My own recipe---Vanilla Protein-Packed MultiGrain Pancakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes 

Cook Time: 15 minutes 

Ready In: 30 minutes 

Servings: 4 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup quick cooking oats 

1/4 cup all-purpose flour 

1/4 cup whole wheat flour 

1 tsp. baking powder 

1 tsp. baking soda 

1 dash salt (optional) 

1 and 1/2 scoops of vanilla flavored protein powder 

1 cup low-fat or fat free buttermilk 

1 egg 

cooking spray 

1/8 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional) 

DIRECTIONS: 

1. Place the oats into a blender or a food-processor.  Grind until the oats are  a flour-like powder.   

2. Begin warming a non-stick skillet or griddle over medium heat.   

3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients: ground oat flour,  all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and  protein powder.  Mix well.   

4. Add egg and buttermilk to the dry ingredients.   

5. Mix until all flour is incorporated.   

6. Let stand for a few minutes until the mixture becomes slightly bubbly.   

7. When a drop of water sizzles and evaporates almost immediately the skillet or griddle is ready.   

8. Spray skillet with cooking spray.   

9. Pour batter onto hot skillet.  Cover and let cook until bubbles cover the surface of the pancake. Depending on the heat of your skillet or griddle and how crispy you like your pancakes, this usually takes around 2 or 3 minutes.    

10. If desired, add the pecans or walnuts now, before flipping. 

11. Shake the pancake to make sure it slides easily.  Then flip with a spatula  or egg-turner.   

12. Cook another minute on the backside, until slightly browned.   

13. Then remove to a plate and continue with the rest of the batter. 

------------------------------------------------------------     

Recipe Submission from Erin, Emailed from Allrecipes.com 6/24/2009 

reading again......

I'm quoting this info. on Little Brother from a blog called gratuitoussocks.wordpress.com. You can read the original post at http://gratuitoussocks.wordpress.com/2008/06/24/little-brother/

Little Brother

At the Springsteen concert a couple of weeks ago Bruce said and I paraphrase, “Recently in the US we have had, illegal wiretapping, the tearing up of the Geneva Convention, prisoners with no habeas corpus and prisoners of war tortured. When we were growing up, this is the kind of stuff that they told us only happened in other countries.”
It should have been something easy to dismiss. Just a rant from a liberal rock star
but the idea has stuck with me. And now I have just finished a book that
although it is aimed at young adults – it has sent a shiver down this old fart’s
spine.

Cory Doctorow’s latest novel Little Brother is the story of a techno-savvy 17 year old who is arrested – no not arrested – taken, by Homeland Security without any kind of due process. When he finally gets out he fights back. It’s a cracking book for young adults that includes sex, underage drinking, and serious civil disobedience and I recommend every kid to read it. The cool and scary thing about the book is that it is all based on real stuff. The surveillance, the computer hacking and the powers
granted to homeland security are all based on fact. I think it should be read by
everyone. You can download it for free online. (I read it on my mobile phone.) If after you read it for free, you have a hankering, like I did, to give Cory something for his
work then you can go to his website and get details of how to donate a copy
of the book to a library. I sent one to a library in my old neighborhood. I can
only hope some kid reads it and grows up to be a little less compliant than my
generation has been.

.

ok..this is Erin again. I have really enjoyed this book. Its not as good as some of the others I've read lately, but its VERY enlightening. Its highly educational. I love the fact that the main character, Marcus, is VERY smart, VERY into his social studies class, but....still seems VERY cool in a geeky kind of way. Marcus skips class....dates girls....drinks beer....so its not all ooey gooey and sweet, but it seems very REAL...and the stuff that happens to Marcus seems SO REAL ITS SCARy!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Brother_(Cory_Doctorow_novel) You can read more info about the book by clicking this link to go to its Wikipedia page.

I <3 Summer!

Today I'm just hanging out. I don't have any real plans. I can do whatever I want....or NOT do anything at all. This is why I <3 Summer!

Yesterday Cassie came to our house for a visit. We went to the Valley Park and ran/walked around the trails. Then we went back to my house and we did half of a Jillian Michaels DVD. After that we went to Winfield to Brian and Jessica's house. AND....we laid out in the sunshine and jumped in the pool when we got hot. It was REALLY hot yesterday!!

Cassie left a little after that...and I cooked PIZZA for dinner. It was good as usual, but I forgot to toss some wheat germ or corn meal down on the pan and the crust stuck to the bottom a little. Then we went to Kroger because they had chicken and cheese on sale...so we stocked up. We also bought 6 Pepsi 2-liters cause they have a sale on those too. They ended up being 84 cents each.

I'm not sure why but I stayed up late last night. I was looking at teaching materials for next year. I think I finially went to bed around 1:40 am.

This morning I woke up when a lady from Marshall Grad. College called me at 9 am. After that I couldn't really sleep, but Kitsy came in the bed and cuddled with me...so I stayed for a little while. When she got up, I made breakfast. We had turkey sausage and vanilla protein whole wheat pancakes...and I swear, they are delicious!!

Now I'm going to go find some way to spend my day!

Thirteen Reasons Why.... CHECK

Yesterday Jesse and I went back to Mom and Dad's again. On the way there, around 12:30, we stopped at the library and picked up a new book, Thirteen Reasons Why.

It. Was. So. Good.



I say WAS because, yes....I already finished it! I finished it around 1 am last night. It took me less than 12 hours to read 288 pages. I didn't read for 12 hours straight, of course....because I still worked out, cooked dinner, and watched 2 hours of So You Think You Can Dance.

The link above will take you to the website if you want to learn more about it. Here is a synopsis....

"Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker--his classmate and crush--who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list.

Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author
Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers."

haven't blogged in a while...gotta backtrack

I'm not sure why I haven't blogged since being in Myrtle Beach....but I guess I'll talk about the last week.

We got home on Friday evening... I had to drive but only a little bit. We stopped by my parents house to return their cooler and beach chairs they let us borrow. They left for Atlantic Beach in NC on Sunday.

The weather was really nice on Sunday so Jesse and I went over to Mom and Dad's and I laid out in their backyard. We bought hamburger, buns, tortilla chips, and I made some homemade salsa. It was a nice little lunch.

On Monday I was really excited to go see what I could do in my new classroom! Jesse came with me. We woke up pretty early and went over to Winfield around 10 am. Unfortunately, they had everything in the room pushed out into the hallway. They were going to buff and wax the floor, but they hadn't done it yet. So, there wasn't anything I could do, but I did talk to Mrs. Cole about a few things....and I got a copy of the Photography text book.

After that, we left and went to Mom and Dad's again. I laid in the backyard and read Graceling. I really loved that book. I finished it and even the end was good. :)

On Tuesday Jesse and I went to Barboursville Park with my friend, Cassie. We ran around the lake a few times and then headed to the pool at Beechfork lake. It was pretty cloudy. We ate lunch at Sheet's. It was really good, for gas station food! No really..it was good. I got a Chicken Fajita and Jesse got a ham sub. The best thing was ordering at a machine. It was neat, but a little overwhelming at first. After that, we hung around Cassie and Justin's place for a little bit.

last day and i'm pissed

hahaha... ok, I'm not really pissed, but I'm sad that the vacation is over. Its been really really fun though! :)

Today Jessica and I headed out to the pool early. I was out at 9:3o am! I laid out with Jessica on this great deck in front of the Hilton. It looks out onto the beach. You can see the ocean...and its right by a large dune. Crazy lizards kept jumping up onto the deck from the dunes. They could blow bubbles in their necks and they could change color!

Jessica left pretty early, before noon, to go to the Aquarium with Brian. Jesse sat with me for awhile. We went for a walk on the beach....then Jesse went upstairs and I stayed out there until 2. I finished reading Uglies and today I started a book called Graceling by Kristin Cashore. So far...I like it!! Its different because its about a place with 7 kingdoms and 7 kings. Its almost like its old fashioned because they ride horses and its kinda medieval, but its kinda like sci-fi too. Certain people are called Gracelings because they are born with a Grace, or a gift. They are exceptionally gifted in one area. The book is about a girl named Katsa whos gift is killing.

After that I went to the gym. Then I got prettied up a bit and we went to dinner at Salsarita's. Its a place, kinda like Moe's or Qdoba or Chipotle. We dont have any of those places back home, so I'm glad we got the chance to eat there. It was pretty good.

After dinner we went to the Tanger Outlet Stores that are near our hotel. I bought a bunch of stuff....first I got a new bikini in Aeropostale. I guess I needed to replace the one that broke the other day. Its cute...its white with bright blue polka dots. I bought a green sweater in the Gap. I bought a green t-shirt, brown tank top, a pair of running shorts, and two pairs of flipflops from OldNavy. Jesse got a pair of shorts from Aeropostale...but he'll probably take them back because they don't fit right.

Of course tonight I watched the results show of SYTYCD. I was happy with the 2 sent home. I can't wait til next Wednesday now!! I love that show.

Tomorrow we gotta drive home. I'm mad about it. I hate driving. hate it. hate. it.

I'm in love...with Mongolian Grill food

What can I say? Today was again an awesome day at the beach! I really enjoyed the sunshine today. We had a huge thunderstorm wee in the early hours of the day. So, I think it cooled it off just a touch and eased the humidity a bit, too.

We did a lot today. Beach. Ocean. Pool. Beach. Pool. I read a lot. I'm only a few pages away from being done with Uglies. We went to the gym again this afternoon. After that.... I was looking out the window of our room. Jesse pointed out that it looked like there was sand at the bottom of this one pool by our hotel. I said that I thought it was just painted the color of sand...but then he pointed out how the people that walked over it walked different through that part. He was right. It looked like they were kinda sinking in it. So, we decided to go down there and see what was up with that. It really was sand! But not sand sand. ...it was like itty bitty pebbles that were the color of sand. Very cool.

For dinner we did go to the Empire Fire place. It was sooo freaking good. I loved it! In case you've never heard of it, ( I hadn't) first you go up to the buffet. It has uncooked meats (like beef, ham, lamb, shrimp, scallops, chicken, sausage, pork, etc.) and it also has raw veggies (like broccoli, scallions, onions, green peppers, sugar snap peas, portabella mushrooms, bean sprouts, cabbage, etc.) So you put what you want into a big bowl...and take it to a counter. Behind the counter they have lots of different sauces (oyster sauce, Mongolian sauce, lemon water, garlic water, ginger water, wine, chili sauce, and oil) and you can choose what you want or just tell the guy if you like it spicy or not spicy. Then they throw it onto this HUGE round very very hot grill. They toss it around a bit and a minute or so later they throw it onto a plate and...then you can take it back to your table and enjoy! It was really really good.

They also had an ice cream bar...with............MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP!! Its my favorite!! I ate 2 bowls of the stuff! I ate a ton more than Jesse even. haha. I didn't even feel full. I don't know what came over me! I just got finished watching So You Think You Can Dance. I'm so excited about it because tonight was the first night where the top 20 were dancing for real. :) I was really impressed with all of them! I think this will be a really good season!

I'm slightly upset that tomorrow is my last day to lay on the beach. :( I'm going to try to make the most of it!

day 3, night 4

Today was yet ANOTHER wonderful beautiful day. It was a little warmer and quite a bit more humid.

This morning Brian, Jessica and Jesse went to work out early (around 10). I didn't want to work out that early so I went to the pool by myself. After not very long I felt like I was scorching! So around 11:45 I went back upstairs and did a reapply of sunscreen and ate a little.

Then we all went out to the beach. Jesse and I took a walk down the beach and looked for seashells. He found some neat broken spiral ones. Then he found a broken piece of a sand dollar. THEN, I looked down in the water and found an unbroken oblong spiral shell!! Its really pretty. It looks somewhat like this photo.
I'm already more than halfway finished with the book I started yesterday! Its called Uglies and its really good. Its another sci-fi kinda book about a future world where they make everyone get plastic surgery when they turn 16. The people after the surgery are called "pretties" and the kids pre-surgery are called "uglies." The book is about a group of people who rebel and decide they don't want to become pretties. I like it :)

After the beach, I came in and went to the gym. I ran on the elliptical for 45 minutes.

For dinner we went to Wild Wings Cafe. It was good. I had spinach dip with tortilla chips. Then I had grilled chicken smothered in Monterrey jack cheese, grilled onions, mushrooms and green peppers. I had mac 'n' cheese and steamed broccoli for my sides.....

Afterwards we walked around Barefoot Landing a little bit. We went into a candy store and I bought 8 dollars worth of candy. They had a lot of licorice stuff and that's my favorite!! :) They even had black jelly beans!

Then, to top all that candy off....we went to Wendy's and Brian and Jessica got one of there new coffee drink thingies. I really wanted a Coffee Toffee Twisted Frosty....but with all that candy I thought it was best if I passed. Jesse got an Oreo Twisted Frosty...and I had a few bites. :)

Tomorrow we are probably going to eat at a place that is a Mongolian Grill called Empire Fire. I'll let you know how it is tomorrow night! :)

wardrobe malfunction

Today...was a lot like yesterday. It was beautiful! Today was a little warmer....but there was still a nice breeze and it wasn't too hot. We went out to the beach around 10:30. Brian and Jessica set up a large pavillion tent-like thingie so that we could have some shade. It was nice.

I finished reading The Host today. It was really good. I was getting up to get a new book out of my bag when.... the plastic hook on the back of my bikini top broke. Yeah, thats right. My top flew off....well, not off really, because it has a tie-on halter top, but regardless..it was frightening!! Luckily part of the plastic hook stayed attached, so we were able to make it make due until we went back upstairs for lunch.

After lunch, Jesse and I went to the pool in front of our hotel. We sat under an umbrella and took naps :) Then we went to the gym. 2 nights here and we've already worked out 3 times!

For dinner tonight we went to Chili's. We ate texas cheesefries for an appetizer. Then we had steak & chicken fajitas for our meal....and we topped it all off with a molten chocolate cake.

I can't believe I ate all that!! I also can't wait until I get to do it again tomorrow! hahaha. After dinner we walked around Broadway at the Beach.... then came back home to the hotel. I'm hoping for a 3-peat of wonderful weather tomorrow!

perfect weather day

The forecast for this whole week says Shattered Thunderstorms every single day. It was a little cloudy when we woke up this morning, but by 11 most of the clouds were gone. It was a PERFECT day for laying on the beach. There was a nice little breeze. There was plenty of sunshine, but it wasn't the least bit hot. I didn't even sweat. I only got in the ocean once.

Jesse and Brian passed football while Jessica and I sat in the sun and read. I looked up to see all three of them looking around in the sand. I wondered what they were doing, but I just went back to my book. The next time I looked up...they were STILL looking around in the sand. I went to find out what they lost....it was Brian's wedding band!!! That's a big ouchie! They looked and looked and looked. No luck.

So, Brian and Jessica left ...went to the Bass Pro Shop and bought a 6o dollar metal detector. Within 5 minutes of searching, he found it!! It was crazy.

After laying in the sun we ate some lunch...and then Brian and Jesse went to work out at this big Fitness Center here at our complex. Jessica and I went downstairs to a little fitness center in our hotel. Its really nice (Jesse and I worked out there yesterday, too)

After that... back to the hotel room for a bit...and then we ordered Domino's Pizza for dinner. We spent the rest of the evening combing the beach. Brian and Jesse took turns using the metal detector. They found a bunch of rusty screws and a pack of JuicyFruit.

I'm hoping that tomorrow is as nice as today!

on the way!

We left last night around 4 pm. We stayed in a Hampton Inn last night in Asheboro, NC. It was hard to sleep in a little double bed. I can't believe that we did that for the first 4 years we were married!

Jesse and I went to sleep around 12. As soon as I was able to drift off...either Brian or Jessica's cell phone rang or went off or something. Then...right as I was about to fall asleep again, SOMEONE WALKED INTO OUR ROOM! They used a swipe card key and walked right in. They stopped when they saw our stuff sitting there, laughed, and let the door slam behind them. Brian woke up and called the front desk, but they didn't really care. They must have never done anything about it because this morning when we came back from breakfast our keys wouldn't work.

I drove for a little while. Jesse made me for some reason, but now... he's driving and we should be there in just a little bit. We just now crossed over the South Carolina border.

8 hours and counting....

I've got less than 8 hours to leave for the beach! We are driving half way (or so) down this evening...and staying in a hotel. Then tomorrow we'll drive the rest of the way to Myrtle Beach! YAY! I'm really looking forward to laying around in the sun, reading, hanging out with Brian & Jessica, and eating good food!!

I still have some stuff to get ready today... So, I guess I'm going to go work on that. I haven't subbed since Wednesday at GWMS. That will be my last day subbing EVER! I'm so so so so happy that I don't have to do that again! Its not that bad, but it gets really really old.

I called Cracker Barrel on Wednesday to see if I could get started working there the week of the 15th. They have a new GM now...and she said that I have to be available for nights and weekends (as in Friday nights, Saturday nights, and Sundays all day) to be "rehired." Even though they MADE me quit. I was kinda upset about that, but I think Jesse will be getting a job soon. So, it should be ok. Jesse said that I can take some time off and work on getting my stuff ready for next year!

ok...finally got it

As you can now see the Blog title is now posted. I'm going to try to blog as much as possible during my trip to Myrtle Beach next week. I'm bringing my camera so I'll be posted as many pics as possible. I can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can't get my new title to post

I'm in the process of updating the look of my blog today. I've got a new title for the top of the blog but I'm at school and I can't get it to load. I'm going to try again at home.

I'm at GWMS today. I'm hoping that today will be my last day of subbing. I don't know if I'll get a job tomorrow or Friday being that those are the last two days of school. Teachers know that students are a little crazy right now and so, of course, they aren't apt to miss school a lot. Secretly, I hope this is my last day. I have a lot of stuff to pack and get ready for our trip!

its already been a long week

Maybe its because I'm looking forward to the weekend even more than normal...or maybe its because I'm trying to eat as few carbs as possible...but either way, its been a long week and its only tuesday! This Saturday we are going to Myrtle Beach!! Brian and Jessica are going with us...and I'm really excited about it! YAY!

Brian called Jesse tonight and asked if he would want to leave on Friday night instead of Saturday morning...and we are going to stay in Asheboro, NC :) YAY! This means I probably won't have to drive! I hate driving.

Yesterday I subbed at Winfield Middle School. It was a CRAZEEEE day. I was supposed to sub for an 8th grade language arts teacher. However, when I got there she was there and said that they didn't really need me to sub for her. I wondered if they would send me home...but they had me go to the VP's office. She asked me to go to the library and watch 4 ISS students in there. They had so many kids in ISS that they wouldn't fit in their normal room.

So. I loved that. The kids just sat there and worked...and I played on the computer. It was great.

BUT...........................

a little after lunch the principal came in and asked me to go to Mrs. Runion's classroom. Unfortunatly... Mrs. Runion is the BD teacher! AHHHHHHHHHHHH!

It was crazy insane in there. I can't go into all the stuff that they did and do because of confidentiality crap, but...take my word for it....those kids need a severe beating.


Today I had a super easy day. I was again at Winfield Middle but this time I was the Health teacher. The 8th graders weren't there because they were at Step-up day and a class picnic. And 2/3's of the 7th graders were at Field day outside. So, it was a very nice and easy day of watching Health videos.


Tomorrow I'm subbing for a 7th grade math teacher. fun fun fun. Almost done now..... 3 more days and I'll be on my way to the beach!