Today, I went to the Festival of Colors (Holi Fest) at the Hare Krishna Temple.  Last year, I attempted to go, but so many people went that we were stuck in traffic and didn’t make it in time.  I was really sad.  This year, we got there over 3 hours before they actually started throwing the colors and so we were good.

Here is the temple.

People (and that doesn’t include me, no, not me whatsoever) got a little ansy and started throwing their colors or sprinkling them on people before we (oh, I mean they) were supposed to.

Here is a video of what it is like when they first throw the colors. I literally could not see anyone around me because of the amount of powder. It was a cloud all around me.

Here is a shorter video from the side view.

And here is what I look like afterward.

I’m the one on the left, if you couldn’t tell.

When I got home, I took a really long shower, used about a million Q-Tips, washed my hair 2 times, and I still feel dirty.  It was really fun, but I think next year I’ll sit at the top of the temple balcony and take pictures, like these from Jarvie Digital.

I love this one!

Today my aunts, cousins, mother, and I went to the Portland Zoo. It was really fun. I didn’t take very many pictures because my cousins took pictures. I’ve been there before, but it felt as though I was in a different zoo. However, we didn’t get to see any of the big cats: lions, cheetah, etc. They are redoing that whole section and all those animals were gone Oh well.

Aunt Robbin, Dani, Aunt Betty, Laci, and me at the Portland Zoo entrance.

So, my Aunt Robbin makes the BEST rolls in the world! At every family reunion and party I hope that she brings them. My Aunt Betty is the school cook and she makes these for her students – they also request them. I tried to make them once on my own, but I failed miserably. While she is here this week she took 3 hours and taught me how make her famous rolls.

I don’t like the feeling of the sticky dough. Ick!

A perfectly shaped roll.

Getting ready to bake.

All done! And don’t they look mouthwatering? Trust me, they are!

Here is the recipe, if you would like to try them. It works best if you use a Bosch or a Kitchen Aid because the machine can knead the batter when it is still sticky.

Hot Rolls

2 Tbsp yeast
1/2 cup warm water

-Combine with a little sugar, let foam.

Add:
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup scalded milk
1 cup cold water (added to scalded milk)
2 eggs
1/2 cup potato flakes
3 tsp salt
1/4 cup oil
6+ cups flour (add 2 cups flour, then oil, then rest of flour to make soft dough)

Knead 10 minutes (I do mine in the Bosch). Let rise for 1 hour. Punch down, roll out and cut into circles (I use a large peach can to cut mine out with). Spread melted butter on each circle, stretch a bit and fold in half and place on greased cookie sheet. Let rise for about 15-20 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until done.

On Friday, July 17th Kristy and I went the George Strait concert. It was at the USANA and we sat on the grass. It was great! Julianne Hough and Black Shelton opened for George. They did great. Both of them are really strong singers. Then George Strait come on and sang. He sang for about 2 hours. It was wonderful! He is wonderful live, wonderful on CD, wonderful on the radio, and wonderful all together!

Isn’t he GORGEOUS!

I realized as I was updating my 101 Goals that I finished one while I was in Lake Powell – sleep under the stars. And we even got rained on one night. Yea! Okay, so this picture isn’t of me, but you can see a lovely shot of me just waking up in my previous Lake Powell post. It was actually quite fun sleeping on the roof of the houseboat.

I did it! I really did it! I ate sushi and you know what? I liked it. Above we had spicy tuna, baja, vegas roll, and one I can’t remember. The favorite of mine was the spicy tuna. We went to the Happy Sumo – it is only my first sushi place, but it was nice.

This is what I ordered – the baja roll. It was really spicy. It is that wasabe (spelling) sauce and the jalapeno’s. I thought I wouldn’t get full, but I did and as you can see between the three of us we didn’t finish everything.

I walked in the MS Walk today. I really, really enjoyed it – even though I did it by myself. Below is a video I made for it.

I want to thank everyone who donated $ to the MS Society – Ronnie, Mandy, Terrie, Mom, and an anonymous donation (but I’m pretty sure I know who you are).

For some reason, my video won’t fit in the blog window. I think it is because I made it in Widescreen. You can go to Youtube to see it or click on full screen. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xquyk7Fye1s

So, this is the quote book I bought. I wanted something sturdy and think that would last a long time. So if you have a favorite quote – please send to me so that I can add it to my book! This is an ongoing goal, but really I guess I fulfilled it.

Since my birthday was last week, I was able to start writing my thank you cards. Now I just need to actually mail them!