Second Wilton Cake Class

I was in the kitchen ALL morning making my cakes and frostings for the class I had tonight.  Lol  I felt like a real baker  :)  Everything came out pretty much like I wanted it and I didn't have any mishaps.  I built in enough time for that just in case.

It took two trips to get everything into the car and I used a cart to get everything from the car into the classroom.  I learned so much tonight!  So, after making all the 'mistakes' on my first cake I made tonight, I'll be able to do my second cake even better.  I am going to practice this week and make another cake before class again.

Tonight's class was all about keeping constant pressure when using the frosting bag and trying to make fluid motions.  I did a pretty good job I think.

So, here is my first cake.  :)    I managed to get in some pictures before we cut into it.  It was a yellow cake with a vanilla custard filling and buttercream frosting.  All made from scratch.  :)

The lighting was terrible for the picture. lol

So excited for next class!

"Kindle meet Rice". "Rice this is Kindle"

Ok, this starts off as a scary story, but don't worry it has a good ending.  :)

So after a long day I decided to take a nice relaxing bath.  I love reading in the bath and since I buy my books on my Kindle now instead of in paperback now, the kindle goes with me.  I am always very careful with my Kindle to make sure that no water ever gets on it.

I'm sure you can see where this is going.  A girl with an electronic, near water.  And yes, you are right.  I didn't drop it in though!  I was holding my Kindle OUTSIDE the bath and then I slipped and some water splashed onto it.  It only splashed the bottom left corner but I dried it off immediately.  

Soon after, my Kindle started going crazy.  It was turning pages, going back to the home screen, and not listening to the buttons I was pushing.  I was devastated.  I love my Kindle!  I use it everyday!  So, admitting defeat, I laid down in bed and tried to sleep.  In the morning I told my hubby about it and he told me to go stick my Kindle in a bag of rice.  

I looked at him like he was crazy and told him it was just an old wives tale.  He said it actually works.  So, I went into the kitchen, opened up my bag or rice, placed my Kindle down at the bottom, sealed the top, and left it on the counter for the day.  

Later that night I gingerly lifted my Kindle out of the rice bag and wiped off all the rice dust with my kitchen towel. . .  I turned it on, hoping that my hubby was in fact right . . . I stared at the screen and selected my book . . . I turned the page . . . and it worked!  I continued reading for the next few hours without a single mishap!

So, this is a lesson to all of you!  If you some how get water on your electronics put them in a bag of rice!  I don't know if it will work with anything else, but it works with the Kindle!

I couldn't believe it.  Have you ever tried this before?  Has a bag of rice ever saved your electronics?  Am I just out of the loop when it comes to the saving qualities of rice?  

So hopefully this blog post will help to save you a few hundred dollars in the future.  Always keep a bag of rice in the house.  :)

Hiking, Water, and Hissing Cockroaches

I actually got to go outside today!  The weather was under 100 today for the first time in. . . forever.  In the morning the hubby and I did some road side clean up for his work.  It was pretty much cigarette butts all day long, but I just so happened to come across a 10 dollar bill.  LOL  That was fun.  :)

After the clean up we decided to go home and pick up Gorgi and go explore the hiking trails around Wichita Falls.  We packed up the backpack full of water bottles and picked up some lunch on the way with the 10 bucks we found.  This was Gorgi's first hike and she loved it.

See . . . She was already smiling before we even started.  :)

We were really surprised at how green it was here.  Because let me tell you, Wichita Falls does not look like this.  It always looks like a desert wasteland.  So, we were pleasantly surprised to seem some beautiful trees and so much green.  :)

We had to cross a bridge that moved up and down like crazy.  Gorgi seemed to really like it.  I bet if she could jump so would have been jumping with us.  :)

Our new camera has a really cool 'panoramic setting'.  It was really cool to be able to get the bend of the river in one photo.

These are the falls at the end of the first hike.

I played with the shutter speed on my new camera to 'slow and soften' the look of the water.  I think it turned out pretty cool.

I think at some points she felt like jumping in.  

She kept getting 'hog-tied' in her leash! Lol

After the hike there was a nature center with butterflies, plants, and a lot of bugs.  This is me actually holding a hissing cockroach!  And it hissed at me!  I can't believe I actually did it, but at least I got it on camera so I could prove I did it! LOL

These were the prairie dogs the conservatory had.  This guy was really intent on getting out of his cage!

Daryl took some gorgeous photos of the butterflies at the conservatory.  You can see more of them on our facebook page.  :)

We had so much fun today and will definitely be planning a trip back there in the near future.  We'll have to wait for a break in the weather again of course, but this place was a definite must.  So for those of you who plan to come visit, this will be on the agenda.  :)

1st Cake Decorating Class

I had soooo much fun last night!  I went to my first Wilton Cake Decorating Class at Hobby Lobby.  I had signed up a few months ago and have been eagerly awaiting my first day.  :)  I don't know what it is about cake decorating but I've always wanted to try it.  I blame those cake decorating shows . . . like Cake Boss.  Or I'll walk into a bakery and wish that I could make those beautiful birthday and wedding cakes.  And of course it will take me longer than one class to actually make a nice looking cake but I am excited for the journey.  :)

The classes are normally around $45 dollars for one course, but I used a %50 off coupon and only paid like $20.  :)  The classes are two hours long and I have them once a week for four weeks.  I'm already excited to take the later courses once I'm finished with this one.  There are three courses total.

Last night I learned all the basics.  Recipes for the cake and frosting.  How to hold the frosting bag and I made beautiful frosting star decorations on some sugar cookies.  Not much for  the first night, but next week I actually will be bringing home a cake that I decorate from start to finish.  :)   Super excited.

Daryl has been so supportive of my cake decorating classes.  I know he wants me to be able to enjoy what I can out here in this small town, but I also think it's because I'll be able to make him delicious looking cakes.  He'll even see something online and say.. "Oooo, you could make this into a cake!"

And. .  I was going to take pictures of my cookies that I decorated so I could post them on here, but before I could get my camera . . . Daryl ate them!!!  So, after next class, I will take a picture of the cake before he is even allowed to have a slice.   :)

How High Can It Go?

It's amazing how we choose to see ourselves in a different light at times.  Like myself, I most of the time want to see that I am the perfect homemaker who can cook like a dream, clean like I have OCD, and look showered with perfectly styled hair and makeup. .  ha ha ha.. Fat Chance...  These grandeur delusions of a clean and organized house are absolutely ridiculous.  I think I see those things to cover up the feeling that I've been lacking in that area.  I mean seriously. . .  I've been staring at the same load of laundry waiting to be folded for over a week.  And, every time I pass it, I think I'll get to it tomorrow.  I've stopped sorting laundry by color and just use the washer as a hamper and throw any clothing I find on the floor in it.  So, far I've only had one mishap of washing a dark blue jacket that stained a few white shirts blue.  ooops..  There are pans on the stovetop that need washing that I just can't bring myself to do.  And a closet that needs complete reorganizing so bad that I can hardly find anything to wear.

I mean I'm not even working outside the home right now!  To think of all the ladies who have full time jobs, kids, a husband, and still manage to keep their house clean!  I admire all of you ladies!  Sometimes I wish I could just bring my mom up from California to help give me the drive to get things in order! She's great at keeping house and working at the same time.

Before I moved up here to our new place, I envisioned getting everything perfectly in order and everything sparkling clean just like I wanted it.  My perfect vision has been tainted from the horrendous stack of papers that need to get filed that just seem to get higher and higher.

So, today is the day!  I am finally going to clean and organize this house!  Now, I realize it won't be perfect, and I won't be able to get done as much as I want, but I will be realistic this time.  I'll give myself a goal and go for it.  

At times we may feel overwhelmed by all the 'house duties' but I think the biggest thing that helps me (other than trying to get my stamina by blogging about it :-) , is to set aside the time.   Give yourself a 15 minute goal in one particular place.  You'd be amazed at what you can tidy up and clean after 15 minutes.  

And I always remember that I would rather have messes to clean up than no messes, because it reminds me that I have people in my life that add to the enjoyment of everyday activities, even if I have to clean up after them. 

So ladies, pick a place in your house and spend 15 minutes there!  Just 15 minutes!  Set a timer on your phone and keep moving until the timer goes off.  Let's rid an area in the home of clutter and gain that much more peace from seeing a job completed.

Woo!  I'm pumped!

Compassionate Service Ideas HELP!

I have been called to be the Relief Society Compassionate Service Coordinator.  I found out last Sunday but today it was made official.  Since then I have been searching and searching the web for any ideas on what I can do for compassionate service for the ladies at church.  And to my surprise I couldn't really find anything.  And if there's anything to be found on the internet I can usually find it.  I'm big into researching.  I like to know what's going on.  Like a few days ago I was bit really really hard by my cat and spent quite some time on the internet looking at what to do for cat bites, possible complications, what to look for as far as infection, etc. etc. etc.  LOL not such a healthy habit at times.

  

But, anyway back to topic, I've been trying to think of things that I can do to help others to the best of my ability.  I've always been really into service.  I really enjoy it.  Being able to help others gives me such a great feeling of satisfaction and the feeling that I'm able to make a difference in someone's life.  Even if it's only for a moment. 

Part of my job is getting to know the sisters in my ward.  Not a very easy thing because I am extremely shy when it comes to talking to knew people and introducing myself.  Plus, I don't like talking on the phone.  I never know what to say!  I get so nervous that all thoughts just vacate my brain.  Which is completely ironic because I love to talk through writing.  :)  I can email and text to my hearts content and not have a problem at all.  So hopefully others like to communicate in the same manner.  LOL I have sooo many roll over minutes that I lose minutes every month because I don't use them.  And my text list is like four pages long.  It's ridiculous.  :)

So, for the upcoming months my goal is going to be to get to know people and learn their names.  And what better way to learn about others than to involve them in service.  So, any ladies out there, I know your days are hectic and you have a million things to do.  So, if you could have someone do something for you, what would it be? I know we all crave a cleaner house and wish someone could help, or wish someone could take the kids for a few hours during the week, but is there anything else you wish you could have someone help with?  

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!  I'm eager to start implementing my own ideas I have, but I need more!

Flavorlicious Friday

Friday = date night.  Well, it usually does.  But, we've been trying to stay home more often and cook our own meals instead of going out and paying a fortune for fatty food at a restaurant .  So now, Friday = stay at home and cook something new and delicious and hope there are leftovers night.

I didn't want to turn on the stove in the house because it's 112 here in Texas most days and it makes the house unbearably hot.  (Big Stove, Small House)  So, what did I decide to do instead?  I decided to cook outside on the grill in the sun. . .   hmmmm... ok, I know I could have made a nice cold salad inside while enjoying the air conditioning but darn it I wanted to 'cook'!

So I've been looking through recipes lately to try and find a new protein to cook with.  We've cooked with beef and chicken, never fish because hubby doesn't like anything that swims, and the occasional feijoada (which by the way is one of the best Brazilian dishes out there... delicious).  But, I haven't ventured out of my comfort zone and cooked with really anything else.  Until. . . I came across the pork tenderloin.

Did you know that ounce for ounce, pork tenderloin has less fat than a chicken breast? (According to Men's Health)  And According to USDA.gov, a 3 oz. serving or pork tenderloin contains as much as 15 g of protein.  It's also a great source of B vitamins and delivers 36 percent of the recommended daily intake of zinc.  Ummm... why have I never cooked with this before?

So, I contemplated on whether to use a 'dry rub' or a 'sauce' with this pork tenderloin  and decided on a sauce.  I think the flavor comes out better when it can sit in the sauce for like 6 hours just soaking up all the goodness.  But, I didn't want just any store bought barbecue or marinade sauce.  I wanted to make my own. : )

I found a recipe I wanted to try with a few teaks here and there, and the end result was delicious.  This recipe has a nice taste of sweetness to it.  If you like your meat sweet this is amazing.  So, stay home on a coming Friday instead of going out and try this recipe.  If you're crazy like me and want to cook it now in the sweltering summer heat, leaning over a fire go for it!  If not, tuck this recipe away for when it gets colder, but don't forget it.

Ingredients needed:

2 (1b) pork tenderloins
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 chopped onion (you can use dried minced onion if you like or green onion)
2 TBL Olive Oil
1 chopped garlic clove (or pinch of garlic powder)

and the secret ingredient . . .

1 tsp of ground cinnamon


Directions:

*  Place soy sauce, brown sugar, onion, cinnamon, olive oil, and garlic into a large resealable plastic bag.
*  Seal and shake the mix together.
*  Place pork in bag with the marinade, seal, and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours.

*  Preheat grill for high heat.
*  Lightly oil grate.
*  Place tenderloins on the grill.
*  Sear all four sides of the pork for about 3 - 4 min. each, that way it seals in all the wonderful juices.
*  Turn grill down to medium, close lid and cook for an additional 15 minutes or to desired doneness.
*  Slice pork, and enjoy.  :)

Let me know if you try this and how it turned out.  :)