Entry Refreshed

Remember when I posted an in progress picture of the board and batten we were working on in the entry? Oh yeah that was back in January. I helped my sister do her entry as well, the whole idea started with her. Here are a couple of pictures when we first moved in almost 4 years ago. 

Pretty boring

The stairs are the only interest in the space

Ready to be painted, the tape is the green. 

Painted and deciding if we should paint the doors or not. 

Still needs some interest so the idea to pant the bench comes in. 

All painted, including the doors

I moved some things around and made the pattern on either side of the picture. The idea came from here. And as I was taking a couple pictures today I realized the pattern from the mirror is repeated with that little toilet paper art. I should have seen that before, ha!

Complete with hooks and painted bench. I love how the bench turned out. 

I really do love the way the whole project turned out, it is amazing the difference it makes. It is funny how after we painted the Smart One said that he always thought the walls were white but obviously not with the "Dove White" next to it. The inspiration and ideas to build the project came from this entry and this dining room. It is always nice to get a project finished!

My Version of Neiman Marcus Dip

I tried this dip at a Pinterest party (which was fantastic and so much fun, by the way) and thought it was delicious. Every priesthood conference the women together and some snacks and I chose this, and as you can it was a big hit. I just took a picture of what was left for me to bring home. So here we go my knock off Neiman Marcus Dip:

8 oz package of cream cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
4 green onions sliced (really however many you want)
1 small package of slivered almonds
Garlic Powder

Cream together mayonnaise and cream cheese. Stir in the rest of the ingredients and sprinkle garlic powder. I am sure it would be good with bacon bits as well, I was just too lazy to defrost and then cook the bacon. Enjoy with crackers or bread. I made the wheat baguette which will have to be another post.

The letter Q

The Silly One was learning about the letter Q one day at school. They made a crown for the "Queens of the House." He was so excited to give it to me and I was happy to wear it. 

I often don't feel like a queen while cleaning up this and that, changing poop in pull-ups or countless other things that happen in a day. But hugs and love from my boys definitely make me feel closer to that!

Hawaiian Coconut Rice

Here is a delicious side that my family enjoyed, especially the boys! (You know it is a keeper when they love something other than hot dogs.) I don't know how much like Rumbi Rice this is because I don't really care for Rumbi and it is just what the recipe said when I got it. 

Hawaiian Coconut Rice with Red Beans (aka Rumbi Rice)

2 cup long grain white rice
2 1/2 cups water
1 (14 oz.) can coconut milk (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 tbsp. sugar
1 can red beans, drained and rinsed

Combine all ingredients in a rice cooker. Gently stir it all together so the beans are mixed in. Place the lid on and start the rice cooker. Fluff rice with a fork before serving. 
If you don't have a rice cooker: combine water, coconut milk, and sugar in a saucepan. Stir in rice and beans. Bring to boil over medium heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 18-20 minutes until rice is cooked. 

I used a lite coconut milk and think the regular would have more flavor. We'll be having this again.

Lemon Parmesan Chicken

It is April and I am ready for grilling season, anyone else with me? I think the hit and miss 60's days are tricking me. Here is another of our favorites on the grill. And the best part is that it is about 170 calories per serving!

Marinade:
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 cup lemon juice

2 chicken breasts
grated Parmesan cheese

Mix marinade ingredients and add chicken. Let sit for a few hours and they are ready to grill. Cook chicken until juice run clear. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top and let it melt. Enjoy!

I've done this and other marinade meals as freezer meals. You just mix the marinade, add the chicken, label the bag and freeze!

Ginger Pork Tenderloin

I love trying new recipes, my husband never knows what to expect. I have told my family about my recipe trying and my sister suggested I start a food blog with my tried and true recipes. I thought about it and then realized it would be one more blog I neglect and post on erratically. So I'll just post them here, I love food and see a lot of good in that. I have a quote on my kitchen wall,
"People who love to eat are always the best people." - Julia Child.
Anyway, back to the recipes. I've tried some great ones that we have had numerous times and this is one of them.

Ginger Pork Tenderloin

2 to 2 1/2 lbs. pork tenderloin (cut into slices if not already sliced)
1/2 cup Wildtree Asian Ginger Plum Dressing and Marinade
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. lemon pepper
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
Optional: 1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

 Mix marinade ingredients together and add meat. This can be marinated for several hours and grill. Or  frozen and used at a later date, just thaw and grill. I love freezer meals! Couple of notes, I got the recipe when I bought a bottle of the marinade mix from Wildtree, it is fantastic. But if you don't want to go that route I did find a Newman's Own dressing - Sesame Ginger Dressing that also works, I bought it at Walmart. The dressing does have soy sauce in it so I actually just add two tablespoons to the dressing amount and don't add more soy sauce. I have made this with a pork tenderloin roast and cut the slices myself. The pictures show a pork sirloin chop which was good as well. My kids even like this. :)

Women and the LDS Church

I started a similar post last fall, it started to take a contentious tone so I stopped and never posted it. I hope that I can just convey my thoughts and opinions as a way of understanding. I feel the need to write down my feelings and thoughts no matter if no one else reads them. I know that not everyone agrees with me but I feel there is a missing voice, or perhaps a not so vocal voice, on my side of the issue. What issue is that? Women and the LDS church. It all started last September with articles about the injustice of women not having the priesthood and those same women wanting to attend priesthood session of the upcoming General Conference. Everything got stirred within me again this last week. I was talking with some neighbors who are LDS women about some issues and some people who have decided to leave the church. There was also recent article in the NY times about this that was pretty good and somewhat fair but still had to thrown in what I call the “Joanna Brooks Camp.”  I am not part of that. I tend to get frustrated when they make blanket statements as if they are talking for all women of the LDS faith. They do not and that is the reason for this blog post. 

I am a quite passionate person and this passion can push me to act rash at times but I feel also is why I feel so strongly about my faith. Let me give you some background about me and why I have the perspective I do. (Why do people always have the need to explain themselves especially when stating an opinion? To justify it? Perhaps a question for my rhetoric studying lil’ brother) I grew up as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Utah. Yes, what you would call a typical “Mormon Girl.” I attended church weekly with my family and was involved in Primary and the Young Women program. I attended Seminary in high school and my dream was to attend BYU. I made a two-year stop at BYU-Idaho but did make it to BYU where I met my wonderful husband in our singles ward(congregation). Like I said, typical Mormon girl.

Here is where I didn't feel like I was “typical.” From about the age of 14 I had a great interest in architecture. My family built a new home and I was fascinated. I had a desire to become an architect, not the typical stay at home mom that is common in the LDS church. I also was a very independent person. I wanted to do things my way and for myself. One time a male friend of mine told me I was “dependable.” I took this that I was a great friend. No, what he meant was that I needed or depended on having a boyfriend. He also said this right before my boyfriend at the time left for an LDS mission. I was determined to prove this friend wrong and being stubborn like I am didn't have a boyfriend for two years. Also while in my first semester of college I was taking a Book of Mormon class and we were discussing foreordination in Alma 13. It was focused on male foreordination to the priesthood. I raised my hand during the discussion and basically said this is all great but what about me? Where do I fit? I don’t have the priesthood. My professor responded with a generic answer that we are mothers and all that goes with that. I was somewhat satisfied but was incredibly impressed the next time we had class. The professor got up and expressed how he had not felt he answered my question completely during the last class. He proceeded to share numerous quotes by prophets and apostles about the divine role of women. It was amazing and what I see as the start of my shift in perspective.

So with that being said are women in the LDS church equal to the men? In short, yes. I believe that. I believe that men and women have divine and also uniquely different roles that without each other cannot be perfect. Perfect like the Savior, Jesus Christ, and our Father in Heaven. That is what we are all striving for, right? My final shift in perspective was the first time I went to the temple to receive my own endowments. I was engaged to marry my husband and before being sealed in the temple I needed to be endowed. I sat there in the temple that day and learned more of what that partnership between man and woman was. The next week I was sealed for time and all eternity to my partner and eternal companion. A partnership in creating a family. A partnership in helping each other learn and grow. A partnership that can also be partnered with a loving Father in Heaven. That is why I believe women are important and equal in the LDS church.

Where am I now? I am a wife and a mother full-time, you know 24/7. I am also a part-time instructor at a small college. I teach a Computer Design class in the Interior Design department. I teach my students to draw and create floor plans and other drawings of the spaces they design. I teach a night class once a week. I have a supportive husband who leaves work 30 minutes early once a week to switch cars with me and go home with our boys. It is a small job right now and I have goals to one day own a design consulting business. We'll see where the future takes us.

Saying what I have, I don’t want to discount others feelings and past experiences that are painful or discouraging that I myself have not experienced. Those are real and can be difficult to overcome. I thankfully have never had bad experiences with my priesthood leaders. I know that some women who have not married may not feel that same faith in a partnership that right now doesn’t exist for them. But all of us are promised the blessings of heaven if we are faithful. That includes an eternal partner in the future.

This doesn't come close to all my thoughts and experiences on this subject but I feel it all comes down to a few thoughts for me. The gospel of Jesus Christ is perfect, the men and women within the church are not. This fact is why it is important that we doubt our doubts first and not our faith. I don’t understand everything and feel so inadequate at my roles and responsibilities all the time. (My husband could second that with the amount I cry to him about this and that). But when I start to doubt I go back to my faith. I have a testimony that Joseph Smith saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and restored Christ’s church to the earth in these last days. I have a testimony that he translated the Book of Mormon and have personally read that book and have a testimony of its truthfulness. I also have a testimony that Thomas S. Monson is our living prophet today. I have a testimony that Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father live. They love us and are in the details of our lives. I have a testimony that as my husband and I strive to work together toward perfection that we can gain our eternal exaltation. This is my faith and it strengthens me when I start to doubt.