Friday, January 28, 2011

Food Friday~Bread so easy, even I can make it!

White Bread

4 C flour
1 1/2 C barely warm water
1 1/2 t active dry yeast
1 t salt

Put the flour in a large bowl, the bowl of a stand mixer, and make a well in the middle.  Pour in the water, which should feel neither warm nor cool.  Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let it sit for 10 minutes.  Mix the ingredients, add the salt and mix some more.

Fit the mixer with the dough hook.  Mix for 2 minutes to moisten the flour.  Cover with  plastic wrap and let sit for 20 min.  Knead the dough on medium speed for about 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth.

Cover the dough with plastic wrap.  Leave the dough to rise for about 2 hours at warm room temperature.

Punch down the dough and shape it into a loaf.  Put loaf into well oiled loaf pan.

Cover with oiled plastic and let rise in a warm place, until doubled in volume, 1-3 hours.

Preheat oven to 425.  Place a sheet pan on the floor of the oven or on the bottom rack, and pour in enough hot water to come about 1/3 in up the side of the sheet pan.  Slide the loaf on to an oven rack over the pan of water.

Bake for 35-40 min.


This recipe sounds involved but it's not once you get the hang of it, trust me I dont' like involved recipes.  The crust turns out really hard, which I dont' know why, I would like it if it were a bit softer.  I think you have to refill the water in the pan, cuz last time I actually did this step and the water ran out.

This bread is so good right out of the oven with butter and jelly.


Thursday, January 20, 2011

My 18th anniversary and Lolli's 15th birthday!

In the last week of my pregnancy with my 3rd child, January of 1996, I prayed, Lord please don't let her be born on our anniversary! 
But lo and behold she was. And she kept me up all night in labor, only to arrive at 4am on January 20, 1996.
Happy 15th Birthday Lauren Faith.  I love you very much, I thought you were going to be my only daughter and my last child.
You are such a precious gift to me!


One might ask, why would you get married in January?
Well I'll tell you why.
Because it was spur of the moment, a wonderful adventure, why not?

Hubby and I started dating around Christmas of 1992.  January came around and he said hey, I have a business trip in Vegas do you want to go?

I at the time was living with my parents with Josh.
So I said,  Oh I can't, my parents would never babysit Josh for us to go on a trip together, because were not married.

Hubby said, Well lets get married then!
I think I said, Really?  OK!

I remember how exciting it was, we looked at a calendar and said well what day should our anniversary be on?
Somehow we picked January 20, which I think was a Wednesday.
That day my parents met us at the courthouse along with Josh, who was 2, and my friend.
We were married by a judge ( the same judge who gave me my restraining order and divorce from my first husband...) in his office, very casual.  I still have the dress I wore and the shirt hubby wore.
And that was that.  Hubby went back to work after that.

We went on that 3 day business trip to Vegas, hubby had to work and my in-laws and grand in-laws were there, so was that really a honeymoon? No.

Maybe someday we will go on a honeymoon.  Well I don't actually believe that, not with my husband's history of gifts.
But I still love him, very much, much more than I did 18 years ago.
We had no idea of where our lives together would take us.
No idea the things we would go through.

You know it's hard to start a life together fresh off a divorce, with a raging ex husband, with a child from another man, suprising the in-laws after the fact, no where to live, only knowing each other for 4 weeks....

But we did it!
God blessed it.
And I am thankful.

I love you honey!



Tuesday, January 18, 2011

New Spring Lollibag's!

I cannot wait for spring and summer!


Ruffles are made from vintage fabric.






This is one of my favortie fabrics and I am  almost out of it!



The other day I almost bought a sundress at the mall!  I know, crazy, I can't wear it for months!
I didn't do it.

Hubby said oh you should have gotten it.... I said "Why"?

He said, "Cuz I don't know what to get you for our anniversary".

Call me crazy, but I'm thinking a $34 sundress that I get myself, isn't gonna cut it for the 18th wedding anniversary!!!
Oh and he'd like that to be for my birthday coming up in Feb. too.

That man will never learn.




Sunday, January 16, 2011

Potty Bliss!

I am so happy to report, 3 1/2 year old Sophie is finally peeing on the potty chair!!
I was afraid little girl was going to go to kindergarten with her diapers on!

She has a way to go with number 2, but hey I am not going to push it!
I'm so excited for diapers to be off my Target list.

WHOOO HOOOOO!!!

Friday, January 14, 2011

Food Friday~Special Coleslaw

Why have I never bought coleslaw dressing and prepackaged coleslaw salad mix??
HMMM??


So I recently bought said items.  And I had some left over.  I was craving that salad that Jean makes, but my spring mix was all slimy and brown.

So I thought why not use the coleslaw mix?

So I did.

Special Coleslaw

Prepackaged coleslaw mix.
Coleslaw dressing.
Turkey lunchmeat, the carving kind.
Red peppers.
Extra carrots, the shoestring type.
Texas Toast croutons.

Mix all together and eat!

It is soooo good!



Let me know if you try it!


Thursday, January 13, 2011

Found

I just found out that my scale is 5 pounds light...great.

I just found this present...

A Good Plan in Black OR Cream - 20x20 CAFE MOUNTS


For my hubby and I, for our 18th anniversary next week.

When we moved to Oregon 8 1/2 years ago, my dad gave me a framed picture of the same verse.

I thought it was only fitting to update it, since we are starting the new year waiting on God to reveal his plans to us!

You can find more verses here.

I LOVE this artwork!

Last night I found happiness in a silly conversation through e-mails with my best friend.

I also found, Selling New York, on my TV schedule and DVR'd it.  I love that show!  It's on HGTV, and it's about selling apartments in New York.  The decor is amazing, I will be copying it for my new abode.

I also find it slightly amazing how much those apartments are!

The biggest thing I have found lately is.......

Peace in the unknown..

OK,  maybe I am having a tad bit of a patience problem.

I do not like to wait for answers, I do not like the unknown hanging over my head.

But in the midst of all the unknowns right now, there is a sense of Peace, knowing that God is in control.

Have you "found" anything lately?

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Is it spring yet?

I sure am looking forward to spring.  I know it's a little early.
But a trip to Target the other day, showed me polkadot bikini's and strapless cover ups.
It is officially "Resort Season".

I love looking at resort wear in magazines and the new spring styles.
It got me all excited to start sewing again.  I've taken a little break.

I pulled out this vintage fabric and bought some hot pink thread to hem it.


This will make some mighty cute ruffles on a Lollibag.

Speaking of spring and Lollibag's, it's time to tally up for taxes.
For some odd reason I love the idea of adding up receipts to see how much I sold for the year and how much my expenses were.
Maybe because it's my own business, all my own.

OH!  I can't wait to share my Food Friday recipe with you, I came up with a really good salad yesterday for lunch.  It was so yummy!

Lets say you have two hours today to spend all on yourself....
What would you do?

Last night I was dreaming of curling up under my grandma's quilt and reading a good book.
Maybe that is what I'll do, during the golden hour.
I don't know why, but it makes me happy knowing I have a stack of books waiting to be read.
Or a bunch of new cookbooks to pour over.

What makes you happy like that?




Friday, January 7, 2011

Oh My Lands!

It seems that was the pick phrase for our Minnesota vacation.
For Pete's Sake, came in 2nd.
OH NO! came in 3rd.

So much has happened in the last 2 weeks, that it feels like 2 months.
Maybe I'm imagining more events than actually took place.  Could be.

My one year blogversary came and went in the last week of December.  And the new year came in and it really seemed like no big deal. 
I've no resolutions and I'm happy about that.
For Pete's Sake...

Wait a minute!  It's been 3 weeks since I last wrote!!!
OH my lands!

Well this may be a long post, so go make yourself an iced chai with Redi Whip on top and a bendy straw and sit down, that's what I'm havin'.

Hubby and I and the girls flew to Minnesota on Christmas day.


Sophie was a bit ancy on the plane, but we made it.



She konked out in the car, for Pete's Sake,  on the way to my dad's house.  I knew the trip was going to be hard, because Sophie was not going to get her two hour nap everyday, like she does at home.  But what are you gonna do?  OH NO!

The next day we had Christmas with my family in Minnesota, and the day after that we had a dinner with hubby's family.  It was fun to show the girls places they don't remember from when we used to live there.  Somehow time flew by, I wanted to show them our old homes and where hubby and I met, but we just ran out of time!



This is my sweet grandma, my mom's mom.  She said, Well I hope you make it back here before I die, you know I am getting old!  She was excited to see Sophie for the first time.  She even tried to bribe hubby, saying she'd make his favorite Coconut Cream pie, if we'd come back to Minnesota.
She is so sweet!



I got to see my best friend, Rach and her 3 daughters.  We ate lunch at Perkins.  I do miss Perkins, no Perkins in Oregon. I think I lost count how many times we ate at Perkins....for Pete's Sake!

Have you ever eaten at a fondue restaraunt?  One night hubby and I, and my dad and his wife Jean and my sister and her hubby and my oldest nephew, went to the Melting Pot, in Minneapolis.  It was quite an experience!

Oh my land's was it ever!



The first course was chunks of breads and apples and veggies in a cheese fondue, then we had a salad, then we had a main course.  You got all your meats raw on a plate and then cooked them in the fondue pots.







Above is hubby and mine's raw meat plate.  It had lobster, salmon, beef, shrimp, chicken and sweet potato ravioli.  My sister and I were cracking up over the whole experience.  The whole dinner took over 3 hours and it is a TON of food.




My nephew, dipping some bread.



They had all these little dishes of butter, sauces, curry's, everything....
I just looked at the table and thought...Oh my land's, look at all this!



Me, with my salmon on my fondue fork, the salmon was so good, but it kept falling apart in the cooking broth.  Not to worry they gave you slotted spoon's for that!



We had so many fondue forks in the pots, we couldn't keep track of them or get them out!

So we're dipping and fonduing and eating away, then all of a sudden we hear a lady at a table across the room talking about her ovaries!  She was going on and on about her ovaries!  Loudly, for Pete's Sake!!

The last course was the dessert course, you dipped strawberries, marshmallows, rice krispie treats and some other things, in chocolate.  I was so full, I didn't even try the dessert.  I wish I could have, but like I said....FULL.

Another really yummy place we ate, was at Twin City Grill in the Mall of America.  One of my favorite places to eat, love it, love it, love it!

We were able to see my niece, Jenna, play in a basketball game.  That was super fun, she is so sweet.



That's her, #31.

I bought an old school house light fixture, it is so vintage!  I am not sure where I'll put it, whatever house we live in next, I'm sure.

The girls had fun playing in the snow.



Sophie didn't want to come inside.

And we ate lots of ice cream sundae's.



And breakfast out with the cousins.



Now we are just all having way to much fun aren't we?

Yes, we were.  (cue doom impending music)....

Tuesday morning my sister and I and my 3 girls were driving to Perkins to meet my friend for breakfast.

On the way Sophie kept saying my head hurts, my ear hurts and she would wimper... I said to my sister... I don't think we should go...I just knew something was up.  Sister said well do you want to take her to the Minute Clinic at Target?  I said..the what?  They have medical clinics at Target out there!
Well for Pete's Sake, yes lets go!  I kept looking back at Soph, she would fall asleep and wimper every five minutes. 

OH NO!
Wouldn't you know it, up came those 10 apple jacks she had before we left home, in my sisters NEW car no less.  My worst nightmare, one of my kids throwing up on vacation!   I cried out...OH NO!!! THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!!

My sweet sister was so full of grace, she said...It's ok!  No big deal, we'll handle it!  She pulled over and hopped out and got Sophie out of the car, and I stood on the side of the road with her, sister cleaned up the mess with an old towel, (thank you Jesus , that was in the car!)... and we made our way to Target. 
Sure enough, Sophie had a fever and had strep throat.  Who knew strep and barf went together!

We got her some antibiotics and got back in the car and headed home. 

OH NO! 

Not before we had to pull over and let her get sick again!



And here's where she ended up.  Now my mind is running away with me..
At this point, I'm calculating and pin pointing and estimating who will get it next and will it hit on the day we fly home and such and such and all that....



Look at that sweet face!  Sophie slept all day that day and threw up one more time that night, and the next day rested some more and ate a tiny bit.  But she was fine for the flight home and thank you Lord, no one else has gotten it!

At times like these, is when you are praying, begging, Lord just let us make it home without anyone else barfing!  Please don't let anyone barf on the plane! 
Well thank you Lord for that answered prayer!

Our last night there, we stayed at my dad's house and his wife Jean made the best meal! 
She made spaghetti and garlic bread and a salad.

This salad was so good, that I went out today and bought everything she put in it and we are having it tonight.

Jeans Salad
(from what I remember)

Spring mix salad
craisins
parmesean cheese, shredded (?)
she tore up turkey lunch meat and threw that in
carrot sticks, thin
huge texas croutons
dressing

Hubby loved it too, he asked me to make it!

We had a great time, but it is good to be home, safely home.
I miss my family already.
I miss my dad.
I miss my sister.

I was getting all teary eyed thinking about how much of my nieces and nephews lives I have missed being in Oregon.  When we moved to Oregon my niece, Jenna, was 8 years old.  Now she is 16 and has a boyfriend!!

Where does time go?  How on earth did that happen and I missed it?

It's funny, most of my post is about food.  Well today is Food Friday.
And I do love food, for Pete's Sake!







I'm back

I just got back last night from our vacation to Minnesota, it was so cold.  When we got off the plane in Oregon it was 51 and sun!  I will write later, I just feel so out of touch with everyone, just wanted to say HI!!!
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