What Do Sopapillas and Pedicures Have In Common?

The women at church organized a BBQ and bake-off last night with some great prizes- gift certificates to Panera, Barnes and Noble, Regal, etc. There were individual prizes for specific categories (e.g., best pie, best cookies, most fruity, most colorful), and then the top three overall winners won gift certificates for different treatments at a spa. If you've read my blog for a while, you know that I like to bake so this activity was a good challenge for me. I've got a handful of desserts that I make constantly, but all of them are somewhat normal. Striped delight, raspberry angel food cake, red velvet cupcakes, etc. Delicious but not prize winning.

So I called my mother-in-law for an idea, and she gave me a great one. Great because it was simple, creative, and delicious. And guess what, I didn't win, but out of 26 desserts I got 3rd and won a spa gift certificate. My last pedicure was right after the half-marathon so I'll be making a pit stop at Nail Excel this weekend.

So if you're looking for a new, simple, and delicious dessert look no further than below. This one's a winner (literally). I'm not how it would taste with substitutions made, but you could definitely substitute all of the items below with reduced/low-fat versions and try it out.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

1 1/2 (or 2 cups) sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 packages 8oz cream cheese
2 packs of crescent rolls
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter (one stick)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Roll out one package of crescent rolls into a glass 9x13 pan sprayed with PAM.
3. Beat cream cheese, 1 (or 1 1/2 cups) sugar, and vanilla together until smooth.
4. Spread cream cheese mixture over crescent rolls.
5. Roll out second package of crescent rolls on top of the cream cheese mixture.
6. Mix 1/2 cup sugar with 2 tsp cinnamon. Spread cinnamon sugar mixture over rolls.
7. Dot cheesecake with cut up stick of butter.
8. Bake for 25 minutes (don't degree).

The Best of Intentions

I was...

...going to clean my place before my cousin and friends came, but they came two days early.

...going to run last night, but my guests wanted to tell me about all of their DC adventures.

...going to make a healthy dinner, but my guests were dying to try Five Guys.

...going to go to bed, but book #2 of my series came in the mail. After #2, #3 had to be read too.

...going to go into work early today to finish up that project, but see line above.

...going to finish up a project for work last night, but the E show on celebrities was too loud.

...going to be lonely and bored out of my mind this week while Richie is in NY, but I'm not.

Sometimes even the best of intentions fall through. And sometimes for the better. I figured out I really like playing host, even if it's for three teenangers that would rather have boxes of macaroni and cheese than a homemade meal. Maybe I'll actually do something I planned tonight, but maybe not. That's whats fun about life. You can plan all you want, but you never know how it's really going to play out.

...going to write a fluff post to make people laugh, but this came out instead.

The Girl Who Taught Me How to Play

Six years ago I started college as a freshman at Brigham Young University. Six years ago I met the girl that gave me the inspiration for this blog. I met a lot of amazing people that year, including her roommate, but Marielle was just one of a kind. Not was, is. We just sort of fell into each other's laps at a freshman year preference (girl asks the guy) dance, when a group of girls from our hall decided to ask a bunch of our guy friends together. That was the first night Marielle held my hand (in a completely friend only kind of way). And after that the three of us (Marielle, Marielle's roommate Tilde, and me) were inseparable and made more memories in one year than any other yeear in my life. She's been there through all of the good and bad since then, and we've had a lot of fun (and more hand holding) along the way.

I really don't remember when I first heard the quote- "It is a happy talent to know how to play"- I used for my blog or where it came up, but I remember that Marielle was the one who quoted it to me. And showed me what a happy talent it really is to know how to play. The quote stuck with me all of those years and seemed a natural choice as I was choosing the all-important blog name. I'm still working on developing that talent; but I truly believe that the more that you laugh and play, the better life becomes.

And since I'm a firm believer in laughing... here are some pictures of Marielle and I (and some other people) over the past six years. Notice we're always smiling.

Who knows? (That's Tilde by the way)

Marielle's wedding

This one was labeled- Pretty Sunday

Ice Skating

Girl's Night Out

Eating Smores?

At Cheesecake Factory with Mars' sister Heather

Book Review- Sunset Beach by Trish Perry

I was sent a copy of Sunset Beach by Trish Perry to review by the publisher. When I first read the back cover I thought this was just going to be another "beach novel." Fluff, chick-lit, whatever you want to call it. Something worth reading while laying out at the pool, but that's it. Surprisingly, it wasn't. The book is about Sonny Miller, 24-year old recent graduate in pyschology, trying to find out who she is- literally. Sonny's mom Teresa has avoided any questions about Sonny's past including who her father is, if she has any relatives, and how she came about. The only thing Sonny knows is that her mom has a sister, Melanie; Sonny hires a private investigator who finds this sister and invites her to spend a week at a beach house with Sonny and her mom. Without telling her mom.

The week is full of Sonny doing pyschology tests (and play breaks) with her mom and Melanie that she really doesn't know to interpret. But the test results aren't hard to interpet and give you a view into the sisters' lives before they went their separate ways 25 years ago.

I don't want to give you many more details about the book as it has a lot of twists and turns that kept me turning the pages. There is a lot of depth to this book, its theme, and its characters. The writing is great; I laughed out loud multiple times and got teary-eyed at others. It really is just full of surprises, good ones. I'd recommend it to anyone really. There's something for everyone- family drama, romance, friendship, female bonding, and stress. 5 stars.

Weekend Wishing

I'm beginning to wish my birthday was in the summer. I haven't bought anything for myself since our trip to Europe and just can't get myself to spend money on me now for some reason. But there are so many things that I want right now and I'm not sure I can wait until my birthday in September. Pretty sure that bonus I get next week is going to be gone quick. And hopefully be replaced with one (or more ) of the items on this list. P.S., I'm not opposed to early birthday presents. Or presents for no reason at all.

8GB Ipod Nano (my 1GB from 2003 just doesn't cut it)

Plane ticket to Utah to see one of my best friends

Garmin Forerunner 205

American Idol (or SYTYCD) tour tickets

Hot Stone Massage (and/or a pedicure)

Trapeze Lessons

Empire Waist Dress from ATL (any new clothes really)

Canon SD1200

What are you wishing for this weekend?

Book Review- Rest by Keri Wyatt Kent

Rest by Keri Wyatt Kent is one of those books that I was really excited about reviewing. The back cover asks the question, "Is it possible to learn how to rest so that we have the energy and focus to live a meaningful and joyful life?" I was hoping the book would provide an answer to the overwhelming nature my life has taken on recently. And it may have. It definitely gave me a lot of great ideas that I'm planning to try out.

The book goes through six different aspects of the practicing the Sabbath, each piece tied into the big picture of just stopping for a moment (or a day) to regain our strength and push through the next week. Each of the six aspects was covered in a chapter with a good explanation of the concept, examples of how other families made it work for them, and best of all, real life suggestions for making it work for you. Some people can't take an entire day off so she suggests just a couple of hours to start. A lot of great examples and suggestions made me feel as a reader that this was something I could do.

I'll admit, Sundays are the Sabbath for me right now but I could do a lot better with making it more of a defined rest day. I don't go shopping, run errands, or workout. Anything that would be forcing someone else to work, I don't do. But there is so much more I could do to make the day more restful and peaceful, a day to rejuvenate for the coming week. Maybe then I wouldn't feel so burnt out by the end of the week.

The six concepts she emphasizes in her book as part of the Sabbath are:

1. Resting- I loved this quote, "They say insanity is when you keep doing the same thing over and over, expecting the same results. So if running like crazy equals getting nowhere, then it's a little crazy that more running could ever equal getting somewhere." Just stop and take a break from everything.
2. Reconnecting- taking the day to reconnect with yourself, the people around you, and God.
3. Revising- Creating a restful Sabbath takes practice. It's not something that you write down on paper once and do it that same way for the next 100 years. You try something out, revise that plan and try something else. Just start and keep adjusting until you've gotten it right. And when that is no longer right, try something else.
4. Pausing- One of my favorite parts of the book was an analogy between people and breathing. There are three parts of each breath- breathing in, breathing out, pause. Repeat. This is how our lives should work as well. This section also talks about giving up multi-tasking for focusing on each part of our lives for chunks of time. People are more productive that way and are able to give more attention to that specific thing. Back to the whole just stopping thing.
5. Playing- I'm good at this one. Kent goes through the importance of playing, really just playing for the fun of it (not to win) and how everyone lets down their guard a little bit while playing games. I completely agree with this and loved this section. I've always been a board games type of girl and really think it's the way to connect with new people.
6. Praying- Kent brings the book full circle in the final section where she explains the importance of using the Sabbath to reconnect and build an intimate relationship with God. Whether it's through prayer for ourselves, for the poor, or for anyone else, prayer is again a way to just stop and enjoy ourselves without getting caught up in the details.

So overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love Kent's style of writing because not only did she provide facts (e.g., there is a pause between each of our breaths), she also provided every day examples of ways to incorporate these ideas into each of our lives. And even if you're not religious at all, I recommend this book to anyone because all of us can benefit from the reminder to just take a step back and take a break so that you can keep moving forward.

23 Years of Spiral Bound Notebooks

Sorry I haven't been around much lately. I surprised my family by showing up at our family reunion in Colorado on Wednesday night. I haven't seen the majority of them for three years and a lot has happened since then. I got married for one. And moved to DC, got a new job, moved again, and got another new job. Needless to say, there was a lot of catching up to do, and I didn't get a whole lot of sleep.

After the reunion I drove with my family back to Kansas City where I flew home on Sunday night. While I was at my parent's looking for a book, I came across a pile of my journals from high school and college. You see, before I was a blogger I was an avid journal writer. I filled up journal after journal with my life story and mementos (pictures, tickets, dried flowers). I think there are probably some 20 journals in total documenting my life from age 14-20.

I started reading through them this weekend and realized that as much as I love this blog, it's not the same thing as writing in a journal. This blog doesn't capture my spiritual journey, my deepest emotions, and how I get through the tough times. That's on purpose. I want this blog to be a positive one for everyone to read and be lifted up.

But that means the highest highs and lowest lows of my life for the past three years (including my wedding) aren't captured anywhere. And I want my friends, my family, and my kids- I will have some one day - to be able to look at my journals and realize that I'm just like they are. I've been crushed by a boy asking out my best friend, passed over for a spot on the all-district volleyball team, and learned that faith doesn't come easily; it's a continual journey that comes with trials and triumphs.

I'm going to continue to write the same way on this blog, but I'm determined to start keeping a journal again as well. Because my life didn't stop when I got married; a new one began. And that one needs to be documented somewhere as well. So tonight I'm going to pick up the journal I bought six months ago and write on the first page. And tomorrow I'm going to write on the second page. And the next day. Until I've written on every single page in the journal and I have to buy a new one to fill. Because each of our lives is one to remember and if we don't write it down, there's no way for us or the people around us to remember it.