#19

  Visit Dennis the Menace Park in Monterey.  Since it was such a gorgeous weekend and Brooklyn was out of school, we made the trip down to visit the park.  It did not disappoint.  From the giant train engine, to the bushy maze, and rope bridge to the roller slide.  It was a good time!

#25

 Take the kids to the beach by myself.  Check!  It was a lovely January day with a high of 68 degrees in Santa Cruz.  Not only did I take the kids without Dad, but I even overcame my fears and let B. play in the water.  She had so much fun and got completely wet--waves crashing all around her.  The key to solo beach going...don't bring very much stuff to carry, and bring warm clothes/snacks for afterward.  Also, having friends around doesn't hurt!

#33

Yay!  I finally finished up these chairs.  Now they don't smell like cats and I can bring them inside.  Thanks for getting me started Mom!

# 16

I finally did it!  I had made a goal in January 2011 to make these little things and so when December 30 rolled around I got started.  It was a long process, with overnight refrigeration, and lots of rolling involved, but it was really fun too!  The process of rolling out the butter was incredible!

 First, you make the dough and chill.  While it chills, you make the butter (1 lb of butter mixed with some flour so it doesn't run as much)  Then you roll the butter into an 8x8 inch--yes I measured it--square and chill.  Finally when both are chilled, you roll the dough into a 12x12 inch square and place the butter square on it like a diamond.

 Then comes the cool part.  You fold the edges over and seal them with the butter inside and roll into a long 20x13 I think rectangle.

 After the rectangle is there, you fold that rectangle in thirds like a letter and then rotate it 90 degrees so it is like a book.  Then start all over again.  Refrigerating 20 minutes when the dough got soft (after 2 turns max!)

After four turns and a rest, you have all the butter layered in between the dough.  That is how you get the shatteringly crisp layers in a pastry.  I thought it was pretty cool.  

 Anyway, then you get to cut,  fill, and bake them!  I did chocolate and blackberry cream cheese.

  Voila! Half the batch made 16 little pastries and I still have the other half in my freezer to make again sometime soon.

Indulgence

Life is tricky.  It is difficult to manage our many different responsibilities--wife, mother, friend, sister, daughter, teacher, cook, chef, laundress, to name a few--without finding an outlet.  And I have mine.  Through happiness or despair, excitement or disappointment, thick or thin, my favorite comfort is always there.  Unfortunately, this particular outlet tends to make one thicker rather than thinner.  Food has been my one and best coping mechanism.

Now I'm not now, nor do I think I'll ever, want to completely sever that relationship.  There is something wonderful about coming home to a yummy smelling home, and celebrating with the people I love while we enjoy our various goodies.  However, I think I need to add a little more balance.  Perhaps allow other partners to cut in on my ever spiraling waltz now and again.  Find other ways to relax and rejuvenate myself so that I can continue to give my best to those that I love each day.

But I confess I'm at a bit of a loss on this subject.  Uh...what else is there?  Okay, I'm not that bad, but I really do want some ideas.  Not expensive ideas (though they have their place) but rather, inexpensive options that can be done on any given evening or nap time when needed.

I'd love some feedback.  What are your favorite non-food indulgences?

A New Year

Wow!  I try to set goals each year.  I usually set very lofty ones, and I'm going to try and avoid that.  I already have my 101 goals to keep me going on projects etc., so this year, I'm going to keep it simple.

As I was out running the other day, I took out my earphones and tried to figure out some things in my life.  I feel as though there is so much that I want to be--loving wife, put-together-woman, loving/fun mom, excellent housekeeper, so on and so forth.  As I was going through all the things I wanted to be in my head, half praying for help to become and half feeling overwhelmed by the weight of not already being those things, I realized that I was missing something vital.  That something missing was my Heavenly Father.  I'd been wishing and hoping mostly for things that I wanted.  Not bad things, but what bothered me was that the things I worried most about were not the most important.  My priorities were out of whack.  As my thoughts turned, I began to really pray.  And I feel that I was given some wisdom.

What and who do I want to be most of all?  More than being pretty and in good shape; more than being patient and loving as I raise my children.  More than maintaining a spotless home.  More than being the best wife.  I want to be the kind of woman that God would have me be.

I realize that a lot of the things, maybe even all of them, I listed are in line with being a Woman of God.  My problem is that I had taken Him out of the picture and was trying to do it all myself.  Naturally, I wasn't succeeding.  Thankfully, through Jesus Christ, I have an opportunity to begin again today.

This year, my number one priority is to build a strong relationship with my Heavenly Father and with my Savior, Jesus Christ.
I will do this by:
        Saying my prayers every morning, first thing.
        Reading my scriptures/Sunday lessons daily.

I have other goals, which I will list below, but this is going to be my major focus.  I need to have that relationship as a strong one in my life so that I can be the best Me that He knows I can be.

Goals:
1. Build a Strong Relationship with my Heavenly Father and Savior through prayer and scripture study.
2. Lose my last 20 lbs and adopt a more healthy lifestyle.
3. Strengthen my relationship with my husband by communicating more effectively and going to the temple.
4. Strengthen my relationship with my children by turning off noise and spending more time with them.
5. Incorporate a housekeeping schedule into my life.