Late Night Ice Cream

Tonight, after our pizza dinner, my friend Cameron and I had a hankering for ice cream.  We opened the fridge and found the family favorite.  We opened, ready to scoop out some craving satisfying yumminess only to find an almost empty tub.

Cameron suggested we try a little experiment and make our own ice cream.  We looked up a recipe and went to work.  Here is what we did:

1.  First scoop 4-6 tablespoons of coarse salt into a gallon size ziplock.  Then, fill half the bag with crushed ice.

2.  In a separate quart-size bag add:  1/2 cup of milk, Tbsp of Sugar, tsp of vanilla. (If you want chocolate add 1 Tbs of cocoa powder: this might make your ice cream process a bit longer)

3.  The most fun part: Shake gently for 20-30 minutes.   We recommend playing "cold potato."  Be advised, this could get a bit messy and you might go through a few outer ziplock bags. 

Your ice cream, as ours should be firm and clumpy (that was the best adjective I could come up with)



Enjoy and Let us know how great your ice cream turns out!

Season 3 Teaser

Dearest Readers,

    Season 3 of The View from the Trees is coming up starting next Monday.   There will be posts twice a week (Monday and Friday) highlighting my adventures.   As Pinterest explodes in our society, I have been one of the many women totally ADDICTED to pinning with a wishful heart.  Do I ever use the things I have pinned though?   .... um....  shamefully NO.    

In that light, this semester I am committing to posting my fun projects as pinned on my Pinterest account.  I will be trying to do the things I pin and honestly reporting my success or epic failure in doing so.  I hope that you will be able to relate to my adventures and that they will inspire you to create your own.    All of my posts will include a shout out to the websites who originally  created these fun craft projects.

Things to look for:  Hiking Trips,  Blueberry Lemonade, Blog Giveaway (yes, you could win something), aluminum lanterns... and so much more.  

If you have any projects you would like me to do and write about please leave me some suggestions.

Until Monday, 

Renee

#9 Return to Sender

After the annual shipping of Christmas cards, there are inevitably a few that don't quite make it to their intended destination.  You usually receive one or two back in the mail with the post office stamp (NSN) or RETURN TO SENDER.  I am usually a bit bummed out and note the change for the following year.

This year, when I received one of our letters back, it took me a bit by surprise.  Not only had the letter been denied at the original location, but it had been readdressed to a second location where it was also denied.  The front of the letter looked like someone's doodle pad in a boring high school class.

It was what was found on the back that sparked my interest in writing a post about this first. Below is a picture of the back this letter:

Albeit, not a monumental first, there was a note left from one of the incorrect recipients.  The person where the envelope made it's final stop left us a little note of encouragement.  If you can't make it out it says " We're loving Albuquerque & your old home!!"    Although the note wasn't really meant for us to get back (as it was designated for the people we intended to receive our card) it was wonderful to know these people were having fun.

So, thank you to whoever you are... we enjoyed your note!

#8 Earrings and A Drill

In a one bedroom apartment, household organization is KEY!  There is not much storage space and so it is imperative that you begin to think creatively about where to put your things.   As I was looking for options on what to do with my everyday jewelry, I came across a great project on Pinterest.   (If you haven't heard of Pinterest and are crafty in any way.. check it out today)

The project I found seemed simple and took me less than an hour to complete:   

Here is a list of the objects you will need.

      1 picture frame (size may vary)

      Crafting Wire (strong, but one you can bend)

      Ruler

      Pencil

      Scrap piece of wood (you will use as a drilling buffer)

      Scissors

      Pliers

      Drill and a bit that is fairly small (depends on your frame)

      2- 3M removable hooks for your wall.

How to:

1.  Pre-mark your holes.   Figure out where you want your wires to hang.  Use the ruler to make sure                                 you have straight lines.

2. Drill the holes from the inside out.  Place your frame on your scrap piece of wood and drill a hole from the inside to the outside.  Use your markings as guide marks.      

             NOTE:  Make sure you drill a hole that is small enough to prevent your frame from splitting.  

3. Use your scissors to cut the wire at desired length and then use your pliers to help wrap the wires at the end.  There are many ways to wrap the wire.  I spun it around the whole frame and then twisted it on itself.  See picture below.

As you can see, the wire goes through the hole I drilled and then all the way around the back of the frame.

4. Hang your wall hooks and let them sit for at least 12 hours.  (If you are using 3M stickies)

5. Hang your frame and jewelry!

I hope that you enjoy this project as much as I did.  If you have any other home projects, please share it in the comment box below!   Happy Crafting.

#7 Home on the Range

One of my hopes, albeit kind of silly, has always been to experience working on a farm.  Growing up I always heard people say that working on a farm all day is one of the most laborious jobs you could encounter.  

When presented with the opportunity to visit a farm with our friends the Joyce family, I was internally SUPER excited :)  I was finally going to get to see what it was all about. (At least an hours worth of work).  We had arrived just in time to help feed the cows.

Luke and Chris jumped on the back of a truck with bags and bags of cow feed.  Jess and I jumped into the front and off we went into the pasture.  We drove right through the cows who proceeded to follow the truck.  Some of them walked, other literally RAN after us in order to be the first at the food.  It took minutes to feed all the cows.  They ate so quickly.   I'm also thankful the boys were doing it because I'm not sure we could have lifted the bags of food.

We pulled off into another pasture to stir up the automatic feeders that were jammed up with food.  The boys found big sticks and stirred the food around until it flowed normally.  

While the boys were working hard, Jess and I were admiring the cows in the field.  They walked closer and closer to the feeders, but were so afraid of us that when Jess tried to go say hello, they ran away.  Obviously they didn't know they were 10x our size.

All in all.. a great first experience, but I don't think I actually participated in any work.  Maybe I'll offer to help next time :/

#6 The First Ballot

Dear Friends,

If you didn't know, I am a Canadian.  I was born and raised north of the border in a wonderful country that I miss very much.   When I married an American, I accepted the fact that The United States of America would probably be my home for a long time.

I have grown to love what this country is about and all of the beliefs its was founded on.   For that reason in the spring of 2011 I became a U.S citizen.   It was an unbelievable month in which I learned a lot of American history and filed a lot of paperwork.   (if you want to read a funny story about it, check out my blog entry: Citizenship Part 1)

On November 8th, I got to vote in my FIRST ELECTION!!  I was very excited and nervous. Who knew the language of ballots could be so... well.... academic.   It was only a local elections, but I felt as though my duty as a U.S citizen was finally beginning.   I hope that each of you will take time out to vote in your next election whether local, state or federal.  Here is a photo of my excitement. Note by VOTED sticker on my shirt... i wore it all day out of pride :)

#5 Family Tree

As I wrote last week, my current adventure involves discovering my family tree.   As a gift for my birthday, Luke bought me a 6 month subscription to ancestry.com which has proven to be quite a useful tool.

If you've never used the program before, it can be described in 3 words: "Genealogy for Dummies"  You input the information you already know about family members and occasionally a little green leaf will appear in the top corner of a person's profile.  THESE ARE THE MOST EXCITING MOMENTS!!!   (I know i'm a nerd.. thank you)    This simply means that ancestry.com thinks it found a public document or someone else's tree on ancestry.com that is related to your ancestor based on the information you provided.   i.e They know something you don't know.

My current progress - note the little green leaf :)

In one hour, only knowing Luke's immediate family, I traced his lineage back 5 generations.  I have birth certificates, death certificates, other family trees, housing documents all ready to give me more information. 

Maybe you are shocked to know this is not a promotional ad for Ancestry.com.  (you should visit their website) No, they did not pay me to write this blog.  I am simply writing from the magic that comes from learning about those who came before you.  The ones who shaped the lives of your grandparents and even great grandparents.  I am eager to learn more about my family and the people who shaped my history.  I'll keep you informed if I make any great discovery.