Author Archives: yearoffunsarah

Nov 16 2012
Leave a comment
Food/Drink Fun, Holiday Fun

Recipes: Pumpkin Bars and Mulled Wine

After that party I hosted for my coworkers, a few people have been asking me about recipes for the items I mentioned in the post, so here are the two I made.

Pumpkin Bars-this recipe comes from my mother who first made me these delicious bars.

1c vegetable oil
2c sugar
2c pumpkin (16oz can Libby’s)
4 eggs
2c flour
1tsp baking soda
1/2tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon). Set aside. In a large bowl, combine oil, sugar, pumpkin and eggs. Mix well. Add dry ingredients. Mix well. Pour in to greased jelly roll pan and bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting-my mother and I both make 1 1/2 times this recipe for a little extra frosting

3oz brick cream cheese-set out while making bars to bring to room temperature
1tsp vanilla
1tbs milk
3/4 stick melted butter
2c powdered sugar

Cream the cream cheese, vanilla, milk, and melted butter. Add powdered sugar gradually while mixing. Add more powdered sugar if needed till spreading consistency. Frost cooled bars.

Mulled Wine-For the most part I followed a Food Network recipe but actually left out a few spices to, what I heard were, great results. It is also very easy to double, triple and even quadruple for parties.

1 bottle red wine (Cab Sauv)
4c apple cider
4 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
Juice and zest of 1 orange
1/4c honey

Combine all ingredients in large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. The recipe then says to “serve with orange peel garnish.” I did not do this and no one seemed to mind.

Coming soon: Holiday Sugar Cookies and the Perfect Hot Chocolate.

Nov 15 2012
Leave a comment
Friends and Family, Online Fun, Reader Suggested Fun

Day 52: FaceTime

My friend Amanda, who I’ve been friends with since high school, sent me a list of suggested activities that included “FaceTime chat your long lost friend Amanda.” It’s true that we are not the best at staying in touch, but it is also true that when we do talk or see each other, we are the type of friends who can pick right back up again.

FaceTime, although not particularly revolutionary in the grand scheme of all things technological since video chat has been around for a while, is fairly new to me. I have used it a few times to chat with my mom when we both first got Apple devices, but I don’t think to use it regularly. I wish I did because it definitely feels more like having coffee or a drink with someone than talking on the phone. I could see Amanda’s expressions when telling a story and her responses to mine. And while we may have had to contend with technical glitches and “reconnecting,” it was still so nice to see her!

 

Nov 14 2012
Leave a comment
Guilty Pleasures, Pamper/Beautify, Rheumatoid Arthritis

Day 51: Solution = Manicure

Since this week’s Guilty Pleasure Monday was taken over by my work party, I took a guilty pleasure moment today and got a manicure. It was a spur of the moment decision made after getting out of work early. I visited a salon/spa near my home for the first time and got a pretty affordable manicure with hand massage.

Really I love manicures because of the hand massage. Ok that’s not totally true, but it is a big reason. It just feels so good to have someone massage my hands. As long as they sort of know what they are doing and they aren’t too rough, I love it. I also love having someone else cut and shape my nails. I hate trying to cut my own finger nails. Its one of those mundane tasks that can just get me totally flustered and upset. Squeezing anything, but especially those tiny nail clippers, is difficult for me, so I would rather just have a professional do it. It’s not a big price to pay for less unnecessary difficulties and cuter hands and nails.

Side note: The more I write this blog, the more I’m cognizant of mundane or every-day activities/tasks that I alter, or in many cases have been altering for many years, to accommodate my arthritis. For the most part, I have been able to spin those in to something fun (hard to clip nails=get a manicure, nervous about walking long distances/alone/with a normal gait=take the dog to keep mind off of all that, etc) and I hope to continue to do that each day. Just being aware of these things helps me see how this disease affects my every day and that allows me to come up with better solutions (and more fun things) as opposed to just “dealing with it” or settling. And that feels pretty great.

Nov 13 2012
Leave a comment
Fun at Work, Holiday Fun

Day 50: Secret Santa Part 2

At our departmental meeting today everyone signed up. I printed all the slips of paper and made this cute bag to put the names in (thanks clip art from Word ’92). Most people were able to draw theirs and start planning.

Along with this fun holiday activity, we will also be doing a toy drive for the Ronald McDonald house. Our focus is on the pre-teen, teen age range since that is the group most often neglected when it comes to toy donations. A coworker is putting this together and I think it is a great way for us to give back while also doing something fun together. The holiday spirit is alive on the pier!

Nov 12 2012
Leave a comment
Food/Drink Fun, Friends and Family, Rheumatoid Arthritis

Day 49: Fall is…

Today, I hosted a Fall party for my coworkers to celebrate the end of the run of our most recent show (plus the two others than ran simultaneously but closed earlier). The theme came from wanting to spend time outside, specifically on my roof, in sweaters and scarves on a crisp Fall day and enjoy hot beverages and pumpkin treats.

Well, today was thirty degrees and windy in Chicago (and I hear there might be flurries in the air right now) so we only went to the roof for enough time to have a toast and take a few pictures. But we still enjoyed many delicious food items (pumpkin bars, pumpkin pie, roasted nuts, nutter butter acorns, and buffalo chicken dip) and warm beverages (mulled wine, pumpkin hot white chocolate, mulled wine, and also more mulled wine). Instead of outside, we cozied up in the living room playing games, asking 90’s trivial pursuit questions, and generally laughing a lot.

As I’ve mentioned before, I love planning and hosting but I do often worry about how effectively I will be able to manage everything during the actual event.  I was on my feet most of the morning cooking and cleaning and I anticipated being up and about even more during the party, greeting people, getting drinks, cleaning up, etc. But I found that I was able to manage just fine due to three key elements. 1. I wore thick soled house slippers. I pretty much always wear these at home because they are warm and keep me from walking around in socks or bare feet that put more pressure on my joints. 2. I sat as much as possible but didn’t let myself sit for too long. One key to maintaining my joints and energy is to know when to sit and when to get up. There is a happy medium that prevents me from getting too sore or too stiff that, when I listen to it, works really well. 3. My husband did a lot too! He was home today so was able to help out, which is always a relief. However, in the past, I probably would have left him to do everything with the excuse that it is too difficult for me. I’m glad that is no longer the case!

This little gathering was a great way to unwind at the end of a particularly busy period at work. (We also got to discuss the upcoming secret santa that was met with much enthusiasm). And it left me feeling not only warm, cozy and full but also physically able. Ok and sleepy. Very sleepy. 

← Older posts
Newer posts →