Day 5

Today has been a busy day with work. Sometimes I wonder if I have a life outside of work. But that is why I have taken on this project of doing new things. Unfortunately the new thing I did today, also coincided with work :( But this is a cool new thing.... I figured out (independently I might add) how to rip music off of an ipod and put it on an external hard drive.

I think I'm ready for a new adventure in life now though.

Day 4

I woke up this morning to the sight of snow on the ground! It was a fun sight to see. But not really the type of snow you can make a snowman out of.

This evening, I attempted to make a house out of a deck of cards. I've never done this before, nor seen anyone do this. I've only seen pictures. So I tried all sorts of ways on doing this.... yeah, an hour later this is what I was able to successfully come up with.
But I don't think I'm going to give up with trying to get my house built. I foresee that one day you will be able to see a really cool card house posted on this blog, built by me :)

If you have any suggestions, tips or tricks though on how to successfully do this, please share!

Day 3

I spent my Saturday at an Orff Workshop in Salt Lake City. It was nice as I learned new activities and games I can use with my work. After I spent some time with my grandparent's. I always love spending time with them, and hearing stories about their life. On my way home, I decided to go a way that I have always wanted to take, but never did. I'm sure my family has driven this route with me in the car, but I rarely pay attention to where we are going if I'm not driving. But today I was adventurous and took Redwood Road all the way down to the Bangerter Highway. I thought I had missed it a few times, or was lost. But I eventually was able to find it (it's a lot further than I thought it would be), and was luckily protected well enough to be able to be safely home, writing about this new thing I can add to my list of accomplished tasks :)

Day 2

I decided to do something today that I have been wanting to do for awhile, but really haven't had the courage to do. Which now seems odd to me, as it really isn't that crazy compared with other things I have done in my life. I thought it was funny how I was continually talking myself out of doing this at the store. Luckily my personality over ruled these thoughts, and I went through with it. So the courageous new thing I did today was ..... paint my nails black.

This is completely new for me as first I rarely paint my nails, or even take care of them as my other friends tend to. My nail upkeep generally consists of when I see white nail, I cut it off. I prefer short nails due to the easiness in playing instruments. Also when I do paint my nails, (which really is rarely) I tend to go for a really light color that you can barely see. But I have to admit it has been fun to have for the day. It makes me feel like a different person, and therefore has given me courage to try other new things.

Tonight I went with some friends to a carnival that was being thrown in Provo. It was fun, as we played various games (which I had discovered I had no sense of ability to do any of them correctly that night), but they were fun.... and I didn't hurt anyone. They even had a face painting booth, where I was able to get a rubber ducky painted on my check. It looked really cool... according to others. Here is a picture of all of us. You can kinda see my courageous black nail polish I have on :)

The Rut... Day 1

I read an article online last night from someone who decided to do something new everyday for 366 days. Some of the things were big, others were very simple and small. This past week, I have been realizing more that I have gotten myself into a "rut" with life. This is not good! I see how easy it is to get into this, especially when you work full time. I see other co - workers who get into their routine and are content with that life. But I don't see myself finding happiness in that long term. I could be wrong.... but I am still young and many adventures still await me :) So I have decided to take on this challenge as well. I am going to try something new everyday for the next 366 days. (I chose to keep the same amount of days so I end on my sister, Sarah's birthday *Happy Birthday Sarah!*) So now all the things I "thought" would be fun to do, I am going to work on actually accomplishing and finding new things about myself.

Today for Day 1 I came home from working 12+ hours and was just exhausted. I decided to try a new way to de-stress and relax from the busy work week. I found my box of crayons, retrieved some blank paper, put on one of my Sesame Street CD's, and drew pictures. This was a lot of fun, and actually one of the best relaxation techniques I have never really done before. I also decided that it would be no fun to keep this joy to myself.... so I will be mailing them to my dad and mom. It's been awhile since they have been able to have one of my drawings displayed on their fridge.


The first drawing was a blue cow on a farm. After I drew it, I realized that I haven't seen a cow for a long time. My next picture was a small depiction of what I did today... me playing a tubano drum. Than I created a superb picture of my family. I think this one turned out better than expected.

I also drew another picture, but will not reveal it, as I don't want my dad and mom to know everything they will get in this letter.

I have to mention, that it has been awhile since I had listened to this Sesame Street CD. I was surprised how I could sing along with all of the songs. I guess that's what happens when you listen to it everyday on the drive to high school for a month.

Enchilada - kathryn's style

My 6 year old nephew has been sending me recipes that he has just been creating without actually trying. This has inspired to get out of my comfort zone of 'following a recipe' and creating my own concoction. I was talking to my sister, Lindsay, last weekend and she was telling me how they made enchiladas last weekend. That sounded so good, and I couldn't even remember the last time I had an enchilada. But a lot of the things she had used, I am unable to eat at this time. But together we were able to create an enchilada recipe I could have. I tried it out over the weekend, and I have to tell you that they are REALLY good! I made them really spicy, but then I really like spicy food. I was thinking though that these aren't really enchiladas as much, but more of a really fabulous 'lettuce wrap' (but with cabbage instead of lettuce).

Here's what I did though:

Cook chicken breasts or tenders. Cook in a pan onion, peppers, and any other vegetable (I added cut up broccoli to mine). Add the chicken cut up. Add a small can of green chili's, can of diced tomatoes, and then water down a bit hummus for the sauce. Mix together. Clean leaves of Chinese cabbage (the long cabbage). On one side add a bit of the mixture and then roll up and place in baking pan. After all the enchiladas have been made, poor over sauce (I got an organic green chili sauce that had ingredients I could have). I baked it for 10 minutes, but then took it out realizing that I was going to eat this throughout the week and didn't want to reheat it and make it go really soggy. It actually isn't too bad like that, as the mixture is already cooked. But I will heat it up for a minute. This makes them perfect!

"enchiladas" after being wrapped.

"enchiladas" after sauce is poured.

Answers....

Here are the answers to the quiz I posted earlier regarding my mom:
* What did Linda (aka my mom) do for her first presentation in Jr Sunday School. She was about 3 or 4 years old at the time? :)

Answer - She didn't tell anyone she volunteered to give a talk. She got up and sang by herself "down by the station, early in the morning..." this song was taught to her by Grandpa McDonnell.

*What magazine with world wide readership published a picture drawn by Linda (aka - my mom)?

Answer - "The Friend" when she was little she submitted a picture all by herself with out telling anyone. It was discovered when it was was published in the magazine.

*What happened to Linda (aka - my mom) when she raced to the neighbor's car with her sister Marti? (this is a cool, but gross story)

Answer - She was racing her sister to the car and she slid under the neighbor's car door. She cut her thigh wide open and needed to go to the hospital to get stitches. I was told it was a REALLY bad cut.

I did it!!!

This year daylight savings started on March 9th. I was in Arizona on that day, so began to make the transition when I came home. I realized today that I had 10 clocks to change. Today I finally was able to finish this task. Which means I will hopefully be able to adjust physically to the change in time. I've noticed that the hardest thing for me to adjust to is going to bed earlier (or my usual time), as I have to get up earlier (or the usual time). My internal clock still wants to go to bed at the usual time (now an hour later) and wake up the usual time (an hour later). Unfortunately work time automatically switched when they told us to. So this doesn't work out for me.

Can Ya Hear Me Now...

I had my first hearing test today since my surgery in December. First of all it's exciting when a doctor tells you that they don't want to see you for another year :) But I was told that I have gone from severe hearing impairment to mild hearing impairment!!! Normal hearing is 25.... before the surgery I was at a 70.... now I am at 36. The doctor told me that in a couple more months I will be around a 30. So I am excited and happy with this news and want to just share it with everyone.

It's amazing how the Lord will work amazing wonders in our lives in ways that we tend to not think as "traditional." But I know that it is only through him that I have had this amazing miracle occur in my life.

The Big Surprise

I have a bit of extra time tonight.... and so shall record the events that occurred last weekend. About a month ago I was contemplating the idea of traveling to Arizona to surprise my mom for her birthday. The contemplation eventually turned into action, and a plan was set to make it happen. My friend Aaron, helped me with the traveling and planning part. My mom's birthday was on Sunday, March 9th. But I surprised her on Friday, March 7th. I think she was a bit surprised to see me, as I had told her I was going to be at a Conference at Salt Lake City, Utah all day Thursday and Friday. I actually was given the opportunity to go, but my supervisor forgot to turn in the application papers. So with mom thinking I was at the Conference, I gave her a call Friday around lunch to see how things were going. As I talked with her, I walked up to her door, and rang the bell. It was fun to hear her talk about needing to get the door while talking to me.
The weekend was a lot of fun. It didn't go as planned, as I was hoping to throw a party, but a lot of my other family members were down sick. Instead we went out to dinner at Manuel's. One of the things I had planned to do at the party was to play a game where I would ask the family questions about mom as a child. The one to guess it correctly would get a prize, plus we would get to know mom better. I surveyed my mom's sisters, and parent's to find out information about her. It was fun for me as I heard stories I had never heard before. Since we weren't able to play it at the party, I asked the questions at the dinner. Mom answered a lot of them, and then filled us in on more specifics. We laughed so hard with a few of the stories. It was nice to get to know my mom at a different level.
Sunday, we had a nice family dinner, and sang Happy Birthday over Strawberry Shortcake. This will be a great year for her, as she blew out all her candles with one breath. All her wishes are sure to come true.
I have such an amazing mom, and am grateful for the positive influence she has been in my life. Although she has been through many challenges, I am grateful for them, as she has shown me how to be strong and endure when problems become overwhelming. She has always been there for me, and has always been one of my good friends. Happy Birthday Mom!

Quiz time....
* What did Linda (aka my mom) do for her first presentation in Jr Sunday School. She was about 3 or 4 years old at the time? :)

*What magazine with world wide readership published a picture drawn by Linda (aka - my mom)?

*What happened to Linda (aka - my mom) when she raced to the neighbor's car with her sister Marti? (this is a cool, but gross story)

In case you didn't know...

I was informed that I needed to update my blog today. So since I don't have time to do a very insightful and thorough blog at this moment, I will just inform everyone, in case they don't already know, that Enchanted will be released on DVD next Tuesday, March 18th!!! That's in less than 7 days!!! Can you handle the suspense :)

Vegetable Dip

Here's the recipe for the "frosting" I made for my cake:

Vegetable Dip

1 Cup (8 -oz) plain yogurt
3 green onions, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dill weed
1/8 tsp garlic salt
Dash of pepper

In bowl or blender, combine all ingredients. Refrigerate several hours to blend flavors. Each tablespoon of dip contains about 10 calories.

Birthday Party

In the past, for my birthday I have generally gone out with family members to a restaurant, looked at the menu, and realized that I can't eat anything, so I special order a dinner, have my family notify them that it's my birthday, have the staff sing their rendition of a birthday song REALLY loud, receive the special "birthday" treat, and then watch them eat it :) (which I actually told them to do this... why waste free dessert!)
But in celebration of my birthday this year, I decided to invite my sister Lindsay and brother in law, Trevor over for dinner. We had a FEAST!!!! It was such a good dinner. I think we should duplicate it for Thanksgiving this year. We made chicken fajitas. Now I know this may sound plain for everyone, but we added some great extras to it.... homemade red pepper hummus (yes, I have finally figured out how to make a really good hummus), homemade guacamole (Trevor knows the right mix to create this perfectly! - it was so good), salsa, sour cream and cheese (FYI for Jen - I didn't add the last two to mine :) In addition we had these chips I recently discovered called "Guiltless Gourmet." I get the unsalted ones that are baked.

At the dinner party, I was able to put to use some of my nice serving pieces and dinner setting pieces, since I don't tend to use my plate chargers everyday. I realize now that I took this picture before we put everything on the table. Because when we sat down, it felt like there was food all around us.

After we realized we ate more than we should have, the Dayton's came over and sang Happy Birthday. We all sampled the psuedo "carrot cake" I created. It's made with carrots, brocoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, and cilantro. We dipped the veggies from this great dip recipe I found in my grandma's recipe book I got last summer (page 96). I also had purchased some "Baby Ruth" mini candy bars for those who like to dress up their veggies even more.

After we moved the cake closer to the TV and watched the CES fireside and just snacked on the "cake" for the hour.
When the dishes were cleaned up, we made smoothies. We realized though that we were still really full from everything else we had eaten. So we split one smoothie 3 ways. Lindsay and Trevor were also gracious enough to take some "cake" home with them. The cake began to look really funny as we took the vegetables off. It was also painful at times, as we kept poking our fingers on the toothpicks already exposed. It soon began to look like a cactus. So this morning I was sitting and looking at my apartment, and am trying to figure out how long I should leave the decorations up for? I was not in the mood to take them down last night or this morning. Perhaps steamers and balloons will become "in style" for home decorating.