Get ready for some real talk coming at you all the way from the UK. Wanderlust, food, and a bajillion pictures. Let's do it!
Showing posts with label Adventures. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adventures. Show all posts
#56 Bob's Barbeque
So of course we had to try it. We hopped in the car and sped down the road to Bob's Barbeque in the small town of Elgin Minnesota. Little did we know that Bob's Barbeque was also awarded the best barbeque in all of Minnesota. We were so Naive.
We all got the ribs. They were finger lickin good. Let me repeat, finger lickin good. And the meat practically fell off the bone. Smother that with the most deliciously smoky sweet sauce possible and you have created heaven on a piece of red checked wrapper.
Here we are smelling our fingers. Why you ask? Well try eating some ribs with the most heavenly sauce known to man and then not smelling your fingers. Try it. I dare you.#45 Top 10 foods to eat when you're sad because you can't have ice cream
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....
# 41 A world without ice cream
Ok now before you pass judgement (and if you have followed this blog, or know me at all, I'm sure you are) don't be deceived by the title of this post. I am in no way, shape, or cone endorsing an ice cream free world. I mean, I love world peace, and since no man can serve two masters, no world can have peace amidst a lack of ice cream.
Politics aside I feel it very necessary to inform you that for the last 10 days, I have lived ice cream free. And in fact, I was ice cream free the 10 days before that and the ten days before that.
Why this insanity?
Well, I realized that as much as I love ice cream, I need to branch out, so me and ice cream, we sort of took a break. A "Catherine will only eat ice cream every 10 days" break. And it's been working (sorry to all you negative nancys who thought I couldn't do it) And it seems like a whole new frozen foods world has been unveiled to me. I'm a new woman, and I want to announce to the whole world:
MY NAME IS CATHERINE CRAGUN AND I HAVE BEEN ICE CREAM FREE FOR 30 DAYS
(except on the 10th days because that's part of the deal)
#37 Because You asked, And I most likely love you
When I wrote this post the other day, I wasn't expecting the outpouring of inquiring comments (and by outpour I mean three comments) asking about my recent embarassing moment. Well my friends, Because I love my readers (thanks to you devoted 5 or so) I will indulge you on probably the most anticlimactic/unembarassing embarassing story you have ever heard (read?)
It all started the other day when my mom announced we had just recieved another 10 dollars of Kohls cash in the mail, and being the generous and caring mom that she is, and since I am the perfect daughter, she gave it to me.
I was already scheming all the things I could get with my 10 dollars as I rushed out the door to my (parents) bright red Achieva. Driving down the highway I noticed the gas light flick on in my sturdy, almost immortal, slightly superhero car. I pulled into a gas station, filled up the tank, and sped off to kohls where I wandered around in the bliss of knowing I was about to get something for quite a good deal. ( I sound like an advertisement) Anyways, after picking out a pair of work out capris for work, I hopped back into my car with a smile on my face, and consequently when all my favorite songs started playing on the radio, dancing and singing ensued, even if they were limited by my driving. When I got home I pulled into the driveway, only to look into one of my mirrors and notice something amiss.
The gas tank door was open.
Which to my horror meant I never shut it, which also meant I never put the gas cap on.
Oh the embarassment, Oh the shame. ( I told you it was lame) All that dancing and singing was all ignorant bliss. I trudged into my house, and immediately told my dad, who being the smart logical man that he is decided that we would go look for the gas cap.
We found it in the grass on a road near the gas station, sitting there all proud that it had been freed from its gas cap duties. (or so I imagine)
The End.
So? Worth it? Maybe. Embarassing? Not really. But as your faithful blogger, It is my duty to keep you informed.
over and out.
#34 Ask the Audience
This photo has nothing to do with the following post. I just found it, and it made me smile and also, I needed something to motivate you to comment.
Here are the top 5 things that made my day just wonderful.
5. A letter from my good pal Elder Bolton
4. A wonderful day at work with a wonderful coworker
3. Peanut butter banana smoothies with chocolate chips
2. Nupa (blog post to come) followed by loud car singing with some pals
1. Laying out in the sunshine with My bff oh life miss Kathryn
And now guess what! It's your turn! I want to hear the top 5 things of the day, or the week, or the month for that matter! It's time for you (and I mean YOU) to spread some love! Leave a comment with your top 5! I can't wait to hear from everyone (and I mean EVERYONE)!
#28 A Memorable Memorial day
It started out with the breakfast of champions. Which included a parfait, and smiley toast. After that my dad sent me on a mission to the hardware store to pick up something that had to do with something hardwarey. (special thanks to the lady at Menards for knowing exactly what I was looking for)
My dad forgot to take into account that the fabric store is right next to the hardware store, and I had a hankering for a good project. I picked up some fun fabric, and a few patterns, and I was on my way.
After starting a project, and doing a little cleaning, I met my friends for some grilling, laughter, and of course, an "intense" game of Boys against girls (and Craig) volleyball.
Then we met at my pal lauren's house for some swimming fun and hot tubbin.
There's nothing better than a wonderful day with some wonderful friends! I hope your memorial day was just as swell!
P.S. I'm not sure why my computer thought it would be funny to underline 3/4 of this post. So we'll just pretend it was a stylistic choice.
# 27 Lazy Sunday
Today was a lazy Sunday. My mom was out of town, and while I had some precious alone time at the house I ran downstairs to play some piano. Afterwards my dad got home and insisted we do something fun for the night. So we got out the scrabble board. You should know that my dad is an intense scrabble player. He thinks of words that Webster himself hasn't even thought of yet. He always wins. Always. It has been my lifelong goal to beat him (and by lifelong I mean since this fall). After a lively game of scrabble and a skype-date with my brother and his wife, we went on a short walk outside, where my dad told me about his childhood. It was fun to hear all the stories. He told me lot's of interesting things, like about the time that he lived in Europe and the most exciting thing he ate was French Fries (I'm just kidding) (Kind of). And the time he ate pizza in Italy. And the time his brother made up a song to tease him about a girl. (Dear Uncle Crawford, Thank you for doing your best to tease my dad! It's good to know that someone took responsibility for that before I came along.) All in all, it was a nice night!
Also Last night I made some dinner for the Pops and I. We had Chili Lime Grilled Chicken with mango salsa. And on the side we had grilled squash. If you like yellow squash or zucchini, then you have to try these. Here is the recipe
Grilled Squash for 2
1 yellow squash or zucchini
1 T Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Using a cheese slicer, or veggie peeler, or just cutting super thin (Like a long potato Chip but slightly thicker). Slice up long strips of squash
toss in the olive oil. Salt and Pepper Liberally (and I mean liberally) and toss again. Place on hot well oiled grill. Flip when you start to see grill marks. Take off and enjoy. Try your best not to eat them before they get to the table.
#25 "Having fun isn't hard...
Yesterday was a bright beautiful day to head to the library, so I grabbed my library card and a list of books ( some of them recommended by you) (And I would still love more recommendations!)
After arriving at the library I was surprised to run into my old High school friend Cody. He and I were in drumline together. He basically is the coolest kid I know. He is also a library employee. We chatted, he gave me some music recommendations, and then I was on my way.
I picked out a few books, but not too many. I don't have the best financial record when it comes to the library, so I decided to just get a few. After I finish my current book, I will get to work on the new accumulated pile! And, if I love the books, You might see them in a future post (foreshadowing)! Stay posted!
#22 Dear Kohls,
I'm not quite sure why you keep sending my mother 10 dollars in Kohls cash every week. But as the humble reciever of the leftover Kohls Cash, I would personally like to let you know of my appreciation for all the free stuff. Thank you.
Love Catherine
# 16 Catherine and Mom's Excellent adventure
Ham, Brie, and Spicy mustard on a Baguette at the Nelson Creamery.
Ferry Boat on a Lake in Minnesota.
Rainbow over the Twin Cities
1. Stopping in the cute little town of wabasha, where we laughed at the overpriced national eagle center, stopped in the Chocolate Escape which supposedly has the "best chocolate in the world" and also the "most confident salesman in the world" (However the chocolate was undeniably amazing, and the "endangered chocolate turtles" stole my heart upon first bite). We also picked up a few little treasures at an antique shop.
2. Crossing over the border into Nelson Wisconsin, where I had my first experience with Brie cheese (believe it or not) at the local Nelson Creamery. It was so incredible.
3. Heading back to Minnesota where we stopped into Red Wing, which is home to the worlds largest boot.
4. Stopping into Gerten's flowers, which is my mom's gardening mecca.
5. Swinging by Mall of America where we may or may not have gone shopping for some clothes.
6. Catching the most beautiful rainbow on the drive home. We could see both ends of the rainbow at one point (and if we were greedy, we probably could have found 2 pots of gold) and all the colors, for a while there was a double rainbow. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful day with my cute mom.
#15 Finally...
... A Sunny Day
It's too nice out to blog. But I'll have to do some Blogathoning later to catch up with some wonderful loves the past few days.
#14 He's Baaaaack!
And by back I mean someone uploaded more Hip Hop Abs videos onto Youtube! that means new dance moves for my next party.And don't worry, Crazy low impact lady, and crazy hair lady are both still in the vids.
#10 Grilled Pizza, or Me versus the man
For a long time now I've wanted to find a good way to make grilled pizza. Last summer I attempted making grilled pizza and all I got was a charred mess. Today was my first day seriously cooking since I've been home and I wanted to go big or go home. So after some research online and a little motivation I got to work.
Round 1 was an idea from a blog I found. It made it look so simple: just put the rolled out dough on the grill and flip when you see grill marks, throw all the ingredients on the cooked side while the other side cooks, let the cheese melt, and you're done... WRONG, it was more like, throw the dough on, untangle the dough, attempt to fix the holes and lay the dough flat, and then, oh wait, the otherside is already burning, flip the dough, then flip all the parts of the dough that break off, desperately chuck the other ingredients on, and there you have it, a beautifully charred mess of a pizza.
Round 2 went much better. I rolled out the pizza on a pizza stone (if your trying this at home, MAKE SURE you roll it good and thin, otherwise it wont cook evenly), decorated it with the toppings, and slid the pizza stone into the medium heat grill. Let it cook until the bottom of the crust was very light brown, took it out of the grill and put it under the broiler until the top of the crust was light brown and the cheese was perfectly melty heavenly goodness.
And the winner? Round 2. Luckily for Round 1 even charred pizza crust tastes good dipped in hummus.
If you want to know, I made a margarita pizza with Wolf Gang Pucks pizza dough recipe (my absolute favorite pizza dough). Margarita pizza is simply dough smothered in olive oil, sprinkled with fresh garlic, topped with fresh basil and tomatoes, and covered with fresh mozzerella. yum.
For dessert we had a Strawberry cream pie. I thought I would share the recipe while strawberries are still in season.
Strawberry Cream Pie
From Our Best Bites
2 Cookie pie crusts. (you can use anything from graham cracker to oreo, I used a shortbread crust) OR 1 large crust
1 4-serving size box of instant vanilla pudding
1 cup cold water
14-oz can of sweetened condensed milk
1 pint whipping cream
2 T powdered sugar
1 t vanilla
lots of strawberries sliced thin
Mix pudding, water, and S.C. milk until pudding mix dissolves. Put in fridge.
Whip cream with powdered sugar and vanilla.
Fold half of whip cream into pudding.
Spread thin layer onto pie crust. Pile on strawberries. Cover with the rest of the pudding mix. (if your using 2 pie crusts split up the filling and strawberries accordingly) Spread the rest of the whipped cream over top and chill for at least 2 hours.
Note: If you want banana cream pie you can simply substitute bananas for the strawberries.
#5 Friday's Top Five
5. Target. Oh how I've missed you
4. New Giant Purse... only $5....
3. Chatting with my lovely SIL Nicole
2. Antiques and craftin with my pardner in crime Heather
1. Movies, laughs, and pudding with my newly toothless pal Corey (who is trying his best to make a silly face in this picture poor guy)
#1 The Midwest, or Home, or a Bed That Feels Like Butter.
This morning my parents and I climbed into a car in Ohio and began our drive back to my home in Minnesota. There is something so wonderful about a car ride on drizzly day in the Midwest. I enjoyed my stay in the desert (unfortunately not dessert) that is known as the west, but it's good old “Up North” that really has my heart. I was raised in the humid, lush, green fields of the midwest. ( I was attempting to be poetic just then, My mother didn't actually raise me in a corn field, sorry to disappoint.) I love everything here. The trees, the lakes, the green. I love that the people drive, eat, talk, smile, live as if they want desperately to be your friend. It drizzled all weekend. Have I mentioned that I love rain? This morning I woke up to the rain drizzling on the pond next to my Brother and Sister-in-law's apartment. It was perfect.
Anyway, on the way home my mom and I listened to Elton John while my dad sat in the back and slept with a pillow on top of his face. Doesn't he know that the pillow is supposed to go under his face? (just kidding daddy-o)
Anyways, I guess I'll get to the point. I'm very excited to be back in the Midwest, in my house, with my mom's garden where the flowers smell too sweet to describe, where the kitchen is always stocked, and the beds are soft as butter.
Anyway, on the way home my mom and I listened to Elton John while my dad sat in the back and slept with a pillow on top of his face. Doesn't he know that the pillow is supposed to go under his face? (just kidding daddy-o)
Anyways, I guess I'll get to the point. I'm very excited to be back in the Midwest, in my house, with my mom's garden where the flowers smell too sweet to describe, where the kitchen is always stocked, and the beds are soft as butter.
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