Farm fresh eggs! They are pretty!

Eww, not a fan of sprinkles!

I decided to make pie for Staley’s Chicken Dinner as I could find ingredients on sale :). So raspberry apple pie was the answer!

After the topping was added and they were cooked! They turned out absolutely delicious!

Mom wanted to make my grandma’s bread pudding but came to find she transposed the recipe improperly and it ended up a little runny, though that didn’t stop us from eating it :P.

I was all amped up to make a pasta recipe Lexi highly recommended until I realized I forgot to get sun-dried tomatoes which are key for success so Dan and I ended up eating downtown. 

He didn’t come over until at least 7.30 so it was probably better to not cook so late. We watched Girl, Interrupted which wasn’t nearly as good as I remembered and he certainly wasn’t impressed.

Staley’s Chicken dinner at church was more interesting than some years since I was in the kitchen washing dishes with my former art teacher and she said, “I wish I had more students like you.” WHOA! Never expected to hear something like that from her but at the same time I put a lot of time into all of my projects and I believe it was reflected in the end result.

I was filled up so I saved my pie for later!

Dad didn’t think that Minden Grocery would have creamed corn so we made a soda bet on it and naturally mom and I won. Root beer for the win!

Another trip to Harlan for gardening class ended in a combination of health and another donut :P.

Mom was determined to make the bread pudding work so she tried again and it turned out much better!

The donut selection was really lacking so dad got me an apple fritter, also not one of my favorite things.

Animals have just been wandering around a lot lately!

We had a free Redbox thing so we got snacks and Courageous. What a terrible movie! Ick! I do not recommend this at all, hopefully no one is offended by this :P.

Mom and I got some snacks on our way into town to go to Hy-Vee and run a couple other errands. Chili cheese Fritos are in fact better than the originals!

I went to the Market for First Fridays and since I really had to go to the bathroom, stopped in at Patrick’s and felt obligated to buy something so pasta salad was my choice. 

While I was looking for a spot I looked out my window and thought, “That looks like Kelly.” Then, I did a double take and thought, “That looks like her man.” I sent her a text and it was in fact her! This was where our reuniting began :). 

I hit up a couple of galleries and perused Homer’s before heading to CAMP for Design Night. It was a lively bunch this time and the discussions ranged from the end of the world to weddings to businesses and so on. Good snacks and a good time :). I listened to my new Otis Redding record while putting groceries away once I got home, a wonderful ending to a wonderful night :).

I had to work the booth in Minden for the Meat Market’s sampling event which was mostly uninteresting. Thankfully, Dan and Steve stop in for a visit and mom kept me company for most of the event. Sampling definitely didn’t hurt either!

Mom was told that this cake is better than Jones Bros. and I was HIGHLY disappointed. Keep tweaking the recipe babe!

Dan and I were going to get dinner so I just hung out with the fam as they ate downtown. When he finally came over he met me at the bowling alley and we decided it was just as easy to eat there, easy decision!

Dad made Sunday brunch, consisting of toast and eggs!

Grandma was super chatty this particular day and even brought a little humor to the table when she said, “The ceiling fell through at lunch, I ate pizza!” Thata girl grams!

Granny’s Chocolate Baked Pudding was a hit, even with the boys!

We got Subway on our way home from Avoca, this time cookies weren’t necessary!

Since Chiles Rellenos are rarely vegetarian when I look I decided to make my own to see what I think. I definitely got the wrong size poblanos because the amount of stuffing the recipe called for didn’t even begin to fill them up but they turned out pretty well otherwise! http://www.more.com/meatless-mondays-vegetarian-recipes?page=2

Dad finally got the Village Inn pie he had been talking about since Christmas, much as he did the year before. He even got carried away and in addition to the French silk got apple. I had to sadly admit that the apple was better than I expected but I still always prefer homemade!

The last night of gardening class involved making a salad bowl! Sadly, it has already died :. The green thumb didn’t come out this year, that’s for sure!

After a long day at work and a visit to see Dave and Dan over lunch for a little stress release, mom and I decided to make pizza for dinner. We’re really starting to get the hang out of!

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day I made Spicy Irish Cheddar Corn Muffins and boy were they spicy! They definitely are a great addition to soup! http://www.relish.com/recipes/spicy-irish-cheddar-corn-muffins/

Mom, dad and I decided to go to town and Austin surprisingly came along. The first stop was at Mulhall’s so I could get my gardening supplies. Then, it was to the Bike Rack to see if I could find myself a new ride! Apparently none of them thought I would make a purchase that evening but little did they know that I was on a mission! Here’s my new baby! I’m really excited to finally have a nice bike!

Mom decided we needed TCBY while we were in the area, before dinner :P.

It was then to Scheel’s where I was mostly stressed out that someone was going to steal my purchase off the back of the car so I went out to keep and eye on it! Dan recommended Granite City for my dietary needs and I was impressed with the mushroom burger! Thanks for the suggestion :).

There was a St. Patrick’s Day 5K at Arrowhead to raise money for the Minden summer ball league so I tied up my shoes and headed out. I did far better than I had anticipated since my training was pretty lacking. I love the Sweet and Salty Nut Nature Valley bars!

And there’s just nothing wrong with fruit snacks every now and then :).

Since Austin was home for spring break mom made vegetable pizza.

I didn’t feel well but I told mom I would go with her to Neola so she could have corned beef and cabbage. I ran into Cassie there which got the ball rolling on another long lost connection. YAY!

Since the meal was fairly lacking for me, I made myself some scrambled eggs and cracked a bottle of cream soda!

While dad snuck downtown, mom, Austin and I had a secret ice cream eating session. Dan came over at 10.30 so I showed him my new bike, that I had lettuce starting to grow and then fell asleep shortly after. Day shift and night shift after difficult to adapt to!

Grandma was talkative and made jokes again. I was quite tired once we got home so I took a 2 hour nap, I think that’s what Sundays are made for, right?

We had leftover dough so we made some more pizza.

And I made Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes for dessert! The cake for this recipe is really delicious, while the frosting is a little too dense. Since the cake is rich I think the frosting needs to be a little lighter and I think something a little more airy would be good, similar to whipped cream frosting. http://recipes.prevention.com/Recipe/chocolate-peanut-butter-cupcakes-ii.aspx

Let’s add some ice cream to the mix!

I saw this at the chiropractor’s office, it seemed as though the world was trying to tell me something :D.

No work and a chiropractor appointment to start the week. I stopped at Hy-Vee for lunch and to pick up my dry cleaning, which is really expensive! I will now be washing such items myself or not having any :P.

It was getting to the end of soup season and with a mild winter I didn’t feel too inspired to make many soups but a recipe called Raise-the-Dead Chili inspired me to give it one last go before I tucked the soup pot away for another 9 or so months. It turned out really well and was great paired with the spicy corn muffins! http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/soup-recipes/raise-the-dead-chili

No work again so I went to the chiropractor again and had an interview in the Old Market. I was able to meet up with Holly for lunch at Upstream. The tomato basil parmesan soup and spinach artichoke dip are amazing! I nearly licked the bowls!

No work, again! I found an event at Sweet Gatherings for lunch so I signed up and spent the noon hour with some quality old broads. The sandwich was definitely nothing special but the soup wasn’t too bad!

The turtle cheesecake was rich and just the right proportion, especially compared to the gigantic pieces of cherry crisp!

These cupcakes stuck around for a long time.

Doctored up donut.

Dad was inspired by the Chew this time and made Carla Hall’s Waffles, though her version includes chicken. The cornmeal added a nice flavor and texture to the waffles and of course my apple cranberry topping didn’t hurt either :P. http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/the-chew/recipes/Chicken-Waffles-Carla-Hall

I spent part of the day planting my seeds and finishing some cleaning before heading into town. I hit up First Fridays and was excited to see Jim Leedy’s work at Anderson O’Brien. 

I was blown away with Big Harp, who opened for the Mynabirds, and definitely hope to see them again!

The Mynabirds had a totally different vibe from the last album. I liked being able to dance around to the new tunes but wasn’t sure until I got home and listened again. I once again fell in love and had “Generals” on repeat for many, many times. 

My bike had a malfunction so mom and I headed for the Bike Rack to get it checked out. It turned out that the wheel just wasn’t pushed all the way down which made me feel like a fool but I was happy it was an easy fix! We then went to TCBY for a mid-day treat.

Mom called up my cousin Brad to see what he was up to and he called back and told her we should meet for lunch at the Dundee Dell. We had a delicious lunch, a nice chat and then headed to the Keystone Trail for a ride. 

Mom had a couple things to get at Hy-Vee so I thought a vitamin C boost sounded good after a bike ride.

We had dinner downtown and I wasn’t really hungry so I got whatever mom and dad didn’t want.

I think I ended up with as much as I would have had I ordered my own food :P.

We visited grandma and met dad at the trail in Shelby on our way home for a ride.

I had another day off work (Do you see a pattern here?) and was inspired to make something new for lunch. Quinoa Corn Edamame Salad it was! I didn’t have the exact ingredients but I made it work. It was the dressing that really made it tasty anyway! http://eatingwelllivingthin.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/could-it-look-more-healthy/

I’m not really sure the origin or reasoning for this one :P.

I met mom and ad at the Bucksnort after work. It’s true, I finally got to work!

Plain donuts are just sad!

I signed up for a Ladies Gear Class at Canfield’s so to make the trip multi-purpose I scheduled a chiropractor appointment as well. I waited for half an hour from my scheduled time and finally had to leave. My time is valuable too folks! The class was super informative as far as recommendations for clothing, bags, cooking supplies, etc. when going on hiking expeditions. I did find that doing multi-day hiking is quite the investment though! 

I went to Jimmy John’s after since I was delayed before the class, not a good idea to mess with my eating :P.

Dad did errands in town so mom suggested he bring home Pizza Hut!

I decided that instead of sitting around reading a bunch of stuff on the internet I would take a rain barrel class and let an expert show me the ropes. The materials were really cheap and I came out of the class with my very own barrel! I stopped at Hy-Vee and scored a free cupcake!

I called Kelly to see if she was still free to hang out and headed her way, Naked in hand!

I love that after not seeing each other for nearly 10 years, I showed up at her house with my rain barrel in the front seat!

I finally got to meet Jon and the 3 of us hung out in their house, chatting it up. Kelly and I then headed to Ingredient where we continued our conversation and got up-to-date on the past 10 years! We wandered around Village Point for a while and surprisingly only came out with a basket for under her coffee table. We stopped at the house for some water and then went to Goodwill just before it was about to close. It was there that she decided after finding a Miley Cyrus shirt that her birthday party should involve bad T-shirts. Love it!

I stuck around long enough to go to Old Chicago for dinner. I usually don’t promote Old Chicago but I did very much enjoy the calzone. I was a little disgusted with myself for eating the whole thing when I looked over at the couple next to us and realized I essentially ate a whole pizza. Oh well, work it off tomorrow :P. We chatted at the house for a while longer and then I headed home. I love reconnecting with people I haven’t seen in a long time and having it feel as though we were never apart. That’s when you know you’re good friends :).