Jon May Be In Love!

I love to cook and bake... and thankfully, Jon loves to eat! The pic is my newest creation, Tomatillo Guacamole! I was inspired to try something like this from a friend at work, and in hearing her suggested ingredient list, I just knew Jon would love it- And he does! Sometimes a made up recipe just comes together.

(Charly will even eat it!)

Tomatillo Guacamole
3-4 medium tomatillos
3-4 cloves garlic
½ bunch of cilantro
2 teaspoons lime juice
salt to taste
1 ripe avocado

In a small food processor, chop until fine: tomatillos, garlic, cilantro and lime juice.

In a small bowl, mash the avocado. Mix with the tomatillo mixture. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Enjoy!

I also received an early Mother's Day present from Jon...

A wheat grinder! (yes, it is hand powered... but still.) This happens to be the same wheat grinder that 'died' during Eric's mission (we literally had one thing a month break/wear out while he was serving!- but I think that is in my post about the blessing of learning what you can live without. If not, ... I'll have to work on that one!) This wheat grinder has been sitting in a box in the garage ever since it broke and a piece went missing. I almost threw it away on more than one occasion- but I was always on my way to somewhere when I would notice, and just tell myself that I would throw it out when I got home. I never did. Now I am so very grateful that I kept it. What a great gift to have Jon walk into the kitchen yesterday, set up this grinder, add some wheat, and demonstrate his engineering genius! I am so grateful for a handy-around-the-house-son! And the bread I made is going to taste so good!

And our second great blessing for the weekend....

Yes, this is a pic of my car INSIDE my garage! After over 8 months of parking in the drive, scraping the ice/frost from the windshield in the wee hours of the morning before work, worrying about vandalism, etc, I can park in my garage because....

 We finally sold this engine!!! But if you are disappointed at missing the great deal, we still have one more engine... I can give you a great price! ;)

Best 'Burgers' Ever! Can't wait to try the chicken....

I usually have this contraption hanging on my wall... and everyone asks, 'what is that thing?!'

So here is what my Grandma Opal used it for- and why I keep it around:

Step 1: Add a piece of patty paper and a mound of burger...

Step 2: Add more patty paper and close...

                                                                         Step 3: Viola! The perfect patty!

Here is my amazing niece Shayla's best 'burger' recipe: it is so good!

SPICY HAWAIIAN BURGERS
Adapted from Homemade by Holman- made by Shayla!

2 pounds ground chicken (I used ground turkey)
6 pineapple rings (or equivalent slices, cut about 1/2" - 3/4" thick)
6 slices pepper jack cheese (optional)
6 whole wheat hamburger buns
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp chili powder (if you want any kind of “spicy” you may want to double this…)
1/2 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, minced

Combine the ground chicken, soy sauce, paprika, chili powder, seasoning salt and cumin. Lightly mix with your hands and divide into 6 even balls. Form patties.. Refrigerate about 30 minutes.

Preheat the grill to medium heat. Coat grates lightly with oil. Grill burgers over medium heat about 6 minutes per side. The burgers should flip easily when they are ready to turn, if they want to stick, give them another minute. Top with cheese for the last 1-2 minutes of cooking time to melt. Remove to a plate and cover with aluminum foil to rest. Grill buns if desired.

For the pineapple, if you are using rings, grill directly on the grates over medium heat. Carefully turn after 1-2 minutes. If you are using pineapple slices or chunks, thread onto skewers and grill skewers in the same fashion. Assemble burgers and enjoy.

So good with the pineapple, pickles and BBQ sauce!

It also goes great with Black Beans and brown rice!

Spicy Black Beans

In a pressure cooker, combine:

2 cups dry black beans
3 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
2 cubes chipolte seasoning (I use knorr brand)
¼ teaspoon red pepper
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf

Cook until beans are tender.

Add 1 can tomato sauce and 3-4 garlic cloves, minced. stir over heat for 5 minutes.

This can be used as a side dish or it’s great in burritos. This can also be mashed and used as a dip.

A Don Quixote Week?

So many ups and downs this week, so many things I want to accomplish, so many of these things that although noble and grand seem impossibly out of reach (one in particular). It just feels like I am tilting at windmills!

So this windmill would NOT work for me!

But then I go to church, and I am reminded of the greatness and the goodness of my Lord- all He has done for me- And I know that dreaming the impossible is not so crazy after all. Everything that is of worth is within reach with the help of my Father in Heaven!

So here are a few of those impossible 'giants/windmills' in my life that I have actually 'defeated' with the help of my Lord:

1. I have raised my children within the Gospel, and they have all gained their own testimonies of the truth. All of the studies I have read on single parenting and its effect on the children... well, many people in this world would say that what I did couldn't be done. And it couldn't without the help of the Lord.

2. I have earned my master's degree. At that time, my small children and I were living in my father's basement. I was working full time and trying to help the kids with their own homework- only having time to complete my homework and write my thesis late at night when the kids were asleep. Looking back, where did I find the time and energy for it all? It was a blessing, of that I am certain.

3. I own my own home. Such a miracle on a teacher's pay and in this economy... and as a reminder, I have flowers 

both inside

and out!

4. I have a career that I enjoy! I am so very blessed to be able to teach, especially the kids that I do. They are all so unique; they have so many challenges, I am so fortunate to touch a small part of their lives and to learn so much from them in return!

5. Finally, (one I have yet to completely defeat) I have been able to date. Now this is NOT my favorite activity by any stretch of the imagination, but it has been an important learning experience for me in many ways. Perhaps one day I will actually 'defeat' this particular 'windmill'!

So in the meantime, I will continue to tilt at the windmills of life, to pursue all of those impossible, out-of-reach dreams, and trust that the Lord is in charge- He knows what He is doing!!! 

Me as Dear Abby

Advice is not something I enjoy giving out- usually... Believe it or not, I was an EXTREMELY shy child. So much so that I am sure my mother spent more than a few sleepless nights worrying what to do about it all. I remember having only 1 friend from the 1st to the 2nd grades, and she was another very shy little girl too. 

My mother had me take Suzuki violin lessons in part to help me get over some of this shyness- she told me that she was convinced that if I could just learn to perform in front of people, I would be 'cured'! All I really remember was being petrified of playing. In fact, the few pics we have of me playing, my back is to the camera (audience)! Plus my family moved away from the teacher; so my violin career was short-lived at best!

through the years, my mom made sure I had plenty of opportunities to do things on my own- and they must have worked (that and all of her prayers, I am sure). By the time I was 15, I had a large group of very close friends, and even a move across the country didn't hamper my social life- I even joined the high school choirs. performed in the musicals, and became a state officer for a club- we sponsored the national convention that year and I was a hostess for the event! 

Yet even with the challenge of shyness behind me, I still would rather listen than speak my mind. (Ironic thing to say as I sit here blogging away!) Now I find that my job comes with daily chances to give advice- my job is to talk all day; so hopefully some of that talking entails some good advice! But tonight, I was asked for dating and single parent advice! The single parent thing... I'll be that Dear Abby anytime! Been there but if not, can at least empathize with that- But the dating advice?! Well, that may not be this Abby's forte!

Time will tell...

Spring!

Rain (or sometimes snow!), flowers, chives, onions and hopefully strawberries!

I am so grateful for spring! I need more beginnings in my life...

And I just love having flowers outside and inside!- even with some of the weeds.

Best pic? 'Guess who won't be making it back?' I just love having one child who not only understands this humor, but who loves it as much as me! (and he'll watch it all with me too!)

And this may seem out of the blue, but it has been on my mind quite a bit, especially with Easter:
I once had someone refer to my faith as the 'tradition' of my family. I have thought a lot on that and tried to observe my family at gatherings. I have come to several conclusions. First, I must say that my faith in the true and living God is not now, and to my knowledge, has never been based upon my family. I am sure that I attended church services when I was young because of my parents. But I can honestly say that I have never believed because they believed. It sounds strange to many, I am sure. However, as long as I can remember, I have known on at least a basic level that Heavenly Father lives and that Jesus is the Christ. I believe this is a gift I was given in my life because I have needed to know this in order to do some things I had to do. I also know that as I have grown, my knowledge has also grown- and I have come to not only believe but to know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the true church here on earth. I can say with confidence that I do not believe this because of my family. The second thing I have discovered, my family loves me now and will always love me no matter what I believe to be true. I am not close to my family because of my faith. I am close to my family because of who they are and because I want to be with them. I know if I were to decide tomorrow to become an atheist (which of course, I won't), my family's feelings towards me would not change in the least. We have all worked hard at being the family that we are- and that is a great blessing in my life!
It is not a tradition... it is a choice and a great blessing!

Family, Friends, and Fun!

I love my family! (have the greatest family in the whole world!) So I surround myself with reminders of them:

Jon says if I put one more thing on this wall, the house will collapse! But I sure enjoy my dining area. 

I have NOT, however, for many months now enjoyed the site of my old dining room chairs... I had cobbled them together from a larger set many years ago, and they were great while they lasted. They even taught us all to sit up straight at the table... if we didn't, the back of the chairs would crack! And crack they all finally did. They looked so sad to me in the dining area with broken backs- one even had a top rail missing altogether. Sad, sad chairs... so now:

I love them! And they completely match my kitchen area! And we can lean back without fear!

Funny conversation: I bought six. Jon asked why I bought so many. I told him to think about how many people we have in our family... he thought, then said, "Oh, we have six." I wonder if he is foretelling the future- as we have 5 now! 

As I sat in the faculty room for lunch today, I realized how many wonderful friends I have at HHS! (and no co-worker related stress!) I am so blessed that the Lord makes me do so many things that are good for me!

I love it that my niece, Alyssa, and her husband blessed their little girls last Sunday. Not only was it the perfect way to cap off the perfect General Conference weekend, it gave me a good reason to make this chocolate/peanut butter goodness!

Update as to the ongoing internet dating saga... "Jim" not only has a Nigerian based cell phone number, but he also signed his name in last night's email as "Eric"- but that is only his "name at work" and his "middle name" he "sometimes goes by" (although I must note was not listed on the copy of the passport he sent -which was odd in and of itself!) And he wonders: "What happened? I Have not herd from you... Are you okay???"- Yeah, not the best at spelling either! Gee, I wonder why I will NOT be writing him again?!

Big sigh here...considering joining a dating site that will cost a bit more- maybe all these creepy guys will be too cheap to stalk there!