Life Archives - Page 16 of 34 - Trinkets of Thought

Where in thunder?

June 3, 2010 by Maren 2 Comments

Where have I been? I’ve been having friends in town, chasing around a one year old, taking some pics, editing pictures, sleeping too much, chasing around a one year old, cleaning, working, taking walks, chasing after a ball, treating my library fines like it’s stock (watching it grow exponentially), driving on whirlwind trips to Ohio, chasing around a one year old, searching craigslist for a new vehicle, listening to a couple books on tape, going on adventures, chasing around a one year old, drowning in papers, and reading the same board books over and over again.

I’ll be back. Sorry for my absense. Until then, I leave you with my breath of fresh air:

Stay tuned tomorrow for my absolute favorite dessert. Oh, I forgot to mention EATING in the “what I’ve been doing” list. I definitely am a master at that!

Duh-Aha Tips

May 14, 2010 by Maren 18 Comments

These tips aren’t really to teach you anything. You probably already know them. I’ve recently thought about OBVIOUS tricks that took me FOREVER to learn around the house and kitchen. You know, the kind where you think, “Why did it take me so incredibly long to do this?”

1. Throw fresh ginger in the freezer and it can be used forever. (Well, maybe not forever, but a lot longer than the moldy green stuff it turns into in the refrigerator.)

2. Throw lemon peel in the freezer and user it for zest later or first make the zest then put it in the freezer (though I’m too lazy for option#2.)

3. I recently started keeping blow dryer plugged in next to my bed. After showering I go lay back in bed and blow-dry my hair. Why did I not think of this eons ago? It’s fabulous.

4. I’m sure 99.9% of people in the world do this. BUT I didn’t think of it until about 3 years after I was married!!! Cold water can be run over pasta to speed up the cooling process. I feel so dumb to admit this one. *tucks head in shame.*

5. I got tired of cooling HOT baby food by blowing on it. I now stir it with an ice cube for just a couple of seconds!

6. Label the tops of spices and throw them in a basket. BEST spice organization EVER because the ease of use sure beats the typical knock-over-every-single-other-spice-to-get-the-one-you-want method!!!!!

7. If a recipe calls for super fine/caster sugar, don’t buy it. Just pulse it in the blender for a few seconds.

8. If your gravy is lumpy, throw it in a blender. But make sure to avoid a blender explosion by blending in small batches and using a towel to cover the blender when blending anything hot. Been there Done That–Got the T-shirt and the burn; Thanksgiving 2007.

8. Aspirin is great for diminishing unsightly acne on one’s face (I may or may have used this remedy this weekend for a couple of ugly blemishes that made my mouth look like the Joker’s!). Right before bed, just crush a tablet up, mix with a tiny bit of water, and apply a very small amount to the gargantuan embarrassment. In the morning, it will look a ton better, I promise! Helps take away the redness and works like a charm. If only I had know about this one in high school when my whole face was a zit.

9. Use a behind the door shoe rack to store miscellaneous baby items.

I am embarrassed about how messy this is…but it is very handy for baby medicines, baby hats, baby socks, lotions, etc. etc.

10. Freeze chicken breasts in individual baggies so you don’t have to cook the entire package of meat. I know, I know…Another DUH one…this took me several years for me to figure out. I went to visit my friend in Massachusetts, saw how she did it, and had my chicken-freezing-AHA-moment. Also, I’d always get irritated about how THICK the chicken was. It took me about 7 years into marriage for me to realize that was the purpose of a meat tenderizer.

Do you have any DUH-AHA tips that took you a while to figure out…And that you’re not to ashamed to admit?

It was the best of Jokes…It was the worst of Jokes

May 7, 2010 by Maren 4 Comments

For the past couple of weeks, I have worn my wedding ring with a slit in the shank. My ring has recently had a one-on-one with the jeweler and as a result, I’m now ‘in-the-know’ about all things ring related.

Less than one month after we were married, my husband and I took our church’s youth group on a missions trip. While there, the love-struck teenage girls fancied that one of the youth sponsors had struck up a relationship with a man she had just met. I brilliantly(?) concocted a plan for a little practical joke. I lent the lady my engagement ring with hopes of announcing to the the googly-eyed teens, in grandiose fashion, that the man had proposed! And she had accepted! It was a great joke. The girls bought the story hook, line, and sinker–and screamed as only as high school girls have the capability of screaming.

Well, then the joke was on us. It got stuck on her finger. Nothing would get that thing off…we tried soap, oil, string tourniquet, water, ice, elevation, a night’s sleep, YOU NAME IT. That ring was not budging and the lady wanted the ring off of her finger! A trip to the emergency room and a little snip snip, and my ring looked like something like you’d buy out of a $.25 machine–A ring with a slit right down the backside.

And, LOVE HIS SOUL… Wanna know my patient husband’s response to the whole fiasco:? “I understand Maren. It’s just you.” Probably one of the first few clues as to the extent of the mess (me) he’d gotten himself into. And one of my first clues to the extent of my dear husband’s patience.

Thankfully, the jeweler appreciated my joke and soldered my ring for free. And for nine years, I’ve enjoyed a good story and life’s merriment. Until last week. I suppose 9 years of abuse caused it to split again, and so I hiked my split shank and little ‘ole me back to a jeweler. In 30 minutes, the ring was fixed, polished, and once again pretty! Special thanks to Fast-fix in Louisville, KY for helping me (and my ring) feel whole again! WHOOTWOOT!

*Object in the picture is smaller than it appears. 🙂
** Before you ask, I have large knuckles and those balls are ‘ring sizing balls,’ sit in the fat of my finger and keep it in place.

Easy Pulled Pork Sandwiches

April 30, 2010 by Maren 4 Comments

I like to eat. The problem when you like to eat is that someone has to cook. I’m also cheap. The problem when you are cheap is that going out often requires a second mortgage on the house. So, I cook. Now, I’m not a chef. I’m not even a cook. But I do cook and like it fine.

For Pierson’s birthday, I needed to make something that could easily serve a crowd without slaving in the kitchen before or during church. I made pulled pork sandwiches. So easy. So good. Here’s the recipe from Allrecipes.com and can be found by clicking here.

And because I personally like recipes that I can visualize, here it is in pictures. Keep in mind that I tripled the recipe. So if it looks like a lot of onions or meat, etc, that’s why.

The ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter
2 pounds boneless pork roast
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (I mixed Cajun Seasoning and Season Salt.)
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
4 cups water
1 tablespoon liquid smoke flavoring

Cut the pork roast into large chunks.

Season generously with the Cajun seasoning.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add pork, and brown on all sides.

Remove from the skillet, and transfer to a slow cooker.

Scrape pan for all of the do-good.

Crush your garlic (or go the easy route and use the jarred stuff…)

Add the onion and garlic to the skillet, and cook for a few minutes until tender.

This is where I diverted a little from the recipe for the sake of ease. I threw the onions in the slow cooker.

Then I dumped HOT water into the crock pot. (If you go my route, make sure the water is hot, so the mixture starts out warm and the crockpot doesn’t have to heat it up…)

Dump in liquid smoke flavoring.

Cover, and cook on High for 6 hours, or until meat is falling apart when pierced with a fork. Remove pieces of pork from the slow cooker, and shred.

Return to the slow cooker to keep warm while serving. Put on buns and eat without barbeque sauce.

Or with. I made this sauce and it turned out great!

Great AND EASY for feeding a crowd! I liked starting it on the stove because I think it gave it more flavor than doing it otherwise. It was very good and the eaters ate!

Notes for when I make it again: I will cut back on both the onions and seasoning salt. Though it tasted great, it was just a little too oniony and salty for my personal taste. It has great flavor! Let me know if you try it!

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