A New Dog Bed

They get so excited over anything new! I took Riley to school tonight and since we were early we wandered around PetSmart. I noticed dog beds on a super sale so I put one on the floor, he sniffed it. I put this super soft one on the floor and he jumped on, layed down, rolled around...loved it! Hmm, well time for class. At the end of class we get random coupons and it just so happened I got a $3 off coupon for that brand of dog bed. It was a sign, so both dogs are happily enjoying their fluffy new bed, and I enjoy that I spent next to nothing for it! The only problem is they both cant fit, or havent figured out a way to.

Yesterday I Made - Mini Cupcakes with Peppermint Frosting

I could only last 7 weeks without baking something! I just wanted one! I halved the recipe below on both the cake and the frosting. They turned out very yummy. YELLOW CAKE

3/4 c. softened butter

3 eggs (30 min room temp)

2 1/2 c. flour

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 3/4 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/4 c. milk

1. Grease and lightly flour muffin pans. Or use muffin trays. In a medium bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

2. In large bowl beat butter on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar 1/4 c. at a time till well bleneded. Beat another two min. Add 1 egg at a time beating after each. Beat in vanilla.

3. Alternately add in flour mixture and milk beating on low speed until combined. Spread batter into pans.

3. Bake in 375* for 11-12 min. (mini muffin pans) check center of one with toothpick! Remove from pans once finished and let COOL COMPLETELY on wire racks. Frost with frosting below.

WHITE FROSTING - PEPPERMINT

1 c. shortening

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp peppermint extract. *(or lemon, almond, orange, ,etc.)*

4 1/2 c. powder sugar (about 1 lb)

3 -4 TBS mik

1. Beat in med bowl shortening, vanilla, and extract for 30 seconds on med. speed. Slowly add half the powdered sugar, beating well. Add 2TBS of milk. Gradually beat in remaining powdered sugar and enough remaining milk to reach spreading consistency.

REMEMBER: I HALVED THIS RECIPE TO MAKE 28 MINI CUPCAKES. THIS FULL RECIPE IS FOR LARGE CUPCAKES OR TWO 8" CAKE ROUNDS. :)

Projects that keep me busy

I have been finding little projects and small house touch ups here and there to keep myself occupied. 6 weeks down, 13 to go! Here are some of the things I have been up to...So I picked out new green rugs for the house and I loved them. But they didnt match the blue couch...so I found a couch-cover to brighten the room and match the new rugs (kind of backwards I know!) I just got it today and wrestled it on the couch, so Im still deciding whether I love it or not. Im thinking it is a nice change.
I am about half finished scrapbooking our wedding. There are so many pictures! Here is just a couple of pages that were out. I am very particular when I scrapbook, so it is taking me a long time to work through it. But I love it so far and am so happy I will have these memories forever!
I kept all of the cards given to us, and cut up the romantic sayings and beautiful pictures to be included into the scrapbook. This is my favorite page (it happens to be the first page in the book.) Thanks Dad and Wendi for the best card of all, the scripture made the first page perfect!

Above this mirror was so boring! I found a bundle of green eucalyptus, tied it together to form a swag looking thing and stuck some flowers on to hide the ties. I love it, and it makes the hallway smell SO relaxing!

This brightens up my kitchen. I had the hardest time picking out the flower/color combination for this window. But with the lights added, it makes doing dishes a little nicer!

My Valentine

Flowers arrived at my door on Saturday. My hubby found a sweet way to surprise me with his love, even if he is halfway around the world!

The card says he is excited to one day spend a Valentines Day together. Somehow throughout the years, we have never spent an actual Valentines Day together. Thank you my love, for the beautiful flowers! I love you, too. :)

2010 update

Thoughts so far in my New Year - 2010

Outside the window... it has stopped raining. Not too cold, not be any means warm and without the rain, it is a nice Washington winter morning.

I'm thinking... how blessed I am. I have more than everything I need. Even if the hubby is away, I am still truely blessed.

I'm thankful for... my husband who is away providing for his family. And my family, who is taking care of me while I am manning the fort.

I'm wearing... jeans and a button-up. Even on days off, I still dress like a teacher.

I am remembering... to pick up things for Steve's package. And that I need to mail him a package. A little taste of home.

I'm going... to my in-laws soon. Time for baking, crocheting and some needed family time.

I'm currently reading... Two books by Martha Peace. Damsels in Distress and The Excellent Wife. Both use the Bible to help encourage women in the world we live in today. Damsels in Distress goes with the women's group I am involved with at church. Both are a must read for every Christian woman/wife!

I'm hoping...that May may come a little bit faster. Or that Steve may arrive home earlier than planned.

I'm noticing that... God is busy working on my prayers. Lately I really feel He is here. And for that I am so thankful! I am not alone.

I am pondering these words... " We wait in hope for the Lord: he is our help and our shield In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you." Psalm 33:20-22 These words have been mine this week, I can't seem to get enough of this passage.

From the kitchen... The kitchen has been pretty dead since I have no hubby to cook/bake for.

One of my favorite things... lately it has been waking up next to my puppies. They used to sleep in the crates, but they sleep with me now, and are always so excited when the alarm goes off. It is hard to wake up in a bad mood when someone is so excited to see me awake.

Goals I am working toward... Oh where do I start! Well three goals (not resolutions!) I have for this year are to lose weight and keep it off, save more and spend less, and make more charitable contributions. So far so good on all three of those. Another goal is to become more involved with our church, that is going great too.

A picture I would like to share...

Last college roomie vacation. I just love this photo. August 2008

I'm just practicing

Miss Reagan - with beautiful pink toes I was busy painting mine, and she wouldnt leave me alone. So, she sat patiently while I painted hers, too.
I think I need a daughter...but Reagan works just fine for now. Im sure she is much more patient than a small child anyway!

Dear Steve, clearly I am bored...please hurry home!

Adventures in Japan

Steve went to Chinatown (in Japan) and came across a museum. The first two pics below are the same portrait, taken from two different angles. He said is startled him when he walked around the corner to it, because it just pops out at you and wasnt flat. But from the head on pic below, you would never know!

Then of course there has to be a little fun with him and his buddies. This would be my man pretending to be eaten. Yeah, hes mine. :) Almost 3 weeks down, 16 more to go!

New Indestructable Toys...

...I don't think so!! Not with my dogs anyway!This large orange ball was designed to put small treats in one of the holes and they shake around inside it, and all the other holes are supposed to make it so the dog cant get a great grip and chew it apart...well it must not be designed for beagles who get mad when they cant get the treat and is able to chew it anyway. Good thing the material is pretty strong, but still I dont see it lasting forever. On a great note, it keeps them occupied for SO LONG, I cant even get the treats out once inside.

So I was excited that this was made from firehose and that little label actually says, "Built Tough." Yeah...10 min in and she has chewed a small section from the corner. Ahh, so much for tough. This is a supervised fetch toy only now.

If you know of any extremely durable dog toys that cant be torn and chewed up rightaway, please let me know! I would like toys to last a little longer and not have to worry about pieces being chewed off and swallowed!

But, for now, they are still having fun. And that makes me happy.

The Laser

I discovered one day that my dogs hates the flashlight on the floor, so when I tested a laser pointer, they went crazy! This was on a day where it was too rainy and gross to get them out for a walk, so they worked out their energy by chasing the little red light.

Last Month I Made - Peppermint Bark

I researched a lot of differnt recipes and kind of created my own, super simple version of peppermint bark. I'm way behind on my blog, but enjoy for next year!

2 bags milk chocolate chips

2 bags white chocolate chips

12 smashed candycanes

peppermint extract

wax paper

1 cookie sheet with edges

1. Place wax paper on cookie sheet, making sure it hangs over the edges of the sheet.

2. Melt milk chocolate chips. (Either lower heat on stove, or microwave in 30 sec. increments) Mix a drop or two peppermint extract.

3. Pour into wax paper cookie sheet and even out over the entire bottem of sheet. Put in fridge while melting white chocolate chips.

4. Pour melted white choc. (w/ 2 drops peppermint) on top of solid milk chocolate. Coat top with smashed candycanes and gently press in to secure chunks into white chocolate.

5. Place cookie sheet in fridge for an hour.

6. Lift solid block out of cookie sheet by wax paper and put on cutting board. Find a big sharp chopping knife and strong husband to cut the Peppermint Bark into squares.

Christmas is all month long!

"He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree." ~Roy L. Smith

Our first Christmas Tree! We set it up the day after Thankgiving together. Add a little fire, Christian music and peppermint coffee, I think we started a fun family tradition. I love it!


So at first he acted a bit annoyed at my need for a perfect tree, (you cant just throw lights on they must be woven in!) but after a while ditched his hum-bugness and secretly I know he enjoyed himself! :)

One of my 3 mini trees around the house. I absolutely love the Christmas holiday and our house is decorated all over. I love coming home and walking into a warm, inviting, holiday home.

"There has only been one Christmas - the rest are anniveraries." W. J. Cameron

Reagan's Story

Last Monday I came home to a very sick dog. After a few hours of continuous vomiting, I finally broke down and rushed her to the Animal ER. Well after a couple hours and ex-rays later, we agreed to surgery because they beleived she ate a foreign object. Well it turns out she had a rare condition in which her stomach was literally turning inside her body. Had I waited till morning to take her in, she may not have been able to be saved. Luckily, she is doing great now, 10 days later. Her stomach was sewed to the inside of her cavity, so there is no worry about it flipping again. Here she is today. Notice how her "cone of shame" is more than beat up after 10 days. When she was on her pain pills she was easy to keep down and quiet. Now that she feels better and doesnt have meds to zonk her out, she is a crazy boxer. One that has figured out how to eat the cone and run into walls to crack it!
Bless her heart! This was the night we were able to pick her up after surgery. I felt so bad for her, she was miserable and terrified of the cone. My poor baby girl.

You can see her huge scar if you look close enough at the picture.

This was the night we brought her home. Riley has never seen a cone and was checking it out. It was the cutest thing to see him nudge the cone up to poke his head in on her. He missed her so much when she was gone!

Happy Thanksgiving

Steve and I spent this year's Thanksgiving at his parents house. We had a nice relazxing time with each other and as always the cooking was amazing! The day after I kicked off the holiday spirit with the other crazies at 4:00am and completed a great majority of my Christmas shopping! I absolutely love shopping on Black Friday!

Apparently Steve snuck in a picture of me when I was frosting brownies. They were very good. Of course another thing I ate way too much of!

We have been very occupied with Reagan lately. Pictures of that soon to come. A week after emergency surgery she is still wearing "the cone of shame." I will post that complete story to you all when I upload pictures. She sure scared us, but seems to be healing just fine now.

Today I Made: Candycane Kiss Sugar Cookies

I was planning to bake sugar cookies tonight, and while waiting for the dentist, I had the idea of adding smashed candycanes to the dough and a candycane kiss on top. Who would have thought the dentist would give me such a sweet idea!

Hershey Candycane Kisses (1 bag)

6 smashed candycanes

2/3 c. butter

3/4 c. sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg

1 TBS milk

1 tsp. vanilla

2 c. flour

1. Smash candycanes - I double bagged 6 canes and had my hubby smash in garage with hammer. :) You want them like fine flakes. Not too mush powder and not chunky.

2. In a large mixing bowl beat butter on med. speed for 30 seconds.

3. Add sugar, baking powder and salt. Beat until blended.

4. Add egg, milk and vanilla. Beat until blended.

5. Beat in candycane until blended.

6. Beat in flour. If it becomes hard to beat use wooden spoon for rest.

7. Chill dough for at least 30 min.

8. Preheat oven to 375*. Roll dough into 1/5" balls. (use flour on your palms!)

9. Bake for 9-11 mins, or until very bottom edges are brown. Unwrap kisses while baking.

10. Let sit on tray for 1 min. Press Kiss into center of cookie. Remove immediately and let cool on wire wracks.

My hunter is home!

Steve went to Montana for a week to go deer hunting with his Grandpa and work buddy, Scott. He had a blast learning from all the old pros and having valueable man-time. They not only shot the deer, but gut it and packaged it all on their own! Thank you Grandpa and Val for giving them this experience! Below is our freezer with most of the meat. (Some was immediately brought to the inside freezer.) He made maple sausage with some of the ground meat and we enjoyed that Monday morning as a breakfast burrito. I dont think I have ever had meat that was killed on Thursday and eating it on Monday! He also surprised me with a treat: Montana wine and taffy. PERFECT!

Today I Made - French Toast Casserole

Here is another one of Steve's new favorites! It's a neat way to enjoy french toast.

1 loaf french toast bread or cinamon swirl bread - cut in cubes

6 beaten eggs

2 tsp vanilla

3 c. milk

cinnamon (optional)

powdered sugar

syrup

1. lightly grease 13x9x2 baking dish.

2. place cubred bread in dish

3. Beat eggs, milk, vanilla with whisk. Pour over bread. Cover and refridgerate at least one hour ( I do overnight)

4. uncover - bake at 350 degrees for 50 min.

5. Let cool 5 minutes. Sift powdered sugar over top.

6. Serve with syrup.

YUMMY!!

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

Lately I have been very busy substituting. I had no idea I would have this much to do! I love that I am able to finally use my degree and teaching lisence. I think I can confirm I am a high school teacher. The other levels are fun for a day or so, but other than that, I just love teaching high school. Its also nice when I dont want to work, or make other plans, I just check that I am unavailable and wont get called!

Steve has been preparing and is super excited to go deer hunting in Montana with his gradpa and buddy, Scott. I am excited for him to go out and have "man time" and play in the wilderness. I am also very excited for fresh lean meat to return home, which will last us for about the next year. There is something I love about his desire to provide for our family in every way he can. :)

And of course, the pics above are of Reagan cuddling with Riley. Generally, she gets what she wants with him, and he is pretty patient. Every once in a while he gets mad, but clearly not tonight. Reagan is getting SO big!

A very excited Reagan

We had to leash walk Reagan for 2 weeks after she was spayed and she hated it! When we got the okay from the vet that she was all healed, we let her out to run. This is a short clip of the very long time she ran off all her stored up energy!

Today I Made - Blueberry Cheesecake (No-bake)

This cheesecake is so yummy! I've made it twice now and it is definately one of Steve's favorite! I like it because it is ridiculously easy and no baking involved!

3 c. crushed graham crackers

8 TBSP melted margarine (1 stick)

1 c. sugar

4 pkg Philidelphia Neufchatel cream cheese, soft

1/2 c. blueberry preserves or pie filling

1 pkg frozen blueberries: thawed and drained

grated lemon peel from 1 lemon

1 tub light cool whip, thawed

1. Mix graham cracker, melter margarine and 1/4c. sugar. Press firmly into 13x9 pan. Refrigerate while making filling.

2. Beat cream cheese and 3/4c. sugar in large bowl on medium until blended. Add preserves and lemon peel, mix until blended. Gently fold in blueberries. Fold in cool whip.

3. Pour over crust. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

Wedding Reception - August 14.09

This was our beautiful second wedding cake! We had one layer the traditional white with vanilla filling, lemon with raspberry filling and pink champagne with champagne filling.

The reception was held at Steve's parents house. We felt so blessed to have around 100 people come out to show their love and support for us. His parents made that day very special for us and all of our family. Thank you!

Loving Fall

Even though we chose not to celebrate Halloween, I still bought pumpkins for only one reason: the seeds! I took the seeds, cleaned them off, tossed them in a bowl with cooking spray, johnny's seasoning (yellow bottle) and a dash of salt. Steve enjoyed eating them!

Seahawks in Seattle

Last Sunday Steve and I got up early to hear to Seattle for the Seahawks-Jaguar game. We arrived real early and met up with a handful of his co-workers to tailgate. I have never "tailgated" before and it was definately an experience. The game was a lot of fun and a bit embarrassing for the Jaguars, 40-0!

After the game we avioded the packed ferry and opted to wander about a local Asian market and grocery store. Steve and his buddy reminised about Japan and all the good eats they had there. We jumped on the less crowded ferry back to Bremerton and relaxed a bit. I was exhausted by the time we arrived home!

Nonetheless it was wonderful to have a day trip with my husband, especially to Seattle!

On Saturday, our baby Reagan gave me a bit of a scare. I noticed her ears were very thick and tender when I woke up, and within a couple hours, her whole face and eyes were swollen. Thank goodness the vet squeezed us in immediately because my little boxer was having a severe allergic reaction (most likely from a insect bite). Well after a couple shots and three days on benadryl, she is back to normal, but man, was I scared! Imagine when I have a sick child, and not just my dog. Oh, man!

TODAY I MADE: Cake Brownies

These brownies taste like a light chocolate cake, or a really fluffy brownie. I could make the same thing from a box, but I am satisfied knowing it is from scratch, and I know EXACTLY what is in them. So easy and yummy!

3/4 c. butter

1 1/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 c. milk

1. Grease 15x10x1 pan (or slightly smaller) with cooking spray, set aside. Preheat oven to 350*.

2. Melt butter in med. saucepan. Stir in cocoa and sugar until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and beat with wooden spoon until combined.

3. In small bowl mix flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add flour mixture and milk alternately into chocolate mix, beating with spoon after each addition.

4. Pour batter into pan. Bake 15-18 min or until toothpick is clean when inserted.

5. Cool for 2 hours on wire rack.

*You can add nuts if desired before baking. I do not like brownies with nuts, so I left them out.

Graduation memories

So I love looking at these two photos. The first one was Steve and I my high school graduation in 2005 and the second is this last June 2009 at college graduation. Look how much we've changed!

A little change for Fall!

I decided that my long hair was too much, and had about 8" sheered off! I love the new look and LOVE that the styling time is half! On this photo day I was all ready for my lunch date with Steve. We used one of our wedding giftcards for SilverCity and enjoyed a free afternoon out. THANK YOU!

TODAY I MADE - English Muffin Bread

This is one of the easiest breads I've made yet! If you like English Muffins, this makes two great loaves. I have no picture, it was eaten too quickly!

Cornmeal (for dusting)

6 c. flour

2 pkg active dry yeast

1/4 tsp baking soda

2 c. milk

1/2 c. water

1 TBL sugar

1 tsp. salt

1. Grease two 8x4x2" pans. Lightly spinkle with cornmeal. Set aside.
2.In lg. bowl combine 3c. of the flour, the yeast and baking soda. Set aside.
3. In med. saucepan heat and stir milk, water, sugar and salt just until warm (approx 120*F). Using a wooden spoon, stir milk mix into flour mix. Stir in remaining flour. (This may take some muscle!)
4. Divide dough in half. Place each half into prepared pan. Sprinkle tops with cornmeal. (My bread loaves looked a but funny, but it will bake out). Cover and let rise in a warm place for 45 min. or until about double in size.
5. Bake in 400* oven for 25 min or until golden brown. Immediately remove bread from pans and cool on wire rack.

** Let cool completely before sealing for storage, bread will mold quicker if it steams just slightly!
*** Eat plain or toast for a yummy breakfast!