Recipes coming up

I am going to attempt to try my own dried strawberries. Natch, I found this recipe on Pinterest, and I really need to rethink the snacks I take to work. Too often lately I have been visiting the vending machines, and buying big carb-filled muffins (I LOVE carbs, I constantly crave them and it's becoming a problem).

And for dinner this week I will be attempting these Black Bean Quesadillas that I also found on pinterest. The recipe is from the blog Budget Bytes which is an awesome resource for someone like me that wants to cook at home more, but doesn't want to spend a lot of money. I highly suggest you check out her blog, she's really smart, breaks down the prices for you and I've tried a few of the recipes from her blog before with success. Plus, most of her meals make enough for four servings, so that's enough for me, Jason and some left overs.

I will, of course, post the results later.

Early Spring and Summer Wardrobe

I have gotten the jump on my spring and summer wardrobe early. Really early, in fact, I have basically no budget left to buy clothes. Except for pants. I am hoping to lose some weight so I can fit into some cute colorful pants. Probably from Gap or H&M (cause the colored denim at the crew is over $100!! Ridiculous).
Anyway, here are the pieces I've picked up

 Rugby Stripe Dress, J.Crew

Jardin Skirt, J.Crew

No.2 Pencil Skirt in Double-Serge Cotton, J.Crew

No.2 Pencil Skirt in Double-Serge Cotton, J.Crew

Leopard Tank, J.Crew

Tova Sandals, J.Crew

Yeah, yeah, I know, everything is from J.Crew but I really can't help it when I work there and get a discount. Plus, you have to buy this stuff when it first comes out or else it goes on the "exclusion" list (like the sandals no doubt will) which means that I can't get them at a discount price. So the sandals will probably sit in the closet for a while, but that's okay it gives me something to look forward to wearing. I love J.Crew but lately I've been wishing there was a Madewell closer (J.Crew's sister company). Too bad they aren't coming to City Creek, oh well, maybe in a few years?

Thanks, UMFA (and Grua Family)

Guess what? It seems that I was chosen (out of two interns at the UMFA) to receive the $500 stipend awarded by the Grua Family.

I guess I can tell people it IS a paid internship, even if it is only $500 that's money in the bank! Ka-Ching!

Intern @ UMFA

This semester I am working as an intern at the UMFA, Utah Museum of Fine Arts. I work with the Teachers Resource Center which is a collection of materials teachers can check out and take to their classes.

Basically, the collection is housed in a big closet and piled on top of each other. Nothing is stored properly, and it really needs some help. This is where I come in. I get to manage the storage and make custom boxes for all the items. This may sound glorious, it may sound like I have a lot of responsibility, but let me tell you something. It's fairly boring, menial work that I would be happy doing if I was getting paid. Here are some pictures showing you what I do for 8 hours a week.

Here is a picture of me in the process of fitting an item into some foam. So I get to use that saw there to cut out a basic shape that fits the item, then I use the wrench to yank foam out so the item can fit snugly in place.

 This is a Guan Yin statue that was being fitted for the foam, and other materials I use.

This is a picture of a shelf with some boxes that I made.

I will say this, since I work in a little storage closet, I can basically be on my own and have music playing. Also, the museum has a great cafe. They have a few soups that are so good, and I look forward to that almost every time I work. If you go for lunch (and if they have it that day) the chicken and wild rice soup is delicious as is their asian salad.

So, that is what I do for 8 hours a week. I make boxes, and "wrench" foam. Yes, I'm using wrench as a verb here.

Another thing, the museum docents (old ladies (mostly old) that take the elementary kids on tours) are the worst. Yeah, I guess it's nice that they can do this for free, but they really don't own the place like they think they do. I'm sawing away in the back and they think they can just toss their purses all over the place, but no, I need that space to measure and cut and most importantly wrench.

Other than that, I love the UMFA.

Valentines

Happy Belated Valentines!!!

Jason (boyf's real name) and I pushed back our Valentines to this past Saturday, the 18th because I had to work late Tuesday night.
But I did make some yummy salsa for Valentines night. We ran out of chips and Jason just dug in with a spoon. It is the easiest salsa recipe and so yummy.

We had set a pretty low gift limit for each other this year, but Jason still out-did (is that a word or even a real phrase?)  me for sure. I bought him a cute new tee from the Crew and some Starbucks instant coffee packs. He in turn, bought a skirt I wanted from the Crew but couldn't justify buying myself, and then on "our" Valentines he took me to a new Japanese restaurant, Suehiro which was delicious! I was too chicken to try the fried squid, but maybe next time? Then Jas (another nickname) surprised me with salted caramel chocolates, and then even more! On Monday I had taken a walk through Anthropologie and saw this adorable little guy

Of course, I just gushed about it to Jas. And seriously, this picture does not do it justice. It is by far the softest stuffed animal I have ever laid my hands on. So, he had me close my eyes and the surprised me with the bunny. I knew exactly what it was once I felt it even with my eyes closed.

What Ya Thinkin About?

 You know this picture? Well, if you didn't, now you do. And, it's hilarious isn't it? My friend recreated this and did it to me. Check it out

My friend Amber (who has a hilarious blog you should check out here) is basically a genius. I did not see it coming at all when she texted me, and I laughed out loud, A LOT!

Taco Soup

This taco soup has, so far, been the most successful crock pot recipe I've tried so far. And it was so, extremely successful that my crock pot purchase was worth it just for this soup. I'm not lying when I say that I can not see myself EVER getting sick of it. It's so easy, SO EASY and there is lots of room for experimenting. I know for a fact that I over-use superlatives on this blog, everything is the "BEST" and whatever, but know that I am not overdoing it this time.

Taco Soup (orginally found on pinterest and taken from this recipe)

2 chicken boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cans Ro-Tel (I could only find the original at Smith's which was, tomatoes and green chiles)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can corn
1 onion, chopped
2 cans low-sodium chicken broth
1-2 cups of water
1 Tbsp garlic powder*
1 Tbsp chile powder*
1 Tbsp ground cumin*
1 Tbsp dried cilantro*

*I used a taco seasoning packet instead (worked fine)

Put chopped onion, cans of beans, rotel, corn, chicken broth, water, and spices in CrockPot and stir to mix. Put chicken breasts on top of mixture and make sure they're at least partly submerged in liquid. Cook on high 6-7 hours or low 8-9 hours. Before serving remove the chicken breasts from soup and shred, if needed, (sometimes they'll just fall apart on their own, but sometimes they need some help). Return chicken to CrockPot, stir to combine.

*I did not remove my chicken, I used my wooden spoon that I had stirred it up with to just kind of "mush" the chicken and it just fell apart

-This makes probably 5-6 servings? I had it for lunches and dinners for the next 3-4 days.

Add cheese, chips and sour cream to your liking, you know I did!

P.S. You know this is good because Boyf. said he would eat it if I made it again.