December Filers

[nikolacolada 21]

nice idea mari! i like this little decemberite family feel in this thread (don't say that with a mouth full!)

i wish i could help add to the recipe side of things with a british or english recipe for you all but unfortunately, cooking is not my forté! reilly refers to the way i make a cup of tea as 'alchemy' though so maybe I could aid with that! lol

any beneficiaries starting the major spring clean out in preparation for packing up and going? i've been in the mood this week.. it's getting a bit silly this evening though as i'm getting sentimental over things i had forgotten i had laying about! getting things together to have a big boot sale now the weather's on the up, but just spent 10 minutes looking lovingly/despairingly at a polaroid camera i've had for 5 years and used one lot of film in! quite proud though, removed 4 (yes 4!) black bags full of clothes out of my wardrobe! spring cleaning time ladies and gents! x

We haven't started going through any of Emilios things yet (he doesn't have that much) but he did sell his motorcycle last week (FINALLY!) he was kind of sad about it because he worked so hard to buy it, but it was hard for me to understand why he was so sad since he hadn't used it in over two years lol That's probably the only thing he'll have to get rid of since we're planning on keeping our little apartment in Mexico but it was hard for him. He's so sensitive I couldn't imagine what it would be like if he had to go through all of his things and choose only a few to keep to bring with him to the U.S. That's gotta be so hard on the beneficiaries..

[crazy_for_Iza 2]

Got a touch! 3/22/2011 Yeeeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw! Oh yeah, hey Dizzy, Mary wanted me to let you know that I'm going through the CSC.

Edited April 2, 2011 by crazy_for_Iza

[Mariye & Ky 172]

Got a touch! 3/22/2011 Yeeeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw! Oh yeah, hey Dizzy, Mary MARI (mar-EEEE)wanted me to let you know that I'm going through the CSC.

[tobey 0]

Hiya Inna!! Here's the feed to the Decemberite Thread. Good luck on your studies and I am confident you're going to come out like a champ after finals!! Really looking forward to seeing what you post for a recipe too. Hello to Stas as well.

Here is an affirmation for you to put on a sticky note for your school notebook (because this is you ):

I AM AN INGENIOUS A' STUDENT and anything I

do comes easy and effortlessly.

Love ya,

Mari

awww Mari you are so adorable!!!!!! Thank you! My brain is literally hurting and eyes are about to pop out from staring at the computer screen 24/7 trying to write all these Case Studies.

But I am thinking hard about these recipes... so far the one that is really coming to mind are potato latkes,

Recipe ingredients

* 6 white potatoes (I like to use sweet potato as well - can do 4 white potatoes + 2 sweet potatoes= yumness)

* 1 medium onion, peeled

* 3 eggs, beaten

* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

* 1/2 cup flour

* Salt and pepper to taste

* 4 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil for frying

* Sour cream and/or applesauce, for topping

How to make Israeli potato pancakes (potato latkes)

* Peel the potatoes and grate. Drain any excess liquid. This is important.

* Grate the onion and add to the grated potatoes. Add eggs, baking powder, and 1/2 cup flour. Add more flour if mixture is not thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste and blend well.

* In a large, heavy frying pan, heat 4 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil until hot.

* Using a large spoon or gravy ladle, spoon a portion of potato mixture into the pan and brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Repeat until mixture is gone, adding oil as needed. Serve hot with sour cream and/or applesauce.

For a healthier version of this recipe, use an egg substitute in place of the beaten eggs. Plain nonfat yogurt can be substituted for the sour cream, and you can use nonstick vegetable spray instead of oil to brown the latkes. For variety, you can also add grated zucchini, carrots, chopped parsley, or fresh dill to this recipe.

Now this is a pretty oily recipe but it is a holiday dish and it is pure goodness. I never tried the healthier version to be honest, but everyone I have made these for have gone crazy. It is best to eat them when they are still hot and crispy. This is a bit like hash browns but with an Israeli feel

[ManilatoSeattle 6]

Manang Ning Ning,

How come you're not on our Timeline (Your NOA1 Dec 1)? Please ask Dizzy to add you if you're not on there ok?

Tita Mari

Tita Mari,

Yes my NOA1 is Dec 1... Ok I will ask Dizzy! thank you..

Manang Ning Ning,

How come you're not on our Timeline (Your NOA1 Dec 1)? Please ask Dizzy to add you if you're not on there ok?

Tita Mari

Tita Mari,

Yes my NOA1 is Dec 1... Ok I will ask Dizzy! thank you..

[ManilatoSeattle 6]

Manang Ning Ning,

How come you're not on our Timeline (Your NOA1 Dec 1)? Please ask Dizzy to add you if you're not on there ok?

Tita Mari

Oh I saw my name on our Timeline. My name there is ManilatoSeattle

[hope.andsun 7]

Can you add us on the list please? We sent our petition on December 1st and got our NOA1 hard copy on December 6th. Ours is in CSC.

Edited April 3, 2011 by hope.andsun

[Lena and Igor 5]

Nice of you to keep up with us. My SO walked me through "making borsht" last night via Skype. Her English is intermediate and my cooking skills have much to be desired. The borsht was great. My son had two bowls, me too. This dish is Ukrainian. Makes me miss her more! Hoping for good news soon, for all of us.

[Lise+Michael 13]

Thank you Inna for your awesome contribution. Good luck on your case studies, as Mari said "your and ingenious 'A' student" and you will get through this!!! (I did with just a few grey hairs!)

Have a nice day everyone!

Lise

[Turano_family 3]

Nice of you to keep up with us. My SO walked me through "making borsht" last night via Skype. Her English is intermediate and my cooking skills have much to be desired. The borsht was great. My son had two bowls, me too. This dish is Ukrainian. Makes me miss her more! Hoping for good news soon, for all of us.

My Fiance Phillip loved my Borsch a lot, I cooked for him it while i was in USA! =)

Hope we will keep in touch!

Good luck for you!!!

[Mariye & Ky 172]

Ok I am working on one it will be flying in from Zamboanga!!!

And? ................ recipe recipe recipe!

[Mariye & Ky 172]

Nice of you to keep up with us. My SO walked me through "making borsht" last night via Skype. Her English is intermediate and my cooking skills have much to be desired. The borsht was great. My son had two bowls, me too. This dish is Ukrainian. Makes me miss her more! Hoping for good news soon, for all of us.

Igor! Wow great to see you and Lena's name on your Decemberite Family Posts!!!

So although your cooking is "much to be desired" [your words not mine], will you please submit a recipe from Lena too? Would be great to have something different from Ukraine.

Again, wonderful to see you around here again!!!!

Mari

PS: what's the update on your uscis profile? Anything new on the wedding plans? Oh!! and are you doing the Fitness Challenge with us?

[Mariye & Ky 172]

Thank you Inna for your awesome contribution. Good luck on your case studies, as Mari said "your and ingenious 'A' student" and you will get through this!!! (I did with just a few grey hairs!)

Have a nice day everyone!

Lise

Yanno... I went to a bazillion years of schooling, got mentally bored and for a hobby & fun I am currently enrolled in another undergrad program. This didn't give me grey hair.

In fact, my very adventurous life didn't give me grey hair either.

THIS VJ GAVE ME GREY HAIR (24 of them cuz I counted), and IT STILL IS GENEROUS ENOUGH TO CONTINUE GIVING!!

[Lena and Igor 5]

To be honest, Lena's borscht in the Ukraine was much better than mine. It's a 7 hour time difference and you know that Skyping is definitely not the same as cooking together in real life. But, thank God for Skype! Marriage...within 2-3 weeks of her arrival in Detroit. Can I really plan? I hope it will be in July when my daughter comes home to visit from Maui to be at our wedding. Here's the recipe (from Lena).

Ukrainian Borscht

PREP:

1 whole chicken or meat of your preference

3-4 potatos peeled and cut in small pieces

2 carrots - diced

1-2 small beets - peeled, cut and slivered

1 onion - cut and sliced thin

1 cabbage (small) - cut and slivered thin

parseley 1/4 cup

2 cloves of garlic

2 Tbs tomato paste

1 cup tomato juice

salt

pepper

Cut and boil chicken in a large pot of water - fill pot halfway with water (may substitute with meat)

Decrease heat to medium, cover slightly and simmer for 30 minutes

Add beets - increase heat to medium until beets are nearly cooked through

Add carrots

Add potatos

Saute onions in oil until clear, add tomato paste and tomato juice (mix well)

When potatos are nearly cooked through, add onion, paste and juice to pot

Add 5 cups of water to pot

Add cabbage (maybe 3 cups) - continue with medium heat and slightly covered

mince garlic and add to pot

add salt and pepper to taste

Turn off heat when cabbage is cooked through

Add chicken or meat (cut into small pieces)

Let the pot rest for 15 minutes

It's done and it is truly delicious! Don't forget to add a dollup of sour cream in the center of your bowl of borscht.

Take my word and my son's word for it! Enjoy

Now, about the challenge...we'll see...

[Mariye & Ky 172]

Dear Decemerite Family:

I have been reviewing all 77 pages (so far) of our posts! WOW WEE! That is a lot!!

I was quite surprised when Militarygf said she didn't know what to do after they got their NOA2 and this is what planted the seed for this idea. Anyway, since we are coming closer to the uscis goal time of 5-6 mos, I would like to submit to you this:

"Back in the day, when I was in Sorority".... we had a thing called "little sister" and the Frats guys had a 'little bro'. Now, without us getting too mushy mushy (even if we are a fun-loving, fondlerful BIG fam), I woulld like to submit to some of the more active Decemberites to check in with some of our Decemberite family who we haven't seen in a while. Let this be a positive opportunity to let them know they are thought about. Afterall, isn't it nice to get a surprise HELLO especially when it could come on a day that seems lonely without our Sweetheart, or we're discouraged from the waiting pains? So will you help me with this Decemberites?

May I suggest to find a family member we haven't seen from the list below, find their post on this thread (so they can reply directly back to your post), give a hello and encourage them. For example: NOA2' progress, wedding stuff, fitness challenge, our cookbook, etc. Wouldn't it be nice if we saw this thread with APPROVED APPROVED APPROVED? I think we can do it together!

So here are some of the 37 Decemberites we haven't really seen in a while: (Yellow we sent a H&F; Teal we heard from!)

Don & Julie, JPK+CAK, Mattb05, Adi+Pim, Vancedan, WMark+Carol, Stargazer, James_And_JoAnne, I+H, Soontobe, OnTheRoadAgain, DonLorenzo, BobbyA, Setherwyn, PreciousOne, AcrossTheMiles, Palladin, Mikey&Cathy, Linha87, Jani&Graham, Yllen, Dahnlor, W+M, ChrisG, Gina&Dan, Crazy_for_Iza, Tim/Mav, abbieg1K, Paul&Tonieta, Cast.linda, Neko, SammyD, MyWenie, LenaAndIgor, David92592, Tsuwa,Sassha, Stas & Inna.

Here are some of the more active posters who I will give a term of endearment, The "Hearts & Fondles" Team! aka: H&F's (pink are those that sent H&F's -- Thank you!)

Dizzylox, lise+michael, WendieAndSam, Bec_Dipu, M+P, KiwiBird, KiwiJen, SwissMiss2, DerekAndCallie, Kiria&Daniel, Nikolacolada, Christine+Blake, Sandl2011, USCMAviator, Rallybug, Piefre, Carrie_a, Ferincor, Kristen_Maroc, Marcia&Danny, ManilatoSeattle, gyselle, Phyxsius, Hope.andSun, GirlwithaGerman, lee&jenibee, Gsummit, M&J, Alex&Joan, Turano_family, April&Adam, Mochamich, Alex&Joan, Dianarango_17, Jay&CiCi, Mari and Kadir.

OK: so we have 39 we haven't seen in a while and 32 H&F's. If each H&F picks one or two, we seriously could see some different stats around here because maybe some of them haven't updated their timeline or haven't mentioned what's been going on for some time now.

So... without this sounding too colourful, go out and touch fondle! LOL LOL LOL (that better not get me a TOS vio either! lol lol )

There are quite a few we haven't fondled yet. But as a result of our small, authentic & inviting gestures, the ones who have come to check in are genuinely happy that we thought about them! And, they're updating us with their timelines fondles and recipes too. So you see? This also helps Lise with organiing Our Decemberite Int'l Cookbook!!!

"If ya wanna eat the bread, you gotta help bake it."

Let's Go Team!

Mari