We Interrupt This Blog Break For A Blogworthy Adventure

If one is on a Summer Blog Break and one has a blogworthy adventure, what does one do??  One must blog about it I say!  :)  So yes, I am still on a break, but bring you an adventure story so I'll have a record of it and so you can be entertained.

We just got back from a lovely Summer trip to OR and MT.  We went to Glacier National Park as part of our trip this year.  If you've never been there, you really should try to go - it's simply stunning.  Majestic mountains like no other.  The pictures are great but don't even begin to do it justice.  I am blessed to have grown up in the state of MT and visited Glacier Park many times over the years.

My hubs, son and I were on a trail called Trail of the Cedars near Avalanche Creek on the West side of the park.  It's an easy, lovely 1-mile level trail through the cedars.  As we were on it, we got to the head of the Avalanche Lake trail which is a 2-mile trail that climbs waaaayyy up to a beautiful hidden lake.  I wasn't planning on hiking that trail since the last time I had done it was before adding *ahem* MANY pounds to my body and MANY years to my age - LOL!  But I decided to be brave and go for it as I wanted hubs and son to see the fabulous view at the lake.  Hubs had been rather paranoid about bears, having heard several tales of grizzly attacks from various relatives of mine over the last few days, but he decided that this trail would be fine as it was heavily traveled in both directions - plenty of people smells and noises to keep the bears away.

Shiny happy people at Avalanche Creek *before* taking any hikes.

We made it up to the lake and it was definitely worth the hike!  I was so happy that I had still been able to get my big old self up that trail!  We enjoyed a little time at the lake and then started to head back down the trail.

Beautiful Avalanche Lake which you can only get to by hiking up a 2-mile trail through dense forest.  The lines going down in the background are rushing waterfalls!

A chipmunk at Avalanche Lake - hard to get a pic 'cause they move too fast.  This one stood on a log near us, puffed up and started chirping.  Perhaps he was sending a warning - of, um, I don't know, maybe...BEARS???!!!

I was a couple of yards behind the boys on the trail back as we headed up a hill.  They rounded the bend and then next thing - I saw them both heading back quickly in my direction, saying, "bears."  I really thought they were joking as I had been in Glacier many times and had never once seen a bear.  My son told me that they were serious and to get moving!  Finally hubs stopped on the trail and I asked exactly what happened.  They had seen THREE BEARS!  My son saw them first, then hubs saw them.  They were only 30 yards from the trail even though there were plenty of people around.  My son even saw the bear that was looking at him rise up on its hind legs (yes, his heart was POUNDING)!  *I must mention that I have *always* wanted to see a bear (not quite that close though!) and have only seen a couple that were miles away and hard to see and here hubs and son see THREE bears close up the first time they hike this trail - LOL!

Not what you want to see on a trail in the forest!  OK - this is NOT a live bear!  It's a stuffed grizzly in a ranger station in Lincoln, MT.  It was my son's idea to take the pic from this angle - LOL!

We weren't sure what to do, but we needed to get down the trail.  Hubs told some hikers heading that way about the bears and they agreed that all of us could travel in a group.  Plus, one of those smart hikers had a large can of bear pepper spray (there is such a thing and it's supposed to be more effective than shooting at a bear).  We didn't see any sign of the bears as we headed by - whew!!  About 10 minutes down the trail, we saw a group of people and discovered that a hiker had just seen a bear cub wandering around about 50 yards away from the trail.  That could only mean that the mama was somewhere close by.  Yikes!  Then a few more minutes down the trail, a man came from the lake telling people to head back down - he had seen a Mama grizzly and her 2 cubs cross the trail right in front of him!!  We realized that those were the same bears that hubs and son had seen as it was the same area.  That's right - a mama bear with cubs AND they were grizzlies who are known to attack if they feel at all threatened!

So all the way down that trail, we made plenty of noise and kept a close eye on both sides of the trail.  Nerve-wracking!  We made it to the bottom just fine and then found a Ranger so we could make an official report of the bear-sighting.  He confirmed that a Mama grizzly bear and cubs were up in that general area, but that they hadn't ever been that close to the trail.  He also said that we were lucky because she must be tolerant of people or she would have charged us.  In fact, that trail was closed twice last Summer because of bears charging hikers (just charges to scare the hikers away from cubs - no fatalities or anything like that!)  We are so thankful that the Lord protected us that day!

 Surviving hikers!  If you look closely, you will notice red eyes - a sure sign of post traumatic bear-sighting disorder.  ;)

Now I am not trying to scare you from hiking on trails in bear country!  This won't stop us from taking hikes - though we are not the types to go too far off the beaten path.  Bears usually want to stay far away from people.  Use common sense, follow all precautions given, make noise, have something for protection (bear pepper spray, gun, etc), and know how to best protect yourself if indeed you are charged by a bear.

So what do you think?  Was that blogworthy?  Have you ever seen a bear?  Would you still hike that trail?

I hope you all are having as much fun as I am!  LOL!  Enjoy the rest of your Summer!

Summer Blog Break

Better grab a chocolate and have a seat - this post ended up being a little long!  :)

Blog breaks happen in so many different ways - a few days off here and there, a planned week off with guest posts, an unexplained absence, and then there's mine.  I've decided to take the Summer off from blogging.  The idea came to me a while back and then I firmly decided on it in May.  I tried to wrap up all the posts I wanted to get done as soon as I could in June.  My original thought was to take off June, July and August.  But it will still be a long break - the rest of June and all of July and August.

Why the long break?  I've been blogging consistently for over 2 years - most of the time 5 days a week (I have over 600 posts here which amazes me!).  I'm feeling a bit burnt out at the moment.  Not burnt out from my blog friends and readers, but burnt out because I've started feeling "obligated" to blog.  It would be fine for it to be an obligation if it were my job and helped support my family in some way.  But my blog is just a hobby and I really don't feel led to make it more than that.

I'm also not a good multi-tasker - I can only focus on one thing at a time.  So if my blog is "dazzling" you daily, then you can be sure that nobody is being "dazzled" by the condition of my home - LOL!  I have many things going on this Summer - enjoying the company of my son, getting organized, taking a Summer trip, finishing projects, spending time with friends, trying to eat healthy, exercising, etc.  For me to really make those things happen, I need to step away from blogging for a while.

I feel relieved that I won't have to try to blog or arrange guest posts while I am on our Summer trip - it definitely interferes with that vacation feeling.  And it turns out that the laptop has to go away for a while for some minor warranty repairs anyway.  So my timing is good!

Don't worry - my blog will still be here!  Recipes will still be here!  And maybe you'll find time to dig through past posts and learn something new about me or find a great recipe that you missed.  I will work on making recipes more accessible.  You can already get the chocolate recipes from my sidebar, but I need to work on making the dessert recipes easy to find.  I also plan to put all the tea posts together so you can find what you need.  And you can always use the search bar if you're looking for something specific.  As I add these things through the Summer - they'll appear on my sidebar and maybe I'll put a brief message on top.

Unfortunately this means that I won't be hosting Chocolate Fridays or Dessert Fridays through the Summer.  You can still post chocolate recipes though - I'm sure your readers appreciate it!  There are plenty of other places to link up your delicious recipes like:  Foodie Fridays, Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap, Tasty Tuesdays, Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays - just to name a few!

Now you realize I may change my mind at any time - LOL!  I could get to August and just HAVE to tell you about something great or share a recipe.  Or not.  In which case I'll post in September, Lord willing.

I should add that I probably won't be on Twitter either.  I haven't tweeted in over a month.  It started as a little break by accident and then I decided to wait until somebody tweeted me a question or comment that I had to answer.  Didn't happen.  I think that confirmed that I didn't really need to be on there even though I have some lovely friends there.

Didn't mean to post a book my friends!  Thank you for stopping by my blog and for all of your wonderful comments - they make my day!  I hope you all have a lovely Summer - do take time to stop and smell the chocolates in your own lives.  I will try to stop by blogs and say hello as I have time.

Hugs and air kisses to all!!  Have a wonderful Summer!

Would You Like Chocolate With That? ~ Chocolate-Cherry Stack Cake

I'm so glad you're here!  It's Friday...what could we possibly do to celebrate Friday?  Grab some chocolate - just a little - and join me for Chocolate Friday!

I've got a yummy cake (oh how I do love cake) recipe to share today!  I found it in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine from last year.  The chocolate cake is great and the fluffy frosting is nice and creamy with a light cherry flavor.  And you've got to love the color combo of pink and brown, right?  Seems like I've seen that combo somewhere...

Chocolate-Cherry Stack Cake

3/4 cup plus 1 tsp all-purpose flour
1/3 cup plus 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
1 Recipe Cherry Frosting*

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease 2 6x2 inch round cake pans or springform pans.**  Mix 1 tsp each flour and cocoa powder; dust pans.  Set pans aside.

2.  In bowl combine 3/4 cup flour, 1/3 cup cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.

3.  In large bowl with electric mixer beat butter on medium to high for 30 seconds.  Add sugar; beat until smooth and fluffy.  Beat in eggs and vanilla until smooth.  Beat in sour cream and flour mixture.  Pour batter in pans; spread evenly.

4.  Bake 22 to 26 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched and edges begin to pull away from sides of pan.  Cool in pans on wire rack 10 minutes.  Remove from pans; cool on rack.

5.  Use serrated knife to horizontally cut cakes in half to make 4 layers total.**  Place bottom layer on plate; spread with 2/3 cup frosting.  Repeat with layers.  Place top layer on cake.  Heap remaining frosting , swirling in peaks.  Refrigerate.  To serve, top with Chocolate-Dipped Cherries.***

*Cherry Frosting
In large mixing bowl combine one 8-oz. sour cream, 1 cup whipping cream, 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, and 2 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice.  Beat on medium-high until fluffy.

**I didn't have 6-inch cake pans.  I had 8-inch cake pans.  Because of this, my layers were too thin to cut in half.  So I just put the frosting in the middle of the 2 layers and on top of the cake.

***Chocolate-Dipped Cherries
Drain 16 maraschino cherries, with stems; pat dry with paper towels.  In small microwave-safe bowl combine 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate pieces and 1 tsp shortening.  Cook on 50% power (medium) 1 1/2  to 2 minutes or until melted, stirring once.  Dip cherries in chocolate; place on waxed paper until set.  Store, covered, up to 24 hours.

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Does that sound delicious or what?!  I took it to a church banquet (they are often my guinea pigs but don't seem to mind too much) and it was all eaten up, so it must be OK.  :)

Now I need to tell you that this is my last Chocolate Friday for the Summer.  I'll be posting on Monday and then taking a Summer blog break until September.  That doesn't mean that you can't still post chocolate on Fridays - there just won't be a link-up here.  If one of you chocolate regulars would like to host a linky for the Summer, let me know and I'll put a note on my blog.

Since this is the last Chocolate Friday here for a while, please oh please link up a chocolate post today!!  You can do a new post or go back into your archives and find something to link up with the handy thumbnail linky below.  Let's share LOTS of chocolate today!!

Have a chocorriffic day my friends!

Thursday's Thoughts

I had a few random things I just really wanted to mention before the day was over...

~  If you are at all interested in eating healthy and using a "real food" kind of approach, you really should stop by Kitchen Stewardship (discovered her a while back through Musings of a Housewife).  I love her blog!  Her tagline is:  Balancing God's gifts...one baby step at a time.  She has done so much research on food questions and tries to present both sides of different topics.  I trust her conclusions because of the thought and prayer she has put into them.  She has a great post that includes a list of what to eat, what to avoid, and how to compromise.  I'm going to print it out and work on improving things - one baby step at a time!

 ~ A friend gave me a Christian magazine to look at a few months ago called The Girlhood Home Companion.  I don't have a daughter, but if I did I would subscribe to this special magazine!  Each issue is a keepsake - filled with stories, craft ideas, wonderful recipes and more.  It would make a lovely gift and would be fun for grandmothers and aunts to use to spend special time with granddaughters or nieces.  It's published by Remembrance Press.  I was familiar with some of the names involved with the magazine:  Emily Rose and Breezy Brookshire (www.noblerosepress.com - I heard so many good things about the Brookshires from Sarah Mae at Like a Warm Cup of Coffee), and Ann Voskamp (www.aholyexperience.com).  If you have daughters, be sure to check it out!

~ I finally got to go to Homegoods to shop today!  It's been here a while, but I haven't been in - shocking I know!  I officially like it!  I officially do not like trying to maneuver a cart through the narrow aisles with many other carts going every which way.  Sigh.  But I got what I was looking for and made it out.  I would like to go back when I have more time and just browse - cart-free.

 ~  Tomorrow is Chocolate Friday!  That means you should find a chocolate post to link up on my blog!  It's just nice to share the chocolate!  :)

~  I feel the need to give you a warning instead of just springing it on you - I'm going to be taking a blog break for the rest of the Summer, starting next week.  I know!!  Tomorrow will be the last Chocolate Friday for the Summer and I'll have a post about my break on Monday and...that's it.  I do hope to be back in September, feeling all fresh and fabulous!  Don't be scared - you'll be OK.  You can stop by and look at chocolate anytime you need to!  :)

Have a lovely evening friends!

Tea For Two-sday ~ Tea With a Twist Review

Recently I was blessed with the opportunity to review a book about tea.  The book is called Tea With a Twist: Entertaining and Cooking With Tea by Lisa Boalt Richardson, certified tea specialist.

Photo by Lauren Rubinstein. Used with permission for promotional purposes only.

This book is delightful!!  It's a pretty book to look at - you'll enjoy all the pictures of tea party ideas.  The tea party ideas are different from your standard tea parties.  These ideas will appeal to all sorts of people and make your tea parties fun!  A tea party doesn't have to be only for the ladies all dressed up (though that's fun too)!

Here are a few of the tea party themes that Lisa covers:  Flower Power Tea Party, Bubble Tea Party, Mexican Fiesta Tea Party, Under-The-Table Tea Party (for children), and All About Chocolate Tea Party (hello - you know that one's my FAVE!).  Just look how fun the Bubble Tea looks:

Photo by Lauren Rubinstein. Used with permission for promotional purposes only.

Each tea party has a menu with recipes and finishing touch ideas.  You could easily follow these ideas to throw a fun tea party for your friends or family! 

I received the book right before helping out with a ladies' tea party for church and quickly added one of the recipes to my menu!  I decided to make Artichoke and Asiago Cheese Sandwiches.  They were delicious and cute!  I forgot to get a pic of them, but here they are from the book (the ones with the tomato in the middle):

 Photo by Lauren Rubinstein. Used with permission for promotional purposes only.

Lisa Boalt Richardson kindly gave me permission to share the recipe with you!  Thank you Lisa!

Artichoke and Asiago Cheese Sandwiches

8 oz. softened cream cheese

3/4 cup shredded domestic Asiago cheese

1 clove garlic, pressed

2 tablespoons basil, chopped

2 tablespoons sweet onion, finely chopped

1 14-oz. can quartered artichoke hearts, drained and rinsed

3 tablespoons sundried tomatoes packed in oil, patted dry, and finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

cherry tomato slices for garnish

fresh white bread

Mix all ingredients, except tomatoes and bread, together in a large bowl and refrigerate  for 1 to 2 hours.  Spread mixture onto fresh white bread and cut into flower shapes using a flower-shaped cookie cutter.  Garnish with a thinly sliced cherry tomato in center.

I did use pickled asparagus spears to look like flower stems, similar to the picture. 

Tea With a Twist is such a lovely book and I look forward to trying more recipes and tea party themes!  If you enjoy tea and tea parties, you'll love this book.  It would also be a wonderful gift for a tea-loving friend.  You can buy the book through Barnes and Noble (they have a cute trailer for the book that you can watch) and through Amazon (just click the links to get more info).  I do suggest checking it out!

Find out more about Lisa Boalt Richardson by stopping at her website: www.lisaknowstea.com or at her blog: www.lisaknowstea.blogspot.com (hint: she has some recipes listed there!). 

Disclosure:  I recieved a free copy of Tea With a Twist to review on my blog.  My opinions are my own, as always. 

I hope you enjoyed the book review and that you get to try the yummy sandwich recipe!  I'll leave you dreaming about an All Chocolate Tea Party with Triple Chocolate Scones, Chocolate Strawberry Salad, Chocolate Tea and Spice-Encrusted Wild Salmon with White Chocolate Green Tea Sauce, and easy Microwave Bittersweet Chocolate Truffles...

 Photo by Lauren Rubinstein. Used with permission for promotional purposes only.

Have a lovely afternoon friends and enjoy a cup of tea - iced if it's hot where you are! 

I Had The Nicest Lunch...

...with my son today!  It was unexpected and lovely.  We were out for an appointment and then I stopped by Whole Foods for a couple of items I hadn't found in other stores.  Our Whole Foods is located at a lovely outdoor shopping center with shops, restaurants, and a fountain in the middle - very pretty.

My son asked if we could go have lunch together at one of the restaurants.  I was caught off guard!  The kind of lunch that we usually get if it's just the two of us is McD's or In 'N Out or Subway - some sort of fast food that we take home.  It had never occurred to me to go to a nice lunch with him though I surely would have gone to lunch before now with a daughter if I had one.  My son is almost 11 - not like I need to run around after him in a restaurant!

So off we went to Boudin SF, yes THE place for sourdough bread!  We had an excellent lunch and my son loved it.  He was very well-behaved and we enjoyed a nice conversation.  What a gentleman and an excellent lunch date!  We must do it again soon!

It got me to thinking though.  We can't forget that it's just as important to have lunch dates with our boys as with our girls.  Our sons need to learn nice manners in a restaurant and how to act like gentlemen.  They need to know how to act around a lady if they hope to find a good wife and treat her right!  I'm so thankful that the Lord gave me this sweet opportunity today!

 Who could resist this handsome lunch date?

I should mention that there is a great Christian site for mothers of boys that some of my Twitter friends started.  It's called The Mob Society.  If you have sons, I suggest checking it out!

Have you had a lunch date with your son?

Have a lovely evening my friends!

Would You Like Chocolate With That? ~ Chocolate-Peppermint Squares

Chocolate Friday once again!  Did you survive the week?  I'm sure you must have done something to deserve a little chocolate!

When I helped with a ladies' tea recently, I just had to make something chocolate!  I found this recipe in my Chocolate Fantasies (you gotta love that name - LOL) cookbook.  These are yummy!

It's hard to see in the pics, but I did color the filling to make it a minty green to go with my "Spring Green" tea theme.  I think I would drizzle the glaze on after cutting them into squares if you want them to look prettier.  The designs look a little odd on mine.

Chocolate-Peppermint Squares

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
2 (1-oz) squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Peppermint filling
Chocolate glaze

Cream butter; gradually add sugar, beating at low speed of an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Combine flour and salt; add to creamed mixture, beating well.  Add chocolate, beating until blended; stir in pecans.

Pour batter into a greased 9-in. square baking pan.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.  Cool (layer will fall while cooling).

Spread Peppermint Filling over layer, and chill (filling will be very thin).

Drizzle chocolate glaze over filling; chill thoroughly.  Cut into 1-in. squares.  Store in refrigerator.

Peppermint Filling
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Combine all ingredients, beating until smooth.  Yield:  about 1/2 cup.

Chocolate Glaze
2 (1-oz) squares semisweet chocolate, melted
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Combine ingredients; stir well.  Yield: about 1/4 cup.

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How do those sound?  I do love the chocolate peppermint combo - always delicious!

But enough about my chocolate.  Where's your chocolate?  As in your chocolate post that you were about to link up!  C'mon - bring it over and share!  You can get more Chocolate Friday info here and check out last week's links too.

Have a fabulous chocolatey Friday friends!