haphazard musings

a cake & deviled egg post.

here is the final session of my day of cooking. : )

fun fact: i have never boiled an egg.

un-fun fact: i am apparently not so good at it.

un-fun fact 2: i don't even like deviled eggs...

so you may ask, "why are you making them?"  well the answer is simple.  my mom told me to. 

now you may ask, "you still do what your mom says even though you are 28?"  

yup - that's what she taught me to do when i was 8.  oh well.

fun fact 2: i found out later that mom wanted me to make deviled eggs because she doesn't like doing it. 

so i followed the recipe exactly like it said...

bring to boil. remove from heat. let sit 10 minutes. drain and rinse in cold water.

 

peel to get the ugliest hard boiled eggs ever.  continue this task for like an hour.  break a couple.  squish out the middles.

 

make what i assume was a yummy filling.  i never tried it.  use a baggie and squirt out the filling in pretty little piles.  sprinkle with paprika so they look pretty.  take them on a car ride so they can all fall over.  ugh.

tell your mom, you are never making deviled eggs again!

then go shopping.

then go to a party with Sheldon - BAZINGA!

then make a cake.

i have a new rule about cakes: they should all include 1 pound of butter, 3 cups of sugar and 6 eggs.  also, add fruit.  then you have a really good, healthy cake.  the fruit cancels out the butter. trust me.

 

now we know why this is a pound cake right - you use a pound of butter...when i don't acutally have a fun fact, i just make one up.

it was getting late and i forgot to take a few pictures...but you know just mix everything together and you get this!

 

fun fact 3: coat the blueberries in flour so they don't sink.  i did it, and they didn't sink, but i can't guarantee that it really helps.  since i didn't try it without. :)

bake it for a while then frost it with a powdered sugar/milk glaze.

cut off the top (or bottom depending on how you look at it) so it sits flat, mine got a little ugly, then eat a bunch of it, then pray a little prayer that it comes out when you turn it upside down.  if it doesn't hit it really hard around the sides, say another prayer, and give it a good hard shake. :)

 
 

fun fact 4: the ratio of powdered sugar to milk is not one to one.  its WAY more sugar than milk. just for your future reference.  so just keep adding sugar til it's nice and drizzley.

add the drizzle and the fruit to make it pretty!

tell everyone who eats it how much butter is in it.  it really makes it better!

 

a day of cooking!

Last Saturday, I spent the day cooking.  And when i say "last Saturday" I really mean the one before Easter.  But who's counting?

I meant to start the day at 7:00 to get everything in, but of course, I didn't make it up at 7.  I clearly remember turning off the alarm at 7:30 and then just not getting up.  

well done.  

So 8:30 rolls around and I decide it's time.  So I made myself a happy cup of coffee (with foam) in my favorite mug, turned on my itunes, and got started.

I had to make a cake, dinner to take to friends, deviled eggs, and passion tea lemonade. I also had to go to a birthday party and go shopping.  

Here are the links to the recipes (but I will share them in stages otherwise this post will take 40 years to read, you know how i tend to ramble):

The Pioneer Woman's Chicken Spaghetti

 

Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake

Rachael Ray's Basic Deviled Eggs

My Passion Tea Lemonade (Starbuck's photo...my version...)

i have now discovered that my food photography skills TOTALLY stink!  my word.

so anyway, i started two big pots of boiling water and got to work.

The chicken spaghetti is one of my new favorites!  It's so creamy and yummy and easy.  Everyone should try it.

I do nothing fancy to it, but I don't follow the recipe exactly, so I will just show my changes. :)

First, I am never into chopping up a hole chicken or dealing with all the bones.  It just takes too much time.  So I boiled and chopped a pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and a pound of boneless, skinless thighs.

While that was in the pot working, I chopped all the veggies.  I added carrots and garlic to the recipe this time, so I also sauted them, just to give them a head start (and you may notice I don't use pimentos. I don't even know what they are, but they remind me of olives, so that is a no go.).

While the veggies sauted a few minutes, I barley cooked some linguini, just until it got a tiny bit soft and shredded a giant pile of cheese.

Drain the noodles, and put them back in the same big pot and dump everything together.  I use two things here PW doesn't.  I add a small can of chopped green chiles for smokey-ness and use chicken stock from a box instead of the water I cooked the chicken in (mostly cuz I am lazy).

All that's left is to put it in a casserole dish and sprinkle the extra cheese on top and bake.  I divided it into two smaller dishes and froze one for later. (Just leave the cheese off the top to freeze.)  This makes a TON.

a little country drive

turned out to be a really fun picture taking extravaganza.

ryan took me around his grandparents' "neighborhood" and showed me the sights.  so let me take you on a tour.

i forgot to take a photo of the outside of our vehicle, but this one is kinda funny.

stop 1: a cute little barn that ryan really wanted to explore. and i quote, "sometimes there are owls in here!!!"

upon closer inspection there were no owls to be found, ryan banged on every door and wall he could hoping to scare them out...but we did find some treasures.

just look at all that old barn wood...all dented and scratch and weathered in just the right places...there are so many projects, i can't even stand the excitement!!!

i really wanted that ladder for some reason, but ryan not only informed me that it was attached to the barn, but that it "probably isn't sturdy enough for you..."

seriously, check out my tour guide's beard...it's like a...well i don't know what, but i think i'll keep him anyway.

stop 2: meet & greet.

meet grumpy.  she was not a fan of the paparazzi.

hello gorgeous!  she was totally up for striking the perfect show-ready stance. aren't red cows the best?

greetings from stop 3: another barn.

i love a door that half opens and half stays closed - seems so old fashioned.

whose up for climbing that ladder?  i loved the inside of this barn even though i was a little hesitant to touch anything...

stop 4: me: wait! that's a nice view!  stop!

stop 5: the grain bins.

(sorry for the shadow, move photographer, duh.)

a big sweep auger.  it pulls the grain to the middle so the other auger can get it out and shoot it into the semi. 

ryan was really excited to show me this part, as i have never seen a grain bin, let alone climbed into one.  but we forgot to take pictures of that.  sorry.

stop 6: the junk pile!

cast iron bathtub from 1919, too bad Kelsey has already claimed it.  i thought it would make a cool planter.

a rusty wagon wheel. i didn't bring that home, it was too big. :(  but i also have no idea what to do with it.

(note the grain bin in the photo)

ryan got super excited about the old rusty farm implements.  i called them tractors, but was informed that they were not tractors.  they are actually implements.  and almost all of them were used by his great-grandfather and were pulled by horses.  he thought we should bring one home for a lawn decoration.  i thought maybe we should wait on that one.

and here ends our tour of the country north of sabetha.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

on silence...

silence is an interesting thing.

have you ever really thought about it? i did today over lunch.  

i was sitting on a park bench eating a pb&j and wondering if i had ever truly experienced silence because i was so annoyed by all the noise (literal and figruative) around me: trucks, the grain elevator, people walking by, lawn mowers, and so on.  i moved to a couple different picnic tables and benches to find a "quiet" spot.

i thought i had found one, but as i was reading some poetry by Coleridge (for class...don't be impressed.), i was having a hard time hearing my reading over all the noise.  in this case it was a metaphorical noise: what should i do for dinner, what time do i need to leave for class, what should i do about this decision.

they (whoever "they" are...) say that "silence is golden." but why?  

you are in luck, i have a theory.

i can only think of a few times when i have been able to turn it all off and block it all out.  

it seems most of those times, when i have really experienced quiet, has been when i am in a beautiful place.

when i am in the middle of nowhere.  and my friends, the middle of nowhere is hard to find these days - it a much farther drive than it used to be.  

and here is my theory.  

first, there are way too many things in my house, outside, at the office, etc that are constantly whirring or buzzing.  things that are constantly "on" or people that are driving by.  i want to go outside and hear the birds singing, leaves rustling, bull frogs grunting, brooks bubbling, and nothing man made.  when i was a kid, i feel like i could hop on my bike and ride for 5 or 10 minutes and reach a place where i could experience those things.  as an adult, i feel like it would take a 30 minute drive to get far enough away to listen for those things.

so now i just need to learn how to listen for those sounds amdist the noise of the 21st century, and i might be able to have enjoy the quiet.

second, silence, the metaphorical kind, the silence that happens when i shut down all the thoughts in my head, can only happen when i am content.

"silence is golden" because when you can really experience it, you are living in peace, trust, rest, quiet.  i think i experience silence in beautiful places, because all the sudden i am so wrapped up in the Glory of God and the beauty of creation that i am able to ignore all the little thoughts, all the sounds, all of the stuff that makes us human and just "be" in that moment with God.  

Step out of the traffic!  Take a long, loving look at me, your High God, above everything.
Psalm 46:10, The Message

that is golden silence, in it's truest form.

the question, however, remains...how do we let ourselves just be amid the noise of everyday?   

 

how to make a rainy week happy.

in an effort to continue to choose joy in my life, i will now show you the things that make me joyful this week!

1. a little snuggle time with those little cheeks!!!

2. tree faces.

3. a whole street full of springtime blooms.

4. my umbrella that is full of beautiful pink, green, teal, blue and yellow happy polka dots makes me feel like i could do this:

source

do you just LOVE Mary Poppins? i always have.  maybe i need a spoonful of sugar.  :)

5. this guy!

for a whole bunch of reasons, but mostly becaue he doesn't know how to take a "normal" picture.

6.  coffee with friends who are always willing to share and listen and keep it real!

7. 96 days til we go here!

thanks mom and dad for the photo. :)  Hawaii my friends! wahoo.

8. rain.  ask any farmer or rancher in your life and they will tell you: a week of rain can never be a bad thing!  a full pond is a happy pond.

what made you joy-filled this week?

 

 

what started out to be

a nice little walk turned out to be a nice little mountain climb.

we were visiting Ryan's grandparents in Sabetha this weekend.  It's about 3 hours from here.  They live on a century farm there.  Pretty cool.

But on Saturday I went exploring aka walking.  Ryan asked which way I was going and I said south. 

He said, "Ok, but there will be a couple hills." 

I said, "Good deal."

Little did I know that I could train for the mountain section of the Tour de France in Sabetha, KS.  But that is what it felt like I was doing.

Finley and I were both pooped after about half a mile.  The hills were huge and not to mention the 30 mile an hour winds blowing dirt into my sweaty face.  I was quite dirty when I had completed my 4.4 miles.

anyway...here is what we saw on our walk (I took my phone in case I got lost or couldn't make it back to the house because I forgot I had to turn around....)

hill #1

i like to take pictures through things...is that weird?

doesn't that picture make you feel like you just went back in time about 100 years?  or more?

side bar: speaking of going back in time, have you seen "Midnight in Paris"?  such a good movie!  and if you didn't have the travel bug before you watched it, you will after.

i love, love, love this old crumbling bridge.  the sign even says it can handle a one ton truck...doesn't look like it to me.  i stepped carefully... :)

almost there...can you see the farm in the background?  just left of center there is a white spot and a cluster of trees...that's the farm.  i love that finley's ears and tongue are blowing in the wind - that's how windy it was.

we went and measured how far i went and found out i did about 4.5 miles.  not a bad hike.  i always enjoy exploring new places.  maybe next time i will go north and explore the state of Nebraska...

or maybe not. 

 

sometimes it's the little things.

In honor of my new outlook I thought I would star off March right.

So yesterday, the first day of March, here are the little things that made me happy.

1. I got to share some peanut m&m's with my "little sister" Destiny after she took a really hard test.  It's never too early to learn that a little chocolate can make a big difference. :)

ps.  I saw the new m&m commercial while getting ready this morning.  i just crack up. "oh it's that kind of party!"

2. When Destiny and I went back to math class, an interesting conversation occurred:

        Student 1 (to me): "Are you in high school?" 
        Me: "Oh my!"
        Student 2 (to student 1): "No way, she's in college!"
        Me: "Oh gracious me, I am 28, but you girls sure know how to make a girl's week!"

Can I show you the high school me?  Promise not to laugh at my corney picture. :)

(yep, turtle neck sitting in a clam shell on the beach...hmmm...)

3. Yesterday it was nearly 70 degrees!  I love the cold weather, but sometimes a girl needs a little sunshine on her face.  

and so do puppies...he was terribly excited.  barked at every person and dog we saw...so annoying.

4. Because it was lovely, I delivered posters for work for more than 1 hour.  Lots of people to talk to and warm breezes to catch.

5. I had a random memory of my brother and I (I think) figuring out how to say our names backwards...weird.  Mine was and is...

Yasdnil madacam, now Yasdnil reisarf

5. I ran!  In shorts (look out for my glaringly white legs when you are on the street here in Newton).  I think I went 4 miles, not all at once, but in intervals which are apparently my new favorite thing.  And here, I use the term "favorite" loosely.

6. I got a sweet note in the mail (like with a stamp) from someone that I see all the time.  Seriously that is the best.

need some new note cards, i love these!

from Paper Source

7. Words of truth, spoken outloud. 

Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.  Pslam 62:8 

8. A scrubbed and bleached, purged, vaccuumed, and dusted bedroom, bathroom, and closet.  Hello dresser top, nice to see you again!

Hope the first day of your month was as good as mine!

 

that was weird.

so last night, i was having some real weird dreams.  

perhaps it was the gallon of coke i drank at dinner with my delicious tacos.  or maybe it was the riviting conversation that ensued at seminar in romantic literature.  either way it was a weird night.

so when i was in high school a made a really good friend and when we were freshmen at k-state he was killed by a drunk driver.  he and all my high school friends were in my dream last night - we were laughing and having a wonderful time just like my memories.  i probably haven't even thought about him since graduation until i saw his parents in wichita a few months ago.  

i saw on facebook today that it is his birthday.

for some reason it seems like this is more than a weird coincidence...but i don't know why or what it is.  but if nothing else, i will at least be reminded to pray for his family and to pray that people would make the right/smart decision when they get behind the wheel.

it is also always a good reminder to tell everyone how much i love them!  so all you readers out there...i love you!

some deep thinking

Following means obeying God's call for our family and taking the next step even when it is not spelled out. - Julie @ Breezy Acres Farm

Ugh.  Right.

Julie and her hubby, Ian are lovely people that challenge me each week to grow.  As friends, they truely show us what it looks like to seek fully after God's call for their lives.  And that little blurb from their blog this week, reminded me again what that looks like.

So, I have recently been having a little pity party for myself (never a good idea, but it's really easy to get stuck in one).  I won't go into details, but rather than reaching out and leaning on Jesus, I have been having a pity party.

Not cool.

"even when it's not spelled out..." that's really what gets me.  so even though my plan isn't working out, i have to remember that God has plans for me.  it may feel like this...

i can totally feel Dorothy's delima here...you have to make some choices, but you really want to be way down the path. you know, over the hills and through the woods (if you don't mind my mixed metaphor.)

Dorothy finds guidance in the form of a lovely new friend, the scarecrow.  but luckily, i have a way, way better guide, i just have to remember to ask him.

so instead of having a pity party, i am going to try to embrace what i have right now and learn from the truths that i know.  

we sang this on Sunday and I was really able to clearly hear the message for the first time.

Hungry, I come to You
For I know You satisfy
I am empty but I know
Your love does not run dry

Chorus:
So I wait for You
So I wait for You

so this is me waiting...:)

i forgot

to set up a couple posts for while we were in Colorful Colorado. :)

we went with fantastic friends and enjoyed wonderful weather and spectacular slopes.

(how's that for alliteration?)

we also enjoyed an extra restful day (after i let go of the fact that it wasn't planned...not easy for me if you didn't know).

  .

at our hotel, you could walk to the starbucks without even going outside...ie i wore my slippers and sweatpants. this was our view Friday morning.  it was super lovely, and very misleading.  if you were outside of downtown without buildings blocking the wind, it was apparently much more blizzard like.

like close all the highways that go east out of denver.

close them for 30 hours kind of blizzard.

it was crazy.  i have never seen snow like that. for real.  i wish it would snow like that here...just once a year.  it's amazing!

here are some other pictures from the trip...mostly taken on my iphone since i kept forgetting my camera.

that my friends is a moose.  he was about 30 feet from our car on the way to the awesome cabin.  we just stopped an watched him and the 30 elk that were wandering on the hillside.  moose (or mooses, what's the plural of that?) are huge!  and apparently he was a small one.

taking a little break, basking in the sun and warming my toes by the fire.  

i always have snow/ice stuck to my left boot.  i can only seem to come to a complete stop with my left foot down the mountain.  for some reason it does not work, at all, on the right side.  just so you know.

on the back side of the mountain at Sol Vista...turns out we got a little lost after that and ended up at a bunch of condos...but worth it for the view!

on the way to the very top of the mountain at Winter Park it was so beautiful and so windy and so cold!

at the very top, not the best picture, but i was getting frost bite on my gloveless hand.

warming up after a long day and enjoying a steaming cup of joe.

one more picture to wrap up this post...

that my friends is the view from the bathroom at the cabin.  i know it's hard to tell in the picture because the blinds interrupt the picture but the view from the bathroom certainly is a bonus in the morning. :)