April Showers bring May...

If April showers bring May flowers than what does May snow bring? 
It was just this past week that the flowers were starting to bloom and our grass was starting to grow and then..BAM...snow storm. We were lucky, there are other places that got much more snow than us. Jack Frost just can't seem to leave the Midwest alone and spring hasn't had a chance.

So, as I was coming to grips with the "winter storm warning" in May I began reflecting back on my mission in Japan and what it was like to ride my bike and knock on doors in crazy weather. My next thought was about food...no surprise...and the things you can't get here in America. I started to wonder if there were any recipes out there for one of my favorite things and to my surprise I found one. 

I never met anyone in Japan that baked. I'm sure there are some home bakers in that country somewhere, but for the most part, when a Japanese person wants something that you bake in an oven, they go to a bakery or a convenient store. (The only "oven" I had in Japan was a toaster oven. There isn't a lot of room for appliances like ovens and dishwashers.)

You might not be able to get gas along with your candy bar, but they do have copy machines and you can do some banking (I used to get money out of the atm in the post office).

I used to have a silver bike with wire baskets in the front and the back. Both baskets came in handy while grocery shopping, but made an already heavy bike even heavier.

And you thought all they ate in Japan was rice and sushi. Check out that bread selection!! They couldn't even fit all the bread into one photo. 

 

A lot of the grocery stores had bakeries and there were also stand alone bakeries here and there. They sold both savory and sweet breads...many of them meant to be either a breakfast or lunch meal. You would pick up a tray and tongs and make your selections. It's a good thing I was busy and on a budget on my mission or I would have easily gained a hundred pounds.

These are examples of the lunch options.

Now about that recipe. One of my favorite treats in Japan was a bread called Melon Pan (the melon part comes from the shape and texture, and the word "pan" means bread). There are a few variations of melon pan, some come with chocolate chips, others are filled with cream or custard, and I even tried a maple flavored one once, but most of the time they're just a plain sweet bread (sweet is a relative term as most desserts in Japan are a lot less sweet than the ones in America). I had always wondered how they made this magical bread, and it was so cool to find out. You have to make two doughs, a bread dough and a cookie dough. The cookie dough is pressed very thin and is placed over a proofed bread dough and cross hatch marks are made to make it look like the outside of a melon. Here is the result of my first attempts at making it.

My cross hatch marks didn't turn out as well as I hoped. I think I made the cookie dough a little to thin. You can see on the bottom where the cookie dough is wrapped around the bread. The taste was great though and just like the melon pan I had in Japan.

 

 

Tonkatsu is one of hubby's favorite Japanese dishes. I hadn't made it forever and thought it would go well with the melon pan.

Chevron Pattern

I was so excited to find this fabric on sale. The girls are so far apart in age that is can be a challenge to find clothes that coordinate...Lizard might say that's a good thing. :) Little Bird's turned out a little longer than I was planning, but now she has room to grow. I think I might have to make myself a chevron skirt too. It's such a fun pattern.

Little Bird is lucky to have a big sister that such a good sport.

Not sure what she was trying to communicate with this face. She likes to be goofy.

Isn't that sweet? Lizard took Little Bird out to watch the golfers.

The Chief is really starting to move around a lot. He rolls over and spins around in circles.

The Chief's First Visit to the Zoo

It was so nice to get outside and enjoy the warmer weather and sunshine. Little Bird was especially excited and even though she missed her nap, the monkeys kept her from getting too cranky.

My mom bought this dress for Little Bird and it is awesome!! It has a cape that velcros on where the little bows are. She knew she was wearing something pretty special.

He can't quite figure out what he should suck on...bib, fingers?

Lizard took a lot of pictures on her own camera. She was a big help with Little Bird.

Blinded by the sunlight.

The petting zoo has brushes you can use to brush the goats. Fun!

Midwest Weather...Seriously??

Apparently we moved to Omaha a year too late. Last winter was mild and the spring warm and wonderful. This winter has been cold, snowy (though not as cold and snowy as it could be people are quick to tell me) and it just doesn't want to go away. We were teased early in the month with some days in the 60's, but that was short lived and have spent most of April in the 50's, 40's and 30's. Yesterday's high was 35 degrees and oh that bitterly cold wind makes it feel even colder. Yes...I'm whining...sorry. 

Having a little fun in the rain before school one day last week.

 Hail 

We were actually really lucky the hail was so small. Just a little west of us it was as big as golf balls and smashed windshields and skylights. Hubby had pulled in five minutes before it started.

This was last Friday. Even though the sun finally came out the wind made it so cold that the ice didn't melt until the next day when it got above freezing. Did I mention it's April?

Just Because

 These photos are just because pics.

 

 This dress was actually the Lizard's. It was given to her by her great grandma.

I think Lizard took this photo. He looks so small with all that carpet around him.

 

We use a clothespin (or chip clip if you will) to put up Little Bird's hair before she's dressed in the morning. Otherwise it would be covered in oatmeal.

 I found this skirt on clearance for $4 in the teen section of Yonkers...first time ever in that store. It was an XL mini and by sewing up the sides it now fits Lizard and is just the right length.

General Conference

Earlier this month was our church's General Conference. This semi-annual Conference is broadcast worldwide and consists of four two hour blocks broken up between Saturday and Sunday. I always enjoy the talks very much and come away with a desire to be a better person.

When I was younger we used to watch all eight hours at the church building which had a satellite, but we can now watch it on television or the internet. This makes it much easier with the kids. I found a great packet for Lizard online to help her focus and keep busy and also found a fun idea for Little Bird.

 I took plastic bags and taped photos of the twelve apostles (http://www.lds.org/church/leaders/quorum-of-the-twelve-apostles?lang=eng) and the First Presidency (http://www.lds.org/church/leaders/first-presidency?lang=eng) and put snacks and activities in the bags. When one of them spoke, we showed Little Bird the bag and explained that the person on the bag is the one who is talking and we would tell her his name. She liked the activities (and the snacks) and hopefully it will help her be excited for next conference in October. I saved the bags to reuse for next time.

 The First Presidency and the Podium

Lizard helping with one of the activities in the bag.

Me taking notes and not wanting my picture taken.

"Now that it's over can I go for a ride?"

Bubbles