2012 Stregerlady Annual Report

Hello. How are you?
It has been awhile. A L O N G while.
I needed to take a break from writing. Life took a bit of a turn last spring, and I just couldn't write.
But lately, there has been an urge, a longing, desire to string words together to make sentences and then into stories to share with whomever stumbles over here.

For some reason, I set up this hurdle that I needed to post a 'year in review' of 2012 before anything else. Over a full quarter of the way into 2013 and the "2012 Stregerlady Annual Report" is going live, which means maybe - just maybe - new posts might start appearing here again. (It also means that I need to update you on the first part of 2013 as well.) So with no further ado, here are the highlights from last year.

2012 Stregerlady Annual Report
January – New year & new peepers gave me a new outlook. Lasik surgery took my vision from 20/1500+ to 20/40 – truly amazing! A medical marvel. I participated in the global virtual Nike women’s half-marathon. 13.1 miles on the treadmill at the gym was tedious, but the finisher’s bling was well worth it!

February – My friend Lisa and I, we’re a couple of heartbreakers when we did the Heartbreaker race for Valentine’s Day. The Justice conference was held in Portland where I represented The Micah Project, and a special Honduran came up for the event to help me staff the booth. One of the best days of the year was taking Marvin up to Mt. Hood to play in the snow, making his long-time dream of making a snow angel come true.

March – Life started getting… interesting... in spring. I began to fall down Alice’s rabbit hole; up is down, down is up. My spiritual director says growth is the great “un-ing” and lots of “un-ing” started happening, leaving me feel like I was (am) being tumbled in a series of waves. Mom and I went to see Wicked, which became my 2nd favorite musical ever. The month also included a quick trip to Denver, Colorado to be part of a Bridal Shower for my (then) soon to be sister-in-law, Amy. (That's her below, on my left.)

     
April – With a desire to be more graceful and add a few legitimate moves to my "dancing," I started an adult ballet class! I attended three whole classes before I landed from a jump weird and totally tweaked my Achilles  which took ages to heal - and had to quit. At work, my huge team of three went for a team building lunch to Andina, a restaurant in the Pearl District, and quite possibly the best meal I've ever eaten in my life! Seriously. Good. Food.

May – At the beginning of the year I set a goal for myself to walk/jog a half marathon in under 3 hours. Four and a half months into the year and I met my goal with the Rock n’ Roll Portland - my best half marathon time to date. I just about puked and passed out in the finisher's corral, but I did it!

Yes, I'm cheap and didn't pay for my photo.
And, yes, it was raining - I don't sweat that much.

Streger family photo at Rob & Julie's wedding.

June – Over the years a few of my brother's friends have become pseudo-siblings. I call them ‘little brothers’ (as opposed to "baby brother" which is reserved for my brother-brother. Got it?) One of my 'little brothers,' Rob, married the lovely Julie "super long name" in June. Thankfully, she took Rob's last name so now I can pronounce her full name. (Just don't ask me what her maiden name is!)

July – A good month for a little stay-cation which I desperately needed. Work had been crazy busy and I needed to get away, even if it meant still answering email every day of my vacation. I visited my cousin in Bend for a few days. I also re-learned how to kayak, which was a blast.

If I found the rabbit hole in March, by July I had fallen down, drunk the potion, and entered a confusing world. I decided to not pursue joining the staff of the Micah Project in Honduras after being fully focused on that path for the past two years. A decision that is scary and sad in turn, and completely unsettling. It feels as though the rug was pulled out from underneath me, but I trust that God is in control and am certain He was not opening the doors for that opportunity at this time.

August – With the summer heat, my running heated up as well and I ran the “Every Girl” 5k and recorded a personal best. I decided to conquer my fear of white water rafting and used a Groupon for a trip down the Deschutes River and ended up going on the exact same stretch that had caused the fear 20+ years earlier (completely coincidental)! Not only did I survive, I had fun! It must have been a water adventure kind of summer, because I also tried stand-up paddleboarding (SUP). It had looked like so much fun and I love being on the water. I recruited a friend to do an intro class with me, much less intimidating that way. While not easy, it was a lot of fun and Julie and I enjoyed ourselves.

   

Probably the biggest event of the year...
The snow loving Honduran came back to Portland - TO LIVE!! That's right, the Micah Project decided to send Marvin to Portland to attend school. He is living with a host family in Lake Oswego, going through the English intensive program at Portland Community College, and loving life in the Pacific Northwest. Most Wednesday nights he comes over to "mama jenn's" for family dinner.
September – Best.Wedding.EVER!!! My beloved baby brother got MARRIED!! (MARRIED!!! Chris?!?! A husband!?!? WEIRD!!) Until a couple years ago, I was doubtful that he would ever get married, but then... then he started dating Amy. And on the 15th they were married in Colorado on a perfect day. I now have a sister!!!!

 

I came home and did my first mud run – the 5k Kiss Me Dirty women only event. After eyeing various obstacle runs and wanting to try my mettle, but lacking the confidence in my ability to survive one, I took the risk to attempt one when I came across a deal to volunteer at registration in exchange for the entry fee; I just went for it and triumphed. Although watching Lisa literally wallow in the mud, which was completely unexpected, may have been the best part of the race. The next weekend was the 5k Color Run which of course required a tutu. In between the fun runs I celebrated 3 years post-surgery on my back and am loving the ability to walk and run and generally be active. (Bet you couldn't have guessed that one, huh?!)
         
October – Portland half marathon done with a cranky left Achilles (still! that darn ballet class) and a sprained right ankle and a sour stomach. I really am that competitive with myself - or persistent, determined, focused - or maybe out of my mind.

November – After debating colors for months and months, the dining nook finally took on a new shade of blue. It's lovely and I'm much calmer now that I'm not seeing red. To my delight, I gained a new roommate while she finishes support raising.
December –One last race for the year, the Jingle Bell 5k, which I always do as it supports the Arthritis Foundation. My time improved, even holding my red nose the whole time; I didn't think about how hard it would be to breathe with it on. Christmas festivities have a new perspective when experienced with someone seeing it for the first time. I always love all the twinkle lights and decorations in December. Amy and Chris came the day after Christmas for a few days, which meant we got to celebrate Christmas all week long!

MJ and I check out the big tree at Pioneer Courthouse Square

   A very good year overall.

2013 Prospectus - the events I'm anticipating this year
January – in the books. How did that happen?? 3 Blazer games – 2 with mom, 1 with MJ. A huge department reorganization at work meant I switched teams and joined the Test Publishing team and am now part of a team of 5 others; I'm no longer a lone wolf - I have co-workers to cross-train and share the workload with, a very good thing for my sanity. But sadly, it also means that Jon and I are no longer on the same team; the dynamic duo has been split-up. I'm still in mourning.
February – start training. Despite the enormous improvement in my eyesight thanks to LASIK last January,  I am once again with glasses. Originally meant for just night driving, my spectacles are handy driving at any time of day. And in theaters. At work. At church. At concerts. The big difference in comparison to the last 30ish years, I can get by without my glasses now and be okay, just a little hazy - not blind.

March – kick the training into gear and give it a test with the Hop Hop 5k. I got to wear bunny ears! (I was also kinda sick, my judgement may have been impaired.)


April – National capital, here I come!! I'm meeting up with my friend Courtney from Texas to do the Nike Women's Marathon (half) in Washington, D.C. I'm not ready, but there will be a blue Tiffany box at the finish line with a specially designed finishers charm. Nothing is keeping me from that blue box!
Sadly, my roommate has moved out as of today. I knew from the get-go it was a short-term stop-gap solution, but I'm bummed to see Maureen leave; she has been so wonderful to have around.
May – Rock n’ Roll Portland for the 2nd year.
June – Rock n’ Roll Seattle – going for the Pacific Peaks medal.
July – Flat Half because I’m crazy enough to think I can do one half marathon a month.
August – Cascade relay race. Okay, not quite a half-marathon, but close.
September – possible trip to NYC to visit Amy + Chris for US Open. Sharon (a 'little sister') and Manny are tying the knot. I enter the fabulous forties! (meltdown and denial to ensue shortly.) No race planned... yet.
October – Rock n’ Roll San Jose – because they give you a super cool “Triple Crown” medal if you do three RnR events in one calendar year. I won a "Pass the Lottery" ticket to the NWM San Francisco so I'm planning on going back down for that race as well. It's better than Wonka's Golden ticket, better than a "Pass Jail" card in Monopoly - how could I not take advantage of it?
November – I'm hoping to make it down to the Micah Project in Honduras for graduation. It will have been two years since I was there last; far, far too long. While I'm no longer pursuing being on staff, I still plan to support and participate in the ministry.
December – My favorite time of the year! I'll be doing the Jingle Bell run for Arthritis again, with my Rudolph nose and antlers - come do it with me!

Wow! You reached the end. You deserve a special treat - a virtual pat on the back from me.
Thank you for stopping by, and hopefully there will be more reason (and more interesting reasons) to stop by in the near future. Tell me, what are you looking forward to in 2013?

Cheers! Niff

Chubby Hubby Reinvention - Take #2

I got my baking groove on over the holidays and made some great treats. For Christmas I made one of my favorite desserts- chocolate bread pudding using panettone for the bread. It is beyond decadent! For dad's birthday (known to the rest of the world as New Year's Eve) we celebrated with peppermint chocolate cheesecake bars, a recipe I found courtesy of Pinterest, my obsession is paying off with very tasty treats. Then there were the neighbor goodie bags filled with puppy chow/muddy buddies/monkey munch - let it be known that by whatever name you call it -  I make the best, spritz cookies, homemade peppermint marshmallows, and candy cane hearts. And it wouldn't be Christmas without maple pecan sticky buns. No wonder I gained weight over the holidays, even though I gave most if it away. But the new year has started, I am setting the goal that I will get to a healthy weight this year with Project: {me}, I have teenage boys to keep up with after all, so it's not really an option. Yet it was hard to get back on track with healthy eating after so much indulgence. Not helping in the efforts was the leftover ingredients hanging out in my pantry and fridge. (Cream cheese makes my diet brownies taste so much better!) The only thing to do was make one last epic dessert using all the leftovers. I took stock of what was on hand, particularly those items that are a weakness and/or couldn't be stored in my garage pantry long term, out of sight and out of mind. I wanted to avoid buying any more ingredients to complete a recipe, the point was to get rid of things. I came up with this list: cream cheese, peanut butter, eggs, pretzels, chocolate chips. It was really just the eggs and the cream cheese I needed to get rid of, the pretzels are not a temptation but they would go stale, and then I'd just throw them out, and that is just wasteful when they could be made into something yummy.


Pondering that list and knowing the other things I had on hand I started thinking about a new reinvention of chubby hubby. This time instead of a cookie base, what about mainly cheesecake... mmm... peanut butter cheesecake, that's an excellent starting point. I delved back into Pinterest world to help me shape my idea. This is what I came up with: Peanut Butter Pretzel Cheesecake bars.  Will you allow me to brag for just a moment? These things are amazingly

scrump-dilly-icious!! 

I took the pan to work and they got rave reviews, it was a major hit with the guys, especially in the media department. The pan was empty before the end of the day, always a good sign.

Want to try them for yourself? Here is what you need.

Equipment: A stand mixer with the whisk attachment and food processor with  the metal blade.

Ingredients:
Crust-
2 packets of grahamies (or graham crackers to a normal person)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
2 handfuls of mini-twist pretzels
1 stick (8 tablespoons) of butter, melted

Filling-
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
2 blocks of cream cheese (room temperature)
1 cup peanut butter (creamy will work best, and not the natural kind)
1/3 cup half n' half
4 eggs (room temperature)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Topping-
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of half n' half
3 ounces of crushed peanuts
2 handfuls of mini-twist pretzels, broken into pieces

Directions:
For the crust: In the bowl of the food processor, put in all the 'crust' ingredients except the butter. Turn it on and let it do its thing until the graham crackers and pretzels are obliterated into a sand like consistency. With the machine running, slowly pour in the melted butter through the feed tube. I would suggest doing it in two batches, stopping the machine in-between and scraping down the sides. After all the butter is added let it run a little longer to make sure it is all mixed together well. Once it seems mixed and about the consistency of damp sand and will clump together, dump it into a 9x13 baking pan, patting it into a nice even layer along the bottom. Bake it at 350° for 12 minutes. Take it out of the oven and let it cool while you whip up the rest of the dessert.

For the filling: In the bowl of the stand mixer add the brown sugar, cream cheese and peanut butter. You might want to give it a bit of a start on the mixing with arm and spatula as the cream cheese and peanut butter are kind of thick at first. Once it is blended together add the rest of the ingredients and mix until it is well mixed and a little foamy. Remember to periodically stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. When it looks ready, pour it over the crust. Bake at 350° for approximately 25-30 minutes - until the middle only sorta jiggles a little when the pan is wiggled. Let it cool before putting the topping on.

For the topping: In a microwave safe bowl, preferably glass or ceramic (I'm convinced plastic adds an odd flavor), add the chocolate chips, butter, and half n' half. Microwave for 30 seconds and then stir really well. Microwave in 10 second intervals until melted, smooth, and combined. Spread it over the top of the cooled cheesecake, moving quickly, while it is still warm press broken pretzel and peanut pieces into the chocolate.

ta-da!!

Chubby Hubby inspired Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars!

(Notes: I used half n' half because that is what I had, but if I were making this again I would use sour cream in the cheesecake filling for a little more twang, maybe upping it to 1/2 a cup. The batter had a strong punch, but once cooked it was rather mellow. Also, the topping could have been better using heavy cream instead of the half and half, and a little more of it at that.)

Easter Eggs

This is pysanky, Ukrainian egg decorating. About once every couple years I am inspired to try my hand at it again. This year I had to cheat and fill in some lines with a white paint pen. I think it takes me a couple years to forget how exasperating these eggs are to make, but I guess the end product is worth it. I've had a few people ask to learn how to do this. If you are interested in trying your hand at Pysanky let me know!