Pasta = Life             

I'll admit that my love of pasta is somewhat abnormal -- it's just so good. This recipe is a bit summery but when it comes to pasta does the time of year matter? You'll notice the recipe is entirely up to your preference, that's part of its beauty; it's the inspiration for greatness. You can add meat, take out the garlic, keep the garlic add meat and zucchini; it's up to you, be creative. Anywho, for all you pasta lovers out there, who just want something quick and delish, here is a recipe for you.

Ingredients:

1/2 Lb. thin Spaghetti -- or amount to your preference
Cherry tomatoes -- amount to your preference
Fresh basil -- to taste
Garlic -- to taste
Pinch salt
Parmesan cheese, grated -- to taste
Extra virgin olive oil -- just a little

Instructions: 


You know the drill; fill a pot a little over halfway with water, add salt and splash of olive oil, set on the stove at medium high and bring to a boil.

In the meantime: slice the cherry tomatoes in half and set aside. Peel the garlic cloves (I use about four or five, depending on the size), set aside and have a garlic press at hand. Being careful not to tear the basil, pluck the leaves and stack them by size, from large to small, inside each other; role the leaves into a cigarette and using a sharp knife, thinly dice.

When the water boils add the pasta, cooking till al dente, about ten minutes on medium heat.

While the pasta is boiling: add a splash of olive oil to a large frying pan and set on medium heat. When the oil is hot, add tomatoes; making sure not to mash them, use a rubber spatula to flip them about. Using the press, quickly crush the garlic into the pan then add salt, mixing in with the tomatoes. Add a little of the basil but save most of it for the end. When the tomatoes are soft but still firm take off heat.

Drain the pasta then flip into the frying pan. Fold the tomatoes in with the pasta adding the rest of the basil and the Parmesan cheese. Serve hot. Enjoy!

 ~ Kait

A Double-Post Saturday!

Aren't y'all lucky?

Well, since it is the new year (bye bye, 2011) I thought I'd set some (very simple) goals for myself; there's just nothing quite like giving oneself easy-to-achieve goals for a whole year. :-P

 Noble's Fabulous Five:

1. Bake Muffins. Specifically these incredible Pumpkin Muffins. My mom made them back in October and they were *amazing*! And, since I got my very first muffin pan for Christmas (Yay!), I figured I should break it in with something super-delish.

2. Start researching potty-training. The day will come for Addie to be done with diapers and I want to be prepared!

3. Sew something by myself from start to finish. I got this adorable book from my brother-in-law for Christmas, and I would love to make some of these as presents. :-) (And their tiny size is a plus!)

4. Purchase an eyeliner pencil and learn how to use it properly. Kaitie has been a total sweet heart and come over a few times to help me out with my make-up (she's so savvy with stuff like that) and she has made me a believer in tasteful eyeliner.

5. Read more! We (Noel and I) got ourselves a Kindle for Christmas and I have really been enjoying it. It is much easier to nurse a baby and read if the reading only requires one hand,and I've already read one book this year which is a good start! (Letters Of A Woman Homesteader by Elinore Pruitt Stewart) I'll keep y'all up to date as I finish my reads.


Do you have easy-to-achieve goals this year,  or are you going for Olympic Gold?

A little note from Luther

Alright, so this was supposed to be a post for Friday, but there is nothing like a coming-on stomach bug to mess up the schedule!

"[In Phil. 2:1-4] we see clearly that the Apostle has prescribed this rule for the life of Christians, namely, that we should devote all our works to the welfare of others, since each has such abundant riches in his faith that all his other works and his whole life are a surplus with which he can by voluntary benevolence serve and do good to his neighbor." Luther, The Freedom of a Christian (or On Christian Liberty)

I love this quote so much that I try to read it every few months. It's such a great thought: we have such a bounty of riches in our faith, that all our life and works are extra, that we can give to other people!

Of course, it's a great thought that's hard to remember...that's why I have to come back to it so often. :) 

Rainy Days and Puppy Dung


                                                                                                        
It's been raining a lot here, with clear days interspersed, but mostly grey skies and wetness.  To fit the mood, I've been enjoying listening to piano music while I study and go about my everyday life. When it comes to piano music I usually listen to classical but I've taken an experimental turn to a more modern pianist: Yiruma. I love his music. Because his expression is so clear, it's easy to hear stories in the notes. As I stated before (in an earlier post), daydreaming is one of my favorite pass-times; I like to imagine plot lines while listening to his music -- ignoring what I'm supposed to be doing... Anywho, here,  Yiruma – Puppy Dung is one of my favorite albums by him -- I know, awesome name, haha, I'll admit the title is what originally drew me to it. In this album, I recommend Yiruma – Spring Rain and Yiruma – One Day You Will...; the other songs are all lovely too, of course. You should check out his other albums as well, he really has some beautiful pieces. I hope you enjoy listening to Yiruma as much as I do and are having fun in your snow or rain or clearness or whatever. :)                        
                                                              
~Kait                    

P.S. It just occurred to me that this blog is supposed to be motivational. Ah well,  I'm motivating you to embrace your creative side and be inspired...yeah, I'll just stick with that...

What were my hands up to this Christmas?

If you are like me you are ready to let Christmas rest for now and move on to wintery things. So I hope you don't mind if I talk about it just a little bit more. Because, although I was out of touch this last month on the blog, my hands were up to fun things.

Six sheets of double-sided Christmas-y scrapbook paper turned into a lovely wreath for the hall ~

A tee-shirt turned into two of the sweetest bunnies for my grandbabies ~

And 8 sweaters from my stash turned into perfect Christmas stockings for my quickly growing family ~

I have links for the bunnies and wreath. The pattern for the stockings I got out of a Christmas book that I checked out from the library. Sadly I do not remember the title...but I have seen this idea several times out on pinterest.

Looking forward to 2012 and swapping stories of the the goodness of the Lord with you all!

5 Tasty Recipes

5 Tasty Recipes  (that I didn't invent :))

My own sparkling cranberries, made from the recipe below. So pretty!

1. Candied Walnuts -- good on salad, good eaten straight....

2. Sparkling Cranberries -- a friend of mine linked to these on facebook, so I made them yesterday. SO beautiful and delicious! You should at least go see the pictures (and maybe make these, while cranberries are still available!)

3. Poached Figs -- so this is out of season, but you should really save it for when figs are back! Even if you don't like figs...This recipe turns them into beautiful things. (It's very versatile, too. I don't usually have port, so I substitute whatever wine, red or white, I happen to have around. :))

4. Brownies -- it makes a big 9x13 batch, so if you have a small family you can freeze them. (And they are delicious straight out of the freezer, too.....) I usually cut the cinnamon in half, cause it was a little much for us.

5. Mushroom Soup -- something completely different! It is SO tasty, and the author claims it will boost your immune system. And your immune system will need a boost after the other four recipes!

All Children Together

"...and we were all children together. We forgot all about feuds and partings, death and hard times. All we remembered was that God is good and the world is wide and beautiful." - Letters Of A Woman Homesteader (Elinor Pruitt Stewart) 


I just started reading this book this week, and I have to tell you I've been enjoying it immensely! I gave you a more serious/thoughtful quote but the author has had me laughing out loud several times. Addie has been enjoying it as well; I've been reading it to her over nursings and sometimes when she's just chilling.