Sunday, January 10, 2010

Surprise Dinner

After a long 12 hour shift, I came home around 7pm. I opened the front door and... WOW!!!!!! What is that wonderful smell?. It was a great mix of white wine, great spices and sweet smells. I was greeted by my girls, Alex and Aaron. Alex, Aaron and the girls had been cooking for hours to try out two new recipes. One of recipes came from a magazine that Grandma Auble gave us while we were at NY for Christmas. The other came from one of our recipe books. Dinner was unbelievably delicious. My two chefs did not allow me to help at all. The entire dinner was a surprise as new dishes showed up in front of me. Alex, then said...we need a couple of candles to make this dinner special. So, I searched for dinner candles and found the only two...very special ones...do you recognize them? It is the two candles that Aaron and I used during our wedding ceremony 7 years ago. How special...and a great reminder that I need to buy some. I often wonder..... What have I done to have such a great life. For now, I will just enjoy the many blessing that I have.





This is the appetizer: Pear and Brie Latke (left), Spinach and Red Bell Latke (right)
*A Latke is similar to a potato pancake*

The entree was Chicken and Green Olives with a white wine cream sauce served over a bed of Fettuccine.
Finishing off, desert was a chocolate creme brulee.



This morning was so cold (not up north cold), but Florida cold. We woke up to frozen water pipes. Aaron came to the rescue by going outside with the hairdryer and warming up the exposed pipe. We stayed home for the morning and made waffles (from scratch) with whipped cream and strawberry topping.



Thursday, January 07, 2010

Bad Bloggers.... Catching up


Our New Year's resolution is to blog more often and take more pictures to share with the family (ha ha ha). Here are some pictures, in no particular order, of the 2009 events in the Hoefen Family (Orlando Chapter)

Ashlyn's self portrait. She has learned how to use the camera and take pictures of everyone including herself.


Alex's (our nephew) 19th Birthday





2009 Christmas Tree


Kayla's 6th Birthday. We had a great time miniature golfing.










Before her 6th Birthday, Kayla learned how to ride her new bike with no training wheels. It took her and Daddy 3 days to master.



Maybe not the Seminole's best year, but for Aaron and I, this was the most exciting and eventfull season. Altogether, we attended all but two home games plus one in Gainsville. We got a parking pass that allowed us to tailgate. Dad, Ryan and Bret joined Aaron on one of the games and we are on our way at becoming pre-game proffesionals. GO NOLES!!!
WE WILL MISS YOU BOBBY!!!






We made a last minute trip to Rochester to celebrate Grandma Auble's Birthday. We had a chance to meet new family and catch up with everybody. The girls had a great time with their cousins.






OH, there is nothing better than our Sunday routines. Getting up, cooking breakfast with the girls and family day.






In 2009 Aaron and I celebrated our 7th Wedding Anniversary. Our family surprised us with a cookie cake and lunch.



Our little girls!!!





Ashlyn's 2nd Birthday. Picture with Mamita Esperanza and Papi Diomo. Her most devoted fans. The cake was a creation of Tia Silvia.










My Honey's 33rd Birthday. Like a great scotch, my husband keeps on getting better with time.