white coat ceremony

sorry for all of the posts today, but the fans are getting restless.

friday afternoon was david's white coat ceremony.  it was the last day of orientation.  this is when they get their white coats and kind of an initiation into the medical profession.  the dean of the school and the keynote speaker took our picture:

i thought it was kind of funny that david would ask them, but they were happy to do it!  i'm glad david goes to a school where there are nice people.  

al's bday

this post is going to boring for everyone but my mom probably.  so feel free to skip it.

for my birthday typod and andie decided to surprise me in wisconsin!  they picked me up from work on wednesday and from then we basically partied all week.

first i was greeted by a mountain of presents typod insisted he picked out.  i loved everything and was glad that my mom got me wrinkle cream and baby stuff.... do you think she's trying to tell me something?!

then we went to a tepanyaki restaurant for dinner.  it was delish, but this couple at our grill made the evening pretty awkward.  our waitress was in love with andie's polaroid cam and loved taking pictures of us in the restaurant.  here's just a sample of the awesome images that were captured:

then we went to culver's for some oreo custard sandwiches and whatever mess typod got.  i wanted a br turtle pie, but was afraid that they make them with graham cracker crusts here.... later in the week i went to br to check it out and for future reference they make them like they used to in the 90's!  with chocolate wafer crust!  i know what i'm getting next year!

the next day david2 convinced us that the fair was only 1/2  a mile from our house so we walked.  guess what?  it's way farther than that.  but we made it.  it also happened to be the warmest day this summer and definitely not a day for jeans.  let's just say it was sweaty.

these are some fried cheese curds and fried oreos, which surprisingly are pretty good.

this is typod getting ready to ride the slide!

he loved it.

then we found an indoor part of the fair after we were complete greaseballs.

then we went to chicago for some deep dish pizza, anthros and baseball.  it was the bomb!

typod was loving the pizza:

david2 did too, but he likes looking serious in every pic.

then we took tyler to wrigley field to check it out.  the cubs were on the road, so we didn't get to see them, but it was still awesome.

then we went to us cellular field to check out the whitesox vs. the indians i think.  it was so fun and the hot dogs were really good.  better than dodger dogs even.  thanks for the tickets mom!

then we went to the magic mountain in illinois which is conveniently located 4 miles from the nearest souplantation.  andie decided we all needed to take solo shots while waiting 2 hours in a line waiting for the thunder storms to pass.  magic mountain was lame and made us wait out the rain and then wait for the rides to dry.  it took forevs.

it was also the first time that i wore sneaks to a theme park.  let's just say i felt like a tourist, but my feet were comfy the whole day.

 

we spent $15 on this refillable souvenir cup because you could get free refills all day.  we decided that if we got 5 refills it would pay for itself.  after 3 cups of soda we stuck with water for the rest of the day.

david kept looking up stuff for his orientation that started the next day.

andie had to hide her purse under her shirt for most of the day because this magic mountain makes you buy a locker at every ride if your stuff doesn't fit in your pockets.  we were able to use some jedi mind tricks to get out of  a few locker purchases, but some guys were sticklers.

i believe this pic is in front of the 4th anthro we went to in 3 days.  what can we say?  we love them.

in their last hours in the city we took them to see the milwaukee side of lake michigan and we took some pictures so you guys can check it out!

i'm pretty sure our guests loved wisconsin and you will too!

challah

the best challah bread.   seriously.

and i made it and i am not very good at making bread.

Time: about 1 hour, plus 2 1/2 hours’ rising

Yield: 2 loaves

1 1/2 packages active dry yeast (1 1/2 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup olive or vegetable oil, plus more for greasing the bowl

5 large eggs

1 tablespoon salt

8 to 8 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup raisins per challah, if using, plumped in hot water and drained

Poppy or sesame seeds for sprinkling.

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water.

2. Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Gradually add flour. When dough holds together, it is ready for kneading. (You can also use a mixer with a dough hook for both mixing and kneading, but be careful if using a standard size KitchenAid–it’s a bit much for it, though it can be done.)

3. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Clean out bowl and grease it, then return dough to bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until almost doubled in size. Dough may also rise in an oven that has been warmed to 150 degrees then turned off. Punch down dough, cover and let rise again in a warm place for another half-hour.

4. At this point, you can knead the raisins into the challah, if you’re using them, before forming the loaves. To make a 6-braid challah, either straight or circular, take half the dough and form it into 6 balls. With your hands, roll each ball into a strand about 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place the 6 in a row, parallel to one another. Pinch the tops of the strands together. Move the outside right strand over 2 strands. Then take the second strand from the left and move it to the far right. Take the outside left strand and move it over 2. Move second strand from the right over to the far left. Start over with the outside right strand. Continue this until all strands are braided. For a straight loaf, tuck ends underneath. For a circular loaf, twist into a circle, pinching ends together. Make a second loaf the same way. Place braided loaves on a greased cookie sheet with at least 2 inches in between.

5. Beat remaining egg and brush it on loaves. Either freeze breads or let rise another hour.

6. If baking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again. Sprinkle bread with seeds, if using. If freezing, remove from freezer 5 hours before baking.

7. Bake in middle of oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden. (If you have an instant read thermometer, you can take it out when it hits an internal temperature of 190 degrees.) Cool loaves on a rack.

Note: Any of the three risings can be done in the fridge for a few hours, for more deeply-developed flavor. When you’re ready to work with it again, bring it back to room temperature before moving onto the next step.

this recipe is an adaptation from the challah recipe from smitten kitchen.  i made mine in my little 5qt. kitchenaid and it worked fine.  you just have to be patient with this recipe.  but it is so worth it.  also, you can freeze one of the loaves and used the extra stale bread to make the best french toast or bread pudding.

enjoy!