The JM & H Show

Winter wonderland in our own backyard

2012-01-19T15:31:00.000-08:00

Snowy Sunday

2012-01-15T17:18:00.000-08:00

Today we were chased by a sunset in the snow. How was your afternoon? :)

Today

2012-01-11T11:04:00.000-08:00

Outside my window... I keep having to remind myself that we're smack dab in the middle of January; it's been so bright and clear! This is what we lived under just yesterday:

I am thankful for... a house that will soon - very soon! - be free of rats. The best exterminators ever prowled in, around, and under our house yesterday and reported things that made my naive little self cringe. But! By this time next week I will cringe no more!

I am learning... that taking high doses of iron on an empty stomach does not do me any favors. None at all.

From the kitchen... I can tell you what is missing from the kitchen, and that would be pop and dessert! January is the month of zero Coke Zero (ha!) and not one cupcake or marshmallow (even though we have a huge pile left over from the New Year's Eve S'more gorge). Damage control from the holidays, you know!

I am wearing... sweaty exercise clothes, an old fleece jacket with a missing zipper, and a blanket on my lap because I'm cold but too lazy to change. Look, though, at one of my favorite things to wear (when I bother to change out of sweaty exercise clothes) and while I putter around the house - my cozy Christmas slippers, from my husband the very good gift giver:

I am creating... lists. Lists and lists. A list of who might like to join us for a mud run in June (it's never too early to start planning for these things!), a list of what to make my Jan Michael for Valentine's Day, a list of house improvements as the new year gets underway (paint! a new gate!)...

I am going... to my dear friend Tonya's house tomorrow for a morning of crafty projects. Probably lots of tea, too :)

I am reading... There are four books-on-CD ready and waiting on my phone, if I can find it. I just used it yesterday; it must be around here somewhere. Anyway, I can't remember 3 of the 4, but one is Catch Me If You Can by Frank Abagnale.

I am hoping... that our friends Craig and Christina call us post-haste so that we can meet and love on their days-old baby. I suppose, though, that we are not quite at the top of their priority list just now :)

Around the house... are all kinds of things waiting to be put into the yard-sale box. Out with the old!

I am hearing... just the dryer working away.

One of my favorite things... about Pinterest is the recipes. So many recipes (lemon poppy seed pancakes, teeny chicken pot pies in muffin tins, for goodness sake!) calling my name!

A few plans for the rest of the week:
- Bible study
- A trip to Target
- Mopping our filthy kitchen floor
- Basketball for Jan Michael
- STRUGGLING through the 3rd workout of Jillian Michael's Ripped in 30 DVD - it's a struggle, but so fun!
- A teriyaki/sushi date on Friday, just the two of us
- A date on Saturday with our friends Isaac & Natalie

January valley

2012-01-02T17:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I decided that today would be just the day for exploring around a waterfall. Jan Michael was agreeable, and this morning, off we went.
Our exploring turned into take-two-pictures-from-the-observation-point and go-back-to-where-we-came-from because the trail leading to the bottom of the waterfall is closed for maintenance until 2013. 2013! I pouted for a few minutes and then bucked up when Jan Michael said he would take me to a park on the way home. Sometimes it doesn't take much :)

I don't care what anybody says, winter is not all death and gray and yuck! Between now and spring, I'll do my fair share of grumbling - 'WHERE is the SUN?!!' but today - and lots of other days, too, I know - winter is quiet and peaceful and beautiful.

A New Year's Eve glimpse

2012-01-01T13:25:00.001-08:00

First, I love this picture. Second, New Year's Eve is not New Year's Eve around here without pigs-in-a-blanket. What you see above is the very beginning of our wild goose chase yesterday morning in search of Little Smokies. Three grocery stores later & we found them :)

The party officially started when Eric, Tessa and Miss E arrived, and we commenced with the eating. There was a vast amount of cheese - enough to make a person lactose intolerant, I think; there were also White Christmas cupcakes (on my new cake stand!) and S'mores (in my new toaster oven!) with homeade graham crackers (so easy, and so much better than the old store-boughts!)

There were games and the mention of fun things in the new year and a good-night, sleep-tight to Miss E. And then, we decided to have a very serious discussion about very serious things:

Somewhere after the clock struck midnight, we hugged each other goodnight and the three of them rode off into the night while the two of us dragged our happy selves to bed.

And so 2012 begins... :)

Happy, happy New Year!

2011-12-31T16:30:00.000-08:00

As the sun sets on 2011, isn't it fun to think of what 2012 will bring?!

Photobomb

2011-12-29T08:11:00.001-08:00

Just in case we ever need reminding that our big bro is a.w.e.s.o.m.e -
This makes me laugh every time I see it :)

Three good things from Christmas Day

2011-12-28T09:45:00.000-08:00

The best things, of course, were found in the people filling up a cozy house and surrounding a pretty table, and the ones we love, even though so many miles separate us.

How could we ever quantify the good things found in family?

"Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life!"
- Albert Einstein

Three good things from Christmas Eve

2011-12-27T15:59:00.000-08:00

Please excuse my tardiness!

1. An afternoon tromp through the woods with Team Living the Dream:

2. An extravaganza of fireworks with the wonder nephews:

3. Little boys with their brand new Nerf crossbows (and an uncle who knew just what little boys would love!)

Three good things from the 23rd

2011-12-24T07:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, in the wee hours of the morning, we had our own little Christmas, just the two of us. So...

1. The effort and consideration Jan Michael put into the most delightful stack of presents. He knows his girly, pink-and-pretty-things-loving, exercise-and-cooking- enthused wife very well, and I made out like a bandit. A bandit!! But - and we hear this truth over and over, don't we? - it's knowing how much time and thought he gave toward of all it that especially makes my heart light up.

2. The reaction of my ever young-at-heart husband when he opened his G.I. Joe Cobra H.I.S.S tank. This is at the very, very top of the very best things about this year's Christmas.

3. Our Christmas breakfast eaten on Christmas dishes and made, in part, with my new toaster oven :)

Now, MERRY CHRISTMAS EACH AND EVERY ONE!

Three good things on the 22nd

2011-12-22T20:04:00.000-08:00

1. A little girl at the grocery store who was dressed in hot pink from head to toe - snow boots, leggings and fleece... She & I are kindred spirits, I think!

2. A big, beautiful pile of snowy pictures to add to my 'Winter Wonderland' board on Pinterest

3. A long, quiet evening with nothing much to do, except eat vanilla ice cream with Tessa's homeade caramel sauce and take a bubble bath

Three good things from the 21st

2011-12-22T07:52:00.000-08:00

1. Country roads in between tiny towns on a sunny December day

2. Lunch with our Mama & our Gran, who were coming across the mountains so Grandma can spend Christmas with us. I think she'll be thoroughly worn out by the end of her visit - there tends to be, as you might imagine, a high level of exuberance when we're all together. We just keep her young, that's all :)

3. Water, and lots of it, for a gal who is determined not to get sick. Think again, dumb cold! You will not get me!

Three good things from the 20th

2011-12-21T07:03:00.000-08:00

1. A big pile of Goodwill & craft store treasures, just waiting to be spun into crazy Christmas sweaters

2. Cinderella with Tessa at the 5th Avenue... The music! The singing! The sets! THE COSTUMES! THE WICKED STEPSISTERS!! Will you think I'm silly if I tell you I had goosebumps? Or that I still have goosebumps?! Please, if you have the opportunity, you must go! For days after, you will twirl around the living room, humming about pumpkins turning into coaches and impossible things happening every day :)

3. A new exercise DVD for my back end from the library... and a body that's able to do what I ask of it

Three good things from the 19th

2011-12-20T08:16:00.000-08:00

1. Swans on the lake where I work... SWANS!

2. Glitter and sparkles and color at the poinsettia festival with my friend Angela... Is it possible to have too many Christmas outings? I think not!

3. Number 3 is a tie between yakking with both our sis and youngest brother, and laughing until I almost cried when hearing about the crazy Christmas sweaters that will be on display on Sunday ... and my Jan Michael, who waited on me last night because I was a little off my feed. Let's hear it for a husband who will bring me my favorite cold-brewed green tea in my favorite mason jar and who will smooth my hair and hold my hand while I mewl and carry on about not feeling well :)

Three good things, the weekend edition

2011-12-19T09:03:00.001-08:00

From Saturday -

1. Waking up with the early birds and watching the sky change from beautiful to brilliant to magnificent. My poor camera tried its best, but had no chance of capturing what my eyes were seeing.

2. A pretty new skirt :)

3. A visit from our brother

From Sunday -

Any and all good things about yesterday are summed up in the privilege of having one of our ministers spend the night. He has been involved in the most important events in our life, and we love him.

Three good things from the 16th

2011-12-17T06:35:00.000-08:00

1. A few hours with three of our nearests & dearests:

while we...

2. strolled through the botanical gardens (I can't get enough of this place!) -

and...

3. watching these two yuk it up:
Uncle Jan + Miss E = my heart in a big puddle on the floor. Every single time.

Three good things from the 15th

2011-12-16T07:56:00.001-08:00

1. Christmas surprises, and spare rooms to hide them in:

2. A Christmas care package for our youngest brother, who is far away. Far away in body, but close in our hearts!

3. A clean kitchen! Clean for a little while, anyway :)

Three good things on the 14th

2011-12-14T21:48:00.000-08:00

1. A long overdue coffee date with two lovely ladies

2. Cozy, quiet time under quilts and Christmas lights

3. Music that gives me goosebumps:

Three good things, a double dose

2011-12-14T12:04:00.003-08:00

From Monday:

1. Christmas moose!

2. A Christmas goose!

3. This precious baby, hearing his Mama's voice for the first time with the help of a cochlear implant:

From Tuesday:

1. The discovery of some pink, girly lotion that I'd forgotten all about

2. Easy-peasy Christmas treats, with pretzels, Hershey's kisses and red & green M&Ms:

3. A 3rd place finish at Tuesday night trivia; one of these Tuesdays we're going to shatter that 3rd place ceiling, you just wait!

Three good things on the 11th

2011-12-11T18:11:00.001-08:00

1. Friends who are seeking to serve God and to do His will, and who encourage us in that direction; they are priceless.

2. A very nice man who was parked near me in the boondocks of the Costco parking lot and who offered to take my cart back to where it belonged. (This is not meant to take away from today's three good things, but going to Costco for milk & Jimmy Dean turkey sausage on a Sunday afternoon just 2 weeks before Christmas was not one of my better ideas. Please feel free to learn from my mistakes.)

3. "A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely." Roald Dahl

Three good things on the 10th

2011-12-10T22:50:00.000-08:00

1. I woke up on the right side of the bed :) This doesn't happen every day, you know!

2. An early morning workout that made me feel like I'm making some progress in this fitness journey - this doesn't happen every day, either!

3. Texting with one brother and a good, long phone conversation with the other. I love those brothers of mine.

*Honorable mention: I had a cute hair day :)

Three good things on the 9th

2011-12-09T19:57:00.000-08:00

1. Witnessing Jan Michael's unabashed delight while we cruised down the toy aisles at Target. A husband who will try on an Optimus Prime mask and slash through the air with a Jedi light saber = just the right husband for me. We will not grow up, and we're kind of proud of it.

2. Lovely, quality time together while the Caramel Corn King whipped up 6 batches for a Christmas party tomorrow. It's a treat to be his helper :)

3. Our second Christmas card in the mailbox! Keep 'em coming, people!

Three good things on the 8th

2011-12-08T20:37:00.001-08:00

1. A construction worker on the side of the road who was using his break to feed the birds

2. Loitering in the kitchen while Jan Michael the caramel-corn-maker wooed me with his mad skills:

3. Christmas plans with our brother and the wonder-boy nephews

Three good things on the 7th

2011-12-07T21:28:00.000-08:00

1. The things I heard at Bible study

2. Peter Pan on CD; folding laundry has never been so magical! :)

3. Peanut butter (chunky), jam (blackberry freezer) and milk - morning, noon & night

Three good things x 2 (again!)

2011-12-06T19:10:00.000-08:00

From Monday:

1. The sun and the fog busted out a tag-team maneuver in the late afternoon, and driving through it was like moving through a golden, shimmery mist.

2. A Christmas outing with my friend Angela, which began with bundling up and wandering through this:

3. Snowflake Lane, the second star of the evening. Only very good things can come from toy soldiers drumming and elves dancing and snow falling!

From yesterday:

1. A nap with the Mr.

2. Day six of The 30 Day Shred. It's getting easier!

3. A little bit of handygal work with a hammer & nails and lots of Christmas lights strung around our bedroom. And the very best part - sitting underneath all that twinkling color and listening to Jan Michael remember the Christmas (the BEST CHRISTMAS EVER! he says) when he received... the G.I. Joe Cobra H.I.S.S tank :)

Today's three good things coming soon! The day's not over yet!

Three good things x 2

2011-12-04T16:51:00.000-08:00

From today:

1. Our Sunday morning fellowship meeting

2. A walk down the valley trail. I've zoomed down this trail hundreds of times for exercise, but the days I decide to meander around and really look at what I'm surrounded by are such treats. Slowing down for a little while is such a good thing. Today, my favorite parts were these:
- The ducks, so many more than I've ever seen in the pond, and quacking to beat the band. One duck was especially exuberant, and sounded like a mix between a chicken clucking and a lady laughing, and it made me giggle out loud.
- The people I shared the trail with, including a man with a white handlebar moustache who pedaled past on his bike, an elderly man with a red stocking hat and a cane who shuffled along and taught a very good lesson (without knowing it, I'm sure) about accomplishing things that aren't easy, and a not-quite-so-elderly couple who went strolling by, arm in arm.
- The colors, which always amaze me, even in a season of dormancy and hibernation.

3. A bag of clothespins from the hardware store, some glittery scrapbook paper, and a fair amount of decoupage, which equals a fun, sparkly new way to display our Christmas cards. I like glittery, sparkly things!

From yesterday:

1. A morning date with my friend Halcyon and her two sweet, spirited kiddos

2. A peppermint latte at a cozy Main Street coffee shop

3. This video, which is a crystal clear glimpse into what life will be like 30 years down the road. If you know Jan Michael, you know exactly what I'm talking about :)

Three good things on Dec. 2nd

2011-12-02T21:49:00.000-08:00

1. Billowy white clouds in a bright blue sky

2. Sugar snap peas and satsuma oranges

3. Trimming our tiny tree while I tell stories of Christmases past. Jan Michael has listened to my growing-up stories 500 times over, but just today he told me again how much he likes to hear them. And that gives me a happy heart :)

Three good things

2011-12-01T22:53:00.001-08:00

I've been cross and out of sorts lately; it's ridiculous and unfounded.

To combat such rubbish, I'm invoking the find-at-least-3-good-things-everyday rule, taught to me years ago by my wise Mama. I am going to be very deliberate about it, and by it I'm going to whip myself into shape.

1. Foggy, gray December days -
They help me to be quiet, somehow.

2. This, overheard at the grocery store -

Little boy: Knock, knock!
Mom: Who's there?
Little boy: Toilet!
Mom: Don't say it! Don't you say it!! (This seemed too-little-too-late, as he'd already answered the knock, so to speak. Besides, I think it only fueled the fire for what came next, spoken with great conviction...)
Little Boy: Toi-let!!

I laughed all the way down the coffee aisle :)

3. Every year I buy a silly, cheap Advent calendar; it's my first Christmas present to Jan Michael. I'm always excited to give it, and he's always happy to get it, and of our little Christmas traditions, it's one of my favorites.

4. Psalm 139. The whole thing is wonderful, but for now, just the first few verses:

1 O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
3 Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word in my tongue, but lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether.
5 Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.

Behind thankful scenes

2011-11-25T14:30:00.001-08:00

"Thanksgiving Day comes, by statute, once a year; to the honest man it comes as frequently as the heart of gratitude will allow." ~Edward Sandford Martin

"Thou hast given so much to me,
Give one thing more, - a grateful heart;
Not thankful when it pleaseth me,
As if Thy blessings had spare days,
But such a heart whose pulse may be Thy praise."
~George Herbert

Cupcake Friday: Thanksgiving edition

2011-11-18T10:09:00.000-08:00

Yum, yum, a thousand times YUM.

Whatever you are doing, stop it right now & go bake these cakes!!

ORANGE-GLAZED CRANBERRY SPICE TEA CAKES
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/2 cup sour cream
1 c fresh or frozen (and thawed) cranberries, finely chopped

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
4-5 Tbsp whole milk
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 325. Spray 3 mini muffin tins (for 36 tea cakes) with non-stick cooking spray. Sift flour - nutmeg in a medium-sized bowl & set aside. Beat eggs & sugar on medium speed in a large bowl until mixture thickens and lightens to a creamy color, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer & scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. On low speed, mix in applesauce - orange zest until blended. Mix in the sour cream until no white streaks remain. Mix in the flour mixture. Fold in cranberries. Fill muffin cups with about 1 1/2 Tbsp batter, to just below the top of each cup. Bake just until the tops feel firm & a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 16 minutes. Let cool in muffin tins for 5 minutes. For the glaze, whisk powdered sugar, butter, 4 Tbsp milk, zest & vanilla until smooth. Add up to 1 more Tbsp milk if needed. Remove warm cakes from pans. Use a toothpick to poke 3-4 holes in each warm cake. Use a spatula to spread a thin layer of glaze over each. Let cool completely; glaze will become firm.

P.S. If you can manage not to gobble them up straight away, they're even better after they've set (sat?) overnight.
P.P.S. Would you think less of us if I confess that Jan Michael didn't even take any to work & we kept them all for ourselves?

The calm before the (very happy) holiday storm

2011-11-14T14:12:00.000-08:00

Outside my window... Leaves are everywhere (beauuutiful!) and it's not raining, at least for now. It almost makes me consider an afternoon run. Almost, but not quite :)

I am thankful for... We know lots families welcoming - and getting ready to welcome -brand new, precious babies this fall season. I'm thankful for parents who want to be parents, who can't wait to meet these new little ones, and who will love them to pieces as they grow.

I am learning... to control my irritation when I go through self check-out at Safeway. The computerized voice that always says "Have you scanned your club card?" makes me madder than a wet hen. Jan Michael has had to correct me several times about the absurdity of getting angry at a silly machine.

From the kitchen... The kitchen is about to become a crazy flurry of activity; Thanksgiving is 10 days away!! Very soon I'm going to make a list of when to make what (three cheers for make-ahead mashed potatoes!) - I think the frenzy will begin Saturday.

I am wearing... nothing fancy & nothing special. The usual :) In just a bit I will be wearing a big pile of blankets while I take a nap.

I am creating... Our Thanksgiving table has jumped out of my idea notebook and into real life. I have made - and I'm quite pleased with my ingenuity - chargers to sit underneath our dishes. I used pizza pans from the dollar store and covered them with three cans of gold glitter spray paint, and if I do say so myself, they are a far cry from the cheap-o, scuffed, scratched, unevenly painted jobs I've seen in stores.

I am going... to fold a pile of laundry that has been growing exponentially. I am going to make the beds and clean the bathroom (but probably not today.) I am going to clean out the refrigerator to make room for a Thanksgiving feast (but definitely not today.)

I am reading... In my read-the-Bible-in-one-year schedule, we are in the middle of Ezekiel and John. Actually, we're at the end of Ezekiel and will begin in Daniel tomorrow; I'm looking forward to that. Also, I just started re-reading (for the 700th time) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

I am hoping... that we do not have any unwelcome company for Thanksgiving. (See below.)

Around the house... There is, and I hesitate to say this in case we never have visitors again, a mouse in the house. Actually, no - there is a RAT in the house. We thought it was a mouse, but a very nice, helpful exterminator confirmed just last week that we have a rat. Then, not two days after he showed us the hole that the rat is using as his front door, I SAW IT RUNNING THROUGH THE COMPUTER ROOM. I've said before that finding a slug in the house was the last straw, but a rat darting around in broad daylight is outrageous.

I am hearing... the clack of the keyboard and not much else.

One of my favorite things... on a Thanksgiving relish tray is a pickled beet.

A few plans for the rest of the week...
- A date with our favorite 3-year-old girlie
- Cooking and baking, baking and cooking
- On Friday we pick up Soren at the airport, which is the official kick-off to our second annual week-long, we-hardly-ever-get-to-see-Soren party.
- On Saturday there will be football and board games, and a house full of boys. I can't wait!
- Also on Saturday, I'll run in the Poultry Predictor race. If I run 4 miles in the time I predicted when I registered (42 minutes, which is a gross under-estimation; I don't know what I was thinking), I'll win our Thanksgiving turkey!

Mud & Chocolate

2011-11-05T12:38:00.000-07:00

This morning I ran in my first official race.

No, wait. This morning I ran/walked in my first official race, because about halfway through, my knee said "NO WAY, WOMAN."

But nevermind. The point is that I trained for it, and barring creaky, old lady joints, I am quite capable of running 4.5 miles.

Now, some lessons learned:
- Eating my weight in Mexican food the night before is possibly not the best pre-race preparation.
- The next time I run in a trail race (which, for information's sake, is precisely 3 weeks from today) I will wear two knees braces, and maybe also two ankle braces. My body is a fan of braces, it seems.
- The next time I run in any race at all, I will be sure that my ipod is playing well before I hear, "Ready, set, go!" I didn't do this today, and my fingers were too frozen to get it to work. Any and all running is made better by Lionel Richie and songs from the Top Gun soundtrack, you know.

Now, some things I already knew but were confirmed again today:
- Any and all running is made better by wearing a running skirt. I feel sorry for boys that have to wear boring, old shorts.
- We have fun, enthusiastic, seriously awesome friends. Craig, Caleb & Jen were totally on board with this from the get-go, and I'm grateful for it. We didn't all run at the same pace, but I loved knowing we were all out there together, working toward the same thing.
- Encouraging, you-can-do-it words from our very supportive family friends are just the neatest, sweetest things. I need to remember this whenever I have the opportunity to help build someone else up.
- I am married to my biggest fan :)

My husband was born to run; I've mentioned this before. In high school he ran cross country, and one year this was printed on their t-shirts. Paying homage to him 20 years later = super fun :)
Was it cold?...
YES IT WAS.
Ready to rumble!

I am loved and here's some proof: While we were out huffing & puffing on the course, Jan Michael was hoofing it himself - he wanted to be able to meet us along the route in order to record our smiling faces & to scream our names. 3 miles in a parka & non-running shoes is just adding to the list, people.
Finished! And with chocolate medals to show for it! :)

We ride.

2011-11-01T17:41:00.001-07:00

This year's sequined awesomeness made possible by our sis.
And Happy Halloween from Gus, too!

Cupcake Monday: Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T09:38:00.001-07:00

Halloween is too, too fun; I don't think I'll ever outgrow it.

OK, there's no time for messing around; let's cut to the chase!

DEVIL'S FOOD CUPCAKES
(from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes)
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 cup hot water
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp coarse salt
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp vanilla
1 cup sour cream, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 32 muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk together cocoa & hot water until smooth. In another bowl, whisk together flour - salt.

Melt butter with sugar in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to combine. Remove from heat & pour into a mixing bowl. With an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat until mixture is cooled, 4-5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add vanilla & then cocoa mixture; beat until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with sour cream, and beating until just combined after each addition.

Fill each cup 3/4 full. Bake, rotating halfway through, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire rack to cool 15 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks & let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months in airtight containers.

SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM
5 large egg whites
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
Pinch of salt
4 sticks unsalted butter, cut into small pieces & at room temperature
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine egg whites, sugar & salt in the heatproof bowl of a standing mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly by hand until mixture is warm to the touch and sugar has dissolved (the mixture should feel completely smooth when rubbed between your fingertips).

Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low & gradually increasing to medium-high speed, whisk until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Continue mixing until the mixture is fluffy & glossy, and completely cool (test by touching the bottom of the bowl), about 10 minutes.

With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all butter has been added, whisk in vanilla. Switch to the paddle attachment, and continue beating on low speed until all air bubbles are eliminated, about 2 minutes. Scrape down side of bowl with a flexible spatula & continue beating until frosting is completely smooth. Keep buttercream at room temperature if using the same day, or transfer to an airtight container & refrigerate up to 3 days or free up to 1 month. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat with paddle attachment on low speed until smooth again, about 5 minutes.

And now for the fun! (Thank you for pretending these pictures do not represent the worst food photography you've ever seen.)

In a nutshell

2011-10-25T13:32:00.000-07:00

Our last 4 days went something like this:

- Lemon curd and blueberry french toast
- Queen Anne:
- the waterfront
- Pike Place
- the aquarium:
- the opera
- the total domination of girls over boys, Cranium style
- gingerbread & whipped cream (thank you, Bill & Sheryl!)
- Rock Band until the wee hours:
- more games
- fried rice & fortune cookies
- more & more games
- shopping for girly bath essentials, husbands excluded
- the Museum of Doll Art, no boys allowed
- 500 different kinds of Coke & Fanta, courtesty of Taco Time
- lots of laughing, a little less sleep

And the very, very best part - a dear friendship cemented for the ages:
Angela, we started missing you the minute you walked through the airport doors! We can't wait for next time! :)

Today

2011-10-18T18:44:00.000-07:00

I've stolen this idea from Amanda. Thank you, friend!

Outside my window... The sun has set, but today was lovely - sunny and warm enough for mowing the lawn and wearing shorts. I did both!

I am thankful for... Time and opportunity. Mercy and patience. Quiet time. Jan Michael. (You know the list is endless, right?)

I am learning... a hundred different clever things, all courtesy of Pinterest.

From the kitchen... Earlier tonight I spilled a bottle of salad dressing all over the floor; such a waste of good balsamic vinaigrette! Yesterday I found hibiscus sorbet made with coconut water at the Grocery Outlet. I like it, I think, although I bet I would have liked the Ben & Jerry's Carrot Cake more :)

I am wearing... semi-sweaty exercise clothes.

I am creating... a tablescape for Thanksgiving. The creating is mostly in my mind, but I have decided that orange glitter spray paint is going to be invovled.

I am going... to run. Tomorrow. At the crack of dawn. I'm sticking my tongue out at plantar fasciitis, too.

I am reading... I just finished The Help by Kathryn Stockett. It was wonderful & awful all at the same time. I'm going to start (skimming, not really reading) The Dukan Diet. On the top of the cover it says 'The real reason the french stay thin.' We'll see about that.

I am hoping... that it doesn't rain cats and dogs on Friday. (I'm not holding my breath about this, though!) We have a super special VIP coming to stay with us for the weekend, and we're taking her to the city for the day.

I am hearing... It's very, very quiet just now. And I like it.

Around the house... This house is in for a good scrubbing; it won't know what hit it.

One of my favorite things... to drink after a workout is Twinings Cold Brewed Iced Tea, specifically their Green Tea with Mint. I have it stocked piled in the cupboard :)

A few plans for the rest of the week... Gospel meeting, cat sitting, sushi with our brother (maybe, hopefully, I'm crossing my fingers!), the opera, Rock Band, whipping my fantasty football lineup into shape

Cupcake Saturday

2011-10-15T15:32:00.001-07:00

Raise your hand if you think fall is a delicious, dreamy season.

Now raise your hand if you're convinced a good part of the magic comes from pumpkins. (I'm raising two.)

I could go on and about the wonder of a pumpkin, but for today, it's rocking the vote because....

This week's cupcakes are the best yet. I say so, Jan Michael says so, the whole office crowd says so, and there you have it.

PUMPKIN GINGER CUPCAKES
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted & cooled slightly
1 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 large eggs
1/4 cup (about 1 1/4 ouces) crystallized ginger, cut into 1/8 - 1/4 inch pieces

CINNAMON CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1 - 2 Tbsp whole milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 14 muffin cups with paper liners & coat with cooking spray. Sift flour - ginger into a medium bowl. In a large bowl on low speed, beat melted butter - pumpkin until smooth. Mix in the eggs & ginger. Add the flour mixture & mix until incorporated; batter will be thick. Fill each cup with a generous 1/4 cup batter. Bake about 25 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in muffin tins before removing to wire racks to cool completely. For the frosting, beat butter - vanilla on low speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute more, adding whole milk to thin out the frosting if needed.
* The recipes for both the cakes & the frosting are from Elinor Klivans' Cupcake Deck.
** I didn't use the crystallized ginger; is it becoming clear that I have trouble following recipes? I also made two batches, and added chocolate chips the second time around.
*** I gave the frosting a little more pizzaz with my vanilla cinnamon sugar spice grinder; I'm not sure that it made a difference taste-wise, but it looked pretty :)

Gearing up & counting down

2011-10-13T17:33:00.000-07:00

Halloween is 18 days away. We are gathering our costumes, spiffing up the bikes & generally working ourselves into a fever pitch by watching fine productions from Halloweens past, like this, circa 2009:

Newport

2011-10-10T16:35:00.000-07:00

I'm home (sweet home!) again from my happy-birthday-to-Anne weekend at the seashore. It went off without a hitch, and I'm so glad she was able to have a proper celebration. A birthday just screams for a great, big to-do, no matter the number; I endorse this fact very enthusiastically.

I didn't take my customary 700 pictures, and I suspect this is because we spent 95% of our time either eating or shopping. It also occurs to me that I have spent two weekends at the Oregon Coast over the past several years, and neither of them have involved my husband. We will fix this egregious mistake sometime in 2012!

Cupcake Friday...

2011-10-06T15:38:00.001-07:00

a day early this time! I'm flitting off to the ocean tomorrow to celebrate my friend Anne as she turns 35, so today it is.

Some of Jan Michael's (crazy!) co-workers very politely declined the Carrot, Orange & Golden Raisin cupcakes from two weeks ago when they caught wind of the raisins. I feel so sorry for people who don't like raisins. What kind of life is it when you can't have ants-on-a-log, or a gigantic oatmeal raisin cookie? Anyway, the point is that I very purposely chose a safe recipe this week, so as not to cause the raisin skeptics to faint.

These remind me of gingerbread, with a very heavy emphasis on the ginger. They also aren't overly sweet, but never fear - the frosting makes up for it! The recipe calls for whipped cream as frosting, which I'm sure would be lovely, but we decided to ignore that & use a 'real' frosting recipe instead.

MOLASSES AND GINGER CUPCAKES
3 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 c unsulfured molasses
2 large eggs
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup hot water
9 ounces fresh ginger, peeled and minced (1 cup)

BROWN SUGAR CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Line 26 standard muffin cups with papers. Whisk together flour, baking soda & salt. In another bowl, whisk sugar, molasses & eggs until smooth; whisk in melted butter & hot water. Stir in flour mixture until just incorporated; stir in ginger.

Divide batter evenly among cups, filling each 3/4 full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, about 20 minutes. (Cupcakes will not be domed.) Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

For the frosting, beat butter, cream cheese & brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth. Use immediately, or refrigerate up to 3 days in an airtight container. Before using, bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth.

This picture is awful and I know it:

Oops, I almost forgot: The cupcakes and frosting both came from Martha Stewart's CUPCAKES.

Beauty for cheapskates

2011-10-03T19:03:00.000-07:00

The following fun is brought to you by Pinterest. I've decided the only way to justify the time I spend on there is to actually try some of the things I find.

PUMPKIN SPICE SUGAR SCRUB
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup + 1 Tbsp oil - vegetable, sunflower or safflower

1. Mx the sugars and pumpkin pie spice until there are no lumps:
2. Add the oil and mix well. Put into clean, sealed jars and store for months out of direct sunlight, just like you would store oil:
3. Take a nice, long shower & scrub yourself down. (No picture of this, ha!) Skip your face, though - I think it's too abrasive. Then, if I were you, I'd follow up the scrub with a nice slathering of cocoa butter from the dollar store. But that's just me :)

MIRACLE MASK
2 Tbsp honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg

1. Mix everything together. Apply the mask to your face & let sit for 30 minutes - maybe while you listen to Bryan Adams Radio on Pandora & mess around on Pinterest. (Before putting it on your face, you may want to test it on your wrist, just to be sure you don't have a bad reaction. I, of course, somehow missed this step, so we'll see in a few minutes if disaster has struck.)
2. Wash the mask off with warm water, rubbing in circular motions for (in my case) much needed exfoliation.

There now. An all-natural evening at your very own spa without breaking the bank!

Three thankful things...

2011-09-30T15:33:00.000-07:00

about this last day of September:

- Flip-flop sunshine, orange leaves falling from the trees, and air heavy with the smell of wood smoke, all at once

- The mama and her fawn that have been making themselves at home in our backyard all afternoon

-Leaving the house this morning under this:

Where the river meets pickle relish

2011-09-29T17:19:00.001-07:00

Today I needed to go on a date. I needed, in this exact order, some very good, quality time with my husband, to be in the middle of this crazy beautiful weather, and to eat a cheeseburger.

Fortunately, Jan Michael cheerfully agreed to this even though his date has not taken a shower or brushed her teeth since yesterday.

Cupcake Friday!

2011-09-23T14:54:00.000-07:00

First things first: Today's recipe is from The Cupcake Deck by Elionor Klivans. The Apple Streusel Cinnamon Swirls from two weeks ago are from the same set. Actually, the next 6 recipes I plan to play with come from The Cupcake Deck; it's such a fun collection! And whoever thought to put recipes on cute little cards instead of in big, cumbersome books gets a thumbs up from me!

Now a word regarding lemon/orange/lime zesters: They are fantastic. Everyone else has probably known this for years, but I just bought my first one in June; it leaves my poor cheese grater in the dust. Gone are the days of gnashing my teeth when I see a frosting recipe that calls for 2 tsp of zest!

Also, two quick notes about these cupcakes: Every other recipe I've made says to use either cupcake papers or to spray the muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray. This recipe says to use papers coated in spray, and it's not kidding. I did as I was told, and it was still tough to peel the cupcakes out of the liners. Then, just like the Apple Struesel Cinnamon Swirls, these are much more muffin-esque in density, but this time we have... frosting! And lots of it! :)

CARROT, ORANGE & GOLDEN RAISIN CUPCAKES
Cakes:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp grated orange zest (Get out that zester and go to town!)
1 cup finely grated carrots (Hooray for food processors!)
3/4 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (about 2 ounces)

Frosting:
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp grated orange zest

Preheat oven to 325. Line 12 muffin cups with liners & spray with non-stick cooking spray. Sift flour - cinnamon into a medium-sized bowl. In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar on medium speed until smooth and thick, about 1 minute. Mix in the applesauce - orange zest on low speed. Mix in the flour mixture. Mix in the carrots, raisins & walnuts. Fill each muffin cup with 1/4 cup batter. Bake about 28 minutes, until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean. Place muffin pan on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pan and cool completely on wire rack. For the frosting, beat the butter, cream cheese & vanilla in a large bowl on low speed until thoroughly blended, about 1 minute. Add powdered sugar, mixing until smooth, about 1 minute. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute more. Use a large spoon to fold in orange zest. Now, lick and the spoon and then frost away!

September..

2011-09-19T19:14:00.000-07:00

has been very, very kind these days, nudging us so merrily from summer into fall. It's this kind of thing that makes it easy-peasy to get my miles in each week :)

Cupcake Friday...

2011-09-10T11:26:00.000-07:00

becomes Cupcake Saturday because I'm a day late :)

First, I want to give credit where credit is due because this is certainly not my own recipe! I've forgotten the name of the book this came from, though - or actually, the name of the box the recipe card came from. I'll do some digging and figure it out in time for the next edition of Cupcake Friday.

Now, a few notes: These seem more like muffins to me, especially because they don't have frosting. This just means you can eat more and not feel guilty! Also, I always substitute unsweetened applesauce for oil in my baking, mostly in an attempt to feign healthful eating. Again, eat more! This was a really fun recipe to make, and easy-peasy, too. Grating apples goes so much faster than regular, old slicing, and I didn't even need an electric mixer. Not having to wash beaters is a big bonus for lazy me! And one more thing - we didn't have any on hand, but I think apple butter would make these especially yummy. Or pumpkin butter, if you're feeling wild and crazy :)

APPLE STRUESEL CINNAMON SWIRL CUPCAKES
Swirl & topping:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon

Cupcakes:
1 c peeled, grated apple
2 Tbsp cinnamon sugar from above
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cups sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 c applesauce - or canola or corn oil, if you don't fear an expanding bottom :)
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups with cupcake papers. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon; set aside. In another small bowl, mix together the apples and cinnamon sugar. In a large bowl, stir together the flour - salt. Make a well in the center and add the eggs - vanilla, stirring until blended. Stir in the reserved apple mixture, along with any juice that has been released. Spoon about 2 Tbsp of the batter into each muffin cup. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp cinnamon sugar into each cup. Spoon the remaining batter into each cup, a scant 2 Tbsp for each. Drizzle the tops with melted butter. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar over each. Bake until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cupcakes for 10 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Remove cupcakes to the wire rack to finish cooling completely.

P.S. No pictures again this week because I'm a terrible food photographer. Any pictures I could post would probably make you run screaming from this recipe, and we don't want that :)

Oink!

2011-09-07T16:28:00.000-07:00

Who: The two of us + Eric, Tessa and Miss E
What: THE FAIR
Where: Down the road; it pays to live in the country!
When: Monday, all day long - we even earned our very first sunburns of the summer!
Why: We were hungry for fun, of course! ... And absurdly expensive fair food :)

WHY do we not own one of these?!! Or six or seven?!

Best 4 bucks we spent all day :)

Two carousel rides: $12
One sparkly hat: $6
A chocolate ice cream cone: $2.50
A messy kiss from the cutest-almost-3-year-old-on-the-planet: Priceless :)

Seattle

2011-09-04T17:50:00.000-07:00

It's no secret that we avoid Seattle like the plague; we're too small-town and it's too big-city. For a day with one of our bros and our sis, though, we'll do just about anything :)

Cupcake Friday!

2011-09-02T18:16:00.000-07:00

We're starting a brand new segment here at the JM & H Show - Cupcake Fridays! I decided, after drooling over a collection of cupcake recipes on Wednesday afternoon, that every other week I would institute Baking Thursdays , in which I whip up a batch of something particularly toothsome. Then, because having such things in our house is LETHAL, I will send them off with Jan Michael on Fridays to distribute to everyone at work. So, my insatiable urge to try new recipes is satisfied, and most importantly, we only eat one or two instead of an even dozen!

And before we even get started, I'm changing Cupcake Fridays to Muffin Fridays, because we're celebrating my sis's birthday tomorrow, and she likes muffins better than cupcakes as a general rule. They're very, very tasty, though - they give cupcakes a run for their money; Jan Michael says so, and so do I.

LEMON POPPY SEED MUFFINS (from Williams Sonoma's Muffins - run to the library right now and check this book out!)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temp
2/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs, separated
1 1/3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp poppy seeds
Grated zest of 2 lemons
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp strained fresh lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tbsp coarse raw sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease 10 standard muffin cups with butter or nonstick cooking spray, or line with paper liners. Fill the unused cups one-third full with water to prevent warping.
Using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition until blended.
In another bowl, stir together the flour - salt. Using the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in 2 increments, alternating with the buttermilk, followed by the lemon juice and vanilla. Beat just until smooth.
In a large bowl, using the mixer with spotlessly clean beaters on high speed, beat the egg whites just until they form soft peaks. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold the whites into the batter until blended.
Fill each muffin cup three-fourths full with batter. Sprinkle the top of each with raw sugar.
Bake until golden, dry, and springy to the touch, 20-25 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Unmold the muffins and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature with lemon curd.

A few notes:
1. I just realized that I completely skipped the beating-and-folding-in-egg-whites part. Oops! It didn't seem to make a difference, but next time I'll try not to be such a scatter-brain.
2. I didn't bother with sprinkling raw sugar on the tops.
3. I used 2 mini muffin tins, which yielded 30 muffins, and I baked them for 15 minutes. I also didn't fool around with filling the empty cups with water to prevent warping.
4. I refuse to pay $5 for a tiny jar of lemon curd, and I was too lazy to make my own, so we were sans lemon curd. Really, though, these muffins don't need it!
5. I can't stand cookbooks without pictures, and here I am, sharing a recipe without pictures. Shameful. I will do a better job next time.

Three of my favorites...

2011-09-01T11:47:00.001-07:00

from the whirlwind that was the month of August.

I say again that being an uncle and auntie is a very sweet deal.

1989 flashback

2011-08-24T13:05:00.000-07:00

When we weren't zooming around San Francisco, we spent a good long time lying around Soren's house in our pajamas, drinking our weight in Sun Drop and Diet Coke, and playing a mountain of board games.

This is what weekends were like when everyone was in Jr. High, and it's what happens now whenever a bunch of us get together. In 30 years, when we're all retired, with grandkids and AARP memberships, we'll be doing the very same thing.

Not everyone is running around today with the same kids they ran around with 25 years ago; we're lucky and we know it.

This is what domination looks like :)

I, for the record, am the worst Clue player ever. If I say it was Professor Plum in the study with the lead pipe, the safe bet would be to guess Miss Scarlett in the kitchen with the rope.

San Francisco

2011-08-22T14:32:00.000-07:00

Just yesterday we flew home from a whirlwind trip to the Bay Area. It was our last chance to visit our old friend Soren before he moves even farther away to the east coast, and we took it.

And away we go!

Eating at In-n-Out right after Soren picked us up at the airport = a requirement.

We spent Thursday and Saturday lolling around Soren's house, but Friday we drove into San Francisco and played tourists for the day. Our first stop was the Painted Ladies - the boys very graciously indulged my little whim - and then we made our way to Golden Gate Park. Soren and Bill wandered through the Picasso exhibit at the de Young, but I couldn't resist the pull of a 15-foot albino reticulated python named Lemondrop, so Jan Michael and I beat feet for the Academy of Sciences. After our fill of paintings and snakes, we hiked to a waterfall, drove to the other side of the park to visit the buffalo paddock, and then on our way out, stopped for a peak at one of Golden Gate's famous windmills. We drove across the Golden Gate Bridge, happily shivered our way through pictures in a blanket of fog, and then zipped back to the other side for a drive-by of the Palace of Fine Arts. We ate dinner at Ghiardelli Square with a lovely view of the bay and Alcatraz, and ended the day with a trip through Chinatown.

It was super fun from start to finish, and we have the pictures to prove it :)

The road to the run

2011-08-10T20:22:00.000-07:00

Run #4, Monday:
Distance: 2 miles
Time: 19 minutes 7 seconds
Color of my face each time I finish: MAGENTA
Fun running trivia: In 2007 an astronaut named Suni Williams ran a marathon tethered to a treadmill on the International Space Station.
Song of the run: Machinehead - Bush

"Sweat silently. Let's have no squawking about a little expenditure of energy." Martin H. Fischer

Run #5, earlier today, brought to you by the following:
- One ankle brace
- Two knee braces
- A finish almost an entire minute slower than #4
- The dropping of my ipod, somewhere between the track and the walk back to the car; it is lost and gone forever, dreadful sorry, Clementine...
- A massive and very un-ladylike nosebleed in the bath after we got home

All of this = a very cranky me. I'm cranky just typing about it.

But. I finished, and I'm healthy enough to try this in the first place, which I'm sensible enough to recognize even in a raging temper. Besides, there's always #6, coming up in a jiffy.

The official stats -
Distance: 2 miles
Time: 19 minutes 55 seconds
Now reading: Runner's World Guide to Injury Prevention
Very grateful for: a husband who will run with me, listen to me gripe and complain, drive all the way back to the track to look for the missing ipod, and stand as a human toilet paper dispenser while I bleed all over the bathroom
Song of the run: Round and Round - Ratt

"Little by little does the trick." Aesop

More summer fun

2011-08-06T12:41:00.001-07:00
At the beginning of July, when the calendar plainly said summmer but the weather indicated otherwise, I decided we needed to up our entertaining game. I announced that we would have real, live, lots-of-cooking-and-cleaning-beforehand get-togethers at least once a month, and for at least a year.

We have lovely friends, and it's a treat to celebrate them with a little root beer and croquet. Besides, getting ready to welcome special people into our home is an infinitely better use of time than sitting on my behind for half the day, trolling around Facebook.

We managed two soirees in July - one was a breakfast bash; such a fun change of pace and something we will repeat! - and just last night, we spent the evening with six of the dearest people. It's such a privilege to have friends that we can laugh and be silly with, and who also share beliefs that make true fellowship possible.

Now, a Road to the Run update:
Run #3, just this morning -
Distance: 2 miles
Time: 19 minutes 3 seconds
Best encouragement as I was huffing around the track: Jan Michael, who was loping ahead of me. Jan Michael, who told me what a good job I did when I ran in 2 minutes after he finished. Jan Michael, whose pace I aspire to catch. Someday!
Song of the run: 1, 2, 3, 4 - Fiest; nevermind that it came on while I was in the middle of my cool down. It made me want to skip around the track, but I exercised self control and snapped my fingers instead :)
Likelihood that I will eat a cupcake this afternoon and reverse any caloric burn I accomplished earlier: Very, very high

"Believe that you can run farther or faster. Believe that you're young enough, old enough, strong enough, and so on to accomplish everything you want to do. Don't let worn-out beliefs stop you from moving beyond yourself." John Bingham

Hot time, summer in the city

2011-08-03T13:42:00.000-07:00
Yesterday I went to the library and the grocery store. I made dulce de leche and baked a batch of graham crackers. I jumped around in the garage to a step aerobics DVD. I even managed both a bath and a nap.

As a reward for such an insufferable, grueling schedule, I spent all evening lolling around on a blanket in the sweetest little park. I read magazines, had a nice, long chat with my sis, and ogled my husband while he tore it up on the court.

Summer and I are very, very good friends.

And now, in The Road to the Run news:
Run #2 this morning went something like this -
Distance: 1.5 miles
Time: 14 min 14 sec (21 seconds faster than Monday! Zoooooooooooom!)
Song of the day: Right Now - Van Halen

"In running, it doesn't matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, 'I have finished.' There is a lot of satisfaction in that."
-Fred Lebow, New York City Marathon co-founder

The road to the run

2011-08-01T14:11:00.000-07:00
There's a 4.5 mile run in November with my name on it. Today, because there's no time like the present, and because November is closer than it seems, I began to train. I'm training for an 10K, which is 6.2 miles; I'd much rather sail across the finish line with a perfect ponytail and a healthy glow on my cheeks instead of crawling across, all disheveled and gasping for breath, because I didn't train enough.

And I'm afraid. Afraid that the lazy, boo-hoo-I-can't-do-this part of me will win out somewhere along the way, and I'll give up. But dadgummit, if the 80-years-young lady I read about last week can lace up her shoes and run (in her 12th marathon), so can I.

So. can. I.

Now, on with the stats:
Trips to the bathroom immediately proceeding the run because I was nervous: 2
Distance: 1.5 miles
Time: 14 minutes, 35 seconds
Conditions: 73 lovely degrees, and not a wisp of a cloud in the sky
# of complaints from my old-lady knees: Zero!
Song of the day: It's All Right by the Traveling Wilburys - my Dad is cheering and my Mom is cringing about this :)

"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run."
John Bingham

Franklin Falls on repeat

2011-07-24T18:23:00.000-07:00
We - and this time, the 'we' included a whole troop of reinforcements: Isaac, Natalie, Caleb, Jen, Ocean, Jaguar and Denny - can't stay away. Who in the whole wide world can resist marching through the woods to be drenched by the spray of a waterfall? What gal can not love where she lives when where she lives means tossing off her shoes and wading through water to sunbathe on rocks that make perfect, natural water slides?

Washington is where it's at, folks. And that's that :)

Two hike Saturday

2011-07-17T15:05:00.001-07:00
First, Halcyon and I woke up with the early, early birds for a march up Mount Index to Bridal Veil Falls. One of the things I like best about hiking to waterfalls is that you can hear where you're headed; all Halcyon and I to do was follow the roar :)

Then, later in the morning, we high-tailed it up the pass with Craig and Christina to our favorite little Franklin Falls. We've prowled around it in the sunshine and the rain and the snow, and it's delightful every single time. I've decided that somehow, when it's time to retire and glide gracefully into our golden years, we must do it with the ocean as our front yard and a waterfall in the back :)

Knocking at our door...

2011-07-15T14:58:00.000-07:00
Had this been a slug, I would have screamed and carried on in revulsion and disgust. This little guy, though, gets his own photo shoot :)

Boston Harbor 4th

2011-07-05T12:06:00.000-07:00
First, there are a ton of pictures here; consider yourself warned! :)

Now.

I am a lover of traditions. I love the making of new memories within the context of something that's repeated over and over again; it's one of the things that makes me tick.

I'm also a lover of holidays. I plan out Thanksgiving menus in August and write out Christmas card lists whenever the notion strikes, which is often the middle of April. I love that July is the time to celebrate our country's independence; I love that it screams summer, and that it comes with parades and fireworks and sun and barbeques.

And then I'm a lover of the beach. The sand, the waves, the wind, the sunsets (oh, the sunsets!!), all of it makes me happy.

So, with all of these loves of mine (plus, of course, the most important loves of all - the people!!), you can imagine what a sweet weekend it was - our fifth or sixth 4th of July at the harbor in Olympia with the usual suspects. As always, we find lots and lots to appreciate and be thankful for in our little corner of the world.

Uncles give the best horsey rides!

There is something very, very endearing to me about these next pictures. I feel like I'm getting a glimpse back in time to what the two of them were doing 20 years ago, and it makes me smile.

Someone else loves the beach! A girlie after my own heart! :)

Kayak Point

2011-06-27T06:22:00.000-07:00
The 7 of us + the sun + the ocean + blazing campfires and a vast pile of S'mores = a super duper, looong awaited welcome back to summer. If everyone, even for a day or two, could just sleep under the stars, live on roasted marshmallows and hot dogs, and forget about showers and toothbrushes for awhile, the world would be a much happier place, don't you think?

Every campground should come with a park that even big kids can't resist :)

Synchronized swing dismount? Piece of cake! :)

Rocks call to boys no matter how old boys grow... and I love it.

Oh, frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

2011-06-21T20:15:00.000-07:00
Happy first day of summer from our little neck of the woods to yours :)

The Missouri, one last time

2011-06-16T18:09:00.000-07:00
Tonight's pictures mark our final stroll down the lane of memories from last year's Montana trip. I'm so thankful for memories that allow us to keep experiences close, and for pictures that help us remember when our minds are feeble and we can't quite recall just what a Missouri River sunset is like. And for a family that jumps at the chance to live out of a canoe for a week. And for a wedding photographer brother who cheerfully ensconces his professional camera equipment in waterproof cases and documents these adventures that I thrive on in amazing, vivid technicolor.

“One must be out-of-doors enough to get experience of wholesome reality, as a ballast to thought and sentiment. Health requires this relaxation, this aimless life.” Henry David Thoreau

Down & Dirty, live action style

2011-06-07T20:08:00.000-07:00
Jan Michael, our sis, Caleb and Craig shot out of the blocks like rockets and were the first to encounter the (first!) fire hose. There's nothing like running 3 miles in a full suit when you're soaked to the skin!

I wasn't able to keep up with the blistering pace set by the Fantastic Four, so I fell behind. Let's remember, though, that I was the most elderly member of Team Jan Michael, and I claim that as my excuse. Now please pardon me while I take my nightly dose of Geritol.

A synchronized roll from my husband and my sis? I would expect nothing less.

While the rest of us hoofed it out on the course, the end was was sight for the speed demons...

The great reveal of the Superman shirt! ... but it's tricky even for a super hero to hold his ground when his shoes have been sucked off by the mud :)

Just like the chocolate river in 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!'

Hearing the cheers of my extraordinary family was worth every single second of the hour and a half it took to hose off and clean up :)

Isaac, Natalie and Jen finish in fine form! Have I mentioned the vast quantities of awesomeness our friends possess?

And for the grande finale, Jan Michael, our sis, Craig and I took a victory lap through the mud together. It takes some dedicated athletes to leap back in for a second go-around!

At the end, after we'd all crossed the finish line, the twelve of us gathered together and nearly succombed to hypothermia while rinsing off in fire hoses that were spraying water from what was obviously a Norwegian fjord. But what's a few blue faces and numb fingers when you're high on life, accomplishment and good, old fashioned fun?!

Oh, what a charmed, charmed life we lead. Happy 35th birthdays FOR SURE.

Down & Dirty 35th Birthday Extravaganza

2011-06-05T17:13:00.000-07:00
Could there possibly be a better way to celebrate turning 35 than gathering the troops and running 3 miles through the mud and muck?! Absolutely not.

Do Derek, Sara, Shannon, Craig, Caleb, Jen, Mike, Kristin, Isaac, Natalie, Jason, Sherry, both of our Moms & one of our Dads know how much it meant to have them trudging through the mud with us, cheering like crazy as we jogged by, and capturing the whole thing on camera and video? We hope so; it makes our hearts happy and full to know we're so loved.

Could anything posted here ever do May 21, 2011 justice? Probably not, but at the very least you'll get a small glimpse, and you'll also know where to find us next year when the end of May rolls around and we're whooping it up for number 36 :)

Clark Kent in the flesh!

Turning 35 and winning 3rd place in the costume contest all in one shot = not a bad day's work!

And that's a wrap!

Hijinks in the hills

2011-05-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

A quick break from the Missouri -

2011-05-10T15:04:00.001-07:00
to show off one of my favorite snaps from the beginning of May.

Rolling on the river

2011-05-07T15:42:00.001-07:00

Morning has broken

2011-05-05T15:30:00.000-07:00

Mush on the Missouri. It was bound to happen.

Holland Lake to the Upper Missouri

2011-05-02T16:20:00.001-07:00

Have you ever been chased by a sunset? We recommend it :)

Montana, Montana

2011-04-28T20:00:00.000-07:00
First, and it pains me to say it, we've cancelled our trip to the Upper Missouri this year. We took that vacation to Florida in February, we've used a handful of days since then, and before the year is out, there are lots of holidays that will need attention. Jan Michael does not work for a company that believes in unlimited days off - completely unreasonable, I know! :) - so this summer we'll spend our weekends at places close to home. Besides, gas that costs 4 bucks a gallon (and probably more by the time June rolls around) tends to steal the thunder out of road trips, so maybe it's just as well.

Anyway, it occurs to me that I've only ever shared a few pictures from last year's adventure, which is appalling. Let's rectify that, shall we?

Like the year before, our first stop was Holland Lake, home of very tippy canoes, water so clear you can see to the bottom, and lots of sweet memories for the brothers, who camped here as little tykes.

In which I am forced to batten down the hatches

2011-04-25T16:32:00.000-07:00
I've been trying to keep my chin up about this wet, gray, sloppy, cold, wet, wet, spring, but I'm not always terribly successful - and that is a great, big, fat understatement. Today I'm consoling myself with ghosts of sunshiny pasts.

A tropical vacation on the cheap

2011-04-20T15:40:00.000-07:00
I've just spent a very pleasant day with my friend Angela at the Science Center. We saw a wonderful IMAX movie called 'Born To Be Wild' - if orphaned baby elephants and orangatans make you swoon, you must watch it! - and meandered through the Star Wars exhibit. We also took a trip to the butterfly house, and while they were lovely to look at, do you know what the best part was? The temperature was set to a DELIGHTFUL 80 DEGREES. Our poor, sun-starved selves just soaked it in.
I wonder if they allow overnight camping :)

Winter is not forever.

2011-04-18T19:40:00.001-07:00
And here's the proof:

Florida mishmash

2011-04-17T15:58:00.000-07:00

For our Dad, the biggest Pogo fan in all the land

Legos!

Animal Kingdom

2011-04-11T16:02:00.000-07:00
Animal Kingdom has a safari and a rollercoaster and a place in which to pet goats that sport beards, and so, we like it.
Hippo skulls are very big!
So are gorilla hands!
On my list of seriously fascinating animals, gorillas are at the very top...

For Derek and Sara :)
This is the Tree of Life, which has all manner of creatures carved into its trunk...

And here we have Expedition Everest; whoever decided to design a rollercoaster that whips around in the dark backwards has a good, solid head on his shoulders, for sure. We rode it three times in a row, and then, probably because we're quickly leaving spring chicken-hood behind, we got sick and had to quit :)

The Space Coast

2011-04-08T08:40:00.001-07:00
These trips of ours don't involve frivolous galavanting all the time, you know. Occasionally, for good measure, we like to learn a little something along the way, too :)

The Internation Space Station is the neatest thing! Go learn about it right now; you won't be sorry!

Rocket garden!

One of our favorite parts of the day was watching an IMAX film about the Hubble space telescope; the images that have been captured of stars, nebulae and galaxies will take your breath away. And then, the very best part was hearing that of all the environments in this enormous solar system of ours, there is no place more suited to the sustaining of human life than our very own earth - just a confirmation of what we already know, that we are where we are because God has created us and everything there is.

Florida, part 2

2011-03-29T15:19:00.000-07:00
Part of part 2, actually. We have videos to share of our day at the second most spectacular place in all of Florida, but I'm lazy, so for now, just pictures.
We could actually feel this alligator breathing, of all the amazing things.

Florida, part 1

2011-03-21T19:11:00.001-07:00
I'm resisting the urge to carry on and on about Discovery Cove; I could, you know. Of the dozen or so parks we've visited in Florida, it's our very favorite. It even trumps Gatorland, and that's saying something! Please, if you are planning a trip anywhere near Orlando, consider spending the day there. And when you do, say hello to Capricorn, that 700-lb love of a dolphin, for us :)

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake, anyone?

2011-03-16T12:16:00.000-07:00
One of reasons we stole away to the beach last weekend was to celebrate our dear Mom's birthday. When I asked what sort of dessert the birthday lady might like, she answered with an emphatic 'Cheesecake!' and so I was off and running to find a recipe worthy of a 61st-year celebration.

I hit the jack-pot, folks, and so I share it with you. The original recipe (which I found on allrecipes.com; thank you allrecipes!!) called for chocolate cookie crumbs, but I'm an abstainer of chocolate, and also selfish, so I used vanilla cookies instead. Actually, I used Golden Oreos, filling and all; this was, in the end, far too rich, and the recipe below reflects what I'll do the next time I make it. And you'd better believe I'll make it again; how can a girl resist when her husband tells her it's the best she's ever made, and so delicious she could sell it? It's enough to give me a big head :)

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs (or graham cracker crumbs)
1/3 - 1/2 cup butter, melted
3 Tbsp sugar
1 (10 ounce) package frozen raspberries
2 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 cup water
2 cups white chocolate chips
1/2 cup half & half
3 (8 ounces each) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 325. In a medium bowl, mix crumbs, melted butter & 3 Tbsp sugar. Press into bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake 8-10 minutes; cool. In medium saucepan, combine raspberries, 2 Tbsp sugar, cornstarch & water. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 5 minutes or until sauce is thick. Strain sauce through a mesh strainer to remove seeds. Melt white chocolate with half & half over a double boiler, stirring ocassionally until smooth. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese & 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in white chocolate and vanilla. Pour half of the batter over crust. Spoon 3 Tbsp raspberry sauce over batter. Pour remaining batter into pan; spoon 3 Tbsp sauce over the top. Swirl batter with a knife to create a marbled effect. Bake 55-60 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover with plastic wrap & refrigerate 8 hours before removing from springform. Serve with remaining raspberry sauce.

And now, a few more pictures of Seabrook. Really, if you're yearning for a picturesque, restful place to loll around with the ones you love, Seabrook is it.

Seabrook

2011-03-13T16:49:00.001-07:00
We've just returned home from a weekend at the coast, in the coziest little house in the middle of a charming little village. It was lovely, every single bit. Now, enough with the words. On with the pictures!

Whose seriously handsome husband is this?!

2011-02-28T20:01:00.000-08:00
Oh, that's right. He's mine :)
This is just one in a long list of favorites from our we-take-Florida-by-storm adventure. More and more and more coming...

Snow!

2011-02-24T10:53:00.001-08:00
I've shared pictures like this a dozen times, but I never, ever get tired of sunny, snowy walks, tromping around in our snow boots and mittens, just the two of us.

Gus and the birthday bone

2011-02-21T17:28:00.000-08:00
It's no secret that we're great, big birthday celebrators around here, and when your very favorite puppy turns 2, what else is there to do but find the biggest bone on earth and let him go to town? I'm convinced it must have come from a triceratops or something, but my parents, buyers of the bone, assure me it did not :)

Sugar for your sugar

2011-02-18T13:24:00.000-08:00
It's 4 days after Valentine's Day, the sun is shining, and I'm trying like crazy to avoid the mountain-sized pile of laundry that needs folding - all fantastic reasons to bake some muffins, don't you think?

Vanilla Muffins

4 c flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 c sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 c milk
2 lg eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 c unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 400. Coat several mini muffins tins with nonstick cooking spray. Sift flour - salt into a large bowl. In a separate large bowl, whisk milk - vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir until just combined. Fill muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake 15-20 minutes or until brown on top.

These are more like cupcakes than muffins, which increases their value 10 fold, at least for me. Since these were baked for our sis and bros, I made them a little more fancy-pants by dumping in chocolate chips. And, because I didn't want to mess with a gazillion mini muffins, I used a standard-sized tin and baked them at the same temperature for 16 minutes; they were perfect.

Up

2011-02-13T16:29:00.001-08:00
Just when I was beginning to be a little too big for my britches, thinking that our Washington winter skies have cornered the market on impossibly stunning, we hopped on a plane and spent a week in Florida under this:

So good to be reminded again that there's beauty everywhere we are and everywhere we look. More coming on our Florida adventure, just as soon as we shake the sand out of our shoes and put our snorkels and swimsuits away :)

Team Living the Dream

2011-02-05T13:16:00.000-08:00
"So get out there and mess around with your friends, ramble out yonder and explore the forests, encounter the grizz, climb the mountains, run the rivers and breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air. Sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, that lovely, mysterious and awesome space."
- Edward Abbey

January love, part deux

2011-01-29T13:52:00.000-08:00
The hits just keep coming! Again, in no particular order:

- The little Main Street of our little town, twinkly and bright from gold lights strung along awnings and wrapped around light poles
- A re-introduction to Spin at the gym. I cannot tell you how exhilirating it is to feel my heart, almost pounding out of my chest, and to see ponytails flying to the speed of and old Haddaway remix, and to hear the instructor screaming, "Attack it!" and "Finish it!!" It is absolutely worth the sore bottom I have had since the 18th.
- A last minute over-night visit from our older bro, which included a walk to the park for tossing around the football and swinging on the swings:
- A fun Friday night with two very fun friends, including Snickerdoodles and Chai Tea lattes, a fierce game of Taboo and a serious Rock Band jam session
- A Saturday morning date with the precious Miss E, who picked out her own pair of polka-dotted 'cozy pants' to wear, chose "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" because it's her Papa's favorite book, blew bubbles in her milk and allowed her auntie to bundle her to the hilt in order to take a walk down the street to see chickens and roosters
- Being surrounded by this:
- Living under this:
- January 28th, which marked our 17th year of becoming lovebirds. Words can't do this one justice, so I'll quit while I'm ahead, and end with an oldie-but-goodie, circa 1994 :)

My friend January

2011-01-19T13:39:00.000-08:00
Poor January. It really is at a disadvantage, following Thanksgiving and Christmas, with just one day at the very beginning of the month that causes a stir. It's usually gray, and most often raining; nothing is blooming, and the only things the produce department at Safeway has to offer in January are boring, old apples and oranges.

In the past, I've behaved badly toward January, wishing it would just hurry up and go away already. But then last year I made a New Year's resolution - which, as it turns out, is a life-long resolution - to love January. I decided to love it for what it is, and to find the things in it that make me thankful and glad for what is happening right now, instead of stomping around all month in a temper because the sun sets early and I'm not able to wear flip-flops. A stupid waste of time, really, to refuse to see the wonderful things in the present, because there are always wonderful things.

And so, in no particular order, the things I've been enjoying this January:
- Tea. Lots and lots of tea. Earl Gray, raspberry, Mint Medley, strawberry, Orange Spice, and on and on and on..
- A big, beautiful collage made from the the Christmas pictures that came sailing through the mail last month
- The quiet and rest that comes with a calendar that is not packed to the hilt with holiday hooplas
- Reading old Donald Duck comics in bed with you-know-who:
- Time enough for working lazily on Valentines
- The first weeks of a reading schedule which is guiding me through the whole Bible in a year
- The hope of sparkly, new life to old picture frames, with sand paper and metallic spray paint and a little bit of elbow grease
- Our valley, always lovely no matter the month or season
- My snow boots, which I kick around in all the month long, even when there isn't a snowflake in sight
- Skies like this:

Earn. Everything.

2011-01-10T06:30:00.000-08:00
Last minute (free!!) surprise tickets from very thoughtful friends + racing to Qwest in layers and layers + the 12th man bringing it + total strangers leaping around, giving high-5s and hugs + Marshawn Lynch in crazy beast mode + an amazing Seattle sunset + a final score of 41 to 36 = one super fun, super memorable Saturday. Not a bad beginning to 2011, not bad at all :)

Christmas

2011-01-03T10:41:00.000-08:00
Before January gets too far away from me, just a few (!) glimpses into the Christmas I'm holding dear to my heart -

Ringing it in!

2011-01-01T15:45:00.000-08:00
Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
~Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1850

We've waved goodbye and said hello to many an old and new year with these precious friends. I hope we're still doing it when we're 75.

I can hardly think of a sweeter way to welcome New Year's Day than in jammies with our oldest and dearests, and with our favorite little 2-year old miss.

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day. ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Today, long johns and tea and...

2010-12-29T17:10:00.001-08:00
a whole lot of this:

December treats

2010-12-22T06:55:00.000-08:00
Another reason on the very lengthy list of why I am smitten with my husband:

Festival of Poinsettias

2010-12-16T17:03:00.000-08:00
I took myself on a date today to the grandest, loveliest poinsettia festival in all the land. It was a great, rolling sea of red, white and pink, and it makes me glad for quiet mornings in the midst of the holiday scramble that allow me to meander to my heart's content. There were smartly dressed grandmas and granpas having their pictures taken in front of a tree made entirely of poinsettias. There were Christmas trees decorated with every kind of ornament and bauble you can imagine. There was sparkle and glitter and shine as far as I could see. A very merry outing for me :)

Cozy December house

2010-12-13T15:10:00.000-08:00

Candyland

2010-12-06T15:37:00.000-08:00
My friends Sandra and Kristi throw the most legendary parties, and I, somehow, am lucky-duck enough to be invited. On Saturday they hosted the annual gingerbread house decorating soiree, and I can hardly find the words to describe what a wonderful, fun, sugar-spun kick-off to the holidays it was. Maybe a few pictures will give you some idea...

Oh, and I feel I should explain the artsy-fartsy quality of the pictures: It's Derek's fault. Or, he is responsible for introducing me to a camera app for my phone which I'm unable to stop playing with, even when I try.

Thankfulness all around

2010-11-29T15:47:00.000-08:00
Sometime last week, Gayle unearthed a story written by Jan Michael in 1987 - a 'Choose Your Own Adventure,' of course - with a very exciting, and depending on the page, a very harrowing plot. Its title immediately became the theme of our holiday weekend, which, when considering the cast of characters that comprises this amazing, beautiful, priceless family of mine, was not a surprise to anyone.

I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder. ~G.K. Chesterton

Thanks-giving in every place we look!

2010-11-28T14:09:00.000-08:00
I love and am thankful for my brother-in-law for countless reasons, but the two that immediately come to mind involve the following:

1. Delivering my beloved to the hospital and watching over him until I was able to get there myself

and

2. Documenting the entire affair for posterity. Thanksgiving 2010, we will not forget you!

Washington in November does not look like this.

2010-11-16T17:07:00.000-08:00
But Montana in June does! I'm already dreaming about next year's adventure :)