I LOVE things you can just drop in the crock pot and let it cook all day.  It makes dinner time such a cinch! 

One of my favorites is a bit of a twist on a pot roast.

You just take a chuck tender roast and put it in the crock pot.  You add in a packet of au jus mix and a packet of dry Italian dressing to start.  Then take a jar of golden pepperoncini (found in your grocery store near the olives and relishes) and pour the juice into the crock.  The de-stem about half of the peppers and put the pepper portion into the crock.  (You can add more for a spicier taste, or fewer for a milder taste.)  Finally, pour over two cans of any type of beer.  This cooks on LOW for almost a full 24-hours.  I usually put it in after dinner one night, to eat for dinner the next night.  It comes out SO TENDER and delicious!  I usually serve it on some type of roll.  You can also melt cheese on it if you like.  Enjoy!!

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In our wedding vows, many of us pledged to love one another in both sickness and in health.  While my husband and I opted to modify the vows to fit our style a bit more, and this phrase was left out, I can honestly say we both hold true to it.  I came down with a nasty cough late Saturday evening, and it started to get really bad Monday morning.  I called in sick to work Monday, and made a trip to the doctor.  She diagnosed me with bronchitis and loaded me up with a lot of medicines!

I picked up the medicine at the pharmacy along with some other sickness supplies and made my way home to the couch for an afternoon of rest and relaxation.  I tried, unsuccessfully, to cat nap throughout the afternoon.  The cough just got the best of me.  When my husband arrived home from school teaching around 3:30, he had a wonderful surprise. 

I’ve already blogged about my affinity for Chai tea, but let me tell you:  for a nasty cough, it helped clear out a lot of the junk that was building up in my lungs!  I gave him a big hug for thinking of a simple, but wonderful way of helping to take care of his sick wife.  The last two nights he also did the bulk of the dinner preparation work, and he handled the loneliness of me sleeping in the spare bedroom so I could cough the night away.  Even risking infection, he came in this morning and kissed me on the head several times and later called to see how I was feeling. 

Anytime he’s sick, I return the favor.  It’s probably one of the best-worst things about marriage.  You see your partner’s true caring nature in the most miserable of times.  It’s just a shame that you have to be sick or in pain during the process!  I’m just lucky enough that I get many glimpses of Floyd’s kind character all year round, whether I’m in sickness or in health.

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Floyd & I have been married just shy of 5 years, and have lived in four different states during that time.  My TV career has kept us bouncing from place to place in the Midwest.  We’re fortunate that every step of the way, we have made amazing friendships.  It gets tougher with time to keep track of everyone, but we do our best.  This past weekend, we had the chance to visit our dear friends Dale & Sarah MacKinney and their family in Great Bend, Kansas. 

Their oldest daughter is starting to come into her own, and will no doubt, be a beautiful young woman one day.  They also have three little ones, with the newest being born just this past fall.  So our visit this weekend was the first time we got to see baby Mackenzie.  We packed in a lot of visiting for just a short weekend trip, but it was great to catch up on what we’d all been up to.  It’s hard to believe that Floyd & I have been away from Kansas, and living in Iowa, for almost 8 months.  

For some reason, it’s been notably more difficult for us to make friends here.  I think our insanely busy schedules play a big part in that.  This visit out west reminded me of just how much good friends are hard to come by.  I am a true believer that marriage itself is a strong friendship, and other strong friendships are important to marriage, too.  We all need an outlet to bond with one another, as individuals and couples.   So near or far, it’s important to cherish the friendships you do have, I’ve realized.  We’ll do our best to really keep in touch with friends we make in every place we wind up.  And for those of you in Quincy, Illinois:  you’re next!

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I just tried this new recipe this week, and it turned out pretty awesome!  Kudos to McCormick for this one.  I did make a couple of modifications to their recipe, which is below.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tsp. rubbed sage 1 tsp. minced garlic 1 tsp. thyme 1/2 tsp. ground allspice 1/2 tsp. paprika 1 tbsp. flour 1 tbsp. salt 2-4 bonelesss pork chops 1-2 red apples thinly sliced 1/2 cup apple juice 1 tbsp. brown sugar 2 tbsp. olive or other cooking oil

I mixed all of the dry spices together with the floor in a small bowl.  Then coat the chops on both sides with that mix.  Put the olive oil in a skillet on a medium-high heat setting, and put your chops in the oil.  When browned on both sides, put them in a small baking dish in a 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes to get the middle evenly cooked. 

While they’re baking, slice up your apples and sprinkle them with any remaining seasoning and a bit of cinnamon if you like.  Put them into your skillet on a medium heat setting and cook them until tender, then reduce to low heat.

When your chops are done, remove from oven and put them back in the skillet with the apples.  Then pour over the apple juice and sprinkle in the brown sugar and cook covered at medium heat until it sizzles a bit.

The best part: McCormick says this recipe has just 371 calories.   I served the pork chops over brown wild rice, and it was awesome!  Enjoy!

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I spent a long day in our state capital yesterday.  The drive there was a bit frightening as heavy snow started falling from the sky.  About a half-hour outside of Des Moines, we saw a car flipped upside down on I-35.  It snowed all day, and the snowflakes just got larger into the evening.  I was, to say the least, nervous about the drive home.  And as he often does, my husband called to make sure I was okay.  After our treacherous drive back to Waterloo, I called to warn him about the conditions as he was in Cedar Falls watching the Auburn-Oregon game with a friend.  And I also told him to spend the night there if he didn’t want to drive back to Waterloo. 

I think all couples have moments where the, “Are you okay?”  phone calls are made.  I know some people can get annoyed by these kinds of calls.  But personally, I take it as a sign of true sincerity and showing your partner that you genuinely want to know the condition of their well-being.  And if you’re put in a dangerous situation, it’s also nice to let your spouse know you’re alright before that call is made, too. 

The same can be extended for friends and family members.  My parents are currently in Tucson, and their condo is just a few blocks away from where the Arizona Congresswoman was shot Saturday.  It was such a relief to get an email from my mom letting me know they were fine.  Anticipating how others will feel to know you’re okay is the other half of this equation.  Even if you think it’s not all that important to pass along the information, your loved ones will appreciate being kept in the loop.

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It’s no big secret that all relationships, marriages included, are one big balancing act.  In the early stages of our relationship, the balance between Floyd & I was notably easier than it is today.  The biggest reason for that is that each of us have gradually taken on more and more responsibilities.  Currently, I am working this insanely busy job as an on-air and online personality, while also being involved a Bible study group, and working on a thesis to receive a Master of Arts degree in communications.  My husband teaches and coaches.  And both of us still are trying to find more ways to get involved in the community and to make more friends, since we are still relatively new to the area.  It’s A LOT!  So the balancing act between all of these things has indeed become more challenging. 

In my view, it’s a good thing to prioritize not just what’s most important among the “to do’s,” but also what needs to get done when.  Planners have been a great deal of help to me in the past.  And now, I’m getting pretty good about setting reminders for important deadlines and events in my BlackBerry.  Above all, no matter how busy you get, it’s vital to make a concerted effort to spend quality time with your spouse or significant other.  This can be making a meal together, watching your favorite TV show, playing a game, and of course “romance” time needs to fit into the picture somewhere, too. 

Yes, the balancing act is hard.  Even just talking about it can make you stressed!  But in the end, I find it’s worth the effort to feel accomplished and satisfied in all that’s been done.

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I am working on a special piece for February sweeps.  It will air in the week leading up to Valentine’s Day.  If you are a young and in love couple, or know of a young couple that has a great love story:  I want to hear about it!  You can post comment to my blog, or email me directly at kmashek@kwwl.com.  I look forward to hearing from you!

Just for fun, I thought I’d write a little about my “love story” with Floyd. 

I first met Floyd when I was just 17 years old.  Believe it or not, at a young age, I’d already experienced some big relationship hardships, which I will not delve into.  But it got to the point where I honestly prayed to meet someone that I could be with for the long haul.  And sure enough, there came along Floyd.  When we first met, I was dating a friend of his named Tony.  It’s not like it sounds.  We were by no means serious.  And in fact, Tony helped play matchmaker between us.  And years later, was a groomsman in our wedding.

After hanging out a few times, I had to tell my parents I’d found someone special.  The hard thing was convincing them their 17-year-old daughter could date a 20-year-old!  It was not easy convincing them, but I did.  It didn’t hurt that my parents are several years apart, and married when my mom was just 19! 

At any rate, Floyd & I fell head over heels for each other pretty fast.  My family adored him so much that they invited him on a family vacation with us to New Orleans at Christmas time 2001.  It was there, that I say we really fell in love.  Over the next few years, I’d graduate high school.  And we’d travel to St. Louis to attend college… something Floyd thought he would never do. 

At Christmas time 2004 during finals week, we were both under the typical college stresses.  So he took me on a date in dowtown St. Louis.  We had dinner, and then took a walk along the Mississippi riverfront.  Under the arch, he got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife.  I said, “Yes.  I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

Our Wedding Reception May 27, 2006

Above is a photo from our honeymoon in Maui, Hawaii.

When we came home, I began looking for my first TV job.  It took us to Quincy, Illinois.  At first, I lived there alone, as Floyd was finishing college in St. Louis.  I left KHQA-TV there in November 2007, to take a new reporting job in Great Bend, Kansas with KSN-TV.  And after two-and-a-half years in tornado country, we landed in Iowa in May 2010.

This May, Floyd & I will celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary.  And in September, we’ll mark 10 years as a couple.  It has absolutely flown by!  But I can truly say that I love him more with time.  We are the best of friends, and I consider myself truly blessed to have found him.

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I had an unusually slow evening around the newsroom Monday night.  I came into work early that day, so I was fortunate enough to finish up a bit early.  While I was sorting through a few loose ends, I called my husband briefly just to say “hello.”  And after our conversation, he made a trip to the station and brought me my favorite winter beverage:  a hot chai tea.  And he also gave me a dollar, so I could chip in to an office lotto pool.  It was SO NICE!  I just had to brag on him a little.  This moment also made me think that I should make similar efforts in acts of kindness.  A little treat here and there goes a long way to show someone you care, whether it’s a spouse, friend, colleague, you name it!

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Happy New Year!  It’s always a bit exciting to begin a new year.  It’s a signal of things to come, new hopes, new dreams and aspirations.  It’s an age-old tradition to make a New Year’s resolution:  setting a goal of something you’d like to accomplish in the new year.  But as my reporting colleague Colleen O’Shaughnessy demonstrated in a recent story–if you’re going to make a resolution at all, it’s a good idea to make it attainable. 

As for me, I haven’t made a said resolution.  I just look at each new year as a way to try and improve on myself, without concrete goals.  Instead of saying, “I’m going to lose 10 pounds,” I’d rather resolute to work out a few times each week on the new treadmill my husband and I purchased for Christmas.  I also hope to be stronger in my faith, and I always resolute to build upon my existing relationships and to form new ones.

What are you resolving to do this year?  And how will you work to achieve it?  Good luck!!

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