Yogurt Bites

I found this idea on Pinterest Best. Easiest. Snack. Ever.

90 degree summer weather is unnecessary. Make them anytime you need a cool snack to munch on, but not something you'll have to work off later. Put yogurt in a Ziploc bag, cut a *small* hole on the corner, squeeze small amounts onto a pan, put in the freezer for a few hours, and voila! It's like ice cream bites, but healthy.

I usually put them into a cup and eat like popcorn, dry cereal, whatever you like that.... Naturally they'll start to melt. So, you have to options: eat fast, or let them melt a little bit, mix all the pieces together, and eat it like  soft-serve ice cream. Now it's like ice cream, but healthy! Yup, best ever.

-Jannallred

E is for Edify

YAY! Guess what's this weekend? General Conference! General Conference is like Spiritual Christmas. My neighbor refers to it as "Pajama Church".

Don't know what General Conference is? It's basically a giant conference where all the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints gather and listen to our prophet, apostles, and leaders. It's on TV, and you can watch it live or anytime at lds.org. There's two saturday sessions, and two Sunday, and a Priesthood meeting Saturday night for men age 12+. Listen to at least one prayer, one talk, and one song. If you don't feel anything, I'll think you're lying.

Even if you do or don't, the best thing to do for General Conference is prepare. President Uchdorf has a good talk on this. The main one I focus on is the first one. Conference is like Spiritual Revelation Christmas. My sister had to pray and decide on five questions to ask for a class, then listen for the answers in conference. Guess what. They ALL came. Now she's going on a mission in May because of it.

But seriously, the last time I prayed about what questions to ask, decided on the questions, and listened during conference, I got my answer, and knew that it was right. It'll help with career choices, family/marriage choices, extra-curricular choices, belief questions, anything and everything. I promise it works. Saturday at 10 and 2, Sunday at 10 and 2!

-Jannallred

D is for Dare

Bored? Don't worry, I've got you covered. Here are some ridiculous ideas to entertain you and boost your impulsiveness. Dare you to try some.

*Note: many of these would be WAY more entertaining on a date...

1. Make vanilla pudding. Put in mayo jar. Eat in public.
2. Hire two private investigators. Get them to follow each other.
3. Wear shirt that says "Life". Hand out lemons on the street.
4. Get into a crowded elevator and say "I bet you're all wondering why I gathered you here today." 
5. Run into a store, and ask what year it is. When someone answers, run out yelling, "It worked!!"
6. Follow joggers around in your car blasting "Eye of the Tiger"
7. Go on adventure looking for as many good climbing trees as possible. Compile photo evidence.
8. Leave notes in your favorite books at the book store for future readers.
9. Create photo evidence that suggests you went on an adventure that never happened.
10. Dress up as superheroes, and stop at least one petty crimes. (jaywalking, littering, etc.)
11. Blanket fort. Dart Guns. Nuff said.
12. Visit as many friends as you can in one night, and turn as many things as you can upside down in their apartment without them noticing.
13. Write a story by each of you writing the next sentence without consulting. Ask strangers to participate.
14. Do the lamest tourist thing around that you secretly have always wanted to do. Have an unabashed time!
15. Go around the city with sidewalk chalk and draw hearts with equations for random things. 
16. Perform silent plays in front of security cameras
17. With a camera and a pair of boots, compile photo evidence of the invisible man's daily activities.
18. Go to a restaurant and convince them to make something completely new for you.
19. Rent a movie you've never seen before. Mute the sound, and improvise the dialogue.
20. Make a picnic complete with all your favorite foods and treats. Eat it in a weird spot. (ie roundabout, roof, etc)

Well, that's it for now!

-Jannallred

C is for Challenge

Hooray, another challenge! Like it. This one is to help you save money. Double like it.

It's called the Five Dollar Saving Plan.
Every time you find yourself in possession of a five dollar bill, set it aside. It's five bucks, no big deal. By the end of the year, spend it on something you normally wouldn't. You can go on a shopping spree for fun, or do something good with it. You've made it the year without those five dollar bills, so why not let somebody who needs it more than you keep it? Or put it into the  bank to collect interest and help pay for college.

Another idea?

That's $1,378 by next year if you just set aside one more dollar each week!

Still hating the money saving idea? This is the easiest one. Whenever you find yourself in possession of a coin or loose change, put it in a jar. It'll be like the move Up! My brother was cleaning out his closet and gave me a bag of coins he didn't really care about. I added it to the few coins in my jar. Guess how much? $60! My friend's family puts in it a huge 1-2 foot tall jar, and when it's full, they use the coins to go to Disneyland. You don't think it's much, but oh it is.

Challenge? Start saving some money! It won't kill you, I promise.
-Jannallred

B is for Banana Bread

Banana Bread? What's so great about that? You could google it, find a recipe, and have it made in 20 minutes. Well, hate to break it to you, but that's true of just about everything these days.

But, let me tell you. This isn't just ordinary Banana Bread. This is Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze. *mouth water* Difference is the key. Banana Bread? Meh. Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze? Mmm, I'll take some of that, thank you. The key to success is being different.

Now, don't make this any more complicated than it needs to be. Do you already have the perfect banana bread recipe you love? Perfect! Add a few cups of coconut to the batter, and shake a little on top before baking. When it's done, you'll want to take some to the neighbors just to show off its looks. But, to top it all off, make a lime icing with powdered sugar and lime juice, and drizzle it on top. The finished product?



This is a picture from http://www.ourbestbites.com/2010/04/coconut-banana-bread-with-lime-glaze/ where I got the original recipe. If you don't have a banana bread recipe, or want details on how to do the above mentioned, this website has it all, including visuals.

I've made this bread more than a few times, and here are a few tips I've found in the process:

• It will make your life so much easier if you mash the bananas first, (I just mix them up in my Bosch/mixer and call it good) then add the wet ingredients into the mixer with your banana poop. :) I also mix my dry ingredients in a separate bowl and then dump them into the wet ingredient mixture. Separating the dry and wet ingredients isn't super necessary, but since I'm usually making several loaves at a time, it just makes it easier. *And mix as little as possible.* Don't over-mix it! 

• When mixing the glaze, I don't measure. I just dump around a cup of powdered sugar in a bowl, and add a tablespoon or two of lime glaze. This is the important part: it doesn't take very much lime juice! You think you need a lot, but you really do not. It takes a lot of patience to get it mixed in, but if you just stir for a while, it will eventually combine, and make the right consistency. But seriously, I only use one MAYBE two tablespoons, and I'm making four loaves at a time.

• Again with the glaze, try for the right consistency. You'll find out what's best after making it a few times, but you can get a general idea before you start. It should drip off your spoon, but shouldn't be watery. If it's watery, it just soaks into the bread, and doesn't get the look you're going for. If it's too thick, you won't be drizzling anything. Also, make sure the bread is COMPLETELY cooled before you drizzle, otherwise it will melt and soak into the bread, and it wont look like you made any glaze at all. 

• If you don't have enough bananas, substitute! I've used apple sauce to cover a few bananas before, and I almost liked it even better! It was lighter and fluffier. You can also mess with the ratio of bananas and sugar depending on how sweet your apple sauce is.

• It's OK to use rotten bananas! I use bananas that have gone completely black, and it doesn't mess with the bread. In fact, it's better to use them at least slightly browned if not completely brown/black. It makes it sweeter. Whenever our bananas go bad, it only means it's time for banana bread. Quit wasting all those brown bananas!

• If you add the coconut, it'll browned way faster than the bread is cooked. For this particular recipe, I cook it for forty minutes, then cover it with tinfoil (shiny side down) and continue baking for another twenty minutes. The tinfoil keeps it from browning, but allows it to keep cooking.

Good luck with you're baking!

-Jannallred

A is for April

Another blog (http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com) inspired this idea. It's called "Blogging from A to Z Challenge". The challenge is more of an incentive to write everyday (without Sundays it makes 26 days), each day representing a different letter of the alphabet. Since I've almost already established that habit, I think I'll use it as an incentive to dedicate a little more time to actually writing

This challenge entails more than you think. First of all, it's going to require more creativity and planning because I can't just post quotes when I'm too lazy to write. I'm going to have to plan a little more time into my schedule to blog, not just a few minutes at midnight when i usually find myself writing....Guilty. 

Luckily, I'm on Spring Break for the ENTIRE week. Hallelujah Chorus anyone? This will give me some time to sit around and bang my head against a wall thinking of something creative to write about. Creative is the key word that usually tends to be the banana on the sidewalk.

Let's see how this goes.
-Jannallred

Happy Easter!

A Powerful Easter Poem:

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.
Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.
Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,
other times there were one set of footprints.

This bothered me because I noticed
that during the low periods of my life,
when I was suffering from
anguish, sorrow or defeat,
I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord,
‘You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you,
you would walk with me always.
But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life
there have only been one set of footprints in the sand.
Why, when I needed you most, you have not been there for me?’

The Lord replied,
‘The times when you have seen only one set of footprints in the sand,
is when I carried you.’

-Mary Stevenson

I hope you all had an amazing Easter!

-Jannallred