Mmmm... Kettle Corn

Liked it so much that I have to share.

I do grocery shopping at Wal-mart and they only carry Orville Redenbacher popcorn, which does not carry the "no trans fat" label. I did buy some of their single serving kettle corn, and it had an off taste-- too fake salty.

Maybe it's the economy and the whole back-to-basics marketing movement, but I bought some plain ole kernels. Great Value brand. $1.25. The O.R. kernels were 4 dollars!

Parade magazine (in the Sunday paper) had a recipe this weekend for sweet and spicy kettle corn. I let out the spicy and just kept it sweet. It was wonderful.

As I was popping, I remembered those early grade school history lessons about the pilgrims learning about corn from the Native Americans. I felt all Pioneer Annie.

Before microwave popcorn hit it big, we cooked our popcorn in an air popper. But to cook it on the stove is kinda like magic. You heat the oil, drop in the kernels, and cover.

You shake the pot and wonder, Will it burn? Will it pop? And lo, it does. It did.

One 1/2 cup of kernels made an entire pot full-- probably 6-8 cups. It was caramelized, rugged, and wholesome.

Here's the recipe from Bobby Flay.

Sweet and Spicy Kettle Corn

3 tbsp. oil (I used vegetable)
1/2 cup kernels
3 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. kosher salt
2 tbsp. ancho chili powder * (I omitted)

Heat oil one minute on medium heat in a heavy 4 quart pot. Drop kernels in a single layer and cover with sugar. Cover with lid. Shake pot periodically to prevent burning. Take pot off the stove when popping slows to pops every 3-5 seconds. Remove lid and add salt and chili powder if desired.

Enjoy, home pioneers!

30

I had a great 30th birthday. I could say a lot about it, but don't need to. I had a weekend filled with surprises. What made it very special was that my husband planned it far in advance-- booking a nice hotel, contacting friends, telling lots of stories so that I wouldn't be suspicious, even setting up a new email account for the birthday weekend.

What the weekend showed me was:

It doesn't matter if you are liked by many. It matters if you are loved (and I would say greatly loved) by a few.

It's nice to be liked. But it's on the surface-- typically because of what we are trying to project to win favor. But to be loved, just because, just because someone else finds something of worth in you, without your striving to attain their affection, that is completely humbling and truly precious.

Thank you to my sweet husband and father of my little boy and in-progress baby. And thank you to my parents, sister, extended family, and out-of-town friends who took the time to make me feel special.

So the next time I'm just doing something mundane and repetitive that I do every day, and feel like my life is insignificant, I've got a great memory to remind me of the opposite.

LOVE YOU!

Red Raspberry Dollars

When Jay was done with breakfast yesterday, I set him down to play while I ate mine. I hear a smacking sound coming from the couch area, and assume he has either found a stray piece of food (sadly, this is not unusual), or is happily biting his fingers. I go to investigate a few minutes later. I find him with a box of red gummies, chewing and drooling and happy as a pig in slop. He has a lot of red drool on his pajamas. I had opened the box yesterday and left it on the couch.

Remember those days when you think you'll never give your child sweets or let them watch cartoons? Neither do I. :)

2 reasons...

So, I'm sitting in my p.j.s and bathrobe at 10:45 a.m. (classy). So, before I put on my big girl clothes and tackle the household grind, here's why I haven't posted for a while.

1. I lost my transfer cable to upload pictures to my computer. I need to buy another one.

2. I was holding on to my big news which is that I'm pregnant. (!) This isn't really news to anyone who reads this, but nevertheless. :) Due January 17th! No morning sickness, just horse pill aversion. The only time I am sick is when I try to take my Omega 3 gel-cap.

The month of May was mostly spent doing as little as humanly possible and thankfully I have snapped out of that. Of course, I am still in jammies.

I got my hair cut. It's sassy. Jeremiah is my little star, but can drive me crazy I have to admit. He really is aware now. He is both the sweetest child ever and the most spoiled. He certainly can pull a 'tude. He can SCREAM! He's cutting his year molars, so he likes to nibble at mama. Sometimes it's a kiss or a raspberry, but sometimes it's a bite. :(

I'll work on getting the pictures uploaded. That's most of the fun for me.

Random tip: Check out www.e-mealz.com. We've started using meal planning website, and it is working!

Woefully neglected...

This little blog has been neglected! I have finally recovered from the blowout that was Jaybird's 1st birthday. We had our picture made. We had a froggie cake. Out-of-town company. Enough presents to truly ruin the kid. A "This Is Your Life" Slideshow. It was a great day. I took a few snapshots, but the best were taken by the guests. Hint, hint. If you read this and you were a fellow birthday reveller, please send me an electronic copy of your best shots!

We are going on our first family of three vacation next week and I can't wait. We get to attend a wedding of a special friend (one of my favorite things) and go to the beach. We also get to visit Aunt Nat and Uncle James. I am also excited at the prospect of no dishes or laundry for a few days.

Jay is really getting big. He can crawls up a few stairs and pulls up wonderfully. He is not walking yet, but I'm not too concerned. He likes to stick his legs out of the crib and kick the wall. This morning, he seemed like he was saying "tickle, tickle" when I first picked him up. He says "mama" and "daddy" but not when you look at him. So I haven't counted it yet. The kid looks like he is a candidate for a mullet, so I'd better get him trimmed soon.

I'll try to to better with more updates... beach pictures soon!