Best Friends and cousins

Before we were friends we were enemies.  My cousin, Sarah and I use to fight after spending more than one day together.  Our older brothers thought it was funny, they thought we were just playing but we weren't.  I remember one distinct time we were in the barn going at each other, pulling hair, biting and all the works.  Our two older brothers were there cheering and clapping.  As the years went by things got a little better.  By the time we were in our lower teens we could bear each others presence for two to three days.  Then after that, in my mind it, became a competition of who was better what I could do to make her look bad and make people like me more than her. There was and still is something about Sarah, that everyone loves.
  Kids are naturally drawn to her and adults can quickly be caught up in talking to her about anything.
During the middle teens and  upper teens we became best friends.  Sarah came down with cancer when she was 13 going on 14.  It was a crazy time in life, for the next few years she battled cancer, I wrote her letters and constantly prayed that God would heal my best friend.  After watching her go through many trials, loosing her hair, being sick, spending long amounts of time in the hospital,  her time with cancer was over and I saw a beautifully strong girl with an amazing sense of humor emerged from the struggles!  Her faith was stronger than ever and she was such an example of faith.

Throughout high school we talked about traveling together and after I graduated we wanted to go to Honduras together, but I had just gone to Peru and so she went without me.

We didn't give up hopes though a few summers later we went on our first adventure together.  WE went to Peru, South America.  We spent most of our time in Lima, Peru, where we helped out at a Christian school and stayed with friends.  We enjoyed walking around Lima and seeing all there was to see.  We also spent one weekend traveling to Cusco, Peru were we got to see Machu Picchu and explore Cusco.  She was very patient with me when I got sick in Cusco, due to food poisoning!  We felt like such great adventurers!!!  The most memorable thing about Peru was getting the chance to eat guinea pig. Not something we'd want to try again but it was worth the experience.

The next summer we didn't know if we'd be able to travel, but I was drawing closer to getting engaged and married so we decided it might be our last chance for a little while.  Thirty days before we wanted to leave we bought tickets to Guatemala and signed up for two weeks of Spanish school in Antigua, Guatemala.  This was a bigger adventure, because in Peru we knew people but in Guatemala we were going out all on our own!

In Antigua we learned Spanish, hiked a active volcano, and visited a little lake set in the midst of towering mountains.  We fell in love with Antigua and picked out the houses we would live in, if we ever moved there.  We also found a home that nursed malnourished children back to health.  We sat and held the babies and fed them milk, from a spoon, ever couple hours!



Our time passed quickly and the night we arrived home I got engaged!  She knew it was going to happen and didn't tell me!!!! She was there on the beach when Asa asked me to be his wife.  Through the next six weeks Sarah was a VERY supportive bridesmaid and even though she was busy in college she made time to be at my bridal shower and my
wedding

Together down life's road we walk... and all the while, I talk!

I could go on and on of stories, adventures and times together but I'll leave those for another time.  Although Sarah and I no longer fight, I'm still jealous of her.  I'm jealous of her zeal and commitment to God and the adventures she still has to go on.  Sarah has now graduated and started out on an adventure without me.  She is now in Cambodia teaching school for the rest of the semester.  I wanted to write this blog post because she has been my best friend, through the years, AND I want YOU to check out her blog, Sarah's Adventures, and follow her journey! She's always had an amazing way with words and I know you will be caught up in her adventures as I have!  Someday we'll travel together again and I'm so proud of her grit and spirit in all that she goes through!

Do you have someone who you went from enemies to best friends over the years?  Since I'm being all cheesy I'd love you to join me, tell me about your special friends!

Peru... Five years ago

I had this blog post in my head.  All about valentines day, and making sushi with my husband.  It was a fun day but tonight when I was on the phone with my mom I got another idea... SOOO guess what, you're not going to hear about Sushi, yet. :)  

Five years ago, this month,  my family and I went on an adventure to Peru.  WE had very close friends down there, and we decided that it would be a good experience for us.  I went with mixed emotions, I was extremely excited to be traveling to a new country and yet, I was leaving behind my boyfriend and missing his first birthday, as a couple and, more importantly, our first valentines day.  However looking back I don't regret a single moment of that month spent with my family.  We made some awesome memories and traveling outside of my comfort zone opened my eyes to a whole new world.  

 WE arrived in Lima Peru and somehow managed to get to the bus station and in the right area, without knowing any Spanish.  (this was before I had taken ANY spanish at all so we were CLUELESS)  We were meeting our friends in Arequipa but up until that point we were on our own.   My dad was great at playing the language barrier game and we were all relieved when we we were on the bus and on our way




.










Arequipa was a busy city and we enjoyed exploring it for a few days, however the real adventure was just around the corner.  We got on another bus ride, which deserves a whole blog post to itself, and made our way back to a quant little town, in the mountains, called Velille.  

 This is where we spent a couple weeks and I was amazed at the culture and the food!  In the market they had these venders that sold cheese,  From what I can remember the cheese was the highlight of this town, it was what they were known for.  They also had alpaca on a stick that you could walk to the market and buy on Sundays and some other days of the week.  All these foods were amazing, and though my father thought my sister and I were crazy for eating it, I would eat all the food again  in a heartbeat!  

 The thing that took my mind back to that village, tonight however, was their yogurt.  Emily, Jenny, Julie and I would walk through the streets and into the market building to where the ladies would sit, selling their yogurt.  The would put it in little plastic bags for us and we'd rip open the one corner and start drinking away!  It was so natural tasting and nothing like I had ever had before. Here in the states most of the yogurt we buy is thick, however this yogurt was not thick at all.  It was the consistency of thick milk, but not solid, it was runny

So tonight I 'll drink my fresh homemade yogurt from a bag, and remember all the great experiences of Peru!  

Buying Milk from the local lady

Where are some places you've traveled, with food you have never experienced before?  

Taffy Time!!!

Most people think of the county or state fairs when they think taffy. Those big machines they have inside the booths pulling various colors of taffy. Sweet scents drift out over the crowd and are mixed with the smell of frying food and popcorn. However, when I think of pulling taffy I think of those wonderful moments when my neighbor taught us how to pull our own taffy.



For DAYS afterwards we’d get our Laura Ingles Wilder books out and find where she fed the pigs taffy and read, laugh and talk about how much fun pulling taffy was.




There were a few things that stood out clearly to me from the instructions Sarah Ann gave us. She would always tell us we’re holding too much taffy in our hands and not letting it slip through our fingers. I also distinctly remember the joy of discovering the “z” formation the taffy made as you pulled it with your taffy

I loved getting my hands in food, even back then ;)

Around the first of the year we were down in NYC visiting my in-laws and we decided that we’d try pulling taffy. It was my sister’s and my first experience branching out and making the taffy on our own. We called Sarah Ann and got the recipe from her and then we set to work making our mixture.


We watched as it boiled and boiled. WE smelled it making sure it had that interesting smell that we still remembered, even after all the years. Taffy is very sensitive, you need to get it at the right temperature and then send it outside to cool.
If you cook it a slight degree hotter for too long it could be disastrous. We tested it in the water and we also had a candy thermometer and it seemed fine… but it needed a little longerWELL somehow in the process of a “little longer” we cooked it a little hotter than we expected. I was not worried though, I thought we had everything under control. ;)





There were almost 20 people there that were going to want a turn at pulling taffy so we decided to make another batch. No one wanted to miss out on the pulling part and so after the first batch had cooled and they started pulling I got started on the second batch. Some people were asking me if I had left the other taffy outside too long because it was VERY solid and inflexibleI assured them it was fine, and that they just needed to get pulling it. Let’s just say, I was wrong, it wasn't ok. Some of the girls pulling the taffy were dragging each other across the floor because it was so tough.  I was glad that I had started the second batch.




I decided that the problem with the first batch was, #1 we had boiled it WAY too long and #2 I had left it outside a tad too long. The biggest issue was that it was boiled to such a high temperature that we were actually make hard candy instead of soft taffy.

Surprisingly everyone liked the harder batch better, they thought it had more flavor!


The second batch was much more successful. I made sure that I was boiling it at a little lower temperature than the first batch. WE set it outside and watched it continually. Everyone buttered their hands; we divided the taffy into half and got pulling.



Everyone caught on really well and I found that I was saying the same things my teacher, Sarah Ann, had. “Don’t let the taffy clump at your fingers; you have to let it flow through them.” “You don’t need a lot of butter; the taffy will stick to itself.” Everything went really well and we even moved outside to pull the last bit because it was colder and better for finishing the taffy off.

Emily and I pulled for a while after everyone else was done.

(sorry about the blurry pic it's the only one I have of me pulling the taffyI have always enjoyed pulling taffy however I’m a little more patient about waiting for my turn than I use to be:

Our second batch had a bit of failure towards the end. My husband went out to finish forming the strands and he put too much butter on his hands. Our perfect taffy went to strings and they had to keep pulling it some more. However, it changed the consistency of the taffy. Even though we had some problems the most important part to me is getting together with a group of people and trying something new! WE enjoyed teaching them how to pull taffy and it will definitely be an experience we try again, not only because it is fun but also because of all the memories it holds.



Taffy Recipe:
2 lbs. of sugar
1 pint cream
1 pint Karo
a little parafin (optional, I didn't use this)


Boil together till nearly 240 degrees, or between soft and hard ball,
then add 1 T. unflavored gelatin dissolved in 1/4 cup cold water. Make sure you do this RIGHT before you are ready to use... otherwise it thickens before you pour it into the mixture.
Continue boiling and check temp.once the temperature is between 240 and 242 degrees place it on WELL greased cookie sheets and place in a cold place to cool. After taffy is cool enough to hand you can start pulling the taffy with moderately buttered hands. (my father in law has a video that I will upload ... someday) Make sure you don't let the taffy cool too long. after the taffy has turn to a white color and is no longer sticky you can form it into the right shape and wrap.

I really am just trying something new out AND also giving you a sneak preview of a fun post still to come!Erin

I'm seriously considering opening a new blog.... Maybe using wordpress....

Christmas Trees

There's one thing about Christmas that will always remind me of my Grandparents. Getting the tree. For years while I was growing up they had a Christmas tree farm and when Christmas would come around they would sell Christmas trees to everyone in the towns surrounding ours. People would come from miles away, bundle up and take a wagon ride to the top of the hill to find that perfect tree that would bring cheer to their homes for the holiday. The wagon ride was what everyone looked forward to. Once they would climb into the wagon they'd take their pick on a hay bale and hang on for the journey. Through the snow drifted field, over the bubbling creek, up the slick hill to the top where my Grandpa would drop them off. You all know the next part, the search for the PERFECT tree :) Once they found it they'd cut it down, with the saws provided from my Gramps, and then they'd drag it down the hill, over the walking bridge, through the field back to the house. With rosy cheeks and sparkles in their eyes they would greet and pay my Grandma or the guys working the lot.

As my sister and I got older we'd help out on the lot: greeting people, showing them the trees on the lot, taking their money, and baling their trees. I remember being down at Grams during tree season, she'd have her boots and gloves by the wood stove and as soon as someone would come along she'd be there helping them out.

Sadly however, there aren't many more trees on the hill after all these years. My Grandparents head to Florida now in early November and so we brave the field, creek and hill with our Subaru and search for the perfect tree. I know that when people drive by the hill they remember the good days of finding that perfect tree and the memories that my Grandparents helped them create.

I hold the days with my Grandma close to my heart... not only watching and helping them sell trees, but all the time she's put into teaching me how to quilt, crochet pot holders, and helping me make rugs.

Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for all the great memories that you have given us and so many others! <3