ILY Pen!

I have an aunt who lives in Florida.  Today happens to be a special day for her.  It's the day she celebrates her birth!  She's probably the coolest aunt out there and always has been.  She's super creative (this chick can paint, cut wood, draw, create, and so many other things).

We're kind of like pen pals.  Whenever she sends something in the mail she always signs it with "ILY."  This acronym, of course, means I Love You. So, Pen, ILY and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Hope you enjoyed your package ;)

Stronghold

A sweet teacher friend of mine wrote this on a notecard and gave it to me on the first day of school.  I read it every morning before my students come in.

"I love you, O Lord, my strength.  The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.  I call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved."  ~Psalm 18:1-3

HE is our STRONGHOLD.  Day in and day out.  And I am thankful He is.

feelin' the love.

This week is a very special week in the life of a teacher.  That's right...it's teacher appreciation week.  Not only do I particularly enjoy getting thank you notes from kids, but I REALLY enjoy the free food that comes on the second day of teacher appreciation week.  Why?  Because it's a WHOLE DAY dedicated to SWEETS!  Now if that doesn't sound right up my alley, I don't know what does!

Today proved somewhat humorous in the variation of treats I got.

Here's the whole pile of tasty sweet treats.

This is probably my favorite gift of the day!  A preciously wrapped plate of perfectly decorated cupcakes.  And made by one of my 8th grade boys to boot (at least he said so)!  Now THAT'S a cherry on top.

Aren't they precious!?  I don't want to eat them they're so cute.

And the two most random things I got for sweets day:

Don't need to explain those...random, indeed!  (Thoughtful, none the less...)

I guess all these sweet treats somehow make up for the two girls that gave me attitude today, right?! :)

Raviolis...Yes, please!

Saturday was my lovely mother-in-law's birthday.  She kindly requested raviolis be made in her honor.  There's kind of a story behind these raviolis...here goes:  Two years ago I made them as one of my first attempts to cook for Jason's family.  It was QUITE a messy process and it looked like the kitchen exploded.  I had never made homemade pasta dough before and I had never made a recipe that was so involved.  Everyone ate them and claimed to love them (though I think they were just trying to make me feel better ;)

All that to say, Ro requested I make them again.  I am glad to report this time I had far more success and without such mess!  I documented the process as a kind of visual step by step for me to look back at the next time I make them.  They're really great...you should try them too!

I started with 4 cups of flour, 4 eggs, and some salt.  This made enough dough for plenty of raviolis (there were 7 people to feed) and we still had a few left over!

One of those somewhat painstaking, but definitely worth it experiences---making handmade dough.  The above picture is the well you create in the middle and where you place your eggs.  Then you work the flour in.

After 15 minutes of mixing, kneading, turning, flipping...voila!  A ball of pasta dough!

Dice your chicken, mushrooms, and onions.  This will make the filling.

Add red chili pepper flakes and salt to the 'shroom/onions mix.  Saute both the chicken and the veggies.

Marianne brought over her pasta machine, which really helps in thinning the dough.  When I made them the time before, the dough was too thick!

Spoon your mixture on one half of the dough and fold the other half over.  Create pockets of mix and use a fork to press down the edges (after cutting your squares).

For the sauce you'll need:  cream (about 3 cups), 2 cups of cheese, salt, and red chili pepper flakes again.  Keep it over low to medium heat and add your raviolis (after they've been boiled for 5 minutes).

Put in dish.  Sprinkle with parsley.  Eat and be filled!

There you have it.  The far less messy process of making delish mushroom chicken raviolis.

And of course, a picture of the birthday girl showing off her age ;)  Happy Birthday Mama Palmer...we love you!

Poem.

Allergies you make me mad
Allergies you're not so rad
You tickle my nose and
I can't even smell a rose
Without a tissue at hand
I drip and itch
And my throat feels all scratchy
Oh, allergies...WHY ARE YOU SO WACKY!?

If I could, I would
get rid of you for good
But I can't so I'll suffer
And hope they'll get no rougher
One day I know
I'll breath freely again
Until then...pollen, please be my friend!

I know, I know, I'm a poetical genius ;) That pretty much sums up my month in a poem. Oh, I love spring but I so don't like allergies.  I know Melanie feels the same way.

At least spring is beautiful...but I am gladly welcoming MAY (take that pollen away!) I just can't stop rhyming...

Ok, I promise that's the end of up close, flower still lifes for a while.  They've had their fair share of blog post glory.  Stay tuned for some ravioli-making coming your way!