Gettin' high and cooking

Sunday we got to have a late breakfast with Jud and Kara, before they headed south to Kansas City. It was fun to see them two weekends in a row! I was spoiled. I like hanging with my kiddo - hearing Paul and him talking about their teams. Jud chased Odie around the house Sunday morning and she got all jacked up, barking and whirling - she's still got it for an old gal. Kara thought it was a hoot.

I ran some errands during the Green Bay game - left Paul to feel the pain of another tragic loss. His teams aren't faring too well this season so far. Luckily it was the early game and there was still plenty of beautiful day left when the game ended. We were off to Woodward to ride the bike trail to the High Trestle Bridge - something we'd been itching to do all summer!

Can't have an Iowa town without a grain elevator

The trailhead is right in town
 

There was an overlook that made Pablo queasy...

Orange and Albie liked the nice railing - it kept them from plunging 40 meters

See...he's not quite smiling - he doesn't like this height. For some reason it didn't bother me

I guess it's really cool at night with the lights

Afterwards we couldn't resist a cold bevvie at the Whistlin' Donkey!

We need to go back to this trail sometime with friends! The trail is all paved and is flat as a pancake. It goes to the High Trestle Bridge which is 15 stories high - built from a former railroad trestle. It's up there! We saw lots of recumbent bikes as we rode. Plus walkers and families. It's 2.6 miles to the trestle from Woodward - and is another 2.6 to Madrid (pronounce Mad Rid) after the bridge.

I always think of Betso when I see that town name. When she was in high school, she and buddy Julie Hansen drove to Ames to visit me at college. They took a left turn at the wrong place, and they ended up there for some reason - lost! It was prior to the cell phone era of course, and she found a public phone and frantically called me and said, "We're lost - we're in Madrid!" pronouncing it like the Spanish city. Being the smart ass college student I was, I said, "Wow, you did take a wrong turn!" Clever, no?!? I hear there is a pub in Madrid too. Could be a fun ride!

Last night I attended a cooking class put on by LearnWest. It was in a little magazine I received in the mail from the community education program. They offer all sorts of classes - from jewelry making, to quilts (damn - you have to know how to sew) to cooking, exercise, computers, blogging and more.

About time you learned to cook, some of you might say. So I mature slowly. There's still time! It's not like I can't cook - it's just that I have no style. I'd like to learn to be comfortable in a kitchen - and not just on the clean up crew. There were nine of us at the class set at a local Junior High Home Ec room. Visions of Mrs. Elming, my very own Junior High instructor. She tried valiantly to teach me to cook, sew and apply makeup. It didn't take.

This class was taught by Stacey Parkins, who runs her own business - Nonna's Inspired Cooking. She'll come to your home and teach you to cook a dish. Stacey also teaches several of the LearnWest classes. Nice gal, who is assisted by her sister. Nonna is her gran - awww.

Gail and Angela

Soup

We learned to cook chicken and rice soup and whipped up a citrus salad dressing to put on some greens. I partnered with a couple other gals who came without built in pals - Angela and Gail. I got a kick out of Gail who said she doesn't even own measuring spoons. It will be hard to cook at home without some, I believe! Stacey had us tasting the recipes after several steps and also gave us tips about things to keep in our kitchens. It was nice to ask questions of someone who wasn't snooty. We had to keep adding mustard to the dressing because it was too thin and a bit bland to start with. The evening was fun. I won't be cooking like that every night - it takes time! But there might be hope for the weekends. Maybe I am growing up. Naaa.