The A game!!

Okay... so Facebook games are cool, but what do you get from them? Nothing! Just the satisfaction of knowing you've wasted another three hours sitting on your butt. Well, that's all about to change! Enter "The A game" - the first Facebook game that rewards players for their efforts with prizes like Wii consoles, iPods, and oh so many other wonderful things. Join the craze by joining the Facebook fan page here! It's launching in March and it's going to be funnnnn!!!

Another Day, Another Shirt!

Here's another shirt design for Threadless. If you have a second, I'd love for you to take a look at my design and give it a score!

Thanks!

"It's only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing themselves, in finding themselves."
-Andre Gide

"Get back to that place you were in as a child, when "limitation" was a word grown-ups said."

Threadless T-Shirt Design

Hi everyone! Please take a look at and score my t-shirt design for Threadless.com. If you haven't heard of Threadless, you should check it out because it's awesome! It's a place where designers can submit t-shirt designs for critique and scoring. Shirts will go to print from the pool of designs based on the score that the design is given by those who check it out and comments. Please leave some feedback at the link below and take a minute to score my design (I hope you give me a 5!) The design is called "hairphabet' and it's an alphabetical catalog of hairstyles from all walks of life. I hope you like it!! Thanks :-)

Vegetarianism is delicious!

I've been toying with the idea of becoming a vegetarian for a while now. Over the past two years I have had the pleasure of living with a vegetarian and a vegan - one in a college apartment and one on an RV. I replaced milk with soy milk during my sophomore year of college and cut red meat and pork out of my diet shortly after. Recently I have "become a vegetarian" on a trial basis twice, only to return to my meat eating ways. A few days ago I decided that it's time for me to make the decision to be a vegetarian and stick with it. For moral reasons. For health reasons. There are just too many positive reasons for me to become a vegetarian that right now it's not an option for me to do anything else.

So, in honor of my decision, I set out to bake a vegetarian cookie that would be both delicious and animal friendly. I found an amazing recipe on ChooseVeg.com that I will definitely make again! It was easy to make and the cookies came out GREAT. I didn't have egg replacer, but I found a great video about egg substitutes on YouTube. I opted for the flax seed and water combination for my batch of cookies.


INGREDIENTS:

• 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup Earth Balance*, softened (although Earth Balance is the best, you may use any other non-dairy butter/margarine)
• 3/4 cup granulated [white] sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Egg Replacer for 2 eggs**
• 2 cups (12-ounce package) semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

*Earth Balance can be found at Whole Foods, Lakeshore Natural Foods, and other natural health food stores.

**ENER-G Egg Replacer is a brand-name powder mixture of vegetable starches that simulates eggs in baking. It can be used in recipes calling for unbeaten eggs, egg whites beaten stiff, and egg yolks. It can be found at Whole Foods as well as natural health food stores.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.

2. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla in large mixer bowl.

3. Add egg replacer one at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in flour mixture.

4. Stir in chips and nuts.

5. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

6. Bake in preheated 375-degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.

7. Let stand for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

If you make them, let me know or if you have any tips on becoming a vegetarian, please let me know!!

“One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn't pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.”
--Lucille Ball

"I see my path, but I don't know where it leads. Not knowing where I'm going is what inspires me to travel it."
--Rosalia de Castro

My best friend Sarah and I recently embarked on a pedal to the metal road trip from California to Minnesota. The experience was especially epic because it marked our last big adventure together before she leaves to do year-long missions work in Lithuania. We both agreed that it would be a good way to get sick of one another in order to make the approaching separation easier. We did have our tense moments - the most memorable being a livid "discussion" about where to sleep. I argued the car, she pleaded a hotel. I broke and we settled into an Econolodge at 2am on our second night of the trip. Looking back, I'm glad that I got to shower, but will still argue that the Econolodge's continental breakfast left something to be desired.

Road tripping has become such a big part of my life over the past year. Even so, as I sit in my room back on the East coast reflecting on all of the amazing traveling I have been blessed to do and writing this blog post, I still feel the passion and freedom of the open road surging through my veins and an itch to get out there again and explore. I love having a friend like Sarah to talk travel with. She's going to do amazing things in Lithuania and I can't wait to hear about everything that God is teaching her there.

I'm going to miss that girl...