Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Grilling does NOT defeat me!








Despite my inexperience to grilling, after the success I had with grilling for father's day, I gave it a shot here in Ames. Everything turned out delicious! (So delicious, I almost didn't use a fork!)


Onions, Stew Meat, and Mushrooms covered with some soy sauce and salt and cooked over hot coals are scrumptious. Add to that fresh strawberries and a cool summer brew and my evening outside was thoroughly relaxing. 


After spending the afternoon weeding around the house and cleaning out the garage, the break was definitely appreciated.

Tomorrow looks to be a scorcher, so I'm planning to cool off with a little floating. Better than paying for air conditioning, right?

Monday, June 25, 2012

Expand Your Vocabulary

I found this little gem earlier today while taking a break from applications and internship work - I am making it my goal to use each of these words at least once this week! Any words your favorite?

In other news, the week is flying by. Now that I have more plans in place, time is disappearing at an alarming pace. Both a good thing and a bad thing, I suppose. This week looks to be fun, including a Wednesday tubing trip, drive-in movie night on Thursday, and a weekend trip home to begin moving things home, but most importantly, to hang out with this lovely ALL WEEKEND.

Can you say EXCITED?!

Have to finish out June with a little style (and maybe a bonfire at home...) 

Now, I just need to be super productive the rest of the week.

I'm looking at
packing
cleaning out the fridge
organizing the garage
finishing a few more job applications
figuring out a mapping system for PI projects
background reading and notes for Tax Credit document
planning a potential fourth of July float (what can I say, I'm addicted!)
booking a plane ticket
and anything else that's sure to come up.

Here's to a productive week! 

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Singing, er...Dancing, in the Rain

I was sitting in my basement bedroom (country song anyone? brownie points if you get it right!) working on some job applications, when I heard something outside in the backyard.

I listened quietly for a little bit, until I figured out the sounds were rain!
And, like the child I really am, I immediately jumped up and ran outside to play in the rain.

Splashing in the puddles, lifting my hands to the sky, laughing and giggling. I'd love to hear what my neighbors thought of my little dance in the driveway.

It was so refreshing though, both because the rain was much needed and because I'd been sitting too long filling out job applications and working on some internship projects. 

There are a million other reasons why I love rain. Granted, I don't appreciate a lot of gloomy, dreary days in a row, but the occasional cloudy and rainy days are appreciated. I love the way rain smells, before, during and after it actually rains. I love the way the world quiets while it's raining, and in the few precious moments after, when the last remaining raindrops fall from tree leaves and are the only discernible noises. I love the way plants shoot up in the next few hours and days after a good rainfall, how even humans seem to emerge a little taller and more refreshed just by stepping into a rain dampened world. I love being able to hunker down inside with a tall cup of coffee and a book or movie when the rain comes down a little harder than I like.

Why isn't it raining now? I think I need to go play in it some more! 

What do you like about rain?

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Go Follow Fish!

Tonight's post is incredibly brief, and includes a shameless plug for this girl:
She's getting to do some travel in Europe and is currently is Belgium with some of our extended family. Follow her adventures with me at her blog, Following Fish. She's got some really fun pictures of her travels, and a great quirky style of writing.

And, in the spirit of her travels in Belgium, I'm reliving some of my own travels in Belgium from last summer.... pictorially. These particular pictures are from the beautiful city of Brugge, which is one of the first places she visited upon arriving in Belgium.






I still hope to go back someday...someday...
That's why I've been filling out all of these job applications, right?


Right.


P.S. Someday {soon} I want to do a few flashback posts on my European Trip - so many great photos and stories that I want to remember and share!


Wednesday, June 20, 2012

"I'm Harry Potter, Harry Harry Potter..."

I borrowed this from my sister when I was home this weekend. I got a hankering last week to watch the last movie, but didn't want to pay to borrow it or try to find it at the library. And, of course, once I got it back to Ames, I couldn't just start with number seven, but starting from the beginning would take too long. So, I started with four. Insert pre-Twilight Robert Pattinson, and the start of the work against Voldemort.

So, Harry Potter and I have been hanging out this afternoon, keeping it cool in my over-airconditioned basement room while I fill out job applications and attempt to figure out when everything needs to happen in July. Talk about complications, yo. Yeesh!

Now all I need is more ink for my printer.... and some butterbeer.

Stay cool this week!

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Snapshots from the weekend

I know I've done a TON of updating today.
Part of it is in an attempt to catch up with my 30 in 30 days (so I blog twice a day a couple times, it works!)
Another part is to update on life.
And another because I just enjoy sharing images and events from life.

Here are some snapshots that I love from my weekend home.
 
 
And honestly, it was totally worth it to take a break from blogging to truly enjoy being home

front porch chats with Mom
playing with the puppy and olde faithful Lena
snow cones
grilling for father's day
coffee with Sam
thrift shopping
Dairy Queen
conversation with Anne
mowing the lawn
Sunday afternoon naps
a surprise visit from my dear, dear friend Brennan
celebrating my friend's wedding
all in all, an excellent weekend home!


This week and weekend I'm in Ames, so I should be back on a more regular blogging schedule (better Emily and Amy?)

Nifty Thrify

As I've grown older, I've begun to appreciate shopping.
I swore I'd never be one who liked to shop, but it's happened.
I'm not a mall shopper though. Sure, I love to look through department stores, and some of the smaller boutiques for ideas about fashions, and for any amazing deals I might find.

But my real love of shopping comes from exploring thrift and resale stores,
places where I can find brand name items at bargain prices that my low budget can handle,
while maintaining a somewhat current sense of style and breathing life into my wardrobe.

This weekend was truly the weekend for successful shopping.
My church held their annual rummage sale, which has always been my jeans shopping spot. At $2 a pair, it's hard to find a better deal.
Hard, but not impossible.
By shopping at the rummage sale on the last day (Saturday), the organizers were trying to get rid of merchandise. Enter the bag/box sale. Brown papers bags are $1 for everything you fit inside, and boxes as marked, with $2 - $6 box sizes possible.





Even though the items were fairly picked over, I still managed to come away with some awesome items!
In all, I walked away with:
3 Pairs of Jeans
1 pair of Capri's
1 pair of jean shorts
4 awesome belts
A green poncho
A pair of flannel PJ pants
8 shirts
A couple books
and
A wide barrel curling iron.

For $2. Ultimate shopping score.




To top it off, I also did a little thrifting at Salvation Army,  and found some great summer items too!
Granted, it was no $2 score, but definitely a good day of shopping.
I love finding nice summer clothes that don't have plunging necklines, so I can move about comfortably in whatever situation - picnics, evenings out, shopping, lunch/dinner dates, errands, etc. 
 And these jean bermuda shorts are quickly becoming a favorite!

I'm always looking for new places to thrift, and while not everywhere has clothing that fits my interests, I'm always willing to try!

My Top List includes:
- Stuff! Etc
- Goodwill
- Salvation Army
- The Loft (in Ames)
- Rummage Sales
- Garage Sales

Where do you do your thrift shopping?









Monday, June 18, 2012

Father's Day

* I'm playing catch up on the blog after taking a few days to enjoy home. I'm dating everything back a little bit to keep the timing right, so don't be confused! 
 
Since Dad works so much and such long hours during planting season, Father's Day was incredibly laid back at the Fischer home, and included...
 : introducing Ginny to the taste of Root Beer
: teasing the dogs with food...
 : ...and almost giving Ginny some yummies
 : yummy shish-kabobs with beef, potatoes, and mushrooms
: plenty of dog playtime
 : nap times, of course!
: relaxed smiles
 : picnics on the porch 
 : strawberry rhubarb pie
 : puppy love
 : and puppy kisses

We may not have gotten to go on our planned bike ride, but we ended the evening watching some sand volleyball and eating at Dad's favorite restaurant, Sancho's.
Add to that a letter from France with fun Father's Day wishes, 
and Dad's day turned out pretty nicely. 

Thanks for all you do Daddy - 
I never could express completely how much I appreciate you 
and all you (and Mom) have done for me over the years. 
I love you!

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Kiss The Bride: Andrew and Brianna

This weekend, I went home to attend the wedding of my high school friend Brianna to her high school sweetheart Andrew. This is one of the first weddings of a high school friend I've attended, and it's got me thinking how much life will continue to change in these next few years. Many of my friends are seeing people, and I have no doubt that the next few years will be full of fun celebrations.

But for now, I was content to be home celebrating with Brianna.

She and Andrew switched up their wedding a bit and greeted their guests immediately after the ceremony. This tactic would have proved to make their guests wait around for quite some time if they hadn't had this little gem parked in the church parking lot.
Snow cones! Amy was particularly excited about her snow cone, and I have to agree that they were delicious.
We hardly noticed the 20 minutes in the parking lot before the bride and groom joined us for their own snow cones before leaving for the reception.
Two of my high school buddies, Hannah and Amy, sat with my family and I at our table, which kept everyone laughing as we shared memories and cracked jokes.
One of the highlights of the evening was bringing back a Lancer Production tradition to the dance floor. 5 LP alums rocked out to "Paradise By the Dashboard Lights," and even managed to snag a willing learner! We all had fun dancing the dance that was a staple at any LP event.
Definitely involved lots of acting towards the only guy in our little group. He was an excellent trooper though!
It's been awhile since we've all been together, but it was great to be together to celebrate this special occasion!

I'm so happy for Brianna, especially since the love she and Andrew share was so evident during the ceremony and the reception. I wish them the happiest of marriages, and can't wait to see what the future brings for both of them.

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Wier!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Easy Spinach Quiche

 One of the meals I began to enjoy in high school was quiche, especially spinach quiche. My mom didn't make it very often, but I loved it whenever she did. Since spinach always seems to sour more quickly than I can eat it, I decided to use some of the spinach to make quiche! It's an easy recipe that didn't take very much work, and tasted delicious!

Spinach Quiche
  • 1 pie crust 
  • 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained - or 1 pound fresh spinach, cleaned and torn in small pieces
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 eggs
  • 1-1/2 cups skim milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 cup shredded chedder cheese
Begin by baking the crust. I make a homemade crust of oil, flour and water, and just patted it into the pan instead of rolling it out. 
It doesn't look quite as pretty, but it still tastes fine!
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Fit the crust to a 10 inch tart pan, cutting off the excess with a rolling pin. 
Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet on medium heat. 
Add the chopped onion and cook stirring occasionally until the onion softens - about five minutes. 
Cut up the spinach into bite size pieces. 
Add the thawed and drained spinach (or torn fresh spinach)and cook just until the spinach wilts and any liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, crème fraîche, salt, pepper, and nutmeg just until homogenous. 
Stir in the cheese.... (I switched to a bigger bowl)
.... then cooled spinach and mix well. 
Pour the mixture into the cooled tart crust. 
 Bake in 375°F oven for 40 minutes.
I had a little extra, and put it into another pie pan without a crust.
 This recipe is packed with protein and delicious greens, and a great help for anyone with low iron (Hooray spinach!)
I added some strawberries to my supper meal, and even had a second piece it was just as delicious.

I got my recipe from here and modified it a little bit to fit my preferences

Spinach Quiche
  • 1 pan crust 
  • 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained - or 1 pound fresh spinach, cleaned and torn in small pieces
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 eggs
  • 1-1/2 cups crème fraîche (or heavy cream, half and half, or milk)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 cup shredded gruyère cheese (or substitute)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Begin by blind baking the crust. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Fit the crust to a 10 inch tart pan, cutting off the excess with a rolling pin. Prick the bottom of the crust in about 20 places with the tines of a fork and place the pan in the freezer for 20 minutes. Once the crust is well chilled, remove it from the freezer and immediately place in the hot oven. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet on medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook stirring occasionally until the onion softens - about five minutes. Add the thawed and drained spinach (or torn fresh spinach)and cook just until the spinach wilts and any liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, crème fraîche, salt, pepper, and nutmeg just until homogenous. Stir in the cheese and cooled spinach and pour the mixture into the cooled tart crust. Alternatively, you can layer the spinach and cheese in the tart crust before pouring the egg mixture on top.
  4. Bake in 375°F oven for 40 minutes.