Yay Commenters!

I'm glad some of my friends and family have found the blog already. Thank you for your comments and love. I think I will start writing more regularly, but who knows. Make sure you all get add me to your google reader so you will know when I update. If you don't know what that is ask me and I will have my husband send you a lengthy email explaining it. It is awesome! Trust me you need it. I will have important recipe posts and you will want to see the cool sewing projects I'm working on. Oh, and you will find out when I get to do exciting things such as: go to the grocery store (all by myself!) and listen to Radiohead on the way there and back. (thanks Chris for letting me use the MP3 player and for watching Lincoln all night!) Today I am itching for a haircut. It might just overtake me to the point that I will go ahead and hack at it myself. I looked at Albertsons for some hair accessories, but all they had was the same old stuff. My hair is too thick to be held up by those wimpy little clips. The Albertsons in Frisco is so very lonely. I feel bad every time I go there because it is so empty. I even felt guilty using a coupon because I wanted them to make some money. Fortunately, it is very conducive to my "mommy alone time".

A new blog for me!

I decided to move to blogger because my husband, bless his heart, is a little on the busy side right now and I needed something easier to use. I'm sure I will still need lots of his help. Today I had big plans for getting lots done around the house, but instead went for something I could do sitting still for 2 hours straight. Please leave comments once in a while so I know this isn't just my private journal. Ok, so I'm not very good at that myself. I keep up with a lot of you without letting you know. Sorry. I'll try to do better at that too.

My 5th Life

I never really believed in reincarnation, but I do think I've had at least 5 rather seperate phases to my life. When I look back on the past it's hard to believe that the person back then was still me. It's as if I died at the end of each stage and came back a whole new person.

Stage 1: Childhood. I love reflecting on this time and I miss it more than any other stage. It was full of dreams and imagination, beauty, joy, playfulness. I felt my family's love for me and I enjoyed being who I was. I played in the pond with cousins, rode bikes, explored the yard looking for ancient artifacts, played capture the flag with neighbors, etc. It was a magical time.

Stage 2: Teenage Years. I would never go back. Not even for 1 million dollars. It was a lonely and depressing time. Emotions and hormones made me a train wreck. I did enjoy babysitting and reading, beading and jalapeno chips. I felt very alone.

Stage 3: College. This is where things started to get fun again. I took lots of classes that I was interested in: Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese, Humanities, Geography, Art History, Piano, Dance (social and folk), History. It was so much fun and I made lots of great friends. I graduated and stayed at school to work in the library. The best job ever with the best coworkers ever! It was a great time. I saved money, spent money, hung out with friends, took classes for free on work time. I went to the international cinema. I dated! I didn't go on a date until I was 18 and I didn't even know that guy's name. College didn't pick up immediately, but eventually as I came out of my shell boys started to be interested.

Stage 4: Marriage. I love being married and Chris is a wonderful husband. I don't tell him that nearly enough. We have so much fun together and the first few years were so nice. He was in school and worked part time. I was working full time. After work I would come home and work on the giant jigsaw puzzle. It was a struggle to come to terms with my previous expectations of marriage and home life and what it actually turned out to be. The house was never that clean, the dinner wasn't always home cooked, I wasn't the homemaker and wife I expected to immediately become. We did work through it and come to terms with the reality of our life together.

Stage 5: Mommyhood. This stage was surprisingly difficult in the beginning. My body crashed after giving birth and I sunk into a depression and anxiety hole deeper than I had ever felt before. I couldn't eat, get dressed, anything but sleep and hope to wake up feeling better. I had been so excited and nervous about the baby, but I then things went very wrong. Fortunately with medication and time everything got gradually better and better and I love my little boy so so much. We still have difficult days, but we have so much fun together and he is such a cute little person. Now I am working on fun hobbies like sewing, canning, reading, cooking, and sometime soon gardening. I am enjoying my 5th life and hope for many fun and interesting lives to come.

My best deal

All this for only $3.00 total! Everything in all 3 pictures! This is why I couldn't help going back a 5th time.
Squares of really cute fabric:

Fat quarters and strips, oh so many strips. Mother, I loved your strips of color quilt. I think you may be able to make another or 10.:

Finally, the pieces that have been sewn already, also the batiks, and some random pieces that were of odd sizes.:

My Stash

In case you can't tell, I'm catching up for a long time of not posting anything. I think Chris still has pictures on his computer I need for my blog, but I don't remember what they are anymore. He just uploaded the ones I'm now posting, and yes, I do know how to do it myself, but it's easier if he does it for me, isn't it?
So now I'll include some pictures I took of my fabric stash. I went to an estate sale, and then back again, and again, and again, and once more. It was such a great deal I couldn't pass it up! The lady who passed away was an amazing quilter and had a whole 2 rooms full of fabric. Something like 300 bolts plus smaller amounts of fabric. It was crazy, but in a good way for me.
Now that I have a ton of fabric, I am no longer afraid to sew because I know even if I make 1,000 mistakes there is still no way I will get through all the fabric I have.
Large (Bolts):

Medium (Yardage):

Smaller (fat quarters mostly):

I don't have pictures of all the scraps I have in about 10 extra large ziploc bags. Look at the post about my $3.00 deal to see how much fits in 1 bag.

I made a shirt!

It took a couple of tries. First I made a rough pattern and pinned it onto myself, then I made a version in white that had some problems. When I did this one I was able to improve even more and I'm happy with the way it turned out. The first day I worked up the courage to wear it Lincoln and I went to the park and he cut open his lip and bled all over the new shirt. At least he was ok and the shirt was too.

The New PB&J

Corn tortillas fried for 10 seconds in oil and blotted dry on paper towels.
Avocado
Tomato
Black Beans
Cheddar
Sour Cream and Salsa for dipping.
This makes a great quick and pretty healthy lunch.

Aunt Wendy's Dilled Green Beans

I canned by myself for the first time today. It was quite an adventure and I learned a lot about what to do differently the next time.
WENDY’S DILLED GREEN BEANS
Ingredients
4 # fresh whole green beans
El Toro Dehydrated Chile Japones (Red Peppers-crushed)
Whole mustard seed
Fresh dill plant
Garlic cloves
5 C cider vinegar (1 ¼ qt.)
5 C. water (1 ¼ qt.)
½ C. salt
7 pint jars
Instructions
Wash beans thoroughly, drain and cut into lengths to fill pint jars
Combine vinegar, water, & salt – heat to boiling
Pack beans into clean, hot jars
Add to each jar:
¼ tsp. hot red crushed peppers
½ tsp. whole mustard seed
2 sprigs fresh dill
1 clove garlic
Pour boiling liquid over beans filling to ½ “ from top of jar
Adjust jar lids
Process in boiling water for 5 minutes starting from the time water in canner is boiling
Remove jars and complete seals if necessary.
Set jars upright 2” apart.
Let cool on wire rack
Store for 5 – 6 months in pantry
Beans canned in August or September make a nice Christmas gift

Pizza Dough

This is the pizza dough recipe I use currently:
3 1/2 cups flour
1 cup warm water
1 package yeast
2 Tbsp honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
Pour warm water into bowl. Add honey and salt. Mix until well blended. Add yeast and mix. Let sit 5 minutes. Add 1 cup flour and the olive oil and mix until well blended. Add the rest of the flour and mix well.
Knead dough, cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm, dry area 45 minutes. Punch dough down. Cover and let rise another hour to an hour and a half. Roll out dough onto pizza pans.

Minestrone Soup A La Madeline

This is first soup I have ever made and boy was it a good first try. My friend Erin gave me the recipe as well as some of her leftover ingredients and said it was definitely worth trying. It was so so so good! I chopped the vegetables in the food processor so it was actually really easy to make. Very hearty when the sauce boils down and you just end up with a really thick bowl of soup. I wish it wasn't all gone.

2 brown onions (I used one yellow)
1/2 bunch fresh basil
1/4 bunch fresh cilantro
1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley
6 cups vegetable stock
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 cubes vegetable stock (I lost the ones I bought so I put in some chicken top ramen flavoring)
13 oz. canned tomatoes
1/2 cup brown lentils
1/2 cup pearl barley
4 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 stalks celery, finely chopped (I didn't have)
2 carrots, finely chopped
1/2 parsnip, finely chopped
1 small turnip, finely chopped
1 can red kidney beans, washed thoroughly
ground pepper
Place the onions, basil, cilantro and parsley in a food processor and blend until finely chopped. In a large soup pot, place vegetable stock, soy sauce, one cup of hot water and stock cubes mixed with one cup of warm water. Stir and add onion and herb mix from the food processor. Place the tomatoes in the food processor and blend; add to soup pot. Add lentils, pearl barley and bay leaves. Cover and cook on low heat. Pass the garlic through a garlic press and add to the pot. Add the celery, carrots, parsnip and turnip to the pot. Cover and cook slowly for 80 minutes stirring occasionally. Season with black pepper. Add the kidney beans and cook for another 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.

I've been tagged.

A: The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.B: Each player answers the questions about themselves. C: At the end of the post, the player then tags 3 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.
10 years ago today...
I was 18 and in my second quarter at Pierce College in Washington. I babysat my cousins in the afternoons.
5 things on my to-do list today:
1. Budget for the month
2. Make dinner
3. Get Lincoln to go potty in the toilet (he's been doing it a lot lately)
4. Clean up the living room
5. Spend at least a little time with my husband between his work and choir meeting tonight.
I enjoy:
Foreign films and good food. Classic books, mostly by Dickens.
What would I do if I were suddenly a billionaire?
Chris would work from home. We would buy a home in Washington and spend our summers there. Pay off debts, save, and help others out.
3 of my bad habits:
1. I play way too much Freecell
2. I eat way too much pizza
3. Is not showering or getting dressed until evening a bad habit?
5 places I have lived:
1. Sumner, WA
2. Milton, WA
3. Provo, UT
4. Flower Mound, TX
5. The Colony, TX
5 jobs I have had:
1. Picking raspberries
2. REI in the wrapping department
3. Incredible Universe (computer salesperson)
4. Ben Franklin Crafts
5. BYU Library
5 things people don't know about me:
1. I love game shows
2. I love spicy/salty foods way more than sweets
3. I have a huge scar from getting my appendix out at 5
4. My taste in music is a bit strange (generally bands not from America)
5. I am a great cook! At least I think so.
I don't know who to tag because I'm not sure who even knows I have a personal blog. I'll tag Nancy, Mom, and Erin.

Sewing Class Project #2

We made purses, and since I finished early I also got to make the extra little bag to go inside. I still have a one thing to do on the inside of the purse, but it's hand stitching so I didn't want to spend time doing it in the class. My 5 week class is over! I'm hoping to take Beginner 2 in April once they offer an evening class. This was so much fun!

Oatmeal Muffins

This is a recipe I got from a ward in college. They handed out recipe books ("Recipes Yo Mama wants you to know...") with recipes from all the girls in Relief Society. This is a recipe from Cara Ricks.
1 cup oats
1 cup milk
1/3 cup honey
1 cup flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 well beaten egg
1/4 cup oil
Combine oats, milk and honey. Let stand 15 minutes. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Combine egg and oil and then add to oatmeal mixture. Add all at once to the dry ingredients, stirring just to moisten. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 425 for 20-25 min.
For mine, I didn't sift anything I just whisked the dry ingredients. They finished cooking around 15 minutes and were even a little darker than I would have preferred. I think our oven tries to sabotage my cooking.

Sewing Class Project #1

Yesterday I finished the apron I was making in my sewing class. There are a few errors I chose not to redo, but overall I'm very pleased with how it turned out. I'm proud to say I finally finished a sewing item without having anyone do the hard parts for me. I hope I can use some of what I learned for future projects.

Sweet & Sour Pineapple Chicken Recipe

This was adapted from a recipe I found online. I left out 2 cups celery so you can add that too if you want.
2 cups green pepper
2 Tbsp. oil
1 tin (14 oz.) unsweetened pineapple tidbits (drained)
2 cups drained pineapple juice with water added to make up
5 Tbsp. cornstarch
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 cups left over chicken, cut in cubes
cooked rice (as required)

Sautee vegetables in oil until tender crisp. Remove from pan. Combine pineapple juice with water, cornstarch, brown sugar, vinegar and soy sauce in saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly until sauce thickens. Add drained pineapple, vegetables and chicken. Heat and serve with rice.

We used 2 green peppers, 3 chicken breasts, 2 five oz. tins of pineapples (one was shredded), and 3 scoops of rice into the rice cooker. The sauce amazingly transformed into sweet and sour sauce before our eyes. It was incredible. It was a very tasty, pretty easy recipe and we will definitely make it again.