Sunday, August 29, 2010

Gimme S'more

As an We're-sorry-we've-left-you-with-subs-so-much-lately gift for our Sunday school class, we brought S'mores Cupcakes.

Oh my gosh. So good. We'll be making this again.

Recipe:
(Martha Stewart recipe found here)

Ingredients
 2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (not Dutch-processed)
 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
 1 teaspoon salt
 2 large eggs
 1 cup whole milk
 1/2 cup vegetable oil
 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
 1 cup boiling water
 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 squares)
 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 standard muffin tins with cupcake liners; set aside.
Sift 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into the bowl of an electric mixer. Using the paddle attachment, mix ingredients together on low speed.
In a large bowl, mix together eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and beat on medium speed for 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl and continue mixing on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add boiling water and stir to combine; set cake batter aside.
Place graham cracker crumbs, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and melted butter in a large bowl; stir until well combined.
Place 1 tablespoon graham cracker mixture into the bottom of each prepared muffin cup. Use the bottom of a small glass to pack crumbs into the bottom of each cupcake liner. Reserve remaining graham cracker mixture for topping.
Place 2 teaspoons chocolate in each muffin cup. Transfer muffin tins to oven and bake until the edges of the graham cracker mixture is golden, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and fill each muffin cup three-quarters full with cake batter. Sprinkle each with remaining chocolate and graham cracker mixture. Return to oven and bake, rotating pans halfway through baking, until tops are firm and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer muffin tins to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and let cool completely.

*Note: She used a seven minute marshmallow frosting. This recipe was a bit time intensive, so I wimped out on the homemade frosting and went with canned whipped Vanilla, topped with toasted marshmallows.


  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 standard muffin tins with cupcake liners; set aside.




  • Sift 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into the bowl of an electric mixer. Using the paddle attachment, mix ingredients together on low speed.




  • In a large bowl, mix together eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and beat on medium speed for 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl and continue mixing on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add boiling water and stir to combine; set cake batter aside.




  • Place graham cracker crumbs, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and melted butter in a large bowl; stir until well combined.




  • Place 1 tablespoon graham cracker mixture into the bottom of each prepared muffin cup. Use the bottom of a small glass to pack crumbs into the bottom of each cupcake liner. Reserve remaining graham cracker mixture for topping.




  • Place 2 teaspoons chocolate in each muffin cup. Transfer muffin tins to oven and bake until the edges of the graham cracker mixture is golden, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and fill each muffin cup three-quarters full with cake batter. Sprinkle each with remaining chocolate and graham cracker mixture. Return to oven and bake, rotating pans halfway through baking, until tops are firm and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer muffin tins to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and let cool completely.






  • 2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar




  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour




  • 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (not Dutch-processed)




  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder




  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda




  • 1 teaspoon salt




  • 2 large eggs




  • 1 cup whole milk




  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil




  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract




  • 1 cup boiling water




  • 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 squares)




  • 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted




  • 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped






  • 2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar




  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour




  • 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (not Dutch-processed)




  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder




  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda




  • 1 teaspoon salt




  • 2 large eggs




  • 1 cup whole milk




  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil




  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract




  • 1 cup boiling water




  • 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 squares)




  • 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted




  • 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped



  • Wednesday, August 25, 2010

    Thoughts on food storage

    Hans and I are getting started with food storage, but it's a little overwhelming! We're starting with 72 hour kits and then we'll work up. Unless any of you have a tried-and-true, stress-free method to getting started?
    (Not ours... I wish).
    But my real question is this: Where to keep food storage?
    a). In one of the guest closets upstairs
    b). In the Harry Pottery closet under the stairs
    One of us argues that upstairs is not preferable because a Texas tornado would take the top story right off. The other of us argues that downstairs is not preferable because of Texas's penchant for flooding.
    Help us out - where do you keep your food storage?

    Tuesday, August 24, 2010

    Good read recommendation

    It's been a while since I've had a book worth recommending. Part of that is from the fact that I've been re-reading old favorites lately (various Harry Potters and Jane Austens) and the other part is because I just finished watching Lost all the way through.

    But I recently finished The Passage by Justin Cronin and it was so good! I couldn't put it down.

    If I would have read about this book online or the jacket at the book store, I probably wouldn't have read it. Hans heard about it some how and he's the one who bought it. Actually, we went and saw Justin Cronin speak about it at Book People and he autographed our copy for us.

    The premise is vampires. No, stop groaning. We're not talking twinkling, romantic vampires. We're not even talking Dracula. This is a very different spin on vampires. In The Passage, the US military is playing with a new strain of virus that has the potential to give human beings extra human strength and near-immortality (it simply slows aging to a fraction of our normal rate). In their quest to perfect the virus, they test on death row inmates. Most of their initial attempts end disastrously and the inmates end up as vampires - they grow claws, and fangs, and glow green and drink blood.

    The book takes a post-apocalyptic turn when the inmates escape and begin eating and/or infecting the entire country. It's broken into two parts - how the outbreak occurred and 93 years later how the world is.

    Structurally, it jumps around quite a bit and can be hard to follow. It feels a little disjointed at times. But the plot, premise and characters are inventive and detailed, making it an enjoyable read.

    And yes, I did have nightmares about "virals" the night I finished reading it.

    A good mail day

    A good mail day is:

    • A letter from your brother from the MTC
    • A letter from your favorite elder in the field, Elder Banda
    • And an $8000 check from the IRS.
    Too bad it's already all earmarked for things. At least we can pay those things off now!

    Monday, August 23, 2010

    More cheap wall art

    We have many bare walls. And I'm finding that cute wall art can add up fast, even those from my go-to-stores like Hobby Lobby and HomeGoods.

    Then we stumbled upon this little beauty.

    Cute, right?

    It's a greeting card. From Target. We were actually looking for a card for Aaron and Karina's wedding. It caught my eye and made me laugh, so we bought it.

    It says:
    "God, grant me the serenity
    to accept the fact
    I cannot fit into some jeans;
    the courage to wear the jeans I should;
    and the wisdom to know the difference."

    The frame was clearanced at HomeGoods and fit perfectly.

    Total cost?
    Card: $2.59
    Frame: $6.99
    Wall art = $9.58

    Sunday, August 22, 2010

    Elder Gudmundsen at the MTC

    I'm finally getting around to uploading some pics my brother sent me from the MTC. He's doing great but I miss him so much! You can read his letters home here.

    Tuesday baking day

    This was my Tuesday.

    (mint chocolate chip with mint chocolate icing)
    (snickerdoodle with vanilla icing)
    (Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting)

    Turned out we didn't need 14 dozen cupcakes, but they were fun to make and oh-so-tasty. 

     

    Monday, August 16, 2010

    Sad good-byes

    Today was my last day at the Statesman.

    While there are several things I'm not going to miss (I'm looking at you crazy dog show people), I will miss my amazing co-workers very much.


    They even brought cake and ice cream to send me off. Aren't they wonderful?

    Thanks for a great two years.

    East Austin sucks

    Ugh. This is why you shouldn't live in East Austin.



    What bugs Hans the most is that they didn't even take anything! They just destroyed the window. Awesome.

    Thursday, August 12, 2010

    An Ode to Liz

    This is Liz.

    Isn't she cute?

    She and I moved in together in January 2009. I didn't know her at all at the time (Sister T. from the Institute hooked us up) and little did I know that she would become one of my dearest friends.

    She's the eternal optimist, truly kind-hearted with love for everyone, beautiful and modest, hardworking and intelligent, sweet and incredibly funny.


    And today, Miss Elizabeth Lee Spring was called to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Cleveland, Ohio!!!

    I am indescribably happy for her. I have heard her speak of her conversion many times and felt the strength of her beautiful testimony. She will be a wonderful missionary and touch many people's lives as she is able to share that testimony with others.

    I'll be sad to see her go, but happy for what a blessing this will be in her life. At least I get to keep her til Oct. 29! Oh my... what will Oliver do? He will be devastated for a year and a half - Liz is his second-favorite person (after Oma, of course).

    Liz, we (Hans, Me, and puppies!) love you so, so much and we're so proud of you and excited for your new adventure. Congratulations!!

    Little updates

    We've added a few little things to the kitchen in our never-ending attempt to improve it. I feel like it has a little bit more character and charm now. Behold:

    Hardware

    Super cheap, quick to install. We saw these at Home Depot for something like $4 per pull and bought 'em off Ebay for about a buck each. $40, including shipping, for all hardware. Very cheap and easy way to add a little something extra to the look of the room.

    Picture

    I was browsing a wedding blog one day and the couple getting married had this cute sign on their dessert table:

     I've never heard of the saying before but it made me smile. I couldn't make one exactly like theirs, but came up with my own stick-birdie version. Frame is from Ikea!


    Lighting


    The dome light above the sink was gross and boring. We swapped it out for this blue beauty from Ikea. On sale for $14.99 and matches our kitchen paint perfectly.

    Next up.... curtains!

    Wednesday, August 11, 2010

    Another baking frenzy

    I'm finally figuring out the quirks and errors of my new (very old) oven. It turns out that it burns 50-75 degrees hotter than what it's set at, so I need to put it at 300 if I want it to bake at 350. And cut about 10 percent off the recommended time. And only use the bottom rack. And rotate whatever it is halfway through cooking. Ok. I got this.

    (Hans, are you reading this? I want a new oven).

    Molly and Tom's wedding is next week and I have been testing out cupcake recipes. Most I haven't shared with you because I didn't love them. This weekend I tried three that were ALL delicious, so here ya go.

    Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Frosting
    Snickerdoodle with Vanilla Frosting

    Devil's Food with Chocolate frosting

    Magnolia Bakery Red Velvet
    (original here)
    Ingredients
    •     3 1/3 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
    •     3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
    •     2 1/4 cups sugar
    •     3 large eggs, at room temperature
    •     6 tablespoons red food coloring
    •     3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
    •     1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    •     1 1/2 teaspoons salt
    •     1 1/2 cups buttermilk
    •     1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
    •     1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
     Frosting: 
    • 1 lb (two 8-ounce packages) cream cheese, softened and cut into small pieces
    • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened and cut into small pieces
    • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    • 5 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour three muffin tins. Place cupcake papers in the tins.

    To make the cake: In a small bowl, sift the cake flour and set aside. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

    In a small bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa, and vanilla. Add to the batter and beat well.

    In a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts, alternating with the flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overheat.

    In a small bowl, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.

    Divide the batter among the prepared pans. Bake each tray for 20 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the pans for 1 hour. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.

    Frosting: In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat well. Gradually add the sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating continuously until smooth and creamy. Cover and refrigerate icing for 2 to 3 hours, but no longer, to thicken before using. When the cake has cooled, spread the frosting liberally on the cupcakes. 

    Makes 36 cupcakes.


    Devil's Food Cupcakes

    (A Martha Stewart recipe)

    Ingredients
    • 3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
    • 3/4 cup hot water
    • 3 cups all-purpose flour
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • 1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
    • 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
    • 2 1/4 cups sugar
    • 4 large eggs, room temperature
    • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    • 1 cup sour cream, room temperature
     
    Directions

       1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cocoa and hot water until smooth. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
       2. Melt butter with sugar in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to combine. Remove from heat, and pour into a mixing bowl. With an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat until mixture is cooled, 4 to 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add vanilla, then cocoa mixture, and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, and beating until just combined after each.
       3. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three- quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes.


    Snickerdoodle Cupcakes
    (Another Martha Stewart recipe)


    Ingredients
    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self- rising), sifted
    1 tablespoon baking powder
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, plus 1/2 teaspoon for dusting
    1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
    1 3/4 cups sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for dusting
    4 large eggs, room temperature
    2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
    1 1/4 cups milk

    Directions

       1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together both flours, baking powder, salt, and 1 tablespoon cinnamon.
       2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of milk, and beating until combined after each.
       3. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes.


     

    Tuesday, August 10, 2010

    I scream, you scream...


    But that's not really ice cream.

    It's a cake pop! And it's gloriously delicious and tummy-ache-inducing-ly rich.

    And did I mention very easy to make?

    Shopping list:
    Your favorite cake mix (I know, I used a box! Can you believe it?)
    A can of frosting
    Melting chocolate
    Sprinkles
    Ice Cream cones

    Bake the cake as per directions. Allow it to cool completely, then dump the whole cake out into an over-sized mixing bowl. Empty the contents of the frosting can into the same bowl and mash it all together. It won't look pretty, but that's ok. Once the frosting and cake crumbs are completely mixed together (is it the frosting coating the cake, or the crumbs coating the frosting? I can't tell), pick up small clumps and roll them into balls. Drop the balls onto a cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet in the freezer for at least an hour, or overnight if you choose. On the stove, slowly melt your chocolate. I usually add some milk or cream to help make it smoother and burn less. When the cake balls are frozen, dip them in the chocolate to coat them. Add sprinkles before the chocolate hardens. Then pop them into ice cream cones and you're done! Store in the fridge.

    These particular tasty things are funfetti cake with funfetti ice cream, coated in white chocolate. They were for Liz for watching the pups while we were in Utah and for our church kiddos. I think we just became very popular Sunday school teachers.

    Monday, August 9, 2010

    Wish we were there

    Yesterday, Malinda's brother Stan came over for dinner. Much of our dinner conversation was fueled by our Ross-style laminated lists (favorite movies, tv shows, etc). We also talked about travel and where we'd like to go. It got me day-dreaming about all the places I'd love to go someday. Here's my top five:

    5. Maldives

    Not sure this is number five, but I really only had a good solid four and just needed to pick a fifth (because top four doesn't sound quite as nice as top five). I've always wanted to stay in one of those over water bungalows and the Maldives seems like the perfect place to do nothing but lie on a beautiful beach for a week.

    4. Japan

    This one's really for Hans. I know it's a great dream of his to go to Japan and I'd like to see that dream come true for him.

    3. Hawaii

    Ok, so I've actually been there before. But it's been years and I want to go again!

    2. Venice

    Even though I've been to Italy, I never made it to Venice. I have this great fear that it will sink before I make it there.

    1. Greece

    I'm fascinated by pictures of Santorini - it looks like something from a dream. So beautiful. I hear the beaches on the Greek islands are gorgeous, and I fantasize about visiting the ancient ruins.

    What's yours top 5 list?

    Thursday, August 5, 2010

    Recipe: Mozzarella Turkey Burgers

    It's been a while since I posted a recipe. Mostly because the ones I've been trying lately haven't been stellar. Here's one to try, and to keep.

    Mozzarella Turkey Burgers from Eating Well
    The burgers are easy to prep. Just mix the ingredients together and form patties. It's actually two patties stacked together with a bunch of Mozzarella in the middle. Yum.
    And the marinara sauce was incredibly easy to make! You pretty much chop up and cook onions and garlic in olive oil, add in a can of tomatoes in their juices and some sun-dried tomatoes, top of with salt, pepper and basil and let it simmer. Easy peasy! Made the whole house smell wonderful. I pulsed mine through the food processor when it was done because I was too lazy to dice the tomatoes. This gave me a very nice textured sauce in less time.

    The recipe calls to serve them with Focaccia bread, but I couldn't find any so we went with Ciabatta. Equally delicious. Hans was skeptical when I told him about it, but ended up loving it. And if Hans likes it, you will, too.

    The thing about taking food to work is that you never get a picture of the whole thing assembled. So I'm cheating and using Eating Well's.

    Wednesday, August 4, 2010

    An announcement

    After two great years at the Austin American-Statesman, I will be departing for a new adventure with a local non-profit called L3.

    I feel very lucky to have been able to work at a newspaper. The past two years have included the Fort Hood shootings, the guy flying a plane into the IRS building, the outbreak and subsequent panic over H1N1, and more fires, stupid criminals, and traffic accidents than I ever needed to hear about. Oh, and puppies. What will the world do when I'm no longer running the Statesman Dog Show? I have a feeling it will go on.

    Working on Statesman.com has been incredibly challenging - things are constantly happening, constantly changing. That website is like a toddler - it needs to be continuously watched or things will break or mistakes will creep in. I've learned that a) I'm an awesome multi-tasker and b) bad news and/or a lot of news all at once really get my adrenaline pumping.

    More than anything, I'll miss the people. The Statesman has some awesome people working there. My bosses, Kristi and Zach, have been more than just the people I work for. They have been good friends, who genuinely take an interest in my life and have been gracious enough to share bits of theirs with me. Those in my "pod" and the pods around me, particularly Etienne and Courtney, have been my sanity savers - without them, I could probably go an entire 10-hour shift without speaking to another human being. I could name so many people individually but suffice it to say, the people are the hardest thing to leave behind.

    But I feel like this is the right move for me, and for Hans. As many of you know, I work the Monday through Thursday shift, taking over at 4 p.m. and finally dragging myself out at 2 a.m. I usually get to bed between 3 and 4, wake up the next day around 11, and have just enough time to work out and cook dinner before I have to rush off to work. I have been doing this since the fall of 2008.

    When I started this shift, it wasn't so bad. I'm kind of a night person, and 10 hour shifts really don't feel much different than eight hour ones. Plus, I had Friday to get stuff done before the weekend.

    But it turns out that all those night shifts add on each other. More like multiply. The first year, maybe even year and a half, were fine. But then I started to really feel it. I felt tired all the time. I noticed I was getting sick more. And I felt more and more isolated. With Hans working 9 to 5, we literally wouldn't see each other during the week. We'd say good-bye Sunday night until Friday evening. I didn't have much social life and I felt like I was constantly saying "Ah, I can't make that - I'll be working" for things like Relief Society and visiting teaching and social get-togethers.

    I recognize this isn't unique to my shift. Sure, my hours are opposite the rest of the world. But changing shifts probably wouldn't help. The morning shift starts at 5 a.m. and the day shift is noon to 8. To be in newspapers, your hours, your life, will never be normal. You'll always be at the mercy of the crazy guy in the plane. Or the guy burning down the governor's mansion. Or the football players getting arrested for drunkenly driving into buildings. In newspapers, no hours are off limits. You can get called in in the middle of the night, on weekends, and yes, holidays are fair game. That's the nature of the business - your job comes first.

    I love newspapers. And will continue to do so. But I'm not ready to have my job come first. I want my family to come first. The little one Hans and I have now, and the one that we will make together some day. I know some people do it, the balancing act between newspapers and kids. Kristi manages to pull it off like it ain't no thang (she calls it "magic"). But when we do have kids, I want to be able to be there for them. I want some flexibility. And newspapers aren't the place for that.

    And so we arrive at L3. Brother Wenger from the Buda Ward heard of the position from his co-worker, who is the husband of L3's executive director. He must have talked me up pretty well, because I was contacted for an interview before they even had my resume. I owe you dinner, Bro. Wenger.

    I met with the small staff at L3 and instantly felt comfortable. They are all incredibly driven, personable people who share my values and goals. Coming from the Statesman, I know how working with good people can have a dramatic affect on your work satisfaction. In the short time I spent with these women, I knew they would be wonderful people to work with.

    Oh, I guess you're wondering what L3 is, exactly. It's a non-profit organization somewhat akin to the World President's Organization. It's for people 45+, who are presidents or major players of their companies, and heavily involved in philanthropic work (and that doesn't just mean writing checks). L3's purpose is to connect these people and engage them for personal betterment and purposeful collaboration.

    Here's a good example Tammy gave me, for what they do.

    Three members have three different resources.
    Couple number one runs Glimmer of Hope, a nonprofit that has historically worked on health and education programs to help build communities in Africa.
    Member number two runs hospitals in Africa.
    Member number three has a special patented hinge that is affordable and effective for prosthetic limbs.

    Each of these three members alone are doing great work, improving people's lives. L3 helped get them together so that guy number three provides the hinges that guy number two will use on people from the communities in progress by couple number one. It's a pooling of resources so that these philanthropists can build off one another and collaborate on larger-scale projects.

    In addition to work like this, L3 provides resources to help improve its members lives in various areas like health, family, charitable giving, purposeful travel, etc. It's a lot about pooling information that is pertinent and helpful to these types of highly ambitious, very busy people in the latter half of life.

    My official position at L3 is Communication Manager. I'll be working on writing, editing, improving and managing content for the website. I'll work on newsletters and make an attempt to engage members in social media efforts. I'll aggregate news and other resources to disseminate to members and conduct educational webinars. And probably many more endeavors that have yet to  be cooked up.

    It's a scary thing to leave your job, especially one in which you've become quite comfortable. But Hans and I both feel like this is the right thing to do. It's a bittersweet time - sadness over leaving great friends and great projects at the Statesman, but excitement over new challenges and new opportunities.

    Some family time

    Man, I haven't seen some of these people in five or six years.

    My grandma Carol was gracious enough to let us stay with her during our trip. She has been in the same house for the past 56 years - the same house my dad was born in, grew up in, left from. Pretty cool. Not to mention - check out the view from her front door! Hans was completely enthralled with those mountains and very jealous she's so close to them.


    Friday evening, Grandma invited over a bunch of family members for dinner. My Aunt Lisa and Uncle Jeff and their son Carter, my cousin Amy and her husband Brandon and their brood of five (under 10!), my cousin Matty and his way-to-cute-to-be-his-girlfriend friend Lindsey, and my great-Aunt Marjie and her husband. We had a great time with hamburgers and hotdogs and watching the kids run around like maniacs. Sweet grandma even had ice cream and cones ready for dessert. It was so great to see everyone - I hope it's not another five years.