Happiness Is Not Studying For Exams!

In 2009, I decided it would be a good idea for me to become a Certified Public Accountant. So, for the past year, I have been working toward that goal. I took 13 units of online accounting classes at Santa Monica College over the Fall 2009 and Winter 2010 semesters. I attended CPA review classes from March-July 2010 and I have been studying for what feels like forever.

Last weekend, I finished sitting for all four of the sections of the exam and now I have to wait till the end of September to receive my results. From what I have heard about the CPA exams, the pass rate on each individual part is between 40% and 50% and the pass rate of all four parts the first time is around 10%. So... it's time for a study break and MH and I are heading off to enjoy a 10 day adventure!

Montana De Oro State Beach

On our way home from San Francisco last month, MH and I stopped in Morro Bay and camped over night at Montana De Oro State Beach. The camp sites sit on the bluff across from the beach so you can't hear the waves crashing during the night, but the peace and quiet was welcoming.

Montana De Oro State Beach

Before we left the bay area, we picked up groceries at Berkeley Bowl (my absolute favorite grocery store) for our camping dinner. We typically try to have something a little tastier than hot dogs, so we picked up some sausages, mushrooms, sweet onions, baby bell peppers, and rolls.

Dinner Prep

After slicing everything up, MH fired everything off in our camping stove. Our stove accommodates an 8" fry pan so we can cook almost everything at the same time when need be.

Sausage Sandwiches with Mushrooms, Sweet Onion, and Baby Bell Peppers

Our ultralight camping style pales in comparison to any family with their RV's, generators, weber grills, etc. but our system definitely works for us.

Frozen Treats On A Stick

Now that the summer heat is finally here, MH and I made ice pops! MH's parents surprised me with a variety of ice pop molds and this nifty ice pop book for my birthday, so we flipped through the book and picked the strawberries & cream recipe for our first ice pop attempt.

Ice Pop Molds

The recipe is very simple: (1) Puree 2 1/2 cups of strawberries with 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice. (2) Fill the ice pop molds by first pouring 1 tablespoon of plain whole milk yogurt into the molds and then 2 tablespoons of the strawberry puree, alternating between the yogurt and puree until the molds are full (leaving approximately 1/2 at the top for the ice pops to expand). (3) Swirl the mixture with a small knife to combine the layers. (4) Freeze the ice pops. (5) Serve and eat!

Popsicle Assembly

The book says the ice pops need to freeze for 4 hours to 3 days before serving and they aren't kidding. We tried eating them after 4 hours and although the ice pops felt like they were frozen, they wouldn't come out of their molds. However, after 24 hours, the ice pops were set and popped out of the molds easily.

Strawberries & Cream Ice Pops

If you don't have ice pop molds, you can make ice pops using cupcake trays, ice cube trays, or dixie cups, with sticks.

Stay cool and have a great summer (what is last of it at least)!

Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden

On the west side of campus at Cal State University of Long Beach you will find the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden. It is a small but quaint garden where you can escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life for a moment and enjoy picturesque views.

When you enter the garden there is a clear path that takes you around the lake with plenty of stopping points for moments of zen and tranquility.

The Lake, Zig-Zag Bridge (in the back on the left),
Moon Bridge (in the back), & Black Pebble Beach (in the back on the right)

Stone Water Basin (Tsukubai)

Japanese Iris Bordering the Lake

Lake View From The Other Side

Three Tiered Pagoda

Admission is free and the garden is open Tuesday through Friday 8:00 AM to 3:30 PM, and Sunday Noon to 4:00 PM. Stop by if you are in the area.

Another Day And Another Year Older

Birthday dinners are one of my favorites. This year, I asked to have a sashimi and sushi dinner at home and my parents delivered big time.

My Dad carved up a variety of fish to make a sashimi platter.

My Mom made miso soup, California hand rolls...

& Futomaki, and picked up some Seaweed Salad.

For dessert, we had a spongecake with custard and blueberries.

Happy Birthday to Me! Thanks Dad & Mom! Cheers to another year of health, happiness, and fantastic meals with family and friends!!!

Spring Rolls for Summer

Ickity and LQ kindly accommodated my request for spring rolls and we had a spring roll extravaganza!

Home made spring rolls are a fair amount of work. You have to clean, cook, and cut all of your ingredients and only then are you ready for the assembly process.

Spring Roll Ingredients

Apparently purchasing pre-cooked, shelled, and de-veined shrimp is considered cheating, who knew? Sorry Ickity! I was just trying to expedite the process. I promise there will be no cheating next time.

My Second Spring Roll Unwrapped

I didn't realize that there was an art to assembling spring rolls until after I had made my first feeble attempt and then saw Ickity's spring rolls. Her spring rolls were fit for a magazine cover and mine were... quickly consumed.

My Second Spring Roll Ready to Eat

Thankfully, my tummy didn't seem to mind my amateur attempts because pretty or not, they were undoubtedly delish!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Ever since I had peanut butter chocolate cake at MH's cousin's wedding I couldn't stop thinking about it! Then, RAK told me about these awesome treats she had and I couldn't help myself. I had to make them to fulfill my peanut butter desires.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Whipped Cream

I changed the recipe by using box mix (sorry!) for the chocolate cake and made whipped cream instead of butter frosting.

Inside View

Unfortunately, MH was underwhelmed by them but I thought they were great. In retrospect, I should have anticipated MH's lackluster response since I was much more excited about the previous peanut butter chocolate cake than he was but oh well.

I would definitely make this again. However, a couple other peanut butter recipes have caught my eye so I might have to try those first. What do you think? (a) Peanut butter pudding, (b) peanut butter pie, (c) peanut butter cake with chocolate frosting, or (d) peanut butter cake filled with jelly.

Cabo Wabo

After months of looking forward to a trip with my girlfriends, my boss revoked all our of pre-approved vacation requests in the month of July due to accelerated deadlines for our company's pending sale. I understand why I can't go, but I am beyond disappointed. Sometimes life sucks and this is one of those times.

I'm supposed to be in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico enjoying an all-inclusive hotel with swim up bars and easy access to Mexico's beautiful sandy beaches. I'm supposed to be in this picture of El Arco, with my girlfriends, our big floppy hats, sun-kissed skin, smiling ear to ear.

Girls, have a drink, or two, or three for me. Hopefully I'll be there next year, where ever "there" may be.

B-A-N-A-N-A-S

A few weeks ago the Nana Queen's Pudding & Wings truck was parked across the street from my office and I have had banana pudding on the brain ever since.

Bakerella has a great post with instructions how to make it yourself.

Homemade Banana Pudding

The store was out of regular Nilla Wafers so MH bought Mini Nilla Wafers instead. Aren't they the cutest?!? You can't really see the pudding in the picture, but I promise it is down there beneath the stack of bananas and Mini Nilla Wafers. Yum!

A 4th Of July Weekend Wedding

MH and I attended a spectacular wedding at the Rengstorff House for MH's cousin. The Bride was radiant, the Groom was dashing, and nothing was more evident that evening than their love for each other.

After dinner, it was time for cake and I was delighted to discover there were three different flavors: peanut butter chocolate, mango, and coconut! Yes, I tried all three flavors. I couldn't resist. They were all delicious, but I thought the peanut butter chocolate cake came in first, the mango cake was a close second, and the coconut cake was third.

If you were still hungry, the Bride and Groom had a taco truck for their guests too! Unfortunately, since I was already filled to my ears with cake I had to pass on the tacos. MH said they were fantastic.

At the end of the evening there was a fabulous fireworks show and guests danced the rest of the night away.

It was a special night and definitely an event to remember. Congrats to the newlyweds!