Inside the Fishbowl

Sunday Tunes: The Sabre Rattlers

In April I saw my Uncle David at a family wedding.  The day after the wedding, while we were all assembled at another uncle's house, David handed me a CD marked Sabre Rattlers and told me that i had to listen to it. I trust David's taste in music implicitly.  He was the one who introduced me (through my Dad) to The Wailin' Jenny's, who have been on my daily playlist for the last three years, and Otis Taylor.  So, of course, I put the CD into my sister's CD player when we were driving to the hotel that same evening and when I did, I knew I'd been handed a treasure.  The first song on the CD is a rocked out version of "Now Let Us Rejoice."  A few seconds into the song an electric guitar starts to whine, evoking emotion that only an electric guitar can.  At the time we listened to a few tracks, but not the entire CD.  I wanted to listen to this in private, without my sister, whose tastes tend more toward Top 40.  I wanted to be able to savor the experience and not have to coninually shush my children.

Back at home, I did a bit of searching and found out that the CD is titled "Twixt me and the Peaceful Rest" by Texas-based (I think) band The Sabre Rattlers.  It is a surprising mix of classic hymns all rearranged to reflect the influences to be found in traditional American music--country, bluegrass, folk, jazz and early rock n' roll. Where "Now Let Us Rejoice" is definitely rock, "The Spirit of God" has more of a bluegrass feel with the banjo and fiddle taking center stage.  It's gorgeous.  All of the songs are gorgeous and unforgettable, and will most likely be recognizable to a broad audience of Christians, since many of the hymns Mormons sing are also sung by other Christian denominations.  My favorites, "Let the Lower Lights Be Burning" and "Jesus, Savior, Pilot Me" are not in the LDS hymnal, but still carry messages of the Savior.

This is definitely not your grandmother's Sabbath music.  Don't get me wrong, I like The Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  But there is more interesting music out there, preformed by many talented artists who are doing incredible interesting things with our traditional hymns. 

Give The Sabre Rattlers a try.  Below you can listen to the CD in it's entirety.  If you like it, I encourage you to buy it.  You can buy it for download on The Sabre Rattlers website, or on iTunes.  If you prefer you can also buy a hard copy directly from the website.  You can also find them on Facebook and Twitter and of course, Youtube.

 

Go and Grub

In July Jeremy had a fantastic idea that I supported wholeheartedly.  In an effort to discover backpacking foods that our children would deign to allow past their picky palates, we agreed to devote one night a week to trying out back county cooking.  And, since we all know (don't we?) that back country food is never better than in the back country, we knew that we would conduct this experiment in the outdoors. We originally planned that we would spend every Tuesday night in American Fork Canyon, our favorite local place to explore and for the sake of setting this activity up as an enduring family tradition, we would title this activity "Go and Grub." Unfortunately, we didn't think about the reality of our busy calendars, most notably that Jeremy was about to leave on a Chicago/China trip for the next two weeks.  We have only been out cooking in the woods once, but what a great night it was!

The day before we were to go I did some looking around at the various blogs and websites devoted to back country cooking and found some very promising possibilities.  I settled on Gnocchi with Sage Butter Parmesan and Bacon (origin unknown, recipe posted below)

Gnocchi with Sage Butter Parmesan and Bacon

Serves 2

Shelf stable gnocchi can be found at Trader Joe's and some supermarkets. (I found mine at Super Target)

1 package prepared gnocchi

½ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded

2 individual packages butter

1 teaspoon dried sage

1 teaspoont garlic powder

3 tablespoons shelf stable bacon crumbles

¼ teaspoon black pepper

 

At home: Combine the Parmesan cheese, sage, garlic powder and black pepper in a

zip-locking plastic bag. Carry the bacon in a second bag. You can re-package the

gnocchi into a baggie if you’d like to save room in your pack.

 

In camp: bring a pan of water to a boil. Add the gnocchi and cook for about 2 minutes.

The gnocchi will float to the surface when it is done. Drain. Add the Parmesan and spices.

Stir. Add the bacon and stir again. Serve!

 

We liked this recipe for the most part.  It was very salty with both bacon and parmesan cheese in the recipe--make sure you have extra water if you're going to make this one!  Also, I used ground sage instead of dried sage, and I think that made a huge difference.  Next time I would not use ground sage, or I would reduce the amount drastically.  This was very sage-y.  Finally, since we were only going up the canyon 20 minutes from home, I used bacon that I cooked at home instead of shelf stable bacon crumbles.  That was delicious, but hardly an option if you're planning on taking this recipe on a backpacking trip.  All in all I would give this recipe 3 out of 5 stars.  It could have been better--but that is most likely a function of my substitutions, and not the recipe itself.

As for the kids, it was not a hit at all.  I think it was too strongly flavored. Or it could have been that we provided them with a safety net--Jimmy John's sandwiches.

I know, this isn't exactly the best way to conquer their picky eating habits, but I can't stand it when my kids are cranky, and hunger always makes them cranky.

Other than the food just being average, we had a wonderful night together as a family.  Alex is always at his best in the outdoors, where running and yelling and talking up a storm are never frowned upon.  He is a boy who needs room to be himself.  He has all that he needs in the woods.  

Kaitlin, who has recently turned into a reluctant hiker, also couldn't help but give into the pure bliss that can only be found when one is in nature.  For her, this usually manifests itself in extreme silliness.

Our evening adventure was enhanced by some amazing wildlife encounters.  First we saw a deer.  This is not too uncommon in our canyon, but this deer didn't immediately bound off for a quieter locale when she heard us coming.  She simply remained still and watched us.  

We also saw a much more elusive moose.

It's always beautiful to see animals in their homes, even if it's an animal that you've seen dozens of times.  Just listen to a child driving across Wyoming exclaiming about the herds of pronghorns that are as prevalent as ants.  It simply never gets old.

Now that Jeremy is home from his travels for a while, we are about to leave for a family vacation in Yellowstone National Park.  We are all so excited to have more time together doing the things that we love.  Yellowstone is almost an annual pilgrimage for us.  In the 12 years that Jeremy and I have been married I think we have only missed three years.  This trip is different.  We're getting off the beaten path and going into the backcountry for two days.  This summer it's been very apparent that life comes at us more quickly than we'd like.  This vacation is a chance to slow down, and of course, try some new backcountry recipes.

 

Clean Eating: Sauteed Fish Sticks with Dill Potato Chips & Mustard Slaw

I first found out about Clean Eating magazine last year when I attended an early morning fitness boot camp.  The trainer, Anne Perkins, who was conducting the camp highly recommended it.  I took her word for it and I've never regretted it.  The recipes are amazing--low calorie, yet filling, and very tasty.  You should take my word for it--just buy one issue.  I'll bet you'll be thinking you never knew eating healthy could be so appealing.

  

Last night I made Sauteed Fish Sticks with Dill Potato Chips and Mustard Slaw.  I was a bit nervous since previous attempts to feed my children frozen fish sticks blew up in my face spectacularly.  I have the pickiest eaters in all of history.  Surprisingly, they both loved the fish sticks.  They were willing to try the potato chips, but they were a no go--disappointing because they were really good!  There was no chance that they would even consider putting something called mustard slaw anywhere near their plates.  I'll reserve my review for after the recipe.

1 Slice whole-grain bread

1/2 lb yellow potatoes, scrubbed

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp dried dill

1/4 head cabbage, thinly sliced

1 large carrot, peeled and grated

4 small radishes, halved and thinly sliced

1 large Braeburn apple (or other thin apple) cut into thin matchsticks

1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1/2 tsp ground mustard

1 egg

3/4 pound boneless, skinless tilapia fillet, rinsed with water and patted dry

 

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.  In a food processor, process bread into crumbs.  Set aside.

2.  Slice potatoes as thinly as possible.  Spread slices out evenly on baking sheet and drizzle with 1 1/2 tsp olive oil.  Sprinkle with salt over top and use fingertips to rub oil and salt into each slice.  Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  As soon as potatoes come out of oven, sprinkle with dill and lightly toss to combine.

3.  Prepare slaw.  In a large bowl mix cabbage, carrot, radishes, and apple.  In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, mustard and 1 tbsp olive oil.  Toss with cabbage mixture.

4.  Prepare fish sticks.  Crack egg into a medium bowl.  Chop tilapia as finely as possible and add to egg.  Add 1/4 cup bread crumbs to tilapia mixture, then use hands to thoroughly combine.

5.  Divide fish mixture into 8 equal portions, shaping each into a rectangular stick about 2 1.2 inches long.  Pour another 1/4 cup bread crumbs into a large or flat-bottomed soup bowl.  Dredge each stick in bread crumbs pressing lightly to coat both sides.

6.  Heat remaining 1 1/2 tsp oil in a large nonstick skillet for 1 minute on medium.  Add fish sticks to pan and cook, covered, for 4 minutes or until bottoms are golden brown.  Use heatproof tongs to gently flip sticks over and cook for another 3 minutes or until both sides are golden brown.  Serve with potato chips and slaw.

Serves 4.  Hands-on time 35 minutes.  Total time 45 minutes

2 fish sticks, 2 oz potato chips and 3/4 cup slaw:  269 calories.  If you want the rest of the nutrition info go out and get the April/May 2011 issue of Clean Eating magazine.  I know this seems low, but I was not hungry for the rest of the night after eating this around 6:30 PM.  It was very satisfying.

The verdict--delicious!  This might just be my very favorite Clean Eating recipe I've tried so far.  I substituted halibut for the tilapia (my tilapia had been in the freezer an undetermined amount of time, and I wasn't sure about it's suitability for human consumption).  The fish sticks were crispy, and not too fishy.  I loved that I could make something that I loved when I was a kid so easily.

The chips were by far the best part for me.  I love potato chips, and now that I know how to make my own, I may never buy them again.  I used my madoline, which made the slicing fast and easy.  Also, if you don't like dill, don't use it, though Jeremy, who hates dill loved the chips.  One note about the chips--they took a lot longer to cook than the recipe said they should.  After 30 minutes of baking I turned on the broiler to brown them up faster.  I think I may need to measure the temperature of my oven!  Also, I know it seems like you're sprinkling a very small amount of oil on the chips, but don't worry--it's more than enough.  I could probably have cut out the last 1/2 tsp.  

Finally, the mustard slaw.  I know the appearance of the work mustard may turn some people off.  Don't let it!  There is no discernable mustard flavor in this dish.  Jeremy, who also hates mustard and would never eat it willingly even said that he couldn't taste the mustard.  Trust me his sense of taste is very sensitive--I can't sneak anything past that guy.

So, are you going to try it?  I hope you do, and let me know what you think!

This kid tugs at my heart

Since it's been a while I thought it would be wise to reintroduce you to two of my major sources of subject matter--my kids. I would hate for you to land here, not recognize them and steer yourself away because you thought you'd come to the wrong place. They have changed, grown up. A lot. I keep demanding that they stop getting older, but they both assure me that stopping is beyond their capability, not matter how many times I threaten to send them to their rooms for disobeying me. It's one of the great ironies of my life as a mother--as soon as I don't want them to grow up they begin wanting nothing more.  This couldn't be more true than for my youngest, Alex.

Alex and I have had a rocky relationship since he was born.  He is headstrong and stubborn.  He has more energy than the rest of the family put together.  He has an incredible imagination. . .that often leads to trouble.  He is also clumsy, the pickiest eater I know, and very, very prone to whining.

But for some unexplainable reason, I love this kid more than I can ever express in word or action.

I know that it's not because of his athletic ability. He's kicking here, but you can see that the ball is nowhere in sight, and if you look closely, everybody looks a little bit confused. Sports is probably not in Alex's future. It could, though, have something to do with the fact that he surprised me so much with soccer this year. I fully expected to have to coax him through every game, with him refusing to even step foot near the field. So far he's been a willing participant, which is more than I could have expected from my shy boy.

I certainly don't love him for his fashion sense.  Yes, those are flip flops on his hands.  I think he just got tired of wearing shoes, but really, it's not the most sophisticated look, is it?  And no, that is not the worst picture that I could find, but hey, I decided to spare him the future embarrassment of flood pants and a too small t-shirt. It could, though, have something to do with the way that Alex throws his whole body behind his efforts.  In Alex's world, you don't just bend down to smell the flowers, you lay down on their level and really get your nose in there.  He puts similar effort into everything he does.

I'm pretty sure the depth of my emotion for this child does not stem from his inability to take a bad photo. Good pictures of Alex are few and far between. This is his regular facial expression in just about every outdoor photo we have of him. But I can't really fault him for that. He inherited his father's light-sensitive eyes.

One of the things that I love about my son is that when things don't come easy for him (and most things don't) he will keep on coming back to it until he gets it.  He still hasn't mastered rolling down hills, but he'll get there.  The hill at the Thanksgiving Point Gardens beckons.

Let me reiterate, Alex has no natural athletic talent. He lacks the ability to focus on a game for more than about 30 seconds which means he's always ten steps behind everyone else.  The same is true for running. He loses focus, starts to look around and before you know it he's flat on the ground.  That happened to him a few weeks ago at this one mile fun run that we entered him and Kaitlin into.  That run was a struggle for him, but he kept at it, coming in almost dead last.  That determination is going to serve him well as he gets older.  Don't get me wrong, he gets frustrated.  Very frustrated.  But after he clams down he gets right back into that action and reaches his goal.

Finally, I think the thing that I am supposed to learn from Alex is how to enjoy life, be in the moment and just laugh.  He is so amazing at that.  He has the best sense of humor, he gets when we're teasing him and he's not afraid to laugh at himself.  I so, SO love that about him.

I strongly feel the necessity of expressing my love to my children every day, but with Alex, I feel a sense of urgency about it that I don't have with Kaitlin.  Maybe it's because she doesn't struggle with things as much as he does.  Kaitlin is going to be one of those disgusting women who can do everything (I'm jealous already). With Alex it's different.  He seems fragile, like he needs reassurance.  I never want him to feel rejected by me, though I know I fail at this from time to time.  Generally, I try to squeeze the assurance of my love into him.  I'm not sure he understands the language of the squeeze, but he at least humors me and lets me hug him all I want.  I know that will end soon, so I'll get in as many as I can while it lasts.

Is anybody still out there?

Hey there! I'm just wondering if anybody still follows this blog. Did this post show up in your reader? I've been thinking a lot about this little space that I have neglected so long. I'm thinking that it's time I resuscitated it. So many of us have fallen off the blog-wagon. We're not blogging as much anymore and, to be truthful, I miss our little community.

I have some plans, but it might take a week or so to have them come to fruition. I'm trying to solve this blog's identity crisis.

It's good to be back!

Patience

Last weekend I had the opportunity to watch the General Conference of my church.  There were so many great lessons taught.  I am grateful for the opportunity we have twice a year to sit at the feet of prophets and to learn from them.

Many of the talks spoke to me and to the things I'm going through right now, but the talk that spoke to me the most was President Dieter F. Uchdorf's from the Priesthood session (the session that only men attend).

Here are three quotes from his talk on patience that I loved.

"Patience, the ability of put our desires on hold for a time, is a precious and rare virtue.  We want what we want and we want it now.  Therefore the very idea of patience may seem unpleasant and at times bitter.  Nevertheless, without patience we cannot please God.  We cannot become perfect.  Indeed, patience is a purifying process that refines understanding, depends happiness, focuses attention and offers hope for peace."

"Patience [is] far more that simply waiting for something to happen.  Patience require[s] actively working toward worthwhile goals and not getting discouraged when results [don't] appear instantly or without effort.  There's an important concept here.  Patience is not passive resignation. Nor is it failing to act because of our fears.  Patience means active waiting and enduring.  It means staying with something and doing all that we can, working, hoping and exercising faith, bearing all hardship with fortitude, even when the desires of our hearts are delayed.  Patience is not simply enduring.  It is enduring well."

"Knowledge and understanding come at the price of patience.  Often the deep valleys of our present will only be understood by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience.  Often we can't see the Lord's hand in our lives until long after our trials have passed.  Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way for future opportunities, understanding and happiness."

The last five minutes or so of this talk are also wonderful, and very quote-worthy, but much to long to transcribe here.  If you'd like to watch the talk in its entirety, follow this link.  At the bottom of the screen click on "Priesthood" and then scroll across to President Uchtdorf's talk.  It's about 20 minuts long, but it's very illuminating.  Incidentally I also really enjoyed and felt inspired by his Sunday AM talk. It was amazing!  If you want to listen to it follow the link above, click on "Sunday AM" and scroll over until you find President Uchtdorf's talk.  It's really beautiful! 

I don't usually get religious on my blog.  But right now I feel very close to God.  I know He knows me. He knows my troubles.  I know that Jesus Christ suffered for me.  He has experienced the anguish that I now feel, and I feel his love as he lifts the sadness from my heart and helps me to move forward.  President Uchdorf's words are inspired and true.  Patience is not an easy thing, but it is necessary for our growth.  We need to have patience to be able to grow closer to our Father in Heaven and to align our will with His.  I am grateful for this knowledge.  I am grateful for the wonderful men who lead and guide the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints according to the will of God.

Weigh In--Week 3

I know I've been absent this week, but I wanted to do my Weigh In post, anyway.

So, here are the results.

Today's weight:  136.4

Change from last week:  4.8

Total weight lost:  7.6

Stress can do that to you. But not to worry, things are looking up! Have a great week!

Weigh In--Week 2

Hey everyone!  It's Saturday again--how did that happen?  I did my weekly weigh in this morning and here are the results:

Today's weight: 141.2 lbs

Change from last week: 1 lb

Total Weight Loss to date:  2.8

Overall I'm a bit disappointed. I thought I would do better than that.  But then I wasn't as strict as I could have been with my eating.

It was a really busy week, but I managed to fit in three days of exercising.  I may get to it today, but Kaitlin has her first dance competition and I have no idea how long that will take.  This morning we have a final rehearsal, and then we're off.  Maybe I can count all of the nervous heart pounding as cardiovascular exercise?  Come on, I can. . .right?  

And what about housecleaning?  That's a lot of movement over a long amount of time, particularly vacuuming and cleaning the carpet on the stairs with the brush attachment of my carpet cleaner.  That's brutal stuff!  It takes me at least half an hour to vacuum my house.  Yes, I think it counts.  If Weight Watchers can count housework, so can I!  BUt then all of that movement was probably cancelled out on Thursday when I spent the day either laying on the couch or in bed finishing my book.

This week's goals are to increase the exercise by at least one day and to enter everything I eat into my log at Daily Burn.  I think that's the key for me right now; reallyy keeping track of everything I eat. 

Here's to another week!

Bright Star

 I watched a really good movie this week that I want to tell you about, called Bright Star. It's about the love affair between John Keats and Fanny Brawne, and it's incredibly romantic.  How could it be anything but, when it has the poetry of Keats serving as it's backdrop?  Be forewarned, this movie is sad.  Keats dies very young, before he could gain any sort of renown.  He and Fanny were never married, though they loved each other intensely.  It was a time when people did not marry until they could afford it.  People were prudent and careful.  The practicalities of life often won out over passion and love.

As I watched this movie I started to wonder, why are the tragic love stories so appealing?  Why do we enjoy crying (I would have wept had Alex not been watching me, wondering why I was sitting there crying on the couch) at the end when tragedy strikes?  I have a feeling that there are as many different answers as there are people (or at least women).  For me, I like tragic love stories because they are so far removed from the reality of my life.  There are no dishes to be done, no children with needs that need to be met. Right.  Now.  In tragic love stories, the hero and heroine defy the expectations of everyone around them.  They give in to their love for each other and go down a road that is full of drama and excitement and all of the strong emotions involved in new love.  They have butterflies in their stomachs, and therefore I get to have butterflies in my stomach.  And then they meet their end.  Inevitably the lovers part or one of them dies.  Sadness follows, and perversely, there is something wonderfully cathartic about having a good cry over something that has nothing to do with my life.  I get to give vent to all of the emotions that I have been holding in for too long.  It's a private moment for me, the end of a sad love story. I cry unabashedly.  That's why I generally prefer to watch these tragedies alone at night after my kids have gone to bed, preferably when Jeremy isn't home.  I want to have my cry out alone and for as long as I want.  

Don't worry, if you're not a crier.  I think you'll enjoy this movie for its other merits.  Though it's tragic, you don't feel emotionally manipulated.  I hate feeling manipulated into crying.  Second, the cinematography is gorgeous, and the costumes are to die for.  Third, it was really fun to see Paul Schneider outside of Parks and Recreation.  His Charles Brown is quite different from the Mark Brendanawicz of P&R, though I couldn't decide whether I liked his Scottish accent or not.  The final reason to watch and love this movie; in a word:  Poetry.  And I'm not a poetry person.  I could hardly finish my Victorian poetry class in college.  But somehow Keats poetry infuses this film with even more beauty than a good period piece usually has (except for maybe The Painted Veil, another of my favorite tragic love stories.  The cinematography really makes that movie.). 

OK, so go down to your local Red Box.  Watch this movie and let me know what you think.  Come on, you know you're looking for something do do this weekend!

Signs of spring

Today is a dreary day.  The kind where even when you open all of your shutters (or blinds) you still need to have the lights on just to have enough light to work by.  It's grey.  It's windy.  It's cold.  And it's been snowing sideways for a good part of the day.

You never would guess that I took these photos just yesterday.

 

The trees are starting to get little leaf buds!  Wheat is the proper name for these?

 

My day lilies are starting to peek up through the ground.  I just hope they don't freeze to death now that I've uncovered them.

Spring, hurry up!  Can you come any faster?