We Bought a Truck! (+ other things)

Zak had Wednesday & Thursday of last week off from work, and we had a couple of great days together!  We have been thinking about buying a truck for some time now, and we figured that we'd put our tax returns towards it, and hopefully getting a decent trade-in for our car.  The Lumina ran fine enough, but there were some problems that worried us, and after talking it through, we decided a truck would be a practical choice for us.  When Zak gets a job in the forest service, it'll be good for that, I'll be more confident about driving in the winter, and we won't mind being the 'friends with a truck' to help move people.  So Zak has been checking out Craigslist and local dealers for the past month or two, trying to find something for us.

On Thursday we drove down to Lewiston to check out a place.  The first place kind of deterred us, and we went across the street just to browse another lot.  By happenstance, we found a truck we liked.  It was a bit out of our price range, but the salesman was actually really nice and helpful and we soon found ourselves in his office, talking numbers.  I was a bit more nervous about everything, but when we had some time alone, Zak and I talked through our budget and came up with an absolute limit, and talked everything out.  He was sure we could make it work, and once I thought about it long enough, I came around and agreed.  We planned with our current budget in mind, and if Zak or I get better jobs this summer, we will be able to make bigger payments and hopefully knock off some time in the long-run.  Zak was really good while we were discussing numbers with our salesman; he commented on how it was interesting to be on the other side of the table.  We lucked out an had a guy who wasn't overly pushy; Zak told him what we could afford and was strong.  I was a bit flustered, but trusted Zak.

After a few hours, we got everything worked out.  And we became the new owners of a white, '99 Chevy Silverado 1500.  WITH cup-holders (long story short: I broke every one of our cup-holders and attachments for holding cups within the first few months of owning the Lumina. I now am on my best behavior)!  It has a big enough cabin to sit three comfortably, a nice toolbox in the back, and a nice stereo--we just have to find our old CDs and something to make new ones with.  We drove home on a cloud; it was such a nice feeling to get rid of our old beater, and have a vehicle we were confident and proud of!  So far we just love it; I never thought I would own a truck, but I am finding myself eating my words, because I actually really love it.  It drives really well, and will last us for a long time.  We are over the moon about it.  It was our first big purchase together, and it was a bit intimidating, but we are so glad we did it!

When we got home from Lewiston, we ran and got bagels; we had left home without eating anything at all, and by this time, it was near 5 pm.  Nothing has ever tasted so good!  We had a few hours to relax at home, and then we were off to Pullman for a concert.  One of Zak's favorite (I like them too!) bands, Cursive, was playing at a small venue in Pullman.  He saw them a few years back in CT with his best friend and was thrilled when he saw they would be in town.  The venue is an old church-turned concert hall, and was really neat.  There were big stained glass windows and great acoustics.  Little did we know that there would be a ton of hipsters there, but Cursive is a bit of an indie rock band, so go figure.  We had a great time 'hipster-watching' and made up names and stories for some of the best ones.  The two opening bands were actually both good, which was a nice surprise.  Cursive had a great set, there was a good mix of old and new stuff.  Their encore was amazing, and we left around midnight just elated.  What an excellent day!

In other news, Zak was a sweetheart and bought me 100 tanning minutes at a local place for me for Valentine's Day.  I've been griping about looking paler than normal (guess that's what I get for living in a place with actual winter), and he thought this would help me feel more normal.  I called on Monday and talked to the owner, who was so sweet and answered all my questions, and when I went in, was so helpful.  I had a great experience, and went two more times this week.  I got a little pink on my tummy, because I normally don't tan that...at all.  But I am actually really surprised with how much I've enjoyed tanning in a salon!  And it's nice to feel more like myself; for me tanning is less of a 'tan is hot' mindset and more of a 'this is what I normally look like' thought process.  So this has already helped my self-esteem, and hopefully by the time I go to CA in June, I will look more like the Rachel everyone is used to!

That's about all the news there is to report on.  I've been making progress with my weight loss/healthy eating habits/working out, etc. regiment.  I've lost a few inches off my waist, 6 pounds, and have built up a fair amount of muscle since I started in January.  I've been a lot better about tracking what I eat, and eating healthier snacks.  It's been a pretty good experience so far!  Next month is Spring Break for Zak, but there are no big plans at the moment.  We don't have a lot planned out, but we are just enjoying life.  It's already been a really good year for us, and I'm sure it'll just keep getting better!

Our 5th Valentine's Day

Last week we had two fancy meals; on Sunday it was the 5th anniversary of us as a couple, Tuesday was of course, Valentine's Day.  On both days Zak had to close at work, but we tried to make the most of it!  It's hard to believe it's already been 5 years, since so much has changed, mostly for the better!  We were originally going to spend the day together, get a couple's massage, but it was really difficult to get an appointment for the week, and plus Zak had to work.  So we decided to still do that, just at a later date, and just exchange small gifts and cards.

On Sunday I spent most of the day in the kitchen.  It was a bit of an 'off' day for me, I don't know why, but I kept making small mistakes or not thinking things through.  But nothing huge and disastrous happened, and everything did eventually work out in the end.  I started off with making lemon chiffon individual heart cakes.  I was dying to use my heart pan, but I was disappointed when the cakes didn't turn out as pretty as I hoped.  But they at least tasted good and I managed to save a few intact heart cakes for dessert, and whipped up some lemon whipped cream to place on top, yum!

cute, but a pain to get out of the pan, even though I sprayed it w/Pam!

The next recipe was pretty adventurous; I made sweet corn tamale cakes, a copycat recipe of the Cheesecake Factory's delicious appetizers.  My mom made them for us in December, and they were a huge hit, so I vowed to try them out myself soon.  The salsas and sauces went just fine, using the hand blender was a huge help, but the corn cakes themselves were a bit more challenging.  We don't have a food processor, so I tried pureeing the corn with the hand blender, and spent the next ten minutes picking up pieces of corn from the counters, floor, stove, etc.  But in the end, they turned out alright; Zak told me next time to just make them with little mini corn cakes on the side.  He really loves this recipe.  I also made us a really good garlic & brown sugar chicken dish with mashed potatoes.  Everything was delicious, and we were sufficiently full afterwards.

tamale cakes, so delicious!

table w/corn cakes

On actual Valentine's Day, Zak had one class, but it lasted about half an hour.  After I picked him up from school, he suggested we go out for breakfast.  We haven't been eating out for awhile, so it was a real treat!  We lucked out, it was about 10 in the morning, so the Breakfast Club wasn't super busy when we were there.  We enjoyed a nice breakfast; Zak had a big skillet-type platter, and I got 'french toast eggs benedict', delicious!  Stuffed, we lazed about at home for awhile, and I admired the beautiful, colorful rose bouquet Zak got for me.  Eventually, Zak had to go into work, which was a bummer, but gave me time to prepare dinner.

my favorite rose colors: peach, pink, pink-tipped white!

so pretty :)

I made chocolate covered strawberries as a surprise dessert.  I was so excited, I haven't really done them too much, and I wanted them to look really pretty.  About half way through I decided to do half with milk chocolate as the base, and the other with white chocolate.  They all turned out really well; Zak was super impressed, he kept telling me how beautiful they looked.  He said they could pass for professional, so that made me feel really good!

ready to go into the fridge

I made us each a plate, totally worth it!

As far as dinner went, it wasn't overly complicated.  I tried out another new recipe, it was called the 'hasselback' potato; it's supposedly a Swedish version of a baked potato.  That went alright, but I'll make some modifications for the future.  I bought steaks for dinner, as a treat, and cooked them on the George Foreman grill I've had for a few years.  I used a fancy rub we bought for them, and although I was nervous initially, they had just the right amount of flavor and deliciousness!

table set, ready for food!

yum!

Zak came home and we had a lovely dinner.  I really enjoyed making special dinners for us, rather than going out.  It's more personal, and romantic!  So that was our Valentine's & Sunday dinner for last week.  Next year we hope Zak won't have to work, but we'll see how it goes.  We have made it work before, and will continue to do so.  All in all, I would have to say this might have been the best Valentine's celebration so far!  I have such a great Valentine; Zak is a very wonderful husband and provider who always loves me and tells me so.  He is a bit of a goofball, but it only makes our lives more exciting!  He is always trying to make me smile or laugh, and is a great supporter of my dreams and wishes.

Oh, I begged Zak to take a nice picture with me to put up here, since 90% of my pictures involve food now (I'm really trying to make my recipe blog nicer).  They're not the best pictures of us, but you'll have to forgive us since we were super hungry and we took them before we ate!

take 1

take 2