Reflection on Bolivia

Note to those of you who were directed here by a card in the mail: the main reason that I chose to just write the card and direct you here is because I don't have a personal printer. Secondly, I thought it would be fun to send everyone a hand-written thank you note. Thirdly, for those of you who I don't get to see on a regular basis, I thought it might be fun to introduce you to my blog. Please read on...

Bolivia. Anytime I hear someone mention the country, my heart beats a bit faster. I want to ask “Have you been to Bolivia?”, “Where have you been?”, “Did you get to eat salteñas? Sopa de maní?”, “How did you handle the altitude?”

This little country in South America has dominated much of my thoughts for the past two years. It was in the fall of 2009 that I began to prepare for my first trip there with a team of 13, and I spent a month divided between Rodeo and Cochabamba in the summer of 2010. I returned to Messiah College in the fall of 2010, with a love for the people of Rodeo planted in my heart, but with no solid plans to return. When I was asked to lead the trip for the following year, I couldn’t help but see the importance of having someone who had been there before go back to continue relationships and invest in lives. And so I agreed to lead the team.

So I began doing my best over the course of the school year, to prepare a team of 9 women to journey to the village of Rodeo, a remote jewel nestled in the Andes Mountains. And then we went, from July 18 to 29, we traveled by various and sundry forms of transportation to our destination. There were moments of excitement along the way, including a stolen passport (a team leader’s worst nightmare!) but when we arrived in Rodeo, we were able to be fully present in the community.

A few highlights from the trip:

I was able to spend time with Aide (my previous sponsored child who has now moved out of the program) and also with Elizabet (my current sponsored child). I taught Elizabet how to crochet, and she taught me how to spin with a different style of drop spindle than I had used previously.

Spending an afternoon with leaders from the community, hearing about their dreams for the future.

Reconnecting with Food for the Hungry staff members who are passionate about God’s children, and caring for and building up the community.

Growing in relationships with the women on my team.

Here are a few images from the trip:

It was wonderful to reconnect with Aide and her family.

Elizabet teaching me how to spin.

Listening to the dreams of community leaders.

Going for a hike with a group of FH staff and women from our team.

Baking bread with Anacleto, the pastor of the Baptist Church in Rodeo.

I was challenged by:

The fact that sustainable, long-term changes are slow in coming

My position of leadership- a fantastic but humbling place to be.

The need to trust in God’s provision in tricky situations.

As I have returned to the United States, relocating to a new state and beginning a new step in education (a Masters degree in Human Nutrition and Food at West Virginia University), I have continued to reflect on the way that Bolivia has found its way into my heart and nestled into a corner. It’s not just the brown wool backpack that I wear every day, the balls of hand-spun yarn that sit in a basket woven out of sticks that all came from Bolivia. It’s not just the photos that hang on my wall, or the bright and colorful fabric that is neatly folded underneath my bed.

Bolivia has a face. Multiple faces. Of hopeful young children, excited to explore the world through the library that Messiah College helped to construct and furnish. Of community leaders, encouraged to pursue their dreams. Of the mother of my sponsored child, struggling with illness but aided by caring individuals and family.

I don’t know how God will choose to continue my connection with Bolivia, or what that will look like in the future.

But, as I continue to live my life, day by day, I am constantly reminded of God’s grace and provision in my life, and the responsibility that I bear to share from what I have been given.

And to those of you who have supported me in prayer, and financially, thank you. For everything. It’s only because of the army of people behind me that I was able to go.

Braided Apple Bread

I found a recipe via "Pinterest" for a braided apple apple bread, and it looked scrumptious. I pinned it on my "nourish" board and went on with my life, all the while thinking it would really be fun to actually make this fantastic looking concoction.

And then one of my friends gave me three wolf apples that his brother grew. They were rather large. Do you want to see one?

 And this is how ridiculous I would look if I tried to eat it like a normal apple.

So, I decided to chop it up and bake it. You can find the recipe here, but I made a few modifications as well. The dough seemed really sticky, so I ended up using 3 1/2 cups of flour. In a nutshell, here's the concept:

• Slice apples and toss them with cinnamon, sugar, and lemon juice and throw them in the oven for about 15 minutes.
• Mix up a sweet yeast dough.
• Roll out the dough (about 12 x 16 inches works well) and cut 1 inch strips 1/3 of the way in on either side.
• Pull the partially baked apple slices out of the oven and spread on the intact 1/3 of dough.

I sprinkled on extra cinnamon, and a dash of mace and ginger, just to revel in the glory of fall spices.

Then, you fold the strips into the center. Quite simple, really.

And bake in the oven for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
The original recipe called for a creamy glaze, but I opted for caramel. I used the glaze topping from the Apple Cake in Simply in Season.

2/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup milk or cream
1 tablespoon flour

Heat to boiling in a small saucepan, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.

Mix in 1/3 cup powdered sugar.

Drizzle over the bread. I tried to make just a half recipe, but it was tricky to work with such a small quantity. I recommend making the entire quantity of glaze listed above, and then only using as much as your sweet tooth desires.

Look at it- isn't it luscious? Especially when shared with friends in a pavilion down by the pond on a foggy night as a snack after rock climbing...

Corn Chips

I've never been one to make a lot of crackers. However, I've been eating a lot of hummus recently, and  every once in a while it'd be nice to eat it with something other than pita bread.   So, I decided to try a corn chip recipe that I've noticed in "Recipes from the Old Mill: Baking with Whole Grains" by Mary Beth Lind and Sarah E. Myers.

It didn't take long, and although I haven't done the calculations, I'm pretty sure that they are quite a bit cheaper than a store bought version.

And don't they look absolutely delectable? They taste really good too- even those that got a bit over-brown.

In case you want to give them a whirl, here's the recipe.

 Combine in a bowl:

1 cup cornmeal
2/3 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
2 Tablespoons instant nonfat dry milk powder

Combine in a separate bowl:

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup oil
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp Tabasco sauce (I used another hot sauce that we had in the fridge, and it worked just fine)


Stir liquid ingredients into dry ones. Form into a  ball. Knead a little until smooth.
Sprinkle two greased cookie sheets with cornmeal. A flat cookie sheet is easiest to work with, but one with sides will suffice as well.
Divide dough in half. Roll each half directly onto cookie sheet with floured rolling pin until dime-thin.
Sprinkle lightly with paprika (or chili powder). Run rolling pin over once more.
Cut into squares or triangles or diamonds- whatever suits your fancy. A pizza cutter works great or this. Prick with fork.
Bake at 350 degrees farenheit for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.

Utterly scrumptious.

Distressing Furniture: Case Study on a Desk

This is a bit of a glance back in time, but during the first week of August, my mom found an old desk by the side of the road. Here's the first photo I have of it, after I took the drawers out to scrub it down.

 

And you can't have a desk without a chair, right? So I hunted through the barn to find a wooden chair. I came across this:

Completely covered in bird excrement, but this chair has a history. It is a part of my parent's first set of kitchen chairs, purchased at an auction shortly after they were married. It's a solid little piece of furniture, despite the lack of good looks.

Both the desk and the chair were scrubbed down well with Murphy's oil soap, and then brought inside for a paint job. The entire chair and the sides of the desk got a layer of primer and then a quality white furniture paint. I used a dark stain on the top of the desk, and then my mom put a coat of polyurethane on it while I was in Bolivia.

 

The next step was to simply take a heavy grit of sandpaper (I used 60) along spots on the desk that would typically receive heavy wear. I particularly accentuated the edges on the front of the drawers, and I'm really happy with the way that it turned out.

 I distressed the chair in the same way, and recovered an old pillow with a leftover section of the thrifted sheet that I used to line my curtains and attached some ties to the back for a seat cushion. So maybe the cushion isn't the most aesthetically pleasing, but it works, and it was cheap.

Here's the completed cozy little corner of my room where I do a lot of studying. It doesn't normally look this neat, though, to be honest :)

That was a nice little 20 minute break in my morning of study to blog about this! I'm off to class, then a test this afternoon, with lots of prep for a presentation that I'm giving tomorrow in between.

Men's Shirt -> My Skirt

I have put my Pinterest account to good use, and took a bit over an hour tonight, after a great hike with some friends in the nearby Arboretum, to transform a men's shirt from the thrift store ($1.37 thanks to a half price sale!) into a cute and incredibly comfy skirt.


I simply made a straight cut under the arms, sewed a bit down the sides (I took off 3 inches on each side), zig-zagged a 4 inch strip of elastic on to the center of the back, and put a half inch hem around the top. For ease of wear, I also ran a seam down the front, so that the buttons won't gape when I sit down.

The fabric is a cotton/polyester blend, and super soft and comfy. I have a feeling this may be a favorite piece of apparel. Yes, please do observe my Chacos sandals tan. It had faded pretty well, but then I wore them to the football game last Saturday, and got a bit sun-kissed.

Off to bed so I can rise and shine early for a community 5K tomorrow :)

Shelving by the Crate

Last Sunday when I went home, I spent the afternoon hunting through old barns for old crates, or skeletons of crates to use as patch pieces. I was pretty successful. I also got really dirty:


But after a few hours of scrubbing and ripping and hammering with my mom's help, I ended up with a good pile. I stuffed them in my car and drove back to West Virginia at 4:30 on Tuesday morning. The crates were still a bit damp, so my car definitely smelled like an old barn! But, as they dried out, I moved them into my bedroom, and assembled this:


Isn't it cute? I like the rustic look, and I'm able to fit my books on here and keep myself mildly organized. The old canner on the bottom right shelf has a rusted through hole in the bottom, so now it's stuffed full of fabric scraps, for when I feel like making something out of patchwork :)


I think my room is finally settled! I feel like a bit of a nerd today- a good thing, I suppose! I have been finding lots of exciting academic journal articles for my research, which is focusing on home gardening and the impact on children's vegetable intake or something along those lines. Who knew that I would be able to study something that I love so much? Ah, academia. It's a love-hate relationship.

How I Spent my Friday Night

5:00. Laid on my bed for a few minutes to rest after a 4 mile run before an applesauce making extravaganza.

5:30. Brought the first box of apples up to the kitchen and started cutting.



6:00. Another big box of apples to the kitchen. 4 pots simmering on the stove.


7:00. The delicious smell of cooking apples tempted a friend to come join me for the fun. So thankful for her help and delightful conversation! I was planning to do it all by myself, but it is so much more fun to be crazy in the kitchen with a friend :) Still cutting and cooking, but we've started the "saucing" part of the process.


8:30. Still making a mess. Started the first few quarts in the canner.

9:30. Decided that we wanted to make a fresh apple cake. My favorite recipe calls for 5 cups of apples, and it's SOOO moist and delicious. Guess where it comes from? "Simply in Season". Where else do I get my recipes?

10:30. The canner is now empty, the cake has finished baking, and the kitchen is almost completely cleaned up.


15 quarts and 11 pints of applesauce preserved, plus 2 or 3 quarts for fresh eating. Delish.

11:00. Drove my friend home, and went to bed myself. My feet were a bit tired from padding around barefoot in the kitchen, but I am full of contentment, and love the feeling of accomplishment from the evening. This is why I'd rather be in the kitchen than watch a movie :)

Roasted Veggies

After a wonderful Labor day weekend, jam packed with family and friends and transportation adventures, I'm back home in West Virginia. And I thought I'd just share my dinner with you. Simple, easy, delicious. I have never had a toaster oven before, but there's one in my kitchen now, and I've decided to make use of it. I'm thinking that it is pretty energy efficient for when I'm just baking or broiling something for myself rather than heating up the whole oven. If anyone knows differently, please let me know!

So, here's 3 simple steps to a quick and healthy meal:

1. Wash and chop a variety of veggies. I used leeks, green beans, red peppers, potatoes, parsnips, red beets. Basically anything can go in this. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with some salt, pepper, and any spices or herbs as desired.

2. Place in toaster oven (or regular oven...)


3. After baking for about 40 minutes at 300 degrees F, (depending on the size of your veggie chunks), pull out of the oven and enjoy. I actually threw in some beans about half way through the cooking time because I realized that I had forgotten about protein for my dinner.


This is a great quick and easy meal for a college student who doesn't really want to eat Mac and Cheese or Ramen noodles.