#51 Half way Mumbo Jumbo

I know I know,

my posts have been a little on the weak sauce side lately...

And I know, If behind were a reptile I would be the tyrannosaurus Rex of behindness.

but let's be positive.

Stay tuned for some strong sauce posts coming soon to a computer near you!

#50 Despicable Me.

I don't normally like to be bossy or pushy, but in this case I will make an exception. You MUST see despicable me. Your happiness depends on it. I'm serious.

#49 A recipe, Beware, it's good.

So I haven't posted a recipe for a long time, which is funny because I've been cooking like a wild woman lately. So here's a special one for you. As we all know everyone is secretly scared of zucchini season. You all know the feeling. One day you come home and there is a lone zucchini fresh from the garden sitting on the kitchen table. Part of you celebrates the fresh produce, and part of you starts gearing the troops up for World War III: Man versus Squash Plant, because suddenly in the looming weeks, you go from one lone zucchini to thousands and thousands of giant squash. You can try pawning them off, you can try serving them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but you can never completely rid yourselves of those guys.

Lucky for you, I found a yummy recipe that calls for zucchini.

You might just want to try it.

Is it good you ask? Well let me put it this way, I made a batch, and then I ate a batch***. That's how good they are.

*** Technically I made a batch, then a half a dozen, then gave away a dozen then ate another half dozen then threw the rest away out of fear of eating them, but let's not be picky

Zucchini Spice Cookies

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter of margarine

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 3/4 c flour***

2 t baking powder

3/4 t cinnamon

1/2 t salt

1/4 t nutmeg

1/4 t ground cloves

1/4 cup milk

1 1/2 cup zucchini grated

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1/2 cup raisins (optional)

1 t orange or lemon rind

Cream Butter and Sugar, add egg and mix well

Combine dry ingredients. Add alternately with milk.

Stir in zucchini nuts and raisins and orange or lemon rind.

drop onto greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes

*** I used 3/4 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup regular flour

*** If your cookies come out a little runny or flat (it happens to the best of us) after baking try adding some flour to the batter.

#48 Nathan Cragun

***(Picture courtesy of Christian Cragun)

This is my brother Nathan. Yes, He colored that Candle himself. Oh he's good. He's real good.

Nathan and I have always been good pals. And by always I mean ever since I grew out of my whiny preteen stage and he grew out of his "destroy Catherine's barbies by tying them behind my bike to see if they can fly" stage.

But seriously. I love this kid.

Let's be honest, who wouldn't? He's majoring in counting, and when it comes to crayola crayons, the kid has as much talent and passion as picasso. And boy, can you say vision?

Anyways. Nathan fell into the "everyone move to California for fun (and possibly to have a successful future)" trap, and boy do I miss that kid, which doesn't make sense because we weren't even living in the same state anyways, but it's the principle of the thing.

Nathan makes most people laugh. Usually with him, not at him. But mostly he makes me laugh. A lot. We could sit in his kitchen and laugh about a dumb joke about bacon for hours.

Also, Nathan takes brothering seriously. And he is pretty good at it too. He let's me call him frequently and babble on and on about the happenings in my boring life, down to the boringest of detail. He even occasionally throws in a courtesy laugh for good measure.

Did I mention he is also a pro ultimate frisbee player, and hot dog eater. And boy can that kid grow a beard.

What's not to love?

#46 a Nice Summery Weekend

Wearing these....

Reading/people watching here...

Eating this...

Buying these....

Sitting here...

#45 Top 10 foods to eat when you're sad because you can't have ice cream

Fact: I love frozen food... Sometimes I like foods frozen that most people like when they are not frozen.

Example: Frozen peas.

Now don't judge. Everyone is given a set of gifts and talents, mine happens to be liking the occasional bowl of frozen blueberries, and I have chosen not to bury that talent. So when I decided to go on a break with ice cream, my superhuman abilities to love all foods of the frozen genre really had it's time to shine. And so this list was created:

The Top 10 Foods to Eat When You're Sad Because You Can't Have Ice Cream.

10. Berries with cream- (not frozen, but still important) The blackberries and raspberries are in full bloom in our backyard, and I have been graciously stealing them and eating them before they make it into the house. I love those things.

9. Frozen Grapes and blueberries- at one point in my first semester at college, I introduced two things to my roommates bananagrams, and frozen grapes. Consequently we spent 1 whole week procrastinating homework by playing bananagrams for hours straight while snacking on frozen grapes. (I did most of the snacking but we'll pretend) Sorry guys.

8. Frozen bananas- I had a tupperware of frozen bananas sitting in the freezer. They are perfect for smoothies (no need for ice when you use frozen fruit) and I also like eating them plain.

7. Cereal- Not frozen, but when you put that goodness in a bowl with some dairy and a spoon, the world is just a better place.

6. Smoothies.

5. Lemon Buttermilk Popsicles- Sound gross? Maybe. Taste wonderful? Definitely. I found these babies the other day and threw 'em together just for the heck of it. Turns out I love those things. I love 'em a lot.

4. Banana Peanut butter Smoothies- I love love them. Just frozen bananas blended with a spoon full of peanut butter (and a little sugar or honey if that's how you roll) If your feeling fancy add some chocolate chips and let the happiness ensue.

3. Edy's coconut real fruit Popsicles- If you're a Popsicle lover, or a coconut lover, or a happiness lover, then these are for you. Sweet, cold, and creamy. Love Love Love.

2. Yogurt- I like it from the fridge or frozen, with or without fruit and/or granola.

1. Frozen Mixed Fruit- eat it with yogurt, whipped cream, oatmeal, plain, it doesn't matter, I love love love it. We get giant bags of mixed fruit from Sams Club and I go to town on those things.

So there you have it, you lucky reader you. My secret to ice cream-less success. Now it's your turn. Do you have any frozen favorites? I'd love to hear them!

#44 Pink Bike

Take a good long hard look at this beauty of a bike. (Unless your name is Nathan and you don't appreciate such masterpieces)

This is my bike. I love this bike. Even if she is slightly childish and unpractical (don't tell her I said that). However, due to the fact that I couldn't fit her in my suitcase, she's stuck in Utah being babysat by my brother Christian.

The other day, I had the brilliant idea to go green and bike to the bank instead of driving. However, since I didn't have my beautiful pink bike I had to resort to whatever was in the garage.

So with a great sigh of defeat I pulled this out of our garage:

Skeletor, the not-so-family-friendly family bike. Skeletor, aged and dusty, comes from a long line of Huffy's from the land of wal-mart. Found at a garage sale a few years back, he's a second or third generation on the family tree of Huffy's. His features include squeaky brakes (in order to warn people that you are approaching, and may or may not be able to stop) a broken water bottle carrier (to prove that whoever is riding is too burly to need hydration), and my favorite, a seat with absolutely no cush for the tush. (sorry, I thought of that rhyme and I just couldn't keep it to myself)

I miss you Pink Bike....

#43 Are you guys ready for America Day?

The day when we Americans celebrate the birth of our country by dressing like human flags, exploding everthing we can possibly explode, and yes, eating delicious culinary masterpieces fresh off the Barbeque.

#42 They're on their way!