I haven't been adding much to my blog because we've been out of town and as soon as we got back we moved into a new place. So yesterday was the big moving party, and it was snowing and windy and just about the coldest weather we've had this winter. I had been making car runs on my own during the week, so yesterday the guys just moved the big stuff like couches and our bed. I had a friend over to help pack the kitchen, and the guys took those boxes over for me too. I have a funny mixed feeling of excitement and bla-ness. I told Greg that I'm going to put the kitchen away and that will be a lot of fun, but I just feel sick and bla when I look around and see piles of clothes and half empty boxes with everything in disarray. So I've made goals for myself for the week and hopefully I get things fixed up quickly.
In the process of moving, we decided to drop our internet provider (Verizon) because the connection was constantly failing. We signed up with Time Warner and got a deal for cable TV and internet for just a little more than we were paying already. So we've got BYU TV on right now and that's fun. We are also enjoying the music channels, and finding cool movies to watch in the evening.
Our other new thing (and Christmas present to ourselves) is our Wii. Yipee! Greg ran into a kid at school who was selling all his toys to pay for his girlfriend's car accident. He even had the packaging and receipt--said he only played it a couple times. He gave us Zelda and it came with Wii sports as well. We've been looking to buy another controller and were surprised to find the average price is about $60. So we're going to hold out til we find a good sale somewhere.
Another new thing (which brightens my day even more than the Wii and cable TV) is that I now have a pantry! A whole closet just for my food storage! No more canned food under the bed! I'll put some pictures up a little later when I get things organized.
So that's why I haven't put any exciting post up for awhile. I'm planning a little Christmas party for next week, and that will be fun to put on my blog. (That also gives me a definite time by which I need to have my house in order.)
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Cookie Monster
I just figured out how to change the template (well, I kinda knew but never played with it before) and I picked the cookie monster one. For some reason when I use Greg's computer the blue monster shows up, but when I use my computer it doesn't...so I don't know why, and I'm sorry if you can't see it either because just blue and white makes for a pretty boring blog template. Maybe somebody knows what to do?
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Pretty Snowflake Ornaments!
I found this online and thought it looked like fun. I think I got everything at Michael's or Joann's, except for the corsage pins. You should be able to get them at a flower shop. They sold them to me for 10 cents a piece, so each ornament works out to be about $1.50 once you get all the supplies. It was fun to pick out the beads--I spent a very long time in the store comparing and matching beads together to see what would look nice with the pearl ends. It's a good decoration on the tree or anywhere else in the house!
Here's the link so you can get the supplies and directions:
http://www.bhg.com/bhg/story
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Dinner Idea--Navy Bean Soup!
I found this in my "Fix it and Forget it" cookbook and wanted to try it because it looked so easy and good....and it is!
I added chopped carrots and that was pretty good. The recipe says you could also try adding celery or 3-4 cups of canned tomatoes. I think tomatoes would be kind of weird though.
It's been cooking all day in the crock pot and made the house smell so good. I just tried a little sample and am very excited for dinner tonight. Yum!
Greg suggested I make cornbread to go with the soup next time. It's perfect for a Sunday evening dinner. Enjoy!
(P.S. I found that the soup is best fresh...after a couple days it's not quite as good. You could probably freeze it though--if you made too much to finish in time)
Ingredients:
1 pound dry navy beans
6 cups of water
1 onion finely chopped
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground thyme
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
2 garlic cloves minced
1 pound ham chunks
To Do:
1. Soak beans in water overnight. (I actually put in them in boiling water for about 3-5 minutes and that works just as well.) Strain and rinse.
2. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8 hours.
1 pound dry navy beans
6 cups of water
1 onion finely chopped
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground thyme
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp lemon pepper
2 garlic cloves minced
1 pound ham chunks
To Do:
1. Soak beans in water overnight. (I actually put in them in boiling water for about 3-5 minutes and that works just as well.) Strain and rinse.
2. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8 hours.
I added chopped carrots and that was pretty good. The recipe says you could also try adding celery or 3-4 cups of canned tomatoes. I think tomatoes would be kind of weird though.
It's been cooking all day in the crock pot and made the house smell so good. I just tried a little sample and am very excited for dinner tonight. Yum!
Greg suggested I make cornbread to go with the soup next time. It's perfect for a Sunday evening dinner. Enjoy!
(P.S. I found that the soup is best fresh...after a couple days it's not quite as good. You could probably freeze it though--if you made too much to finish in time)
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Another Tag--20 things I'm Thankful for
1. Brita water filters
2. Changes in season and weather
3. Missionary Work! And the Sister Missionaries who taught my husband the gospel, so he could take me to the temple 10 years later.
4. Cozy blankets
5. Toilets and all other indoor plumbing
6. Little House on the Prairie
7. Books
8. Music
9. My family who are also good friends
10. My friends who feel like family
11. Temples close enough to visit often
12. The blessing of always having enough food to eat and some to spare
13. A warm home to live in
14. My car
15. E-mail and other quick communication devices
16. My piano
17. Shampoo, Lotion, and Bubble Baths!
18. Socks
19. My wedding ring--and the covenants and promises it symbolizes
20. Joy...I am a very happy person!
2. Changes in season and weather
3. Missionary Work! And the Sister Missionaries who taught my husband the gospel, so he could take me to the temple 10 years later.
4. Cozy blankets
5. Toilets and all other indoor plumbing
6. Little House on the Prairie
7. Books
8. Music
9. My family who are also good friends
10. My friends who feel like family
11. Temples close enough to visit often
12. The blessing of always having enough food to eat and some to spare
13. A warm home to live in
14. My car
15. E-mail and other quick communication devices
16. My piano
17. Shampoo, Lotion, and Bubble Baths!
18. Socks
19. My wedding ring--and the covenants and promises it symbolizes
20. Joy...I am a very happy person!
Thanks Ali!
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Annaliese Tagged Me
So, I'm supposed to tell you 6 habits or facts about me....
1. I'm currently obsessed with Harry Potter.
I listen to the books on CD read by Jim Dale, and they are very entertaining. I have actually listened to it once or twice from the moment I got up in the morning to when I went to bed at night. (Of course, that's when Greg is out on a boy-scouts camping trip.) I just push play and then do whatever chores I have made for myself, and our apartment is so small I can hear it where ever I am. In fact, I'm listening to it now. And when I'm not listening to it, I hear Jim Dale in my head narrating my life as if I were in a Harry Potter book.
2. I'm very excited about food storage and provident living.
(Yes, this is just one of the creative spaces I found to store food...next to the bed)
I can't wait for next year when I can start growing a real garden (I've just been growing tomatoes and things in pots) and use the fresh veggies as I pick them.
3. I also love to cook and bake.
If I don't have anything to do, I will plan out meals and try to come up with something new to make. A couple days ago I sat down with my cookbooks and found recipes for dinners I thought would be good, then planned out our dinners for the month. From that I made a grocery list and went shopping. I also like this because it's easier to stay in control of your grocery spending and keep shopping trips to a minimum (to reduce impulse buying).
4. I love to make lists, and I'm fairly self-motivated. If I don't already have a plan for the day, I sit down and think of all the chores around the house that need to be done and other things like registering for classes or practicing the piano. I feel kind of unfulfilled or like I don't have a purpose if I don't organize and decide what I should be doing for each part of my day. I also put play time with friends on the list because that's important too. If I don't write it on the list, I feel like I'm taking a break when I shouldn't be.
5. Going along with #4, I just decided that it's kind of fun being sick. Not throwing up sick, but just sick enough. I've been sick the last couple days with an annoying runny nose cold that makes me feel extra tired and worn out easily. So I don't feel guilty staying home, taking a nap and drinking lots of juice. Greg is also very good at taking care of me, so that's fun too. I'll be glad to get back to normal life again though--I can only enjoy laying around for so long, and then that sense of "need to get things done" starts to kick in again.
6. Um, I'm running out of things....I don't like bugs in my house.
In fact, I don't like any living thing in my house that's not people. We cannot figure out how or why, but crickets have been getting in our house. Not every day, but maybe once in a week or two I will find a little black spider-looking cricket that crawls by slowly. They seem to be half dead when I find them, and I thought they might be coming in because it's getting really cold out. Also, even though I keep a clean house (and kitchen especially), almost all our neighbors are boys and most likely don't stay clean. One of the boys was talking to me and said that he's afraid of bugs. When he sees a cricket or spider in his house, he puts a cup upside-down covering it and waits for about a week until he thinks it's dead. Then he picks up the cup and kicks the corps under the fridge or couch. He's got upside-down cups all over the place in his apartment! Yuck!
7. I like to be active outside. I used to love running, which I've replaced with walking after some knee-injuries in my teen years. I also love to ride my bike.
Greg got me a nice road bike for my birthday and I have enjoyed riding around here in the Great Palouse. There's a nice paved car-wide trail that goes from Pullman-to Moscow, and we also discovered an endless paved car-wide trail that's good for biking a couple hours north. It used to be train tracks, but the trains stopped using that area, so they paved it all and it's just miles and miles of trail that goes through beautiful countryside with forest, fields, swamps, the lake and river, and mountains to look at while you're chugging along. (That's where we went for the camping trip I talked about awhile ago and have a slide show going on the side bar) I love the Great Outdoors!
8. I love music. I like to listen to almost any music that is uplifting. I love to sing and play the piano. I sing in the Idaho Washington Concert Chorale (http://www.iwchorale.org/default.htm), as well as our ward choir. I also like to make music by recording myself sing all the parts of a song and putting it together with the mixer and computer to make a whole choir of Holly. (Greg is the real expert though and helps with the production part a lot.)
I kind of have this distant dream of writing songs and just making music from home that I'd sell at the church bookstores....however, any time I've ever tried to come up with something original, I always find myself humming the tune to a hymn I sang in church the last Sunday...
9. I just realized I lost track of how many things I was supposed to come up with. I was thinking 10 but it's actually 6....So this can the last one... I like anything artsy. (I painted the picture, snake and frog who are posing so nicely.)
Not that I'm super talented at anything in particular...I just like making or creating things. I love to scrapbook, sew (which I'm just learning how), draw, paint, and do other hands-on craft things.
I would also classify making music and making food stuffs in the same category, as they are all things that I work to make. I also really enjoyed a construction job I had during the summer--helping build a friend's house. I always prefer the "up and going/doing" kind of job over the "sitting-at-a desk-kind" of job.
I guess I'm supposed to tag somebody now, however, I've decided not to tag anybody because everybody's blog that I've read in the last two days has already been tagged in a similar fashion. If you would like to list facts about yourself on your blog, you have my permission and may consider yourself tagged. =)
1. I'm currently obsessed with Harry Potter.
I listen to the books on CD read by Jim Dale, and they are very entertaining. I have actually listened to it once or twice from the moment I got up in the morning to when I went to bed at night. (Of course, that's when Greg is out on a boy-scouts camping trip.) I just push play and then do whatever chores I have made for myself, and our apartment is so small I can hear it where ever I am. In fact, I'm listening to it now. And when I'm not listening to it, I hear Jim Dale in my head narrating my life as if I were in a Harry Potter book.
2. I'm very excited about food storage and provident living.
(Yes, this is just one of the creative spaces I found to store food...next to the bed)
I can't wait for next year when I can start growing a real garden (I've just been growing tomatoes and things in pots) and use the fresh veggies as I pick them.3. I also love to cook and bake.
If I don't have anything to do, I will plan out meals and try to come up with something new to make. A couple days ago I sat down with my cookbooks and found recipes for dinners I thought would be good, then planned out our dinners for the month. From that I made a grocery list and went shopping. I also like this because it's easier to stay in control of your grocery spending and keep shopping trips to a minimum (to reduce impulse buying).
4. I love to make lists, and I'm fairly self-motivated. If I don't already have a plan for the day, I sit down and think of all the chores around the house that need to be done and other things like registering for classes or practicing the piano. I feel kind of unfulfilled or like I don't have a purpose if I don't organize and decide what I should be doing for each part of my day. I also put play time with friends on the list because that's important too. If I don't write it on the list, I feel like I'm taking a break when I shouldn't be.
5. Going along with #4, I just decided that it's kind of fun being sick. Not throwing up sick, but just sick enough. I've been sick the last couple days with an annoying runny nose cold that makes me feel extra tired and worn out easily. So I don't feel guilty staying home, taking a nap and drinking lots of juice. Greg is also very good at taking care of me, so that's fun too. I'll be glad to get back to normal life again though--I can only enjoy laying around for so long, and then that sense of "need to get things done" starts to kick in again.
6. Um, I'm running out of things....I don't like bugs in my house.
In fact, I don't like any living thing in my house that's not people. We cannot figure out how or why, but crickets have been getting in our house. Not every day, but maybe once in a week or two I will find a little black spider-looking cricket that crawls by slowly. They seem to be half dead when I find them, and I thought they might be coming in because it's getting really cold out. Also, even though I keep a clean house (and kitchen especially), almost all our neighbors are boys and most likely don't stay clean. One of the boys was talking to me and said that he's afraid of bugs. When he sees a cricket or spider in his house, he puts a cup upside-down covering it and waits for about a week until he thinks it's dead. Then he picks up the cup and kicks the corps under the fridge or couch. He's got upside-down cups all over the place in his apartment! Yuck!
7. I like to be active outside. I used to love running, which I've replaced with walking after some knee-injuries in my teen years. I also love to ride my bike.
Greg got me a nice road bike for my birthday and I have enjoyed riding around here in the Great Palouse. There's a nice paved car-wide trail that goes from Pullman-to Moscow, and we also discovered an endless paved car-wide trail that's good for biking a couple hours north. It used to be train tracks, but the trains stopped using that area, so they paved it all and it's just miles and miles of trail that goes through beautiful countryside with forest, fields, swamps, the lake and river, and mountains to look at while you're chugging along. (That's where we went for the camping trip I talked about awhile ago and have a slide show going on the side bar) I love the Great Outdoors!
8. I love music. I like to listen to almost any music that is uplifting. I love to sing and play the piano. I sing in the Idaho Washington Concert Chorale (http://www.iwchorale.org/default.htm), as well as our ward choir. I also like to make music by recording myself sing all the parts of a song and putting it together with the mixer and computer to make a whole choir of Holly. (Greg is the real expert though and helps with the production part a lot.)
I kind of have this distant dream of writing songs and just making music from home that I'd sell at the church bookstores....however, any time I've ever tried to come up with something original, I always find myself humming the tune to a hymn I sang in church the last Sunday...
9. I just realized I lost track of how many things I was supposed to come up with. I was thinking 10 but it's actually 6....So this can the last one... I like anything artsy. (I painted the picture, snake and frog who are posing so nicely.)
Not that I'm super talented at anything in particular...I just like making or creating things. I love to scrapbook, sew (which I'm just learning how), draw, paint, and do other hands-on craft things.
I would also classify making music and making food stuffs in the same category, as they are all things that I work to make. I also really enjoyed a construction job I had during the summer--helping build a friend's house. I always prefer the "up and going/doing" kind of job over the "sitting-at-a desk-kind" of job.
I guess I'm supposed to tag somebody now, however, I've decided not to tag anybody because everybody's blog that I've read in the last two days has already been tagged in a similar fashion. If you would like to list facts about yourself on your blog, you have my permission and may consider yourself tagged. =)
Fresh Apple Cream Cheese Crumb Cake!
I found this somewhere online and tried it this morning, and it is super good! A glass of apple juice and maybe some eggs would make it the perfect breakfast! It's not hard to make--it just takes a little bit of time to prepare the apples and put it all together. I had company over for breakfast, so I got everything ready last night and just had to mix the wet and dry ingredients, and then throw it all in the pan this morning. Hope you like it!
By the way, I think this is about the goofiest picture I've ever seen of myself, so I just had to put it up!
(I did some copy/pasting, and somehow the formatting got weird and I don't know how to fix it, so hopefully you can just be patient with the weirdness.)
1.5 hours 30 min prep Preheat oven 350 degrees
| 1 (8 | ounce) package cream cheese, softened |
| 1 1/2 | cups sugar, divided |
| 1/2 | cup butter (no subs!) |
| 2 | large eggs |
| 1 | teaspoon almond extract |
| 1 3/4 | cups |
| 1 | teaspoon baking powder |
| 1/2 | teaspoon baking soda |
| 1/4 | teaspoon salt |
| 1/4 | cup half-and-half cream or milk |
| 4 | cups apples, peeled and sliced |
| 2 | tablespoons fresh lemon juice |
| 2 | tablespoons flour |
| 1 | teaspoon cinnamon |
- Set oven to 350 degrees.
-
- In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, 1 cup sugar (can use more sugar for a sweeter cake if desired), butter, eggs and almond extract; beat until well combined and smooth.
- In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Blend into the cream cheese mixture alternately with the half and half or milk (if using); mix well until combined.
- Pour the batter into prepared baking pan.
- Dip apples into the 2 Tbsp lemon juice.
- Toss with 2 Tbsp flour, 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. (I used about 1.5 Tbsp of cinnamon, and added a few sprinkles of ground cloves and 1/8 tsp of nutmeg. That makes it taste like Christmas!)
- Arrange the apple slices evenly over the cake batter (pushing the slices into the cake batter slightly).
- Bake 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean -- DELICIOUS!
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Happy Halloween!
I thought this was a cool picture. This is the punkin my parents sent and I put a candle in front of it to cast this spooky shadow.
Friday, October 26, 2007
Got a Haircut!
I got a new hair-do and my family wanted to see it. Ta Da! I didn't like it at first, but I went back and had her cut a little more, and now I'm just having to get used to it. I was sick of my hair because I would always just wear the same dumb braid every day and I didn't know what else to do with it.
The lady who did my hair was showing how I could have a curly look or a straight look.
This is supposed to be "The Curly Look"...
And this is supposed to be "The Straight Look"...
I like it best smooth with a little curl at the end. The top "curly" pictures I think look like a shaggy dog. Hahhaha!
The lady who did my hair was showing how I could have a curly look or a straight look.
This is supposed to be "The Curly Look"...
And this is supposed to be "The Straight Look"...
I like it best smooth with a little curl at the end. The top "curly" pictures I think look like a shaggy dog. Hahhaha!
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Christmas Oatmeal!
I'm just calling it Christmas oatmeal because it smells and tastes like Christmas. I put it all in the pot last night and let all the flavors just soak and mingle. As you can see, I added a couple spoonfuls of powdered milk, some chopped up apple, raisins, a dash of salt, a small sprinkle of ground cloves, a bigger sprinkle of nutmeg, and a lot more cinnamon, and some brown sugar. You can also add a couple spoonfuls of flaxseed or wheatgerm for extra fiber and protein. (You might want to slowly add this (flaxseed/wheatgerm) to your diet...it's very good for you, but if you put too much all at once it will be hard on your stomach and not feel very good. Well, my stomach hurt anyway when I tried it) So you can just kind of figure out how you like it. I didn't measure anything...I just put it in til it smelled and tasted good to me. Yum!
Friday, October 19, 2007
More Plum Jam
I suppose you can tell from my numerous very exciting posts how exciting my life is. Hahhaa! Actually, making and canning plum jam is pretty fun...so much fun that I made up another batch of it. This time I picked yellow plums and used the fruit part as well as the juice to make jam. I like that it's thicker and has more substance to it than the jelly. It looks kind of odd, as you would normally expect plum jam to be a beautiful dark purple, but I can assure you it tastes great!
A nice bowl of yellow plums....
...And Wa-La! Lovely Plum Jam!
Especially good on fresh homemade bread!
A nice bowl of yellow plums....
...And Wa-La! Lovely Plum Jam!
Especially good on fresh homemade bread!
Pumpkins Don't Last
Our Poor Pumpkins don't look so good anymore! Hahahaha! Full of mold and falling in, looks like a person without teeth. And Greg's pumpkin that had frightening horns now appears to have curly pig-tails on both sides of it's head. Hahahhaa!
Greg fixed up this picture for me so we can easily compare the fresh pumpkins with the old, tired and depressed pumpkins.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Halloween Box from Ma and Pa Warlock!
We got a box from Ma and Pa Warlock today! Yipee! Candy and candles and costumes!...And yes, Greg did eat the candy that was stuck in his nose. Yuck! He's such a boy!
I used the candy to help decorate, but I think it will probably disappear before Halloween arrives.
I've got some muddy worms hanging out of my mouth. Yum!
Thanks Mom and Dad! That was really fun to get!
Friday, October 12, 2007
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Dinner Ideas
I like getting ideas for dinner from friends who have made something good...That's a lot easier and more trust-worthy than a cookbook. So! I'll give you ideas as I get them, and hopefully when I visit your blog, you will have some too!
Idea Number 1
Split Pea Soup
It's super easy. Just buy a bag of dried split peas--the recipe is on the back. I like to add a cup or two of small chunks of ham, chopped carrots and onions. It takes about an hour and a half all together (one hour at least just to cook the soup). It's very good with corn bread, or the pretzles I told you about. Hope you like it!
Idea Number 1
Split Pea Soup
It's super easy. Just buy a bag of dried split peas--the recipe is on the back. I like to add a cup or two of small chunks of ham, chopped carrots and onions. It takes about an hour and a half all together (one hour at least just to cook the soup). It's very good with corn bread, or the pretzles I told you about. Hope you like it!
Salsa Recipe
Part 1
1 head of garlic
3-5 cyranos (small jalapenos)
1-2 pesquillo (dark bell pepper)
2-3 jalapenos (cut out seeds under running water for more mild salsa...seeds at head)
1-2 yellow jalapenos
1-10 tomatillos (green with husk)
Put in a pan with oil and scorch until dark brown. After peppers are scorched or browned, put all the above indredients into a blender with a few cut tomatoes, and blend.
Part 2
2-3 green and/or red peppers
1 large yellow onion
1 gallon diced unpeeled tomatoes (we got this in cans)
2 Tbsp salt
1 large purple onion
1 bunch cilantro
2 limes juiced
Combine cut vegitables with puree and serve. Our friend said that sometimes he just puts the whole thing into the blender and cuts the time from an hour to ten minutes. And again, make sure you open all the windows and doors in your house and turn on fans and don't touch your eyes! If you think onions make you cry, this recipe will really make you weep! Hehahahh~! But it's worth it!
Some of the ingredients are hard to find, but make sure you get the cilantro and limes. Those are very important flavors that make this salsa so special. Enjoy!
1 head of garlic
3-5 cyranos (small jalapenos)
1-2 pesquillo (dark bell pepper)
2-3 jalapenos (cut out seeds under running water for more mild salsa...seeds at head)
1-2 yellow jalapenos
1-10 tomatillos (green with husk)
Put in a pan with oil and scorch until dark brown. After peppers are scorched or browned, put all the above indredients into a blender with a few cut tomatoes, and blend.
Part 2
2-3 green and/or red peppers
1 large yellow onion
1 gallon diced unpeeled tomatoes (we got this in cans)
2 Tbsp salt
1 large purple onion
1 bunch cilantro
2 limes juiced
Combine cut vegitables with puree and serve. Our friend said that sometimes he just puts the whole thing into the blender and cuts the time from an hour to ten minutes. And again, make sure you open all the windows and doors in your house and turn on fans and don't touch your eyes! If you think onions make you cry, this recipe will really make you weep! Hehahahh~! But it's worth it!
Some of the ingredients are hard to find, but make sure you get the cilantro and limes. Those are very important flavors that make this salsa so special. Enjoy!
Monday, October 8, 2007
Pretzle Recipe!
I found this recipe when I was poking around Kaela's blog and looking at the links she had listed. This comes from a link called "Sugar Doodle." Greg and I like them so much, we've made them about four times in the last couple weeks. It's fun to do with friends too. We've taken the dough to our friend's houses and then let everybody make their own pretzle to bake. It's a little tricky getting it to twist just right....I usually just make a long snake and then roll it up and squish it together in a big blob. I like them better softer.
You'll need:
1 package of dry yeast
1-1/2 cups lukewarm water (not hot)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups of flour
1 beaten egg
extra salt
Dissolve yeast in warm water and let rise a few minutes. Add sugar and salt and blend in 4 cups flour. Turn dough out on floured table or breadboard and knead until smooth. Refrigerate until you are ready to use.
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease cookie sheet or toaster oven tray. Cut off 4" piece of dough, roll into ropes about six to eight inches, or a length you can easily twist. Twist into shape with loop at top and two arms folded over. Arrange on lightly greased toaster oven tray or cookie sheet allowing space between pretzels for expansion. Brush with beaten egg -- those places you miss will not brown. Sprinkle with salt. Bake 12-15 minutes. Ovens may vary so check after 7-8 minutes.
We found 10 minutes to be the perfect baking time for our pretzles. I haven't tried this yet, but my mom suggested sprinkling cinnamon and sugar instead of salt. We've had our pretzels with split pea soup, tomatoe soup, spaghetti, and with jam...all very good!
You'll need:
1 package of dry yeast
1-1/2 cups lukewarm water (not hot)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups of flour
1 beaten egg
extra salt
Dissolve yeast in warm water and let rise a few minutes. Add sugar and salt and blend in 4 cups flour. Turn dough out on floured table or breadboard and knead until smooth. Refrigerate until you are ready to use.
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease cookie sheet or toaster oven tray. Cut off 4" piece of dough, roll into ropes about six to eight inches, or a length you can easily twist. Twist into shape with loop at top and two arms folded over. Arrange on lightly greased toaster oven tray or cookie sheet allowing space between pretzels for expansion. Brush with beaten egg -- those places you miss will not brown. Sprinkle with salt. Bake 12-15 minutes. Ovens may vary so check after 7-8 minutes.
We found 10 minutes to be the perfect baking time for our pretzles. I haven't tried this yet, but my mom suggested sprinkling cinnamon and sugar instead of salt. We've had our pretzels with split pea soup, tomatoe soup, spaghetti, and with jam...all very good!
Salsa!
Our friends, the Lee's gave us some salsa the other day and it was SO Good! We got the recipe and then Greg went shopping for all the peppers and different spicy ingredients. Last night we set everything up and went to work. Half of the ingredients need to be chopped and sauteed, and the other half are chopped and added fresh to the mix. Even though it was very cold outside, I opened all the windows and doors and put our fans on full blast. Chopping and sauteeing all those peppers and onions fills the air so much with eye-watering and nosing burning chemicals.
Greg did most of the work as I practiced the piano, and then I helped towards the end with some final ingredients such as two limes and a large bunch of cilantro. Greg was so excited as he mixed everything together in our biggest mixing bowl. We grabbed the chips and dug in! And the salsa WAS good! I had to get sour cream to mix in a bowl for myself because it was too spicy for me. Brother Lee warned us not to touch our eyes for at least 24 after we make the salsa....so we were being very careful....However, a couple hours later (and after scrubbing with soap) as Greg was working at his computer, he forgot for a split-second and touched his eye. I didn't know what happened, but I knew he was in pain. He bolted to the bathroom and stuck his head in the sink letting the water pour full-blast into his eye. After a few minutes when everything calmed down a little, he could hold his eye open just long enough for me to see that it was very red and watering profusley. I could even see the actually spot on the eye that he had touched, as it was especially red and disturbed looking. It cleared up after about a half an hour. He was really careful after that.
That salsa is very good! We ate it until our stomachs were so full and on fire!
Greg did most of the work as I practiced the piano, and then I helped towards the end with some final ingredients such as two limes and a large bunch of cilantro. Greg was so excited as he mixed everything together in our biggest mixing bowl. We grabbed the chips and dug in! And the salsa WAS good! I had to get sour cream to mix in a bowl for myself because it was too spicy for me. Brother Lee warned us not to touch our eyes for at least 24 after we make the salsa....so we were being very careful....However, a couple hours later (and after scrubbing with soap) as Greg was working at his computer, he forgot for a split-second and touched his eye. I didn't know what happened, but I knew he was in pain. He bolted to the bathroom and stuck his head in the sink letting the water pour full-blast into his eye. After a few minutes when everything calmed down a little, he could hold his eye open just long enough for me to see that it was very red and watering profusley. I could even see the actually spot on the eye that he had touched, as it was especially red and disturbed looking. It cleared up after about a half an hour. He was really careful after that.
That salsa is very good! We ate it until our stomachs were so full and on fire!
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Attack of the Plums!
On Sunday a lady brought a huge bowl of tomatoes she picked from her garden to share with everybody, and I was starving after church, so I decided to go grab a bag of them for a snack before choir practice. While I was there another lady saw me and asked if I'd like to come over and pick a few plums. On Monday night, Greg and I went to their house with a couple little grocery bags, and left an hour later with a big box of sugar plums (those are small and purple like grapes) and three grocery bags full of regular purple plums and yellow plums! We actually gathered three boxes of plums--which we were strongly encouraged to take with us, but we knew we couldn't handle that many. I didn't even realize at the time just how much was in that one box alone!
The next day I went out and got some jars and canning supplies so I could get to work. I started by washing a bunch of the little sugar plums outside with the garden hose and sticking them in a big pot. (there were lots of spiders and ladybugs mixed in) Then I added 2 cups of water and started squishing them over high heat on the stove. The pot needs to boil for about 10 minutes once they're all squished. Then I strained the juice out (which is dark purple from the skins--but the fruit is actually bright yellow inside). I boiled the juice again while mixing in a packet of pectin, and 7.5 cups of sugar! (I thought that was a lot!) When that was all dissolved, I poured the mixture into the hot jars, and put them in a big stew pot with boiling water (you have to cover the jars with two inches of water). I put the lid on the pot and let it boil for a good 10 minutes, then took it off the heat and let everything cool down. Later when the water was a little cooler, I took the jars out and set them on a towel. I did this process four times in row, and ended up with 18 jars of sugar plum jelly! And I still have a fourth of the box of plums left over! I canned the normal purple plums whole in a light sugar syrup, and cut all the yellow plums in half and took out the pits. I put some of the yellows in our dehydrator, for about 6 hours....but they ended up being gross. The others we're just eating raw, and that's pretty good.
The plum people want us to come over again and pick more yellows as they ripen. I think I will be a little more careful about how many we take. I shared a couple jars of jelly with some friends, and gave a jar and bag of plums to two of our neighbors. I can't wait til we can have a big garden, and I can can a lot more things. I'm doing some work for a friend who is building their new dream home, and she offered to let me use some of her land for a garden next summer. She also loves to can, and has a pressure cooker and hot-water canner. We're planning to have a couple of big canning days next summer when we harvest the food from our gardens and turn it into food storage! Isn't that exciting? I feel like a pioneer. And the song, "The prophet said to plant a garden, so that's what we'll do!" keeps playing through my head. Hahhaha!
(Thanks to the Relief Society in Summer's ward in La Grande who inspired me with their canning activity!)
The next day I went out and got some jars and canning supplies so I could get to work. I started by washing a bunch of the little sugar plums outside with the garden hose and sticking them in a big pot. (there were lots of spiders and ladybugs mixed in) Then I added 2 cups of water and started squishing them over high heat on the stove. The pot needs to boil for about 10 minutes once they're all squished. Then I strained the juice out (which is dark purple from the skins--but the fruit is actually bright yellow inside). I boiled the juice again while mixing in a packet of pectin, and 7.5 cups of sugar! (I thought that was a lot!) When that was all dissolved, I poured the mixture into the hot jars, and put them in a big stew pot with boiling water (you have to cover the jars with two inches of water). I put the lid on the pot and let it boil for a good 10 minutes, then took it off the heat and let everything cool down. Later when the water was a little cooler, I took the jars out and set them on a towel. I did this process four times in row, and ended up with 18 jars of sugar plum jelly! And I still have a fourth of the box of plums left over! I canned the normal purple plums whole in a light sugar syrup, and cut all the yellow plums in half and took out the pits. I put some of the yellows in our dehydrator, for about 6 hours....but they ended up being gross. The others we're just eating raw, and that's pretty good.
The plum people want us to come over again and pick more yellows as they ripen. I think I will be a little more careful about how many we take. I shared a couple jars of jelly with some friends, and gave a jar and bag of plums to two of our neighbors. I can't wait til we can have a big garden, and I can can a lot more things. I'm doing some work for a friend who is building their new dream home, and she offered to let me use some of her land for a garden next summer. She also loves to can, and has a pressure cooker and hot-water canner. We're planning to have a couple of big canning days next summer when we harvest the food from our gardens and turn it into food storage! Isn't that exciting? I feel like a pioneer. And the song, "The prophet said to plant a garden, so that's what we'll do!" keeps playing through my head. Hahhaha!
(Thanks to the Relief Society in Summer's ward in La Grande who inspired me with their canning activity!)
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Bike, Camp, Raft Trip!
Last August, Greg and I decided to go on a little weekend trip for fun. We borrowed a friend's kid trailer that goes on the bike, and packed it full of camping gear and our two rafts. We drove up to the Couer d'alene trail and found a good spot to park near Snake Pit. The trail used to be train tracks, but since the trains don't use it anymore, they paved the whole thing to make a wonderful car-wide smooth trail that goes for miles through beautiful countryside. We left our car behind and rode our bikes upstream on the trail for about 5 miles to our campsite. We paid a couple bucks to the manager of the campsite, who also served as the bartender. This was about the only business in the little town. Well, the bar and campsite was the town, period.
Our camping area consisted of a large grassy area splattered with sour green apple trees and other unknown bushes. After exploring down at the riverbank, we set to work pitching our tent and getting dinner going. We used our tiny campstove to heat a can of chili, since there was a burn ban and we couldn't have a full-blown campfire. Evening came quickly and brought with it the bugs and eerie sounds of the dark. Of course we forgot the bug spray, so we wrapped up in blankets to hide from the ferocious bloodsucking mosquitos. Just as we finished packing up the food, we heard an unnerving clomping noise somewhere beyond the reach of our campstove's light. We both sat up straight and strained to see into the darkness, hoping to see perhaps a friendly hooved animal like a dear, but afraid of what else it might be. We both shone our dim flashlights at the suspected source of noise, but saw nothing. A flashback of a previous camping trip that went horribly wrong prompted me to quickly put away our things and jump in the tent. As we lay in the darkness, my body would stiffen with every sound outside the tent. I thought I heard another frightening sound, but later realized it was the large American flag oustide flapping in the wind.
The night passed cold and slow, and finally it was morning. We had both been freezing all night. Since the weather had been so warm and we had not thought to bring any warm clothes, so we were very happy to feel the warmth of the rising sun. After cleaning up our raisins and oatmeal breakfast, we packed our things and lugged them all down to the shore. I was uncertain about Greg's plans, but he somehow managed to pack all of our stuff into the tiny raft we used to paddle around in. It is barely big enough for both of us to sit, and only if we hang our arms and legs over the sides, looking like some kind of strange human spider creature. Greg put a rope through everything in the raft and used lots of bungies as well to keep everything strapped down tight. We didn't want to loose anything if it tipped over. To finish it off, he piled our bikes on top of everything, and bungied them down as well. The front tire of his mountain bike dragged through the water a bit, but he thought that would be ok. We hopped in the bigger raft and headed down the river. As we approached a bridge, we heard a lot of whooping and shouting, then saw a skinny teenage boy spring off the bridge and into the water 40 feet below. We passed under the bridge and looked up to see another scared looking boy clinging for his life to the side of the bridge as his fellows hooted and laughed at him. I felt bad, and imagined how he must feel. The guys in the water were all yelling at him to jump. Even from where we were, I could almost see him shaking as he climbed back and forth to jump and then quickly back up to stand on solid ground. He finally let go and fell down to the water landing with a loud and painfully hard "Smack!" We waited to see his head pop back out of the water before we continued down the river.
Some places moved quickly through mini rapids and shallow water, and other places were so slow moving and deep they resembled lakes more than a river. In the slow places I usually would take over the paddles and Greg would hang his body over the back of the raft, using his long diving fins to propel the rafts along. We saw lots of big fish at the bottom, as well as a handful of fisherman on the shore in different places along the river. We had been told the water was unsafe to drink and the fish unfit to eat because of the contamination of metals from the train loads that used to pass by...however, we didn't see any fisherman throwing their fish back into the water. We just got a lot of funny looks as we floated along with our tiny overloaded raft in tow.
Eight long hours later, we reached our destination at the shore of another campsite near the car. Greg unstrapped his bike from the raft and rode off to get the car while I hauled our things from the sandy river up to the field. The sun had gone down and the light just finished fading as we drove away, cold and hungry and sunburned. Two hours of driving brought us to our home in Pullman where we brought the neccesities in, showered, and collapsed into our bed!
Our camping area consisted of a large grassy area splattered with sour green apple trees and other unknown bushes. After exploring down at the riverbank, we set to work pitching our tent and getting dinner going. We used our tiny campstove to heat a can of chili, since there was a burn ban and we couldn't have a full-blown campfire. Evening came quickly and brought with it the bugs and eerie sounds of the dark. Of course we forgot the bug spray, so we wrapped up in blankets to hide from the ferocious bloodsucking mosquitos. Just as we finished packing up the food, we heard an unnerving clomping noise somewhere beyond the reach of our campstove's light. We both sat up straight and strained to see into the darkness, hoping to see perhaps a friendly hooved animal like a dear, but afraid of what else it might be. We both shone our dim flashlights at the suspected source of noise, but saw nothing. A flashback of a previous camping trip that went horribly wrong prompted me to quickly put away our things and jump in the tent. As we lay in the darkness, my body would stiffen with every sound outside the tent. I thought I heard another frightening sound, but later realized it was the large American flag oustide flapping in the wind.
The night passed cold and slow, and finally it was morning. We had both been freezing all night. Since the weather had been so warm and we had not thought to bring any warm clothes, so we were very happy to feel the warmth of the rising sun. After cleaning up our raisins and oatmeal breakfast, we packed our things and lugged them all down to the shore. I was uncertain about Greg's plans, but he somehow managed to pack all of our stuff into the tiny raft we used to paddle around in. It is barely big enough for both of us to sit, and only if we hang our arms and legs over the sides, looking like some kind of strange human spider creature. Greg put a rope through everything in the raft and used lots of bungies as well to keep everything strapped down tight. We didn't want to loose anything if it tipped over. To finish it off, he piled our bikes on top of everything, and bungied them down as well. The front tire of his mountain bike dragged through the water a bit, but he thought that would be ok. We hopped in the bigger raft and headed down the river. As we approached a bridge, we heard a lot of whooping and shouting, then saw a skinny teenage boy spring off the bridge and into the water 40 feet below. We passed under the bridge and looked up to see another scared looking boy clinging for his life to the side of the bridge as his fellows hooted and laughed at him. I felt bad, and imagined how he must feel. The guys in the water were all yelling at him to jump. Even from where we were, I could almost see him shaking as he climbed back and forth to jump and then quickly back up to stand on solid ground. He finally let go and fell down to the water landing with a loud and painfully hard "Smack!" We waited to see his head pop back out of the water before we continued down the river.
Some places moved quickly through mini rapids and shallow water, and other places were so slow moving and deep they resembled lakes more than a river. In the slow places I usually would take over the paddles and Greg would hang his body over the back of the raft, using his long diving fins to propel the rafts along. We saw lots of big fish at the bottom, as well as a handful of fisherman on the shore in different places along the river. We had been told the water was unsafe to drink and the fish unfit to eat because of the contamination of metals from the train loads that used to pass by...however, we didn't see any fisherman throwing their fish back into the water. We just got a lot of funny looks as we floated along with our tiny overloaded raft in tow.
Eight long hours later, we reached our destination at the shore of another campsite near the car. Greg unstrapped his bike from the raft and rode off to get the car while I hauled our things from the sandy river up to the field. The sun had gone down and the light just finished fading as we drove away, cold and hungry and sunburned. Two hours of driving brought us to our home in Pullman where we brought the neccesities in, showered, and collapsed into our bed!
Chocolate Muffin Horse
So, for anybody who is wondering why I have such a silly combination of words as the title...it's my nickname. I've been told that when I was little my mom would call me her little "Holly Horse" because I had my hair in a ponytail a lot. Mom and Dad suppose that I thought people get their nicknames because of what they like, because one day when Mom called me, "Holly Horse," I said, "I'm a chocolate muffin horse!" because I really loved those big chocolate muffins from Costco (and still do!). Going with that formula, today you might call me a Chocolate Muffin bike book piano choir horse. Ha ha ha!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
During my visit at Summer's she helped me set up my blog. We also worked on getting cute pictures of Ginger for a photo contest. She was so funny, rolling around all over the place! We were trying to get a picture of her on her tummy, but everytime I'd roll her on her tummy, her little legs would just start goin' and she'd roll over before we could get a picture! She likes to throw her feet up into the air and stamp them down hard on the ground, pushing off and spinning in circles on her back. We had to stop and laugh because she was being so silly!
Our Bike Ride
Summer sent me an email and said she wanted Greg and I to come down and go on this really cool bike ride with her. Greg is busy with school, so I drove down to La Grande alone with my bike on the back of the car. When I got here, we were afraid we wouldn't get to go on our bike ride because the weather was cold and looked like it would rain. We spent the next day keeping busy with "Body on the ball" (a class at the gym) canning with the Relief Societ, and watching "Planet Earth" (a cool Discovery Channel show).
Today when we got up we decided to go on our ride since the weather was sunny and warm. We got everything ready and headed up to the mountain driving seperately. We drove for quite awhile before Summer stopped and we put my bike on her car, preparing to leave my car behind. I made sure to get my camel pack, purse, bike gloves, and all the things that are necessary for riding. Then we continued up the mountain in her car to the place where we would park and begin our decent down the mountain on our bikes. Unfortunately, we both had to go potty (And yes, we went and "Tried" before leaving home) so we took turns behind the car since there were no bathrooms around. As I pulled our things out of the car, a little sick feeling started in the pit of my stomach and I soon realized something was missing! We pulled everything out and looked everywhere, but I could not find the seat for my bike! I tried sitting carefully on the frame of the bike with my padded bike shorts, but that was definetly not an option!
Giggling and making fun of ourselves, we packed up our stuff and headed back down the mountain towards my car. We realized from the perspective of someone else, it appeared that we drove to the top of the mountain just so we could stop and pee, then turn around and go home. HAhahahaa!
Today when we got up we decided to go on our ride since the weather was sunny and warm. We got everything ready and headed up to the mountain driving seperately. We drove for quite awhile before Summer stopped and we put my bike on her car, preparing to leave my car behind. I made sure to get my camel pack, purse, bike gloves, and all the things that are necessary for riding. Then we continued up the mountain in her car to the place where we would park and begin our decent down the mountain on our bikes. Unfortunately, we both had to go potty (And yes, we went and "Tried" before leaving home) so we took turns behind the car since there were no bathrooms around. As I pulled our things out of the car, a little sick feeling started in the pit of my stomach and I soon realized something was missing! We pulled everything out and looked everywhere, but I could not find the seat for my bike! I tried sitting carefully on the frame of the bike with my padded bike shorts, but that was definetly not an option!
Giggling and making fun of ourselves, we packed up our stuff and headed back down the mountain towards my car. We realized from the perspective of someone else, it appeared that we drove to the top of the mountain just so we could stop and pee, then turn around and go home. HAhahahaa!
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
At the Zoo
Greg and I went on a date with Summer and Glen and Ginger to the Point Defiance Zoo this summer. We had a fun playing on the toys and looking at the animals.
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