I’m going to inhale deeply today. Rain is pretty amazing.
Tag: Missoula
Summer Recap
Holy smokes!
Hello!
I still exist, and I’m happy that you do too. We had an action-packed, relaxing, invigorating, magical summer. Hence the silence on my part.
Umm, apparently June 4th was the last time I visited here, but I swear it was only two weeks ago.
For real, June 4th?
Don’t worry, I’m not sorry at all. I soaked up every ray of sun, every giggle, every trampoline flip and fish caught. (Well, I ate the fish rather than absorbed them.) I just couldn’t remove myself from life enough to post about it, and I think that’s pretty awesome.
Now that fall is settling in and the mornings are chilly, I feel like we’ve slowed down a bit.
Want to look at my summer?
The boy turned 9!
I got my hair cut. (You’re so excited, I can tell)
I caught my first real fish! (I caught a fish once when I was 16, but it was teeny and we didn’t keep it.)
We drove boats. And played in boats. And fished from boats. And tried to ski behind boats.
Boats. Lots of boats. Can you tell that I’m obsessed with boats? I would totally live in a boat.
We went zip-lining.
All of the cousins were together for the first time ever.
I went to my first rodeo! Can you explain to me how I’ve been in Montana for my whole life and never once been to a rodeo?!?
And you guys! I drink beer now! This is a thing! I can’t even tell you how happy this makes my husband. You know him? He’s the homebrewer that I talk about all the time. Don’t worry, beer drinking was completely my decision. And in case you’re wondering whether or not I was replaced by a pod-person, I don’t think there’s any chance I’ll ever, ever, drink an IPA. Ick!
So as you can see, I was busy.
How was your summer?
How I Survived the Blizzard
You all know that I hate the cold.
I would take 97F over -25F EVERY. TIME.
And spending two hours shoveling my driveway, while a great workout, is not my idea of time well-spent.
But I have to say, getting a four-day weekend is pretty spectacular.
Guys. We got snow days!! Not one, but two!!
If you’re from Montana, this is basically unheard of. It could snow an entire foot over night and we’d still have to go to school.
Last week though, we got Friday off because it snowed a foot over night and then we had 50mph wind. I had to pretend I was hearing ocean sounds in order to sleep. It actually worked really well. There still weren’t enough streets cleared by Monday to safely open the schools, which meant that we got to stay home again.
So my mind naturally came up with this frozen treat. If you’re all bundled up and you don’t have to brave the cold, why not?
All you have to do is make some whipped cream
We make whipped cream by adding heavy whipping cream and maple syrup into a mixing bowl. Beat until fluffy and add maple syrup in small amounts until it tastes right.
Get some graham crackers
Spread on some peanut butter
Then the whipped cream
Sprinkle on some chocolate chips. Drizzle on as much caramel as you can.
More caramel! Caramel recipe can be found here.
Top them off and freeze them for a couple of hours.
These sandwiches don’t get rock hard like you’d expect. Even after they’ve been in the freezer overnight! They were shockingly easy to break in half and bite through. The whipped cream retains its fluffy texture, and frozen caramel might be the best thing in the world. As my husband says, “These things will change your life.”
If I would have known I could celebrate the cold with treats, I would’ve had a completely different outlook on winter.
Well, if this isn’t inspiration
Then I don’t know what is.
I know I haven’t posted anything in awhile. And while I’m kind of sorry about that, I also really enjoyed the downtime.
I took some time to take photos just for fun. And because I wasn’t trying to get any kind of photo in particular, it helped me improve my skills a little.
Hellooooooo F stop!
Exhibit A
Exhibit B
And to be quite honest with you, I was feeling a bit uninspired in the kitchen. I know, right? Kind of lame for a food blogger to stop having fun in the kitchen.
I don’t want to post fluff just so I can say I posted something. I write when I’m inspired. Or when I’ve had a success.
Or an epic failure.
And there were so many other things happening in my life–all for the good!–that what we were eating for dinner just kind of went on the back burner. (Kitchen pun! It’s ok, I know I’m hilarious.)
But let’s get back to that gorgeous photo at the top.
Dude, we got a new oven!
It bakes! (And doesn’t take 40 minutes to preheat)
It cooks! (Well, I guess technically I cook, but that’s beside the point)
I’m in love.
Between the new oven and my dreamboat, I’m kind of in heaven. And! I’m ready to get back in the kitchen.
Watch out world!
This thing that happens
There’s this thing that happens to me when the sun shines.
Suddenly, things that were so stressful and worrisome become not such a big deal.
Where I would have found myself saying no before, I now find myself enthusiastically saying yes.
I find that making dinner can wait, because there’s something amazing happening in the back yard.
Dinner planning is a little more exciting when I think about picking vegetables from my garden in a few weeks/months.
Last summer’s basil
I get excited about being outside again, and I don’t even have to be bribed!
When these guys start talking about sleeping in a tent, I don’t shudder like I would have even two weeks ago.
And even though there have been a few setbacks,
Snow. Again.
I think it’s safe to say, I’m seeing the signs that winter is over.
Finally.
Winter Brew Fest
Missoula loves to celebrate. Especially when it comes to beer.
So twice a year we have a Brew Fest to celebrate all the local and regional brews we have access to.
Unfortunately, I don’t like beer.
At all.
This wouldn’t be so bad if my husband weren’t a home brewer.
I like sangria. And wine soaked fruit when the sangria runs out.
Even still, I’d never miss a Brew Fest.
I like going for the people,
the food,
Alligator(!) bites, grit cakes, and beignets.
and the opportunity to bring the family.
And when the news crews show up,
you know you’re in for a good time.
Thanks Missoula! Can’t wait for the summer Brew Fest!
Ramblings
I have a recipe to share with you, I promise!!
But it needs just a little more tweaking. Which involves re-making it and taking new photos.
Trust me, this is a good thing. For me. Because I’ll get to eat it.
Eventually it will be a good thing for you, because you’ll get to eat it. Assuming, of course, that you make it. (You should!)
Anyway, until Saturday when I can re-cook and re-shoot, here’s a look at what I’ve been up to.
Soaking up absolutely every last bit of sunshine. Fortunately, until this week we’ve actually had really amazing weather.
Marveling at how fast my son is growing up. He’s writing sentences! (It says “Secret Agent Machine,” in case you don’t read 1st grade)
Canning! For the first time ever! It’s so fun, and I love love love eating homemade applesauce, apple butter and plum butter. I don’t know enough about canning yet to share with you, but I have lovely friends who are helping me learn.
Pinterest. If I need to tell you more, you are seriously missing out. I can pin like it’s my job, people.
I’ve also gotten us back on a weekly menu plan. I can’t believe how much time, energy, money and sanity this saves! It only takes us about 10 minutes to figure out what we want to eat that week, and then we just figure out what ingredients we need to buy and head to the store. And then I know that we won’t be eating the same things over and over, and we use up leftovers much more efficiently because it’s planned into the menu. Oh the little things that make me happy 🙂
What have you been up to?
