Friday, November 16, 2007

RECIPES

Candy Bar Cheesecake Squares recipe
Makes: 24 servings, 1 square each 2 cups OREO Chocolate Cookie Crumbs 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, melted 4 (8 ounce) packages PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 4 eggs 4 (2.07 ounce) bars chocolate-coated caramel-peanut nougat bars, chopped, divided PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees F. Mix crumbs and butter; press firmly onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking pan. BEAT cream cheese, sugar and vanilla extract in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs; mix just until blended. Gently stir in 1 cup of the chopped candy bars. Pour over crust. Sprinkle with remaining chopped candy bars. BAKE 40 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool. Refrigerate several hours or overnight. Cut into 24 squares to serve. Store leftover dessert in refrigerator. Size-Wise Enjoy a serving of this rich and indulgent treat on special occasions. Chocolate-Covered Cheesecake Bars Prepare and bake as directed. Cut into 32 bars. Place bars on wire rack. Melt 1 (12 ounce) package BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks and 2 tablespoons shortening in saucepan on very low heat, stirring constantly. Pour chocolate mixture over bars to completely cover. Let stand until chocolate is firm. Store in refrigerator. Makes 32 servings, 1 bar each.

Blueberry Cream Muffins recipe
4 eggs 2 cups granulated sugar 1 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract4 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons baking powder 2 cups (16 ounces) sour cream 2 cups fresh blueberries
In a mixing bowl, beat eggs. Gradually add sugar. While beating, slowly pour in oil; add vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; add alternately with sour cream to the egg mixture. Gently fold in blueberries. Spoon into greased muffin tins (or paper liners). Bake at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes.
Yield: about 24 muffins

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Life Map





Epitaph

Here in lies
CARISSA BOST
A precious one from us has gone
A voice we loved is stilled
Place is vacant in our home
That never can be filled.

Suburban Sanctuary




SUBURBAN SANCTUARY

A great place to just hang out and relax is Strongsville’s very own metro parks system. It’s a great place to workout, get a breath of fresh air, talk things over, relax, or even to just look at some of the beautiful scenery. The parkway is used by hundreds of people every day; drivers, bikers, runners, roller bladders, and anyone else. It’s such a great place because it’s free and open to the public, and it’s large so you don’t ever have to worry about the crowds. The parkway also serves as a home for animals such as deer, raccoons, birds, and rabbits. The metro parks serve as a great place for Strongsville and its surrounding cities. It is used year round, 24/7. During the fall, the park system is especially beautiful, because the parkway is filled with colorful trees. The metro park system is a wonderful suburban sanctuary for everyone to use.

Autobiographic Incident


Autobiographic Incident

During the summer following my freshman year of high school, I took a trip to Italy, Greece and Turkey. I had more fun on this trip than I have ever had on any other trip in my life. We were gone for about two weeks, and this trip included a week long cruise. We spent two days in Greece and three in Turkey, and the rest of the time in Italy. We sang on the gondolas in Venice, and we spent our last five nights in Rome. Rome had the scent of food and you could smell the sweetness of all the gelato stands nearby.
This trip was the best experience of my life. I got to do things that many people get the chance to do. I got to see lots of ruins, and including the Coliseum, the Parthenon, the Pantheon, and I got to stand on top of the acropolis in Greece. We took a trip to St. Peter’s Basilica and took a tour of the Sistine Chapel, the colors were all so bright and vivid, and everything caught your eye. The Sistine Chapel is like a huge, endless mural.
On the last day of our trip, right before we left, we got the opportunity to sing in St. Peter’s Square for Pope Benedict. It was 107 degrees at 9 in the morning; the sun was as hot as a sauna. The Pope blessed us and we got to take pictures with him.
Italy, Greece and Turkey are filled with unforgettable sights, sounds and scents. All of these countries are heavily populated, so you constantly see tons of people walking. The smell of cigarette smoke fills the air. A quarter of the people roaming around on the streets are homeless and you hear lots of people shaking cans in your face demanding money. All of these countries have many downfalls to them, but this trip was a great experience for me to understand their culture a lot more and to learn to love it. Italy is a beautiful place and I would love to go back again.

QUOTES TO LIVE BY

-"To the world you may be just somebody, but to somebody you may just be the world."~ Author Unknown ~

-"Measure yourself by your best moments, not by your worst. We are too prone to judge ourselves by our moments of despondency and depression."~ Robert Johnson ~

-"Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go."~ William Feather~

-"Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some people move our souls to dance. They awaken us to a new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom. Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon. They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same."~ Flavia Weedn ~

-"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising every time we fail." ~ Confucius ~

-"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are." ~ John Wooden ~

-"Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."~ Frank Outlaw ~

-"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. ~

-"He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has." ~ Epictetus ~

-"You simply will not be the same person two months from now after consciously giving thanks each day for the abundance that exists in your life. And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law: the more you have and are grateful for, the more will be given you."~ Sarah Ban Breathnach ~