The End of Blogger

Today is the day:  the Flynns are moving.

Not out of my parent's house quite yet, but we are moving our blog to a new address.

We would like to cordially invite all of you to follow our goings on at our new address:

http://huckleberrystew.wordpress.com/

Huckleberry Stew!

Blogger has been good to us, we've learned a lot, but it was time to move to a platform with a bit more room for growth and personalization.

So, change your links and reader lists from this address to our new one, and come enjoy some stew!

And the winner is...

I got quite a few guesses, and no, I am not eating pork, to my knowledge, at any time in the immediate future.

The winner?

Angie Kennington!

For those of you who didn't read the comments that were posted on Facebook (some people couldn't figure out to post here so there were several comments there), hers read "I can't figure out the pic very well, but I think you are going to become a famous recipe writing blogger. And your pizza post was awesome, funny and delicious looking and I want to eat some."

I suppose it was closest, in a way.

The answer to my picture riddle? Huckleberry Stew!!!

Huh?

That's right, Huckleberry Stew. My blog will soon be moving, changing its format and NAME. It will be easier to navigate between photos, recipes, crafts, etc.

The change is nearly up and running, as soon as I figure out how to make it a little... prettier... it will be ready to go. Stay tuned!!

Oh, and Angie, about your prize... as soon as I figure out what it is it will be in the mail and I'll update this post. Sorry, I know thats lame, but I know you'll forgive me.

Apology to all my loyal fans

I know my last post was rather boring, so I just wanted to apologize.

That post was only half of what I meant it to be. After what you see there I was going to post "This is what Steve did tonight" and show you the video of him using his new Neti Pot.

Unfortunately, the video wouldn't upload and I ended up with half of a post.

Sigh.

Not that you want to watch water dripping from my husband's nose anyway.

Basket Cake

This is what I did tonight. I decorated this pretty cake. In case you can't tell from the picture, it is a basket of flowers. I made the flowers over the last 2 weeks. Inside are 4 layers of chocolate cake sandwiched together with cherry filling. It is going to be delicious when I get tired of looking at it.

Pizza Time!

Looking for a tasty substitute for traditional pizza sauce? Try this incredible cheesy version and you may never go back!

First things first, toss out your favorite pizza crust recipe into a disk to form your crust.


Thanks, Steve, what a fantastic demonstrator you are. And that apron makes you look as good as this pizza is going to taste.

Next you'll want to fill your food processor with some fresh spinach and pulse until its finely chopped. Throw in about 3/4 cup of cottage cheese, along with some minced garlic, basil, and oregano. You know how much you like these, add to your own preference.


Pulse until you get a smooth pale green sauce. The cottage cheese will have become more of a ricotta texture. Spread on your crust, but leave a fairly wide edge.

If you want to add some portabellas to your pizza, now is a good time to remove the stems and chop them to your desired size.

Brush the fungi with some olive oil, and while you're at it brush some on that edge of your crust you left bare.

Sprinkle heartily with mozzerella cheese, top with a little chedder and asiago if your heart desires. When it comes to cheese my heart always desires.

Sprinkle some finely grated asiago or parmesan cheese on the oiled edges of your crust. If you have any doubts about how fantastic this will be please throw them out the window and try it. Trust me.

Add your mushrooms, a little more cheese, perhaps, and some coarsly ground black pepper. Sniff and enjoy the aroma.

Bake in a preheated oven at 400° for 10-14 minutes. When the cheese is melted and the crust is lightly browned and your house smells like heaven it is done. Remove, slice, wait 2-3 minutes so you don't burn the roof of your mouth.

Enjoy! Tell me how you like it so I know if I should keep creating recipes for your personal enjoyment.

But I will, anyway... for mine.

Whoa, not what I meant!

Apparently my last post caused quite a bit of confusion. 

No, the picture has nothing to do with pregnancy. 

What I meant by big changes coming is that there are some big changes coming to my BLOG. As in, new name, new address, new format.  Capisce?

You have, however, inspired me, so lets have a contest! 

Anyone want to guess what the picture means? And I know who knows, they are exempt from the contest, so don't try to get away with anything!  

There will be a prize to the person who comes closest to the correct answer.  

It will not be a ride in a mine shaft or ice cream sandwiches.  But it will be fantastic!  

Any guesses? Leave a comment!! 

Coming Soon...

There are some big changes coming soon. Above is a hint of what is to come. Stay tuned!

Introduction to Lying

When we were little we had a toy pot.  It wasn't like the one in the picture. The sides were made of clear plastic, and there were two layers with water in between, so it looked like the pot was full of water.

You know that game where you try and make the other person "flinch"? We would often pretend to douse each other with the "water" in that toy pot and then say "Made you flinch!"  

I always flinched.

Ben never flinched.

Being a much older and wiser sister, I knew it was time to get creative.

One unsuspecting day, I put water in the pot. Ben didn't flinch, but he got wet!

Unfortunately for me, this was back in the day when "I'm telling on you!" invoked a lot more fear than it would now.  But I had a solution.

I doused myself with water too.

When mom came up the stairs to ask me why I dumped water all over my brother I had a quick answer.

"Ben tricked me and dumped water on me from this pot and when I said I was going to tell on him he got himself all wet and ran downstairs to tell on me but I didn't do anything!"

Ben got in trouble.

He still reminds me of this incident at least once a year.

I taught my brother how to lie. 

Raising a Large Family

A few months ago I was reading a magazine article on organization, and it referenced a book titled A Sane Woman's Guide to Raising a Large Family. As I've always wanted to be just that, and as I had some time on my hands, I decided to check it out. It turned out the book hadn't been published yet (it will be on April 5), but at the bottom of the book description it had a link to the author's blog, Owlhaven.

Thus began my new hobby/obsession of following stranger's blogs. I've really enjoyed reading Mary's stories of her life raising 10 kids, several of which were adopted. I'm excited to read her book when it comes out, and right now she is giving away some free copies! To be honest, that is why I'm telling you all this- so I'll be entered into the contest for a free copy. But don't worry, I wouldn't do it if Mary didn't deserve the plug.  So check out the book, and if you buy a copy and I don't win one, let me know and I'll steal it from you. Happy reading!

More Replacing Electronics

See that, up there? That is a beautiful camera. It will be mine soon. Steve and I replaced our dinky and great-up-until-I-found-out-I-could-replace-it camera that was stolen. It will arrive in the mail in a few days, so I decided I should give everyone so warning, because PICTURES ARE COMING SOON!! Blog posts are just so much better with pictures, you know? I'm still not happy our house was broken into... but.... Well, you know.

Rain

This morning it is raining.

Not the usual Yakima rain where you go outside and realize everything is wet- a loud, windy, hard rain that beats on your roof and lashes against your windows.

The type of rain that drives you to sit and listen and wish there weren't any other sounds to distract you from the beautiful sound of the rain.

The type of rain that calls you to come outside and jump in puddles.

The type of rain that invites you to curl up (in your comfy red robe) in the coziest chair you have, and read a book while listening to the rain- instead of getting ready for the day.

The type of rain that seems like it will never end- as if the sky has torn itself open, never to be repaired. Then suddenly, it does.

I love the rain.

New Computer!

I realize I shouldn't post pictures of myself in my jammies, but I just had to show off my pretty new computer.  See that monitor? Its 24"!!! That means if I look at a picture of my face, it is bigger than my real face!!!! I'm excited. I mean, really excited. We found a really great deal at Staples, couldn't get it, got depressed, and found this one at Costco which is BIGGER and BETTER and still got a great deal.  I'm still not happy we were robbed, but I'm definitely feeling better about it.

I Need to Learn HTML

I'm going to let you in on a little secret, you ready?.... I kinda hate my blog.... I'm terrible, I know, but I really suffer from great-blog envy. The content isn't necessarily what is irritating me (although I know it could use some work), but the layout is driving me nuts!!!

You see that widget on the side for "Martha Stewart's Cookie of the ....."? It is supposed to say Day, as I'm sure you realize, but I can't make it work so you can see the whole thing. Alas... Also, I want tabs! I want better picture options! Check out The Pioneer Woman's Blog. Isn't it beautiful? Doesn't it make you want to abandon my silly blog forever? Sigh..

Anyway, the point of all this nonsensical whining is to let you know that SOMEDAY that will be me! I'm going to figure all this HTML garbage out, I'm going to have my own computer (hopefully tonight!!!) and I'm going to rock the heck out of this blog business, just you wait!

The Perfect Time

For Valentine's Day I got the most comfortable robe in the world. Not only is it what you would find in Webster's to define "plush" and "warm," it is also BRIGHT red. Happy, cheerful, "Good Morning!!" red.

This robe has caused some significant life changes for me.

My morning routine used to be this: Get up, stumble into my (somewhat boring) robe, head downstairs for scripture study with the family, stumble back up the stairs, and back into bed. Eventually I would get back up, head to the bathroom and race the clock to get ready before I'm late to work. No more!

Now I wake up, put on my soft new robe, and luxuriate in its warm embrace. No more getting back in bed. No more hurrying into my clothes when I'm done showering. Now I sit and read a book, or check my e-mail and do a little writing. Morning has become the perfect time of day.

I'm more productive, I'm more cheerful, and I have more energy. Not to mention I am taking a little time to myself each day and it seems to be doing wonders for my attitude.

I highly recommend you each evaluate your robe and see what you can do to increase its wearability. Let me know how it goes.

Responsibility, what's that?

When the 12 year-old you are "house-sitting" asked if she and her friend could "play in the front yard," my response was "If you don't get hit by a car or freeze to death." I averted my eyes as she walked past me a few moments later carrying a tent and several blankets.

When I ask, "have you done your homework?" the answer is always "yes." I avert my eyes when they hide a note from the teacher stating they have some missing assignments.

When I was asked to "house-sit" I was told not to worry about the kids, except to make dinner and occasionally ask if they did their homework. They can be home alone, I don't need to spend my time here, but please make sure they have something for dinner.

When I wonder to myself, "Is this normal?" I hear a resounding "NO!" But then I remember the money... Its ridiculous what 2 newlyweds trying to get out of debt will do for money.

Leavenworth and House-sitting

Wow, what a week!

Steve and I had a fantastic Valentine's weekend in Leavenworth, it was soooo beautiful. We stayed at the Howard Johnson inn, which turned out to be as good as staying at a bed and breakfast. They had a king sized bed, a great shower, a fireplace, fridge, and microwave... and we didn't hear our neighbors! I definitely recommend it.

About a month ago, the Englund family from our ward asked me if Steve and I would be interested in house-sitting this week. We were excited to say we were interested. Then they told us they were leaving the kids here... not exactly house-sitting. But we are here, and I think we'll have a good time. I have to stay up an hour later at night to make sure the kids get to bed, and I have to be up by 5:30 to make sure they get ready for school, but that might just make me realize I'm sleeping too much and that is why I'm tired all the time... maybe.

Anyhow, being up earlier will help me to have time to blog, and I'm exited about that. I can sit at the computer after Steve leaves for work, while Dallin eats breakfast and gets ready, and that gives me 30-45 minutes of computer time at my leisure, and I sure appreciate that.

Stay tuned for more adventures in house-sitting!

Violated

Thieves broke into my home and took my things. It didn't happen to someone else, it wasn't far away, it happened to me, and my family. What an awful feeling. They messed with my bed- took my pillowcase!, they riffled through our underwear drawers, and they took our things. We don't have a lot of nice things, but they took our laptops, our camera, my jewelry, and over 100 DVDs. It is hard to think of your home as being as safe as it was before someone came in- it feels open and vulnerable. They took all of my photos. They were stored on my hard-drive, and now they are gone. Luckily I use google docs and most of my documents will be recoverable because they are stored online, but my pictures, they are probably lost forever.

I'm so grateful no one was hurt, no one was home or came home to find the people still in our home. I'm grateful Heavenly Father was watching over Steve and keeping him busy elsewhere. I hope this never happens to any of you.

A to Z, From Me

Although the idea of sleeping in sounds fantastic, I can't make myself stay in bed past 8 am on the weekends. Often not past 7.

Blogging has become one of my favorite pastimes, but I usually do it at work.

Cats are lot less smelly than dogs. Steve and I are not dog people.

Drawing is not my forté, but I enjoy it. I know I would get better if I did it more often, but I get discouraged that I'm not as naturally talented as my brothers.

Elementary school was where I got all my height. I haven't grown more than 3 inches since 5th grade, I was taller than my 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Laffy. I'm taller than my husband, too.

Flynn is a fun name to inherit, it rhymes with a lot more things than Smith does.

Google is the number 1 tool on the Internet. I love that I can link my e-mail, blogs, calendar, news, pictures, and search engine. Everything just meshes so well!

Haircuts are one of those things where I understand I should tell the stylist exactly what I want and bring pictures, but I still often say, "Please help, I don't know what to do. I need a change and I trust you not to make me look awful." Don't say this. They always make you look awful when you say this.

I love to read cookbooks and the recipes in magazines.

Jeopardy is one of my favorite dinner-time shows. I prefer not to watch TV during dinner most of the time, but once in awhile it is fun.

Kissing is fun anytime. Even during dinner.

Large families make me happy. I love hearing about other people's large families, and I read several blogs from people with large families. I hope to have one myself, someday.

Mom and Dad are names that are hard to apply to people you didn't grow up with, but for me it is just the remembering part. I often stumble when I call my in-laws Mom and Dad, but not because I don't want to, its because I forget!

Nursery is a really fun calling, and as an added bonus you learn to appreciate Relief Society (and adults in general) more, as well.

On my 24th birthday my husband threw me a surprise party at my brother's house. He told me he was doing this before he invited anyone to the "surprise" party. My job: act surprised. We had a lot of fun.

Photography and editing photographs are on the top of my list of things I want to learn to be better at. I love photography.

Quilting has become a lot more appealing as I've grown up. I used to shrink from the idea (I hated to be exact in my cutting and seams), but now it is fun and the results are fantastic!

Recently, I have started learning Russian. Steve is a slow teacher, though, because we forget to practice and have a lot of other things we do together. I will, hopefully, be taking a Russian class soon.

Sewing is one of my favorite things to do, but I'm really slow to get things done. I even procrastinate doing things I love.

Time is something there will never be enough of. I am saying this now and I don't even have children yet. Scary thought.

Umbrellas are one of my favorite photography tools. I have a pretty yellow umbrella that I plan on taking millions of pictures with... someday.

Vancouver Washington was the first place I lived without my family. I only stayed there 4.5 months.

When I was very little I went to the hospital a few times, and each time I denied that what my parents said happened had really happened. My parents stories were never investigated.

Xrays would show you I've broken my left wrist, and my right big toe. I don't recommend either, but the wrist was a lot easier to deal with.

Yakima is not my favorite place, but I'm enjoying it much more as an adult than I did as a teenager. I'm sure that most people would say that about the towns they grew up in, though.

Zoos are super exciting places for me. I love to go to the zoo. I have never been to a zoo with Steve.

Amazing Chicken Dinner

Steve is an inventor. He creates book series, designs things, and makes up recipes in his head. Wednesday night our family was treated to a series of chip-coated chicken nuggets by my one and only. It was delicious! He marinated the chicken all day, in several different types of marinade, then he coated all but the lime-marinated chicken in different varieties of crushed up chips. He used regular Doritos, Ranch Doritos, Chile Cheese Frito's, and Fiery Hot Cheetos. Yum! My favorite was his Fiery Hot Cheetos Chicken, so I'm going to share that recipe with you. It goes really well with some black beans flavored with lime juice.

Steve's Hot Cheetos Chicken

2 Chicken breasts, cubed

1/4 cup Plain Yogurt

1/3 c Vinegar

3-4 large dried chili peppers

5-6 garlic cloves

1/2 onion

1 (99¢ size) bag of Fiery Hot Cheetos

Combine the chili peppers, garlic, and onion in your food processor, processing until smooth.

Make a marinade with all the ingredients except the chicken and Cheetos.

Put the chicken cubes into the marinade and refrigerate for 3-5 hours.

Crush your Cheetos. A food processor works best, but you can do pretty well if you spend some time at it with a rolling pin.

Roll your chicken in the chips to coat. Place on skewers.

Bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink inside.

Enjoy!

I Won! And I'm Not Pregnant.

I had a fun surprise today: I received a comment from C. Beth, the blogger who started One Minute Writer telling me I won the previous day's writing contest! (See previous blog post comments.) I also received another fun surprise- she (inadvertently) announced to my friends and family that I was pregnant! I'm just setting the record straight, I'm not. Definitely not. That is still "around the next bend." But, if you want to read my winning entry, take a look!

Creativity Fettered

I'm taking a cake decorating class! I am so excited, because this is something that I've been wanting to do as long as I can remember. I'm acquiring the tools and techniques I've wanted for years. I made a yummy coconut cream cake for our Sunday dinner at Cory & Lisa's house, and I'm working on a yellow cake with lemon filling now.

I am also finally working on my sister's Christmas present, I'm making her a coat. It is a more extensive tailoring project than I usually tackle. It is going to be fantastic. The sewing machine is out, the ironing board is up, the bedroom is a disaster, and I'm sewing again!

I finally have the time I needed to get some of these things done, I've been home all day for the last 2 days! I can watch TV, read blogs, do some writing of my own, its almost perfect.... except one thing:

I'm sick.

You know, the winter plague- deep chest congestion, sinus headaches, drippy nose, loud cough. All of it. Which means: I'm not getting a heck of a lot done. I'm not at work, because my body won't let me work. So, I try to rest.

I lay there.... thinking about my cake.... about my coat... about my blog... This isn't rest. This is unrest.

Wouldn't it be great to have a few days off, get the to-do list checked off, maybe even go to a mid-week matinee? Too bad I have to use up my sick days on the real thing.

Rock 'em, Sock 'em

Last weekend Keith & Stacy came up for a visit, and we went to Ben's house so Keith could deliver his Christmas present. It was fun watching my brothers play like they did when they were kids, I love this picture. Good gifting, Keith!!

Journal

I'm excited. I'm getting back into keeping a regular journal. I think I may actually keep it up, too.

I've decided for my journal this year, I am going to write down at least 1 thing I am thankful for that day, as well as something I learned that day. It is important to me to make sure I'm always learning. I've also started using the prompts from the One Minute Writer when I journal. It helps me to practice my writing skills, and to remember memories I wouldn't otherwise include in my journal. This is definetly the most fun I've ever had keeping a journal!

Here is (part of) my journal entry for today:

January 15, 2009

Today I am thankful for "Honey-do" lists. Steve told me that he likes it when I leave him a list of things to do while I'm at work. And if I leave him a list, he does everything on it. It is fantastic! Today he cleaned up his clothes off the floor, washed our sheets... and I actually can't remember what else, but he loves to be helpful and I love him for it.

Today I learned... the word adjuvant. Well, maybe. We'll see if it sticks. It is a pharmaceutical term which means taking one agent to change the way another agent works. I'm also learning that my supervisor is lazier than I thought!

Today's one-minute writing prompt is "If you could be the best in the world at something, what would it be?"
I think I would be the world's best cookie-maker. Fancy frosted sugar cookies, jelly-filled thumbprint cookies, oatmeal cookies with the perfect ratio of cranberries to white chocolate chips to pecans. I would make cookes that made tears dry and tummies rumble, that made little eyes grow big and dark eyes sparkle.

GIMP

Steve and I are trying to learn how to use GIMP, a free-ware program that is sometimes compared with PhotoShop. This is the picture Steve made for me today. He is so talented.

Mormon Helping Hands

This morning Steve and I had the opportunity to be a part of "Mormon Helping Hands!" We wore the yellow shirts and carried buckets with the church logo and felt very much like we were in one of those specials you see between Conference sessions.

The state is having a lot of trouble with flooding this year, and we were asked to come serve in Ellensburg this morning helping residents with the problems this has created. We knocked on doors to see who needed help, and what kind, and we helped them to clean-up. Unfortunately a lot of people who could use some help weren't ready for it and wanted us to come back later in the day, so we had to send other groups to help them after we left, but it was a good experience and I felt good about the service we were able to provide. I have a feeling that the same time of help will be needed again soon, and I hope we'll be able to be more help if it is.

Let's Get Christmas Posting Over With, Shall We?

Allright, enough is enough, I've officially taken too long to post my Christmas pictures. Here are the rest of them, though. For our ward activity we had a "Night in Bethlehem." Steve and I were Mary & Joseph, but unfortunately, we don't have any pictures of us. Here are mom and dad as the tailors, and Grandpa and Grandma as Bethlehem visitors. The decorating was fantastic, but way too much work, if you ask me. We had a good time, though.

We spent Christmas Eve at the Halls. Ben sat down on Steve's lap and we realized we were all wearing red shirts, which, of course, meant photo-op. We had a good time reading the Christmas story, playing games, and trading white elephant gifts.

Santa filled our fun new stockings, and we dressed in our matching 1-piece jammies to be festive.

The Kenningtons also had matched jammies. There is something about a bunch of kids matching that is a lot cuter than 2 adults doing the same things.

Christmas morning brought a beautiful snow storm that we thought was going to prevent us from getting home, but the sun came shining through after lunch and we decided to take a chance- the roads weren't great, but we made it without incident. The snow was perfect packing snow, so Lydia, Charlotte, Steve, and I made a big snowman before we left.

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas as well, and now I can get on with current happenings instead of flashbacks!!

Happy New Year from the Flynns!!

Stacy Likes Blog Updates

I don't think I'll ever have enough time to sit down and type all about our Christmas adventures this year, so I'll just put them in here a piece at a time. I'm actually at work, and as this is the only picture I have access to right now, you are getting the Santa Clause piece today!

My Grandpa used to dress up as Santa Clause, he had his own suit. He gave it to my dad, who has used it numerous times. This year Steve had the opportunity to use the family suit. Santa Claus came to visit shortly after Steve and I "left" a Sunday dinner with our family. Eric Slade and Bennett Smith were happy to visit with him. When Santa left, I took him over to visit the Cate family. Ethan and Preston were SO excited. Ethen gave Santa a flower to take back to Mrs. Clause, and asked for fortune cookies for Christmas.

I'm glad I had the opportunity to sit on Santa's lap and enjoy this beautiful part of the holiday season with my beloved sweetheart.

I am From

I have been a slow blogger because I want to put up our Christmas pictures and couldn't find the camera. Today I found the camera and pictures, but I'm not going to put them up yet, because I'm too tired to make a lot of sense. For the last week, however, I've been reading other people's blogs (strangers, mostly, and I know it is weird). It is kind of addictive, though. Anyhow, one of my favorites is owlhaven.net. If you get bored, check it out. Anyhow, she re-introduced me to the "I am From" poem, and I decided I needed to make my own. Today's post is a little about my childhood, here is my poem.

I am From

I am from books read by the light in the crack of the door, from Skipper dolls with houses of wood and Ninja turtles spinning on their backs like dreidals.
I am from the grey and blue house painted yellow and green while Mom was in California, in the middle of 24th Avenue, between two old ladies who respectively accepted help in the garden and yelled at you for shoveling their snow.
I am from crocuses popping up in the middle of the snowy yard to announce spring had come, the forbidden afternoons in the maple tree with wooden steps that make it cry.
I am from oysters on holiday mornings with Christmas presents wrapped like animals filling the front rooms, from Smiths and Tolsons and Sunday dinners where Andy and I shared our greatest adventures.
I am from those who cry at the pulpit and baby-sitting should be free so they can attend the temple.
From “she has to come to our house this time” and “will you please vacuum and set the table” and watching mom dance with her broom.
I am from Sundays sitting on pews playing games on paper with brothers, singing hymns and shyly, proudly baring testimony. From reading the scriptures and kneeling in prayer and “sometimes Sunday School answers are the best ones”, from families can be together forever.
I am from Utah and Germany, England and Scotland, sour cream enchiladas and mashed potato mountains.
From a grandpa I met through stories of train rides and not waking up the veterans, and the orphanage he was fleeing. From I’m “helping” dad work in his shop.
I am from photos in albums and boxes becoming digital and put on CD’s, from spending New Years Day giving them labels, and this is my favorite, no this one instead, I remember that, and I hope we go back there again.