"Love is All You Need...All You Need is Love" ~ Pearl Jam, Love Boat Captain

My relationship with Pearl Jam began a long time ago, but really blossomed within the last ten years after I met Rob, the biggest Pearl Jam fan I know. In sixth grade, I received my first CD player for Christmas from my parents. Along with it, I got my first CD - Pearl Jam "Vs." I asked for the CD because in music class, a boy I had a crush on played "Elderly Woman Behind a Counter in a Small Town" and I wanted him to like me so I got the CD, listened to is constantly and called him with it playing in the back and just casually mentioned that I liked Pearl Jam too (I was so smooth). Over jr. high and high school, I had a casual relationship with PJ - I never bought any of their other albums, unless you count the cassette tape single of "Last Kiss." 

Dancing at our wedding to Pearl Jam

Fast forward to the fall of 2001 when I met Rob Carlson at UMass and it came up that he was a big Pearl Jam fan. My sixth grade game came back to me and I mentioned my first CD was "Vs." (I left out that it was my only Pearl Jam album). I immediately downloaded (oh the joys of free music downloads in college) a ton of Pearl Jam songs and started to realize that there was more to Pearl Jam than the orange Vs. album, Last Kiss and the other songs I heard on the radio. I started to become more of a fan and attended my first concert with Rob in September of 2004. Since that time, I have become WAY more of a fan and attended 8 more concerts and countless cover band concerts.

Philly, 2009

We have a ton of fun memories from Pearl Jam concerts - hearing "Leash" played in 2006 for the first time since 1993, an epic pre-game tailgate including flip cup in the summer of 2008, taking a road trip to Philly for back-to-back concerts in 2009, going to two concerts in one week while pregnant with Matthew - one in Boston and one in NYC.  

We incorporated Pearl Jam into our wedding - our first dance was to a Pearl Jam version of "Can't Help Falling in Love with You", our wedding bands are engraved with lyrics from "Love Boat Captain", and the last song played was "Yellow Ledbetter". There were a ton of Pearl Jam songs on my "labor playlist" including a lullaby album of Pearl Jam songs which we have used to soothe Matthew to sleep. There are many lyrics of songs that remind me of specific situations and I love that roadtrips are always made better by listening to something that we both enjoy. 

Matthew gives Pearl Jam a thumbs up

After all these memories and experiences, as I was making my "30 Before 30 list", I realized that I had never listened to each studio album from start to finish. It was a wonderful project to take on and I found some songs that were a little off my radar screen, either they don't play them much in concert or I had always thought I didn't like them. So here is my take on each album, starting at the beginning...

Updated: February 2018
In the six+ years since I wrote this original blog, we have been to six more concerts for a total of 15 for me, and we are going to at least two more this year at Fenway and a bucket list trip to see them in their home city of Seattle. Looking forward to shows 16, 17 and 18 in 2018!

Artwork from Birthday show

Some standout memories of the most recent shows are going to Chicago to see them play at Wrigley Field for the first time ..which included a massive rain delay in the middle of the show but they debuted some new music which was pretty great. We went to back-to-back shows in Worcester in 2013, right before I got pregnant with Juliette, including a show on my actual birthday. What a nice gift! We have that concert artwork framed on our bedroom wall. In the spring of 2016, we took a trip to Florida to see shows in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami for our first real trip away from the kids. Can’t wait to update after these 2018 shows!

Ten - obviously an amazing album, some of Pearl Jam's best known songs are from this CD. "Black" is one of my favorite songs, even though it's extremely sad. I think I have a greater respect for this album after seeing the PJ20 movie. 

Vs - still my favorite. It will always have a special place in my heart. My favorite Pearl Jam song is "Elderly Woman Behind a Counter in a Small Town." Other gems - "Glorified G"  - the music is so upbeat even if the lyrics are about guns, I will never not laugh while listening to "Daughter" (ask Dave or Rob about the story behind that), and obviously "Leash" is just pure awesomeness. I listened to this on a run once and set a personal record that I still have not beat. 

Vitalogy - not my favorite. Two songs I just couldn't stand. "Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me" and "Bugs" are just hard to get through. "Better Man" and "Corduroy" are pretty solid.

No Code - LOVE "Smile" and "In My Tree". I was reintroduced to "Around the Bend" which is the closest thing Pearl Jam has to a lullaby. 

Yield - For the most part, really enjoy this album. I'm not a fan of "Do the Evolution" at all, although I should just used to it because they play it live a lot. I just get creeped out by the soft singing and the video with the horses disturbs me. There are some great songs on this album though: "Low Light", "Faithful", "Given to Fly" and one of my favorite songs "Wishlist". I like a lot of the slower songs and the lyrics are just amazing. 

Binural - Terrible. Almost no redeeming qualities...it was painful to get through. 

Riot Act - Clearly I'm a fan of "Love Boat Captain" and also love "I am Mine." Some of the others are too weird/political for my liking. I'm glad they don't play many of these live. 

Pearl Jam - Awesome. This album came out when my Pearl Jam obsession had just really started but I really do like pretty much every song. "Come Back" and "Parachutes" are my favorite. My all-time favorite scene from any episode of "Friday Night Lights" has "Come Back" as the soundtrack. 

Backspacer - Also awesome. I love all of these songs and absolutely LOVE "Just Breathe." I may have got tears in my eyes in Philly when they played it acoustically with string instruments accompanying. 




Lighting Bolt - VS still holds as my favorite, but Lighting Bolt may be a close second. It’s very easy to listen to the whole album, there are no songs I dislike. There are definitely some favorites including “Sirens”, by far my favorite song on the album. I typically love the slow ones anyways but there is so much meaning to this one. This song was playing in the delivery room the moment Juliette was born. I heard her first cries with it playing in the background. You can’t beat that! This is also one of Matthew’s favorite bedtime songs for the last four years. The first time I heard it live was on my birthday and the last time I heard it was live was the day before Juliette’s 2nd birthday. They also played it at both shows in Florida, our first trip away from the kids. I have cried all four times. I also love Mind Your Manners, and whenever I listen I picture the guys (mostly Mike) running around the stage dancing. I also love the slow build up on Lightning Bolt and Pendulum. The last track, “Future Days” is amazing and obviously makes me think of Rob, the whole reason I am such a big Pearl Jam fan.



Hoping for a new album soon to review!

So there you go. I had a hard time picking a lyric for this post title since there are so many...but because ultimately it was my love for Rob which turned me into a Pearl Jam fan, I thought it was appropriate.

Feel free to leave comments about your favorite Pearl Jam songs, lyrics or memories! :)

A Lasagna I will eat!! Creamy White Chicken & Artichoke Lasagna

If you have read my past post, you will know that lasagna and I have a long standing history. I don't like it, it keeps trying to rejoin my life. After I made a lasagna last year with no ricotta, I just decided to give up. A few months go I joined Pinterest and found a recipe for Creamy White Chicken and Artichoke Lasagna. It seemed more like artichoke dip than lasagna. A couple weeks ago I made it for the fam and it was a big hit! I forgot to take pictures but I will make it again and take some pics. I made a few changes from the original recipe. Here you go!

Creamy White Chicken & Artichoke Lasagna

• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts
• 1 medium onion quartered
• 2 celery stalks
• 2 cups of chicken broth 
• 1 14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1 8 oz package of reduced fat mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 packages of cream cheese, softened 
• 1 cup of milk 
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 cup basil 
• 12 lasagna noodles 

Place the chicken, onion and celery in a crock pot. Cover with chicken broth and cook on high for 4 hours. Shred the chicken and cool. Combine chicken, artichokes, 1 cup mozzarella, Parmesan and tomatoes. Beat cream cheese, milk and garlic powder with mixer until well blended; stir in 2 Tbsp. basil. Mix half with the chicken mixture. Spread half the remaining cream cheese mixture onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; cover with 3 noodles and 1/3 of the chicken mixture. Repeat layers of noodles and chicken mixture twice. Top with remaining noodles, cream cheese mixture and mozzarella; cover with tin foil sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining basil. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting to serve.

Quick update

Quick update...

We had a lot of life changes in the last few months. Rob graduated and got a new job in Massachusetts and we moved to Kingston within three weeks. I turn 30 in just about a month and a half, so some of these are not going to be completed...but I'll keep working on them! 

Jackie's 30 Before 30 List:

1. Visit a zoo in New York
2. Run a 5K
3. Hold my son’s hand as he walks by himself
4. Make a lasagna
5. Cheer on my husband as he receives his MBA
6. Visit the Met
7. Drink a Long Island Iced Tea on Long Island
8. Take a tour of the Brooklyn brewery
9. Walk on the beach in the Hamptons
10. Create a new blog to record memories
11. Try 30 new recipes and blog about each one (10/30 completed)
12. Eat real sushi
13. Watch all the Harry Potter movies again in order (1/8 completed)
14. Complete 100 consecutive push ups
15. Watch “Casablanca” and “Gone with the Wind”
16. Ride the carousel in Central Park
17. Ride the feris wheel at Coney Island
18. Try a wine from each of the 50 states (15/50 completed - CA, CT, GA, MA, MD, NC, NM, NH, NY, OR, PA, RI, SC, VA, WA)
19. Complete a crossword puzzle
20. Take a tour of Fenway Park
21. Listen to all of Pearl Jam’s studio albums in entirety
22. See at least 3 more Broadway shows (Wicked, Book of Mormon, Once)
23. Complete 3 scrapbooks (2/3 completed)
24. Sample cupcakes from Sprinkles, Magnolias and Carlo’s bakeries (1/3 complete)
25. Ride on a motorcycle
26. Buy myself a pair of kickass heels
27. Try a spinning class
28. See a plastic surgeon about the age spot on my cheek
29. Go to dinner with all my siblings, just the 4 of us
30. Read/reread 3 novels from high school English class (1/3 Completed - A Separate Peace)

When You Smile, I Smile...

I continuously feel this way....but Matthew just keeps getting cuter, sweeter and funnier every single day. He makes me smile so much whenever I am with him, and I love weekends with no plans so we can enjoy him and his humor even more. This weekend, there were a couple of stand out moments.

My little boy making a MESS out of dinner

Saturday morning as I was getting Matthew's breakfast ready, he let out a big "toot" and started laughing. I think I rolled my eyes and said something like "oh nice" and Rob asked me "Do you feel like a princess?" because I like to joke around that being the only girl in the house makes me the princess. I think any mom of only boys knows that this is not the case :). Matthew proceeded to pretend to do more toots and continue to laugh about it. As I picked him up to put him in his high chair, he patted me on the back and said "good luck Mama." Where in the world does he come up with these things?! 

Ready to go outside!

On Sunday, we went to a street fair that was right up the street from us. It was really fun and a great way to spend a sunny June day. We walked around the fair and took a detour on the way home to a playground. Matthew, who was once scared of the swings and the big turtle there, was fearless. We spent over an hour swinging, climbing, jumping, sliding and playing. He was his adorable self, waving and saying "hi" and "bye" to people (and objects). At one point, I went over and gave Rob a hug and said "I love our life" as we watched Matthew play. At that exact moment, Matthew came running over, arms wide open and gave us a big hug, one arm around Rob and one around me. It was the sweetest thing.

I know there will be a time when him "tooting" and making an insane mess out of dinner won't be so cute. And as much as I don't want to admit it, there will probably come a time when he won't hug us out of the blue (especially in public), so I'm going to enjoy every second of it now while I can. Because Matthew, when you smile, I smile! 

(Thank you to Justin Bieber for the song lyric).

Recipe #11 - Avocado chicken salad!

I found this recipe on Pinterest and thought it sounded great. I have made shredded chicken in the crock pot twice in the last couple weeks and decided to try it today. The original recipe didn't have measurements, and I would adjust them a bit next time. I would use an additional avocado and chop the cilantro a little finer, but for the first try - I was very impressed! You could make and shred the chicken another way, but this is a SUPER easy recipe.


Avocado Chicken Salad

• 5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs 
• 1 medium onion quartered 
• 2 celery stalks 
• 2 cups of chicken broth 
• 1 avocado 
• juice of one lime
• 1 TBSP mayonaise
• 1/4 cup of cilantro 
• sprinkle of salt and pepper

Place the chicken, onion and celery in a crock pot. Cover with chicken broth and cook on high for 4 hours. Shred the chicken and cool. Combine chicken, avocado, lime juice, mayo and cilantro and sprinkle in salt and pepper. Mix together to combine. I served on a multigrain sandwich thin and american cheese and a side salad. Definitely a great, easy and healthy summer recipe I would try again! (Sorry, I forgot to take pictures...) This amount of chicken made enough for four - five sandwiches. 

"One More" Time

"one more" in use in the bath

Matthew does and says the cutest things and he is learning so many new words every day. He is also learning how to wrap Mommy and Daddy right around those tiny little fingers of his. With one simple phrase....he can get pretty get much whatever he wants. That phrase is "one more". It works in many different situations, but the most common uses are at bath time, bed time and drop off in the morning. It started with saying it after one round of "Itsy Bitsy Spider". He puts his index finger to make the one sign and puts it near his mouth and quietly says "one more". We melt and sing it again...every time. I think the record has been five times singing it. For a while, this was the only time he used the "one more" trick. Then he learned if he said it after our nightly I love you/tickle routine, he would get more tickles. In the bath he loves to fill his blue bucket up from the running water and pour it over himself. Last week, I refilled the bath three times because it's just so darn cute when the bath has drained and he's sitting there with his empty bowl and he says "one more" and looks at the faucet. He got ten extra bath minutes from Daddy this week too using his "one more" trick. 


It comes in handy at storytime too. "One more" has worked in Matthew's favor and I think the record is eight stories at bedtime. Yesterday morning he climbed into bed with me in the morning and after one reading of "Baseball 1,2,3", we read it "one more" time twice. I have to say my favorite "one more" moments come when I drop him off at school. After I get his things settled and give a big hug and kiss, he walks away for a minute then comes running back shouting "one more" and we hug again...and usually again...and again...


I just can't help it...I will give in every time to those two tiny words coming out of that adorable little mouth!

"One More Time"

"Call Me Maybe" - 30 Before 30 List Update

So with less than six months until the big 3-0, I thought it was time to do a 30 Before 30 Update

Jackie's 30 Before 30 List:

1. Visit a zoo in New York
2. Run a 5K
3. Hold my son’s hand as he walks by himself
4. Make a lasagna
5. Cheer on my husband as he receives his MBA
6. Visit the Met
7. Drink a Long Island Iced Tea on Long Island
8. Take a tour of the Brooklyn brewery
9. Walk on the beach in the Hamptons
10. Create a new blog to record memories
11. Try 30 new recipes and blog about each one (10/30 completed)
12. Eat real sushi
13. Watch all the Harry Potter movies again in order (1/8 completed)
14. Complete 100 consecutive push ups
15. Watch “Casablanca” and “Gone with the Wind”
16. Ride the carousel in Central Park
17. Ride the feris wheel at Coney Island
18. Try a wine from each of the 50 states (9/50 completed - CA, CT, MA, NC, NY, OR, SC, VA, WA)
19. Complete a crossword puzzle
20. Take a tour of Fenway Park
21. Listen to all of Pearl Jam’s studio albums in entirety
22. See at least 3 more Broadway shows (2/3 completed - Wicked, Book of Mormon)
23. Complete 3 scrapbooks (2/3 completed)
24. Sample cupcakes from Sprinkles, Magnolias and Carlo’s bakeries (1/3 complete)
25. Ride on a motorcycle
26. Buy myself a pair of kickass heels
27. Try a spinning class
28. See a plastic surgeon about the age spot on my cheek
29. Go to dinner with all my siblings, just the 4 of us
30. Read/reread 3 novels from high school English class (1/3 Completed - A Separate Peace)

I still think the wine list will be the hardest to complete, but I've checked off a few cool things since my last update in January. 

#9 - Walk on the beach in the Hamptons

In January, I completed two scrapbooks. One for my best friend Danielle's wedding - which was in October of 2010. I also completed our Honeymoon album. I am happy with the way they come out and I'm currently working on the 2009 one. I'm a little behind!

In February for our 3 Year anniversary, Rob and I walked on the beach in the Hamptons and I even dipped my feet in!

#25 - Ride on a motorcycle

In April, during a wonderful visit to South Carolina, I took a motorcycle ride with Russ! It was pretty scary and we didn't even go that fast! It was fun and I'm glad I experienced it though!

In the next month, I will check off #5 and will have to make time for #7 too! I'm also up to 72 pushups, so #14 may be complete too.

If you want to join/help me in any list items,  Call Me, Maybe!