Archive for February, 2008
Birthdays, birthdays all around!
Happy Birthday tomorrow, Ellie!
Ellie and I have been friends since we were 14 – and I still have trouble remembering her birthday. I had to e-mail Suz and ask as well as check Ellie’s myspace page (which has not been updated since Feb. 2006 by the way) and read one of those “get to know your friends” surveys to get the date. I forget everyone’s birthday. Sorry Stacie and Ginny. I do love both of you so. Thank goodness Ryan’s birthday is on a holiday.
Happy Birthday, Ellie …. maybe you can use that spa certificate you got for Christmas(es) this weekend? (did I just start a fight?)
On love …
Happy Valentine’s Day! On the day of love I have the unique privilege of celebrating the birth of the one I love. Happy Birthday, Ryan! I hope this is the best Ryantine’s Day yet! You got your freakin’ cake, so hopefully this birthday makes at least the top five.
this is how it works
you peer inside yourself
you take the things you like
and try to love the things you took
and then you take that love you made
and stick it into some–
someone else’s heart
pumping someone else’s blood
-Regina Spektor
Cross and flame!
Finding a place to worship God is quite an undertaking. First of all, there is the whole religion search which is too much for a blog post so please call me and we’ll chat.
Once you have called me and found a religion (it’s that easy!), start reading … here: There are a plethora of places to worship. In the Protestant tradition alone (… you almost can’t say “Protestant Tradition” because from Church of Christ to Methodist to Penecostal to Lutheran to Baptist … you are experiencing a very different set of worship services, practices and lessons. Then there are non-denominational churches which are all a little different too. When we all got a copy of that there Bible in our hands we all went off with our “ideals.” I digress.)
Anyway, in the Protestant tradition alone, you have several “flavors” of ways to celebrate and study Jesus’ life and teachings, so if you are church shopping, the search can seem endless. But the reward is worth it. When you find a place or a group of places where you have an overwhelming sense of understanding, peace and connection with God – that’s the ticket. I choose the Methodist tradition for many reasons but most of all because of its commitment to Jesus’ examples of social justice.
The Methodist tradition is one stronger as of Sunday. Deirdre joined our church! This is fantastic!
Many congratulations to Deirdre who has chosen a community of faith that believes that God’s love changes people and God’s people change the world. And we have great coffee.
Welcome!
The Birthday of 1,000 cakes!
It’s not even Ryantine’s Day yet, and I have already made Ryan two birthday cakes! Here is the scoop …
CAKE #1:We had a great time with the old gang on Sunday at Dart Bowl. Hil-Street-mention regulars Eric and Tara were there, Kevin and Sarah “crank that” were in attendance, and we also invited Colin’s parents Cam and Tab (because Colin doesn’t have his driver’s license yet and we really wanted him to come). We bowled a couple frames, dined a la greasy Dart Bowl, drank bowling-pin Bud Lights and shared the strawberry birthday cake.
Oh, the strawberry cake.
Every year for Ryan’s Valentine’s birthday, his mother would make him a strawberry cake in the shape of a heart. It is a delicious cake, and my Husbanks (having a sweet tooth the size of Texas) loves this cake. Knowing that Ryan loves sweets, I always delivered cookies to his office on his birthday, or ordered the largest dessert on the menu at restaurants. Little did I know – THIS WAS WRONG!
We were out for dinner a couple months ago and Ryan informed me (in a complete “emotional potato sack” over the head) that “I never make the strawberry cake he wants” and he wondered if it was because I didn’t like his mom.
I started crying.
Right there in Chuy’s, crying. Am I a selfish wife who doesn’t know what Ryan wants at all? Then, I was angry! How was I to know you wanted this cake? Am I a mind-reader? Then I wanted revenge. Strawberry cake with laxatives? Then I calmed down and just made him the darn cake on Sunday. It wasn’t in the shape of a heart (I haven’t calmed down enough to buy three heart-shaped cake pans, thank you), but the cake did fill that Freudian-void that Ryan has been experiencing for for the past four birthdays he and I have spent in marital “bliss.”
CAKE #2: Monday, Ryan and I accompanied Blair and Andria to Johanna’s place to meet her cat, Callie! Callie is a (wait for it …) Calico kitty and sweet as can be. She probably has the softest coat I have ever felt on a cat. And trust me, I’ve felt a lot of cats (?).
Andria and Johanna’s birthdays are on Feb. 15. so gosh darnit if I was not going to bake a cake! I’ve never been to a birthday gathering where there were more birthdays than not. Three out of the five in attendance have a birthday that week? Hellz yeah you’re getting a cake! So even though Ryan and I already had some cake drama, I made another cake – this time a vanilla-fudge marble cake.
While Ryan’s mother’s recipe is a family recipe, here is the Better Homes and Gardens Vanilla-Fudge Marble Cake recipe:
Bake: 50 minutes
Cool: 15 minutes
Stand: 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1-1/4 cups buttermilk or sour milk
- 2/3 cup chocolate-flavored syrup
- 1 recipe Semisweet Chocolate Icing
Directions
1. Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, grease and lightly flour a 10-inch fluted tube pan. In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on low to medium speed about 30 seconds. Add sugar and vanilla; beat until fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating on low to medium speed 1 minute after each addition and scraping bowl frequently. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Reserve 2 cups batter. Pour remaining batter into the prepared pan.
3. In a small mixing bowl combine chocolate-flavored syrup and reserved 2 cups batter. Beat on low speed until well combined. Pour chocolate batter over vanilla batter in pan. Do not mix.
4. Bake about 50 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes on wire rack. Remove cake from pan; cool thoroughly on wire rack. Drizzle cake with Semisweet Chocolate Icing.
5. Makes 12 servings
6. Semisweet Chocolate Icing: In a small saucepan heat 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate pieces, 2 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon light-colored corn syrup, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla over low heat, stirring until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Use immediately.
Because you are a person I trust …
LinkedIn cracks me up. First of all, I was reading it all wrong because the font made me read the word as LINKEDLN and I thought it was northern European and I thought, “I really don’t want to move that far away for a job” but then good old Times New Roman helped me to see it all right! Lower case “L”s and upper case “I”s is different, y’all!
Anyway, LinkedIn cracks me up. Not because of the premise of LinkedIn – I think it’s a great idea. Networking online and linking to everyone you know professionally is a great asset. I just giggle when I get an invite because of the language that LinkedIn uses.
When you send an invite to someone on LinkedIn, the prompt explains that when you send the invite, “LinkedIn will add a link to accept your invitation and send some explanatory text.” Well the invite sounds very, very professional. I have some examples:
Last week, I got this one from Sam:
Hil, I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn. -Sam
Sam doesn’t talk like that. Here’s one from Richard:
Since you are a person I trust, I wanted to invite you to join my network on LinkedIn.
Richard has never commented on his level of trust or not trust for me. I think LinkedIn needs some less professional options like …
Hil -since we are married, it’s easy for me to put your e-mail in this list – Ryan
or
Hil – remember that time we had way too many beers and slept all day on a Saturday? Glad we’re LinkedIn! – Ellie
or maybe
Hil – i has confession. i iz horrible fudge n toffee-maka. I can has cheezburger? – Morgan
Two Left Feet!
A couple months ago I found a great deal at Macy’s – adorable shoes that were 70% off. They are Chinese Laundry black patent-leather peep-toe flats with an ankle strap. I mean, super cute. And for $11.00 – who wouldn’t buy them?
It wasn’t until I wore them that I realized – they are two left feet. The bottom “shoe part” is correct, so my foot fits. But the straps are for two left feet. The $11.00 makes so much sense now!
(I am still wearing them today, for the record)
The Update!
Before there were blogs. Before there was Hannah Montana – THERE WAS THE UPDATE!
Our good friend, Johnny G used to blog (essentially) via e-mail. He’d send out an e-mail about once a week sharing his thoughts on life and the news. These e-mails would make me cry from “LOLing.” Now, ladies and gentleman, the Update has gone blogosphere! Even though I don’t have my morning drip, I now have sweet Jonathan’s humor. Thank you, Jonathan, for bringing your humor to the masses!
All the women of French fashion see that it is the beautiful joy of life!
On Saturday, I set out on my errands to purchase two rugs. After purchasing a super cute purse, wallet, dress, basket and mail holder (rugs?) I ran across two beautiful coffee mugs. They have a picture of a French woman (I can only deduce), standing in red, with a background of gold and black lace. Across the top is a phrase in French (Morgan translated it, it says “All the women of French fashion see that it is the beautiful joy of life!”).
I had to have this mug. I just imagined its beauty sitting in my cubicle bringing radiating beauty-energy to all around it. I bought both of the mugs – they were $4 – so now Morgan can feel this beauty at her desk too.
Then Morgan ran across an article about achieving workplace bliss. One of the tips? Get a pretty coffee mug. I suggest that all Hil Street readers grab your favorite piece of china and sit it next to your computer. It will make you feel pretty!
Fat Tuesday!
Well, its that time again. Lent. Since my unsucessful Lenten season was recorded for all to read last year, I will try again. I have prayed and prayed and avoided the truth – I have to give up coffee again for Lent.
I love coffee, I do. It’s my biggest vice and the thing I will miss the most. But you know what? As the wise, wise Joe taught me (you laughing too, Bryan?), no really … as Joe taught me: “Easter means more when you sacrifice something.”
Happy Fat Tuesday! Eat pancakes tonight!
Puppy Bowl IV!
Posted by hilstreet in My animals on February 4, 2008
So the Super Bowl was very, very exciting … but not until there were about two minutes left. So for the rest of the three and a half hours, when the game and commercials got ultra boring, Mike had a surprise for us. We would just click back and forth to the PUPPY BOWL IV and KITTY HALF-TIME SHOW! Here was the premise: the puppies ran out one at a time, and got introduced with interesting facts, just like in the people-pros! Then they played with toys in a small play-pen painted like a football field.
Now as you know, I have and love baby animals. There was even a border collie mix that was brown like Hollis and a grey tabby like Martin. With a game full of puppies and a half-time show full of kittens, I was in hog heaven. (there were no hogs, just to clarify).
You could even vote online for MVP (Most Valuable Puppy, of course).
Thank you, Animal Planet!
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@HilM- HilM: Our baby sleeping on a prayer shawl from Bethany UMC, Austin at #swtxac in Corpus. http://twitpic.com/5acwsn June 12, 2011
- HilM: Great friendly service from Corpus Christi @OMNIHOTELS. They are making it very easy to travel with an infant. June 8, 2011
- HilM: RT @pastor_cynthia: Baptized a mother and her two kids this morning AND got to preside at Table. #Ihavethecoolestjob June 6, 2011
- HilM: Good morning @SWTXUMC! Is there an Annual Conference hashtag? Holy Conferencing 2.0. See you in Corpus! June 6, 2011
- HilM: @the_masters Would Adam Scott be the first person to win a major with a long putter? #masters April 10, 2011
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