Item 6: Treat Time for Treating Others

It was my mom's birthday the other day, so I decided to surprise her and bring her sugar cookies (her favorite cookies) into her work for her birthday. But wait. These weren't just any sugar cookies. These sugar cookies were in the shapes of teeth and toothbrushes - very fitting for a mom who is a dental hygienist.

Can I just say that sugar cookies are my arch nemesis? I can never get them right, and it's always because of the frosting. Frosting is an art and a talent I don't have. I found a recipe online for the glazed and hardened frosting look, but after reading through the ingredients I realized my mom didn't have corn syrup! Blast! I had to run quickly to the store and grab some. And then the frosting didn't even turn out. It was runny, and it tasted too much like powdered sugar. Gag me now. So, after I put it on three cookies and saw that the frosting was just running off the sides, I thought forget it. I'm just going to make my own stuff. So I took the frosting and added some butter and different things. It was thicker, but...I don't know. It was weird. The corn syrup really threw it off. At least it tasted better. And don't get me started on the toothbrushes... holy cow. Those things were so fragile that 1/4 were lost on journey out of the oven, and the other 1/4 were lost during the frosting fiasco. What nightmare. As you can see, I took mostly pictures of the teeth, since they turned out the best.

These are the cookies, each with a different frosting rendition. 

And then I get a call from my mom saying that she needed me to come for a teeth cleaning. Ah! That meant I had to be an hour earlier than I had planned! No time for getting things right. I slapped that frosting on and got in the car.

The great thing is...they ended up tasting ok! And they tasted DELICIOUS the second day! So, what turned out to be horrific, actually became a success. Happy birthday, Mom!

The finished product! Ignore the bad frosting job.

Item 5: Whippin' Up Some German Pancakes

I have been wanting to have breakfast for dinner, which is of course on my list, and I did! I made German pancakes and they were so delightful! Everyone seems to like to make them sweet by pouring syrup or powder sugar over them, but I say nay! It loses it's delicious savory eggy flavor.

No really exciting cooking adventures to report, except that it took 35 minutes to cook, not the 20 it told me on the recipe. But, we do have a strange oven, and our stove is...not normal and falling apart, so I'm sure it was the oven's fault. It will be so nice to have a nicer place some day. I have no pictures of the pancakes to post, sorry, but just know that it was the most delightful, golden, puffy, egg dish ever!

Item 4: Bonfire Bonanza

So, one of the things on my to-do list is to have a bonfire, which I expect to do many a time this summer, but this post is dedicated to the fire itself because of the talented people who created it: Me, myself, and I.

I have never built a fire by myself before, but I did it! And it was a huge success! I did use matches, which is probably cheating, but this fire was beautiful. The cute little four-year-old who lives upstairs helped me make it. She actually really was a huge help! We crumpled papers and fed the flames until it caught the big logs and burned, burned, burned until it became the ring of fire. I may or may not have done a little fire dance to celebrate my success. And just so you know, the flame lasted the entire time we were out there for FHE. It was amazing. I really am so proud! It's like that part  on Castaway when he's like, I MADE FIRE!! I understand completely. It really is an accomplishment.

I don't have pictures, so you may not believe my story, but I'll make another one and post pictures of that. I doubt it will be as successful as this one though. This was a masterpiece.

I think I may have found my hidden talent: fire building. Feel free to call me the fire maiden. Sounds spicy. Sizzlin'. Smokin'. I love it.

Item 3: Y Hike the Y?

Yes...that's what I ask myself every time I hike the Y. Why do I hike this thing? I had a reason this time: I had to do it one last time before I left BYU. It was just as dreadful as I remembered it.

Maybe I'm getting older, maybe I'm out of shape, but that hike is harder than people lead on to believe.  My friend, Jocelyne, and I went at 11 in the morning, which means we ended up hiking during the hottest part of the day. We saw a couple on a date during the same time, and I just pitied that girl, as the sweat coursed down my face. A date to hike the Y at noon? For real? If that relationship works out it's a miracle, since they will definitely be traveling through Hades. That would be too trying for me; I would hate the guy immediately. This hike is pretty steep, has no shade so good luck escaping the hot sun, and really is not that pretty of a hike, until you see the views. But you have to do it. It's one of those things. And it really is awesome being at the top and thinking, wow, after all that mindless trudging in the heat, I made it to the Y!

Jocelyne and Me

Soaking in the View at the Top of the Y

 On the way up, I kept telling Jocelyne that if I were a pioneer, I would die during the first stretch. Sad I know. And then Jocelyne got really sick. Sickly sick. She had to sit for a bit, and she told me to go on, she was too weak to make it to the top. But I told her absolutely not. I would not leave her behind! It felt like a reenacted scene from Legacy. She had to be with me at the top. After all, who would take my picture to document I was there? Well, that and I care about her well being of course...:)


Anyway, Jocelyne wasn't the only one who was having heat/sick issues on the way up. After we finally made it to the top (HURRAY! Yes...Jocelyne made it! A true pioneer miracle!), we heard all these ambulances heading our way. If you're wondering how the medics can reach people on the trail, here is their heroic medic-mobile they use to rescue people.

Not sure what was wrong with the lady, but I'll bet it was the heat. I'm happy to report she was improving by the time we reached her. Farther down the path I ran into, well, almost on top of, this scary thing:

Can you see the snake hiding in this picture?? This thing was huge and seemed to just be chilling on the trail, waiting to bite some hapless person, like me. Luck was on our side again! I guess I proved to be the scarier of the two of us, and he slithered off as fast as he could. Kristen - 1 Snake - 0.

After forever, (How long is this hike? A mile? It seems like 50) we finally made it down in one piece!

Item 2: Solo Cinema

Yes, today I went to see a matinee movie by myself. Was it strange? A little bit. But since I have a lack of friends in Provo at the moment, and people usually work during the week days anyway, I have spent a lot of time alone.

Surprisingly, it was really fun! I saw John Carter and really enjoyed myself. I didn't have to worry how other people enjoyed it, or worry if I was going to be too early or too late to the show, or worry about someone being annoying and talking to me throughout the entire film. I was free to just sit and enjoy. It was refreshing.

Of course, it's always really nice to have someone there with you, but if everyone has seen the movie and I haven't, or if no one is available to go see a film with poor old me, I'm fine with that. This has been remarkably good for my independence. I feel good. I feel strong. I feel like...eating candy. I think I'll drive to the store. Now to plan for tomorrow's adventure....

Item 1: Walkin' in Provo

Happy Flag Day everyone! So, in honor of Flag Day, which seems to be the welcoming beacon for summer, I have created a Fifty Days of Summer list that I want to accomplish. Every day, I will pick one thing from the list and document the adventure here! Be so excited, because I am!

Today marked the first day and my first adventure. I chose to walk down Center Street and a little bit of University Avenue to peek in shops and bask in the atmosphere downtown Provo has to offer. I wasn't expecting much, but we actually have a cute area down here! I'm bummed it took me five years to find out what this city has to offer. And now I'm leaving! I guess I'll have to do this same idea when I'm in Logan this fall and get a head start on becoming acquainted with the city.

A few sandwiches found at the Center Street Cafe at the Utah Valley Convention Center

Back to Provo...there are some crazy stores on Center Street and a TON of sandwich/deli options. I have eaten at quite a few of these. If you want my input on some of these, I would not suggest Sensuous Sandwich. Awesome name, but it leaves a person feeling unsatisfied. And I, for one, do not remember having too sensuous of a time there. Maybe my sandwich was a dud and it really is delicious...I don't know. But, you do get a cool t-shirt if you eat a huge sandwich under a certain amount of time! Bleh.

I have also eaten at the deli at the newly constructed Convention Street on Center. YUM. The sandwiches and soups are amazing; the picture at the beginning of the post doesn't do the items justice. They have a specialty called the Provo Round-up, but my personal favorite is their Reuben. I don't even like Reuben sandwiches, that's how good it is!! They're only open for breakfast and lunch unless there's a special convention happening, so don't miss out! I haven't tried the other deli shops, so you're on your own there.

I was actually surprised by how many restaurants I have eaten at on this street! I think I want to eat at every single one before I leave. Is that over-zealous? Maybe, especially since my work cut my hours which means my wallet is a bit lighter these days. I'll figure out a way. But I do know that everyone needs to try the Black Sheep Cafe. Order the goat burger and sweet potato fries. You won't be sorry. The place is managed by Navajo Native Americans, so it's authentic stuff. Just don't get a navajo taco. (Weird I know, since it's authentic stuff and you feel an obligation to get a navajo taco since who would make it better than an actual Navajo??) I remember eating those in elementary school, but at this place, unless you get it with meat, I wouldn't suggest it. K, maybe I will do a blog post on each restaurant, and then I can be more concise and execute more time and provide more info that each place deserves. Done.

Today, my favorite place I came across on my journey: The Provo Bakery. I feel a little guilty, because it is hidden in the neighborhood near University Avenue and Center and is not really found on either street. But it's close and I encompassed it on my walk, so I'm including it. Settle down.

My selection: A chocolate cookie with chocolate chips.

Double chocolate chip cookie with milk!

I'm not a choco-holic, so don't ask me why I chose this. Probably because I'm making sugar cookies next week; sugar cookies are my top choice. Also ginger and snickerdoodle. Mmmmm. But this chocolate cookie was pretty good! Very rich, but very delicious. It had the perfect cookie consistency: not too heavy, the perfect amount of chocolate chips, and the perfect ratio of crunchiness/softness/gooey-ness. They have excellent prices on their bread as well, which I'm determined to try next time.

So, enjoy the Provo Bakery! The building is tiny, but it provides big taste in the treats it offers. Enjoy!