tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-293793472024-03-13T12:33:14.232-05:00veggiehikertravelTravel, art, politics, museums, food.veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.comBlogger730125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-34956368426145344342015-07-01T20:00:00.000-05:002015-07-01T20:00:01.678-05:00Hiking: Cave Spring Park<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8SZudQEeCCgY9JnwKAuJj6nhg6a1qMLBqN6qZK1e2pHXnsSyl4M0ChTe1mQRqJaYJmDTJqZkAgNmYW7SeKIsMoXcknL0LkYJb6J0ICGPjALqWzfk7ZHgkWQhOkDDKqqzpDEob/s1600/20150628_153104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8SZudQEeCCgY9JnwKAuJj6nhg6a1qMLBqN6qZK1e2pHXnsSyl4M0ChTe1mQRqJaYJmDTJqZkAgNmYW7SeKIsMoXcknL0LkYJb6J0ICGPjALqWzfk7ZHgkWQhOkDDKqqzpDEob/s400/20150628_153104.jpg" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">On the trail.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">This weekend we once again hit the trail with a hike we found in our new <i>Hiking Kansas City</i> book, that at Cave Spring Park. The park is a small tract of forest along the former Santa Fe and Oregon Trails. Pioneers and traders would stop at the small spring on their first day on the trail, after departing from Independence, Missouri. The park history included a marker for the pioneer trail camps, a few old chimneys that are the mid-twentieth century remnants of a Free Mason Country Club, and a marker for Harry Truman's grandfather, who owned the land in the late nineteenth century. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Cave Springs in the cave state.</span></div>
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This small cave, for which the park is named, had a tiny spring flowing from it's interior. There was also a small spring-fed pond on the other side of the park.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Little dude, big trees.</span> </div>
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The park is only 40 acres nestled in the city, but there were many paths winding through the forest, making it feel much larger. There were also a few small streams and bridges, and we even saw a deer at the start of our hike. There was a small waterfall near what seemed to be an old dam, but a tree had recently fallen over the tiny falls, making them hard to see. All of the remnants of human history combined with some cool natural features made this a really sweet afternoon adventure. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3lKUxMQ2vzXoDEzx4nILRxIHhU7eMQuHE3uNMmHL1qyPh0Cj1zRpQ3OVTbMRBR30r1RGwCSMp1v5E42-Rk2oXW9e909YIMYlhedest_4V4Qj2nz1EKg9dOiqucwwZ8sFoDxxg/s1600/20150628_144607.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3lKUxMQ2vzXoDEzx4nILRxIHhU7eMQuHE3uNMmHL1qyPh0Cj1zRpQ3OVTbMRBR30r1RGwCSMp1v5E42-Rk2oXW9e909YIMYlhedest_4V4Qj2nz1EKg9dOiqucwwZ8sFoDxxg/s400/20150628_144607.jpg" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Hiking crew.</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-43556376601086904292015-06-29T20:00:00.000-05:002015-06-29T21:46:25.104-05:00Kansas City: Heart of America Shakespeare Festival<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpTvS3gg00QzgHGxM6eXeJr4dXwSYHbi3TG2ikVHr5VnW43HStwNn-xAkbMLM4CebFKqzwxzBpkbwhdC3vC2Ze88bg8pLh6rzDUJ34YslxwgjIt0Fe1Figmt6ILptGXimpvFOE/s1600/20150627_130721.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpTvS3gg00QzgHGxM6eXeJr4dXwSYHbi3TG2ikVHr5VnW43HStwNn-xAkbMLM4CebFKqzwxzBpkbwhdC3vC2Ze88bg8pLh6rzDUJ34YslxwgjIt0Fe1Figmt6ILptGXimpvFOE/s320/20150627_130721.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">King Lear program and button.</span> </div>
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Each summer, one of our favorite June activities is attending the <a href="http://www.kcshakes.org/" target="_blank">Heart of America Shakespeare Festival</a> in Southmoreland Park. This year's production, King Lear, was dramatic and dark, but a great performance and a lovely time as usual.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvfwddD6SgZZ_nCUIOMHYXWZDfCtIYLjaKVkNIQy8wHpVDvAIKvmePwEkVamHFxH9JtO-i7txyOR5gNeLkSkgji_JPhEBNDYvvXKccu6MFWrj7-x6y4-uONsnXgvm2nXV-tYwy/s1600/20150625_194222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvfwddD6SgZZ_nCUIOMHYXWZDfCtIYLjaKVkNIQy8wHpVDvAIKvmePwEkVamHFxH9JtO-i7txyOR5gNeLkSkgji_JPhEBNDYvvXKccu6MFWrj7-x6y4-uONsnXgvm2nXV-tYwy/s320/20150625_194222.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Festival entrance.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The festival has a pre-show talk and many booths with concessions of wine, sandwiches, and popcorn, but we usually just bring our picnic basket and </span>hang out on the lawn for a few minutes before the show. A fresh baguette, some cheese, dips, fruit, small chocolates, and wine are the perfect accompaniment to the drama.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGcqAXgMc2Ai_CZ5s7ONJs6gTFXS_y923JtchI4xNy2h-dEyXVGd47XEFlBBWES-D8qP09gS7wERW5Dr0CGLQTx3aSIPdPLI8K5kkc9e-sRMxgJmHXt6U93gsCpUqy8pCOeNac/s1600/20150625_194348.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGcqAXgMc2Ai_CZ5s7ONJs6gTFXS_y923JtchI4xNy2h-dEyXVGd47XEFlBBWES-D8qP09gS7wERW5Dr0CGLQTx3aSIPdPLI8K5kkc9e-sRMxgJmHXt6U93gsCpUqy8pCOeNac/s320/20150625_194348.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">We met The Bard himself!</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf8lE_ErwjJi55FQwUxFS5BzukKPtlmqVNne7rcwP0A__a4PTnHtFpJYj9_pbET-T0jSPfpNwf3Wuhv4yLLKmLV_TDXmUIAjrfoHKVlO6ioYrqytQYV3Nblyx3nYBa47ZO4-Sj/s1600/IMG_20150625_234745.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf8lE_ErwjJi55FQwUxFS5BzukKPtlmqVNne7rcwP0A__a4PTnHtFpJYj9_pbET-T0jSPfpNwf3Wuhv4yLLKmLV_TDXmUIAjrfoHKVlO6ioYrqytQYV3Nblyx3nYBa47ZO4-Sj/s320/IMG_20150625_234745.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Clouds in the distance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">The weather is often hot and humid during the festival, but this year it was a bit cooler and more comfortable than usual. There were beautiful clouds off to the north and east, which provided a bit of extra intrigue for the show- at the point when King Lear is leaving the castle the play includes a storm, which on the night we attended was supplemented with real lightning off in the distance. The performance starts at 8 pm, and the sun goes down throughout the first half of the play. It's quite magical to grow increasingly interested in the story and characters as the sun retreats, and the sunset truly heightens the drama of the performance.</span> </span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9B8L9jfVHzZI0O9WVWS1nNfZ5UoYBMIYpfhlQEgzwp_t8-JwDvVpMAuJqgbaAbsLmt00RqEK9scn_i0_caR_mU9vE4qy7v3ejGH2HjSwR7epouEpheaEcVgmgZC3xwj9Xr0PG/s1600/20150625_205846.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9B8L9jfVHzZI0O9WVWS1nNfZ5UoYBMIYpfhlQEgzwp_t8-JwDvVpMAuJqgbaAbsLmt00RqEK9scn_i0_caR_mU9vE4qy7v3ejGH2HjSwR7epouEpheaEcVgmgZC3xwj9Xr0PG/s320/20150625_205846.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The view of the stage from our blanket.</span> </div>
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The festival is free, but there are options for reserved seats or reserved blanket space. We just opt for the free grassy area and give a small donation.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZnKXnFurR2PeY1hjoXQsRDccWOyvcgjaPPxRbFmVAoDq9ndrgTOhjNl97EyLs4MUBVgMEypsP2menFuE77cV3nufsK7CeEdUaQ1lx3C2hWkEeKnojMe-N8E5MpUnQA_LL4D8Y/s1600/20150625_213601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZnKXnFurR2PeY1hjoXQsRDccWOyvcgjaPPxRbFmVAoDq9ndrgTOhjNl97EyLs4MUBVgMEypsP2menFuE77cV3nufsK7CeEdUaQ1lx3C2hWkEeKnojMe-N8E5MpUnQA_LL4D8Y/s320/20150625_213601.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Picnic basket.</span></div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-23701587489837519932015-06-23T20:00:00.000-05:002015-06-23T20:00:00.943-05:00Baking 2015: Lemon Pudding Cake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicYf11rx5VezoPaea0w370iPCPNrD8tFh82O_ZjAaj1j_a9bX6aTxR_xIzwKUHrKbd__Iu8AHWaqTP34E_gV9Q5wv57rUtqmMNgPWbMfkp8ZDY7T9JTbgcDPTzpmTzGHa_8i2O/s1600/20150621_184001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicYf11rx5VezoPaea0w370iPCPNrD8tFh82O_ZjAaj1j_a9bX6aTxR_xIzwKUHrKbd__Iu8AHWaqTP34E_gV9Q5wv57rUtqmMNgPWbMfkp8ZDY7T9JTbgcDPTzpmTzGHa_8i2O/s320/20150621_184001.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The completed cake.</span> </div>
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For our Father's Day BBQ, I wanted to make a light dessert that was relatively easy to create. A few weeks ago I saw a Lemon Pudding Cake recipe in the NY Times- I've never made, or possibly even tried a pudding cake, so I was intrigued. As the weekend approached, I found a different recipe for <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/lemon-pudding-cake-i/" target="_blank">Lemon Pudding Cake</a> on Allrecipies, and decided to try it. It was summer perfection: a lemony pudding on the bottom, and a light sponge-like cake on the top. The recipe was easy to follow, did not require much effort, and was a hit with the fam. To dress it up, I might add a small dollop of fresh whipped cream and a small handful of seasonal berries next time.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVVrbzqNgFkR8rj3LhgeaRW2uQzCjpBCJsuLqFM9Oro59H6Ye5pz4zaeL7ERNJ4_lFI0YkA-L2V2lbRRj4EhEqzg2Uh9i5QKhMP-k5TXmDyjrRqvdRIrTfFxxLV6YPV8e9tUQ-/s1600/20150621_144500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVVrbzqNgFkR8rj3LhgeaRW2uQzCjpBCJsuLqFM9Oro59H6Ye5pz4zaeL7ERNJ4_lFI0YkA-L2V2lbRRj4EhEqzg2Uh9i5QKhMP-k5TXmDyjrRqvdRIrTfFxxLV6YPV8e9tUQ-/s320/20150621_144500.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Separating eggs, grating lemon rind, squeezing lemon juice.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJchRsucHRQP4x346Ktryq7MwtrVg_ShCjesz4me3W5rf-sJqyW6-yXxKBN5szK9V_ZqIQEaXSgk9PA_16wMeG0CrPoRq4Joq3fG_M0iuHNsmXJnx3nUREl_eKAnTrsH1OI6T7/s1600/20150621_151739.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJchRsucHRQP4x346Ktryq7MwtrVg_ShCjesz4me3W5rf-sJqyW6-yXxKBN5szK9V_ZqIQEaXSgk9PA_16wMeG0CrPoRq4Joq3fG_M0iuHNsmXJnx3nUREl_eKAnTrsH1OI6T7/s320/20150621_151739.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Egg whites being beaten to peaks- this seemed to be the key for the sponge cake top.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBTjNv2O-aE4IMekq7Ai_LJj_FTtKX2LXcVQ641nnSvYCcHYjvHiOzYxFV6C-Bj7zljficjvlsiul244muvpBy5c5rYs6nXmgoKlQpmR5jC5Ctva7lRGnshF9tRtUKaLKBBW3c/s1600/20150621_152725.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBTjNv2O-aE4IMekq7Ai_LJj_FTtKX2LXcVQ641nnSvYCcHYjvHiOzYxFV6C-Bj7zljficjvlsiul244muvpBy5c5rYs6nXmgoKlQpmR5jC5Ctva7lRGnshF9tRtUKaLKBBW3c/s320/20150621_152725.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">In the oven surrounded by a bath of hot water, which also seemed key.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBRLvsT6t41sc220QaeC8uxptncuqAJVoVX_GcfJI2w4atgq6fJPHhc61KuTKaFUmd7iJMs_mKgc_oBEYKbkrZ8xVO-JWiSB0pbpBDXUYhC_qvoClCSvJ-xPEXYMUTkLj_K9qI/s1600/20150621_192543.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBRLvsT6t41sc220QaeC8uxptncuqAJVoVX_GcfJI2w4atgq6fJPHhc61KuTKaFUmd7iJMs_mKgc_oBEYKbkrZ8xVO-JWiSB0pbpBDXUYhC_qvoClCSvJ-xPEXYMUTkLj_K9qI/s320/20150621_192543.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The completed cake- pudding and sponge cake. So delicious.</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-1500594082561687102015-06-22T20:00:00.000-05:002015-06-22T20:00:01.877-05:00Hiking: Jerry Smith Park<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Storm clouds behind us on the trail. We narrowly avoided the rain.</span> </div>
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Recently, I purchased a book titled <i>Hiking Kansas City</i>. While there are many resources on the internet for finding natural areas, sometimes the wealth of information makes it hard to find spots nearby. Books like this one are oftentimes more helpful that the web, as they are concise and to the point. Plus, after spending hours in front of a screen for work, it is much more pleasant to page through paper than to spend time on my phone or computer. This past weekend, we took our first hike from the book, at <a href="http://kcparks.org/park/jerry-smith-park/" target="_blank">Jerry Smith Park</a> in south KC. We may have never learned about this great spot without the book.</div>
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The park was a little tough to find, but was really lovely once we arrived. We completed the 2.5 mile hiking loop through restored prairie, and walked around the small fishing lake. The park was full of wildflowers, and had many areas of stone where little dude could seek out fossils. We also spied the seventeen-year cicada, and a variety of birds. I'm very much looking forward to hiking here again, and to seeing how the landscape changes with the seasons.</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Wildflowers.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">One of the forested parts of the trail.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6tpjDuyA2amflJPRsLDnNSln7U-Ckh-eVndZ1PP1Zh47XkKQ4iAm3HB12YxPKfbMWJFI3Lm9aS6T_HDJu2zJZ2M-pqzNxLWM1Iw3o3IVWyuMMFA172PnkSmdbPDrC6yeXiCp/s1600/20150621_130931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6tpjDuyA2amflJPRsLDnNSln7U-Ckh-eVndZ1PP1Zh47XkKQ4iAm3HB12YxPKfbMWJFI3Lm9aS6T_HDJu2zJZ2M-pqzNxLWM1Iw3o3IVWyuMMFA172PnkSmdbPDrC6yeXiCp/s320/20150621_130931.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">More wildflowers.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Fossil hunting. We found a variety of coral fossils, and some worm-like fossils.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Cicada.</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-7834471574621946412015-06-20T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-20T08:00:02.645-05:00Summer to-do<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Summer always goes by too fast, and while we have some solid traditions, like Royals games, garden time, camping, Shakespeare in the Park, and frozen yogurt trips, there are a few things we've desired to try or do more frequently, but never seem to get around to. This year we made a list of things we want to do, with the hope that a written out list will motivate us. Some of these are things we have done, but it's been a few years, others are things we have yet to try. The list is:</div>
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- Go to the drive-in movie theater</div>
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- Go to a T-bones game (minor league baseball)</div>
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- Picnic in Loose Park and picnic at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art</div>
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- Go to a Sporting KC game (soccer)</div>
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- Have a garden party</div>
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- Go to Powell Gardens</div>
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- Spend a day at one of the local lakes</div>
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- Go to an outdoor movie</div>
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Here's to the long days of summer!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg-tutm4fKabPHrLxVsY3kYiF35MJl-wG5mz65GacXQ7JZfPOgUo4DmEleaOOfAZJ1pXTBUrTUWAyY6oVgBvBfCLSXOr6mMmHLyPHYHQefAJpBOaJUbNd5KStjjyTRWuCoBYKF/s1600/IMG_20150616_210015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg-tutm4fKabPHrLxVsY3kYiF35MJl-wG5mz65GacXQ7JZfPOgUo4DmEleaOOfAZJ1pXTBUrTUWAyY6oVgBvBfCLSXOr6mMmHLyPHYHQefAJpBOaJUbNd5KStjjyTRWuCoBYKF/s320/IMG_20150616_210015.jpg" width="320" /> </a> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-28322862247846119652015-06-19T08:00:00.000-05:002015-06-19T18:19:21.568-05:00Travel: Chicago in summer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2d21gkHOmwFdQF8IvgkWrnb-BkwUzyybbnIh3PoPNZ_j085ogLv0vX3jIoLGkSuZxjeunRQ_Nl8pb6nasOQ5_6bM_lpXV8-xv_15bNekS-d3CllEgPrKCFSkUPqlPjxDnoczH/s1600/20150611_201153.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2d21gkHOmwFdQF8IvgkWrnb-BkwUzyybbnIh3PoPNZ_j085ogLv0vX3jIoLGkSuZxjeunRQ_Nl8pb6nasOQ5_6bM_lpXV8-xv_15bNekS-d3CllEgPrKCFSkUPqlPjxDnoczH/s320/20150611_201153.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Travel kid takes O'Hare.</span> </div>
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This past weekend we spent a few days in Chicago, visiting friends and family and attending a friends "new tax status party" (they got married). In addition to all the visiting, eating, and time spent at the hotel pool, we spent a day at the <a href="http://www.msichicago.org/" target="_blank">Museum of Science and Industry</a>, a morning at the <a href="http://www.chicagobotanic.org/" target="_blank">Chicago Botanic Garden</a>. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3oP-M3KbC2ybmmyxVD-YFQtNFwbDK0bLYLI_6NlMjuA_53Af4UWKf10sI3LijUQK-2kdrfIhvkE1RWlYLWYQUn_HhbCjfxq806TLhgamskuLZUlTr1iRPkELQhUVZAWBVgIg8/s1600/20150612_150102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3oP-M3KbC2ybmmyxVD-YFQtNFwbDK0bLYLI_6NlMjuA_53Af4UWKf10sI3LijUQK-2kdrfIhvkE1RWlYLWYQUn_HhbCjfxq806TLhgamskuLZUlTr1iRPkELQhUVZAWBVgIg8/s320/20150612_150102.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The amazing train layout at the Museum of Science and Industry (MSI).</span> </div>
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MSI is always a favorite of ours. This time we did the Coal Mine, which provided a history of the industry, and was basically the greatest reminder for the need for government regulation of industry. I was really surprised to hear that small electronic life-saving gas monitors were not required until 2001. The industry fought the requirement for the monitors for miners as they were a few hundred dollars a piece. I was also surprised to learn that Illinois is the fifth largest coal producing state in the U.S.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJINizEpOahyphenhyphenjxqhqrJpCOK4A6oR3EtJEaPNQMEgOLLIj56g_t8tXkwr14786Psm892DTHMhfRDbokxRoZmGxfGiSCk-HCv1ozFevMnRJw8U-VMioJTeOzjlWVUvqxD7NOy3KO/s1600/20150612_151144.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJINizEpOahyphenhyphenjxqhqrJpCOK4A6oR3EtJEaPNQMEgOLLIj56g_t8tXkwr14786Psm892DTHMhfRDbokxRoZmGxfGiSCk-HCv1ozFevMnRJw8U-VMioJTeOzjlWVUvqxD7NOy3KO/s320/20150612_151144.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The mirror maze at MSI</span>.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiyLSzQCJU0OFgRh98opzdgVQA6tbowJ-VQ87oGJjvsSoF0LnIdSUhetXWX2ysEp3_amhhlTZYytXgh8tnJWXwVfyLLnZnsvW2DZdKPAkBc0N9xOFZEYl08yX9P0f61-NYh2ac/s1600/20150612_151401.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiyLSzQCJU0OFgRh98opzdgVQA6tbowJ-VQ87oGJjvsSoF0LnIdSUhetXWX2ysEp3_amhhlTZYytXgh8tnJWXwVfyLLnZnsvW2DZdKPAkBc0N9xOFZEYl08yX9P0f61-NYh2ac/s320/20150612_151401.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">More mirror maze. It was part of a larger exhibit that addressed patterns found across nature.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">MSI explorations.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6k2DbxLG0UaZRrpHcpHdyGSvOVJAr_Ds2npHMStz5r8zHvSLanYzXwN6STbiqS-bk-G_QVoxVlE7cRdF3JPd1n7qb0Jr1vfzebwPpvlcimWHt0hFAUZXSVc8pGCMzIK08pHM3/s1600/20150612_173507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6k2DbxLG0UaZRrpHcpHdyGSvOVJAr_Ds2npHMStz5r8zHvSLanYzXwN6STbiqS-bk-G_QVoxVlE7cRdF3JPd1n7qb0Jr1vfzebwPpvlcimWHt0hFAUZXSVc8pGCMzIK08pHM3/s320/20150612_173507.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">One of us simply can't get enough of the trains.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I hadn't been to the Gardens since I believe junior high or high school, and Joe had never been. The Gardens are a wonderful treat, and a great way to spend a beautiful day. In addition to the Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, Bonsai Garden, English Garden, and Waterfall Garden, we (not surprisingly) spent a while in their fantastic Train Garden.</span> </span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">English Gardens.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">With Grandpa and the bonsai.</span> </div>
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At first little dude wasn't too interested in the bonsai, until he discovered those with paths and multiple trees. He called them <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Neighbor_Totoro" target="_blank">Totoro</a> bonsai. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPmWPlvnVj188AvXhSGuNlphFLifyKSLugwnVHQx3kOxthPWS6P8u1R0jv1MLEawyWcfHsDh1pB5LUN_s_jExQF-n3i4Zs9Cw59huWQVxMEHvx0Vi42r8zT8QXZBlu2WrBX2R_/s1600/20150613_150159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPmWPlvnVj188AvXhSGuNlphFLifyKSLugwnVHQx3kOxthPWS6P8u1R0jv1MLEawyWcfHsDh1pB5LUN_s_jExQF-n3i4Zs9Cw59huWQVxMEHvx0Vi42r8zT8QXZBlu2WrBX2R_/s320/20150613_150159.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Waterfall Garden.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj91FEsKJ4sRy6D6Ew58SmVbcgTQLt1Fs37IQS6hHnHcSXcewRmMK-iK4Va8z_v-HbIU8uKnrXq2NebG0bCNFfehue4Vz9don8o4dRNdCHyxB7CEyAG2qyeT4bLqDnX9e_hvlU_/s1600/20150613_133853.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj91FEsKJ4sRy6D6Ew58SmVbcgTQLt1Fs37IQS6hHnHcSXcewRmMK-iK4Va8z_v-HbIU8uKnrXq2NebG0bCNFfehue4Vz9don8o4dRNdCHyxB7CEyAG2qyeT4bLqDnX9e_hvlU_/s320/20150613_133853.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Train Garden.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Train Garden was a really neat layout (and having a small train enthusiast around, I do feel that I have gained some expertise in the matter). They have included monuments from all over the U.S., including Wrigley Field, complete with miniature ivy, and Old Faithful and Yellowstone Lodge (above).</span> </span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgULbcs4fJcFLHAODOZQHfaiMe2_f-iYLfXhgd_jGvn9-xfEeVj-061saHWxqRIqGHdas8lpcLS0o29KcELz4Hh1bC9OjxWOwfJXELFsoESpWv117XS99vnEf8tUZYduWwyWLWx/s1600/20150613_150611.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgULbcs4fJcFLHAODOZQHfaiMe2_f-iYLfXhgd_jGvn9-xfEeVj-061saHWxqRIqGHdas8lpcLS0o29KcELz4Hh1bC9OjxWOwfJXELFsoESpWv117XS99vnEf8tUZYduWwyWLWx/s320/20150613_150611.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Japanese Garden.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">When I was small, I can remember the Japanese Garden making a big impression on me. It was similar to how I remember it, but it was very cool to see it after having seen so many in Japan over the past few years.</span> </span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhshU064C-bPpVIEdModBdO1nA8cuqDq-BDl3xiQcnmhA2llrrA304yaBAuCYmHWFBKtwZQjMHPi0f1KBd7i3lNo_JA24B1RiBIZBFaLZopn_YZZ0k3LKB4VjrR-_VSrweoTpCi/s1600/IMG_20150615_154401.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhshU064C-bPpVIEdModBdO1nA8cuqDq-BDl3xiQcnmhA2llrrA304yaBAuCYmHWFBKtwZQjMHPi0f1KBd7i3lNo_JA24B1RiBIZBFaLZopn_YZZ0k3LKB4VjrR-_VSrweoTpCi/s320/IMG_20150615_154401.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Frangos to take home to remember our trip.</span></div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-23182495274529761122015-06-10T20:00:00.000-05:002015-06-10T20:00:00.038-05:00Update<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv__4plac1ImMuSOrm-KW_1qvqAEdtYyV9Db2Sn1nlSA3XvV8uvcC24GIrDkLImJGbHgDVNC_8ZDshtcw22dKhXeeRMm5SMXrNUL5hUGncuP-guTTf6sFFgqYz91_dPL2R8vIB/s1600/Screenshot_2015-06-07-20-33-10.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv__4plac1ImMuSOrm-KW_1qvqAEdtYyV9Db2Sn1nlSA3XvV8uvcC24GIrDkLImJGbHgDVNC_8ZDshtcw22dKhXeeRMm5SMXrNUL5hUGncuP-guTTf6sFFgqYz91_dPL2R8vIB/s320/Screenshot_2015-06-07-20-33-10.png" width="180" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Screenshot of an Eversnap photo from the photo booth at a friend's Minnesota wedding in June.</span> </div>
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I'm still here!</div>
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I'm just not spending as much time online lately. As I mentioned back in January, you know, six months ago, I taught a course on Selfies this past semester. As I started to think more and more about social media, online image, and self representation in an academic fashion, I decided I needed a little Internet cleanse. In some ways it was refreshing, and in other ways I missed the documentary aspect of blogging. After a few months, and some experimentation, I have realized that I have very little interest in Facebook, a strong pull towards Instagram (not surprising for a visual person), and an occasional desire to blog things. I tried Yik Yak, and subsequently deleted it from my phone. Snapchat seems redundant and therefore pointless to me, but I'm still giving it time. </div>
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I think I'm ready to get back in the occasional blogging game, but we'll see how the summer goes. </div>
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Here's to a great season of relaxing on the patio, grilling, baseball games, and pool time.</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-27440528641570427702015-01-31T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-31T20:00:00.749-06:00Baking 2015: Orange cake<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEholFc-lBw42OEyLWy4w15LGpYj0BdmpGPG3RK8U3QOda5-ZtmVKrDVZOq1qKk4H5JJUbFvZdYILKT3_6f_7SZPvgUbGpptEENPLzz5451VyznrrhFuIJdqiGWOL-EenY4-4DhA/s1600/IMG_20150125_201212.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEholFc-lBw42OEyLWy4w15LGpYj0BdmpGPG3RK8U3QOda5-ZtmVKrDVZOq1qKk4H5JJUbFvZdYILKT3_6f_7SZPvgUbGpptEENPLzz5451VyznrrhFuIJdqiGWOL-EenY4-4DhA/s640/IMG_20150125_201212.jpg" height="400" width="266" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Orange cake!</span> </div>
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This week's baking project was a seasonal <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/orange-cake-recipe.html" target="_blank">Orange Cake</a>. The cake itself was fantastic- fluffy and moist with a lovely citrus flavor. The glaze and candied fruit topping, however, didn't work out as well. The recipe called for making candied orange peels, which were too sticky for my taste. They looked neat as a topping, but the texture didn't please the palette. The glazed topping was similarly too sticky, to the point where it was hard to slice. So, I peeled off the topping and candies and we ate the cake with a bit of whipped cream instead- this was actually quite tasty. I tried this cake because I wanted to make something seasonal for January, and I would try a different recipe next time. Part of the baking challenge is to try new things, and this type of cake was new to me. I learned that candied fruits aren't my thing (though I might try them in making a panettone next holiday season), that glazes are finicky, and that orange cake is delicious. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMLSvQPuq4RFyGEOEx1IgWqwqTl4dPxt9X8HKarHVC-1-WNDnfZNMHC59aj9u08XItoBa7VVYibSPns3FYLsnXyUijZY0vk2-1IGWU-dADkEojip5b2LohwtvDTaZQPgQfuV47/s1600/20150125_192311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMLSvQPuq4RFyGEOEx1IgWqwqTl4dPxt9X8HKarHVC-1-WNDnfZNMHC59aj9u08XItoBa7VVYibSPns3FYLsnXyUijZY0vk2-1IGWU-dADkEojip5b2LohwtvDTaZQPgQfuV47/s640/20150125_192311.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Making candied fruit- pretty and a lovely flavor, but not so great in the texture department.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWhEp8ZbUHlcwd-NzcPpJYt-PmzQlt7sHeNQ0evO_pI_vaqx1H5sc7SbJbaLopINW8eR__iPHvBxrerNs6BDZWK8X2uhbkEIqazZGGhkxDT2gUlXQNqEYETDnpP4RX-nZRzkX/s1600/20150125_192335.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWhEp8ZbUHlcwd-NzcPpJYt-PmzQlt7sHeNQ0evO_pI_vaqx1H5sc7SbJbaLopINW8eR__iPHvBxrerNs6BDZWK8X2uhbkEIqazZGGhkxDT2gUlXQNqEYETDnpP4RX-nZRzkX/s640/20150125_192335.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Cake in the oven.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0fzphBGp5QqWppbe1CLGIyhShJMCg8Uq-R2-T2nM6C97tiDTWXzV-HYbV5pAk7ZEeGNLujAXhfLWwnukGcLp8MNqeJRcp2EehpWi5iaiZu5HYQW8Qy-Lsm8AwQx6FVpmb355/s1600/20150125_201957.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0fzphBGp5QqWppbe1CLGIyhShJMCg8Uq-R2-T2nM6C97tiDTWXzV-HYbV5pAk7ZEeGNLujAXhfLWwnukGcLp8MNqeJRcp2EehpWi5iaiZu5HYQW8Qy-Lsm8AwQx6FVpmb355/s640/20150125_201957.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The altered, improved orange cake.</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-18150952969995351042015-01-29T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-29T20:00:02.150-06:00Books: The Worst Hard Time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaYqK_2HIVKlpBONllFvTsLoZsLuLPkowyrffm4wJAgHmcruQc8hmVlqO4s6bYh9-vehEvqWj12OmgatjkudCe7SUXRN19XG28NABT-ujirHE92FRGqx_TC762xF_g-oPQBB3r/s1600/20150129_115047.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaYqK_2HIVKlpBONllFvTsLoZsLuLPkowyrffm4wJAgHmcruQc8hmVlqO4s6bYh9-vehEvqWj12OmgatjkudCe7SUXRN19XG28NABT-ujirHE92FRGqx_TC762xF_g-oPQBB3r/s640/20150129_115047.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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This week I received an e-mail announcing the <a href="http://firstyear.ku.edu/2015commonbook" target="_blank">KU Common Book</a> for the next academic year. Even though I'm rarely on campus, I still like to use the Common Book as a motivator to get me to read something new and different, or something that I otherwise would not have known about. Last year the book was <a href="http://firstyear.ku.edu/2013-selection" target="_blank"><i>The Worst Hard Time</i></a> by Timothy Egan. This book was a gut wrenching retelling of the horrors of the Dust Bowl years, and really drove home the importance of environmental stewardship. Yesterday, on a 70 degree January day (record-breaking), I couldn't help but think about the extreme environmental damage that we are doing to our planet, and to think of the terror that people experienced during the Dust Bowl. Reading the book also made me so very grateful for all that I have in my life today- any small hardships that I have experienced can't compare in any way to what people went through on the High Plains in the 1930s. The experiences chronicled in <i>The Worst Hard Time </i>are so recent, and so memorable, yet we as a nation continue to stand by and do nothing in the face of climate change. The book detailed how the changes of the Dust Bowl happened so quickly, and we fully know how quickly climate change is happening today, so why are we so passive, especially when small changes in habits, such as using bar soap, <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2015/01/28/379395819/coffee-horror-parody-pokes-at-environmental-absurdity-of-k-cups" target="_blank">not using K-Cup coffees</a>, eating less meat, or composting food trash can make a significant change in one's carbon footprint? We can only hope that more people will become aware of the small changes they can make and that we as a nation can start to reverse some of our environmental damage in the coming years before something monumental occurs again.</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-20734965562499941612015-01-27T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-27T20:00:01.346-06:00Kansas City: Airport art vending machine<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfEOjWfTh2x0ceRXdDK4CplpokJEH3C9DKBtYvGguesgn1kqAe5v6AEVRn9TRFxhVaHU6FKBmRnmQjQm8qdkqb7Msw8udXktEde8lmXk8kqkn9P7P_kH_rAixsHhp324kC4Hue/s1600/IMG_20150120_065240.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfEOjWfTh2x0ceRXdDK4CplpokJEH3C9DKBtYvGguesgn1kqAe5v6AEVRn9TRFxhVaHU6FKBmRnmQjQm8qdkqb7Msw8udXktEde8lmXk8kqkn9P7P_kH_rAixsHhp324kC4Hue/s640/IMG_20150120_065240.jpg" height="400" width="400" /> </a></div>
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I'm going to go ahead and say it- Kansas City is a very underrated place. There are many things to love about the city that I currently call home, and I'd like to use a bit of this space to document some of the greater things about KC. First up- the Souvenear vending machine that sits at Kansas City International Airport. The machine, which has apparently has <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/blog/2014/12/local-art-vending-machine-souvenear.html?page=all" target="_blank">high sales</a>, sits in Terminal B near Southwest Airlines. It offers locally made products like screen printed t-shirts, limited edition prints, and jewelry. KC has a fantastic art community, so it only makes sense to extend this to the airport. How great that while most places offer cheesy mass produced souvenirs (of course we have those too), you can wait for your flight out of KC with a local beer and some local art?</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-14512611023412271442015-01-25T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-25T20:00:02.090-06:00Baking 2015: Baguettes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH5LoMj1mkTOzsaXfNYgy0a1wqYl2gHpGm5iqAuUCPc72TYm9kgxplmLINXjtpIVLUq3PB1L4UoAKd2Pry7YW7l5Y7WbHSgbZ5MtGv-lPGp6s9eo6_fk9Ho4-D_CsrCiDvu32r/s1600/20150113_174915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH5LoMj1mkTOzsaXfNYgy0a1wqYl2gHpGm5iqAuUCPc72TYm9kgxplmLINXjtpIVLUq3PB1L4UoAKd2Pry7YW7l5Y7WbHSgbZ5MtGv-lPGp6s9eo6_fk9Ho4-D_CsrCiDvu32r/s640/20150113_174915.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Oh la la!</span> </div>
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I made baguettes! </div>
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The ease of baking these little beauties was quite a surprise. It took very little time and very little effort, but the results were fabulous. I used a <a href="http://food52.com/recipes/27433-dan-leader-s-4-hour-baguette" target="_blank">recipe found on Food 52</a>- all told, while there is a great deal of waiting time, I probably put about 20 minutes of work into making these. There was the initial ten-minute kneading, and after that not much else. They were fluffy on the inside and crusty on the outside, which I learned is possible due to the steam from ice that I included in the oven. The ingredients were simple and on hand. As part of my baking challenge I wanted to try more yeasted baked goods, and the simplicity of these has inspired me to try more as the year goes on. If you've never tried to bake bread, this is a great recipe to start with, and a new staple in our house.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGr-ZMeRaktDbzkrCWHPBoXssgDJhqlRP_Zlcl7UIs-EfwOgBl1ApnaPgp1Z8_w_gNUT-N4_vD_4N8EktaSzIKteykEM8DLWV6-ahthDlpKsR8j9SNdg9vLvIdlcakpzSBLJ08/s1600/20150113_185049.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGr-ZMeRaktDbzkrCWHPBoXssgDJhqlRP_Zlcl7UIs-EfwOgBl1ApnaPgp1Z8_w_gNUT-N4_vD_4N8EktaSzIKteykEM8DLWV6-ahthDlpKsR8j9SNdg9vLvIdlcakpzSBLJ08/s640/20150113_185049.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Fluffy, delicious, and shockingly easy. Perfect as a snack or with soup. NOMZ.</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-36152950715212050302015-01-23T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-23T20:00:00.164-06:00On Selfies <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEircWllk3tr3v2Sz2Jx1PZXxRFto6g1u59GJAMQA7eITgCaSSLvOlQnTCSaLUJklKXefvKZSUkzLIdHNfB6GluNWHjKXN1CUOvhqMLznDwDN-88wb15QXBiP_KcWUBarX5H8Fbx/s1600/20141030_171439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEircWllk3tr3v2Sz2Jx1PZXxRFto6g1u59GJAMQA7eITgCaSSLvOlQnTCSaLUJklKXefvKZSUkzLIdHNfB6GluNWHjKXN1CUOvhqMLznDwDN-88wb15QXBiP_KcWUBarX5H8Fbx/s640/20141030_171439.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Post-haircut city street selfie.</span> </div>
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Selfies: love or hate? </div>
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This semester I'm teaching a course (Selfie and Other) that will address the selfie, self-representation in contemporary visual media, various types of portraiture, and the visual representation of self as Other (as in other cultures/groups that one considers othered/different), among other topics. As I plan for the semester, it has me thinking a good deal about selfies. I tend to fall in the love them camp. Some will argue for their narcissism, but I think they are a nice way to capture a moment in the way that you want to remember it- and to put yourself in the photo (click<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/parenting/what-we-teach-our-kids-when-we-take-selfies-104738764088.html" target="_blank"> here</a> for a great essay about the positives of family selfies). Plus, handing your camera over to strangers is always a little sketchy, and never results in the photo that you want, or is sometimes not possible. I present evidence of my love of the selfie here with these images, and I challenge folks to re-think their classification of selfies as just shallow narcissistic vanity. Sure, they aren't the most aesthetic photos I've ever taken, but they do capture the moment in a distinctive way</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixrKDkBSwYTUSVJ0KouBnSbhTFbZrQHUvsTCpnkaI0DRzb-VgXs6OYKyhHyrQNJYxeeARewhYQJ0wVyRNriAGukig9-cei6acWwsfbY8PCILsl7j1TxiOI5MS5WKpLQ0T68dwg/s1600/20141221_171329.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixrKDkBSwYTUSVJ0KouBnSbhTFbZrQHUvsTCpnkaI0DRzb-VgXs6OYKyhHyrQNJYxeeARewhYQJ0wVyRNriAGukig9-cei6acWwsfbY8PCILsl7j1TxiOI5MS5WKpLQ0T68dwg/s640/20141221_171329.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Holiday selfie at Crown Center.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTb3FJOM5qG_mYPt03v4zgSd99A5a-nKWpttdvDE5czRV0rc4BLPKbHPYiEWK1siieqfTuqryH2aX02fwtNtd51RRnbHlEG-bK6hsdfsJ-dl7YURfQ4urfp1WOB5fzuZeErW6D/s1600/20141209_083558.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTb3FJOM5qG_mYPt03v4zgSd99A5a-nKWpttdvDE5czRV0rc4BLPKbHPYiEWK1siieqfTuqryH2aX02fwtNtd51RRnbHlEG-bK6hsdfsJ-dl7YURfQ4urfp1WOB5fzuZeErW6D/s640/20141209_083558.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Ready to tackle the day game-face selfie.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybMRipQmXtO01kk30etZwGSUxzft52gd3aPMbCzFR_3LFB7l9NL_XidEwBQPKBkSOgTijzuIynjH1KuAYnny5yG-8Q04740xa7DWltRec8TMgg8RjuiWT1DllHhb10uuMVxPA/s1600/20141227_114052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybMRipQmXtO01kk30etZwGSUxzft52gd3aPMbCzFR_3LFB7l9NL_XidEwBQPKBkSOgTijzuIynjH1KuAYnny5yG-8Q04740xa7DWltRec8TMgg8RjuiWT1DllHhb10uuMVxPA/s640/20141227_114052.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Family selfie.</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-86544184176375327652015-01-21T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-21T20:00:02.018-06:00Baking 2015: Oatmeal Rasin Cookies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlqtK5F6bJ6vzSuXFPHRxzjDuUgOoURdEykEJ2vsHEcyZQJ08jgTNqoF7MO6Eb8zcYYD8F9hPEtVAD5i_DJ1iYg1KrBT-qIEzcy-BIQ5LrqKvsBYbALQFaePgtRym6hNTDDe-/s1600/IMG_20150112_215831.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlqtK5F6bJ6vzSuXFPHRxzjDuUgOoURdEykEJ2vsHEcyZQJ08jgTNqoF7MO6Eb8zcYYD8F9hPEtVAD5i_DJ1iYg1KrBT-qIEzcy-BIQ5LrqKvsBYbALQFaePgtRym6hNTDDe-/s640/IMG_20150112_215831.jpg" height="266" style="cursor: move;" width="400" /> </a></div>
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Baking challenge 2015 continues- this time with Oatmeal Raisin Cookies from the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook. They were chewy and hearty, and as per usual, I cut the sugar down from what was called for. I liked that the recipe didn't call for refined sugar (just brown sugar), but I still think most American recipes are too sweet. These cookies were also quite heavy on oats and raisins, really being barely held together by the other ingredients, making them feel less indulgent than other desserts. </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-33718754929865583322015-01-19T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-19T20:00:02.728-06:00Travel: Colorado<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3fmtmb0iZGYU_8cIoJNV-emxS3pinra1aSR5CTUNNf5jVdt0z_04Pgn7xvnsKH98nQeUqxDD_tQk9ycthofwa0zo8L2yXank82hSO4PPSec8KFi14_XvwFY1_Q6hY-gXfwov3/s1600/20150107_145800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3fmtmb0iZGYU_8cIoJNV-emxS3pinra1aSR5CTUNNf5jVdt0z_04Pgn7xvnsKH98nQeUqxDD_tQk9ycthofwa0zo8L2yXank82hSO4PPSec8KFi14_XvwFY1_Q6hY-gXfwov3/s640/20150107_145800.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">After a long journey we made it to the museum!</span> </div>
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In early January we took the opportunity to head out to Colorado for a few days of skiing and outdoor activities in the mountains. Little dude and I left early and high tailed it to Denver to visit the <a href="http://www.dmns.org/" target="_blank">Denver Museum of Nature and Science</a>. The museum has wonderful exhibits on space, dinosaurs, and the natural environment. Our two and a half hour visit was definitely not enough time.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlW-wU0HPto6Uo73wfRGGM_Qp7KUMLJQhPM46uB67Hy_c-sgijudss1k9hVAtDuzTr8wuRX1alu403T-BEH3ec4qqvkhi5P0ElWLc-meAOehbN_8QLMysZEHfpbcXCTxV52yoF/s1600/20150107_163637.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlW-wU0HPto6Uo73wfRGGM_Qp7KUMLJQhPM46uB67Hy_c-sgijudss1k9hVAtDuzTr8wuRX1alu403T-BEH3ec4qqvkhi5P0ElWLc-meAOehbN_8QLMysZEHfpbcXCTxV52yoF/s640/20150107_163637.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Moose. They also had a great exhibition on the work that goes into creating the nature dioramas.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCwfHmIordrht_HpMIxuF3MI6GGXXMJDBSfjU46APZDL3nBCfS3KaonpVg-88Mo_eFJ3YCBg0WPICf3EmK7sP5u1rkyZqFaQl9xM2yzrfGxYMnPxSj2Y6c90rdsl-YgkkWbzib/s1600/20150107_165115.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCwfHmIordrht_HpMIxuF3MI6GGXXMJDBSfjU46APZDL3nBCfS3KaonpVg-88Mo_eFJ3YCBg0WPICf3EmK7sP5u1rkyZqFaQl9xM2yzrfGxYMnPxSj2Y6c90rdsl-YgkkWbzib/s640/20150107_165115.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Dinos! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">We learned that a T Rex would replace all their teeth every four years, and constantly replaced their teeth </span>throughout their lives. Little dude also got to hold a T Rex tooth- it was huge! The educational components of the exhibitions were truly fantastic, and there were lots of volunteers and interactive stations to provide more information.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM0scvOnbvc6ZOp4gjRZS16_j_vfPn7xWo2GNFWHSCH8OWryp7SoziySd6QvzL1hHGSg-Z2rdLJYSjcGdEg66qEiwlA0WJOj_eNp9WE2A7WZEjIfxFiICDgyloQDRAGLMZ4uew/s1600/IMG_20150107_181254.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM0scvOnbvc6ZOp4gjRZS16_j_vfPn7xWo2GNFWHSCH8OWryp7SoziySd6QvzL1hHGSg-Z2rdLJYSjcGdEg66qEiwlA0WJOj_eNp9WE2A7WZEjIfxFiICDgyloQDRAGLMZ4uew/s640/IMG_20150107_181254.jpg" height="400" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The view of Denver and the Rockies from the museum.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ii6vpcYenoV859qutw205gZbHi4Jpdmooj6gGz4NOSvZZkrCWPBIjPvN0LcbliSudG0sChOdvQ7u7dr6xMRs6DcPL3j_gAlruwM430XXRKCSazSuzlJ0x8GvqksqHfRJdhOy/s1600/20150108_071538.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ii6vpcYenoV859qutw205gZbHi4Jpdmooj6gGz4NOSvZZkrCWPBIjPvN0LcbliSudG0sChOdvQ7u7dr6xMRs6DcPL3j_gAlruwM430XXRKCSazSuzlJ0x8GvqksqHfRJdhOy/s640/20150108_071538.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Super moon in the dawn's light.</span> </div>
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After meeting up with Joe in Denver, we headed up to the mountains, where we stayed with Joe's Aunt and Uncle. They are always so hospitable, great to ski with, and have a lovely log home. Enjoying their company is definitely a plus of visiting the Rockies. We spent the next two days skiing at <a href="http://www.coppercolorado.com/winter/index.html" target="_blank">Copper Mountain</a>, with little dude in ski school and us on the slopes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi4qQVC-b71t0VcmykfJr8UORTkqb9JZTnh6OSNwuPNHuCIymgbNuKv1E5JVeAl5jVluHd3VdqsQj1M18HeT4InkRQR54_W_a8ht5zVg1Dnk4jF26WHylxSA18Jmlhgao2pjVv/s1600/20150108_125620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi4qQVC-b71t0VcmykfJr8UORTkqb9JZTnh6OSNwuPNHuCIymgbNuKv1E5JVeAl5jVluHd3VdqsQj1M18HeT4InkRQR54_W_a8ht5zVg1Dnk4jF26WHylxSA18Jmlhgao2pjVv/s640/20150108_125620.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Ski selfie.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKNxZL1Tc6d0Ddp4L27V6Jsd6_UH7lkFLoDnqoQKQgmgcQeDOsHYdPSFlx_-mA1oB2BsaCip4OpRyCcEFj5d60f7onOrkEYl2O0bvfl5-Q8cBEy-eT-hmYupbH84g5unMXnVUE/s1600/20150109_115844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKNxZL1Tc6d0Ddp4L27V6Jsd6_UH7lkFLoDnqoQKQgmgcQeDOsHYdPSFlx_-mA1oB2BsaCip4OpRyCcEFj5d60f7onOrkEYl2O0bvfl5-Q8cBEy-eT-hmYupbH84g5unMXnVUE/s640/20150109_115844.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Top of Super Bee.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6vHFqEk4jEXzP55xlqKODEIdWgjcwdapHcT57h2crPrt4dEBgC2G_qhO8f2NpHCEDs7UFIIr8MO34aWcLMIGPqeY2R10C-jIxJBffeGluMM_Ma9V4zKWkcgQB8UH93dmnPjZH/s1600/DSC04397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6vHFqEk4jEXzP55xlqKODEIdWgjcwdapHcT57h2crPrt4dEBgC2G_qhO8f2NpHCEDs7UFIIr8MO34aWcLMIGPqeY2R10C-jIxJBffeGluMM_Ma9V4zKWkcgQB8UH93dmnPjZH/s1600/DSC04397.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Little dude- pro skiier in training.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgngyvheUk7ng_jue3lc20h5tPiWIrDxpVJsgB2siADmgZdr7UwDhbDibApzF2ZtJGs2lCewYpZ32cyP9xsaJu4CP8o-TgKA0uvs537prcHzJgBcfpPMhfhG_FlVfW47T0wDqiM/s1600/DSC04381.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgngyvheUk7ng_jue3lc20h5tPiWIrDxpVJsgB2siADmgZdr7UwDhbDibApzF2ZtJGs2lCewYpZ32cyP9xsaJu4CP8o-TgKA0uvs537prcHzJgBcfpPMhfhG_FlVfW47T0wDqiM/s1600/DSC04381.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Ready for the mountain.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEF5UABNkBPQmmy7E3IBa2ntt2hxIk4rp5J73Z8cOa5l5wgiBJ3u9vGbEGoI4le2_0JhyEOeUl5rNeKrEXFlyOS1Bb8ub2olC8ytF08E26Ki89HBVN0VGGDHDIm-84c56CPL5/s1600/DSC04405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEF5UABNkBPQmmy7E3IBa2ntt2hxIk4rp5J73Z8cOa5l5wgiBJ3u9vGbEGoI4le2_0JhyEOeUl5rNeKrEXFlyOS1Bb8ub2olC8ytF08E26Ki89HBVN0VGGDHDIm-84c56CPL5/s1600/DSC04405.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The village at Copper- I love the festive feel.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN_pXJ5PwXl44LIjeYvOs6uAmbh2Rxxxp_pz17Ooc1I6Bklf7JhSyJPQ_SkLvl7NEXMO-Ixe9CIbBl1I2T4_fSfEk3MeR40b2s8F8csjNKFbm0rpbgi-77kpnrMtTGIJez5uNc/s640/IMG_20150108_120116.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN_pXJ5PwXl44LIjeYvOs6uAmbh2Rxxxp_pz17Ooc1I6Bklf7JhSyJPQ_SkLvl7NEXMO-Ixe9CIbBl1I2T4_fSfEk3MeR40b2s8F8csjNKFbm0rpbgi-77kpnrMtTGIJez5uNc/s640/IMG_20150108_120116.jpg" height="400" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Ski scenery.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEOBAbx93dvlTYmqPUOGkvTCNStLRKeBMrkyKfhr5aRoMiPdj4XWOS4c4x_p5q9tGPhiji4Tlzg9G0it0cvqHHE__EZJrJEjhnXLxW0SCPnD06mm51H1anXbYk8DHZWEeK2JVM/s640/20150109_110623.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEOBAbx93dvlTYmqPUOGkvTCNStLRKeBMrkyKfhr5aRoMiPdj4XWOS4c4x_p5q9tGPhiji4Tlzg9G0it0cvqHHE__EZJrJEjhnXLxW0SCPnD06mm51H1anXbYk8DHZWEeK2JVM/s640/20150109_110623.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Blue run.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwP99N6LdL1CyhlTMOmjkHhHOt57lDbNYOqJCRRlHamYgVmUHAADIE8n4afZnsxjbwJLlb_uSkkXWauEuVTgcPsRTWXLfjuzisReGft0Q_cdjTVeCiShDjjRpZTxG_0yvubEVW/s640/IMG_76459392990114.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwP99N6LdL1CyhlTMOmjkHhHOt57lDbNYOqJCRRlHamYgVmUHAADIE8n4afZnsxjbwJLlb_uSkkXWauEuVTgcPsRTWXLfjuzisReGft0Q_cdjTVeCiShDjjRpZTxG_0yvubEVW/s640/IMG_76459392990114.jpeg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Back up at the top.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3gLnXyjXVNGe-plImn6YhGkqFy6Blv3oS9LbR5WPhCflg7d1jtfaqHVQzT0YinUrwQjH_g5ch7rZsMOx3rUTZtNunZilBmgXmNnv-yveS3YgAWVUmNZTYtjW-iBhHilD1eCnt/s640/IMG_76475053389929.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3gLnXyjXVNGe-plImn6YhGkqFy6Blv3oS9LbR5WPhCflg7d1jtfaqHVQzT0YinUrwQjH_g5ch7rZsMOx3rUTZtNunZilBmgXmNnv-yveS3YgAWVUmNZTYtjW-iBhHilD1eCnt/s640/IMG_76475053389929.jpeg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Alpine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">The last day of our visit we went up to <a href="http://www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm" target="_blank">Rocky Mountain National Park</a> to snowshoe. The park turns 100 years old this year, and is always a treat for us, no matter the season. We visited the west side of the park, which has far fewer visitors than the east side- in a given year park attendance is 3.5 million, but only 300,000 people make it to the west side. In winter it is very quiet- we only saw a handful of other people during our visit, but we did see a moose up close! </span> </span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9fdZuTDjlWO4q_Fer2MRIo3q8xXlB4lQIM3KenXF27fLGQUYxC2G2a6w8Dyr6aKnhD_ou4XEf200Xc2u0sKyslkT5wgqPLEzauG17b3yardIHXq3wVEm2lepHv6Ew15l6Lqs0/s640/IMG_76494077226337.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9fdZuTDjlWO4q_Fer2MRIo3q8xXlB4lQIM3KenXF27fLGQUYxC2G2a6w8Dyr6aKnhD_ou4XEf200Xc2u0sKyslkT5wgqPLEzauG17b3yardIHXq3wVEm2lepHv6Ew15l6Lqs0/s640/IMG_76494077226337.jpeg" height="400" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">RMNP!</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiei4pzq9jXY3P_n1LgJKfcGy9sDhgANQwh2wYB1BPxUdPjvzqunTVpaqZajGFpqsxTrg2KTf15kFv9lHCY4kFvxOp3oO5vQ4w_Nwz5g8OrTBlKB8I1mJRTEx4cSr2wDZ5BBWx7/s1600/DSC04421.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiei4pzq9jXY3P_n1LgJKfcGy9sDhgANQwh2wYB1BPxUdPjvzqunTVpaqZajGFpqsxTrg2KTf15kFv9lHCY4kFvxOp3oO5vQ4w_Nwz5g8OrTBlKB8I1mJRTEx4cSr2wDZ5BBWx7/s1600/DSC04421.JPG" height="240" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Snowshoeing.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTlLLPxELj-YpayLYHfvwsXgegOzo6xa6RNQO6OrHnJq9-j_Smm92Hf-3XU53kStjdPYZgPqM3zXebx5kuiZzTPCA3l16tEhQlm75eM_6-eX2DzgU21N0I1EclCBi6_DNlApyf/s640/IMG_76501585390536.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTlLLPxELj-YpayLYHfvwsXgegOzo6xa6RNQO6OrHnJq9-j_Smm92Hf-3XU53kStjdPYZgPqM3zXebx5kuiZzTPCA3l16tEhQlm75eM_6-eX2DzgU21N0I1EclCBi6_DNlApyf/s640/IMG_76501585390536.jpeg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">More snowshoeing.</span> </div>
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This was little dude's first snowshoe on his own (he was <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2011/04/rocky-mountain-national-park-snowshoe.html" target="_blank">carried </a>on past trips), and he loved it. For us it was a short trip (just over a mile), but for him I imagine it felt quite long.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMRcPWXV-nH26coij8-cWIKoth2Phl7QceuxilbrSALmrgLM1wV1nW7n45mU6ryWa1ucQ-73vYNpER0zBEqSZEClELizOUI0sT9KYp-LmhuJJ3KU43EEqf1Cf3Kv1XLJQrPmd/s640/IMG_76519558410526.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMRcPWXV-nH26coij8-cWIKoth2Phl7QceuxilbrSALmrgLM1wV1nW7n45mU6ryWa1ucQ-73vYNpER0zBEqSZEClELizOUI0sT9KYp-LmhuJJ3KU43EEqf1Cf3Kv1XLJQrPmd/s640/IMG_76519558410526.jpeg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Park scenery.</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohe8MWvsOA4wsUh2jui3Kv5NSZfpz5AO5XtXS2sxQn9MHZYFF3oJiPeTTbEFk8hHVfyabo_7nD8z8yrJx3UykZmrkrtC8raWuNuzzI8IpoRrbixlAp2PPe7aHk3Rbhvaojet1/s640/IMG_20150110_164215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohe8MWvsOA4wsUh2jui3Kv5NSZfpz5AO5XtXS2sxQn9MHZYFF3oJiPeTTbEFk8hHVfyabo_7nD8z8yrJx3UykZmrkrtC8raWuNuzzI8IpoRrbixlAp2PPe7aHk3Rbhvaojet1/s640/IMG_20150110_164215.jpg" height="400" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">More park scenery.</span> </div>
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Before we left for the day, the munchkin completed the Park's Junior Ranger program- he was so thrilled to get a badge and try on the ranger hat! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXVDNG719C4pDyeUZSa0zuvs_2Y7qesyATGjk7j_Fu4Cjda2qMuAlbOnzZjzNDlzhPkspnSIB_6QN3CtevzLzbC6m6VrHLYHOS57CISKHt-r8MZXcq6Z0Nejr49BNGmurWgPu/s640/20150110_155803.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXVDNG719C4pDyeUZSa0zuvs_2Y7qesyATGjk7j_Fu4Cjda2qMuAlbOnzZjzNDlzhPkspnSIB_6QN3CtevzLzbC6m6VrHLYHOS57CISKHt-r8MZXcq6Z0Nejr49BNGmurWgPu/s640/20150110_155803.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">RMNP's newest junior ranger.</span> </div>
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Each year when we put up the Christmas tree and the holiday decorations, the house feels so cozy and warm. With parties and plenty of egg nog and cookies, as well as all the lights and busyness of December, it seems like there isn't time to notice the colder temperatures and longer nights. A few days into January though, and the tree starts to feel claustrophobic and the decorations begin to get on my nerves. Putting away Christmas certainly isn't as much fun as getting all the decor out, but the clean, open feel to the house is always welcome. With less things surrounding us the house feels lighter and airier, and much more tidy. Generally, I like to purchase white flowers in January to ease the transition. These white roses have graced our mantle this week and have definitely brightened up the mid-winter days.</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-10735244891513199122015-01-14T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-14T20:00:01.562-06:00Baking 2015: Banana Bread<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFmWhFnG-DgrOB_zZhnTwWCCmHU9FKwpcmxA0mahW_KDW1Cr1pLE_ofcvzJ9Gt9t1yKa6L8AiRd_uedYGfiZx2H0_6Aeo0f9kPGBAsUueXmBVJrUUNZqelJn2nvKFGQm32PDp/s1600/20150106_185302.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFmWhFnG-DgrOB_zZhnTwWCCmHU9FKwpcmxA0mahW_KDW1Cr1pLE_ofcvzJ9Gt9t1yKa6L8AiRd_uedYGfiZx2H0_6Aeo0f9kPGBAsUueXmBVJrUUNZqelJn2nvKFGQm32PDp/s640/20150106_185302.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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Baking project 2015 continues! The second week of the year brought travel, so I whipped up a quick <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_bread/" target="_blank">Banana Bread</a> for the road. I reduced the sugar and added some shredded coconut, and for fun dropped in a quarter cup of chocolate chips. A perfect road trip and pre-skiing snack!</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-80064611903727469162015-01-13T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-17T11:51:31.158-06:00Travel: Chicago during the holidays<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The clock at Macy's (Marshall Fields) on State Street.</span></div>
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In the days between Christmas and New Year's, we took a short trip up to Chicago. The purpose of our trip was mostly to visit family and friends, which we did for the first three days. After all the visiting and merriment, we took some time to head downtown and enjoy the city on our own. We started at <a href="http://www.visitmacysusa.com/visitor-center/macys-state-street" target="_blank">Macy's on State Street</a> (which I will forever call Marshall Fields), where we had lunch at the Walnut Room. This was something that my family did yearly when I was growing up, and a holiday tradition that I want our little guy to cherish as well. <br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">On the eighth floor, the Walnut Room and the Great Tree in the background.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Wishes being granted.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Desserts- Frango Ice Cream Pie, Toffee Pie, and the traditional Ice Cream Snowman for the kiddo.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our next stop was the <a href="http://www.artic.edu/" target="_blank">Art Institute</a>, where we spent the afternoon cruising the galleries. As per usual, little dude was a huge fan of <a href="http://www.moma.org/collection/details.php?theme_id=10459" target="_blank">Minimalism</a>. Since he was about a year and a half, this has been his favorite. Even before he could verbally describe his love, he would clap his hands upon entering the Minimalist galleries at the Nelson Atkins. For me it was nice to see the Impressionist works that I loved as a child, and to view the Asian galleries. </span> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Seurat. Nostalgia for me, mediocre for little dude.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Penetrable de Chicago was a huge hit for all of us, and little dude befriended a guard.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Ellsworth Kelly- so exciting that he jumped out of the stroller. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">And Miro, which he remembered seeing in Tokyo (!), and requested a photo of. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our final stop in the museum was the Thorne Miniature Rooms. This gallery is so magical, and captured all of our imaginations. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLEkH-_nkDVMAnBa_kYMTtT1EXV4hnCn4mXyI5oQgzNHR0WFmU7GWJuL9qTDOhW_ZJJVNIG4jcsqhCEmAV6KFd-Tk7XTVEOSNBL9vug5Zf2hxjhGzWugPjlAlp7H1WxcKn55c/s1600/20141229_161838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLEkH-_nkDVMAnBa_kYMTtT1EXV4hnCn4mXyI5oQgzNHR0WFmU7GWJuL9qTDOhW_ZJJVNIG4jcsqhCEmAV6KFd-Tk7XTVEOSNBL9vug5Zf2hxjhGzWugPjlAlp7H1WxcKn55c/s1600/20141229_161838.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">A great afternoon was had by all.</span></div>
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Another highlight of the day was riding the El, even though it was just a short trip around the Loop. <br />
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We finished our evening by relaxing at our hotel, which had a great view of Streeterville, the Chicago River, and the Hancock Building, walking down Michigan Avenue (with a stop at <a href="https://www.dylanscandybar.com/info/chicago.html" target="_blank">Dylan's Candy Bar</a>), and having a great dinner at <a href="http://volarerestaurant.com/chicago/" target="_blank">Volare</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hotel view.</span></div>
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The next day started (for me) with a 16 degree jog along the river, lakefront, and through Millennium Park.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Funny, where are the other joggers?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Jogging selfie half way through a 3 mile run. The wind was tough at this point (near Buckingham Fountain)</span>, <span style="font-size: xx-small;">thus the face.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Post-run coffee back at the hotel. Joe went to the indoor fitness center, as he isn't as crazy as I am.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">We finished out our trip with a late morning brunch at <a href="http://eatyolk.com/" target="_blank">Yolk</a> and a cold-weather walk through <a href="http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/millennium_park_-artarchitecture.html" target="_blank">Millennium Park</a> to see Cloud Gate (the Bean). It was such a great trip, and such fun to see our hometown in sparkling holiday splendor.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Cloud Gate.</span></div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-23840320712573728912015-01-04T15:50:00.000-06:002015-01-13T16:05:14.065-06:00Baking 2015: Cranberry zucchini muffins<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO4KQFBZ8m3fQz_n_baF2bpBXUeWT4eIcDcwBUAlwat8K8hj_qtv0JD_aBGQPoDwa92_XFeKp4tfENyHaw9Wa1HrLXz7Gq6QiaklwLk1G54w6fSEUauVJBr0Pp0TUjYJBpI0wC/s1600/20150103_085908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO4KQFBZ8m3fQz_n_baF2bpBXUeWT4eIcDcwBUAlwat8K8hj_qtv0JD_aBGQPoDwa92_XFeKp4tfENyHaw9Wa1HrLXz7Gq6QiaklwLk1G54w6fSEUauVJBr0Pp0TUjYJBpI0wC/s640/20150103_085908.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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Since mid-November I have been baking at least weekly. This wasn't something I was trying to do, but between the long haul of Thanksgiving-kiddo birthday party-holiday cocktail party-Christmas-New Year's a great deal happened in our kitchen. I've decided to try and keep the momentum and make it a goal to bake once a week for 2015. Although brownies were the last of the baking projects for 2014, made on New Year's Eve, this year started out with something a little healthier- <a href="http://www.foodlibrarian.com/2009/01/martha-stewarts-zucchini-and-cranberry.html" target="_blank">Cranberry zucchini muffins</a>. These are quick to whip up, and the zucchini adds a good deal of moisture, as well as balance for the tart fresh cranberries.</div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Wet and dry ingredients.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Popped up muffins right after coming out of the oven- this allows the steam to release and the muffins to stop baking.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Saturday breakfast!</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-12572271610265861772015-01-02T20:00:00.000-06:002015-01-02T20:00:03.836-06:002015<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Here we go guys, another trip around the sun.</div>
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New Year's is generally a quiet affair around here, especially as we just returned from a holiday trip to Chicago and needed some downtime after all the insanity that is the month of December. Other than a few memorable New Year's (Waikiki Beach and <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2014/01/oji-fox-parade.html" target="_blank">Tokyo</a> come to mind) I generally find NYE parties to be disappointing and forced. It's never the glamorous evening I imagine, but in my experience it tends to play out like amateurs night- somebody drinks too much, somebody won't stop complaining about their bad year/breakup/job/etc, somebody talks the big talk about their resolutions, the weather is always cold (I'm remembering sub-zero fireworks in Chicago one year), and everybody has to wait it out until 12 before the treacherous drive home. We tend to sit it out.</div>
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We do have a tradition of making <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2011/01/veggie-hoppin-john.html" target="_blank">Veggie Hoppin' John</a> and Collard Greens on New Year's Day as a way to auspiciously bring in the new year. This year there was a run on collards at our local grocery- literally three people were asking for it at the same time as I was- so we substituted kale instead. Our collards are made with vegetarian bacon for texture, and steak sauce and a tad of liquid smoke for flavor. </div>
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I'm not really one for resolutions, but I do enjoy the chance to reflect on all that happened in the past twelve months and to think about goals for the coming year. May 2015 bring you joy and peace,the chance for personal growth, and the opportunity to experience the world in new and eye opening ways. Happy New Year!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE61V83LG8QK7IgwqtpMFPMpJFNbUZLP3bW5qnwlePU7p0kLQIflE5c36rhIOrVdCLWRE4tFdwkhFMAx7AH7j3DNpySlsciof6ZPCh2OHdgaxTiH90qsS9hbLGKEBICC8IW0wZ/s1600/IMG_20150102_160102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE61V83LG8QK7IgwqtpMFPMpJFNbUZLP3bW5qnwlePU7p0kLQIflE5c36rhIOrVdCLWRE4tFdwkhFMAx7AH7j3DNpySlsciof6ZPCh2OHdgaxTiH90qsS9hbLGKEBICC8IW0wZ/s640/IMG_20150102_160102.jpg" height="400" width="400" /> </a> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-78208646955022872032014-11-15T20:00:00.000-06:002014-11-15T20:00:00.455-06:00Iced Pumpkin Cookies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0gN7tjVR4ZutSHK0bF54RTCIw_AaE00CD5afUUfPKrPtV02_9nMz0eTCXTOeVCZ6MnR2hFOD17otzgw7BbC_1DmqOxJ707YKLI15HHt8BkCmZ2CbwlcTT-MCNiQ4vJjCC8Aw/s1600/20141114_083923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0gN7tjVR4ZutSHK0bF54RTCIw_AaE00CD5afUUfPKrPtV02_9nMz0eTCXTOeVCZ6MnR2hFOD17otzgw7BbC_1DmqOxJ707YKLI15HHt8BkCmZ2CbwlcTT-MCNiQ4vJjCC8Aw/s640/20141114_083923.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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Each season brings a few special treats to our kitchen. In November that treat is a big batch of <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/iced-pumpkin-cookies-recipe.html" target="_blank">Iced Pumpkin Cookies</a>. </div>
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These cookies are cakey and fallish, and perfect with a big cup of hot coffee. For the frosting I generally use a combination of rum, orange juice, and cream, giving them a nice complexity of flavor. I also add a generous portion of <a href="https://www.penzeys.com/online-catalog/pumpkin-pie-spice/c-24/p-258/pd-s" target="_blank">pumpkin pie spice</a> to give the cookies more pop. The nuts and raisins keep the texture interesting. It's hard to believe, but these cookies have been a seasonal staple in our house for over a decade!</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-42561207912202429252014-11-14T20:00:00.000-06:002014-11-14T20:00:03.853-06:00November<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggx3eK_5OXIRQHiu0kmAxPImMINbcPMUKgiHkwVWU4SdVMVZx6vaT4LpPw3DvuSmnUbQMNKODlaGWCaupwUqgm49pHiKdEL1VmelEBAzbsib1yufLwHQyjpbJ9tyDqgFue5-Ex/s1600/20141111_130252.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggx3eK_5OXIRQHiu0kmAxPImMINbcPMUKgiHkwVWU4SdVMVZx6vaT4LpPw3DvuSmnUbQMNKODlaGWCaupwUqgm49pHiKdEL1VmelEBAzbsib1yufLwHQyjpbJ9tyDqgFue5-Ex/s640/20141111_130252.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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My neighbors put up their Christmas tree this past weekend. I went into Target this week and was hit with reindeer decorations. I dropped into a Starbucks on Wednesday afternoon and my eyes were assaulted with glittery green and red and huge ads for holiday drinks. It's November. Stop it.</div>
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A week ago I read a great Jezebel article, "<a href="http://jezebel.com/christmas-must-be-stopped-lets-declare-war-on-christma-1654018169" target="_blank">Christmas Must Be Stopped. Let's Declare War on Christmas</a>." I couldn't agree more. November is a time for enjoying the end of autumn, for watching the last leaves fall from the trees, for celebrating Thanksgiving. I'm not a big fan of Christmas (it's my least favorite holiday), but I can tolerate, and maybe even enjoy some of it when it is kept to it's December place. When it starts intruding on Thanksgiving, and even Halloween (!), I flip out. The only place for this consumerist glut is *after* Thanksgiving. Not the evening of, not at 4 a.m. the next morning, but *after*. I think it is completely disgusting that corporations are pushing Black Friday back onto Thanksgiving day, and I have little patience for people that participate in such capitalist bloat. Don't do it, people. Don't force low-wage employees to work on the only American holiday that actually celebrates family and thanks. Don't be that ugly person running to a big fluorescent box store to buy some plastic crap that you don't need anyway. Keep your integrity. Have some respect for yourself. Shop later at retailers that stay closed on Thanksgiving (<a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/59725/20-stores-refuse-open-thanksgiving" target="_blank">here is a list of 20 such retailers</a>), or shop local.</div>
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For now, I'm enjoying pumpkin cookies and leaf gazing, hot spiced apple cider and squash pastas, kale dishes and things spiced with the last herbs from our garden. Be here now. Live in the season you're in. Christmas will have it's time, but let's all agree to wait until that time is right.</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-25167398364558482892014-11-13T20:00:00.000-06:002014-11-13T20:00:01.558-06:00Royals Blue October<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip0nl0N4RVdJt909Gq4Mw8RvNwjwAIPvrwk1jnSCKjej0wJFTI8B582bpG06miu2CRvy5FzIYW0kSetGqInR0G7ZuHCq0sETB4vDCYRBAYoDigmfulrRLimGBFBiWwZXY75fEa/s1600/IMG_20141014_220311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip0nl0N4RVdJt909Gq4Mw8RvNwjwAIPvrwk1jnSCKjej0wJFTI8B582bpG06miu2CRvy5FzIYW0kSetGqInR0G7ZuHCq0sETB4vDCYRBAYoDigmfulrRLimGBFBiWwZXY75fEa/s640/IMG_20141014_220311.jpg" height="320" width="320" /> </a></div>
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This is a few weeks overdue, but I need to write a tribute to this years KC Royals team.</div>
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While I enjoy sports, I'm not a huge sports person. We usually go to a game or two per season; in a year we'll hit up <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2012/09/last-game-of-season.html" target="_blank">baseball</a>, and maybe <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2013/03/march-madness.html" target="_blank">college basketball</a>. I'd like to go to an NFL game (Lambeau Field is on my life list), and for a few years we've tossed around attending a major league soccer game, but have never acted. While I enjoy the camaraderie of sporting events, the prices are generally too high (I'm looking at you Chicago Cubs), and we haven't lived in a city with many winning sports teams, with Jayhawk basketball being an exception.</div>
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Having said all that, I love going to Royals games. The cost is low- generally $15 a ticket for the seats we get, they have good Boulevard Beer, and there are decent food options like <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2011/06/royals-twins.html" target="_blank">veggie hot dogs</a>. <a href="http://www.veggiehikertravel.blogspot.com/2011/06/cubs-royals.html" target="_blank">The K</a> is a great place to watch a game, and it's close to our house. We went to one game this year, back in August, and really enjoyed ourselves.</div>
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Then came October. And that wild card game. And all the rest.</div>
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It was so amazing to see Kansas City come alive with joy as the Royals marched towards the World Series. T-shirt vendors popped up on street corners. Cars had blue flags flying from the windows. Our neighborhood had fireworks going off at the end of every game, and people just seemed to be <i>happier</i>. Little dude's Japanese school took a group photo and sent it to Aoki, the Japanese player on the team. Everyone wore blue for weeks. The games we watched at the local bars were filled with smiles and high fives. We watched most of the playoff games- I even watched some while on a work trip to Texas. Although we didn't win the Series, it was still really fun to see KC light up, to see friends post pictures from playoff games, and to see all the fountains and buildings drenched in blue. While I know that many of the players will be off to new places next year, I still look forward to going to the first game of the season, and to seeing how we do next year. It was a great October.</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-80033189137058350792014-10-28T20:00:00.000-05:002014-10-28T20:00:00.735-05:00Ginger pear smoothie<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTHGQkEuYto1vB7xDJrUU28G0gcGNW7BL7jUNwuSIAxv0cLzOcqp-FD_fdSf_XTws6wtIEHfQxMg49VpeUuRH6eYACpDeZuiW4hfC11wQoMyCbeHdTSw1E25gqfUzCr-u7BA0F/s1600/IMG_20141028_134723.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTHGQkEuYto1vB7xDJrUU28G0gcGNW7BL7jUNwuSIAxv0cLzOcqp-FD_fdSf_XTws6wtIEHfQxMg49VpeUuRH6eYACpDeZuiW4hfC11wQoMyCbeHdTSw1E25gqfUzCr-u7BA0F/s640/IMG_20141028_134723.jpg" height="320" width="213" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Surely there is a good Halloween name for this concoction. Witches brew? Frog's breath smoothie? It's yummy no matter the name.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I know it's been a while since I've posted anything, but this smoothie was too good to not share. I've been on a breakfast smoothie kick lately, but this one was a lunchtime concoction created out of a desire to liquify a pear. So here it goes- ginger pear smoothie.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">One cup spinach</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">One cup kale</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">One cup milk</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Blend. Add:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">One banana</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">One pear</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">One tablespoon honey</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Half scoop vanilla protein powder</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Half teaspoon ginger</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Half teaspoon cinamon</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Blend.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Drink.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Yum.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">The spices lend it a fallish kick, as does the pear. Coming in at around 400 calories with about 22 grams of protein, this makes a great lunch. I might try fresh ginger next time, or just more ginger generally. Definitely a new one for the rotation. </span> </span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-4201837888903614212014-09-14T15:00:00.000-05:002014-09-14T15:00:01.415-05:00Rockhaven camp trip <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Last weekend brought fantastic weather to the area, and so we decided to take an impromptu Saturday night camp trip out to Clinton Lake State Park in Kansas, specifically the Rockhaven area. So often, when we talk about camping with friends, they express how they find it difficult or unpleasant. I'm pretty convinced that this comes from not having the right gear, or not knowing how to camp with ease. When I observe other people's sagging tents or a layout of snacks on the picnic table, I see a damp tent interior (dew will soak the interior of your tent if the two layers aren't tight and separated, easily done with proper set up) and a bunch of racoons and mice (keep food sealed up and in a container). A few easy fixes- like putting away chairs beneath the picnic table at night to keep them dry, using a <a href="http://www.rei.com/item/865152/therm-a-rest-trail-scout-sleeping-pad" target="_blank">self-inflatable mattress</a> to prevent sleeping on rocks, and ventilating your tent will make camping much more enjoyable. Learning how to build a proper fire (without the cardinal sin of lighter fluid) and bringing along proper dish-cleaning materials will also bring amazing rewards.</div>
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We really enjoyed our time in the woods, and even had a visit from friends who live in Lawrence and brought their kiddos out for a campfire dinner and smores. We took a short mile-long hike through the woods in the late afternoon, and had a lovely time relaxing with coffee and pancakes in the morning. There really is nothing like fresh air and time outdoors to recharge the soul.</div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379347.post-61898108151607642222014-09-13T10:00:00.000-05:002014-09-13T10:00:02.056-05:00September First Friday<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXLeCYkA8kzBKGyeyR0mzQNHzp5NEQNifgYjIIgjnOWP6itcuv7q2F5lnkHpnLGNrLzAIHOAQMM2vwPBJ-VIyqSkBECwic0snSlT6Vpu0i1liS8sTz6saCyVG6CSpBzfemD-gL/s1600/20140905_192539.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXLeCYkA8kzBKGyeyR0mzQNHzp5NEQNifgYjIIgjnOWP6itcuv7q2F5lnkHpnLGNrLzAIHOAQMM2vwPBJ-VIyqSkBECwic0snSlT6Vpu0i1liS8sTz6saCyVG6CSpBzfemD-gL/s640/20140905_192539.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hung Liu at Sherry Leedy</span> </div>
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September's First Friday was my first since being back, and it was a good one.</div>
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The two highlights of the evening were<a href="http://sherryleedy.com/main/exhibitions/" target="_blank"> Hung Liu at Sherry Leedy</a> and the various shows at the <a href="http://www.belgerartscenter.org/" target="_blank">Belger</a>, including <a href="http://kcur.org/post/word-play-exhibition-belger-explores-power-and-humor-text" target="_blank">Wordplay</a>, Shae Bishop and Emily Duke, and <a href="http://www.belgerartscenter.org/calendar_exhibitions/william-christenberry-kansas-city-arts-gallery-exhibition.php" target="_blank">William Christenberry</a> (open since February, about to close). </div>
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Hung Liu's work was powerful and visually striking- especially her multi-layered paintings which use glass to create three dimensionality and a recession of space (above). I also enjoyed her use of gender, class, and history- the juxtaposition of historic signs of Chinese culture with the varied figures found in society created an interesting statement on the turmoil of the twentieth century and the interplay of the many faces found within said society.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhruUVxnA_wDSHD0uKHL1gbFa1idGbyE3nH7Rf1Ar6JUnu_5TZ59Ua-uQa6LsW1uUVNyTe8I-qkxzCTcevlXIVLbcl-PQAeP8CDToZeGlGGtuEadDlHJFVEvbbpgGKa3yK88ODn/s1600/20140905_192416.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhruUVxnA_wDSHD0uKHL1gbFa1idGbyE3nH7Rf1Ar6JUnu_5TZ59Ua-uQa6LsW1uUVNyTe8I-qkxzCTcevlXIVLbcl-PQAeP8CDToZeGlGGtuEadDlHJFVEvbbpgGKa3yK88ODn/s640/20140905_192416.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hung Liu at Sherry Leedy</span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGjdOX-KIofH4__cgqVRKyf0uQMrYDim4CPLvuINpdHei117s_ZPzLTwTvle8kU7C31oyduPfDQhVxKrTs16tvstcz3QfAxB_7SiD9eAqgEeF8n5gnHsXkYmmVZjHWOk0pRTnW/s1600/20140905_192039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGjdOX-KIofH4__cgqVRKyf0uQMrYDim4CPLvuINpdHei117s_ZPzLTwTvle8kU7C31oyduPfDQhVxKrTs16tvstcz3QfAxB_7SiD9eAqgEeF8n5gnHsXkYmmVZjHWOk0pRTnW/s640/20140905_192039.jpg" height="400" width="300" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Joe on a lovely KC evening</span></div>
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The Belger Wordplay exhibition included a fantastic variety of art, all organized around the theme of text and image, much of which had interesting political content. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXVvVqKlqZPpNFAh5VpKfOHwGPZwj4arnvzs4O1CjVB4bGTzZNwaPbbKs0rX55yXXQEAtM2UDONzQHrEal5jCopvZ7BelEVzh9-Lfo2fagENrIbOtTPU8q9MBch4E5znMX4ooe/s1600/20140905_151602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXVvVqKlqZPpNFAh5VpKfOHwGPZwj4arnvzs4O1CjVB4bGTzZNwaPbbKs0rX55yXXQEAtM2UDONzQHrEal5jCopvZ7BelEVzh9-Lfo2fagENrIbOtTPU8q9MBch4E5znMX4ooe/s640/20140905_151602.jpg" height="300" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Wordplay at the Belger</span> </div>
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veggiehikerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760481244737572611noreply@blogger.com0