the "new" restaurant on the strip, Cubana el Ray. She came home so excited for us to go and I just had to try the Ropa Vieja. 

On my very first visit and my very first bite, I fell in love with it. A delicious slow cooked shredded flank steak served over Cuban rice and beans. How could you not love that?!?

It wasn't until now, unfortunately, that I decided to try and recreate one of our favorite meals!

Ropa Vieja

1 (2lb) flank steak
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
1 red onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 jalapeno, diced
5-6 garlic cloves, minced
2 chipotles in adobo and sauce
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup ketchup
1 (15 oz) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 can beef stock

In a dutch oven heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat. Season the flank steak with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Sear the steak on both sides, about 3 minutes a side. Remove and set aside. 

In the same dutch oven, over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and onions. Season with salt. Cook the onions slowly until caramelized, 20-30 minutes. Remove the onions and place in the bottom of your slow cooker.

Place the flank steak and all of its juices on top of the caramelized onions. 

To the dutch oven add another tablespoon of olive oil, the red bell pepper and jalapeno. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the chipotles in adobo and about 1 tablespoon of the sauce. Cook for another 2 minutes. Add the white wine and cook completely down. 

Add the brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, dry mustard, salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes, toasting the spices. Add the tomato paste and ketchup and mix well. Pour in the fire roasted tomatoes, mixing well. Add the beef stock and bring to a simmer. 

Pour the bell pepper mixture over the flank steak in the crock pot. Make sure the steak is covered. If not add more beef stock or water. 

Cook the Ropa Vieja on low heat for 8 hours. I tasted the mixture throughout the cooking process and added more salt when needed. 

Remove the flank steak and shred. Place back in the slow cooker and mix well. 

Serve over Cuban rice and beans (blog to come!)

I mean where has this been all of my life??? not to brag but..."Nailed It!"

Happy Birthday P-Bunny!! We have a lot of great memories and lot of great food!

Simply,
Meg

Adapted from Lauren Ariza
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Sausage, White Bean and Kale Soup

Sometimes you just get a craving... But a craving for something you have never eaten before??? A little weird, huh!

Maybe it's because everything you read today is all about the new "super food" kale! I found myself in the grocery store craving this green that has never passed my lips. I cruised the produce section wondering, how can I convince my husband to eat this (big challenge) and how can I eat this. 

My husband, before we began dating, never let anything green pass his lips. Nothing!!! I would find him fishing around anything green or a vegetable that wasn't starch in anything I cooked. He has slowly become more and more adventurous with what he will try and eat. I started by wrapping any vegetable I could in bacon. Then slowly began removing the bacon from the dishes. He is now eating spinach salads(spinach anyway really), green beans, brocolini, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes and the list goes on. Having a little trouble getting him to come around to asparagus.... Any ideas?? 

It has been so much fun finding new delicious ways to cook all these vegetables and so rewarding when he loves them...love is a strong word to use toward his relationship with vegetables, likes them. 

After some thought I decided to make a soup. I have seen many soups with kale, but ones that I really seemed drawn too were with sausage and beans. Off I went filling my cart with anything that sounded delicious to throw in my pot!

Sausage, White Bean and Kale Soup

1 package andouille sausage, diagonally sliced (1/2 inch pieces)

1 tablespoon olive oil 

1 large chopped onion

5-6 minced garlic cloves

1 can tomato paste

3 cans of cannelli beans, drained and rinsed

1 can diced fire roasted tomatoes

3-4 cups chicken broth

3 cups chopped kale

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook until browned. Remove the sausage and set aside. 

Add the olive oil and onions; cook, stirring often until the onions begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. 

Add the tomato paste and stir until completely combined with the onion mixture. Cook allowing the paste to caramelize, just a little bit.

Add the beans and fire roasted tomatoes, stir well. Cook for 5 minutes allowing the beans to soften. Scrape  up all of the caramelized bits on the bottom of the Dutch oven.

Add the chicken broth, one cup at a time. Stirring and mixing well before adding the next cup. Continue adding the chicken broth until you reach the consistency that you prefer. Keeping in mind that the longer you cook the soup, the more the liquid will cook down. 

Add the kale, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne pepper. Stir well and bring the soup to a simmer. Cover and continue to simmer until 10 minutes before serving. Taste the soup and season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Garnish with shredded parmesan.

Serve with grilled cheese or crusty baguette.

Note: You do not have to use andouille sausage. You could make meatballs, or add chicken sausage, Italian sausage, or any sausage that is a favorite. 

And by they way.... My husband LOVED it!!!!

Simply,

Meg

Homemade Ranch Dressing

Some people already know this about me. To some it may come as a shock even gross maybe......

Throughout my life I have had a long standing love affair with Ranch Dressing. I do not put it on everything, but everything that I can. My favorite is the Ranch and Ketchup/BBQ combo. I will eat it with french fries, baked potatoes, leftover mashed potatoes, burgers, sandwiches, wraps, panini's..... you get my drift. 

Recently I have been questioning this love affair.... is it all that healthy of a relationship(no)? Even in moderation(maybe)? 

I do try very hard to stay away from processed foods, but at times its hard to totally escape not consuming it. Lately I have paid more attention to the taste of things and the taste of bottled ranch seems very processed. So it made me think....What is really in it? How does that bottle last so long in the fridge? 

So to help mend my relationship problems, I decided to make my own. Have more control in this relationship and what exactly goes into it. 

After making this my problems are solved. I may never go back!

Homemade Ranch Dressing 

1 cup plain nonfat greek yogurt (or low fat sour cream)

1/4-1/2 cup milk or cream 

1-2 tablespoons mayonnaise 

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill 

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives 

1 1/2 tablespoons garlic powder 

1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/4 teaspoon cayenne 

In a bowl combine all of the ingredients. Whisk together well. Pour into a mason jar or an air tight container. Keep refrigerated. 

Simply,

Meg

Adapted from The Wholesome Cook.

The "Ultimate" Standing Rib Roast

This New Years Eve we hosted a small dinner party. It was suppose to be six people but one couple caught an awful bug that had been going around. Luckily my husband was on the recovery slope from it at this point. So it ended up just being the four of us. It took me no time to figure out the menu but was a little worried about how to pull it off flawlessly. I know the rule of thumb is to always serve dinner guests a meal that you have made before..... Well I would like to take that little rule, crumple it up and toss it away. I personally think that it is a perfect opportunity to try something new.. something you have always wanted to make. For me, it keeps cooking fun and adventurous. As a friend has recently taught me "if it ends up sucking, you can just throw it away and order pizza". I mean who doesn't love pizza?!?

So I decided to tackle my very first standing rib roast. I approached this as I would any competition. I had to find the perfect strategy. I definitely did my research, consisting of You Tube and google searching. It seemed everyone had a different way to flavor and cook the "perfect" or "best in the world" standing rib roast. In the end, I combined a few cooking techniques and came up with my own flavor blend.

Two of my biggest decisions were brining home the right amount of meat and what internal temperature to cook it to. 

Here is a good rule of thumb for the amount of meat needed per person:
3/4 lb. per person or:

1 rib per  2 people

2 ribs per 4 people

3 ribs per 6 people
4 ribs per 8 people
5 ribs per 10 people
and so on.... 

I ended up buying a 6.25 lb (3 bone) standing rib roast from Costco. For 4 people it was more than enough. Since I had originally planned for 6 we had about 6 healthy slices of meat left over. 

For the internal temperature and doneness of your meat I used this:

Rare           120-125 degrees

Medium Rare    130-135 degrees

Medium         140-145 degrees

Medium Well    150-155 degrees

Well Done      160-165 degrees

We cooked the roast to about 133 degrees, removed it from the oven and let it rest for about 20 minutes. It ended up being closer to a medium doneness. The meat still cooks after you remove it from the oven. So, be aware of how long you allow the roast to rest and allow for more cooking while resting. Honestly, for me it was a little overdone. Next time I would remove the roast at about 125 degrees and then allow to rest.

The "Ultimate" Standing Rib Roast

Helpful Tools
Food processor or blender
Roasting Pan
Butchers twine
Roasting meat thermometer

Ingredients                                                

5-6 pound rib roast with bones                      

2 tablespoons olive oil                                   

10-12 cloves of garlic, smashed                    

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary                          

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon mustard powder

2-3 tablespoons butter, softened

You want your standing rib roast to be at room temperature before it even goes near the oven. I would recommend taking it out about 2-4 hours before cooking, depending on the size of the roast. However you can lather that hunk of meat up the night before to save you a little time and to let the flavors absorb into the meat.

The rub - In a sauté pan over medium heat, add the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, thyme and salt. Saute for 10-15 minutes to allow the flavors to infuse into the olive oil. Stir frequently to make sure your garlic and herbs do not burn. Add the garlic, herbs and oil to a food processor. To that, also add the pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and mustard powder. Pulse until well blended. Pour rub into a bowl and add the 2-3 tablespoons of butter. Mix together well.

The meat - I decided to cut the rib bones away from the roast barely leaving them still attached. Taking a very sharp knife, cut as close to the bone as possible. This will make removing the bones after cooking and slicing the meat easier. You will want to tie the ribs to the roast with butchers twine at this point. Wrap the twine completely around the meat and the bones, making sure the twine goes between the bones. I tied the meat in 3 different places. This will prevent the roast from pulling away from the bones and overcooking of the meat.

After the bones have been cut away from the roast and you have tied the meat up, place the roast rib side down, into the middle of your roasting pan. You do not need a roasting rack as the ribs will act as the rack. Take the butter and herb mixture and rub it all over the meat. Make sure you coat the whole roast, even the sides. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until 2-4 hours before you are ready to cook the meat.

Now you are finally ready to cook this thing. Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees. Insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of the meat, making sure not to heat any bone, if you decide to keep them attached. Once the oven has reached 500 degrees, quickly place the roast in the oven and shut that door. You should NEVER OPEN THE DOOR AGAIN, until you are ready to take the roast out of the oven. 

Cook the roast at 500 degrees for 20 minutes. This will be putting a nice sear on the meat. 

After 20 minutes reduce the heat to 325 degrees. Again no need to open the oven door. If you are anything like me and need a peak, just turn on that oven light and do a little window gazing. 

Cook the meat at 325 degrees until you have reached your desired doneness. Your meat will take about 15-17 minutes per pound for medium rare. This is an estimate and I highly recommend to keep a close watch on your meat thermometer. 

After removing the roast tent it with tin foil and allow it to rest for 10-20 minutes. Your roasts internal temperature will rise about 5-10 degrees. So keep this in mind.

The rest of my menu:

I served my standing rib roast with a side of garlic mashed potatoes, a fall harvest salad, pan drippings gravy, and a horseradish sauce. 

Pan Drippings Gravy

Add the pan drippings into a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of flour and whisk into the drippings. Add about 2 cups of beef broth, stir well until completely combined and there are no lumps. Bring to a simmer and allow to thicken, constantly stirring. 

Horseradish Sauce

In a bowl combine 1/4-1/2 cup horseradish, 1 container of sour cream, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and a splash of lemon juice. Mix well.

All in all I would say the dinner was a success!!!  And remember, never be afraid to be a little adventurous in the kitchen!!!

Happy New Year from the Rogers!!

Simply,

Meg

I am back!

 I am back!!!!!!!!!!

Over the last year every ounce of creativity and most, well all of my time was devoted to wedding planning. MY WEDDING!!!! Let me tell you planning a wedding is no joke. On December 27th, 2012 my boyfriend (now husband) gave me the biggest surprise of my life and proposed. I had no idea it was coming.  For me that was the most perfect part about it! Immediately we began wedding planning. I have to admit I was completely shocked with how quickly it all started to come together. Typically I am quite the procrastinator but not this time. I was all over it. I wanted first pick of everything, food, music, venue, you name it. I will admit that I did get a little bit crazy at times. You know that total bride breakdown, crying and everything, but for the most part I kept myself together.

I had always envisioned my wedding (as all little girls do) to be at my childhood home. After much consideration we decided it would be healthiest for us all to have the wedding somewhere other than my parents house. There were quite a few conflicting ideas on how it was going to go down!

We still wanted to have the wedding in the county since we were both born and raised there. We found an absolutely breath taking venue and it couldn't of fit us better. The ceremony would take place on top of the hill looking over the town and the Blue Ridge Mountains as our back drop. The cocktail hour and ceremony would be held in the largest standing dairy barn east of the Mississippi, just down the hill.

After months and months of planning, everything had finally come together. I have to give a lot of credit to our wedding planner who created an atmosphere beyond my imagination. Down to every detail she "NAILED IT!".

The day of the wedding we couldn't of asked for a better day. We had timed the fall colors perfectly, at their peak! The feel of our ceremony was for us, enormous. We were surrounded by so much love and so many of our favorite people. The evening went as smoothly as you could possibly imagine. The food was great, the bands were all awesome and an amazing group of family and friends were having the best time ever!!!

So with all of the planning, there hasn't been a lot of time for cooking, blogging or crafting (other than center pieces, programs, and all the other wedding items!) I am hoping, no, I will be introducing myself, back into the blogging world. As you can tell if you have followed before, my blog is under a little construction, so please bear with me. Hopefully it should be up and running in no time! So stayed tuned!!!

Simply,
Meg

What got into me?

So in sticking to New Year Resolutions, I know I may have skipped a blog. So to make up for it I will have another posted by Sunday!

This is about my other resolution... I have kept to my resolution of trying to get back into shape. As blogged before I have been doing the Jillian Michaels DVD and decided that was just not enough for me. Don't get me wrong that is a tough workout but at this point for me I need more. I get impatient when I do not see results. I know, I know it takes time to see results. I have just noticed that this body is not 20 anymore and wont snap back into shape like it once did. I use to be able to run for a week or two and things would start to feel back to normal. Now, not so much.... soooooo.....

I am starting to run 6 days a week and either yoga or my DVD's. I had done some yoga at home 2 nights ago and it was not easy. I attended a yoga flow class last night and it felt great, but still not easy. I left a little mad at myself for not keeping up with my fitness and yoga. I am definitely not as flexible as I was and the poses were/are challenging. I think I had forgotten or maybe not realized how much yoga helps.

What really made me realize how much it helps... well I think maybe this had something to do with it... was today I went for a run, 30 min was what I had planned on doing. Recently while running I have had no desire to go any further than my normal 3 miles or 30 min. I also would put off running to the very last part of my day. It was painful to think about. Today I set out to run 30 min and finished my run an hour later. It felt great! I finally got that feeling again, I enjoyed my run. Maybe it was the perfect weather, the perfect temp, the perfect surroundings, maybe it was yoga and the mindset it gives you, or maybe it was the fact that I have to get into a bathing suit in about a month. Only time will tell!

I am very excited to have this feeling of motivation back!!!

Simply Meg

Shredded?

So I have been spending 20 min a day with the lovely Jillian Michaels. In my last blog I vowed to get back in better shape. She vows that if I do her workout for 30 days straight I will be SHREDDED!!! Well so far I am 12 days in and have had a sore ass all the way to sore elbows. I thought that I was in pretty good shape..... well for running I guess. I am working muscles that might not have been worked since college... Which sad to say was a few few years ago... 

When I first bought the dvd I was in Costco. A friend of mine had been raving about Jillian so when I saw her videos I wanted them. While contemplating my purchase a woman walked up. I asked if she liked the videos and she said, " Oh my god I looked phenomenal when I went to the dominion republic!" I stepped back and looked at her, wondering.... What happened... I bought 3 of the DVDs.

So I have been doing it for 12 days and only have missed one day.... I thought that by now I would be feeling great..... I have gained weight.....the opposite of what I wanted..... How does that happen? They do say muscle weighs more than fat....geez.

So as of today I am going to run and do the workout and see how that works for me.... Keep your fingers crossed and I will def keep you posted!!!!

Resolutions

A new year brings new resolutions..... What really is a resolution? Is it something you want to become better at, is it a promise to yourself, is it some sort of bucket list for the year? Well by definition:

New Years Resolution: is a commitment that a person makes to one or more lasting personal goals, projects, or the reforming of a habit.

I want to look at it as a promise, goals, improvements, and bucket list thrown all together!

Last year was an amazing year. My resolution was that I was to put 2010 behind me and discover who I really was, simply make myself happy. Accomplished! I think that was the first resolution that lasted more than the month of January. So this year I have a few more things on my list. 

In 2012 I want to:
Get back in shape
Run and beat Oprah in a marathon
Budget better and save
Blog at least once a week
Finish my new cookbook
Not to sweat the small stuff... As Dan Blank would say, "control the controlables" - and you thought I never listened...

So not too outrageous and completely accomplishable.... Last year was awesome and I am looking to make 2012 even better.....

What a difference a year makes!!!

No Mariscos......

What a crazy, busy, yet wonderful summer so far and it is not even over yet! I have not blogged in quite sometime and I am in the process of writing about my recent trip to Costa Rica! In the mean time I have been convinced to continue to write about all the other amazing things this summer and keep you in suspense until I have finished my Costa Rica blogs!

So last month was quite the month for me. The first week I was in Sandbridge Beach, Va. Every year since I was probably 2 or 3 yrs old we have been going to the beach with the Maeyer family. During college it was a little harder to make it to the beach and especially difficult when I entered the real world and started flying. It was always such a special week and something I still do look forward to. Quite a few memories from that beach. This year was going to be fun since my whole family was going to be able to come and the entire Maeyer family would be there. I do not think Mike has been able to make it to the beach in about 6 or 7 yrs.

So I got home from work and gathered all my things. Mike and I had decided not to wait till the morning to leave so we could get an extra day in! The drive was nice and brought back even more memories. Sitting in the back seat of the jeep building car forts and drawing lines of whose side was whose. It was always fun until someone got hurt! We were getting close and all the sudden I received a text…. Hmm.. who could that be? All I saw was ONION… oh it was game on. The onion is the Sandbridge water tower and it looked like a ginormous onion. Every drive growing up there was a competition on who could spot the onion first. Mike always lost growing up! So I quickly texted back… GAME ON. He was sitting right next to me driving… It was dark out and a little bit tougher to see since the trees had grown up so much. As we came around the curve I heard Mike yell Onion Onion Onion….. damn it.. he finally won one.

We knew we were close now! That was always our sign. We ended up getting to the beach house at the same time as Jonathan and Jenine. The kids were passed out and they were taking them up to bed. As we walked in the house all you could smell was fresh cookies being baked. Pud was there behind the kitchen counter cooking away! The cookies were amazing! After some catching up it was off to bed. We wanted an early day at the beach tomorrow.

We finally made it down to the beach, it can take awhile with lots of kids and packing coolers. There was a nice sea breeze so there were no flies and the water was a perfect temperature. I was glad that we had come down early not only to get the day at the beach but to spend time with Jonathan’s kids. I had never really gotten the chance to spend time with them when not a lot of people and things were going on. By the end of the day we had caught a crab and Cassidy had shown me some new dance moves!

Over the next few days everyone finally arrived! There would be a total of 16 people staying at the house this year. I was nice and tanned and feeling completely relaxed! After numerous delicious dinners it was finally crab and shrimp night. I have never been informed by a doctor that I am allergic to shellfish. It is more of a self diagnosis but every time I am near it or if my food touches it things swell, I want to barf and get blotchy. So on crab night I always cook my own meal and the kids and well actually everyone usually eats it. This year I started cooking before anyone else was in the kitchen so I would not be in the way. I made chicken with artichokes, capers and sun dried tomatoes with pasta. Ended up being pretty good, not to toot my own horn. I will add the recipe to the blog!

 My dinner had finished cooking and I had set it aside and covered so it could not be contaminated by the poor crabs being dumped into the pot and the shrimp steaming away. Everyone was starting to gather around the table and the first round of crabs were dumped out. I was out on the porch eating with everyone else as I usually do every year. As I sat there more and more crabs were brought out and people were eating them just as fast as they were dumped. I finished my meal and went outside to call Adam. While on the phone my eyes really started to itch, badly. I would rub them and noticed my nose was becoming very stuffy. Adam and I joked about it and he wanted me to take a picture so he could see what was really going on. After more rubbing and sniffling I decided I should maybe get off the phone and get some eye drops or benadryl. When I walked in the house everyone was in shock. After a little bit of talk it was decided that I should head up to the fire department and be looked at. So my Mom and Heidi drove me up there. We walked up to the door and rang the bell. Immediately someone came to the door and took one look at me and called the EMT. They sat me down and hooked me up to an IV. They took my blood pressure and it was very high especially for me. We were advised that I head to the emergency room via ambulance. When all this talk started my chest started to feel extremely heavy and I felt as if I was about to pass out. Mom said I was slumped over in the chair and my eyes were rolling back….. I think that scared her quite a bit. They loaded me into the ambulance and off we went. I was starting to feel better on the way. They had given me medicine to stop the reaction. By the time I arrived at the hospital I felt a lot better. Just very tired. There they gave me a few more drugs, checked to make sure I was stable and sent me home.

I survived the night in case anyone was nervous and it is safe to say, yes I am allergic to shellfish. I now have to carry an Epi pen around and benedryl. I am not quite use to having it and forgot to bring it to Costa Rica. Adam was not very happy about that one and learned how to say allergic to shellfish very quickly! No mariscos allergico! Then we just returned from the beach and I had forgotten to bring it there and had a very mild reaction to Calamari. I think he reaction was, “ The two places we have been that is all about shellfish and you forget it…” Ooops.

Simply,
Meg

Stick to the "System"

I am back tracking just a little bit to catch you up on some things!

So a few days after I was reunited with my bag, it was my last day of reserve and of course I was not able to be released from work early… The weather was not the best in NY or DC so I thought there may be some cancellations but didn’t put too much thought into it.

Finally I got out of bed at my crash pad and started getting my things together. I was about to walk out the door and for some reason I decided that I wanted to put my car keys in my pocket. I figured I could get to them quicker when I get to my car in DC. I remember standing in the middle of the room and having a conversation with myself about this.

See I normally always place my keys in my purse, that is part of my “system”. For some reason not today. I guess I finally talked myself into placing my keys in the pocket of my jacket and off to the airport I walked.

I was trying to catch a flight on Delta so I made my way over to the Marine Air Terminal, known as the MAT. As I am walking up to security I see that my flight has been cancelled. I immediately turn around and race over to the US Airways Terminal. I had only 30 min before the flight took off. I head through security and see a screen that is now telling me  that this flight is also cancelled… You have got to be kidding. So I turn around and head back to the MAT  and again only having 30 min to make it. I get to the MAT and look at the screen, thank god my flight is on time. I was almost to the point of throwing some pennies if this one was cancelled. I was all worked up, but pretty motivated to get back home!

I land in DC and made my way to the car. On the bus to the parking lot I reached in my pocket for my keys...nothing…. Aw nooo… I frantically start searching through everything. Nothing. Then I start to think if I have a spare and I quickly remember that I was already using my spare. I had a little key incident in Colorado and my clicky keys are no longer programmed to my car. I am using my hide a key as the main entry into my car…. Ahhhhhh….. So I dread it but I call home… mom answers and I explain what happened and of course she is asking obvious questions… Did you look through your bag? I mean did you really look through your bag? Are you kidding me of course I did. She is not happy because now she is going to have to drive about 3 hours round trip to deal with my dumbass. Then I start thinking that she is also going to have to find my keys that are packed away in that black hole I have above the garage, tow my car to a dealership and reprogram my keys… All this would take a lot of time and a lot of money. I felt really bad.

After a minute I pull my head out of my ass and decide that I was going to head back to NY and find my keys. I was going to start with making sure I hadn't lost them on the plane I had just flown to DC in. I called some of the crew that I had known and none of them had their phones on… Ah.. So I got to the gate and asked the gate agent if the cleaning crew had found any keys. NO. So I knew I had to head back and was in for some more of my fantastic detective work!

While waiting for my flight back to NY a familiar face walks by. It was one of those people that you think that you may know or have seen before but you cant really put a finger on it.  I just knew that I had seen him before. Boarding begins and the gate agents cannot believe that I am actually heading back to NY. I get on and find a seat. Guess who sits right across the isle from me? The mystery man! But I have figured out how I know him. Are any of you top chef fans? Well it was Spike from top chef…. I couldn’t believe it. I had so many questions, so many things I wanted to talk about. Once everyone was on board I look over at him and whisper “ Hi!.... You were on top chef”. Smooth Meg real smooth. He laughs and says yes. Then we begin talking, I ask him everything about the show, cooking, you name it! Then the dreaded question of what I did and then it got real embarrassing really quick when he was wondering if I was coming or going to work.....

So I get to NY and sprint off the plane. If all goes well I can find my keys and make it on the last flight home that leaves in 45 min. I sprint to the MAT TSA checkpoint… no keys. Then I run outside and wait for either the Route A bus or the employee bus since I did take them both. First bus that rounds the corner was the employee bus and I was in luck because it was the same bus that I had been on earlier. The doors open and I ask the nice gentleman driving if he had found any car keys…. He looks at me and asks what kind of car do you drive? My heart starts pounding… a Jetta I reply. Ya, I found them let me go and get them. Oh my god!!!!!!!!! So lucky right now. The man returns and hands me my sweet sweet keys. I thought about, for just a second, planting a huge smooch on him, but that thought was quickly gone! I think I even said to him, “ OMG, I could make out with you right now!” His response (in a deep voice), “ Well suga thad be just alright with me!” So I said my thank yous and sprinted to catch the last flight home. I made it and instead of getting back nice and early, I believe I pulled into the driveway around midnight. What a day… what an IDIOT! Needless to say I definitely am sticking to my system. The next time I have a conversation with myself I will not stray from my routine!

Simply,
Meg

Thank you..

Sorry I have not blogged in quite some time… been very busy and maybe a little distracted from writing…. I have a few blogs almost finished and will share them shortly, but today I wanted to post a quick blog.

I woke up today to the news of the death of Osama Bin Laden. Some may believe a huge day in the war against terror, others may believe this may have woken a giant. I hope this news can bring many people closure.

We taxied into DCA today and I got out of cockpit to do my walk around. Next to our parked plane I watched a family gather around the cargo bin of a Delta MD88, accompanying them were military personnel. Carefully the ground crew loaded a coffin decorated with an American flag onto the luggage belt. With soldiers in full dress saluting the coffin as it passed by, the coffin was carefully loaded into the back of a hearse. The family was bringing their son/daughter to DC to be buried in Arlington Cemetary.

I felt deeply for the mother, a mother should never have to bury a child. I could not imagine the pain and grief that comes with that. Watching this touched me very much. As a tear came down my cheek, I couldn’t help but think how honored I am that this soldier and many others are fighting for my freedom I would like to take the time to thank the men and women who are overseas serving in our armed forces.

Simply,

Meg

IDIOT.....

The last few weeks of my life have been out of control. Let me just say before I start that I am not usually forgetful. I do have a “system” and rarely lose things. I would consider myself fairly responsible but.... my life can get crazy!

So it all started at the end of a 5 day stretch of reserve. I was hoping to be home early on my last day and was really looking forward to a nice evening with my dad, Sebastian, Oliver and Hannah. All day Friday I would be in DC renewing my passport, I had an 8 am appointment and in the evening I was getting together with some old friends. But… pretty standard move, scheduling was nice enough to give me a Chicago turn with bad weather. I was not happy and I let them know.
Me: You have sat me here for 5 days and on my last day you give me this.
Them: Well you will be able to make it home tonight.
Me: You and I both know I will not get home tonight. We will be delayed and probably sit in the penalty box for hours.
Them: We have no one else.
So I fly out to Chicago and of course on the way back we were delayed for two hours. While sitting in the penatly box I started to wonder if I will even get back in time to make the last flight home. We finally make it to La Guardia and I didn’t have to make the choice of whether or not I would be able to go home, it was made for me.

On our flights we have to leave our bags in the back with the passengers. I walked back to retrieve my bag and it is no where to be seen. I begin to panic, no actually freak out. Then it hits me, some IDIOT took my bag instead of theirs. I calm down enough to see straight and see a bag still in the overhead. It must be the "Idiots" and I am holding that damn thing hostage until I get mine back. First off the lone bag was not even on the same side as I had placed mine. Yes they were both black but this one was much lighter, uglier and shittier than mine. I even had a green crew tag on my bag. Who is this complete moron and how far is this dumbass going to get before he figures it out? I frantically search the outside of the bag for a name, number, anything. I found a name, the great, smart and intelligent Tim Boylan took my bag. There was a number, I am too frantic at this point so my captain calls the number and its probably better because my message would not have been as polite as his. I sprint up the jet bridge screaming at the gate agent to page Tim Boylan. Tell that idiot he has my bag…..

I am going to have to hunt him down myself and at this point he better hope he is nowhere near the airport. I am scurrying around checking everyones bag. I probably looked like a lunatic with a serious mental issue. I run outside and searched the taxi cab line, weaving in and out of people. No bag and no Tim Boylan. So I walk over to baggage claim and tell a man named Fritz what happened. He felt horrible for me and after a lot of thought my mind begins to wonder. Why is his bag so light? Did he steal my bag on purpose? Is he going through my things? All my underwear better be there……

So the 3 phone numbers we found on the bag did not work. Freak out mode. I ask Fritz if his information was with his booking information. So Fritz looks it up and there is no record of Tim Boylan even on the flight from Chicago to NY. Oh dear god….. Call the cops. I am reporting everything stolen. I start going through everything that is in my bag. Favorite shoes, shirts, jeans, makeup, jewelry… I am about to lose it.

Then it hits me…. Tim Boylan could have been on the flight from NY to Chicago. Fritz looks it up and there that idiot is. So Fritz tracks down all his information. In the mean time I decided I am going to search his bag. In the bag was a pair of dress pants, a dress shirt, belt, shoes, boxers, overnight kit and a jacket. So maybe Mr. Boylan had a meeting, serves him right, I hope it was really important one and all he has is panties, bras and gold boat shoes! Fritz finds his number but for some reason it is missing the last digit. So I sit there and call every number 0-9. Finally on the last number I dial I  reach his answering machine, I leave a very nice message to call me back. I wait a little bit and no call. I would think that if I had grabbed the wrong bag I would be doing some research to find mine. Guess guys are wired a little differently.

So I turn psycho and after the 10^th call and googling him, I hear back from him.
Tim: “Oh hi… um I am very sorry about the mix up.”
Me: Well where is my bag now?
Tim: Oh well it is back in my hotel room.
Me:You made it all the way to the hotel room before you noticed it was not your bag.
Tim: Yea I am just really sorry.
I wanted to go postal on this guy.
Me: So when are you coming back to NY?
Tim: Oh I will be back tomorrow at 5 pm.
Me:Ok well your bag is with Delta baggage claim please go there and exchange bags.
Tim: Ok no problem. Thank you very much.

So I headed back to the crash pad and decided that I will get up early and catch the first flight back to DC. It will get me in before my meeting and I can just spend the entire day in my uniform since that is all I have and its my favorite thing to wear. I get up, shower and brush my teeth with my finger. I know gross but what in the world am I suppose to do at this point. I make it to my appointment and was told that my passport would be ready around 2 pm. Great, so now I have to spend hours in this monkey suit. I decided that I need a haircut, manicure and pedicure. Three things I never thought I would be doing dressed in uniform, people were definitely staring and I think I gave the Asian ladies something to really talk about. Too bad you never know what they are saying.

I get my passport and I was actually able to make it home, shower, pull something together to wear and found some makeup. It ended up being  a great night despite everything that had gone on in the last 24 hours!

I had to spend the next few days without my bag. I was really starting to miss my electric toothbrush Ali had gotten me for my birthday and I had never wanted to see my bag so badly in my entire life. It was time to head to work and I was commuting up the same morning as my first day of reserve. I show up at the airport and both of my flights on two separate airlines cancel… You have got to be kidding me. So I call scheduling and explain what is going on. They tell me to just get on the first flight to NY and if something comes up they will call me. So I sit and wait, from 5 am to 930 am. I had a bit of entertainment. I must of watch for at least a good hour a few elderly ladies and their morning activities.

930 finally came and I boarded the plane. Scheduling had not called so I was in the clear! I called them to let them know I was on the flight and if they needed me I would be in the air but would do whatever they needed me to do. All the sudden I hear them telling me to get off the plane. Get off right now. I sit there stunned and stuttering.
Me: Y y y you want me to get off the plane?
Them: YES NOW. We are going to get you a limo and have you taken to dulles. From there you will fly to Toronto then over night in Denver.
All I can think about is my bag patiently waiting for me to come and save her.
Me: Um… I do not have my flight case or even my overnight bag.
Them: Well that is fine I will make sure you get back to NY tomorrow.

So thank god Lucas and Jen saved me. They gave me a toothbrush and I was able to wear a pair of Jen’s jeans. The next day I made it back to NY and I swear I might of shed a tear when I saw my little bag. I hugged it and didn’t want to let go. First thing I did when I got back to my crash pad was brush my teeth and count my panties. All accounted for! Now my bag is covered in pink ribbon, but something tells me that would not of stopped Mr Boylan……

Simpy,
Meg

Cancun...Part 3... I do!

Those of you who might have been concerned…. Goobs survived the night! He only knocked over the table while getting into the hammock! The night before Daddy had informed us that he was not going to be able to stay for the wedding… He was nervous about getting back to work. Of course no one really believed him… But when I woke up there was an empty bed… No Daddy… It was a sad day in Cancun.

We met everyone for breakfast and then made our way to the pool The girls had a couple of hours before we had to start “putting our faces on”. Jen had a hair appointment at 12 and I decided to go with her so she could have a little company. The rest of us had appointments at 1. It was a nice relaxing afternoon, enjoying champagne and being pampered a little bit. After our appointments we had a nice lunch and immediately up to the room to get dressed.

Jen’s room over looked the reception site.  While we were getting dressed we were watching them set up for it. They were struggling quite a bit trying to keep everything from blowing away. It was such a windy day. Eventually the wedding coordinator spoke with Jen about moving the reception inside. She really didn’t want to, the spot was beautiful, overlooking the ocean. Eventually she decided to move it inside. I think at first she was a little upset about but it ended up being the best decision.

Jen was stunning and her dress was absolutely perfect. The bridesmaids dresses that Jen picked out were also perfect. Everyone looked very nice. After all of the girls were ready we walked over to my room, which just so happened to be right next to the ceremony. On our way over we had to walk past the pool, everyone started clapping and wishing Jen the best. We got to the room and were patiently waiting for everything to start. CNA was running this show! All the sudden he sends Jane, the mother of the bride, down the isle… Flora the wedding coordinator had not even made it into the room yet. I think I had to tell CNA that he needed to pump the brakes a little bit on this one.  Finally it was time, walking down the isle was an amazing site. Seeing everyone there and the view overlooking the ocean. Dreany made a funny point. No one in our group is ever very serious, we are always joking and kidding about. He said that he walked into the ceremony and he had never seen that group of people so serious in his entire life.

After pictures down on the beach we headed up to the lobby. I was dying to see the reception. We were finally able to enter the room. As we walked in we were handed blue cocktails that were absolutely delicious. The room was beautifully decorated and there was a large space for turnpikin'. Jen made a great decision. We didn’t have to worry about the weather or wind. Also the room was very private, drunks couldn’t walk by screaming, interrupting everything.  Each wedding party couple was introduced and had a song that they had to walk out to and give a little dance. Sprute and Kristen came out strutting that ass. Mexicali and Becky came out. And then Josh and I came out to Bottoms up… we did the classic shower followed by a turnpike. I think my favorite part of our entrance was when Josh turned to me and asked, " soo.. you wanna turnpike now!" After everyone was introduce dinner began. After dinner Lucas had wanted everyone to give speeches. I was a terrified because I had not done so well at paige’s wedding, shaking, forgetting my words, getting all choked up. This one I was much better at.. thanks for the practice Paige. I told few story of the party pigs! (Blog on party pigs to come!)

After everything Jen and Lucas had their first dance... at the end of it there were fireworks. It was awesome but smoked out the room for a little bit. Then the party began. It was finally time to make some bad decisions....The DJ was perfect, he didn’t talk at all and just played the music we wanted. We were all dancing like complete idiots and having the best time ever. At one point the wedding coordinator asked Lucas if he wanted to cut the cake. His response was, " NO, no cake... nothing is going to stop this party!" Then the tequila shots began and out of no where the wait staff brought out a beer bong… Are you kidding me? I took one bong of beer and that was going to be it. But these people were like those ladies in the night club a few nights ago. From what I recall...They shoved me on the floor and shoved the bong in my nouth, but this time it was not beer. It had tequila, some red stuff and god knows what else in there. Things got a little bit western! It was Game over for me!

                What a night.... what a weekend. That will be a wedding that will be talked about for many moons! The next day at breakfast we started saying our goodbyes and reliving the weekend. Sprute and I decided to stay and extra day! It was a great decision. A day in Mexico recovering and relaxing. I needed that extra day for sure. I was not quite ready to get back to reality. We enjoyed the day out by the pool. It just so happened that the people who worked the wedding the night before were all out at the pool working..... Alejandro was waiting on us.... Once I finally made it out the the pool he walked over to us and started laughing... He looked at me and asked if I remembered him.. Of course how could I forget the waiter named Alejandro that the night before we requested Lady GaGa, Alejandro, for and he bonged a beer during his song!! Classic!

The weekend had finally come to an end for me. It was sad to go and say goodbye to all of my friends.... it would be weird waking up the next day and not going to breakfast, asking for a drink and it immediately being brought to me, having someone make me an omlete every morning..... but the time had come to leave.

Thanks Jen and Lucas for some great memories and a Flannnntastic weekend!! Love you mean it!! Now lets get trampled!

Simply,

Meg

Cancun... Part 2.... Scoop and Hammer

Me: Daddy, Daddy turn the jams down we are getting pulled over.

Daddy: No we are not…Are we really?

I look around the cab and the boys are shoving their money down their panties and throwing wallets under the seats. I just sat there frozen and terrified. Thoughts immediately started wondering through my mind. What if I get separated from the boys? Who do I call? What will happen to me? Donkey show?.. I had my purse, camera, flip and wallet full of everything on my lap, clutching it with a death grip…. The cab driver immediately jumps out and the cops come up to the car, shining his light on us, all over our laps… He doesn’t say a word, turns off his light and walks back to his truck. I see the cab driver speaking to the police. All of the sudden he hops back in the cab and floors it out of there. What in the hell was that all about? He turned to me and said in broken English nothing 10 dollars can't fix. The look on everyone’s face said it all, thank god we got out of that one. Piece of advice # 2 not followed…. At least we survived the night.

It just so happened to be Canadian spring break while we were there and we had met the Canadian Daddy. His name was “Lamarcus”, what a piece of work. He had these business cards that had his name on them with a quote: “ This is going to happen weither you like it or not” and down on the right hand corner was his room number, hand written. If you flipped the card over all it said was BOOM! He was classic! We couldn’t get enough of Canadian Daddy. He strolled around the resort always drink in hand with the bedroom slippers the hotel provides. At this point he was on his second pair and they were no longer white, more like a blackish gray color. Canadian Daddy did teach us some valuable things. My favorite was the “ Scoop and Hammer”. This is when you order a whiskey and coke. As soon as the waiter gives it to you, you begin to scoop out the ice. What you do with the ice is completely your choice. You can throw it on the floor, at people or in a near by bush. Then you hammer the drink. I was fortunate enough to witness the Canadian Daddy teach our Daddy this valuable tidbit! Almost piddled I was laughing so hard.

The next morning we were all in bed and Goobs was asleep out in  the hammock on our balcony… All of the sudden he comes flying in the room screaming, Do you think Chuck Norris Askey is sleeping the day away? Cancun never sleeps…buzzing around the room. Finally he hops in the shower and in no time at all is out the door starting his day. I just sat in bed wondering what in the hell just happened in here. Daddy and Mr. Pebbles had no recollection of any of this when they woke up. Eventually we got up and headed to  breakfast.

At breakfast Tim saw us and joined. We were recapping the night before when I looked over and Tim was wearing a Mexican wrestling mask. Where in the heck did that come from? The day before the Bostyan and Lilly family went to the Mexican flea market. This is where they found this little gem. It was gold with orange lightning bolts on either side of the holes for your eyes. On either side of the head were two black bull horns and in between the two horns was this orangish/brown pube like hair. We referred to him as Mexicali! It was the funniest thing I have seen. He was just hanging out at breakfast... as Mexicali.

After we ate we headed to the pool, it was like groundhog day. All of the sudden Mr. Pebbles had disappeared with Daddy. When he returned to the pool he was wearing cowboy boots, cut off jeans, and a wool/suede vest. Quickly Mexicali joined him. What a combo, they quickly became the talk of the pool. They even had their pictures taken with a massive iguana.

Everyone had finally made it to Cancun at this point and we headed to the beach for a few games of volleyball. Little did we know that Drean came fully prepared. He had brought a little bit of Wash Park. Out comes the volleyball from home. The same ball that we have played many games in Wash Park with. Thoughtful? Weird? Maybe both but it was perfect, good thinking Drean. So the games began again with a nice little beach bar right behind us. Jams pumping, on repeat… I swear I loved the Black eyed peas song Time… until the 50^th time it was played.

The most difficult thing about the trip was the fact that you have endless options of what to drink. It is really hard to figure out what you want and what you are really in the mood for. Plus it was hot, we were drinking all day and I did not want to feel bloated I quickly became friends with the bartender and he made me a drink called “After Sex”. It was amazing, refreshing and perfect. In it was Sambuca (I think that is what he said), watermelon liqueur, sprite and I would have him add vodka! They were dangerous.

Another full day of sun and fun and we were ready for dinner. This night was going to be a tame one at least for me. We had dinner at a sit down restaurant and the food was very good. It was insane you could order anything off the menu because you didn’t have to pay for a thing. When it came to dessert time I was torn between flan and crème brulee, so why not have both of them! Oink Oink.  After dinner we all made our way back down to the beach and had a little roast for Jen and Lucas, just telling stories. Then Jen and Lucas introduced everyone and we all had a great laugh. Earlier where we had been playing beach volleyball they had set up a beach night club and we Jersey Turnpiked it all night. If Jen and I saw someone just standing there, we would both look at each other and say, “looks like he needs a little turnpikin”. I did learn that you have to be careful with who you turnpike. I saw a random guy standing looking a little bored and I felt generous so I tunrpiked him. Little did I know I would have a Stage 5 clinger… I finally slipped away from that poor guy. I wanted to be in bed a little earlier that night anyways, so I would be nice and fresh for the big day.

I was still awake when the boys made it back to the room. We visited for a little while. Then got ready for bed. Goobs was terrified of falling out of the hammock during the night. We said goodnight and Goobs headed out to his bed. All the sudden we hear a large crash. We all stare at each other. Then bust out laughing, he must of fallen out. We didn’t hear another peep....

To be continued……

Simply,

Meg