Just Breathe

 Just Breathe

The words sound simple but often have a wealth of meaning.

Just Breathe.

Abby

Abigail Madison Chase, Class of 2015

 

Degree Conferred

“The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential . . . these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.” ~ Confucius~

I am again a college graduate. My degree in Literature will be conferred on yours truly during August graduation.  I am so proud of my degree, I want to share it with the world. I always wanted a degree in Literature. I want to leap tall buildings while shouting “I have my degree in Literature, lets discuss Shakespeare”! Yep, I am weird like that.  

Chicken Chimichangas

Chicken Chimichangas

There are times in your life when nothing satisfies your soul like chicken chimichangas.

Yes, chimichangas, with extra salsa and sour crème warm the heart and bless the soul of its eaters. Problems seem to roll away as you eat.

It's Name Is “Change”

Hello Change. Your name evokes a sense of fear in those who hear it.

Change is scary. Foreseeing the outcome and future of Change is never assured. Therefore, I hate change.
Change unfortunately has come to my village this year. Change has brought monumental changes to my life and I am scared to death.

Did I mention how much I hate Change?

Change is sometimes unreasonable. Change forces its way into our lives and changes the hearts and minds of those it visits. Change often brings tears, celebration, sorrow, jubilation and happiness. Changes takes its own sweet time in reveling its main goal.

I am not fond of Change, but it’s happening and I am trying my best not to be sad or feel sorrow as the hand of change touches me.

Change thy name is tattooed on my soul.

 I’ve never been good with Change. I usually lose before I win and lose again. The older wiser me knows that accepting Change without regret is a fool’s errand.

Wisdom and age have enlightenment to the point that I know that it’s ok to debate Change and cry at the ramifications.   

Change is in my village and I am not sure what to think or do.

Abby

Dance Academy

Dance Academy

I am an undiagnosed addict when it comes to binge watching TV shows on Netflix and Amazon on the weekend and days off.

This weekend I binged watched Dance Academy on Netflix and it was awesome. Dance Academy is an Australian teen drama about “making it” at Sydney’s top ballet school. I discovered this Australian Jewel and ended up spending two glories days in binge TV heaven. Dance Academy gave me life.  The show is totally awesome. Teenage dancers are at the Royal Dance Academy and not only do they dance, they have drama.

After watching the third season I was disappointed to learn there were no more seasons. O’ the let down of   never seeing Tara, Ethan, Abigail, Kat, Christian, or Tom  dance again until a couple of months pass and I again binge watch one of my favorite shows.

Abby

Rainbow Creek Mall

 

The world of Rainbow Creek is not what you would expect. The small town is set in the mountains high above the hills and valleys. No one knows the real reason they are there. Most think they were born and breed in the town. No so. Most are here because their lives have taken a decidedly turn for the worst.  

Rainbow Creek exist in the hearts and minds of those who are in a coma. The world of a coma is not very large. Most folks once they come out of the coma never remember the mall or their stay there. Many escape from Rainbow Creek but many more stay and make it their permeant home.

Time does not truly exist in Rainbow. While there are days and nights the years roll by slower than in the world these souls no longer occupy.  Life exist in Rainbow Creek Mall in the hearts and minds of those who are trapped there and don’t even know it.

Afternoon Tea In London

 

I am a low brow girl with highbrow taste.

I am headed to London next year for a little girls retreat. One of the things I have placed high on my list of things to do is to have a nice cup of tea on a very tight  budget. While I know its lofty and quite expensive, I want a nice cup of tea in a very nice place.

When I was a wee lass I loved to play with my Holly Hobby tea set.  Getting a tea set was the highlight of most Christmases for me. Over the course of my childhood I must have amassed at least 20 tea sets.  It’s those memories that have shaped my budget for High Tea. I have looked over lots of great places that offer tea yet I keep coming back to the Ritz. It’s outrageously expensive and I imagine I can get the same tea at other place. But this is a once in a life time experience and I want to create the same exquisite memories that were once just relegated for childhood.

Tea anyone?

Abby
http://www.buzzfeed.com/ailbhemalone/afternoon-tea-in-london#.klB6jboqWg

Raspberry, Brie and Blue Grilled Cheese

Some days are made for grilled cheese and not just any kind of grilled cheese.  There are times you want to make up in a beautiful silk gown and meander through your kitchen humming a tune and making the most delicious grilled cheese on earth.

Bethanny

    
















      Bethany entered Rainbow Creek Mall through the parking lot entrance with her phone to her ear, her Kindle in her left hand and her new Galaxy Tablet in her right. Nearly dropping her phone, Bethany waved to Ralph the manager and security guard on the second floor. Frowning Ralph waved back and pointed at her phone, mouthing the words Ok. She ended her call to Friday Wells her best friend and made her way to her suite.

     Smiling she watched as maintenance rehung the sign that said Rainbow Creek Mall.  The old sign had been hanging in the Mall since she first became a resident.  Stopping off at the candle shop she purchased a Japanese bloom candle and continued walking. Waving as she past the shops and merchants. Stepping on the escalator Bethany turned and waved at one of besties Temple Hollow who was getting a smoothie.

Getting of the escalator on the 14^th floor, Bethanny scanned her card to open the door to the private suites.  The private suites at Rainbow Creek Mall were beautiful and had every amenity that anyone could want. The only thing missing was fresh air from the outdoors.

    Bethanny missed the sun on her face. But she appreciated that face that she was alive and would hopefully one day again enjoy the sun. So many in the town of Rainbow Creek were stuck outside the mall. In the cold trying to exist in the new ice age. Bethanny always felt a heavy burden on her heart that so many would chose not to believe and ended up dead or starving to dead. The population of earth was decimated in one fatal swoop that keep only a few alive. Bethanny felt lucky. But she also felt like she took the place of someone more deserving. With all her faults she was the one that was saved when others with no faults had died.

   Mulling over the day it happened she sat down on her couch freshly showered and ready for bed. Most of her friends survived.  But there were those who did not. They and their families chose to believe a lie that the world would not be effect and in the end she knew they had perished like so many others.

Moving to the large window in her living room, Bethanny looked out over the city she use to call home. Snow and ice were everywhere. The place was a winter wonderland. Bethanny had chosen a suite that use to overlook the carnival and waterslide. When the snow and ice came the carnival was frozen in place. The water that spouted up in the slides was frozen solid. The lights around the amusement part were still on giving the park an errie look.

Sighing heavily,Bethanny turned away from the window.

A warm blanket, A bowl of hot chicken soup

 

 

 

There are times in life when you need

a warm blanket and a nice bowl of hot chicken soup.

Life happens fast. Life is never slow once it’s made a decision that you will have a bad day Life puts things in motion. Quick fast and in a hurry you’ll find yourself on the end of a very bad, terrible day. When life kicks in the pants there are six things you realize very quickly:

1.      Life is not Burger King and you “can’t have it your way” all the time

2.      You are not a Princess and your throne is just imaginary

3.      Eggrolls taste best when they are made fresh

4.      Fresh fruit jelly on hot toast will cure the morning woebegone.

5.      Chicken noodle soup is manna from the goddess of life

6.      Cuddling with your blanket at 30 is just as comforting as when you were six.

 

 

 

 

Chicken Noodle Soup

 

Print

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

Author: Cheryl Beverage Barnes

Recipe type: Soup

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, peeled and diced
• 4 celery stalks, small-diced
• 4 carrots, peeled and small-diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 quarts chicken stock or broth
• 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded or diced
• 2 cups wide egg noodles

Instructions

1. In a large pot over medium, heat the butter and olive oil. Add the onion, celery, carrots, garlic and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables soften, about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the stock and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Stir in the chicken and noodles and simmer until the noodles are cooked, about 10 minutes more. Discard the bay leaves. Season to taste and serve with a sprinkling of fresh, minced parsley, if desired.

Notes

…from the Picture-Perfect kitchen:
Planning: Store-bought rotisserie chicken is a great time-saver.
Product Purity: For an even richer soup, poach 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts in the stock until they’re cooked through. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and when cool enough to handle, shred the chicken and proceed with the recipe.
Presentation: For a different looking soup, you can substitute another pasta, like vermicelli or angel hair pasta.
Content and photography © 2014 Hutchstone, LLC. All rights reserved.

- See more at: http://pictureperfectmeals.com/chicken-noodle-soup/#sthash.fvqAG8Pm.dpuf

Chicago Dog

Serve boiled hot dogs on poppy-seed buns with dill pickle and cucumber spears, sliced tomatoes, sweet pickle relish, pickled peppers, diced onion and yellow mustard. Sprinkle with celery salt.

Love Never Fails

The nobility of love is lost on those who don’t recognize it.  

Love that does not set your world on fire or move your soul is love lost in a sea of hopelessness. Losing at love is like a heart without a body.

Love should be as strong as faith. Faith in today, tomorrow and forever.

Love never fails, but people do.  People fail to love enough despite the odds. People fail love.

Love never conquers all when all is never given.  

 Love should move your heart and soul.

Lost is the heart that pines away for love that will never be.

 

Rainbow Creek

Love is Dance

Will you dance with me when I am old?

Will you take may hand and lead me to the dance floor

Will you twirl me in a lover embrace

Will you dance with me

Orange is a beautiful summer  color, Paired with blue you can create a signature look on a hot summer day.

~Love ~

Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; It can outlast anything. Love never fails. I Corinthians 13:7-8

Love's Elegance

Love is elegance and beauty, a dance that last forever, two hearts that beat as one

Love is beautiful 

Love is glorious as you grow old

Together

Love lives in the heart 

Love awakens for those who chose it  

 

 

Love Is

 

Love is a kiss on the neck

Love is the color of the rainbow
Love is thinking of you all day

Love is forever and a day

Love is you and me

Love is

Love Grows Old

 

Love never grows old

it's always young and free

Love knows no limits

Love is growing old together

Love never fails when the chips are down

Love defies the ages

Love is just the two of us

together

forever

 

My Wedding Day

My Wedding Day

I close my eyes and I hear Kenny Latimore  For You, as I walk down the aisle.

There you stand waiting on me, your destiny

My father almost stumbles as we walk

I smile,

You are my future, my end.

You are my love

I stop midway of the isle.

I see tomorrow in your face.

Sixty years and day

A life time to cherish

You are every beat of my heart

I walk ,

almost running

to my destiny.

To You

Grilled Hamburgers on Skewers

 

Grilled Hamburgers on Skewers

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
A dash each of black pepper, garlic powder, ground ginger
1 medium onion, minced
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 cup minced cooked bacon bits
1 red onion cut into large pieces
1 green pepper cut into large pieces
Wooden or metal kabob skewers

Directions

Put the ground beef into a large mixing bowl and break apart.
Sprinkle the spices onto the beef.
Scatter the cheese, bacon and minced onions on top and completely mix mixture together.
Shape the mixture into small compact balls.
If using wooden skewers, have them pre-soaked.
Alternate the green pepper, onion and meatballs on the skewers.
Grill on medium heat. Allow meat to set for 8 to 10 minutes, run a spatula under meat if needed and rotate.
Brush with a thin steak sauce while its cooking.
Or if you do not want to grill you can broil kabobs in the oven, 4 to 6 inches from heat source for 10 to 15 minutes or until done.
Delicious, served with rice.

BBQ Ranch Grilled Chicken

BBQ Ranch Grilled Chicken
serves 4
(Printable Recipe)

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup prepared Ranch dressing
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 3 Tbsp BBQ seasoning
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, ranch dressing, Worcestershire sauce, BBQ seasoning, and white vinegar.

Pound chicken breast to 1/4" thickness. Place chicken in the gallon size ziplock bag. Pour marinade over chicken. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours (all day).

Preheat the grill for medium-high heat. Grill chicken for 8 to 12 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink in the center, and the juices run clear.
http://www.plainchicken.com/2014/07/bbq-ranch-grilled-chicken.html

Grilled Best Ever Juicy Burger

Best Ever Juicy Burger

20 mins to make • Serves 8

Hellmann's

Meat

2 lb	Ground beef [or ground turkey

Canned Goods

1 envelope

Lipton recipe secrets onion soup mix

Condiments

1/2 cup

Hellmann's or best foods real mayonnaise

Bread & Baked Goods

1/2 cup	Bread crumbs, plain dry
8	Hamburger buns http://www.hellmanns.com/recipes/detail/46586/2/best-ever-juicy-burgers

Balsamic Grilled Vegetables

 

 

Balsamic Grilled Vegetables

 

Ingredients

3 Bell Peppers (I chose 2 green, 1 red, 1 yellow), stems removed, seeded and cut in thirds

1 green zucchini, sliced on highest setting on mandolin

1 yellow squash, sliced on highest setting on mandolin

2 Portobello mushrooms, stems removed and use a spoon on the inside to remove the gills

1 Sweet onion, sliced in 1" thick slices

2-3 Roma tomatoes sliced in half

Balsamic Vinaigrette:

3/4 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup good quality balsamic vinegar

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

1 Tablespoon freshly chopped basil

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano and dried thyme (add fresh rosemary, thyme ~ play around with it)

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

1. Combine all the ingredients for the balsamic vinaigrette in a bowl
2. Place your peppers and onion (try to keep the onion together in one slice) in a large Ziploc bag. Place the mushrooms, zucchini and tomatoes in another bag
3. Pour 3/4 of the vinaigrette over the veggies and let marinate at least an hour
4. Heat the grill to high
5. Starting with the peppers and onions, grill w/o turning for approx. 8-10 minutes, checking frequently that the temperature isn't too high and the veggies aren't burning
6. Turn the peppers and onions over, add the mushrooms and cook for about 4 minutes
7. Add the zucchini and tomatoes and cook for approx. 4 min
8. Flip veggies if you see them burning or remove to lower heat
9. Transfer to a large serving platter and pour remaining vinaigrette over the veggies

3.1

http://www.happilyunprocessed.com/2014/05/29/balsamic-grilled-vegetables/