Movie Night

Last night we (Thompson & I) went to see, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Robert was supposed to go with us, but didn't get off til 11:30pm!! So, we went with our friend, Stephanie. It was really good. Long, but good. I only say long because when the movie starts at 9pm and you have a toddler that really doesn't want to sit down for almost 3 hours... it is long. I think the story of the movie was great! About a baby that was born as an old man and he ages in reverse. The way it was filmed was absolutely amazing. If you haven't seen this movie, I do recommend you watch it.

Another movie that I recently saw (& loved!) was Changeling with Angelina Jolie.

It was WONDERFUL! It is set in the late 1920's and is about a single mother, Jolie, whose son was kidnapped. The basis of the story falls around the corruption of the Los Angeles Police Department. It really is a great movie. I highly recommend this one!

We stayed in tonight. I cooked some steaks and they were really good! I was actually surprised that I can cook a steak, but hey?! Thompson even liked it, so... Tomorrow we are going to take advantage of the beautiful weather and cook out. I have ribs, chicken, burgers, and brats! So, we should be set!

Robert is back on a normal schedule next week, thank goodness. No more work at 3:30am...he now gets to go back to going in at 6am. :)

Not much else to report. I hear that there is snow back in Arkansas... I bet it is so pretty. While we were there over Christmas holiday, we didn't see any snow! :( And I love the snow! But luckily we missed the horrible ice storm by about a week! Gees! My mom sent me pictures and I just couldn't believe it. She lost 9 out of her 15 Bradford Pear trees. Let's just say I will take my 75 degree weather over an ice storm any day!

Hope everyone has a great Sunday! I will report back with pictures from the cook out!

Spring is here!

So, I think here in 29 Palms it is officially SPRING TIME! Whoo Hoo! (I am doing a little dance right about now!) It has been in the 70's - low 80' s all week long! Thompson and I have been going on our daily walks. And it is so nice to be able to get out of the house and enjoy the fresh air.

Here are some pictures of Thompson enjoying the sunshine on his John Deere Tractor!

He thought it was better to drive the tractor from the side...hmmm....my little daredevil!

Can't you tell I am in a good mood? Yesterday, I went to Palm Desert and did a little shopping... just a little. :) No, it was fun. My friend Stephanie went with. We ate at In-n-Out Burger (yum!) and just had a great day. Tomorrow, I think Robert and I are going to the movies. We are lucky and have a $1 theater here on base. It shows current movies, so we are going to go see "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". I am not a huge Brad Pitt fan, but have heard awesome reviews!

Hope everyone has a great Friday!

Proof is in His word

Just thought I would share a scripture that my friend Stephanie shared with me today. It really hit home with some current issues I am dealing with. Thanks, Steph for finding this for me! :)

2 Peter 1:5-10

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.
Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall

A Night Out on the Town!

I was a lucky girl this past Saturday night! Not only did I get to go out to eat a fantastic meal, but I was taken my by two favorite boys! And they looked sharp!



Here is a picture of me with my date

We had a pretty low-key Sunday. It was nice. Robert helped me out and did some laundry. I made dinner and that was pretty much it! :) I love those Sundays...

Today, Thompson and I went for a walk with our friend, Stephanie. She and her husband Tony are expecting their first child in August and unfortunately leaving us in March. Her husband worked with Robert and they have decided to go back to Iowa when his contract is up. She is a teacher, so I know they will do great things. I am excited for them, but hate to see them go... I will definitely miss her!

Tonight I am going to attempt to re-create Robert's steak from Saturday night... I will let you know how it goes...

Also, Monday night is one of my favorites for TV night! :) I love Jon & Kate + 8! I think she is sort of a spaz like me! She is all the time getting on to her husband for something and to be honest...it cracks me up! Robert doesn't find it very amusing. ha! But, I think they do a great job for raising 8 kids. And, I love thier new house! So pretty! Another of my favorite shows is One Tree Hill. I have watched this show since forever, and it is getting really good! I am ready for the new season to start back up in March!

That is about it. Going to take Thompson out and let him ride his tractor. Yes, we are the only ones in California with a John Deere Tractor :) And he looks so cute on it!

Visiting Miss Sassy!

Well, not much has happened in the Riedel household this week! :) I kind of like it that way sometimes. We did go and eat at Applebee's with some friends of ours last night. Afterwards we went to this new frozen yogurt place called "utopia", and had some amazing stuff! It was a "build-your-own" kind of thing, and they had tons of different toppings. At the end they weigh it and charge you based on its weight. I thought this was a great idea! I hate when I go somewhere and have to get this enormous amount of ice cream and like 1 topping and they charge you $5 bucks for it! Ridiculous! Anyways, this is a good idea for anyone looking to start a frozen yogurt business - lol.

I just love how I will be talking about one thing and then all of a sudden start ranting about something else. Completely random, I know...

I made my baby back ribs the other night! They were delish! I crock-pot'd them all day. By the time we ate, you had to have a spoon to get them out. YUM! I want to try them in the oven next time to see how they taste!

Well, we did get to go see Ms. Christina's puppy, Miss Sassy! She is a black lab puppy, and is absolutely adorable!! And she is so smart!! At 6 weeks, they already have her trained to sit! I was amazed. Poor Bentley (my dog that is now a life-long member of the Susan Thompson's Adopt-a-Pet foundation) never really got that far. My fault. Maybe if we ever have another dog, he will get a little more attention and training...

Miss Sassy LOVED Thompson. She would just run up and play with him. She is still a puppy and into the chewing, so she would just try and nibble on Thompson's fingers. He just laughed and laughed! He loved playing with her too!

Playing with Sassy's toys!

We are going to head to Palm Desert today. Don't know what adventures we will partake in, but should be fun! Maybe In-n-out burger! :) I will let ya know!

Hmmm...

So, I am thinking... since I cook ALL THE TIME, I am going to start trying to add a couple of recipes a week to my blog. I know that I always enjoy seeing what everyone is cooking and how it was. So tonight I am making White Chicken Chili. This is one of my husband's favorites as well as mine.

White Chicken Chili

Ingredients:
1 lb cooked chicken breast
2 cans White beans
1 24oz Chicken Broth
1 medium onion
1 green bell pepper
1 can of green chilis or 1 serrano pepper (depending on how spicy you like it)
2 tbsp cumin
1 packet McCormick's White Chicken Chili Seasoning packet (optional)
3 tbsp flour
3 tbsp olive oil




All of your chili ingredients, minus the chicken


Start out by heating your olive oil -- Add your onion and bell pepper. Cook for 4 minutes. Then add your flour, green chilis or serrano pepper, cumin, and seasoning packet. Cook for 2 minutes, it will turn very thick. Next, add your beans and chicken broth. Stir really well and bring to a boil. Then add your cooked chicken breast. Simmer and serve.



The Finished Product!

This is incredibly easy. I use a serrano pepper for the extra heat, but feel free to use the green chilis. I also use the seasoning packet for some extra seasonings. It still tastes great if you omit it. I bake my chicken for 25 minutes on 375 degrees, but you can grill or boil it as well.

Hope you try out this great meal!

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Thompson and I went to Yucca Valley today. It is kind of like the Fayetteville for Huntsville. We went and bought some grocieries and had my car detailed. It was such a nice day today. The wind was a little cool and breezy, but nothing too much to complain about. Thompson decided that he wanted to wear his hat today. This is the first time ever that he has even wore his hat for more than 5 seconds. I was quite proud. Plus, he looked so darn cute!







He also started saying "cheese" today when I was taking his picture...you can kind of tell in this picture. :)

Robert has to go to the field at 4 am in the morning, poor guy. So it will be a long day for him. Our friends got a new puppy dog, Miss Sassy, so I think I will take Thompson over to see her tomorrow! It is a black lab and I bet she is adorable!

Tomorrow night I am cooking some bbq ribs. This will be my first attempt ever to cook them, so I will let you know how it turns out.

Good night.

Turning 2 is so much fun!

We just got home from Oceanside. We were there celebrating Haili's 2nd birthday and her momma's, Shanna's, birthday. It is so neat that they were both born on the same day. Here are some pictures from the party and the trip down there.

Enjoying the car ride!

Just relaxing...

Singing "Happy Birthday!"

Digging into her cake

Thompson eating his peice too!



I recently learned some very tragic news. Heather, a girl that I became friends with during our pregnancies, lost her precious baby boy, Robert. He passed away this past December from SIDS. He was born the day before Thompson, and I always enjoyed keeping up with them over the past year. I can't even begin to imagine what her and her family are dealing with. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

This week should be pretty mellow. Robert has to go back to work tomorrow at noon. I am already ready for his next break! :)

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

I hope that everyone had a great Valentine's Day. We enjoyed celebrating this year! Luckily, we got to celebrate this Valentine's Day together. This is the first time since the first year we dated which was 4 years ago; either he was leaving for training, in training, deployments, etc. we never got to celebrate. But that is the Marine Corps for you...

We went to the Olive Garden for dinner and it was delicious! Thompson enjoyed some breadsticks and ravioli. He was very good today, I was a proud Momma.

Thompson being good at dinner!

He got the Cars movie (which he absolutely LOVES!) and a Dr. Suess movie for his Valentine's gifts. He is a sucker for his D's (that is what he calls a DVD). Anytime he sees a movie case he shouts at the top of his lungs D!! D!!! D!!!! It really is cute! :)

I got some lovely gifts as well. Robert too. It really is nice sometimes to spoil each other. I know I enjoyed it. I also baked a YUMMY chocolate cheesecake, chocolate covered strawberries, and a fruit pizza for Robert. He loves sweets! I, too, unfortunately enjoy them as well.



All of my goodies!!

My Yummy Fruit Pizza!


So, maybe next week I can re-start my diet for the 53rd time this year. Maybe I can stick with it for more than a day...

Another task that we are taking on right now is Thompson learning to spoonfeed himself. He is really quite good. He sure knows how to eat the food, but scooping it up is the hard part... Here are some pics of his progress.

Heading back down to Oceanside tomorrow for Haili's 2nd Birthday and Shanna's Birthday too! I love our 3-day weekends!!!

Hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day!

Our Long Weekend

We have had such a great week! Friday's breakfast in Oceanside started off...eventful. We ended up getting lost for over an hour, but made it just in time for them to announce the awardees. Whew! Robert's name was called first, so we are lucky we made it. Other than that, it was pretty quick. After all of the awards were given out, everyone walked around and congratulated the Marines and Sailor for their accomplishment.

Robert receiving his award.

Lining up to shake their hands.

This is Robert and his 1st Sgt. Dinkus. He accompanied us down there for the awards ceremony.

We stayed with Jeremy and Shanna til Saturday; then came home and had to pack for another 3-day adventure to Palm Springs. We left Sunday morning, arrived to Palm Springs, and checked in to our hotel. After meeting another Sgt. that was receiving an award as well, we went to Fleming's Steakhouse for dinner. It was AMAZING!!! We were treated like royalty. Everyone came up to congratulate and thank them for their service. It was definitely a treat.

Mr. Thompson Lee Riedel at Fleming's

Monday, we attended the Navy League meeting where Robert was honored for being NCO of the Year for the 1st MEF. The luncheon was wonderful as well, along with all of the people we met. Many were former military servicemen. Someone graciously paid my dues for 1 year for me to be a member of the Navy League. I am excited to see what exactly they do, and how I may be able to contribute. Overall, I really enjoyed the luncheon. Thompson, I think did too. He got a little restless from sitting for 2.5 hours. Poor guy. But, he did great.

Robert speaking at the Navy League luncheon.

And receiving his award.

Afterwards, we went back to the hotel and took a much need nap. After we woke up and got around, we went to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory! And it was sooooo good! Robert had the ribeye and I had the skirt steak. Thompson munched on his grilled cheese and fries.

Thompson enjoying the Cheesecake Factory until...

He hit his head on the hard table! Poor baby!!!

I almost forgot to mention, while at our dinner Sunday night, Thompson ate and ate and ate! I, unfortunately kept feeding him to try and keep him happy! So, therefore come Sunday night/Monday morning Thompson got sick! And I mean sick! This was the first time he had ever really thrown up, and I am not ready for the next time. After giving him a bath, and Robert mopping the floors, switching out cribs, blankets, etc., he went back to sleep. Poor baby. I felt so bad. Glad to report that he is all better!

Not many plans for the rest of the week. I have got to catch up on some homework, but that is about all.

Here were some great pictures I took on the ride home of the mountains and its fresh snow!!

Take care til next time!

For the first time...

Hello,

Well this is my first official blog. I started to create a site last year, but just never really followed through. So, here is to a good start!

Tomorrow, we are leaving for Oceanside. We are going there for a breakfast at the El Camino Country Club, Friday morning in honor of the one and only, Sgt. Robert Riedel!!! If I haven't told you a million times yet, Robert was named the NCO of the Year for the 1 M.E.F. It is a tremendous honor and I am so proud of him. While we are in Oceanside, we are going to get to stay with Jeremy, Shanna, and Haili; Jeremy is stationed there with the Marines Corps. Then on Sunday, we are headed for a 3-day trip to Palm Springs. This time, it is for a luncheon held by the Navy League. I am very excited to see what they do...

At the end of May, we are getting to go to Arlington, VA. This time it is to see if Robert was named the NCO of the Year for the entire Marine Corps. So that will be something to look forward to.

And I know everyone is wondering...how is Thompson doing?! Well, he is great! We have gotten to go outside and play a lot since we are having beautiful weather. It is incredible to see him grow everyday. It seems like he learns a new word, new expression, or a way to throw a fit everyday! Yes, unfortunately he is definitely showing the lovely signs of the terrible two's. But, I knew it would come.

I will try my best to keep up with posts and add lots of new pictures as often as possible!