Goin' Green(er)

I am taking up the challenge to go greener...



Gigi - Over at Adventures in Gigi Joined the Change The World Wednesday challenge over on the Reduce Footprints blog.

Every Wednesday they will post a Green Challenge for the week. This week's challenge is:

At least once this week, take a short shower ... time it to no more than 10 minutes.

I am passing along the challenge to all of you. :D

Together We CAN Change the world!!

Conquering the Hill

This is the hill... you have seen pictures before I believe, but this bit is the worst part, the top of the hill!!

But, I have improved!! As of yesterday, I almost made it all of the way up!! :D:D

Where as I only made it 1/4 of the way up on the first day I tried, I only now have 1/4 of the way to go! ;D

This isn't consistent though, I sometimes get a little ways up, or I go further... I think it will take time to be consistent.

As for other new's, we sent my little girl a care package yesterday and today (and I think daddy snuck in pop and bubble gum, along with who knows what). So she's getting the family connection. :D

My boy's are being boy's, wrestling in the living room, with intermittent cries of "NO!! Mommy!" (This is usually coming from Sione) It gets annoying because they are not really calling me. I am going to tease them mercilessly when they get older about calling "Mommy" all the time.

Oh, and Sam has an opportunity to make some money!! Yeah!

His cousins that he worked for in 05' have recently gotten back in contact (or vice versa) and they offered him an opportunity to go out and work on a job in North Dakota! :D That is forever away, and they are driving, but at least he's going to be bringing home some money. :0)

So, that's all my newsy news. Angie is coming home tomorrow!! Yeah!! :D:D:D

Makin' Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

I remember a time... when I thought spaghetti sauce came from a bottle, and that the way to do make spaghetti was to boil some noodles, cook some hamburger, add the sauce and when it was done, voila' that was it.

Simple, yes, but what about all of the exciting possibilities of making your own sauce?

Well, that was the question that I had a few years ago as I explored ways to simplify my pantry, and become more self reliant.

So today as I was pulling together a simple spaghetti sauce for lunch, I thought of the little journey that I went on to get to that point.

When I decided that I wanted to learn, I looked at the recipe in my Betty Crocker cook book and thought, "Oi' that's complicated!" So I put off trying it for a while, until I overheard a sister in a relief society meeting, describe how her mom had taught her to make spaghetti sauce.

My ears perked up and I caught up to her after the meeting to ask if she would teach me.

We made a plan, she would get things prepped for dinner at her house and I would come over, help and eat dinner with them.

So I went over to her house, she had a bunch of vegetables grated up, and diced, ready to use for the sauce. She threw them all into the pan of warm olive oil and let them caramelize, and a glorious scent filled the house!! My mouth was watering.

Then she added a couple of cans of tomatoes (and explained that she didn't salt her sauce until the end, especially when using canned tomatoes, because they are often preserved with salt). She let that simmer, added a bunch of spices, a touch of brown sugar, and threw together a quick basil pesto sauce as well!!

I helped where I could, mostly keeping the kidlets from running amok, and we ate together with her husband when he got home from work.

This was one of the most delicious spaghetti dishes that I have ever eaten. Tanya and I became good friends afterwards and often went on walks together, until she moved up to Salt Lake City and I lost track of her. :(

But this is not the end of the delicious spaghetti tale. No, not at all...

I had it in mind, that I wanted to be able to make my own pasta as well!! ;D

I know, I am a bit fanatical *grin*

So I got a pasta attachment for my wheat grass juicer (;D;P) and mixed me up a batch of home made spaghetti. This delicious delicacy came out of the machine (with constant care and flouring to avoid the noodles sticking together) and right into the boiling water!! It was quite an operation, the whole family got into it.

That, combined with my own homemade pasta sauce (using fresh tomatoes) made my spaghetti dinner that night, the most delicious meal that I had ever eaten!!

Too bad I cannot eat those gluten filled wheat noodles now. :( A challenge perhaps, to find a good recipe for home made GF noodles... yes siree, I like a challenge. ;p

Here is the recipe for my Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Perhaps I will share with you the time that I decided to learn how to make homemade tamale's (an even more entertaining tale). ;p

Time Capsule Goals

A Goal that I set at about 15 years of age...

Class assignment, answer these questions

What do you want to accomplish in your life?

I want to rid myself of as many bad habits as possible

Do you want your life to make a statement?

Yes I do

What is it?

That through reflection and careful choices, you can overcome great odds and be the best person that is possible.

I ran across this today, thought it was interesting.

*GRIN*

I am so, so, so happy today!!

Not only are all of our nasty tax headaches being sorted out (thanks to finally going to see an accountant)! ;p ;D

But one of my all time favorite authors Anita Stansfield just sent me an e-mail!! A reply to one that I sent her about my struggles with Celiacs disease and the urge that I feel to write. :D

I am so thrilled!! I have read her books for so long, since I was about 14-15 or so and have been inspired and captivated by them. Wowie!! She wrote me back. :D:D:D

Anyway, that's my ubber happy news today. ;D

I also went for a good ol' fashioned walk up the hill, and even a week into this excerise thingy, I am seeing results!! Yeah! So, keep going right! :D

SG

Yippee!! Camping & Health Nut moments :D

What a weekend!! I killed myself biking up the hill on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Then payed for it on Sunday, OUCH!! Plus it was cold and the cold was gettin down deep in my bones.

Roxie had a breakthrough, she's potty trained!! Wahoo, I just had to be patient with her until she got sick of diapers. First she started putting on her 7 year old brothers underware (to his utter dismay), then I got her into her own undies, the clincher was realizing that her cousins were potty trained. LOL

Daughter Angie went up to 5th grade camp this morning, grandma helped her get ready by buying her the needed stuff. I made her pack everything and check it off (partially cause' I was dying from the exercise ;p) She'll need to pack it all up to bring it home after camps done anyway, so it's a good warm up. I'm gonna miss my silly girl though *sniff*. We'll send her up a care package tomorrow :D

I went over to The Good Earth to apply to be a wellness councilor, again!! Studied my herbal book, then bit the bullet. It's really straightforward, you get a list of conditions and your supposed to list herbs, suppliments, foods to help with it.

I know a lot, on the whole foods side of things, and I know a lot about the suppliments and somewhat the herbs. So it should have been easy, but I don't know, I guess I need to take some ginko biloba or something, cause' I lose my train of thought when confronted with a list on a basically blank page.

I did know a lot more today though, and one of the wellness junkie guys came over to chat (and sneak in some help on the quizz ;p) So that was cool, I love it when I get a chance to go all off on this stuff, with someone just as enthusiastic about it. :D:D:D

That's what's goin' on today in my neck of the woods. I hope ya'll are well. SG :D

Serenity Prayer

God, grant me
The Serenity to accept the
things I cannot change.
The courage to change the
things I can, and
The wisdom to know the difference.

Help me to have a sense of humor, we are all ridiculous at some point in our lives. We all have insecurities, and ideal selves. For the most part, the difference between our ideal self and the real self can be great. If you think about it though, sometimes we don't even recognize when we have been closer to the ideal, because we often focus on the negative aspects of life and don't recognize the positive. So we need to have a sense of humor.

Help me to be empathetic, even when I am feeling terrible myself. I think that this is the greatest challenge, to reach out to others with care and concern even when you feel awful and want to hide. Or you might wish that someone would reach out to you instead. Many times though, people get so preoccupied with their own problems that they cannot see anything but their own.

Let me see others, their true selves, and let me not judge them for their weaknesses. We are all full of potential mistakes, I wake up every morning and I might drag my feet sometimes when I should have hurried. Then later I will pay for that mistake by the need to rush. We make mistakes all the time.

At the same time though, we don't need to allow people to do everything that they want to do, just because they want to do it. I think we need to look down on behaviors that cause other people harm, if not then society will be a ruins.

Let me be able to forgive though. If something makes me angry, let me be able to let it go, because holding on to hate and anger are not productive. If something needs to be changed, like the little poem says, have the courage to change it. But if it cannot be changed let it go, you will be a happier person, as well as those around you.

I hope that you all have a nice Sunday.

SG

W.A. Mozart Exsultate

Beautifully done, classical music.

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This is one of them...

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Friday Shootouts - Go Random (OK) :D

Well the challenge is to go random, let's see if you can follow me!! ;p




Cottonwood Tree's shed these fluffy seeds every year... the kids like to gather it and always have dreams of making pillows (that doesn't pan out). :D




Dandelion hangin on for dear life by the river...



Hmmm. what's that? An ant? Alrighty then... let's move on.
(Koli, Evan, Daniel)


Roxie Say's Hello :D:D:D ;p



This is the view from the hill (coming down, that I rode up yesterday on the bike. much easier going down!! ;p)





Interesting Wild Grass...



Hi From an Eskimo!!



Brent Brown Toyota (across the street from my house... I wanted to capture a picture of the guy standing there, probably goes to BYU. He looked ultra "Prepie," very amusing).



Still with me? ;p



Now for a drive by 7-Peaks, Down Center, to Geneva Road

7-Peaks



(hmmm. Karate lessons, Sione would like some)



Sam was driving until I dropped him off at the Rugby field on Geneva Rd. (This is the "Peaks Ice Arena" notice the Olympic Symbol... I tried to get a picture of the sculpture of this but...)



Houses along Center(Slow Down!! Slow Down!!)


Random Jogger




State St.


The Tabernacle


Dining establishments along Center (The Mayor turned it into quite a business center)









Hindselmans (Still need to get a better picture)



Flowers


Reams (The little grocery store in the neighborhood that I grew up in. They used to hold an event every summer with 10 cent hot dogs and 25 cent ice cream cones. Ahhh. the good old days). :D



There is an interesting wooden cut out of a Scottish Guy in a kilt on the corner of this store, but Sam was driving too fast for me to get a picture of it... next time. ;D

Looking Past Reams towards the neighborhood that I grew up in (the bag for our fish broke along here one hot summers day... we were rescued from a total loss by a good Samaritan who threw out the rest of their drink and gave us the cup)



Geneva Farmyard


"Spooky Old House" along Geneva (always wanted to get a picture if this one)



Sun Setting along Geneva Road






Vinyard Garden Center (Love to hang out there)



"Mountainlands Applied Technology Center" part of UVU the University that I graduated from in 2006.



The humble little shop that my dad has worked from ever since I was a little girl... it is fascinating in there. (This is off Geneva Road, on 400 South).



Dad


Orem used to be famous for their orchards, most of them have been cut down to make way for housing, but there are a few left. (There is a little insect trap on the left of the picture, they are monitoring the enroachment of the Japanese Beetle or something like that).



I'll Throw Some Kiddo's in there for good luck

Roxie, Arisa, Kaede (My neices)


Kiddos