Poland or Bust!

The first weekend of March I headed off to Poland with a group of girl friends to do some Polish Pottery shopping. We left all the kiddos with the dads and set off for our adventure. About 5 minutes into our trip we go stuck on the autobahn in a stau (traffic-jam). We sat there for a good hour and a half. Talk about bad timing. 

We finally made it to Poland around midnight (if I remember right ...) and got settled into our castle room. It was like Girl's Camp all over again, bunk beds, a group of fun ladies, mad dashes to the bathroom in the freezing cold ... but, lots of fun. 

The place we stayed used to be an old castle? fortress? something of the the sort? It was pretty neat. 

And, it was conveniently placed next to an old insane asylum. Creepy? I think so. I'm glad I didn't know where the asylum was the night before and I only had to see it while the sun was shining. 

Then, we headed into Boleslaweic, Poland! I never (ever, ever) thought I would like Polish Pottery. I was convinced it was something my Great-Grandma would have had in her kitchen and she would pass it down as an heirloom. But, I still wanted to see if there were any pieces I would like. 

Well, gosh dangit, Polish Pottery can be BEAUTIFUL. (Don't get me wrong - it can also be ugly ...) But, there were so many pieces that I absolutely loved. It can be overwhelming when you walk into a store, though. Hundreds & hundreds of pieces of pottery are staring at you and you have to walk around, sort through the goods until you find something that "speaks" to you. But, it's so much fun. 

These are the typical stores you will see in Boleslaweic: 

{I found my most favorite pattern at Henry's ...}

Not only did we get to have a blast buying Pottery, I also got to hang out with some amazing ladies from the ward. It's crazy to have such wonderful bonds with these ladies even though we have only known each other for a matter of months. I guess that's what happens when you live in Europe and all our families are over 5000 miles away! 

Tera enjoying the children toys ... 

{Tiffany Clark, Elizabeth Tucker, Mary Anne Miner, Charee Brown}

In one of the stores (Andy's) they had a little room off to the side where you could see them working on the pottery. There wasn't anybody painting when we were there but, we still got to see their work station. 

All the painting is done by hand so, it's pretty impressive to think that each piece of pottery starts out as a boring tan slate and turns into this: 

I had been wanting a big basket for all of our blankets but, hadn't found anything ... until the very last store we went to. Both Mary Anne and I found a basket we wanted and well, I just couldn't pass it up. (It was something like ... $25 for a huge wicker basket...unheard of!) But, there was just one problem with our purchases ... we had already had the van packed up to the brim with pottery. So, Mary Anne and I had to pull out our packing skills and repack the entire back of the van. 

But, poor Mary Anne -- she ended up riding the entire way home with her basket on her lap. (Somehow, mine ended up in the back of the van ... luck? or trickery? I'm not sure which...)

After we had finished our shopping, we headed off to eat at the 'Blue Beetroot'. Um, one word: 

Amazing. 

I wish I could go back there right now and enjoy everything about that place. The environment was so cozy. The staff was incredible. The food was absolutely delicious, in fact, some of the best I've had in Europe so far. 

How can you not enjoy a restaurant like this!? 

Our group of ladies: 

{Left side: Elizabeth Tucker, Pam Emmons, Charee Brown, Me!

Right side: Tiffany Clark, Tera Blackham, Chanda Giles, Mary Anne Miner}

So, the other cool thing about this place is all the food is made fresh, and made, by what I would call, "clean eating" standards. Seriously, the food was delicious. 

I ordered a "pancake" filled with fresh spinach and a creamy garlic sauce. It had a spicy ranch dip with it. Oh man. Can I just tell you how yummy it tasted!? I loved it. And the manager of the restaurant was great and came out and chatted with us a bit (Yarek? I think that was his name...) and informed us that pancakes in Poland are technically a crepe, by American standards. Who knew? 

And for dessert? 

Pumpkin Pie with vanilla ice cream. 

Perfection. 

After filling our bodies and emptying our wallets - we headed home! Mary Anne and Charee cozied up for the ride ... 

I seriously love my friends. I am a lucky lady. 

The ride home is technically supposed to be about 4 hours. But, because we are always down for an adventure, we decided to turn it into a six hour ride home. We got home at about 2am. Church was at 9am the next day. We were all exhausted. But, I digress: We were about 45 minutes away from being home when we realized there was only about 15 miles left of gas in the van. The gas mileage got miscalculated. So, we pulled off the autobahn in search of a gas station. In America, easy peasy, right? Hope off, grab gas, get back on the freeway. In Germany? That is NOT the case. Most places aren't open 24-hours. It takes serious luck to find something that is open past 8:00 pm here and, you cannot pay for gas at the pump, like in America. Here, it requires going in a paying your money to a real, live person. It's kind of obnoxious really. So, we drive around from gas station to gas station hoping we would get lucky. 

Nothing. 

We passed a bar that looked like it was still open so, Chanda and I went in to ask them about a gas station that would be OPEN. Between our broken German and their broken (very broken) English, they gave us directions to a gas station a few miles away. At this point, we were in the negative for mileage left before we would run out of gas plus, we were all exhausted and irritated at the situation. So, we crossed our fingers the Germans were right and headed out. Well, I hope they got a good laugh at us Americans, because the directions they gave us were 1) confusing 2) lead us to a gas station, that had already been closed for 5 hours. 

So, we sat. And tried to decide what to do. Have a husband bring us gas? They all had sleeping kids at home. Call ADAC (basically AAA for Germany)? We tried that but, it ended up not being able to work out because of their policies. So ... we drove. We all prayed hard, and we drove. I am sure we were easily -50 miles by this point with all the gas station hopping we had done. I can't even remember what town we ended up in but, some how, we found a pay at the pump gas station. In Germany. At 1am. 

That's unheard of. 

So, we got enough gas in the van to get us back to our homes and headed off with grateful hearts that we would get to sleep in our own beds that night, instead of in a van on the side of the road. 

I had an awesome weekend, and had a lot of fun, but, I was definitely happy to be home and in my own bed, next to my hubby. The next day Brad left for 3 weeks of training. He's been gone since the beginning of March! But ... the happiest part of all? He comes home tomorrow. 

I love that man. He had a blast with Kason while I was gone and I am so grateful Kason has him in his life. They had a sleepover at a friends house with video games, junk food, movies, and not very much sleep. I wouldn't expect anything less while mom is away for the weekend. Besides, Brad changed the oil in my Jeep - how can I complain!? 

{Delicious & Soft} PB Cookies

I was talking to somebody the other day and when I mentioned that we were really trying to eat healthy around here they said, "Oh man, that would be so hard! I like yummy food too much to eat healthy."

No, no, no! 

HEALTHY food = Delicious food. 

My body loves me a lot more because it isn't having to process random chemicals (ie: processed garbage). The food I put into my body, my body actually knows what to do with it. We've got a great thing going on together. Plus, I love cooking the healthy food. It's actually FUN. (That was a real shocking realization for myself...) I never thought cooking could be fun. But, alas, I like cooking. It's fun. And bonus: it actually tastes good. No, delicious! 

Because I don't have the talent of being able to conjure up my own recipes, I am constantly reading blogs/websites with 'clean eating' recipes. It's fun to try new things and see what I like in our creations and what I don't. My favorite 'clean' thing to cook with? 

Coconut oil. 

I love it. It has SO many health benefits, it smells yummy & in recipes, it's just plain yummy. 

Today, I made the world's greatest Peanut Butter cookies (with coconut oil). True Story. 

I thought my mom's recipe (which was my Grandma Young's recipe) was pretty darn-tootin' good but, these are hands down, the best PB cookies I have ever had. They don't have any white sugar and only one cup of white flour. Some people might say, "Hey, that's not clean eating and it still has sugar so, it's not healthy." ... I say: I think that one cookie is just the treat I needed today. (I may have eaten a few more then that though...)

Okay...cookie time: 

The recipe told me I needed to use my stand mixer, but since my stand mixer is sitting in Utah, I just used a hand mixer and they turned out just dandy. 

Combine peanut butter, coconut oil, egg sugar and beat of medium-high until light and fluffy. 

(Note: the coconut oil needs to be soft. Not solidified, and not completely melted. Somewhere in the middle.)

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the vanilla. Mix it in. 

Add 1 cup of flour, corn starch, baking soda, and (optional) salt. *I didn't add the salt to my cookies.*

Pretend this picture is totally focused and not all fuzzy. Whoops. 

Then, mix in the dry ingredients. Your dough needs to be a little loose and greasy. If it's sloppy and doesn't stick together when you pinch it, you need to add another 1/4 cup of flour. 

Should look like this:

Now, grab your cookie scoop (or a big tablespoon) ... I never knew how wonderful a cookie scoop could be until my Mother in Law got me one for my bridal shower. It's probably one of my top-5 favorite kitchen gadgets. Definitely a must have in every kitchen. 

Plop the dough on a parchment lined pan. And then stick 'em in the fridge to chill. Make sure they are shaped the way you want them to be though because if you try to shape them after they have cooled, they will just crumble. Let them chill for at least 2 hours; or up to 5 days. (who has that much time to wait for cookies!?) 

After they have chilled for a good 2+ hours, pull them out, preheat your oven to 350 and let the cookies sit out and warm up a little bit. 

Now bake these lovelies. 

Bake them for 7-9 minutes. My first batch was in for 7 minutes and my second batch was in for probably 10 minutes, because I forgot about them. They both turned out yummy. If it doesn't seem like they are "hard" enough, they will firm up as they cool. Then they will still be soft and a little gooey. {yummmmm}

Now ... ENJOY! 

Seriously. I just want to eat all of these cookies. The whole batch! It's bad. They make my tummy happy!

Alright. Recipe time. The original recipe I used, came from HERE. 

Hers is cute and can easily be printed. Go print it from her ... seriously. Mine is just going to be messy and confusing but, here it is anyway:

Soft PB Cookies

Ingredients

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup coconut oil, softened (not melted)

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 to 1-1/4 cup flour

2 teaspoons corn starch

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt (optional & to taste)

Directions

In your bowl, combine peanut butter, coconut oil, egg, sugar and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. 

Scrape down the sides of your bowl, add the vanilla and mix it all in. 

Add 1 cup of flour, corn starch, baking soda, and optional salt. Mix until it's combined. This where you want your dough to be loose and oily. If you pinch it, it should stick together and stick to itself, but not your hands. If it is too wet, add the additional 1/4 cup of flour. 

Using a cookie scoop, form mounds of dough. Place dough on pan/plate/whatever and shape or flatten them to how you will want them when they bake. Cover with plastic wrap. Place the dough in the refrigerator and let chill for at least 2 hours. (but also up to 5 days)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a baking mat or parchment paper. Or spray with cooking spray. Place dough on cookie sheet and bake for 7 to 9 minutes, or until the tops have just set. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before pulling them off the pan. They will firm up as they cool. 

And enjoy. :) 

Never Fear ...

'Captain Underpants' is always near. 

Kason, having a little fun while putting away his laundry today.

I told him to smile like a super-hero.

He said, "Mom, this IS how Captain Underpants smiles!"

Okay, okay ... go save the world my little man.

xo

The Ber: Part 2

Next to the Parliament Building, there is this memorial. It is to show respect to all the political leaders that opposed Hitler. Um ... go them!

All around the city, there is a brick line to show where the Berlin wall used to stand. We walked a good length of it and it was crazy to think there used to be such a historical wall surrounding the city. 

I wish I knew why this memorial was designed this way but, this is the Jewish Memorial. A bunch of different size rectangles. Then, the ground was hilly. It went up and down, in between all the rectangles. That is a ridiculous description of this memorial but, that's basically what it was! 

It was pretty darn cold on the day we were there and thank heavens the Miners had a stroller because Kason "needed" a ride from time to time. Here he is snuggled up in the stroller while the other kids ran through the memorial. 

Across the street from the memorial we got some lunch. Brad loves doners. I think they're gross. But, apparently, a Turk brought them from Turkey to Berlin and introduced them to Germany. So, the "original" German doners are in Berlin. They are basically flat bread with meat, spicy sauces and veggies. Brad (and Mary Anne) both said this doner was the best they've ever had. Kason and I ate french fries ... they were pretty delicious, too. 

After lunch, we found a piece of the Berlin wall!!! Talk about some serious graffiti! 

It took these kids a few tries to get this shot ... they were shouting, "BERLIN!!"

(Sadie, Canon & Kason) 

Thank heavens for this stroller ... maybe we need to invest in one! 

In Berlin, they have one section left of the Berlin wall still standing. It has been preserved exactly how it was when it was knocked down in 1989. Seeing the Berlin wall, honestly, was a pretty moving experience. It's such a huge piece of history involving so many people worldwide. It was surreal to think of the people who were living in Germany during the time period that the Berlin Wall was still standing. I can't imagine the life they had to live and the difficulties they were faced with. During our walk to the wall, we passed a section of 'No Man's Land', which was also called 'Dead Zone'. Pretty much, if you ended up in that area as an escapee, you wouldn't be making it out alive. Just the thought of living that kind of reality was very humbling. 

Kinda cool to see names and year marks from the 80's. Plus, it makes it more of a reality. Makes me hope Rick survived and is still living on...

Under the wall was the Gestapo Headquarters. Part of the ruins are still there and it shows pictures of the torture they brought to the country. There is also a museum, the "Topography of Terror", that is right there by the Wall. It was pretty awesome. I love WWII stuff and the museum was all about the reign of Hitler and how the Nazis affected Germany, the victims of his reign, the leaders that stood by his side ... everything. So interesting to me. This spot was by far, my favorite part of the entire trip. I walked away a different person than when I arrived. 

Then we moved on to Checkpoint Charlie. Checkpoint Charlie was the gate of the Wall that the Americans were in charge of. They controlled who was allowed to pass through from West Germany to East Germany, and vice versa. And to think, this was all standing and functioning until 1989. Boggles my mind! 

After that, we all headed back to the apartment, loaded up, and headed out. The Miners headed home but, we wanted to hit up Hard Rock Cafe to get our traditional traveling meal. But, when we got there the wait was at least 90 minutes. We definitely didn't want to wait that long so, we just bought a couple glasses and found a delicious pizza place down the street. I won't complain about that dinner switch! 

I wouldn't say that Berlin was my favorite place we have been. Not even close. It has such a somber feel, much like the rest of Europe. But, I will say that getting to see the Berlin Wall was a huge highlight of my time, so far, in Europe. Such an awesome memory to have!