3. Try 30 New Recipes : Cucumber Lime Popsicles

It's summer, and here in Southern Colorado? It's HOT! Skyler and I were looking for some good ways to cool off, and we decided - what better than a Popsicle?

We started with juice-sicles, just pouring some Cherry Limeade (Minute Made) into popsicle molds and freezing them! But then we (I) got more adventurous! Today's experiement? Cucumber Lime!

Sure, I saw them on Pinterest. (courtesy of The Little Foodie) But when I first saw them, I thought "Umm... right..." Because really? Popsciles and Cucumbers? Not so much. Right? WRONG! They are delicious! And super simple to make!

 

All you need is a Cucumber, a Lime, a Tablespoon of Sugar and a Cup of Water! (For 4 popsicles) 

Run them in the Food Processor (and be sure to cover your ears while you do so!) 

 

Fill your favorite molds (dixie cups and old yogurt cups work well if you don't have popsicle molds! But these were $1/each - and so worth their cost!) 

Then freeze for 2 or 3 hours and enjoy! 

Ingredients

• 1 Peeled and Cubed Cucumber
• 2 TblSp sugar
• 2 TblSp Lime Juice
• 1 Cup Water

3. Try 30 New Recipes : Pretzels

With my recent Pinterest Addiction I've been wanting to make Pretzels for quite awhile! So Skyler and I finally broke down and tried one of the Pin's I'd saved! They turned out super yummy, and we're anxiously waiting to make them again! We followed this recipe from The Family Kitchen.

 

Big, Soft Pretzels

Ingredients

2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast (one package)
3/4 cup lukewarm water
3/4 cup lukewarm milk
2 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil
4 – 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
coarse sea salt, for sprinkling

For the boiling solution:
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. baking soda

 Directions

Pour a bit of the water into a large bowl, stir the yeast into about half of the water (measure it, then just pour a bit into the bowl to make sure the yeast is active); let it sit for about 10 minutes. If it’s not foamy, toss it out and buy fresh yeast.

Add the rest of the water, milk and canola oil to the yeast, then stir in about 3 cups of flour and the salt. Add about a cup more flour, and when it becomes too difficult to stir, turn it out onto the counter top and start kneading. Once all the flour is incorporated, keep kneading, adding extra flour if it’s too sticky, for about 8 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover with a tea towel and let rest for an hour.

Cut the dough into 10 pieces and roll each into a rope, and shape into pretzels or hearts, pinching the ends to seal. Let them rest on the countertop for 15 minutes while you bring 2 L of water to a rolling boil with the salt and baking soda. Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Boil about 3 at a time, so you don’t crowd the pot (they will swell) and bring the temperature down, and simmer for a minute per side. Remove from the water with a slotted spoon and place on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Sprinkle with coarse salt as soon as they come out of the water, so that it sticks.

Bake for 20 minutes, until golden. Makes about 10 pretzels.

33. Fill my Memory Card on my Camera in one day

On July 9th, we took a 3 mile hike through Garden of the Gods with my friend Erica - our first trip to our favorite place in the world since the Waldo Canyon Fire. With my camera in hand, we hiked (slowly) stopping to snap photos as we went.

I filled my 2 GB memory card during this hike! (I know, 2GB isn't huge, but it came out to 474 JPG images for me!) And I've decided to share with you a few of my favorites!  (Click the collage to view larger!) And a set of my absolute favorites is available to view on Flickr - Just click here!

 

57. Donate hair to Locks of Love

In May of 2012 I was getting really tired of my same old, LONG hairstyle and decided I needed a change! Luckily, the length I wanted chopped off was enough to donate! My fabulous hair stylist (who has been doing my hair since 1988 - seriously!) got me a cute new style, and a nice thick braid to donate!

5. Eat Tofu & 6. Eat an entire meal with Chopsticks

When I was growing up, every Friday night my family got dinner from a local Chinese restaurant, I remember being so fascinated watching people eat their meals with chopsticks. In high school, I tried myself a few times - ending up using them more as a spear and stabbing my meal.

I decided it was finally time to give it a try :)

We went to Noodles for lunch, and I'd ordered Pad Thai, and added Tofu to my plate. (Hey, I could kill two birds with one stone!)  The meal itself was delicious! I was worried about the tofu, but when they say it takes on the flavors of whatever it's cooked with? They aren't kidding! The texture was a little funky for me, but I got used to it.

And the chopsticks? Well, I stuck it out for the entire meal! After awhile, I sort of got the hang of eating with them, but it's definitely a learning process! I will have to try it again, soon!

79. Find a fabulous Spice Rack

My Dad has this spice rack that he's had my entire life, it fits right above the stove and it's huge. I love it. And I've been hunting for one like it since I moved out of the house ten years ago! Unfortunately, I've never found one I just love - at least not one that's within my price range.

I finally found one that will fit in my cupboard, it isn't pretty - but it's functional so that's all that matters!

It's an "As Seen on TV" brand, so it's double cheesy! But again? It works, it hides everything neatly in the cupboard and it's organized so I don't dread pulling out my spices!

64. Fly a Kite with Skyler

Kite Flying? A HUGE success!! In fact, the little $3 kite we bought at WalMart was not enough - we're going to have to hunt down a fun canvas kite so we can do it more often!! After nearly an hour of running with the kite Skyler was finally exhausted enough to head home!! But only after I assured her we'd go to the park again soon to fly them :)