Happy Homeowners!

We closed on our house last Friday. YIPPEE! Everything went so smoothly. It is such a relief to have that part finally over and now the fun begins....moving! Yuck. At least we won't have to do that again for a long, long time.

Mexican Lasagna

I made this Mexican Lasagna by Rachael Ray for dinner yesterday and it was a big hit. The dish was well flavored and wasn't too spicy. Although, it would be really easy to add more heat.

I did make my usual substitutions and used 2 percent cheese and low-fat sour cream. I also added chopped fresh tomatoes (they were as fresh as you can get this time of year) and black olives.

The best part of this dish was definitely that the left-overs were really good. Van and I both had it for lunch today and there was still enough left for dinner tonight. It is so nice to start the week without worrying about what to cook for dinner.

Progress

Only 10 days until we close on our house! Yippee!!

I'm on a mission to get as much packed as possible. Thankfully, I've got quite the pile of boxes going in our living room.

As much as I hate moving, I am really happy that this will be the last time we are moving for a long, long time.

Happy Faces for Our House

We had our home inspection on Tuesday and passed with flying colors! We are so relieved to know that there aren't any issues with the house. The current owner has taken amazing care of the place and made some really nice improvements. Of course, the kitchen is huge!

I can't wait to get moved in and get the place settled. It will be so nice to finally unpack all of our wedding gifts and have room for all of our stuff. Most importantly, it will be so nice to finally have room to have our friends and family visit. Not mention how fun it is going to be to decorate!

Resolutions

I'm trying to only make one resolution this year - be a better blogger!

The last two months brought some major life changes for Van and I. I'm hoping that 2009 will be a time for us to enjoy some of the changes we made in 2008.

After much searching, we finally found a house and we are set to close on Jan. 30! Well, it's actually a townhouse, but it is more than twice the size of our little one-bedroom apartment. We have been very busy finalizing all of the details that come with purchasing a home - securing a mortgage, completing the home inspection, etc. I've also been busy trying to clean and organize our apartment and start packing. I'm really proud of myself because I have already taken six bags of stuff to Goodwill. Which I think is a big accomplishment for a true pack-rat.

Paula Deen Dinner Night

Okay. I love Paula Deen. She is the grandmother that everyone wants. (I still heart you too Nana) I love watching her shows on Food Network. She just seems like so much fun be around. I usually try to avoid her recipes because of the butter/fat content. Not that I am the healthiest eater in the world, but I do try to avoid recipes that feature butter as the primary ingredient.

Last Sunday, I splurged and had Paula Deen dinner night. I made Chef Jack's Corn Chowder and Paula's Garlic Cheese Biscuits. I did make several attempts to try to make the recipes a little better. I used fat-free reduced sodium chicken broth instead of regular and fat-free half and half instead of regular. I also substituded heart smart bisquick and cheddar made from 2 percent milk in the biscuits. Everything was worth the effort and the result was true comfort food. Van especially liked the biscuits and they were super easy to make. Both recipes ended up being keepers.

House Hunting

As much as I love my HGTV, I have to admit I hate trying to find a house in Northern Virginia. I knew this wasn't going to be easy, but I had no idea how stressful this whole entire process would be. We have spent countless hours looking at all types of houses in all of the different suburbs in our area. I feel like we are being realistic about what we can afford. We're obviously not trying to find a place one block from the metro with all the bells and whistles for $300,000. Although, we would be ecstatic if that did exist. Maybe today will be the day...