Sunday Funday

I have been craving cinnamon rolls for the past week.  Like an intense, crazy person, gotta have it craving.  The last time I had a cinnamon roll was last March when I was in San Francisco.  It was the most amazing gluten free confection I may have ever eaten.  I must have been talking about cinnamon rolls a lot, because my dad went out to get the car washed and came back with some gluten free cinnamon raisin bread mix!  I am not the best baker, but I decided to be brave, defy the directions and make it my own!

They looked a little bizarre the whole time I was making it.  I had to improvise quite a lot (thank goodness I watch a multitude of cooking shows!) but the finished product was surprisingly delicious!  So now I can finally share a recipe that worked rather than a horror story!!!!

Gluten Free Cinnamon "Rolls"

1. Take a bag of Bob's mix and empty all the dry ingredients into the KitchenAid.

2. Dissolve the packet of yeast into warm water (I was so nervous by the yeast!  I've never used it before and for some reason it was SO INTIMIDATING to me... It really is just emptying a packet into water though)

3. Add the oil and eggs and mix until smooth

4. This is where it gets a bit wonky... It's a super sticky texture, but I needed to "roll" it out.  I laid out parchment paper and floured it.  I plopped all the batter on it and just shaped it by hand.  

5.  I sprinkled brown sugar and butter on the top (we were out of cinnamon, but it would be good with even more cinnamon flavor)

6.  I did the best to roll the dough and cut it into little circles and put it in a well oiled baking dish

7. Bake for about 30 minutes

It didn't come with any frosting, so my dad had the great idea of putting whipped cream cheese on top.  SO GOOD!

After I made my cinnamon rolls, we decided to go to the movies to see Admission.  I loved it! It was much different than I expected, but heartwarming and cute (plus Paul Rudd was in it)!  It made me glad i already made it through the college admissions process though.

Bonjour!

Last night we adventured to the local theater to see Beauty and the Beast.  Those of you who know me well know that theater is generally not my thing (I thought Les Mis was literally going to be the death of me).  Local theater can be even sketchier... but I was pleasantly surprised by the show!  It helped that I already love Beauty and the Beast, but the performers were amazing.  Belle had a fabulous voice and the costumes and music were extraordinary!

Did I mention the people watching?  I seem to only live places where the median age is 90.  The theater was packed and everyone there was either a senior citizen or a 7 year old girl.  The little kids were so excited and so cute (mostly because they were well behaved and wearing tiaras).  The old people were equally as entertaining.  I saw one lady (probably in her late 80s) wearing a billowing pastel dress (seemed very Palm Springy) drinking from a flask with her granddaughter in her lap!  Always come prepared!

I wouldn't yet call myself a theater enthusiast, but this experience is moving me in the right direction!

Recap

 I've been in the desert, La Quinta to be exact, for 3ish weeks now... So here's a recap of how I've been spending my time thus far! To be honest I haven't spent too much time at home yet. I've been enjoying the freedom to be a vagrant (my life long dream)!

 I was only in the desert for 2 days when I left to go to LA to spend time with my grandparents, great aunts, and dear friends Shelly and Kenz.  We braved Leisure World to shop the estate sales and found a few treasures, went to Nordstrom, and drank unhealthy amounts of coffee.  It's so nice to be close to family again.  I know my time with them is not infinite, so I'm savoring every moment.  

I'm equally excited to be closer to my So Cal friends!  Shelly, Kenz and I headed to San Clemente for our 4th (or 5th???) annual beach weekend!  We mostly ate and watched Girls, but enjoyed our time together as usual.  We ended our weekend back in Orange County to snack and watch The Oscars! 

 I was also able to go spend a few days with Jeanna in Loma Linda (only an hour away from me!).  We were Prom chaperones, watched our favorite movies (Tristan & Isolde and Sister Pants), and hiked to the Hollywood sign (something I finally got to check off my bucket list)!

I've also been enjoying the desert before it gets unbearably hot!  The weather has been pretty pleasant and I've realized it's so much more beautiful out here than I ever imagined!  Our first stop was to get season tickets to the zoo!  It's so much better than we expected!  It has real animals, giraffe feeding, pretty trails and gardens, and of course a gift shop! 

 Joshua Tree National Park is about 30 minutes away, so we spent one day exploring!  It's absolutely beautiful and another State Park I got to check off my list!  

Last week we went to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden (it is as fancy as it sounds) for a big tournament!  My dad's coworker has a box, so he invited us to eat, watch tennis, and rub elbows with the rich!  It was so fun!  I loved watching the pros (we saw the #1 ranked guy in the world)!  

Last weekend Andrew was in town and we decided to cool off a bit by taking the Tram up a mountain to Mount San Jacinto State Park.  The ride up was a little scary, but so worthwhile!  There was actually snow on top of the mountain!  I haven't seen snow for ages.  My dad and I also got to hike a bit and see some great views.

I wasn't sure I wanted to start up blogging again, but am so excited to be able to document my adventures!  I really want to use this time off to do all the things I was too tired to do when working full time.  I've always loved writing and reminiscing, so this seems like the perfect way to do both.