Kitchen Klutz

At one point in my life I was a little obsessed with seeing what food National Holiday it was on a particular day. I always had a dream of eating the "food of the day" each day for an entire month. It got so bad that people actually asked me what today's food was and I was able to tell them most the time.... I am glad I have moved on from that sad time in my life. Anyways, I was so excited when I found out that each day had a National What To Eat On This Day food so, of course, I looked for my birthday food. I was so excited to see what it was and see if it was something that I absolutely loved. I looked it up and scrolled down and my eyes got a little teary when I saw: "June 13: National Kitchen Klutzes of America Day". WHAT?!?!?! I don't even get a food?!?!? No, I get Kitchen Klutz. Of course.

Thinking a little more about this, I concluded that somehow God knew to give me this day because it is SO appropriate for my life. I am remembered of this EVERY time I cook. After disaster strikes, I have to remind myself that God has given me the food holiday of Kitchen Klutz. It is my destiny to be a Kitchen Klutz. Well, if it's one nickname out of all of them that I have lived up to, it's that one. I won't tell all my sad cooking stories because that would make me look like less of a woman, incompetent,  incapable and just plain dumb (not to mention I can't even remember all of them). Let's start out with a not so bad one. I had just moved back to College Station to start my big girl job and one evening I decided to make pasta. I had just got all new pots and pans, plates, utensils, etc. I turned on the stove and put my brand new red pot with water in it on the stove to boil. It was there for no longer than a minute and the stove top started emitting this black thick smoke. Then a small fire was coming up from the bottom of the pot! I immediately turned off the stove and grabbed the pot to take it over to the sink. The fire had gone out, but I looked at the bottom of the pot and the sticker that covered the entire bottom was singed on all the edges and almost completely burnt off. Awesome. The next story I want to tell you happened during my health kick stage in my life. I wanted to make healthy chocolate chip cookie dough. You make this with garbanzo beans, Splenda, peanut butter and a few chocolate chips. I didn't have a food processor and my older sister had just got married and got one from her registry so I called her up to see if I could borrow it. I went over there with my ingredients to make exactly one batch and started dumping all the ingredients into the food processor. I was so excited to see how it would come out. I switched on the processor and stopped after 20 seconds. I looked through the clear plastic container and saw some large white chunks of something in the mixture. I took the lid off and, lo and behold, the food processor blade had been covered in a white thick plastic, part of the packaging since it was brand new. My 'cookie dough' was filled with little plastic chunks scattered everywhere. Awesome. The next cooking, if you can call it that, experience I remember, I was making a meal for my workout friends. I wanted to make some healthy pancakes and I found a recipe for pumpkin protein pancakes. Yum. It consists of egg whites, pumpkin and protein powder. Well I made them and the consistency was all wrong so I added some flour to thicken them up a bit. I put them on the griddle and cooked them. I tasted one and it tasted like pure protein powder in a solid round form. My guests, Annlouise especially, were NOT impressed. Oh well, I bought some fruit too so that's what we had for dinner. Awesome. One of my favorite 'cooking' stories of mine is the one where I made a Thanksgiving dish for my church home group pot luck. I wanted to make stuffing (some call it dressing). The recipe seemed pretty simple so I went out and bought all the ingredients. I got back to my place and started slicing and dicing. I came to the part where it called for 2 cloves of garlic. I had never cooked with garlic before so I bought two, what I thought were cloves of garlic:

One

 

Two 

I thought to myself, well I guess garlic isn't very strong since I need two of these. I go to peel them and start cutting them into tiny pieces. I put the entire first one in and then I decide that half of the second one would be plenty. I put it in the oven and let it bake. It looked amazing when it came out of the oven! Finally, success with cooking. I tried some of the stuffing and wow, that was some garlicy stuff, BUT that is what the recipe called for so I headed over to the home group party. Apparently no one likes that much garlic because I came home with most of it. My chef friend, Annlousie, explained to me that a clove is one of the little parts of the entire garlic head, and that garlic was plenty strong. Awesome. My latest attempt to make something went, by far, the worst of all my experiences. See below:

This was meant to be a spinach frittata. It ended up being all over the stove and a pan. You were supposed to put the mixture in a skillet and turn the knob on medium heat for 5 minutes or until the bottom is cooked (HOW CAN YOU TELL IF IT'S THE BOTTOM, IDIOT?) So I put it on there for 8 minutes, just to be safe. The edges were cooked so the recipe said to get a large flat pan to flip the frittata onto and let it slide back onto the skillet so the other side could get cooked.  The picture is what happened after the flipping took place. Times like this I wish we had an electric flat top stove... Seconds after this happened I let my anger out on my boyfriend, Mike, who was 1,200 miles away and had no idea I was trying to cook. Who else are you supposed to yell at and get mad at when you do something stupid? I sent him a mean text saying (leaving out a few choice words), "That's just too bad if you want me to cook for you. Find a new girlfriend that can if it's a requirement for you." I was so upset at this point because I was trying to get better at cooking so I could cook for him. I know he would like me to cook more and to make things that taste good, or at least that are edible. He just needs to understand the underlying truth. I was brought into this world on Kitchen Klutzes of America Day. Not one of the other 364 days. Not Butterscotch Brownie day, not Buttermilk Biscuit Day, not Escargot Day (Gross, sorry mom, your b-day!), not even the two days in between my birthday (Peanut Butter Cookie Day and Strawberry Shortcake Day). If we all come to realize and accept this, everyone will be a lot happier and there won't be any more outbursts from me. Who knows, the next outburst could be aimed at you. 

The Love Trip

Mike and I just took a road trip that covered 10 states, 2,700 miles and took 42 hours of driving to complete. This was called The Love Trip (by his lovely roommates, Kevin and Mark). We will call it The Road Trip from now on though. The 10 day trip was a whirlwind because it went by so fast and we went so many places; I am sure I'll forget some things. The trip started on Friday, May 10th. We headed out in Mike's new Jetta that morning. We were heading to Palo Duro Canyon State Park to camp out that night. Before we left Mike rented some audiobooks for us to listen to (he knew I would get tired of listening to Country music). The mystery/suspense book we listened/made fun of (I don't even know what it was called) was a fiction novel that was on the "Best Sellers List". After listening to it, we couldn't really figure out why. It was ok at first, but then we started making fun of it on Disc 6 of 10. We did not enjoy that book. The second book was a non-fiction book called Contagious and the only thing that was contagious when I was listening to it was sleep. Mike really enjoyed it though. His laughs or "Hums..." woke me up quite a bit. At least it was keeping him awake. Well that and this:

Anyways, back to the trip! On Monday evening we arrived at Palo Duro Canyon. It was weird driving up to it because all you pass is flat farmland as far as you can see, then all of a sudden you enter the park and the land becomes a huge canyon! It was beautiful and perfect weather when we arrived.

We set up camp then went back into town to grab some dinner. We got back to the campsite and hiked around a bit then went to sleep. We slept pretty well until sunrise when all the 11 year olds started riding their bikes right next to our tent screaming and yelling about Justin Beiber or something equally annoying. We got up, packed up camp and headed out. Mike really really wanted pancakes so we had to go to Ihop. :) I didn't complain. After our bellies were nice and happy, we drove up to Centennial, CO to see Ruth, his sister. The drive up was beautiful, we drove on the east side of the Rockies all the way up to Ruth's. We got in to Ruth's that evening and had dinner with her friends that had come over to her house. We then went to a ballet recital that a couple of her friends were in. After that we came back to Ruth's and had a fire in the fire pit in her backyard with a lot of her church friends. They were pretty funny. We sat around until late telling stories, eating s'mores and singing (Ruth's request). The next day we got up and went to church and then met Juni to eat lunch.

Mike and his 2nd cousin Addie

Juni was driving through Colorado on his way to California from South Carolina after picking up his new BMW. After lunch we all drove up to Lookout Mt. and hung out for a bit.

Then we went to pick a lady that Ruth knew up at the airport and Mike and I headed to The Garden of the Gods close to Colorado Springs. It is a National Natural Landmark that consists of many formations of  sandstone rocks. The sandstone was deposited horizontally, but has been tilted vertically over time due to the mountain building forces nearby (that formed Pikes Peak). It was really pretty. Here is a formation called "The Kissing Camels". The picture below that is this really cute couple we saw that looked like they just belonged together.

          

We then drove over to Manitou to walk around and have dinner. We ate at this really cool fondue restaurant, Mona Lisa. It was so neat. The next day Ruth, Mike and I decided to go hiking in the mountains. We got there and noticed there was snow on the trail so this made it a little difficult (especially when you fall through a couple feet of snow):

When our stomachs started rumbling, we found a dry place to sit to eat our yummy sandwiches Ruth made us and then headed back down to the car. While we were walking down, I ran ahead and hid behind a tree so I could jump out and scare Mike. Unbeknownst to me, Ruth's shoe got swallowed up by the snow so they were looking for it for a while. I was getting restless, but I stayed put. Finally I heard Mike walking so I started filming on my iPhone. I jumped out and... I don't think I scared him that much. Then he threw a snowball at me. The hike was a good workout and I thought it was really fun (even though that's not the word Mike used to describe it).We got back to Ruth's and Mike was out like a light. After Mike woke up we went over to, their cousin, Meme's house. Her husband is Kevin and their little daughter is Addie. We had a great dinner over at their place and had fun talking with them. The next day Mike and I had to leave Denver. :( It was so nice to meet and get to know Ruth. 

We got into Lawrence around dinner time and ate at the house while visiting with his mom, dad and brother. The next day Mike found Issac's old bike rack and decided to see if it would fit on his car. It fit, except he needed a couple new parts. We went to the bike store in Lawrence to find the parts and we only found one part we needed so Mike decided that we had to go to Kansas City to get the other part (as Xienna put it, "Once they have an idea in their head, they aren't going to change their mind!" referring to Issac and Mike). Elijah, Mike and I loaded up and drove to Kansas City. We found the part and then I saw a Michael Kors shop! I stopped in to see if they could get a spot off of my bag (Mike's bike rubbed on it and left a black mark). They were able to get it off, thank goodness. Mike refused to come into the store, I'm not sure why. Maybe he isn't secure with his masculinity or something. ;) (Love you, Mike) Anyways, we went back to Lawrence and put the bike rack together and Mike decided it made too much noise so we took it off. It was still good to have it though, he said. After that, Mike and I walked around downtown Lawrence and just enjoyed the outside and each other (not so much the homeless drunk people). We got back and ate at the house and then his Aunt Michelle and cousin Aaron came over for ice cream. We always laugh until our cheeks hurt with Michelle. She's a character and has the funniest stories. The next day, Thursday, Mike and I went to visit his grandma, Nonny. I love visiting with her. I'm not sure if it's her genuine interest in wanting to know what is going on in our lives, her bragging on Mike or her stories of the olden days that I enjoy most. It's so nice talking with her. After we visited with her, we met Mike's mom for lunch at Pita Pit. Yum. Yum. We headed home and then went shopping for some new shoes for Mike. When we got home Mike's friend, Jeremiah  came over and we went to Oklahoma Joe's in Kansas City to eat some great BBQ. After we had our full, we all met Mike's other friend, Tyler, at Harrah's Casino. We played for almost 4 hours there and had a blast. I came out even in the end. 4 hours of fun for free! What could be better? 

The next day we had to get up and head East. We drove ALL day. We drove through some pretty heavy fog too, but thanks to Mike's great driving skills we got through just fine. We got up the next day and stopped at the Louisville Slugger factory and museum. It was SO cool. One of my favorite parts of the trips. We got to go on a factory tour and see how all the bats are made and got to walk around the museum and pose for some pretty awesome pictures. 

Mike and Ken Griffey Jr. watching the ball leave the park. Babe and I hitting one WAY WAY WAY back.

 Oh, good ole Ted Williams kissing his Louisville Slugger. I swung Mickey Mantles bat that he used in actual games!

Mike next to the 120 ft. and 68,000 lbs. bat outside of the factory.

After we bought some Louisville Slugger shirts and received our complimentary mini bat, we got back on the road. We drove and drove and drove. We didn't fight once during the entire trip.

I had a small moment of being annoyed with him, but it was completely his fault and he deserved it. (Nosey!) But overall, it was a wonderful road trip and we got to see so many cool people and things. We finally arrived in Raleigh, North Carolina on Saturday evening.

His apartment is SO nice. Tyler, his roommate, and Mike are living the good life this summer. We unloaded the car and went to eat at Tony's, a seafood restaurant that was very good. We then headed to Harris Teeters, the grocery store, and bought a ton of groceries. On Sunday we ate lunch with Mike's aunt Susan and her step daughter and step grandchild at P.F. Changs. After that Mike and I walked around the apartment complex to check out the pool and workout room and then went to get his car washed. Knowing my flight would be boarding soon, Mike drove me to the airport. I'm not sure when I started tearing up, I think it was at the apartment when we got all my bags loaded up. It didn't stop until I got through security. Mike walked me in the airport and helped me get checked in. We sat and talked for a bit and then he said I better go through security so I didn't miss my flight. That's when the water works really came to life. I felt horrible, my stomach hurt, my heart hurt and my body wouldn't let go of him. I finally walked away (with his help) and thankfully I had some napkins with me because they were soaked after 2 minutes. I stood in the security line and looked back to see him just staring at me with a smile that was half hurting and half trying to be strong, that really made the tears come down, so I looked away. The next time I looked back, he was gone. I'm glad he didn't stay the entire time because I would have got out of line to go back to him or just start sobbing uncontrollably. I got through the line and made it to my gate. He called to make sure I made it and I heard a couple of sniffles on the other end of the phone. So, Mike is human after all? I'm glad he is because I was doubting he was going to miss me at all. Just kidding!!! I know he misses me. Who else is going to clean his room or watch Fringe with him or cook for him....Oh wait, I don't do that. Maybe he won't miss me that much. :)

My boys

Yesterday, after eating lunch at Grub with my family, Mike, Kenny and I drove up to Arlington to watch the best team in the world play the best sport in the world. My Texas Rangers were taking on the Boston Red Sox at the Ballpark in Arlington. We left College Station around 3pm and got to the game just as it started. We were provided with Texas Ranger peanuts (they didn't last long) by my wonderful and thoughtful mother.  We were sitting on the 3rd base line in the Upper deck, but we got 2nd row seats so we weren't too high up. They were pretty good seats.

The Red Sox came to Texas having the best record in baseball. Did that intimidate the Rangers? Not for a second. Our lead off batter was Ian Kinsler and what did he do with the very first pitch from the Red Sox? HOMER! Boom. In the second inning Boston got a couple of good hits and scored one run that made it even. In the 4th inning with the bases loaded with 2 outs Craig Gentry steps up to the plate. He hits a chopper to the third baseman, who throws (not the best) to the first baseman, Napoli (ya, I'm glad we traded him) who misses the ball letting 2 runs score with an error on him. It's now 3-1.

Not a ton happens (unless you count the cheeseburger and cotton candy I buy and eat or the incident with the flask getting taken away from the drunks behind us) until the bottom of the 8th. Cruz strikes out, Mitch Mooreland gets a single and then Craig Gentry steps up to the plate. He fouls some off and holds off on a couple balls and then on the 5th pitch he hits a bomb to left field! Everyone cheers (except for Kenny, he was more interested in the peanuts). There wasn't much left of the game and no other runs happen. We went to a great game and had a lot of fun. We (as in Mike) drove back to College Station and got in at 1:30am. I would do it all over again though (and I might). It was a great day for baseball and for the Rangers to beat those Red Sox. I am looking forward to more Ranger games this season. 

My Nerdy Boyfriend

My boyfriend, Mike, is one of the best guys I know. He is sweet, kind, attentive (when he's not on his phone), has a great sense of humor, handy, communicates beautifully, artistic, extremely supportive, financially responsible, BUT he is quite nerdy (in a good way). He is a mechanical engineer getting his Master's degree at Texas A&M.

(Won a poster contest in the Mechanical Engineering Department, competed with 33 other Undergrad, Master and PhD students)

He is originally from Lawrence, Kansas, but moved to Texas to attend the best college in the US, where he has a 4.0 GPA for the 5 years he has been here. Smart? Yes! Nerdy? Yes!! We met at our church, Grace Bible, in the graduate and young professionals group in October of 2012. I would be lying if I said it was love at first sight since we both had crushes on other people in grad group. Thankfully those crushes didn't work out. We got to know each other at a grad group camping trip and that's where my attraction to him started.

He invited me to go bowling with his friends(which has been a Wednesday night tradition ever since) and we had a blast. I was definitely interested in him. Thanks to him I learned to bowl well and sometimes (rarely) even beat him! Proof:

(Yes, I am Glue Stick. Originally it started as Glow Worm and morphed into this somehow)

We hung out in groups for a while and then on October 15th he asked me on an official date. The rest is history. So, enough with praising my awesome boyfriend, let's go back to the nerdy side of him. At first I could tell he was smart and that he liked to figure out how things work. For example, we were sitting in a coffee shop one day and I was talking about something, probably really serious (jk), and he was just staring at the ceiling and the lights and I could see his mind churning. I stopped talking and asked him what he was trying to figure out. He said he was trying to figure out the engineering behind the lights and piping and whatever else there was to it. I let him think on it until he figured it out, or was happy with what he thought they did. :) This has happened many times. I don't think it is annoying at all, I like it. I like seeing his brilliant mind working. He also loves technology, maybe not as much as his brothers Juni and Issac, but enough to make him sound like he is talking a foreign language when he talks about it. I found out he was even more nerdy when him and his friend starting talking Star Wars and then.... Star Trek. Star Trek?? Really? Ok, I can overlook that as long as it doesn't come up in everyday conversation. He also is a book worm. He LOVES to read. He reads all sorts of genres of books, but he loves Epic Fantasy novels. The Wheel of Time series, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, etc. He also likes to work on cars; this is not nerdy, this is hot. He bought a 60's Mustang a couple years ago and fixed it all up and then sold it. Very cool if you ask me. Ok, so on to the main reason for this post. Mike enjoys all the Marvel Comics superheros (a nerd must). I believe he has read most of the comics so he was thrilled when the movies started coming out. He has seen all the movies based on the Marvel Superheros (probably more than once), so when Iron Man 3 came out, of course he had to go see the midnight showing. He bought tickets in advance, but was working on a related project even before the tickets went on sale. He started researching the Iron Man armor and got in his head that he would dress up for the opening night of the movie. I think he saw the prices/amount of time it took to make the suits and armor and decided on maybe just a helmet. He looked at pricing for helmets, but good ones were $400+. He was not going to pay that amount and decided he could make one just as good. He researched and found this method to make 3D objects out of  2D paper. It's called Pepakura. You can print out designs onto cardstock paper and cut them out then glue them together and fold the paper to make a 3D object. You have to reinforce the paper mold with some sort of hardening. He decided to use a mixture of bondo and resin as his hardening agent. He filled the inside of the helmet with the mixture and let it dry. He did a second coat just for reinforcement. Then he moved on to the outside. I got to help with most of it, and it was actually pretty fun. We bondoed the outside of it to cover up the ridges of the bent paper and he let it dry then sanded it down so it would be smooth.

He did another coat until he was semi-happy with it. He then painted it all silver and after that dried painted it gold and red and scratched it up a bit so it would look like the "after battle" helmet. He glued some sunglasses in the eye slits and it was complete. I think it turned out great! I was very impressed with it.

Mike and I had dinner before we headed over to the movie theater and I decided to wear it on the way over and stare at people as they passed by Mike's car. I also wore it into the place we ate at and ordered with it on. One old guy thought it was the coolest thing ever and wanted to know if I could fly. The cashier was so freaked out he wouldn't even look at me. So after dinner we got to the theater early to get some seats and Mike wore the helmet and his arc reactor he made for Halloween. Lots of people looked on admiring his work and jealous that they didn't have one. He didn't wear it during the movie since it was a bit snug and you could barely see out of it, but his entrance was great! I think I can live with his nerdiness as long as it doesn't get out of hand. :)