Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Happy Holidaze!!

Christmas went and came quickly....but it was wonderful!
Between eating and celebrating, there wasn't much time for pictures, well, at least artsy-fartsy picture-taking....
But here are a few I was able to grab, in between the wine and the laughter....
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and Happy New Year!
2012 should bring a very interesting year...and I'm excited BEYOND belief!!
(I will update you as the beyond-ness continues to, hopefully, a whole different level....)










 
A painting made by my entire family!




Monday, December 19, 2011

Vinny & Katie

I wanted to quickly show-off some REAL-LIFE beyond-ness (is that a word??). This post is to highlight 2 people - Vinny Hickerson and Katie Davis.

Vinny, lovingly known as Bigg Vinny Mack,  has been chasing the music dream here in Nashville, and eventually made his way in to the country group, Trailer Choir. He has always struggled with his weight, but just let himself be the "big funny guy" - to friends and fans. Well, Vinny developed diabetes, and finally decided to try out for The Biggest Loser. This past season, Vinny was on the show, and made it to the final 4!! He ended up losing 184 lbs!!!! Vinny went BEYOND himself...and learned to change his lifestyle, to become healthier, live longer, and now can do things he wasn't able to do before! He is now also engaged. He has become an inspiration! Check out Vinny here: Vinny's FB profileVinny's FB page  and the Biggest Loser website.


Katie Davis is originally from Nashville. During her senior year of high school, she goes on a mission trip to Uganda. After high school, long story short, she goes back to Uganda to teach kindergarten for a year, then returns to the US to start college. After her first semester, she decides to go back to Uganda and help the children, by adopting 13 of them and caring for more! She has started Amazima Ministries as well to help raise money. Take a moment and check out her blog - the Journey. You can also get a copy of her book, Kisses from Katie. Her story is amazing!!!



There are so many ways to volunteer. I have already started on mine. My sister just told me of a website that offers volunteer work all over! Check it out: VolunteerMatch.org



You don't have to lose 180lbs, or move across the world to help someone....
All it takes is one step...no matter how big or small....to go beyond.....

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Forgive

I've been taking some "me" time lately...it's been nice. And with time on my hands, well, my head goes to lots of colorful places. :) I have been hoping, with all the hope one can muster up, and checking the mailbox and looking at the phone, that an opportunity of a lifetime will come my way!! But until then, here I sit. But I need to prepare. I've already considered all of my options with what to do with my car, pets, clothes, guitar - well, wait, the guitar will be going with me - and well, everything else in my life. But I still need to do one more thing before embarking on the next stage of my life....

I've met a lot of people in my short years of life thus far. And many have stayed with me, as our friendships have grown closer and closer. I am truly blessed. But there are some that have come into my life - for whatever reason - and are now no longer - for whatever reason. And I am no longer in theirs. Somewhere along the way, things went bad. I really do try to see every side of every situation. I have this curse of completely understanding where the other person is standing, and their position on our "misunderstanding." And I take full responsibility in my part of the "break-up." So here is where I falter...

Although I can understand their side, and have realized that I probably won't ever forget, I can't seem to forgive. Not just them, but myself as well. So, this is my next step in this whole idea of going "beyond." Ok, I never expected to have to face this, until this wonderful blog (I'm being sarcastic) that I have created. But I got thinking, and realized that this WOULD fit in to the "beyond" category, and it's probably something I should do, so I can start fresh in the next stage of my life...

So I have laid down my weapons, and my pride, and have come to peace with the past. I forgive those who have hurt me (I will keep those names to myself). They did what they had to do, or at least the only thing they knew to do.  I have also found a way to come to terms with my own faults, mistakes, hiccups, etc. I'm not perfect. Nobody is. And sometimes, I have felt so much, that I mess up. I've hurt people, though never intentionally tried. But none the less, I have. I have said things to people that I really shouldn't - I seem to have a problem with holding my tongue when I get all worked up over something, that now, looking back, I should have just walked away.

So I guess I have gone "beyond" now...beyond what I was planning, or thought I could do. I am my own worst enemy at times (well, a lot of times), but I forgive myself. I can only do what I can do. And I can only be who I am. And I want to be better. And that's good enough for me. I am hoping to start a new life, in a totally new way, with the past as it is, knowing that lessons were learned, rules were broken, and my life was affected. In the end, I gave my all...I gave my heart. That's what's most important to me.

And to quote a new song I just wrote with some amazing writers, JP Williams and Lizzy McAvoy:

I know my heart gets in the way
Sometimes my pride comes out to play
I stay too long when it's best to walk away
But hey, I'm just human 

:)

Monday, December 5, 2011

Blueberry Oatmeal Scones

I'm not a cook, but cooking classes ARE on my list of things to do...
But I do like to bake...well, the few times I have. I've been wanting to make something with blueberries and oatmeal, 2 of my favorite things to eat! And, again, thank God for the iPhone apps, I came across a recipe, on the Allrecipes app, for Blueberry Oatmeal Scones (Blueberry Oatmeal Scones from Allrecipes.com) . I wanted to do something other than muffins, so this was perfect!! Ok...here it goes....

On a rainy day like today, what would be better than some baking? Well, I guess a movie, fire in the fireplace, a bottle of wine and some good company, which might just make today even better, and it's still early! lol - but I digress....

Anyway...I wanted to make these scones somewhat healthy, or at least not so unhealthy. I did some research, and found that I could substitute agave for the sugar - but they say not to use as much - in other words, 2/3 cup of agave for 1 cup of sugar. (Just a side note - agave comes from the same plant used to make tequila! woohoo! My kind of sweetener.) But seriously, agave is considered a "natural" sweetener - but the research is still out on whether or not it's any better than sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. It does have less calories and a lower glycemic-index rating, but again, it's still up for debate as to whether this is really any better than plain sugar.

The recipe also called for butter and milk. As for the milk, I assumed, that when baking, whole milk would be best. But I couldn't bring myself to get that...so I got 2% instead. As for the butter, I've googled my butt off trying to find out if there was a healthier alternative, but it all came back to the fact that I was BAKING. So - the best thing to do, really, is use butter. Margarine and other oils contain more water, and so don't work as well when baking. At least that's what google says....
I'm still new to this whole baking thing, and I do love to experiment, but one step at a time....

In one of the reviews of this recipe, which people loved, one woman added vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon. I love combining flavors...even if I'm not sure if they'll work, but who wouldn't mind a little vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon?? Not this girl! So, I added about 1/2 tsp of each (though I probably could have added more), and decided against the pecans (not much of a pecan fan).

They turned out great!!! I think the agave was a good choice, and the scones were not too sweet...though I could have handled a little more sweetness.  I'm excited about my first scone bake! This is a pretty good way to get some healthy stuff in you, and still enjoy it. It's made with half whole wheat flour and, of course, the oatmeal...which is great for you.

So this, my friends, was a success! Until next time...
(and yes, I'm still shocked I was in the kitchen for more than 2 minutes to make coffee, like I normally do)

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Beyond....music

Ok, so if you know me, you know that the last, almost decade of my life, has been given to music - writing, singing, learning guitar (actually, learning writing and singing too!), and everything in between and more - recording, touring, etc. This has all be wonderful, and I don't regret one minute of it! I have learned a TON, and have been able to feed my creative side, and enjoyed every moment! But recently, I have been doing a life-check. Am I living life??? Am I getting out of it all that it offers? The reality of it, is that I have been chasing the music dream, but am also single, still renting, and have student loans to repay. Which means I need a full-time job. Not to mention, I don't have some rich investor to pay for my recordings, touring, etc. Soooo...that means, Johanna has to find the money. Ok, no problem. I want this! But the problem that has occurred, which I realized during this "life-check" is that I was so busy with music and work, that I had no extra time for anything else, really. Though I did try once in a while, I guess I lost balance somewhere along the way. Plus, as a wise musician-friend once said to me, "How can you write songs about life, when you're not making time to live it??"  Oh so true, my friends!

This blog has started to become something more than just about hiking. It's about going out there, trying new things, whether it's something as small as baking (stay tuned for my next post!!), or as big as moving to a new country. It's about really, truly LIVING. So the next few posts will be my attempts at new things, or things I have sort of tried, but this time around, I am going BEYOND......