Audrey's Talk

Audrey gave a talk in church today. I thought she did rather well:

My Personal Progress experience in Young Women’s was very enjoyable for me. When I first looked at what I had to do to accomplish Personal Progress, I thought it would be overwhelming. After reading through some of the experiences though, I realized that many of the things I had to do were things that I already did on a daily or weekly basis. All I had to do was organize myself and make a little extra time out of my day to work on an experience, and write down what I learned from it. Many of them were fairly simple like reading a few scriptures and answering some questions, or paying my tithing for 3 months. When I kept up with doing these experiences in a timely matter, I found out how quickly I could finish it. I’m proud to say I finished my Personal Progress before I turned 16, and I know that any young woman who sets their mind to it can do it just as quickly. I was personally excited when the new Personal Progress came out, because they came out with some new experiences. I know that even though I finished personal progress doesn’t mean that I should stop working on it. I have set a personal goal with myself to finish all of the extra experiences that I didn’t need to finish the first time, so that I can finish Personal Progress 100%. I also am working on the Honor Bee award which includes reading the Book of Mormon and helping other Young Women on their Personal Progress. I can personally testify that all young women have the ability to finish their Personal Progress, and that though it seems a daunting task, when you’re done, you will have a great sense of accomplishment.

Baptism, Hawaiian Haystacks and Symphony

Today we drove up to Newport to attend our nephew, Cameron's baptism in the morning. He asked me to play the piano and asked John to give a talk. Thanks for including us! Afterwards we headed over to their house for lunch. Kathy served Hawaiian Haystacks. Everyone seems to have their own recipe and toppings for this dish, but I especially liked Kathy's chicken & gravy combo. Here is the recipe she used:

HAWAIIAN HAYSTACKS
8 chicken breasts, cooked & shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can herbed cream of chicken soup
2 cups chicken broth
2 pkg. cream cheese
Pepper to taste
10 cups steamed rice
Garnishes: Chow mein noodles, diced tomatoes, sliced olives, chopped celery, chopped green onions, chopped green pepper, pineapple tidbits, mandarin oranges, grated cheese, slivered almonds, coconut

After birthday presents were opened we headed back home for our afternoon naps : )



Later that evening mom and I headed to the symphony. Tonight they had Wylie Gustafson & Paul Zarziski "The Cowboy Show". Wylie is best known for the "yahoo" yodel on the yahoo web page - that is his voice. He is also a talented musician covering country, western, folk and contemporary music. He played the guitar, sand and of course, did some yodelling. Paul is known as the cowboy poet. He was very enjoyable to listen to and has been featured at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering and appeared on Garrison Keillor’s “A Prairie Home Companion”. It was a unique twist on a 'normal' symphony evening, but extremely entertaining.

Administrative Assistant Day

Working as an administrative assistant has a few perks. First, I'm only hourly, so no overtime for me. A job that is Monday thru Friday does not hurt either. And also, every April Administrative Assistant Day shows up. I received some lovely flowers, some nice notes and some gift cards. This year the managers that were in town arranged to go out to lunch with me also - that was enjoyable. I work with an awfully lot of very nice people. Thank you for everything!

Winner: Janet's Challenge

From Janet's blog: "Before I begin, let me say in my Paula Abdul voice that "EVERYONE is a winner!" But not everyone is going to get a prize. They were not chosen randomly. I took lots of time agonizing over who should win what."

She then went on to announce the various winners. There were some fabulous stories and I took the time to read the ones that were posted on Janet's blog. I was then pleasantly surprised when I read further and saw this:

**Newly announced** photography session with madelinejames photography in Spokane, WA.

Winner: Sam Carter

Sam sent me several touching acts of service. My favorite (if I had to pick just one) was her friends/co-workers driving for hours to make it to her father's funeral.. friends who had never even met her dad. It's amazing the kind of people who show up in your greatest times of need. They don't need to do anything except to BE THERE.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH for participating. I've had the most uplifting, wonderful experience reading these stories. They have opened my eyes and changed me for the better. I have wept over the computer screen and have been so touched by the many self-less acts of service. Lots of Love, Janet"

Even if I had not won, truthfully, I had won already because I was reminded to see the tender mercies that are shared each and every day. And I truly am extremely blessed. Thank you Janet!!

Janet's Challenge - Pay it Forward

A friend of mine had a giveaway on her blog. Instead of the normal blog giveaways where you post a quick comment on why you might want a particular set of pans and win only because a random generator picked your number, she asked us to write about stories of service. Not what we have done, but what acts of service where we have been the recipient. She held her giveaway during a week-long media fast and around Easter. Here is what she said: "Why did I chose this kind of theme? I believe it's my way of celebrating Easter. What better way can we celebrate the life of Christ than by serving others and reflecting on how others have helped us? Jesus Christ dedicated his entire life to serving others. He traveled searching for the poor, the needy, the hungry. He healed the sick, comforted the weary and clothed the naked. In the greatest act of service, He sacrificed His life for each of us. His love is pure and perfect. What does it mean to become Christ-like or develop the pure love of Christ? I believe it means to serve others."

So I thought and thought and was not going to enter, but then decided that I was far too blessed not to take the opportunity she provided. Here is what I sent to her:

I have thought about your post for the whole two weeks, but really could not decide what to write about.

Do I write about the time Sister Quick called me up while I was the YW President (and had little Audrey maybe 5 yrs old, was working full-time and husband was in bishopric) and just said "I need to do something for you today, so I will do the YW activity, make the treats and call the girls. You just show up and enjoy." I love that lady!

Or do I write about the time that my neighbors, Randy & Barbara Scott, just brought me over dinner because they knew I needed it. I did not know I needed it, but after they brought it over - they were right as tears came to my eyes.

Or do I write about my sweet buddy Jessie McLaughlin who sang at my daddy's funeral? Or my co-workers (Craig, Brian, Lori, Bill) who literally drove thru 3 feet of snow & heavy storm to attend the funeral even though they had never met my dad. (Or my previous co-worker Becky who drove 2 hours to attend?)

Or do I write about my friend Cheri (Argo) Edwards who helped me (long distance - I was in Provo and she was in Yakima) get over a break-up. That far from home was already hard!

Or my visiting teacher, Sue Adams, who brought me all sorts of wonderful hand-me-down baby items when Audrey was born, and then would come over and say "let's walk and talk" to get me out of the house.

If I could write about everything sweet and nice and wonderful that John does...And all the crap he takes from me - much too much to write. I definitely did a great job in the picking-hubby department.

How about when I was not feeling well and Audrey brought me a glass of water, some Tylenol, adjusted my pillows and tucked me in? What wonderful memories and what a sweet kid.

Baked Potato Topping

BAKED POTATO TOPPING
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 Tbsp chopped green onion
3 slices crispy bacon, crumbled

Mix butter and sour cream together. Fold in cheese, onion and bacon. Serve at room temperature on baked potatoes. 4-6 servings

Toaster - update

After seeing the $300 toaster at Williams-Sonoma, we just had to purchase this baby. Seemed like such a steal!! It is a traditional toaster AND a toaster oven. It was on the clearance rack for $29. John had been wanting a toaster oven, but I had not wanted to give up the counter space to have another appliance. This solved our problem as it replaced our current toaster and fits nicely in the appliance garage. Yeah!

The Toaster

Audrey and I wanted to go to the Women's Show to check out the booths, but since it was a beautiful evening we wanted John to come along too. He said his eyes would bleed if we made him go into the Women's Show, but he would walk over to the bookstore and wait for us to finish up. So after Audrey and I were done with the Women's Show we met up with John and headed toward River Park Square. We got to my favorite store, Williams Sonoma, and saw all sorts of items we certainly did not need. Audrey excitedly asked me if I had seen the toaster up front? "You have to come see it!" Isn't it awesome? You can SEE your toast while it is cooking. As Audrey put it "So you can save it before it is too late!!!" PS - That really cracked up the sales associate when she heard Audrey say that... Any guesses on the price? Well, you'd have to make an awful lot of toast to get your $299 worth, so you won't find it next time you are over to our house. I did get a really cool cake pan though!!

We headed over to Sonic for burgers & shakes. What a great way to finish off an evening that is seeming quite like summer!! (high 70's)

Wicked !!!!!!

A quick funny story first: I had gotten home from a Tupperware party and it was after 9pm, so a time I normally do not make phone calls. John said "Jessie called and wanted to invite you to a wicken event". I stopped. "John, I don't think she meant wicken?" and decided I needed to call Jessie right then so I could get the real story!! She proceeded to tell me about a "Wicked" (the musical) kick off event that she was invited to as she is a member of a tourism organization. It was being presented by Best of Broadway to coincide with the announcement that Wicked is coming to Spokane May 2011. I jumped at the opportunity!

We met and headed down to the INB Performing Arts center where they had a buffet of food in the lobby for the attendees. A "Yellow Brick Road of Cheese" platter, some "Chicken on a Broomstick" skewers, Melon Martinis (for the drinking crowd) and bright green punch (in a cauldron with dry ice) for the rest of us. Then at the top of the stairs they had the "Munchkin" desserts including Lime Bars and Orange Coconut cookies, and lots of chocolate. The center of the table had an ice sculpture with the Wicked Musical logo. Wow! Then we headed into the opera house and heard from the producer of Wicked (he had flown in from New York) as well as musical numbers from the two leading ladies. They also had a video presentation showing the history of how it all came about, with interviews from the director and song writer. And finally, they had a question and answer session with the audience. What a wonderful time! Thanks Jessie for letting me tag along. As we left the building we each got a goodie bag with pen, magnet and download card for a few of the songs.
After I got home and relaxed, I realized I had left my camera in Jessie's car as we were not allowed to bring into the event. So when Dale stopped it by, he had to take a picture when we opened the door:

Chipotle Chicken Tacos

These were pretty tasty. A nice chicken mixture to add with warm tortillas, lettuce, cheese, tomato and sour cream. Though I saw them on one site, they were actually adapted from another site - My Kitchen Cafe.

CHIPOTLE CHICKEN TACOS
1 & 1/2 TBS butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 & 12/ tsp pureed chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (could not find!!)
1/2 cup orange juice
1 TB Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced
1 tsp. yellow mustard
6 flour tortillas

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and chipotle and cook, about 30 seconds. Stir in the orange juice, Worcestershire sauce and 1/2 cup chopped cilantro and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the chicken and simmer, covered, over medium heat for 12-13 minutes, stirring a couple of times. When the chicken is cooked completely, use a slotted spoon to transfer chicken to a cutting board, leaving remaining liquid in skillet. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook the mixture left in the skillet until the liquid is reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 5 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the yellow mustard. While liquid is reducing, shred the chicken, then return to the skillet. Add the remaining cilantro to the skillet and toss until well combined. Serve warm with tortillas topped with lettuce, cheese, tomato, sour cream and avocado.

**Note, because I could not find chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (supposedly in the Mexican foods section), I used 2 & 1/2 teaspoons Chipotle salsa. So mine were probably a little milder than if the correct ingredient was used. Also, I had bought a rotisserie chicken the day prior (and made homemade chicken noodle soup), so my chicken was pre-cooked. That meant there was no liquid to "reduce" so I actually had to add more orange juice before cooking it down. Still pretty tasty!

The Jar

This jar was at my grandmother's house for as long as I can remember, and probably 30 years before that. It always held grandma's brown sugar. Isn't it neat?

Easter

We got together for our annual Saturday lunch at candy-exchange at Grandma's house. Notice Audrey's new overalls? They are the same type and style that Grandpa used to wear. She loves them!