Recipe Tuesday

I thought for a long time about what I'd make for dinner tonight. It needs to be quick and easy since my husband and I will be running out for Bible Study shortly after dinner. And it needs to be good since I don't feel like having the "yes, you will eat your dinner" discussion with my kids tonight.

I began digging through my recipe drawer and stumbled across one that made me smile with fond childhood memories. My mom used to make this particular dinner a lot and I loved it. It was always my choice for my birthday dinner. Thankfully my kids love it too!

Chicken and Rice

2 Chicken breasts cut into strips
1 Cup water
1 Chicken bouillon cube
1 Can Cream of Mushroom
1 Cup minute rice
1 Can sliced, drained water chestnuts

In an electric skillet, brown chicken using some olive oil. Add the water, bouillon and cream of mushroom. Bring to a low boil. Stir in the rice and water chestnuts. Turn off heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

The best thing about this recipe is that it can easily be altered. My kids love the rice so I always add more. The trick is to add the rice, water, cream of mushroom and bouillon in equal proportions (i.e. 2 cups water, 2 bouillon cubes, 2 cans cream of mushroom and 2 cups rice).

Enjoy!

Short Story

My writing has been a struggle for the past two months. A struggle to find time and a struggle to get words on the page. To be perfectly honest, I have been feeling somewhat defeated in my writing endeavor. The writing blogs I've read sound very together and informed, whereas I feel completely lost and floundering. The temptation is strong to set my story aside once again and focus on all the other things in life that demand my attention.

However, I am very pleased to say that I didn't do that. Instead I deviated slightly from my original plan and wrote a short story for a writing competition. The deadline is December 1 with a maximum word count of 1500.

Today I was finally able to sit and chip away at my word count to bring my manuscript down to a very close 1493. I copied and pasted, paid my twenty bucks and hit submit. So my story, that really materialized out of nowhere, is out there somewhere, being judged alongside who knows how many others. That thought alone is a bit intimidating. Do I have a chance if there are only 100 other submissions? What if there are more like 1,000 submission? My mind refuses to even think that there could be more. Let's just say that the competition is steep.

I don't hold any lofty goals of placing first. For me, the goal was to write, finish and submit...and I did that. Now it's up to the judges, whomever they may be. As a contestant and a writer I will be sitting here with my fingers crossed, praying that my story and my writing stand out.

Super Heros

My five year old son is obsessed with Super Heros, mainly Iron Man. The Super Hero craze began when Cody was only four. Spiderman grabbed his attention and he began to shoot imaginary webs out of the palm of his hands whenever we would wrestle with him. Next came Batman, which I immediately vetoed after watching five minutes of the seven-years or older cartoon (it definitely wasn't the Batman I remember watching). And now, Iron Man is the main topic when you talk to my son. It seems so silly, but when you think about it, who doesn't love a good hero!

Cody began asking us if he could be Iron Man for Halloween in September when he saw the very cool red and gold costume at Costco. But since I had no idea who Iron Man was, I said "we'll see, I need to watch the movie first". I was really thinking "I have no desire to sit through a movie about a man in an iron suit" -- I mean, come on! That's not even remotely believable. As always, time got away from me and I never got around to seeing the movie so Cody ended up being Woody (from Toy Story).

Just two days ago, my husband and I finally sat down to watch Iron Man and I have to admit, it was a very good/entertaining movie. Even though I have relatively no concept of computer technology and weapon production, I was actually able to follow the movie and what's more, I really enjoyed it. For me it was a flash back to many years ago when old friends and I would take turns watching shoot 'em up movies and chick flicks. I was so hooked in fact that the next night, we rented Iron Man 2 (not as good, in my opinion but still fun to watch).

As a special privilege, I allowed Cody to watch five minutes of the movie. The part where he is being robotically stitched into his suit, his helmet somehow surrounds his head and the front shield dramatically shuts over his face. He does whatever he does to fly and off he goes, shooting through the night sky like a bullet. I can't even tell you how fun it was to watch his face as he watched his favorite Super Hero living up to the hype. "Whoa!" "How awesome!" "I'm gonna be Iron Man when I grow up!" Attempting to explain that Iron Man is pretend, did absolutely no good. "I know mom, but I'm still gonna be Iron Man!"

Okay, Cody, you can be a Super Hero!

Annoyances

Hello?? Are you still out there? I didn't forget about the few and the loyal...thanks mom...I've just been preoccupied. Yes, that mostly means mom stuff. I unknowingly volunteered to be my son's "Room Parent" at school. I thought, how much can be involved with helping to organize a few parties for a junior kindergarten class? My answer: you'd be surprised! It's only October and already I have been responsible for putting together a class roster (no one returns forms) a class basket to be auctioned off at a fundraiser (no one told me that it's more difficult to get things donated nowadays than it is to take a lollipop from my one year old) and most recently I have been planning and organizing a Halloween party for the class, to take place tomorrow (this includes 5 different kindergarten crafts which equals messy, wet and gooey). At approximately 11:30PDT, the world will hear a loud sigh of relief. Don't worry, it's just me.

Since my brain is on overload and I'm agitated enough as it is, I thought I would post a list of my pet peeves or annoyances. Call it whining, call it therapy, call it whatever you want. I've been awake since 4:30 this morning and I'm tired!

- I hate that I tend to be a flake at times (as evidenced on this blog during the last month)

- I hate that people always seem to drive slow when I'm running late.

- I hate that getting goose bumps after shaving completely ruins the desired effect.

- I hate that great songs give me goose bumps.

- I hate that my husband's cell phone "vibrates" non stop between the hours of 6:00pm and 10:00 pm and all day on weekends.

- I hate that my brain reads a $39.99 price tag as $30.

- I hate that 10 minutes after dinner, my kids tell me they're starving.

- I hate how fast dust collects.

- I hate the fact that I'm not even 30 yet and I already have a single hair growing out of my chin.

- I hate that I have to see my cute OBGYN at church.

- I hate that I can't definitively tell my children when dinosaurs were on this planet.

- I hate that I can eat four Hostess cupcakes in one sitting.

- I hate that sometimes I leave the laundry in the dryer too long and the whole thing is one big wrinkle.

- I hate that my husband doesn't want any more babies.

- I hate that my mom lives so far away.

- I hate that it's so hard for me to memorize scripture.

- I hate that I hate so many things. =)

I think that's enough for now. I'll do my best to post more regularly, but seriously mom, you can just call me! =)

Please share your annoyances too. Misery loves company.

Recipe Tuesday

It has been a crazy couple of days. My sister got married this past Friday and all the hoopla that traditionally accompanies weddings, accompanied this one too. Parties, rehearsals, confusion, dancing, laughing, family get togethers, last minute deadlines and of course getting sick. I haven't had a voice for five days. Only today as I was yelling at my 4-year old (because of a very embarrassing scene she created at ballet lessons) did my 5-year old say, "Mommy, you sound like you again."

So while I recover from partying, sickness and just plain busyness I am making some warm, yummy banana bread - recipe courtesy of Betty Crocker and in honor of a wonderfully kind and beautiful lady that I'm privileged to know. Denise, this one's for you!

Banana Bread

1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas
1/2 buttermilk
1 t vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 cup chopped nuts, if desired

Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pan will be in center of oven. Heat to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms of two load pans with shortening.
Mix sugar and butter in large bowl. Stir in eggs until well blended. Stir in bananas, buttermilk and vanilla; beat until smooth. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt just until moistened. Stir in nuts. Divide batter evenly between pans.
Bake loaves about 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on wire rack.

Enjoy!

P.S. I made the Beef Stew last week and it was actually really good. Very easy to make since all you do is throw everything in a pan and bake for hours.

Cooking

In an effort to get more organized, I have written out a master "To Do List" for the upcoming weeks. I really enjoy the scheduling of all the events I feel a need to squeeze into my already busy days. However, I'm not as successful when it comes to implementing them.

One of the things that I put on my "To Do List" is to make (from scratch, of course) gourmet dinners for my family at least once a week. My definition of gourmet = not a frozen meal, not a reheated meal, nothing I'm able to microwave, whenever possible stay away from pasta unless I have time to make the sauce myself, etc.

This notion sprung into my head as I was cleaning out a drawer in my kitchen. This particular drawer holds all of my recipes and cookbooks - most of which I hardly ever use. I flipped through a Betty Crocker cookbook that I believe we received as a wedding gift six and a half years ago. The only recipe I have used from that book is a pie crust recipe. How sad is that! So I'm channeling Julie and Julia and I will attempt to make something once a week (I'm not crazy enough to try it every night).

On the off chance you would like to play along with me, here is tonights recipe:

Beef Stew

1 pound beef stew meat, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 medium onion, cut into eights
1 package (8 ounces)baby carrots
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can condensed beef broth
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1/3 cup flour
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 t salt
1 t sugar
1 t dried marjoram leaves
1/4 t pepper
12 potatoes, cut into fourths
2 cups slices mushrooms

Heat oven to 375

Mix all ingredients except potatoes and mushrooms in ovenproof 4-quart Dutch oven. Cover and bake 2 hours, stirring once.

Stir in potatoes and mushrooms, Cover and bake 1 hour 30 minutes or until beef or vegetables are tender.

Good luck!

It's Like I'm Falling In Love

Music moves me. Certain songs cause my heart to overflow with gratitude and joy. Especially songs that reflect on how much God loves us. I've noticed that as I get older, these songs tend to leave me with teary eyes and emotions I can't quite put into words. One of my newest favorite songs (it changes weekly) is Jason Gray's song More like I'm falling in love. You can listen to it here.

There is just something so true and honest about the message in his song. Love is one of the strongest emotions we are able to experience. It brings to our minds past memories, smells, tastes, sounds and visions. Love is very powerful. What makes us fall in love with someone or something? What keeps us in love? Aside from the initial rush of feelings, love is a choice. I have chosen (by way of researching, learning, feeling and trusting) to believe in God. It's very easy for me to believe in Jesus but it's even easier because I have fallen in love with Him. The same is true of my husband and my kids. No matter what happens in life, I'm committed to them because I love them.

We need to achieve the same "in love" feeling when it comes to dreaming up and writing out our characters. The lyrics in Jason Gray's song are not only true when it comes to believing in Christ - they are also true of our writing. Here are a few of my observations:

1. "I need more than a truth to believe, I need a truth that lives, moves, and breathes, To sweep me off my feet..." We need more than characters that move along our story. We need to believe that what our hero/heroine is facing is important and relateable on a personal level. Readers want to be swept off their feet with compassion and likability for our characters.

2. "More like losing my heart, than giving my allegiance..." If I spend $14.99 on a book I feel like I have a certain responsibility to the characters I read about...It's my job to love them, to cheer them on, to hope for their success and happiness. And yet sometimes I'm so disappointed in the characters that the entire book falls apart for me. Just choosing to buy the book guarantees my allegiance to the main characters. But I want more from them. I want to lose my heart to them also.

3. "In more than a name, a faith, a creed. Falling in love with Jesus brought the change in me..." I love books that focus on real life questions and issues that believers and nonbelievers face. But the decision to change, to believe, to place ones hope in something is not due to policies and procedures. People change because they have fallen in love with Jesus and what He is able to do for our lives this side of heaven. He is the highest motivator. Readers won't believe anything you write about your characters unless you are able to make the connection from words to feelings.

What makes you fall in love with the characters you read about? What are your writing tips that get readers hooked on your characters?