Workout!

Well, I'm at home in Borger this weekend...got home last night around 11:30pm (NOT a fun drive). But, it's been great to see family!

To explain the videos below... Dad and I like to workout together when I come home and tend to compete a bit by showing each other the latest and greatest workout we've come by. So, first we did the workout video I do every other day and almost died, then Dad wanted me to try his workout.

Since interval workouts are so good aerobic-wise, Dad rides his exercise bike, on the highest tension (I could BARELY peddle standing up!), for as long as possible. Then you rest until your heart rate goes down and do it again! So, you do as many reps as possible until you want to die and it's an extremely effective way to get in shape fast!

My Dad was SO funny doing this, I took a video. And as payback, he videoed me...As you can see, it was a bit hard, but too funny. This is a glimpse into some of the antics that go on when I go home :)

Hot Springs!

I know it's been a while since I got back from Hot Springs on Sunday, but I'm finally blogging about it! It was an extremely good trip!! Jason picked me up Friday afternoon around 2:30pm and we headed out. His girlfriend had to go out of town that weekend, so it was just the two of us (we missed you Cari!!). It wasn't a bad drive at all, we took a scenic route for the last part and ended up in Hot Springs about 7:45pm. It was great to drive up with Jason and catch up. We haven't sat down and talked in many months! So, we got there, checked in and headed down the road for some dinner. We stayed downtown amongst all the shopping and Bath Houses because we thought that would be mucho fun, and it was!


We wondered down to a little Italian place that had great Spinach dip and excellent Chicken Alfredo, so that was very nice after a long drive! Saturday morning, Jason wanted to go hiking, so he left the hotel around 630am and went for a hike...I let him borrow my camera so that I wouldn't have to get up that early! So, below are pics from his hike. He said it looked like a scene from a horror movie with all the fog and foresty type things...I'm glad I stayed in bed!!

It was beautiful there, but the heat/humidity was HORRIBLE! I grew up in the Panhandle, where there is NO humidity, so it was rough on me....
This is the balcony from my hotel room
The hotel looked like it was cool in the 50's or so, but had not been updated since! It was clean and nice, just very outdated. This view of the 3rd floor pool area makes it look very nice, though! It's amazing what you can make something out to be with your camera :)
So, this is me before I left to pick up Jason for the BBQ Saturday morning/afternoon. My hair is normally stick straight, but in Arkansas, I decided not to fight with it anymore!

This above is the Arlington hotel. It's in the middle of downtown and appears to be the "nice" hotel in Hot Springs (not including all the chain hotels).

Above is downtown Hot Springs from the porch of the Arlington Hotel
This is an authentic Hot Spring! All over downtown water bubbled out, and usually had a fountain built around it. But the water was truely HOT! I could barely touch it. Jason and I filled up gallon water jugs with the Hot Spring water and brought it home as souveniers...tee hee hee!

This is Amy and Jason walking in the Bath House row (there are about 7 in a row, but only one is still operating)

All the pics above are of an old bath house that was converted into a museum, and therefore kept in it's original 1920's condition. It reminded me more of an old horror movie insane asylum and was a bit creepy. I can't actually imagine going to a place like this for relaxation! There was one room for foot problems. You went it and sat in a chair, and the guy there fixed people's foot cysts by beating them with his knuckles until there were crushed and moved them away from the foot. Now, that does not sound like a good time to me! They also had a mercury bath to treat people with syphilis...just didn't sound like such a good idea to me!

Anyway, we went to a wedding BBQ on Saturday afternoon and had a great time there. After that Amy and Dan, and Amy's parents (Amy was my best friend in High School, Dan's her husband) came into town and we spent all afternoon/evening with them shopping and eating. It was AWESOME to see them and catch up. Sunday morning was the wedding, so we headed to the Botanical Gardens where it was at. It was in this huge chapel that was all wood and glass and we were in the middle of the forrest, so it was AH-MAZING!! The wedding was beautiful and so was the reception. Jason and I drove home and got back around 7 or 8 I think.

Funny story, Jason and I apparently acted like and old married couple all weekend (or at least that's how it looked). Since we drove together, stayed at the same hotel, ate together, sat together, etc. it looked very odd, I'm sure. He would even hold doors open, get me something to drink, and stick stuff in my purse! It was too funny... it was all due to the fact that we've known each other for 12-13 years and he's like a part of my family...I was asked by several people of we were dating, and I just told them no, I was just his stand-in date since his girlfriend wasn't there. But, it was very nice to be around people that I've known for the better part of my life and be able to be completely comfortable with them! Since I've been in Dallas, I've made lots of great friends, but nothing can quite compare to relationships since 7th grade!!

Anyway, we'll all be back together again for my friend Rachel's wedding in June, so I can't wait for that! Seems like the only time we

I Need the Faith to Have Faith

First off, it's the start of wedding season! My summer is quickly filling up with showers, batchelorette parties, and weddings. I'm excited to see my friends getting married, some of them I've known since middle school. There's a slight twinge of jealousy, but otherwise, I'm just excited! The first one is this weekend in Arkansas...Jason's (friend from growing up) going to pick me up and we'll head out tomorrow afternoon. The wedding's going to be great, but we'll also get to spend time with old/new friends and explore Hot Springs which I'm really looking forward to.

I've been constantly reminded lately to lean HARD on God for His plan in my life. It's been so hard for me to resist manipulating situations/people/etc and try and get what I want. It's also been quite a lesson to say no to things that would be fun now, even though they're not necessarily sinful, because they are distracting me from my Father. Needless to say, I've been constantly praying for faith. That seems to be at the root of all my issues, a lack of faith. God has proven Himself over and over and over in my life with the situations He's designed and the path He's lead me on, but for some reason I continue to doubt Him. So, my lesson I'm learning lately, and probably will continue to learn for a very LONG time, is that I can't even muster up my own faith. I even have to depend on God for faith! I have to pray and beg for it, because I can't even do that on my own. I do, however, find every new level of helplessness refreshing because of the knowledge that I am so bad at running my life by myself. The more I realize I have no abilities to make life go the right way, the more I understand God's plan for me. Matt Chandler preached on the topic of faith last weekend and it was challanging and wonderful. If you're interested in it, go to http://www.thevillagechurch.net/ and listen to "Conviction of the Unseen" from May 18, 2008 or you can also podcast it on iTunes.

Return, O faithless sons; I will heal your faithlessness. (Jeremiah 3:22)

Cinnamon Cake with Chile-Chocolate Buttercream

I know this recipe sounds funny, and it did to me, too... But, it's tied to my Nana's Italian Cream Cake as the BEST CAKE I'VE EVER EATEN! So, try it...it's AH-MAZING!!

Ingredients:

CAKE
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for buttering the paper
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream

FROSTING
5 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 pound confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
5 ounces white chocolate, melted and cooled

Directions:

1. Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper and butter the paper. Dust the pans with flour, tapping out the excess.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk the 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour with the cake flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter with the sugar at medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until incorporated. In 3 alternating additions, add the dry ingredients and sour cream, scraping down the side of the bowl between additions.

3. Scrape the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake the cakes on the lower and middle racks of the oven for about 30 minutes, until golden and springy and the edges begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer the cakes to racks and let cool for 15 minutes, then turn the cakes out and let them cool completely. Remove the parchment paper.

4. Meanwhile, make the frosting: In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter until creamy. At low speed, beat in the confectioners’ sugar. Increase the speed to high and beat until fluffy, scraping down the side of the bowl, about 2 minutes longer. At low speed, beat in the cream, vanilla, cinnamon, ancho chile powder and cayenne, then gradually beat in the bittersweet and white chocolate. Scrape down the side of the bowl and the paddle, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light, 3 minutes longer. Using a wooden spoon, vigorously beat the buttercream for 30 seconds to deflate any air bubbles.

5. Place one cake layer on a plate and spread with 1 cup of the frosting. Top with the second cake layer and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides. Refrigerate the cake for at least 30 minutes. Bring to room temperature before serving.

MAKE AHEAD The cake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. The buttercream can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. Return to room temperature before using.

By the way, this recipe is from Food&Wine at http://www.foodandwine.com/.

Whoops!

So, I uh...kinda messed up my work computer! I barely let it slip, and it hit the corner of something at just the right angle, and TA-DAH! See below.... I now have to make an all day trip to the office tomorrow to get it fixed/replaced. What a pain!

Suzanne Watts

Lady Bug Attack- Explaination

Ok, so the below video was hilarious and I thought I'd explain exactly how the demise of Carissa's lip went down...

Carissa bought some window frames to use to frame her paintings and she was walking around with them on her shoulder. Something flew into her face and she thought it was a bee, so she jumped and turned her head. By doing that, she whacked her mouth into the frames and busted her lip. Afterwards, I looked at her and this ladybug was sitting on her cheek, just hanging out! Oh man, once she got her lip to stop bleeding, it was hilarious!! So, we had to make a video about it, her lip was HUGE for days...too funny. Later that day she ended up with ladybugs on her at least 2 more times. Apparently she's a magnet for them.... who knew!

When Bugs Attack!!!

Ok, I forgot to post this earlier, I hope the video explains enough, if not, I'd be happy to re-live the whole story for you!

And, THANK YOU, Carissa for being such a good sport. If you didn't get yourself into all these crazy situations, I wouldn't feel the urge blog about it, but it's TOO funny! :) I promise if I do anything to embarass myself, I'll post it also.

Mom's Birthday Weekend!!

Our family was trying to think of what we should do for my mom's birthday this year and thought we should take her to Canton! She's always wanted to go, so we thought this would be the perfect time. The idea was hatched on Easter, but we had to plan the whole thing and keep it a secret! So, we flew her to Dallas on Thursday, and we made her a birthday dinner:

Carissa waiting for dinner to be ready...
Mom's flyer telling what her surprise was...
Me cooking...
Me about to cut the cake (which was AH-MAZING! It was a Cinnamon Cake with Spicy Chocolate Frosting). I know it might sound weird, but if anyone wants the recipe, let me know!
Mom, Me and Carissa at Canton on Friday. (In case anyone doesn't know, Canton has a thing called First Monday that is a HUGE (3000 booths) flea market/craft fair/garage sale/bargain shop. It's open for 4 days once a month and TONS of people come from all over to go.Kate, Mom, Me, Carissa
On Saturday, we took Mom to our ladies retreat at church
Carissa, Me, and Kate at the Ladies Retreat
Alice, Julie and Gina at the retreat
Carissa, Me, Gina and KateSaturday night we surprised mom by going to dinner with Angie and Philip's mom, Sally. They used to live in Borger and go to our church. So, we had a great dinner and really enjoyed catching up! Above is Mom and Sally.

Sunday morning we slept lat (after quite a long weekend) and worked out in the yard. Carissa's dog, Stella LOVES to cart around branches, weeds, etc. We don't even need to buy her toys!


Stella attacking Fluffy, my cat...it happens ALL THE TIME and the cat screams at her, but lets the dog chew on her anyways.
This is the mangy cat after being chewed on.

Sunday night we went to church and go to see lots of fun people...we also had Shaina and Lindsey over after church to eat. So, even though we only had leftovers, we had an amazing time!

Today mom went home after lunch and it was sad to see her go! I am glad to get some rest this week and have nothing to do, but we had SUCH A BLAST! I love finding new fun things to do in the Dallas area and love having mom here for a surprise, so it was great :)