Strawberry Rhubarb Squares

Oh my word these are SO yummy...

Make a regular pie crust and press it into a square 8-by-8.

Pie Crust Recipe
1 c. flour
1/3 c. shortening
1/4 c. water

Combine 4 c. chopped rhubarb and 1 c. chopped strawberries. Add 3/4 c. sugar and a few TBSP. of corn starch. Pour into baking dish over crust.

Combine 1/2 c. butter, 1 c. oats, 1/2 c. whole wheat flour, 3/4 c. brown sugar or evap cane juice crystals (not white sugar). Cut in dry ingredients with butter until clumpy. Sprinkle over fruit mixture.

Bake at 350 for an hour. Cool before serving.

Proud of myself

I did all sorts of editing here on my blog... and even figured out how to get TABS and how to put stuff in them :D I am not very technically savvy so I am basking the fact that I have figured out how to do something that is not on Google/Gmail on the computer without my brother's assistance. I would love to put pictures up too but since I never take any, it's kind of hard to put them up. Oh well...

Cinderella and jean skirts

The other day my mother referred to me as "Cinderella". Completely in jest, mind you, but it made me smile all the same. :-) I had just gotten done cleaning a ton, and was getting dressed to go to the Y, so she made mention of my being Cinderella working and then finally getting to go the "ball", er I mean, Y. (Thankfully I didn't need the sparkly dress and tiara... basketball shorts are so much more practical you know ;-)



I also saw a girl the other day who wore her jean skirt over her jeans... her skirt was about two shades darker than her jeans, and in my opinion, they clashed rather badly. Don't get me wrong here... I am the proud owner of three jean skirts that I wear often. But putting it over your jeans? Hmm. That was my "Wow I really need to write this down or tell someone so I can stop thinking about it" of the week. :-D To all the girls who wear their jean skirts over their jeans, I apologize for offending you. :-)

We had our play this past weekend... I was playing the role of this really stuck-up, haughty, all together obnoxious mother. I had fun being dramatic and totally not caring how ridiculous I was. I better not have cared, cause here is the dress I wore...

Along with a cowboy-style lacy hat with a big (oh no, I mean BIG) bow in the back... it was a complete outfit. :-D

My Summer has suddenly gotten super full... I get to go help my Aunt drive to our family reunion and take care of her girls while my Uncle has to work. Since our whole family cannot go, this is kinda the next best thing because I avoid the 50 hour road trip. ;-) I am super excited! My cousins are 1 and 3, and two of the cutest people on the planet. Did I mention our family reunion is at the BEACH... I am a fan of sunshine and splashing in the ocean and walks in the sand. My Grandmother is coming for a visit in June too so we are planning things to do with her. I am SO excited to go to FCA Camp again this summer... it was such a great week last year and this year Mariko and Abby are coming too which is a bonus :-D I am taking Logic and Ethics over the summer... so far I am really liking Ethics, but I haven't started Logic yet. I am also going to visit family in July for two weeks. And of course..... more basketball. :-D

But before Summertime rolls in, I have several friends graduating this year. It's kind of weird how more and more people I know graduate every year... I think so far I am going to 4 graduations... so the last week of May and first week of June are filled with those. :-) Makes me think about MY life after graduation too... hmmm.


This past week I have made some really yummy food... quiche, cookies, pie, soup, chicken salad, bread, spinach salad... makes me hungry. I cooked a whole bunch of meals on Friday so now we have 23 meals in our freezer!!! Pretty exciting!

We had another birthday at my house. Hayden turned 15. This particular birthday yielded lemon meringue pie which was a plus for me since I am not a lemon meringue pie fan. :-D


And in other news.... I AM GETTING MY DRIVER'S LICENSE... soon. Not sure of the precise date yet. But SOON. And I'm pretty excited about that!!!!!

What's new and exciting in your life?

On my mind...

We had another birthday at my house this past week.... birthdays mean sugar around here. And this particular birthday meant berry pie. Mmmmmmm.



I bought myself a necklace that looks kinda like this...


I also have been enjoying Andrew Peterson music quite a bit... I now have 3 of his CDs and enjoy them thoroughly. I think my favorite songs are "The Chasing Song", "The Far Country", "After the Last Tear Falls", "Let Me Sing", "Mystery of Mercy", and "Little Boy Heart Alive". I do believe that the music helps me do dishes better and write papers faster. :)

I've been getting a lot of reading done lately... especially in the warm sunshine outside which is so inviting. :)


I've been commissioned to teach a Keepers at Home group to my sisters and some of their friends next year so I've been thinking about that quite a bit and starting to plan. I know, I know, it is only May and we won't start til September but preparation and preparedness are important to me. :) I think it will be a fun time for the girls and for me too.

School is almost out!! I've been thinking about the summer and all that it brings...like volleyball and iced coffee and warm weather and sleeping in and more basketball and no school ... and ya. :D
 


In fact, I just bought myself a pair of flip-flops. And they look just like this. $2.50 - Go Old Navy! :)



And a particular verse that's been on my mind lately... "The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." Proverbs 16:9


I made THE YUMMIEST sandwich the other day... with tomato, pesto, and fresh mozzarella on whole wheat toast. Can you say HEAVENLY?
 

And, of course, what's always on my mind...

Spinach Pie Recipe

Really yummy recipe :)

Spinach Pie

Mix the following and split dough in half. Roll out half into pie plate and save the other half for the top.
2 1/4 c. Whole Wheat Flour
2/3 c. Olive Oil
1/3 c. Water
~
2 Garlic Cloves, crushed
1/2 Small Onion, chopped
3 c. Spinach
1 c. Grated cheese (Technically it calls for Feta, but I have used Mozzarella and Monterey when I've made it)
1/4 c. Milk, cream, or half-and-half
3 Eggs
Salt

Saute onions and garlic. Add in spinach until wilted. Mix all other ingredients together and add to spinach/onion/garlic mixture, mixing well. Pour into pie crust, place other crust on top. (Lattice top does not work well... just in case you wondered) Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes until bubbly. YUMMY

:)

Now it is MY turn to share a few of the many things that I am blessed with :-)

Some of the Many Things That Make Me Smile:
-All the inside jokes I have with various family members, especially with my Mom
-When my siblings and little kids in general say and do the cutest things
-Getting a stack of good books from the library
-Adventures in Odyssey conversations with Mercy
-When my brother asks me if his clothes match before he leaves the house
-Playing board games with my family, especially our version of CatchPhrase
-Listening to Liberty tell her stories
-When things are organized and I know right where to find everything
-Saturday night basketball and volleyball... and basketball in general

So this list could go on and on and on as I am so blessed with so many things in my life!

Life Lately...

Spring time is here... FINALLY! I am a huge fan of sunshine, green grass, warmth, and the general happy feelings associated with the Spring, and am oh SO excited that we are out of the I'm-freezing-cold-and-wearing-7-layers-of-clothing-while-drinking-hot-tea-under-10-blankets-shivering stage. Good-bye snow storms!

Spring around my house is often referred to as "birthday season", as all of our birthdays are in the Spring, with the exception of my Mom's August birthday. So far we are 2 birthdays into it...

Holly's comes first on March 21st and she turned 8. To celebrate, our family headed off to the YMCA with a few extra little girls in tow and swam in their massive (and COLD, I might add) pool for several hours. If I got a dime for every time I went down the water slide, I'd be a millionaire. But it was thoroughly worth it seeing the pure joy on the faces of the girls and hearing their cute little giggles.

My birthday comes 15 days after Holly's and I turned 16... My grandparents came up here for it and it was such a fun time to have them with us. We got to venture to The Olive Garden which is my personal favorite (along with my sister, Holly's) and then came home to brownies and mint chocolate chip ice cream. Costco seems to be my favorite place... As my family gave me the Costco case of Trident Layers Strawberry Citrus gum (Insert angelic chorus), the Costco big bag of dried mangoes, and my very own Costco case of JUNIOR MINTS -- 24 boxes! And so far I have enjoyed only one box of the Jr Mints, one of the packs of gum, and about three servings of mangoes... I am attempting to make them last til my next birthday but I'm sure they won't as soon as my siblings find my new hiding spot. :-)

Hope, Holly, and I are doing track this Spring and are really enjoying it. Hope is nurturing her love of running around and expending energy... and Holly learned what it is like to be sore which was ADORABLE when she was trying to explain to me what hurt. They are also learning that you need to keep your shoes on while you're at track, and other life lessons. lol.

I have been playing basketball twice a week doing a program called FIT which I am really enjoying. It's a lot of drills and conditioning work, and is so fun! The drills get harder each time, and I am really being challenged and learning a lot.

Other than that, life is fairly normal... school is close to being done which is really exciting! Easter is coming up at the end of the week. And it is always amazing to me to think what Christ sacrificed for us on the cross. I am so thankful.