Finger Licking

What’s your favorite recipe?

Cooking and baking are some of my favorite things to do. I’ve always known that I loved baking. I’ve always been good at cooking, but I never thought I would love it just as much. Turns out I absolutely completely enjoy them both.

I have several recipes that I’ve saved while baking because baking requires precision when measuring ingredients. I have a few meal recipes saved as well, but not that many because I usually just throw it together myself without actually measuring.

So far, I think my fried chicken recipe has become my favorite.

I start by prepping the chicken, which includes tripping fat, slicing into tenders, and placing in marinade. My marinade consists of salt, creole seasoning, pickle juice, milk, water, splash of oil, chopped onion, and teaspoon of minced garlic in olive oil. Let sit for at least 30 mins.

In that time, I prep for the next step of making my chicken. I fill a pot half full of oil and set my thermometer in it and turn to medium heat.

I then grab a bowl and beat up 4 egg yolks and 2 whole eggs. Dash of salt and pepper added. In a separate bowl, I add flour, corn starch, and corn meal and mix. Then add salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, creole seasoning, onion powder, paprika, and mix.

Test the oil with little drops of flour. When it bubbles, it’s ready!

Drain half the marinade. Then coat in flour mixture, egg mixture, and flour again. Lay in away from you so it doesn’t back splash on you, and fry for around 4 minutes or until golden brown.

If you try my recipe, I hope you like it and please tell me about it.

Montana Dreams

Tell us about the last thing you got excited about.

The last thing I remember getting excited about is our trip to Montana. I’ve been struggling with depression more in the past few weeks and haven’t had much energy for anything else or joy.

But our trip to Montana was something my heart sung for. It was the number one thing on my bucket list. Something I’ve dreamed of seeing since I was a little girl.

Seeing those magnificent fields and large rock formations was just incredible. It will be a trip I remember for the rest of my life.

My Idea of Sustainability

How would you design the city of the future?

AI Generated by Kristopher

The world is a giant ecosystem, and we are the invasive species. We are the ones who move in and take over, sending native wildlife, including plants, into danger.

I would design the city around the native wildlife. Similar to the photo I created above. Where nature is preserved, and wildlife has a chance to flourish.

Our incredible planet relies on the creatures and critters to survive. So the more we push them out, the more we are just signing our futures away.

Meaningful Names

Where did your name come from?

When I was younger, I struggled a lot with my name. I got made fun of for my name. Was always told, “That’s a boys name!”

It was always the same thing, over and over. As the years went by, I realized that no other girls had my name. Yeah, the few that have my abbreviated name. But it’s never the full name like mine.

My mama wanted something unique for a girl, but she wanted it to be kind of common at the same time.

So, she named me after my daddy, uncle, and her mama, my grandmother.

Kristopher (after my dad and uncle, just girly)

Ann (after my grandmother, Nellie Shirley Ann)

Lifting Love

What motivates you?

Lately, my anxiety and depression have had me feeling less than. Less than the person I feel I should be. I haven’t wanted to do much of anything lately.

But knowing my husband and my children need me, depending on me every day to pick them up and love them and care for them, has kept me alive.

Without them, I probably would’ve withered away by now. Without them, I feel as though I have no purpose.

So my motivation comes from all of their love. And I’m sure, they have no idea how much they all really mean to me.

Movie Goers

What are your top ten favorite movies?

There are so many good movies out there. It’s hard to narrow it down to just a few.

1. Austin Powers: Goldmember

2. Avatar

3. Moana (Disney)

4. Red Dragon

5. Silence of the Lambs

6. Something Borrowed

7. Iron Man (any of them)

8. Mulan (Disney)

9. Jurassic Park

10. Joe Dirt

Emotional Writing

What do you enjoy most about writing?

Writing, for me, is a way to express my emotions. To tell the story of my heart. To get it all out in the open and off my chest.

It’s almost as if with each word I write or type, I can feel the stress lifting from me. It calms me and relaxes me down.

Minnesota Summers

What do you love about where you live?

I really love a lot about Minnesota, but one thing keeps me from wanting to stay any longer than we have to.

The summers here are gorgeous. Glistening lakes, blue skies for miles, open fields of wildly grown grasses, and so many trees and forest areas. I love the wildlife here. The number of clouds you can see because there’s no mountains to block the view. The slight breeze that seems to be abundant here throughout all seasons. At night, if it’s dark enough, you can almost see the entire galaxy it seems in the sky! It’s absolutely beautiful here.

But the amount of snow in the winter here has done it for me. I knew it would be snowy, and that’s why I held my ground as long as I could. But it’s depressing, for me, how much snow it is and how long it really lasts.

I dream of winters like back home where it feels like fall all winger long, and if it does snow, it melts the same day.

Peaceful Moments

What brings you peace?

When the sun starts to set and the sky looks like a water painted canvas, as I lay my children to bed. Their precious voices asking for hugs and kisses and pats and to be tucked in, even at their growing ages, my heart warms.

I tuck them in, one by one, with a kiss, a hug, and a couple minutes of a back pat. Then, head off to my room or my couch.

I find peace in that moment knowing that I must be doing something right because I feel so much love from my family at that moment.

The little things add up to every single muscle of my heart.

Diner Dreams

If you were going to open up a shop, what would you sell?

If it could be any kind of “shop” I wanted, then I would open a small diner with an attached bakery. I’ve already been planning it for some day when I have the funds to back it up.

This is a rough draft of what my logo or sign would be like. I have a few others as well. But I like this one the most so far. I also have a logo for the bakery part of my menu…

One day, I will be able to reach my goal and open up my little home cooked diner. But until then, I’ll keep planning, so everything will already be in order for when it’s go time.