Under the Kansas Sky

I am in Kansas for Spring Break! They have blue sky here. And sun!


















We went on a walk on the Sand Creek Trail. In college, we used to find our way through the tall grasses and trees, cross a bridge over Sand Creek and have parties. Guys with walkie-talkies would help us find our way. The bridge is still there but now a beautiful nature trail leads right past.




















I'm having a blast with my nieces and I drove to see Jacob and his Mom. Great fun!


























Here's a video for those of you not on Facebook. Why aren't you on Facebook?? :)

Flood

Boy, have we had rain! I've been arguing with my Mom since I moved here about whether or not the woods next to the cottage are actually a swamp. I'd never been back there when it was flooded, so I thought it would be a great place to put a cabin. I guess I was wrong.




While it rained over 2 inches last weekend, I left the moon roof WIDE open on my new vehicle and soaked the seats and floor pretty good. The cup holders were full to overflowing. Thankfully nothing seems to have been ruined in that mishap.

Laughing Cow

One of my favorite things is Laughing Cow spreadable cheese. Sometimes I take it with crackers and some fruit for lunch. Or, I put it on an English muffin with some egg for breakfast. Yum!








Tonight I made Nutty Stuffed Chicken. The recipe calls for almonds, but I used pine nuts and it was very tasty and sooooo easy!

1/3 cup light garlic-and-herb spreadable cheese
1/4 cup slivered almonds (or pine nuts), toasted and coarsely chopped
2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley (or 2 tsp dried)
4 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine cheese, nuts and parsley in small bowl. Set aside. Slit chicken through thickest portion of east breast half to form a pocket. Stuff 1 1/2 TBS nut mixture into each pocket. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. You may secure with a wooden pick. Place in casserole pan and bake for 45 minutes.

New Wheels

Also in February, I bought a new vehicle! Many of the roads and lanes that I drive down for work are mucky and full of deep ruts. I listened to my poor little Ford Escort get scraped up underneath and sometimes wondered if I'd be stuck in the mud or snow and have to call someone to get me out. My new Ford Escape is much higher and I feel much more secure on the bad roads now! I really would have like a different color, since every car I have ever owned has been red, but it was the only one that was in my price range and had 4WD.

Reconnecting in God's Country

My folks and I drove to Kansas recently to visit Rodney, Carmina, Cheyanne and Ember.


It was much warmer there than in Michigan and we soaked it up. Those who live, or have lived there, lovingly refer to Kansas as "God's Country."

Our friend, Naomi, created an Ultimate Hopscotch course in the driveway. My nieces had fun figuring it out with their friend, Kate, the next day while I posed with my friend, Christy in our nearly matching outfits. She has a belt on, though, and we have this joke that if you wear a belt then you are dressed up. I'm much more casual.

Virtual Pet - Just My Kind

Check out my new virtual hamster in the sidebar to the left!

Mandating Decency

Michelle Obama visited the Even Start program of one of my former Bethel classmates recently. While there, she said this:

"I mean, no matter what you do, you can't pass a law that makes somebody do the right thing, right? You can't pass a law that makes a parent read to their child every night. You can't pass a law that you treat your neighbor with respect and decency. You can't pass laws like that. You know, that comes from all of us deciding in our own communities, in our own individual lives, in our own families, who are we going to be." - Michelle Obama

That really touched me. Sometimes I wish we could pass laws that parents would sit down and play with and talk to their kids. I wish we could pass laws that parents would treat their children with the respect they expect back from their children. I wish we could pass laws that people would treat their neighbors with decency and respect, but these things can't be mandated. They have to come from within. Thanks, Michelle, for reminding us of that.

For the full transcript of her visit, and photos of the adorable kids she met, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog_post/do_the_right_thing/.