My cup runneth over

I went looking for a "pot of gold" today, and realized along the way that my "cup runneth over." Sometimes it's best to just be grateful for what you already have :)

My lucky shirt wasn't very lucky today as I attempted to celebrate this wonderful holiday with a cake.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Tyler and I volunteered at BYU's Hunger Banquet. Attendees all bought tickets for the same price, but there was no guarantee that they would get their money's worth. The majority of the people represented the lower class and got beans and rice, one bowl for every two people. The next portion represented the middle class and received hotdogs, chips, and pop. The final and smallest group by far represented the upper class, and they got a 3-course meal and waiters. All servers were volunteers, and those serving the lower and middle class could dress in "ethnic" clothes, while the upper-class waiters wore the traditional black/white.

There was a keynote speaker and 3 NGOs trying to get funding. Proceeds from the banquet went to fund a grant to at least one of the 3 groups. It was a great opportunity to hear about humanitarian projects and to be a part of that experience!

PS-Apparently taking pictures is a difficult concept. We only got one picture that wasn't blurry, out of 3 different people, and it didn't even show our whole selves! So this one will have to do...

Must. Resist. Muffins...Can't. Resist. Muffins!

Yesterday, I really wanted something sweet to eat, and we didn't have very much sugar left, so I thought I'd make some muffins (because for some reason, I thought they would have less sugar...). Anyway, we had most of an 8 oz. thing of cream cheese in the fridge that I didn't want to go bad, so I started scouring the 'net for cream cheese muffin recipes that I had enough sugar for. I came upon this recipe from Bake or Break Recipes. It sounded delicious, and even though I didn't have the pecans, I thought I'd give it a try.

I decided to half the recipe so that I would have enough sugar to make the muffins and the streudal stuff. So, I started measuring ingredients, la di da, until I accidentally forgot to half the baking powder. Now I was faced with making the full batch or having overflowing muffins that probably would taste gross. I proceeded to make a full batch, putting 1 c. (and the only cup I had) of sugar in the mix ...but I didn't see that the muffins need 2 cups of sugar, plus a 3rd cup for the streudal. Now I had to figure out what to do for the rest of the sugar. For the cream cheese mixture, I decided to use dark corn syrup. Honestly, I should have put the corn syrup in the batter and mixed the sugar with the cheese, but it was too late at that point. The corn syrup resulted in a liquid-y cream cheese mixture that didn't really work as "filling" like it should have. Oh well. The streudal idea had to go by the wayside...

I made a pan of mini-muffins and a pan of regular-sized muffins. The mini muffins had the cream cheese mixture on top, the regular ones have in in the middle-ish. Kind of a funky result, but as you can tell, they have managed to find their way into our (er..mostly my) stomach(s)!



PS-the brownish stuff you see on top of the muffin is the cream cheese/syrup mixture. If any of it leaked onto the pan, it caramelized :) mmmm!

Getting ready for V-day!

When the one holiday that is most dreaded by many, we must do all we can do to lift everyone's spirits. Which holiday? I speak of Valentine's Day--the day where single people are painfully aware they are such, dating people are painfully aware of their obligation to buy that perfect something that isn't too much or too little, and where married people finally have an excuse to actually go out for dinner (although for college students, it rests as a reminder of the slim figure of their piggy bank...). Here is my latest project that I made out of:

A wire hanger
Leftover material from my last skirt project
The fake rose my dad sent me for Valentine's Day my first year in college

Tear the strips, tire them around the wire, and voila! :)

Happy birthday to me!

When my cousin Danna turned 22, she bought herself a tutu for her two-two, and I wanted to steal the idea. Unfortunately, by the time I realized my birthday was nearly on my doorstep, it was too late to order one. I have been perusing Pinterest for a while now though, and I knew I wanted a ruffled skirt. So I went to DI, bought my materials, and sewed myself a new ruffle skirt. Happy birthday to me!

PS-please ignore my lack of photography skills and sewing errors. I'm pretty proud of myself considering this is my first wearable sewing project!

Reception pics round 2!

And a few more :)

A few reception pics :)

Ok, so here are the first few of some of my favorite pictures from our wedding reception held at my Aunt Ginny's house in Idaho. Hope you like them! I'll post some more later because I don't think I can put more than 5 at a time...or I don't know how to use the contraption called the internet...one of the two!

Soft and fuzzy= :)

Lately I've been making a lot of things...it's probably just a phase, but it is somewhat fulfilling. For my nursing classes I made a couple of mini baby blankets to give to moms in the hospital who had lost their baby. Not the best sewing job I've ever seen, but hopefully they will provide a little bit of comfort.




Also, in an attempt to comfort myself from the woes of school, I decided to learn how to crochet those cute flowers I see everywhere. Realizing I didn't have anything to wear it with, I attached it to a headband I made and donated it to Lucy (whom I rescued from DI), my study buddy. Isn't she cute?

Spiced squash bread

We had some squash (as far as we--meaning the people at the grocery story, myself, and my new cookbook--can figure, it was baby hubbard) for dinner the other night. Anticipating we (Tyler and I) couldn't eat the whole thing, I only cooked half. Well, that left another half that probably wasn't going to get eaten, so I devised a way to use the remaining squash. I have a banana bread recipe, and I know the spices that go in pumpkin pie, so I swapped the banana for the squash and added the spices--the result: spiced squash bread, nearly as tasty as pumpkin bread, probably would be SOOOO much better with some chocolate chips :)



Ingredients:
1 3/4 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. ground nutmeg
1 t. ground ginger
1 T. ground cinnamon
1/3 c. butter
2/3 c. sugar
2 eggs
half of a cooked winter squash or enough to make 2-3 cups when mashed

Destructions:
Cut desired winter squash in half, remove seeds, and place in/or a tin-foil lined pan and bake at 350 for about an hour and a half or until very soft. Remove skin (discard) and mash the fleshy part. Add a couple tablespoons of butter and couple tablespoons of brown sugar. Set aside. (May be refrigerated for later use)

Preheat over (if not already heated from cooking the squash) to 350, grease bread pan, and set aside.

Mix dry ingredients in small/medium bowl and set aside. In a larger bowl beat sugar and softened butter together. Add eggs and mix. Add dry ingredients, mix partially, then add squash. Beat on low speed for 3 minutes, then medium for 1 more. If desired, fold chocolate chips (you put in however many you want, I won't judge, haha). Pour into pan and bake for one hour. Can check with toothpick for done-ness. Let cool for 10 minutes, remove from pan, and ENJOY!

PS-It is very moist. I recommend that if you do put it in a plastic bag or wrap it in foil to leave it open to the air so that it doesn't get really sticky.

Pumpkin bread and Macy's bags

For Relief Society, we made little gifts for the sisters we visit teach. Realizing it's not OK to give unwrapped presents, I tried to figure out what I was going to do. We have no wrapping paper, and I didn't really feel like going to the store to buy some. We have no curly ribbon either. Then, I spotted, sitting in the corner behind the table, old paper grocery bags. Brilliant! I always had a bit of an affinity for brown paper wrapping. But how would I decorate them? I have no paint to doodle with or ribbon long enough to tie around. Then, after digging through my button box, sorting through my ribbon scraps, and scrounging for some markers, I ended up with this:


Not bad for a scrounge job!

Also, I decided I needed to make something with the remaining pumpkin I had in the fridge. I decided to try to make Pumpkin Nutella Bread. It was tasty, but unfortunately it didn't come out of the pan very well. I made it half-intending to take it with the gifts, but decided I better just eat it...


Next time I'll spray the pan better :)

time is money, but it makes more work

Since probably the second week of the school year, not a single loaf of store-bought bread has entered our lovely little apartment. I've made homemade bread every week except for this week (because Tyler did it this time!). The sad part is, the loaves don't have as many slices so they don't go as far. Also, if I decide I want a sandwich and have no more bread, I have to find roughly 2 hours to be home so I can make it. Luckily, I can do homework while the dough is rising and it's cooking and whatnot. Unfortunately, it (multitasking) never seems to work as well as I hope. But the taste of warm homemade bread with butter and homemade raspberry jam is almost as good a cookie when I'm craving something tasty. It nearly (but not quite) allows me to give up the idea of going to Macey's at 7pm for 25 cent donuts. Work, yes. Cheaper, yes (I think...). Happy tummy, heck yes :D



PS-This isn't my picture, but mine looks (and probably is) way more delicious than this. Nobody like a blog post without a picture though...

Fine hats + cameos=wonderful

Ok, so anyone who knows me very well has probably heard my rant about how no one ever dresses up anymore, the class is gone, and everyone should wear fantastic hats. Well, when I got married, I decided I was going to fix those things. I wish I had pictures from the reception now, but soon enough :) For now, I have a few of my bridals I can show off, haha. My mom took the pictures as well as put together my hat. The actual hat part is from the 1940's, but the original decorations on it were stained pretty badly so she redid the back part, the bird-cage veil over the top and added the flowers. I put together and decorated my bouquet, and the cameo on it was my great-grandma's! Beautiful aren't they? Hope you enjoy!

feast or failure?

I used to joke with Tyler that he needed to get married so that he would have someone to help pack his suitcases when he went on trips because he tends to, let's just say, pack like a boy...a week long trip? Simple! Swimsuit, deodorant, some clean underwear, and socks...maybe. But really, who needs those things anyway right? Well, being a minimalist is far better than one who can't remember to do those things that are the foundation of the living in Provo...I think I needed to get married more than he did! If my head wasn't screwed on, I'd loose it!

Tyler and I are taking French Choir together. Week #1: Great. Learned part of a song, realized I can't read unfamiliar French words and unfamiliar alto parts at the same time, and learned if I sing quieter, people won't hear me mess up :) Week #2: Not so great. I feel asleep because I was up at 4:30am for nursing, and didn't wake up until at text came at 5:10pm (10 minutes after class started) from Tyler wondering if I was coming, and if I had fallen asleep. Yes, yes, and uggggghh! Week #3: Fail. Again, Tyler wasn't home to remind me of class. But this time, he was as work and couldn't send a reminder text. So what did I do instead of class? Baked. Food is always a good excuse right?

Well, I feel pretty good about my creation. This afternoon I managed to make a little over 5 dozen cookies, all in honor of the BYU-Utah game this weekend! GO COUGARS :) And hopefully next week will be a success as far as actually getting to class...

2 people, lot's of fun!

Well, we've been married for one month today, and it's been quite an adventure :) Several (quite humorous) mishaps later, we are finally moved in and almost have all of our stuff put away...almost. One of our earlier joint purchases, a "2-person" raft from Walmart, has practically paid for itself! We got to float the Provo River with Tyler's brother and sister-in-law, Leighton and Sharon, and a couple of their friends. Needless to say, the $20 raft was not quite built to withstand any rapids or banging against bridges...but it sure was fun! Good thing we took a water bottle though...we needed it to bail the water out when we gained an extra hole in the bottom and the water kept leaking in through the airvalve that wouldn't stay closed...wedding pictures coming soon!

i shoulda been a chef?

So, as the term draws to an end, I realized I need to get rid of some of my food "storage." Seeing this need, along with a need to eat dinner, I began to take a mini inventory of my options. Taking the ingredients I had on hand, I came up with this.




It takes kind of lasagna-y, so I shall call it "Lasagna-esque Awesomeness" (or at least until I can come up with something slightly better...)

Ingredients:
2 c. (uncooked) elbow macaroni
1 can (14.5 oz) tomatoes-petite diced with onions
cheddar cheese
1 stick of string cheese
Parmesan cheese
Italian seasoning
dried basil

Cook macaroni to desired softness. Stir in tomatoes, and season with Italian seasoning and basil to taste. Pour half of the mixture in a glass baking dish. Cover with cheddar cheese (I just sliced enough off a brick to almost cover the noodles), pulled-apart string cheese, and Parmesan cheese. Cover with remaining macaroni mixture and repeat the cheeses, minus the string cheese. Cover and bake in oven at 350 until the cheese is melted.

Mmmm, mmmm, mmmm :)

So, today in my floral design class we talked about wedding flowers. She gave us a whole sheet that broke down who is supposed to pay for what...it was really complicated. I loved lab though. We got to make mini bridal bouquets! Here's mine :) I'm rather pleased with how it turned out (aside from the fact it looks kind of wilty because I had to leave it in my trunk for 5 hours...)

Everyone has something they can completely and totally relate to in life. Some really feel nature, others sports, and still others cars or other mechanical things. For me, that thing is dance. I feel like everything I think, say, or do could somehow be translated into dance. My soul eats, breaths, and sleeps in dance. Someday I will probably look back on life and wish I had tried to be a dance major, but for now, I will just have to dance every moment I can.
(To hear the sound of this video, go to the bottom of the page and turn off the other music [: )

Thought of You from Ryan J Woodward on Vimeo.

Dance isn't just a parade of choreographed steps set to a rhythm with a tempo. It's a way to show that part of your soul that no one really gets to see. You can learn more about a person by the way they move than by the things they say or do. Not just in dance, but in everyday movements. Do they walk with their shoulders slumped or their head down? Does their posture, with their shoulders back and chin up, give you a more solid idea of their confidence than their words? YES! Who you are is how you move. I am not a great dancer by any means, but it is how I show the world who I am. Nothing is more beautiful than a vulnerable soul being spilled out on the dance floor, only to be mopped up by the viewers' minds, thoroughly and with an added measure of personal appreciation.

Corsages!

So, I am taking floral design, and am slowly picking up on some skills I think will be useful! I made a few corsages in class, but they sat in the back of the fridge for a couple days before I could take the pics. Therefore, they froze and wilted a bit, but you get the basic idea :)

Some things can't be helped!

You know how there are somethings in life you just can't quite resist? You know, like pushing the buttons on the dash of somebody's car, pulling on a stray thread even though you know it's going to unravel whatever it is connected to, tucking in a stranger's tag or pulling random hairs off of someone's shirt, sticking your feet on the book-rack of the desk in front of you in class, poking someone when they are stretching, yada, yada, yada...Well, I can't resist kissing someone if I've got some good ol' bright red lipstick! Tyler's a trooper, and good thing! Some things just can't be helped!

Brained fried now, but I can do it!

What a fantastic feeling it is to be near the end of a semester! I've lost nearly all motivation to study or do schoolwork, which is ok because I don't have too much left. Considering my intense need to be done with school, I hope that spring semester goes ok. Luckily, I think it will be fun :) I am taking floral design, humanities, a contemporary dance class, and a tap class! What a way to fulfill GE's and try to not fry my brain :) There is no better way for me to relieve my school stress than to dance it off. I'd say 2 hours a day should do it!