Nacho cheese

I attempted to make homemade nacho cheese a few weeks ago modeled after a recipe similar to this one.  Mine turned out a little lumpy.  I think I was impatient.  I also wanted to put salsa on the nachos rather than in the cheese. It will be worth another try in the future.

And the Mountains Echoed

This book was the topic of my newly formed book club this month.  I was amazed how Hosseini was introducing characters right up until the very end of the book. It was so sad and so real how the relationships and connections did not turn out perfectly, but that there was good in the lack of a fairytale ending. It's not as good as The Kite Runner or Hosseini's other book, but worth a read.

Challah

I love this bread! I'm going to Ireland with a good friend from work and we got together after one of her day shifts to plan. She had made a yummy soup and this delicious bread.  She shared the recipe with me and of course I had to try it myself. Mine did not come out quite as delicious and moist as my friend's. I think that maybe I added too much flour to keep the stickiness down or that my yeast was old or my house too cold.  I ended up finishing off the loaf (because I'm not one to let food go to waste), but my efforts will require tweaking next time.

Tuna Quesadilla

This recipe came on a tuna pouch. I had never before used cream cheese in a quesadilla, but it makes it extra gooey and delicious.  I made homemade tortillas from this pinterest recipe and used some tuna that had been sitting in my pantry. I left out a few ingredients since I didn't have them, but I definitely recommend trying a tuna quesadilla.

Scarf for Mom

I made this scarf as a belated Christmas present for my mom. The scarf I had originally made for her did not meet her specifications (soft and a solid color) so I had her tell me what color she might like and pick a pattern from pinterest. She settled on this one in purple and this is the result:

ANA Quality Conference

I was fortunate to be able to attend the ANA Quality Conference in Phoenix as a poster presenter.  I was awed by the entertainment (an American Indian Hoop Dancer and a singing cowboy)

and inspired by the speakers (Dr Lucian Leape and Bernadette Melnyk) and nurses sharing their quality improvement efforts.  I learned that quality care can be fun and I'm excited to bring the energy of the conference back to my workplace.  I also ran into my roommate from nursing school. She lives in LA and we had fallen out of touch. It was awesome to catch up with her and hear where her career has taken her. She is so motivated and will go far in life!

We also got the opportunity to explore the Desert Botanical Gardens after the conference ended.  Chihuly was having an exhibit there at the time. It was so cool! 

We stayed to watch the sunset over the desert and to see the Chihuly pieces lit up at night.

I had never planned to visit Phoenix, but I would like to go back and explore more of the desert.

Lasagna soup

I have been trying out recipes that I can freeze and take to work and eat over a longer period of time. I had really been wanting to try a lasagna soup and settled on this one.  It wasn't great with the first bowl, but it grew on me over time.  Best of all, it was a crock pot recipe so it was really easy.  I'm still trying to figure out what to do with the remaining vegetable juice (as I don't like it enough to drink it).

Sewing project

I have a problem with clutter. I saw a solution I wanted to try on Pinterest and I finally got around to making these:

I used the idea from Pinterest, but basically made it up as I went from measuring the back of the chair and the magazines/books I wanted to put inside. I doubled up the fabric and then folded up and sewed the pocked from the folded edge.  I particularly like the fabric I found. 

Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes!

A friend of mine made these for a going away party last year. I was due to bring salad and dessert to my life group and thought they would be fun to try.  I particularly love the frosting which is more like a whipped cream (and not too sweet). The recipe can be found here.

Crowd Tap and Hershey's Spreads

I got a free sample in the mail of Hershey's Spreads. I wasn't expecting much from it, but it turned out to be delicious! I even made crepes (from a Pinterest recipe of course) just to eat it!  It has a great smooth texture and a delicious taste. I would say my favorite way to eat it is off a spoon!

Wine and Design

If you haven't found a wine and design studio and tried it out with a group of friends, I highly suggest it! We went on a cold night in January, after finally finding a day that fit our varied schedules, and it was so much fun!  All of us had originally bought a session from Living Social and had to use it before it expired in early Feb.  We brought snacks and wine and the painting was very doable.  Everyone's painting came out just a little different, but all of them were awesome!  It was such a fun way to spend time together!