bibimbap

It is such a joy to open our home & especially to dine with some good friends.

Tonights menu: Bibimbap. Korean for "mix-and-rice".

Yongjun & Erik heating the dishes.

Millicent ushering the food to the table.

(*forgot the name of this one)

My bowl. It was delicious!

And for dessert: Almond Jello salad

(complete with fruit cocktail, lychee fruit, & coconut jellies)

purple mountains majesty

It was a cold blistery winter day in our 'backyard'... up the hill in a park called Council Crest there is an amazing view point of four mountains on a clear day. Just before we reached the top the sun had been shining so gloriously upon the face of Mt Hood & Mt St. Helens... and as you can see here, the sun decided to grace Mt Rainier at the moment these photos were taken. It was REALLY cold. Time to pull out the thermal undergarments.

Mt Hood.

Mt St. Helens (of Washington) and Mt Rainier (in the glorious light).

I'm telling you, it was COLD. REAL cold.

We just love our 'backyard' here.

year three *love*

My DH and I celebrated our third anniversary today. Actually we did it a day early since the day of was going to be a busy one with a bunch of guests from out-of-town. That worked out perfectly since I was also able to get my hair done by my friend Rebekah @ Moxie for Hair. (*she's awesome, if you need anything done in that area, definitely look her up). My man dropped me off for my hair cut & highlights and then picked me up again to take me to dinner at a delicious place (forgot to take pics!) called Salvador Molly's. After dinner we headed over to this dessert place called Emilie's... only to find it closed, so we went back to our neck of the woods to the classic Papa Haydn's for some of their delectable desserts.

I love him... my dear sweet loving DH.

Waiting for our delicious dessert.

It was well worth the wait. Mmm Mmm good.

luna and leopold

I just discovered that my friend Josephine Yantis has written AND illustrated her first children's book. It's titled: Luna and Leopold . A wonderful story of friendship and change. A must read! Go get yourself a copy today!

WAY TO GO, JO!

score!

Just the other day I scored one of these Harvey's Seatbelt wallets from the Salvation Army:

retail: $78.00

And one of the Classic Timbuk2 laptop sleeves (Large / lime green)... similar one pictured in lower right corner, but in Moss:

picture taken from this blog/website.

retail: $ 30-35.00

And a cute dressy black clutch purse.

ALL for $1 each.

Score.

german puff pancakes

I can't seem to find where I have posted this online in the past, so I will put it here so you all can enjoy it as well. Waiting on Ying's photos of our morning together... will post them here as soon as I get them.

German Puff Pancake

Heat Oven 400F.

1 Tbsp Butter
2 Egg
1/2 cup Milk
1/2 cup Flour

1. Melt butter in a pie pan.
2. Beat together egg & milk until bubbly in medium bowl.
3. Add flour to egg/milk, mix until nearly smooth.
4. Pour into pan with melted butter. Do not stir.
5. Bake for 15 minutes at 400F... until puffy & has toasted edges.

Top with any of these: lemon juice & powdered sugar; fruit; maple syrup.

give thanks always

On Thanksgiving this year we joined my folks at their house along with my younger brother, older sister & her new hubby, her two boys (part of the day), and a bunch of the church family who are here among us. Those included: a young sister from the Philippines, another from Chicago, and another from Nigeria, a couple that recently moved here from Russia (around the same time we moved back to Portland), their daughter (& my friend) with her son, a young brother from Korea, another brother from Canada... Together we had a wonderful feast of American Thanksgiving foods as well as Borsht. Yum yum yum! *happy tummy* There was plenty to be thankful for not just today, but everyday.

Earlier in the morning of the day we had two friends join us to bake cookies and prepare some mashed sweet potatoes. Here are some pics:

YongJun & Millicent.

Boy, were they good!

Pressure cooking the sweet potatoes.

(Thanks Rebecca for this wedding gift... it's definitely been put to use!)

Eventually I forsook the measuring cups and spoons and just began dumping & pouring in all the deliciousness into the steamed cooked sweet 'tatoes. This was just the first batch... o yum!

(Barbara, I LOVE my colorful mixing bowls. Thanks again!)

p.b.f.

Last night I made a batch of Peanut Butter Fudge because:

1) I had never made some before and because

2) a friend of mine was telling the world of FB that she was making some, and

3) I thought, Mmm that sounds delicious!

4) I also wanted to take something more to Thanksgiving at my parent's this year.

This photo was from allrecipes.com website.

But mine looks very much like it.

Easiest Peanut Butter Fudge II

Prep Time: 15 mins / Cook Time: 5 mins / Ready in: 1 hour 20 minutes

Servings: 15 / Original recipe Yields 1 8x8 inch pan

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter

2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions:

Melt butter in medium sauce pan over medium heat. Stir in brown sugar and milk. Bring to a boil for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter and vanilla. Pour over confectioners' sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat until smooth; pour into a 8x8 inch dish. Chill until firm and cut into squares.

Above recipe was taken from allrecipes.com

soup for the soul

The cool fall weather has inspired me to make an attempt to save money and to eat healthier. Step 1, I have begun to make us soups.

~ This one is a basic Chicken noodle, with carrots & peas. I used the pre-stir fry method for quick & easy soups that my friend Janine taught me. This cut the cook time in half and the hot nummy soup was ready to eat in no time. I have found that I need to buy a lot more chicken broth than I do, because it all seems to boil away and to get absorbed by the noodles.

Next time it'll be more brothy. But nevertheless, it was a nice fresh & hot delicious concoction. That warmed our body and souls with each spoonful.

prairie blossom boutique : holiday give away

There's just nothing like a GIVE AWAY! I'm writing to let you know that Prairie Blossom Boutique is hosting one right now and like me, YOU can enter >here< for a chance to win. *grin*

This is my favorite style, and the one that I'm going to receive if I win!!! Except I think I want Cream with Robin's Egg Blue for the flower -or- a Robin's Egg Blue hat with a Cream Button like this one --->

She sure makes the cutest hats! I sure hope that I win.