Is spring on its way?

It feels like spring is here! Winter has been so dreary and cold. With the time change, a few days of temperatures in the 70's, wearing sandals, re-arranging the living room, and spring break officially starting today I feel pretty good. 

To make things even better:

We have goldfish! When Sam and I were first married I enthusiastically suggested that we get fish. I thought I had a pretty persuasive argument but I guess it took Sam some time to warm up to the idea.  I think it was mostly due to the fact that I have a poor track record for taking care of fish, despite my good intentions (they are never hardy enough). However, a few weeks ago we went and got a little fish bowl, fish food and some fish. 

I think one of the best parts about having a pet is getting to choose the name. We decided a Lord of the Rings theme, and their names are Gimli and Legolas. Gimli is the spotted (and not so pretty one). Maybe I felt bad for him in the pet store. Legolas is the pretty white and gold one.  It reminds me of when I had fish growing up...good times. 

Also, a few weeks ago was Ethan's birthday. Here are some pictures that make me laugh.

I think Leah was more excited for Ethan to open presents than he was!

Isn't she cute?

Star Wars!

Epic battles ensued. No casualties though, because I was told that all body parts grow back fast. 

Insect Zoo

For Martin Luther King Jr. day there were lots of service opportunities around town. Sam and I volunteered at the Insect Zoo to do some cleaning. Before we got started we were able to look at all the bugs they had. 

I think the glow-in-the-dark scorpions were my favorite. 

We even got to pet this tarantula! We were both really nervous!

Start off the new year in Texas

We took a road trip to Austin, Texas to visit Sam's aunt, uncle and cousins for New Years. 

Sam, Will and Ethan all have rocket shirts that Lauren made for them. 

What a handsome trio!

From board games and movies to a talent show and go-cart race it was packed full of activities!

Ross, Will and Sam were hard at work assembling their go-cart. 

Our go-cart's name was Rebel Scum from Star Wars. 

The girls decorated and painted. 

I  helped decorate The Wild Wonder. 

Then the go-cart race commenced down the driveway and down the hill. 

Rebel Scum had smoke bombs and fireworks attached to its back to slow down the competition. 

There were some collisions and injuries but I think everyone would agree that it was worth it. 

First Christmas

This is the first Christmas Sam and I have had together as a married couple. It was wonderful! 

Opening the gifts that Sam wrapped was almost as great as the gifts themselves. 

Sam's parents gave us this puzzle. Sam and I couldn't stop laughing. What a gift!

Merry Christmas!

'Tis the Season

One thing I love about the Christmas season is baking goodies and ding-dong-ditching them on people's doorsteps. This year I tried my hand at sugar cookies with royal icing. I think they turned out fairly well for my first time. Sam and I had fun decorating them but it's hard work!

Look at all those cookies!

 And here is the finished product. Yes, there are less cookies than what we started out with. 

What can I say? 

They were tasty. 

Oh Christmas tree...

We just finished decorating our Christmas tree!

 It has popcorn garland and mini-ornaments (it's hard to see them in this photo). 

It reminded me of Charlie Brown's Christmas tree .  I love that movie! 

Is there any resemblance?

Betty Crocker?

Sometimes my mom calls me Kia Crocker (like Betty Crocker). I know I'm not anywhere close to being a good cook but you have to start somewhere. I love sitting down to eat something I've made. It is really satisfying to take something that started out as a pile of ingredients and transform it into a delicious dish.

This semester I'm in a class called Baking Science. Every week in lab we get hands on experience making all types of breads and baked goods. From whole wheat, sourdough, white bread to fococcia, pizza crust, pie crust and cakes. Of course, it isn't just a baking class because we talk about ingredient functionality, flour quality, and the chemical reactions occurring during baking and how to change formulations and problem solve in the baking industry. It is so interesting and useful!

Here are some of my whole wheat loaves. We have to score them on their crust color, grain, crumb, symmetry and texture. It's hard work to get them to look like this but they make such good sandwich bread. Sam and I have hardly bought any bread from the store because I bring home so much. It's one of the perks of majoring in grain science. 

We learned how to make the perfect, flaky pie crust and then got to make our own pies. 

If you want to make a flaky pie crust the key is very cold ingredients to make sure your fat doesn't melt into your flour and don't over-mix. 

Here are some tips:

-refrigerate your mixing bowl and paddle 

-cut up your fat (shortening or lard) and refrigerate it 

-refrigerate your flour

-use ice water

-when you cut your fat into your flour make sure you don't make the fat pieces too small (the smaller the fat pieces the less flaky the crust will be)