I Laugh in the Face of Kneaders--Ha Ha!

Thursday, January 19, 2012

I strongly believe in many things, not the least of which is that when faced with a day like this:



There's only one thing to do: BAKE. Bake like there's no tomorrow. Bake until the Keebler Elves worry about job security. Bake like you don't give a [gram] about calories or weight gain. Bake until your kitchen and the smells emanating therefrom bring the entire neighborhood to its knees in anticipation. Bake until the scientists at Scentsy bang down your door, begging to make mouth-watering wax out of your sugar-n-spice aromas!

Okay, that entire paragraph was a little (or a lot) over-the-top. Sorry. But the truth of the matter is, when it rains--I just itch to bake. And today, cinnamon rolls were the evil foodstuffs of choice! But there's just one problem . . .see, I'm not that great at cinnamon rolls. Anytime I've attempted them on my own, well, they're sort of a flop. Take yesterday, for example; I followed my mother's recipe to a "T" and ended up with these bad boys:



Yeah. Not pretty. Tasty, to be sure (anything with butter and sugar will most likely somewhat please the palette) but you'd never put those babies in the display case at Kneaders (which is, incidentally, my new favorite place). So today I did what any self-respecting, aspiring baker would do: I called for some tutelage. I called for a "cinnamon roll making personal trainer." I called for my mommy. I packed up my ingredients, and Bethie and I headed to Grandma's for a cozy afternoon of baking bliss.

First, Bethie helped Grandma roll out the dough:



Then, they took a short break to pose for a quick picture--since I felt the whole thing was definitely a "Kodak moment."



Bethany loved helping Grandma sprinkle the brown sugar:



And then I taught her how to cut the roll into pieces with dental floss. (Note: we used cinnamon dental floss. I thought it apropos.)



Bethany did so well with the cutting, she ended up cutting the rest of them all by herself!



Three generations of baker women! (Note: I have not cut my hair. It's back in a rather untidy ponytail.)



And here's the result . . .TA-DA!!!

We did half with orange icing, half with maple. And (unlike the attempt from yesterday) they were yummy and soft and delicious and all that is right and good in America today!



Here's to my fledgling skills as cinnamon-roll-baker extraordinaire! And here's a big THANK YOU to my many neighbors and friends who helped me eat them up--I'm glad they didn't go to "waist" (namely, mine). :0)

New Year's Eve: Nightlife vs. Wildlife

Sunday, January 1, 2012

On New Year's Eve, chances are you won't find me or my family at Times Square in New York City. Maybe I'll try that someday--someday when being shoulder to shoulder with over one million highly intoxicated strangers who blow annoying little noisemakers every five seconds sounds remotely appealing to me.

Someday when I've gone absolutely NUTS.

Don't judge me. I'm claustrophobic. And as it is, I'm having nightmares about Lady Gaga's outfit just from seeing it on TV. So yeah, chances aren't that good of EVER finding me at Times Square on New Year's Eve. (Now if we're talking the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade . . .count me IN. But that's another story for another holiday on another day.)

New Year's Eve USUALLY finds me with my extended family--much more my style. We get together and play all kinds of games and eat all kinds of diet-blowing food that would give Lipitor a run for its money. We laugh, we eat, we play, we count down, we watch the ball drop, we kiss, we toast, we go home. In short, we have a marvelous time! And that was the plan this year, until many of my extended family left town--and then the ones who were here were either entertaining the stomach flu or having a baby or fighting a cold or doing who knows what else . . .so our original plans went kaput.

So we went with "Plan B" yesterday. Rather than a raucous "nightlife" of games, food, and fun, we opted for raucous "wildlife!"



That's right: ELK, baby. That's where it's at. Or rather, that's where WE were at--watching the elk on Hardware Ranch. We decided that heading to Hardware Ranch would be a fun way to spend New Year's Eve afternoon. It was a good day for it--cold but clear, and so great to be in a beautiful setting with the sunshine and blue sky!



If you've never been to Hardware Ranch, you should give it a try! (And no, the Hardware Ranch people are not paying me to say that.) It's really inexpensive and fun--as wagon or sleigh rides always are--and just a short drive up Blacksmith Fork Canyon. Basically, you just buy a ticket and then if there's snow on the ground, you ride on a SLEIGH pulled by Clydesdale horses. If there's not snow on the ground (which was the case yesterday) you ride on a WAGON pulled by Clydesdale horses. Here is the team that made our ride possible yesterday--Reba and Billy.



Thanks, Reba and Billy. I guess I'm just the type of gal that really enjoys the wagon riding experience. Here we are, about to embark on our grand adventure:



(We talked my dad into coming with us, since he's the type of guy that really enjoys wagon rides . . .I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.) Anyway, they take you up on this ride right into the meadow where the elk are until you're just a little wagon island amidst a sea of elk. And this year's "sea" is apparently pretty small (only about 200 elk); when there's snow, they have 600-700 elk there, including lots of bulls. We only saw about two to three bulls yesterday--just lots and lots of cows. (Did you know that girl elk are called "cows?" I didn't. I had just assumed they were "does" or something but nope--"cows" they are. In fact, even the women's room in the visitor's center said, "Cows" on it. Not sure how I feel about that one, but you've gotta give them credit for getting into the theme of the thing.)

Here are some shots of wildlife:



Oops, didn't realize that one featured the backside of the elk in such a dominant way. I wouldn't want a picture of my backside splashed across a blog, but I suppose this cow won't care. Anyway, let's try this one:



Bethany really enjoyed the scenery and bright sunshine:



I love living in the mountains!



And here we are, after our ride, still feeling that "one-with-nature" euphoria:



We're so glad we made the trip! We were pretty darn cold at the end (well, Bethany was toasty--we had her bundled really well) but it was just the right sort of day for that exact sort of adventure!

When we got home, we had a quiet, pleasant night with my parents playing Hungry, Hungry Hippos and watching a cheesy Hallmark movie. And then we skedaddled right to bed because church now starts at 9:00 a.m. I had to teach Relief Society and wanted to be somewhat coherent, so I needed to sleep off my caramel corn "hangover!" All in all, a satisfying New Year's Eve. As long as I get to kiss James at midnight--that's the most important thing!

And I did. (Please excuse me for not posting photos. ;)

Oh, and extended family--as fun as our day was, I missed our normal routine. So mark your calendars for next year, mmmmmmkay? HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

Rockabye, Sweet Baby Jace!

On December 29, 2011, I became an aunt again when Jace Gary Higham was born! Some of you might know this little guy as "Tate 2: the Movie" which is what Bethany wanted to name him (since his older brother is the original Tate). But despite such helpful name suggestions (including "Shelf" and various other household items), Ben and Jamie decided that "Jace Gary Higham" was THE name. At first, I was puzzled about the "Gary" and really wondered if Ben had taken his Aggie fanhood to a new extreme by naming his kid after Gary Andersen--the Utah State head football coach. But to my relief, "Gary" is after Jamie's father, whose name, it turns out, is actually "Gary." (Who knew? I've called him "Brent" for seven years.) And Jamie's paternal grandfather is also "Gary." And Ben's boss is named Gary. (AND the Aggie football head coach is just incidentally named "Gary" . . .) So basically, they're covering a lot of bases, here. Smart call with the middle name.

Anyway, everything went very well with Jamie's scheduled C-section and out little Jace popped (not to sound too graphic), beautiful and perfect in every way. Mother and child are doing well--they are home and bonding as a new family. Here are some pictures of Jace's first day!



Isn't he adorable in that little hat? And here is the proud Mama, all beautiful and glowing:



And the happy grandmother:



And the bustin' his buttons grandpa:



And the thrilled aunt (let's just pretend I was having a good hair day, which I wasn't):



And the little man of the hour himself, once again:





Congratulations, Ben and Jamie! We're so thrilled to have Jace in our family!