Moving on… up?

On July 24, 2008 · Leave a Comment · In work

I have to move to a new office tomorrow. I am not very excited about it.

The problem is that we are currently experiencing a shortage of space in my division. We are scheduled to move to new digs next spring/summer (we’re still not completely sure where that will be), but for right now, we’re stuck where we are. Right now, there are just enough offices to fit everyone. Sounds OK, right?

Well, it was OK. Until we hired an additional person.

My division is pretty big. My department? Small. We only have three people (including myself). Soon to be four people.

Back when we offered the new person her position, we knew we would have to cross the “where are we going to put her?” stage eventually. When I returned from the honeymoon, we sat down as a department and discussed the available options for offices for the new person. The thing that sucks is that none of them are within our department’s office space. She basically would have an office in a different department in our division… not close to us at all. Way down the hall on the other side of the building, or upstairs on a different floor.

At the time, we agreed on an office space for her, and that was that.

Until earlier this week.

One of the vice presidents, the one who is the head of our division, told my boss that he felt very strongly that I should move, and that the new person should take my office. Why? Well, because the new person is going to have a lot to learn. The person who is going to be her direct supervisor? Right now, her office is directly across from mine. My office would be the perfect space for the new person, because she’ll be close to her supervisor and colleague who she will work with most often. She is going to have a lot of questions, a lot of meetings, etc. and the vice president felt like having her close to her supervisor would help their productivity.

The fact of the matter is… he’s probably right. I’d be lying if I said that the idea of ME moving hadn’t crossed my mind. It had. But I didn’t have any desire to give up my office space and move out of my department. However, once the vice president suggested it, I couldn’t really say no. I’m being a pretty good sport about it, I think. But I have to be honest… it is a little bit depressing.

I know that the reason I’m being bumped out of my office is because I have been with the company for two years. I know what I’m doing, and don’t really need to be supervised. So it’s actually just a vote of confidence in me.

It doesn’t change the fact that I’m going to be so out of the loop with all of my coworkers now. Just on a comraderie level. Where I am now, my coworkers walk by my office all the time just because I’m kind of in the center of everything. They stop in and chat, about work, about politics, about life. It’s nice. Where I’m going? I won’t have any unscheduled visitors, I can tell you that. It’s much more secluded.

The offices themselves are pretty similar, so it’s not really a step up or step down. I still won’t have a window. :( But I WILL be able to SEE a window from my desk (when the door is open), so that is kind of nice. (Just trying to look at the positive.)

It’s just all about location, location, location.

Big bummer.

So off I go to work tomorrow to pack up my office and move upstairs. The new person starts Monday. Fun times.

 

Strawberry Cupcakes

On July 22, 2008 · 4 Comments · In recipes - dessert

This recipe originally came from Katie over at Good Things Catered. However, I followed Annie’s adaptation for the frosting, since I didn’t have strawberry liquor.

I had to make a birthday treat to bring into work for Monday (we sign up for a month and it was my turn). I saw this recipe reviewed and decided to give it a try. Strawberries are the best in the summer… how can you go wrong with strawberry cupcakes with strawberry cream cheese frosting?


Michael and I “tested” a couple of them on Sunday night. Delicious! If you like strawberries, definitely give these a try. They were also a big hit with my coworkers. Only one left at the end of the day.

The frosting consistency, in my opinion, should have been thicker. When I was piping it onto the cupcakes, I thought it was going to melt right off the tops. I had to get them back into the refrigerator quickly. At work yesterday, it was a delicate balance–in and out of the refrigerator and/or freezer. I need the frosting to stay cool enough to stay firm, but I didn’t want the cupcakes themselves to be hard.

Next time, I will use either less strawberry puree or more powdered sugar to thicken it up a bit. It held up, but it would have been nice to be able to let them sit out at room temperature for a little while before serving.

Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:
For cupcakes:
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups chopped strawberries

For frosting:
1/2 cup strawberries
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. lemon juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

Sift flour, salt, and baking soda into a medium bowl. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until combined. Add buttermilk, oil, and vanilla and beat until combined. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold (don’t use the mixer!) in chopped strawberries.

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full with batter. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.

For the frosting, puree strawberries in a food processor. Beat the cream cheese and butter in the bowl with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add lemon juice, vanilla, and strawberry puree.

Adjust the amount of strawberry puree or powdered sugar to achieve desired frosting consistency.

Frost cupcakes when completely cool.

 

One Month!

On July 21, 2008 · 2 Comments · In marriage, our wedding

We have been married for one month.

On one hand, it’s hard to believe that time has passed so quickly. On the other, the wedding seems like it was ages ago already. It’s weird.

I’ve been getting a lot of the “So how’s married life?” question. It’s funny, because I’m never quite sure how to answer that one, aside from saying, “It’s good! Very good.” I try to come up with a more unique answer, but seriously… what do you say?

The truth is that married life–at least for us–is not much different than unmarried life. We already lived together for three years before we got married. With the wedding and the marriage, all we did was make it official.

The biggest change has just been my name. I’m still getting used to it. I honestly haven’t had to use it that much yet, so in a way, it hasn’t even hit me that I’m not Heather Oldlastname anymore. I always knew I’d change my name when I got married. I didn’t think it was a big deal. But I’ll admit to being a little bit sad on the day I was at Social Security and the DMV, “handing over” my old name for the new one. It is just an odd thing–I’ve spent almost 26 years of my life as Heather Oldlastname, and now I am not “her” anymore. I don’t regret changing it, though. I know I’ll adjust.

And I love saying “my husband” now. That’s a change, too.

We are still waiting (impatiently) for our pro pictures and our video. I thought for sure we would have both by Friday of last week, but apparently everyone is running a bit behind. Hurry it up already, I want to relive my wedding!

You hear people talking about “wedding withdrawal.” After spending so much time and effort planning the wedding, there are the people who are really sad when it’s over and don’t know what to do with themselves.

Yeah, umm… that’s not me. I have not really experienced any of that. There are times when I think I’d like to go back and relive the day over again. But that’s only because 1) It went by so fast, and 2) I had SO much fun.

On Friday night, we were at my mom’s house for a party. At one point, I did sneak away to go “visit” my dress. It’s still hanging on the back of the closet door in one of her spare bedrooms. I hadn’t seen it since the day after the wedding, so it was kind of funny. It is still completely filthy. I had a lot of second thoughts about my dress between the time I bought it and the wedding day, but now, I can’t imagine having worn anything else. On the wedding day, as soon as I put it on with everything else–made-up hair, professional makeup, my jewelry, the bouquet–it all really came together for me and I knew I had made the right decision.

We aren’t really “celebrating” tonight. I’m just going to make dinner at home.

So here I am, on the other side. And I gotta tell you… life is good.

 

Mia’s 1st Birthday

On July 21, 2008 · Leave a Comment · In babies, family
My little cousin (second cousin, actually), Mia, turned 1 year old on July 17. Yesterday, my cousin Carly (her mother) and her husband threw a BBQ to celebrate.

It was a good time. It was nice to see some of my family again, now that the wedding is over. And Mia was adorable, of course. (You know how I love babies!) I guess she just started walking last week. She is already a pro at it. It’s amazing to watch how much they develop in such a short time.

I was bad about taking pictures at the party… until Mia had her birthday cupcake, of course. This little one is the spitting image of her father. It is too funny.
Looking back on her first year with some of the photos I have taken of her…

The day after she was born

Baby hands. 1 week old.

At my brother’s going away party for BASIC training. End of July. Approximately 2 weeks old.

Babysitting. Labor Day weekend. Approximately 6 weeks old.

More babysitting Labor Day weekend.

Thanksgiving smiles. 4 months old.

Sucking her thumb on Christmas Eve. 5 months old.

Dressed as Santa on Christmas Eve.

The big birthday girl!

Happy 1st Birthday, Mia!

 

Low-Fat Banana Bread

On July 19, 2008 · 5 Comments · In recipes - bread, recipes - breakfast, recipes - dessert

I love sweet bread. Pumpkin bread, zucchini bread, apple cinnamon bread, banana bread… yum.

The only problem is that under normal circumstances, it is sooo not good for you.

Back in May, we had a few overly ripe bananas, and I wanted to use them for banana bread. Instead of using the recipe I have used for years and years, I decided to go on the internet and try to find something just a tad bit more healthy for us.

I ultimately landed on a recipe from http://www.recipezaar.com/ for “Low-Fat Banana Bread.” It had several good reviews, and that seemed unusual for a low-fat bread recipe. I decided to give it a try.

The first time I sampled it, I tried it pretty much right out of the oven. I didn’t like it. It was chewy, and I wasn’t that thrilled about the taste of it, either. Well, I should have known. Sweet bread is ALWAYS better after you let it sit for a while. I tried it again the next day, and I was blown away. To me, it does not taste low fat at ALL. It’s moist, has a good texture, and has a really nice banana flavor. Delicious. I have made it at least four times since then.

Yesterday, I decided to throw a loaf in the oven for a party my mom was hosting last night. That’s the thing about this bread–perfect for breakfast, a snack, or dessert.

At the party? Rave banana bread reviews. I don’t think anyone even suspected it wasn’t full-on, full-fat banana bread. Two thumbs (or, it would probably be more accurate to say approximately 20 thumbs) up for this recipe. So go ahead, give it a whirl.

This recipe makes one good-sized loaf. I often double the recipe to make two loaves. Lots of bananas–but so good!

Low-Fat Banana Bread

– 4 bananas (the more ripe, the better)
– 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
– 1 cup white sugar (you can lessen this a bit and still not affect the taste)
– 2 tbsp. butter, softened (I use low-fat margarine)
– 1 tsp. vanilla extract
– 1 tsp. baking soda
– 1/2 tsp. baking powder
– 1 egg
– 2 tbsp. unsweetened applesauce

1. Peel bananas and mash them in a bowl. (I break them in thirds, throw them into a bowl, and beat them with my Kitchen Aid mixer.)

2. Add all other ingredients and mix well.

3. Pour into a greased loaf pan.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes, until toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.

Good eats. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts: Recipe makes 12 servings; Serving size- 1 slice; Calories- 182; Calories from fat- 23; Total fat- 2.6g; Saturated fat- 1.4g; Monounsaturated fat- 0.7g; Polyunsaturated fat- 0.2g; Trans fat- 0.0g; Cholesterol- 22mg; Sodium- 140mg; Potassium- 166mg; Total carbohydrate- 38.2g; Dietary fiber- 1.5g; Sugars- 21.6g; Protein- 2.6g