Back Home.

Hey dudes.

Where ya been?

Oh, right...it's me who's been MIA.  Well dearies, I have been down south enjoying some lovely time off with the fams.  I had 6 blissful days straight of no work.  We did part with my family and part with Jason's family...and guess what?!?  We did not take a SINGLE picture.  Nada.  Nothing.  Not one.  Meh.  Whatev.

Christmas was wonderful and tiring x's 10000.  I'm no longer sick (well, minus very minor moments of nausea) but I definitely don't have the energy back yet.  Hello!  16 weeks here.  Give me back my energy yo!  Oh well.  It will come.  (Right?  Please say it will.)  Nah, in all reality I think I do have more energy than I did...just all the traveling and time with family, not being at your own home, and etc. does a number on the ole' energy level.  But that's ok.  It's sure a good thing my house is a complete DISASTER zone.  That should help right?  Oh wait...doh. My solution.  One word.  HUSBAND.  Problem solved.  Yay him.

And now.  Let us take a moment to thank god for something.
I'm being serious now if you couldn't tell.
No really.  For reals.  :)

Ok, so I don't know why NOBODY filled me in on this but having a baby is expensive.  Like for reals. (Total and utter sarcasm there)  I mean seriously, if they cost this much in the womb I fear how much they cost when they make their great exodus into the world of food by the mouth and poop in the diapers.  The bills are real, and ugly, and large (We have health ins. of course, just a pesky deductible that we pretty much hit just now this year, and then guess what...it starts over Jan 1st.  Awesome.  Not.)  But, we were somewhat prepared because we are somewhat responsible adults, yada yada.  Anyways, my work decided to give us an end of the year bonus.  This is new for me.  I'm not sure what I thought it would be but let's just say I almost puked when I saw what it was.  The generosity of my bosses kind of amazes me...and inspires me.  And the way God provides is always so humbling and mind boggling.  So, thank you God.  Thank you awesome job.  We feel very blessed.

Anyways, that's all for now.  Just wanted you to know I'm alive.  And well.  And yeah.  Happy weekend! <3

Merry Christmas

Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Luke 2:12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.

Philippians 2:8-10 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth

Merry Christmas Dearies!

May we remember the birth of our great Savior!

The Deets

So...some details.

If you're all, "Details on what yo?"  Scroll to the post before this one.

Ah.  There.  Now you're filled in.

So.

I'm moving towards 15 weeks here in a few days.

I was SICK SICK SICK from weeks 4-12.  I was some what sick weeks 13-14 with a couple of days here and there of relief.  I think I'm sorta feeling better now.  I still have good days and bad days.  I never once barfed though.  Praise the Lord on that since I lost weight for sure as it was.  I had little to no ability to eat and the nausea/headaches...unlike anything I've ever experienced.  On top of that...water was/still is nasty.  Yuck.  I've had this weird metallic/sour taste that fills my mouth 24/7...kinda like I've been sucking on a metal lamp post.  Drinking water.  Yeah.  LIQUID metal.  Yum yum.  For a while the only liquid I could drink was Gatorade.  Now, I'm transitioning to water.

If you didn't notice...we did wait a bit longer than average to spill the beans.

The reason...

This is not my 1st pregnancy.  This is my 2nd.  Over the summer we became pregnant (unintentionally).  It was a HUGE shock and took some getting used to.  Right around the time we started coming around to the idea though I had a miscarriage.  It was early...around 7-8 weeks or so...though the babe stopped growing at around 6 weeks apparently.  I was rocked by it. Before I didn't really understand why people become so sad from a  miscarriage (hello naive girl).  Especially when it's your first and you've never had a real life baby come as a result of your pregnancy. You know, it's really an abstract thing when you've never been pregnant before.  They TELL you there's a baby in there and yet...the concept is just...odd.  Or maybe that's just me.  So, yes, I, silly silly Anna, underestimated the power of carrying a child and losing it.  And although it was hard, and painful, and so very sad...in some strange way I feel blessed that my eyes have been opened to how foolish my thoughts were and how ridiculous I was to believe that losing the life of one of God's children wouldn't impact me.  That baby is in heaven and one day I will meet him/her.  And for now...I thank God that he was not satisfied with my foolishness and insensitivity but chose to reveal himself and truths to me through the loss of that little itsy bitsy life.

So, that's the reason why we waited.

Other random details:

I've had 2 sonos, and at my last appt. on Mon. we heard the heartbeat.  So awesome.

I get super nervous for each appointment.  I'm not a "fear the worst" person but I can be very realistic too.  But God has been so good and the little babe is doing well.

We find out the gender next month (yes, we're finding out).

 No cravings.  I'm just now kind of starting to like food again to be honest. 

I'm already poking out.  Which is funny.  I'm just used to being so darn thin.  And to have this belly...albeit a small one...yeah.  Cracks me up.

I maintained the gym up until week 8 and then I just couldn't take it any longer.  Too tired, too sick.  This week I started back up.  Feels.so.good.  I will run and do the spin bike a few more weeks and then I will be cancelling the gym and heading to the pool a few blocks from my house.  I am NOT A SWIMMER.  It is my least favorite thing to do.  But I'm determined to exercise to the end.  I'll let ya know how that goes.  hehe.

And that's it!   :)  Baby E makes their debut mid June.

Of course I'd love prayer too.  God has given me GREAT and unbelievable peace this pregnancy.  I did NOT want to get pregnant again out of fear of another miscarriage but God had other plans apparently.  I have felt His great comfort and love surround me...and yet I still get moments of anxiety.  We would love prayer for more peace and also...of course...for a healthy, full term little babe.

Thanks everyone for the love and support.  Ya'lls the bestest.  <3

Pssst. Wanna know a Secret?

Sorry, it's been a WEEK since I've posted.

My oh my how time is flying!  Christmas is in like a week!

But yeah.

So.

Guess what?!?

I've got an incy wincy itty bitty secret I've been keeping from ya'll.

Yeah.

God is pretty awesome.  And ever so good.  And we feel very blessed.   

Graduation Weekend

Well, the man is "done".  I say "done" because it's mostly true.  He presented his thesis/final project on Friday and did uh.maz.ing.  Seriously, I'm not just saying this because I'm his wife.  I was totally impressed with his clarity, intellectualism, and word choice.  He is a TEACHER to the core and it came out in his thesis presentation.  He is super close to being done with his paper.  His adviser is editing it one last time and once that's turned in he's done done for real.  :)

So, I know a lot of Jason's classmates...but I got to meet a lot more of his colleagues who teach with him and also his superiors.  You know, as wives we know our husbands are nice, and pretty swell...but I think it's really easy for us to forget how there can be others who respect and admire him too.  I had a ton of people of come up to me and tell me that Jason has integrity like none other, the gift of teaching, kindness, and etc.  One fellow classmate told me that Jason is the best, kindest person he has ever met.  First, what a testimony because Jason is openly a Christian.  And second, it made me think and reflect on the way in which I view him.  Sure, if you asked me what I think about Jason I would list off all those characteristics that other people see.  But, is it reflected in the every day?  Does HE know I view him the same way his colleagues, and classmates do?  Or does it get lost in the mundane, the nagging, the disappointment that he didn't do the dishes, and etc?  I need to be his biggest fan...and he needs to know it.  It was sweet to hear such kind words about my man though.  :)  Anyways, it was a great weekend to celebrate Jason's great accomplishment of an M.A. in English.

Anyways, enough blabbering.  Here are some pics from the weekend.  Enjoy!

The graduate and I...with his fakey diploma.  :)  The real one will come in the mail.

After they all presented we gathered for a reception.  This is the M.A. English (TESL) group for winter 2012.

The cake I made for the graduating class.  The theme was Navigating the Global Seas of English...or something like that.  His program was very international and so each flag represented a classmate's origin.  I must be honest though...this is my least favorite cake I've ever done.  It was a disaster in so many ways.  It took too long (till 4 am), the fondant was cracking like crazy...it was sweating.  And in the end I didn't even love the way it looked.  Every one freaked out at the reception at how cool it was and it took every ounce of me not to say, "Well, thanks but I don't really love it, it's not my best."  I didn't want to be THAT person.  So I smiled and said "thank you".  Longest caption EVER.  :)

Jason's parents came into town and we took them to our favorite pastry shop...Thorough Bread.  Seriously, the BEST pastry shop in S.F.  Anyways, they had a Christmas tree completely made out of bread!  It was amazing!

 

And there you have it.  Hope everyone had a marvelous weekend.  And can you believe that Christmas is in like 2 weeks!?!  Yay o yay.  I'm excited!  :)

**Oh and I announced my You Bake Me Happy Winner in the post below if you didn't notice.**  :)

You Bake Me Happy: WINNER!

Sorry for the delay on posting the winner.  This weekend has been cuh-razy.  Like coming home Thursday night to finish the class graduation cake for Jason...and having it take until 4 a.m. to finish.  Yeah.  Painful.  The even more painful part...having to wake up at 6:30 a.m. Friday.  Oye vay. 

But, that aside.

Here's the winner.

Random.org has chosen entry #4!

And the 4th comment (not counting the deleted one is........)

Kellie Jeffrey  December 5, 2012 10:46 AM

I would love something chocolatey and fudgey cookie that would go great with a cup of coffee :)

Yay Kellie!

I'm so excited to mail you your treat.  If you can email your address to a.evangel09 at gmail.com that would be grand!  

Thanks for entering everyone!  Until January!

Happy Sunday!

You Bake Me Happy Wednesday--Christmas Edition

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What up peeps!?!

It's December.  Which means 'tis the season for sweet, delectable baked treats that make you all round and pudgy and happy.  Mmmmm.

The even BETTER news is that it's...YOU BAKE ME HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

The first Wednesday of the month where I, yours truly, bake you something sugary and buttery and send it to you in the mail.  Yay you!

Wanna know the reasoning behind this madness???  Well, how boutchya read The Full Story behind You Bake Me Happy Wednesday!

The sum of it is...I LOVE to bake.  I LOVE to give people my baked goods.  I mean really, is there anything better than a homemade, from scratch, little morsel of goodness that didn't involve you stirring a spoon or turning on your own oven?  I.think.not.  Thus, I bake for you and mail it to your lovely house for you to eat and fill your belly.  yum.



So, here are the details...

FIRST,
Being we are now in December I couldn't resist not doing your favorite Christmas cookie.  You know, that cookie that must be made sometime between now and December 25th or it just doesn't quite feel like Christmas.  For my husband it's Snowball cookies.  For me, I love any chocolate peppermint combo.  So what you must do is leave a comment with your cookie of choice and if I pick your name (very randomly of course) I will mail you said treat (so you better pick wisely).  Por ejemplo: Say my name is Trudy and I left a comment saying that I would love sugar cookies with icing to show up on my doorstep.  If I choose Trudy, then I will mail her sugar cookies with icing.  Get it?!? Got it!?! Goooood!

The little drawing ends Sat at noon!  So comment before then.  Sat evening I'll let ya know who the lucky winner is!  (and be sure to check back because I can't mail nada if I don't know where you live...and then I have to pick a second winner and then this is drawn out all long where I mail November's cookies a week before December.  Sad story.)

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So, what delectable Christmas cookie would YOU want to magically appear on your doorstep???  Ready.Set.Go!

Side Note:  Yes, I will mail treats to people I don't know in real life.  Wait, blogland isn't real life?  Whaaa!?  Also, if you won last month you have to sit this one out.  But don't worry.  You are free to enter there after! 

Countdown

4 days until Jason presents his thesis (not including today) :)

Then he turns in grades for his class, finishes the actual paper for his thesis a week later, and then we.are.done.  With grad school.  Forever.

It's funny because I'm imagining this lovely time come January where he's just teaching and having lots of spare time to hang out and do fun things.  Ha!  Double Ha Ha!

This last year he's been teaching along with going to school...but it's been one class.  Next semester he adds on two classes to that sched.  Two classes that he's never taught.  Classes like grammar.  I think he's totally freaked that he's going to be asked a grammar question that he doesn't know.  Apparently saying, "because it's sounds right" isn't a good enough answer.  Whatev.  :)

Anyways, I think he's going to be plenty busy still.  Oh well.  I can dream right? 

This last weekend I made 6 layers for the graduating M.A. English class cake and a bajillion cupcake toppers.  The cake layers are in the freezer all cold and cozy waiting to be assembled.  Did you know you could do that and it doesn't get dry? (Granted I use a fairly moist cake recipe).  Anyways, you can and I've found it to be a lifesaver when doing these crazy cakes I like to do...especially when you work full time and are running out of vacay time to take an extra day off and do the cake like you planned on.  Oops.  Thursday is going to be a loooooooong night. :)

Anyways, pics on the cake/cupcakes to come.  I'm envisioning great things.  We'll see how it ACTUALLY turns out. 

I have really long skinny toes.  I was just looking down at my feet trying to think what else to type.  I mean they're loooong.  My dad is all tall and lanky.  It's like I got his tall, lanky toes but nothing else.  Genetics.

Alright, Happy Monday all!

***Guess what's already here on Wednesday!  Yup!  You Bake Me Happy Wednesday! Yaaaay!***

But wait.  A blog post is always boring with out pictures so here's one to inspire greatness from you!

I stuffed my butt into this here recycling bin with my feet swinging leisurely in the air and my lovely co-worker took a pic for all to enjoy.  I swear I do things at work that are worthy of a paycheck.  Sometimes...  :)

Fall Fashion

Ok, I feel like a total dweeb with a title like that.

Especially since I totally did a whole post on how I've grown weary of the great focus placed on beauty and fashion.

But, yeah.
We'll just ignore the fact that I am a total hypocrite.
Great.  Glad we put that behind us.
Onward.

So, I love Christmas shopping.  I just love giving gifts in general to be honest.  And I LOVE the surprise element.  Like I'm totally excited to see Jason open his gifts.  And I love the anticipation of opening something that I know Jason put a lot of thought into.

But this year.
I could only think of one thing that I wanted.
ONE.
Seriously.  (I had to give a list to my in-laws and I had to really REALLY rack my brain.)
Anyways, I wanted tall camel color leather boots.

Problem is there's no way Jason can pick that out for me.  I had to shop for myself this year in other words.  Not quite so fun.  But the end result was lovely.  I love the boots I picked out.  And I'm pretty darn excited to open them on Christmas day even though I know what they are. 

I've noticed some "boot looks" that I'm rather fond of.

SOURCE

SOURCE 

I would totally rock these leggings with a pair of boots.  Too much?  :)

SOURCE

Boots and leggings.  Pretty sure I'm looking forward to this combo the most.  One word...comfy!

SOURCE

K.  And I can't deny it.  I totally love this dress...though without the black two piece weirdness underneath.  I mean really?  A solid white slip thing would be just fine girly.  Hellooooo!  And my boots are way better and would look way cuter with this ensemble.

Alright.  I'm done. :)  Got my vanity out for the month. 

Have a great weekend! <3

Tid-Bits for a Tuesday

Well, Thanksgiving is over.  It's now back to a normal work week....which will seem absurdly long in comparison (working 2 1/2 day work weeks does that to you).

We were able to go down south for a whole day and a half for Thanksgiving.  It was short short short but it was mighty nice.  Lots of cooking and having a good ole' time.  Jason is about a week and a half from presenting his thesis and basically graduating.  Can you believe that!!!  I can't believe it's almost over.  I can't wait to celebrate and enjoy his accomplishment!  (I'm also making the cake/cupcakes for the "commencement" of his program.  I'm excited.)

So...what other things are happening?

-We are ramping up and becoming really busy....pretty much through Christmas.  We have Jason's graduation, work stuff for me, a Jiu-Jitsu tournament...where my hunk of a man will be competing, and yada yada.  Some how every weekend for the next 4 weeks is taken up by something.  Oh well.  Busy is good I guess.  :)

-We put up our tree.  It's lovely.  I accidentally bought some LED lights to add to the one's we already had.  We bought a bigger tree this year and needed to invest in another string of lights.  Um yeah.  LED is a no go for me.  I just missed the soft yellow-white lights of old.  So, the LED's are gone and my tree is full of the old fashioned energy consuming lights.  Oh well.

-You know that Jiu-Jitsu tournament I mentioned above.  Well, Jason wants to drop down to the next weight category.  This means he needs to lose about 6 or 7 lbs.  Not a big deal really since we do NOT watch what we eat at all.  I figure just cutting out most carbs and sticking to lean meats will do it (oh, and NO sweets).  This is hard for me though because I can't diet.  hmmm.  So, we end up with two versions of the same meal...I usually add butter and cheese to mine.  How can you go wrong with butter and cheese?  It's only for a few weeks.  :)

-Our truck passed smog!  Yay!  This may seem like a weird update but seriously folks...I was getting a little worried about Pickles (that's the truck's name).  Poor Pickles.  His check engine light was coming on and off and so I took him to the shop.  I had set aside $500 to get the truck all tuned up and running ship shape.  When they called me though I felt like he was telling me that grandpa is plain getting old and we just need to do what we can to make him comfortable until he goes.  You know...like keep the fluid levels high and etc.  They charged me $70 for a new temp sensor and said there was nothing else they could do.  Really?  Pickles is DYING?  Sure it's old, misfires, and leaks oil but dang nabbit it's a good truck and there ain't nobody who can tell me otherwise.  Poor Pickles.  Anyways, we were able to get it to pass smog and so it will drive legally 2 more years.  So THERE!

-I just ate my weight in chips and salsa and kinda feel like I need to puke.

HAPPY TUESDAY!

Good Morning.

It is currently 5:11am.

I have been awake since 4:04am.

Isn't that special?

No.

No, it's not.

I am very angry at my body right now...we're kinda not speaking to each other.

When my eyes were open...I felt tired.

When I closed them...immediately wide awake.

Ridiculous.

So.

Since, you're all tucked away nice and cozy in your bed...well, depending on your time zone I guess...I thought I would blog.

So, how's it goin' guys?
Oh yeah?
Wow, that's cool.
How about me?
Oh...well, there's some cool stuff goin' on for shizzle.
STUFF LIKE I CAN'T FLIPPIN' FREAKIN' SLEEP!  (pardon the language...desperate times I tell ya).

Yeah.

Alright.

Well, that was a cool conversation.
Glad we had it.
Have a good rest of the week.

You Bake Me Happy Wednesday Winner...Take 2!

Alright!

So, apparently our first winner is M.I.A.  Sadness.  Now I must choose a new one.

But, not so sad for the NEW winner.

Which is....

NUMBER 12! 

hugmomNovember 7, 2012 11:26 PM

I think chocolate-dipped shortbread cookies arriving in the mail would be dreamy! But, to give your creative juices a choice anything chocolate would be much appreciated. The more chocolatey the better. Just so long as it isn't mixed with fruit - me no likey my chocolate contaminated by fruit! :-) Debbi

Yay Debbi!  I'm very excited to make your treat because I LOVE the above mentioned cookie.  yum yum yum.  May have to make a double batch and keep some for myself...don't mind if I do!  And I must agree completely on the chocolate/fruit mixage.  Not a fan either.  :)

Can you email me your address por favor???  a.evangel09@gmail.com

Congrats!

Until December!

A Season of Thankfulness...and Last Call

I wish it was more of a LIFESTYLE of thankfulness.  Not just a season...

Let me tell you about this wee lil' battle that exists with in me.

I wish to be thankful...always.  But like everyone and their mother I too covet and want MORE.  I think about all the things I WANT far more often than I think about all the things that I'm thankful for.  It's a struggle and it frustrates me.

I see a lot of blogs/magazines, and etc. that focus on style, fashion, beauty, home decore, and etc.  I like these things.  I crave and want these things.  I WANT to buy the latest fashion, the latest pair of boots, the latest pair of pants, the latest cute infinity scarf.  And then I look in my closet and see ALL the plants, ALL the shoes, the 5 scarves I already have and I feel just...frustrated.  Especially frustrated when I buy something that I really didn't need.  Frustrated that I feel convicted to live more simply and more purposeful and yet I fall into the trap of "I want, I buy" far too often. 

blah.

I understand that these things in and of themselves are not "bad".  But I also am beginning to realize that nothing is truly neutral....well, maybe somethings are.  Breathing, coughing, pooping, etc.  :)  But yeah...anyways.  As I was saying.  I personally have trouble managing the fine line between enjoying something sparingly and "going full out I'm totally obsessed I think about it 24/7."  Yeah.

Sometimes I just want to go through my closet and my whole house...strip it all bare of the things we don't REALLY need, sell it, and donate all the money to some far off village in Africa that doesn't know where their next meal/fresh water will come from.  But then...just in case you think I'm some sort of saint (we aren't really at risk of such a thing now are we?  Let's not try to fool ourselves. hehe.)  Other times though, I just want to walk through Anthropologie and buy every darn cute outfit/home decore item, sit in my house with everything scattered about, and relish in my beautiful material goods.  There.  There is the battle that exits with in me.  Always there.  Always battling for dominance.

All this to say.  I just want to GIVE.  I want to give a heck of a lot more and BUY a heck of a lot less.  I want to be so utterly thankful and content with what I have and where I'm at that the thought of adding to my needless collection of worldly goods just seems plain...boring.  Blah.  None desirable.

So yes, here's to a season of Thanksgiving!  Here's to a God that has blessed us so very abundantly (like really, we have food, $$$, clothing, warmth, clean water, health care).  Oh snap, look at that, the new Anthro catalog just came out!  :)  jk....sorta.

***SO on a completely different note...this is the last call for my You Bake Me Happy Wednesday Winner (scroll down to see if it was you!)  I really want to give you your treat but haven't heard from you soooooo, yeah.  If I don't hear anything by Saturday at noon I will have to pick a new winner!  boo hoo hoo.***

What's on YOUR table?

Thanksgiving is almost here peeps!  Can you believe it...it's like in a week!

Ahhhhh.

I am very excited.

I love to cook.  I haven't seen my fam in like forever.  And 4 whole days off.

I have MUCH to be thankful for.  Thank you Lord for all that you have blessed me with.

One of my favorite parts of T-Day is the meal planning.  I know, I'm weird.  But really, I peruse recipes for a good week or two before.  Keeping some favorites from the year before but also trying some new stuff.

This year, here are some of the gems that we plan to make.

First, we've never brined a turkey.  I really REALLY want to try it this year.  I was looking at this brine recipe here...

TURKEY BRINE via allrecipes.com

Oh stuffing!  I love stuffing.  Seriously, give me a plate of mashed potatoes and stuffing and I'm a happy duck.  This year I am torn between these two different stuffings.  I've made them both and they are delish but I'm a little partial to the Ina Garten one. 

Ina Garten SAUSAGE AND HERB STUFFING

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Martha Stewart MUSHROOM AND WALNUT STUFFING

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 This year we will conquer FRESH cranberry sauce.  Part of my family loves cranberry sauce but we've always used the can.  Not a fan.  I want to try it fresh and see if I like it that way.  This recipe is looking good and easy.  CRANBERRY SAUCE

SOURCE

It must be the southern in me but I feel like a Thanksgiving meal isn't Thanksgiving without some sweet potatoes.  This SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE is looking delish.

SOURCE

I'm also thinking some roasted brussel sprouts, and a fresh cherry pie for my pa!  He loves him some cherry pie but being he's the main fan of said pie he always ends up with a frozen one...while all the rest are fresh and homemade (and he never complains).  The man deserves a REAL cherry pie this year!  Give him his pie.

So yeah...here is a sampling of what should be on our Thanksgiving table.

What about ya'll?
Any recipes worth sharing?  Something you just can't go with out for Thanksgiving?  I would especially love any good tried and true brine recipes!

Yay for Thanksgiving!!!

You Bake Me Happy *WINNER*

So, it turns out Random.org CAN be trusted.

It didn't pick 6.

It picked 6 the last two times.

THIS time our friend random.org chose...

Number...

11!

Thank you random.org.

The 11th comment was....

Ames  November 7, 2012 7:48 PM

I think some kind of sweet coffee cake without nuts sounds delightful! With crunchy struselly stuff on the top!

You know Ames, I totally agree with you!  I think that DOES sound delightful!

So congrats!

Shoot me an email @ a.evangel09 at gmail.com with your address and I will stalk you...I mean, send you your yummy treat!  (totally kidding on the stalking.  i'm so not creeper status. ;)  )

Thanks for participating everyone.  Until next month! :)

You Bake Me Happy Wednesday: November

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Oh my!  Already???  Where in sam hill did this month go?

It's...YOU BAKE ME HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

If you're new here, YBMHW is the first Wednesday of the month where I, me, myself, yours truly, bakes you something delish and sends it to you in the mail...for free!  Out of the goodness of my sweet, kind, pure heart (ha!).

Wanna know the reasoning behind this madness???  Well, how boutchya read The Full Story behind You Bake Me Happy Wednesday!

The sum of it is...I LOVE to bake.  I LOVE to give people my baked goods.  I mean really, is there anything better than a homemade, from scratch, little morsel of goodness that didn't involve you stirring a spoon or turning on your own oven?  I.think.not.  Thus, I bake for you and mail it to your lovely house for you to eat and fill your belly.  yum.



So, here are the details...

FIRST,
I usually pick a theme for you to choose from...ie. cookies, bread, etc.  I though cannot think of what to do for November (I already know what's goin' down in December)  So, let's get a little funky crazy around these parts.  Hold on to your hats, you ready for this?

November is.... A WILD CARD!  Yep.  You got it.  If you want it and you think I can ship it then bring.it.on.  Bars, cookies, breads, anything...yum yum yum.  (I will exclude the shipping of cakes and pies right here and now for those of you who think I have super powers...I don't.  I'm just a normal gal).  :)

And if I pick your name (very randomly of course) I will mail you said treat (so you better pick wisely).  For example: Say my name is Tootsie and I left a comment saying that I would love chocolate chip peanut butter cookie bars to show up on my doorstep.  If I choose Tootsie, then I will mail her said cookie bar treat.  Understand?  Bien!.

The little drawing ends Sat at noon!  So comment before then.  Sat evening I'll let ya know who the lucky winner is!

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So, what yummy, sugary (or maybe not so sugary), delish (mailable) treat would YOU want to magically appear on your doorstep???  Ready.Set.Go!

If you won last month than unfortunately you can't enter this month...I know, I know.  But have no fear!  You are free to participate in the months after.  We just won't have any "two in a row" action.  Otherwise...go for it!  :)

Side Note:  I have no idea if there even ARE readers that I personally don't know reading this but if there are you are included in this too.  Yes, I will mail free baked goods to a complete stranger.  Don't be shy.  So long as you promise not to sue me for food poisoning.  Not that I've ever given anyone food poisoning...haha.  Ok, yeah.  Side not done. 

Kitchen Favies

I know...it's been a week again.  *Sigh*  Whatev.  :)

So, as I was cooking this weekend I started thinking about all the things that I have in my kitchen..."the gadgets and gizmos of plenty"  (Hey now, Little Mermaid.  Don't get it?   Yeah, ok, never mind).  Anyways, while we were living in Chile our kitchen was very sparse.  It had a set of plates and cups, 1 paper thin pot, 1 paper thin frying pan, 1 wooden spoon, 1 spatula, a set of measuring spoons (but no measuring cups), 2 knives (that were totally dull), and a teenie tiny cheese grater.  We managed to find the cheese grater and measuring spoons at a home store while we were there.  I also needed some sort of container to bake in.  Being that we were short on money and Jason loves pies we decided to buy a pie plate.  I baked chicken and dumplings, macaroni and cheese, chicken, and all kinds of things...including pies.  It turns out a pie plate is the one stop shop for baking dishes.  :)

I realized while in Chile that the food I made tasted no different than the stuff I made at home with all the fancy pots, pans, and gadgets.  Really, a simple kitchen with a few necessities goes a loooong way.  I don't like clutter and drawers of weird tools that you rarely use.

So, here, HERE, is a list of some of my top things that I love having in my kitchen.

#1.  Garlic press.  It's a gadget, I know.  But there is almost nothing worse than mincing garlic.  Blak.  I have the Oxo steel garlic press which when you flip it backward it cleans the garlic from the holes....SO cool.  It's also a beef cake of a press and smashes that garlic like no one's biz.




 #2. Kitchenaid.  I mean seriously, this has to be on the list.  Who doesn't LOVE their Kitchenaid.  Anything that you can push a button and walk away from while it does it's mixing magic is fantastic.  I have this lovely red one.  :)
 
#3. Ok, this is another high dollar item but I use it almost more than I do my Kitchenaid *gasp*.  I am in LOVE with my Cuisinart food processor.  I use it for pesto, grating large quantities of cheese, spaghetti sauce, all kids of sauces, purees, blah blah blah...I use it A LOT. 





 #4. Our coffee grinder.  It holds the coffee all fresh like and then we grind what we need every day.  Can it get any better than fresh ground coffee each day?  I.think.not.  We have this Cuisinart one.






#5.  Microplane Zester.  This is the coolest and nicest zester I've ever used.  It's sharp as heck and you zest things in like .5 seconds.  Watch out lemons, watch out whole nutmeg...I'm on the loose.  Love it!


#6.  Our Zyliss can opener.  I know, I know. It's a can opener.  But seriously people, this is the best, most bomb diggity can opener evah!  It's smooth as butter, turns like a champ, and locks on.  When you want to release it you just push that red button there and boom!  It releases.  It's magic I tell ya.  :)
 





 
Alright, so there you have it.  My some what short list of kitchen favs. 

Hope you enjoyed it.  :)

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday!

Bah!  How did almost a week go by?

I swear it was like 2 days ago that I wrote that last post.

Hmmm.

Oh well, how time flies!  :)  Things have been a little cuh-razy 'round these parts.  Work is ramping up which makes me a bit more tuckered out than usual.  Jason has about 6 weeks left of school/to finish his thesis.  Yikes.  6 weeks seems like a long time but it's not.  It will go by in a blink.

And it's fall.

*Sigh*

I can't believe how my heart has changed towards fall.  I used to semi-like like it...until winter came.  Then I wanted summer to come back.  But this year...this year is different.  I'm embracing all things fall.  Buying fall colored bouquets for our table, lighting my pumpkin scented Yankee candle (thank you Marshalls for having them for cheap), and already starting to plan our Thanksgiving menu.  Yes, I am welcoming fall with open arms.  Now if only I lived in a place where fall looked like THIS....

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Yes, if I lived in a place like this...Fall and I would be BFF's.  Ah, yes, maybe one day...

Well, anyways, this post was supposed to contain the pumpkins that we were to carve on Sunday but alas...I fell ASLEEP!  hahaha.  I ended up falling asleep on the couch on accident and Jason didn't have the heart to wake me up.  Then dinner time came and it was just too late to carve us some jack'o lanterns.  :)

So, here's to Sunday afternoon naps!
Here's to fall!
Here's to a happy Monday!

The World's Easiest, Most Impressive Dinner

I love to cook.

I think this is a known fact by now.

Jason has had some pretty darn good meals made by me...not gonna lie.  (He's also had some seriously nast meals too haha).

There is one meal though that gets a reaction from him every.time.I.make.it.

That's roast chicken with roast vegetables.

The EASIEST meal ever people.

And it's good.  Really good.

Here's what you do.  It's 5 easy steps.

1)  Go buy yourself a whole roasting chicken and some veggies.  I like to use potatoes and carrots...I also like to throw things in like parsnips and even celery if I have it.  Potatoes and carrots though are full proof and delish.

2) Preheat your oven to 425.

3) Take out the packet of goodies from the inside of your chicken (you know, all those lovely internal organs that SOMEONE must actually use since they include them).  Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on the outside of that chicken there and rub it all around.  Sprinkle with salt (somewhat liberally) and fresh ground pepper...stick in the the baking dish.

4) Cut up your veggies, coat with olive oil, and salt and pepper those suckers too.  Put them all snuggly and cozily in with your chicken.

5)  Put in oven.  Set timer and go do something super cool for 1 hour and 15 minutes or when you're thermometer says 180 when it's stuck into the chicken's ample bosom.

6)  I know, I only said 5 steps.  Ooops.  Step 6.  Watch the hubby or whoever is eating with you ooooh and awwww over the dinner that literally took 15 minutes to throw together (and minimal dishes may I add...a cutting board and a baking dish).

This is a great dinner.  The chicken is so moist and yummy...the veggies delish.  If you want a little extra salt you can throw some into the cavity of the chicken too.  yum.

Now go enjoy you some grub.

Your Opinion Please...

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Alright.

So, I'm not very adventurous in my clothing choice.  I think that a good pair of jeans with a cute white shirt and maybe a funky scarf is the perfect outfit.  I dress like Jennifer Aniston here (minus the hat) pretty much everyday that I can.  By the way...she regularly calls me for style advice.  I try to tell her that I have confidence in her ability to coordinate an outfit but she still relies on me to keep her lookin' good for the paparazzi.  It's a big job but someone's gotta do it.  HA!

Moving on.

So, we have been very frugal around these parts for a couple of years here.  Clothing was not in the budg.  Now that we have 2 incomes I've been slowly rotating clothes out that have got to go and purchasing some new stuff here and there.

Today at Target.  I got a skirt.  It's a maxi skirt.  I'm cool with maxi's.  I have a white and grey stripey one that I'm rather a fan of.  That one though hits the waist.  THIS one though...I think (the waist is TINY and the skirt is way too long to hit at the waist), is meant to sit higher.  In the dressing room I thought is was a little adventurous for me...but cute so why not. Jeans aren't allowed at work so if it can be worn at work it's even better.

Now that I have it home though...  I'm having second thoughts.  I can't decide if it should be worn with a belt (a fat one or skinny one), or if it should be worn plain or if it is just weird and should be returned all together.  I don't want to be walkin' around like some wannabe stylish fool who's totally missing the mark.  :)  So, whatchya think?

No Belt...with scarf.

No Belt...sweater. Hmmm.  Not sure what I think about this one.

Skirt with Fat Belt

Fat belt with jean jacket???

How about a skinny belt???

And since it's hard to tell from the pics this is the "texture".  It's a cotton pleated knit type of thingy.

Alright, now that we all know how awkward I look trying to take pictures of myself in an outfit...  What do you think?  Keep it?  Take it back?  It was $20.  Is it worth it?  Ready.Set.Go!

Wait...what?

I just finished the 5th book in the Anne of Green Gable Series...called 'Anne's House of Dreams'.

I was reading along and came across this GEM of a sentence.

Now I must warn you.  The following words may seem PG-13...or more like R.  I know right?  What?  Anne of Green Gables?

So let me paint the picture.  The following line from the book comes about to describe Anne and her friend Leslie's interactions among themselves and also with Anne's new little baby.

And I quote:

"When their work was done and Gilbert was out of the way, they gave themselves over to shameless orgies of lovemaking and ecstasies of adoration..."

What?  Don't look at me like that!

Don't be dirty!

It's Anne of Green Gables for crying out loud.

hahahaha.

Well, one thing is for sure.  We certainly don't use language in the same way that we used to.  I don't think it would go over so well to describe my time with a dear friend in the same way.

Anyways, it made me laugh.  I felt the need to enlighten you on the vocabulary of old.  Where sentences were full of words like orgies, lovemaking, and shameless ecstasies.  Oh the good ole' days.  :)   

It's Monday!

Happy Monday ya'll.

Hope the weekend was good.  Mine was alright.  Saturday was decently productive.  Sunday...mmmm...not so much.  Oh well.  :)

By the way, don't you hate it when you make the house look so clean and tidy on Saturday and then by mid-Sunday it looks like a cyclone went through it all over again.  Bah.  This is one of the very downsides to having a teenie-tiny cracker jack box of a house.  It doesn't take much to mess it up.  But, it works for us...and it only takes 20 minutes to clean back up again.  :)

So, I did some baking Saturday...you may have noticed by my facebook status.  If you didn't though, I made these delightful treats...

You know, just some pumpkin whoopie pies.  YUM!  And by the way.  I made them last night and they were good for sure.  But, we popped them in the 'frige and had some today and they where totally delicious.  Anything that involves spices and what not tend to be better the next day as the flavor have time to "meld".  If you want to take part in some fall baking you can find the recipe RIGHT HERE!
Oh, and don't do the tablespoon of each spice.  That seemed like a TON of spice. I did 1 1/2 tsp. of each...but feel free to do it all if you're feeling adventurous.  :)

I also FINALLY got around to spray painting this bird cage I found.  I scored a super cheap bird cage about a year ago.  At that time it was green.  Dark green.  Nothing against dark green but I imagined painting it this off white color that I already had.  Well, there it sat green.  Pretty soon I got used to it.  Even told myself, "Oh, it's not so bad...it matches our couch."  Hmmm.  It was ugly and I finally decided to quit being lazy and paint the sucker.  So I did.

See that huge paint cloth?  And I mean it's HUGE!  Guess where we got it from?!  The side of the road on 19th Ave. in San Francisco.  HA!  Jason found that thing and brought.it.home.  I tried to hide my, "What in the world did you bring that disgusting thing home for just because it's free doesn't mean you need it do you know how many germs are in that thing" look.  Do you know that look?  Ever dished it out to your husband?  I have a few too many times.  haha.  Turns out though that it's washable and we have used it so many times for our spray painting projects.  Guess I shouldn't always poo poo his scavenging abilities eh? 

And here is the newly painted off white bird cage in it's happy little spot.  See that wad of twigs in it?  It's a real life nest.  Like for reals.  Jason found it (are we sensing a trend here?) a while ago.  It's soooo cool.  So intricate.  Amazing that a little bird did that all by itself.

And just for the heck of it...I was sorting through pictures and found all these oldies.  They make me smile.  I like to think back on sweet memories and the carefree life we lived.  When we worried about grades in college and little else. 



























Awe.  We were such babies.  I had braces...he had crazy wild hair.  I had zits.  Ha!  Love it.  This was when we first started dating.  I was like maybe...20?  I felt so old at 20...now 20 seems so young.  Hmmm.

 And look at THIS!  This is my littlest brother back when he was a toddler.  Luke has never known me apart from Jason.  Jason entered the picture when Luke was an infant.  That's weird to think about. 

Ahhh.  Mono Hot Springs camping trips with the family.  I miss those trips.  :)

Alright, I'm done.  Thanks for strolling down memory lane with me!  Hope you have a great week!

Until we meet again!  :)

A Little Bitta Random

Alright.

So I totally have nothing to write about.

So, what am I doing on here wasting precious minutes of my fantastic life?

Because I've been on a bloggin' roll lately!  That's why.  Don't wanna ruin it.

As I've said before...sitting down to blog with nothing to say can be slightly dangerous...a little random (okay, a lot random)...and frankly a little uninteresting.  But.  Guess what?!  Here I am anyways.  Let's do this thang.

Can I just tell you about bouldering?  No?  Well, too bad.  Ok, so bouldering is rock climbing but with very intense, shorter routes, at (usually) low heights without a harness/rope, and etc.  I do this.  I would like to do THIS more...

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But, because I don't have a lot of time, and real rock is not very close to little ole' San Franny I do THIS...

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Yeah, I'm kinda hard core...what can I say.  HA!  Ok, so I don't do THAT per se...I do THAT but at a slightly less aggressive level.  But I go to a climbing gym and I LOVE it times like 12.

Anyways, two days ago I got relatively far on a V6 route.  The routes start at V0 and top out maybe around V12.  V12 is unheard of.  I've only seen boys accomplish V6 in the gym.  It was a proud "she-woman" moment.  I like feeling strong...and I like doing a route that a guy can't do.  Ah! I said it!  Ooops.  I know, pride before fall Anna...pride before fall. 

Moving on.

I love fall.  I used to hate it.  It meant summer warmth was leaving only to give me cold winter.  Than I moved to San Francisco and fall is San Francisco's best season.  By far.  I have been on a fall baking kick.  I love to make our little city bungalow all warm and cozy with scents of baked goods.  I also love Yankee candles...the fall scented ones.  Mmmmm.  Why are those candles SO expensive by the way???

Anyways, here are some fall treats I would like to make...just the thought of me getting out my mixing bowl and turning on my oven makes me all giddy.

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Anyways, that's all I got peeps!  Happy Hump Day yo!

Just For Fun

So, I don't know about you but that last post was way too serious for a Monday.  :)
In honor then of my 40th post on this new blog domain here are 40 questions to get to know yours truly.

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
I don't believe so.


2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
Sometime in July I believe.  :)


3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
When I try yes, usually I don't try though...and usually I don't really think about what it looks like.


4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Not a huge lunch meat fan.  I usually go veggie with my deli sandwiches.


5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
Nope.


6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Ooooh, good question.  I think so.  I like to laugh and I seem to be drawn to people who like to laugh too.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
Yes, but honestly I don't always like it.  Sarcasm can be funny...but it also can seem cynical and insensitive sometimes.

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
Yes

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Um.  Maybe.  Well, I heard it jacks your back up.  If that's true than, no.  If it's not then, yes I would.

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
Lucky Charms all the way!

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
No.

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
Ok, so, I'm going to be totally honest.  Physically, compared to the average girl...yes.  I rock climb and I love to work on the hardest most challenging routes.  I think it was the gymnastics to pole vaulting foundation that laid the way for rock climbing to be my thing.  Upper body strength is a must. Emotionally...hmmm.  I have my strong moments...and I have my I'm a big fat baby I will throw myself on the ground and have a tantrum because that's SURE to make things all better moments too. :)

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
mmmm.  I like Haagen Daazs.  All types.

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Complexion and smile.

15. RED OR PINK?
Red dude.

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
My complexion and the tendency I have to lack sympathy...I'm working on the 2nd one...I've come to accept the 1st one.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
My Nana....and the old man I used to take care of, Cliff.

18. WHAT COLOR SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Brown Rainbow sandals

19. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Broccoli with hummus

20. FAVORITE SMELLS?
warm bread in the oven and rain on hot asphalt.

21. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
my mama

22. MOUNTAIN HIDEAWAY OR BEACH HOUSE?
Mountain hideaway for sure.

23. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
gymnastics and ice skating...I am SO a girl!

24. HAIR COLOR?
blonde baby!

25. EYE COLOR?
blue grey

26. FAVORITE FOOD?
Anything Asian...seriously, San Francisco has ruined me for delicious Asian food...gimme sushi, Chinese, Indian, Vietnamese, and etc. any day

27. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Happy endings no doubt about it!

28. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
Attempted to watch Cider House Rules without knowing what it was about (the joy of library movies).  That is an AWFUL movie...full of abortion and incest and just plain brokenness.  Ugh.  I totally could not finish it

29. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
Red

30. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Summer all the way.

31. HUGS OR KISSES?
Hugs.  I have to have my morning hug from the huz.  It's a must.  :)  But I like kisses too.

32. STRENGTH TRAINING OR CARDIO?
Cardio.

33. COMPUTER OR TELEVISION?
My TV has no cable so as of now the computer is far more entertaining.

34. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
Anne of Windy Poplars

35. FAVORITE SOUND?
crunching leaves or the city in the morning

36. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
Sri Lanka.  I'm pretty sure that's about as far as you can get before you start coming back around the other side of the globe.

37. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
Las Vegas, NV

38. WHERE ARE YOU LIVING NOW?
San Francisco, CA

39. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR CAR?
grey...although when Jason first bought it I thought it was green (don't ask).  Since I have a deep passion for naming inanimate objects Jason asked me, "So, what's this car's name?"  To which I replied, "Pickles of course".  To which Jason replied, "What?  Why pickles?  Pickles are green."  To which I replied, "Yeah, I know, the truck is green...so Pickles it is."  The truck is grey...and it took about a month of Jason owning it before I finally agreed that yes, it's not green.

40. Do you like answering 40 questions?
Sure.  It makes for a fine blog post when you can't think of much else to say.  :)

Just Some Thoughts for a Monday...

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I totally thought that the competition/comparative living would stop after high school.

Seriously.

Then I got to college and I found myself comparing grades/friends/clothes/better answers to that very deep philosophical problem (philosophy major here, hollah!)/boys and etc.

Then as college came to an end I thought, ahhh, yes, now, NOW I will be content and fulfilled and no longer compare myself to anyone, right?

 But then it became about who we were dating, when we were going to get married.

And then when we were all happy and married it became...how much money do you make/is your car nice/do you own your house/how many readers does your blog have/do you buy organic/do I leave a smaller carbon footprint than you...

And though I'm not there yet with kids it becomes...do you co-sleep/do you let them cry it out/how long did you breastfeed for/do you have the latest and greatest new baby contraption/what the HECK you actually let your child TOUCH the Target cart? (Seriously, I actually saw one mother reprimand another because she didn't use the towel sanitizers on the cart before she put her 3 year old in.  REALLY???  News flash lady...YOUR mom probably didn't use sani-wipes on the carts you rode in and you're still okay...albeit, not very nice...but that's a different issue.)

Anyways, I think I thought that as you get older you have less to worry about, you're more mature, you're more secure...you don't size others up as often.  I have realized though that I was wrong.  So wrong.  Really, in high school we had 4 worries.  4 things to think about.

1) How do I look? Am I pretty/handsome etc?
2) How are my clothes?
3) Am I well liked?
4) Will I kick that girl's butt at the State cross country meet?  (Oh wait, you didn't have that worry? weird.)

It seems now that we all have way more than 4 basic insecurities.  We have all those PLUS a ton more. 

I just sometimes feel overwhelmed at how competitive life feels at times.  And I feel really refreshed when I hang out with people who aren't interested in the competition of life.  Who live simply and purposefully.  Not purposing to simply be the best dressed, the best at this, the best at that.  I think the San Francisco life is just catching up with me.  We live in a very rich city that is competitive in everything.  Parking, driving, walking, renting a house, getting an appointment with your doctor for that matter.  Everything is a race to beat the person next to you.  Some of this is inevitable with living in a large city and I've grown rather accustomed to it to be honest.

But I don't want to become accustomed to the habit of comparative living.  We really only to need to compare ourselves to one person to put us in our place.  That's Jesus and next to Him we all fall a little short...you know...just a smidgen.  :)

So, all this rambling is to say...I just want to live and be me.  And have the values and beliefs that are honoring to God...and not feel silly or dumb if I think something is important that someone else doesn't agree with or vice versa.  So, I like to shop organic and you don't.  That's fine!  And say you're totally into the idea of co-sleeping with your kids and I'm not.  That's fine too.  We're all different and why not embrace it instead of judging one another?  Because we all think WE are the right one's, that's why hahaha.  :)  But, maybe, just maybe...there isn't always one right answer for everything.  Maybe each person has a solution that is unique to them and their personality.  (I know, this causes me to claim some sort of relativism which is so not me...but only on minor stuff people...don't get all excited.)

I also don't want to focus so much on silly things that go out of fashion in a year but to invest, and be filled with the joy of our Lord.  It's so hard to do these things.  I know I suck at it.  In the end though, I just want to be who God made me to be without fear of judgement...and even more so I want others to be who God made them to be with out me or anyone else judging them.  I mean really, why can't we all just love each other?  (I know, I am soooo hippie sometimes.)  :)

Peace!  <3

**Just wanted to say that there was no event in particular that has spurred this post.  It's just something that I've observed/experienced in life.  Something I have been processing lately :)  **

~You Bake Me Happy WINNER~

It's time to announce the You Bake Me Happy Wednesday winner.  I'm kinda excited.

So, www.random.org has chosen...

Number....

Seis.

Sechs.

Sita.

Six!!!!

Ok, so I'm starting to question the true randomness of Random.org.  Really?  Six was last month too.  Hmmm.  What are the chances?  Anyways, back to the winner...

And the 6th comment was....

Kali:  That pumpkin bread you just mentioned with cinnamon drizzle icing...you just made my mouth water! And I'm pretty sure my girls would gobble it up right with me! 

Yay Kali!  Congrats to you!  :)

I'll shoot you an email to get your address!

Happy Weekend everyone!

You Bake Me Happy Wednesday--October

Oh hey now.  Guess what!?

It's...YOU BAKE ME HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

The first Wednesday of the month where I, me, myself, yours truly, bakes you something delish and sends it to you in the mail...for gratis (that's free in espanol if you weren't sure).  :)

Wanna know the reasoning behind this madness???  Well, how boutchya read The Full Story behind You Bake Me Happy Wednesday!

The sum of it is...I LOVE to bake.  I LOVE to give people my baked goods.  I mean really, is there anything better than a homemade, from scratch, little morsel of goodness that didn't involve you stirring a spoon or turning on your own oven?  I.think.not.  Thus, I bake for you and mail it to your lovely house for you to eat and fill your belly.  yum.



So, here are the details...

FIRST,
Being we are now in October I decided the thing that screams fall and comfort and all together coziness are quick breads.  You know, pumpkin bread, banana bread, coffee cake, you get the picture.
So, all you have to do is leave a comment with the treat that you would be overjoyed to have show up on your doorstep. Bring on the breads.  Banana, cranberry, pumpkin, cinnamon streussel, zucchini...you name it.  And if I pick your name (very randomly of course) I will mail you said treat (so you better pick wisely).  Por ejemplo: Say my name is Ruby and I left a comment saying that I would love pumpkin bread with cinnamon drizzle icing to show up on my doorstep.  If I choose Ruby, then I will mail her pumpkin bread with cinnamon drizzle icing.  Understand?  Bueno.

The little drawing ends Sat at noon!  So comment before then.  Sat evening I'll let ya know who the lucky winner is!

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So, what yummy, sugary (or maybe not so sugary), delish bread would YOU want to magically appear on your doorstep???  Ready.Set.Go!

Side Note:  I have no idea if there even ARE readers that I personally don't know reading this but if there are you are included in this too.  Yes, I will mail free baked goods to a complete stranger.  Don't be shy.  So long as you promise not to sue me for food poisoning.  Not that I've ever given anyone food poisoning...haha.  Ok, yeah.  Side not done. 

And just in case you need some "quick bread" inspiration...here are a few delightful one's on Pinterest.

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Oh my yum.  Source

Cinnamon Quick Bread.  Source