Who/What is Hillbilly Helen
What ?? I have a blog? Oh Yeah... that's right. Something I thought I'd start a few years back when I fell in love with reading blogs. Then my already crazy life took a turn for the crazier and I didn't stop reading blogs, but having one of my own seemed completely ridiculous for me. I don't think I will bore anyone with ALL the details that have kept me out of the blogging world. But I'm feeling compelled to jump back in. So here I go.
First of all I want to make a little statement about change. Whatever you may think about what makes the world go round.... it really could be any number of things.. you choose. For me, what I think makes the world go round is change!! That's right, I'm going to go right out on a limb here and say that I think CHANGE makes the world go round... I'm sure this could be argued for hours and from a bunch of different angles, but since I'm the one doing the writing ... I get to say it's CHANGE. In the past 3 years so many things in my life have changed that I could write pages and pages about it, come to think of it ... I have done that.... most of those things should never be made public, so I'll just share the stuff that it's ok to make public... The things that most people who will read this already know about me and my life. Some examples are.. My oldest daughter got married and is coming up on her 3 year anniversary in a couple of months. My oldest son returned just under 2 months ago from spending 2 years in the country of Armenia as a missionary, and he speaks Armenian and now he's an almost 21 year old college student. Just 18 months ago my husband and I moved our 5 youngest children to the town where I grew up after living for 19 years in the little central Utah town of Ephraim. We moved right in with my 87 year old mother to help care for her. Which turned out to be a wonderful blessing as she lived almost exactly 1 year to the day from the day we moved in. it's been exactly 6 months tomorrow since she left us. It's been sad and happy ... she had lived 30 years without my Dad and knowing that they are together again, can't help but make me feel a little happy for them. Even though being without my mom is not much fun. Along with this my mother-in-law also passed away just a little less than 5 months before my mother. She had been battling cancer for 4 years and had fought valiantly. She did not want to leave us and would never have chosen to go, but her body had taken all it could. So in just under 5 months time my kiddos lost both of their beloved grandmothers. I think they all kind of feel like the "poster children" for CHANGE... and I really don't blame them. I will say this, they have totally taken on the challenges they have faced and withstood the storms and changes in a way that I had never imagined possible. For this I am so proud and grateful for them. If I was writing an essay for an English class I think I would feel obligated to better develop and support my hypothesis that CHANGE is what makes the world go round, but since I'm trying to get to something else I'm just going to say... I think you get the idea... CHANGE is a super big deal in life and it can really throw us into a tail spin. I've been known to use the analogy that life is like a big roller coaster ride.... one that we don't always necessarily choose to ride on... sometimes the hills, thrills and speeds can be way more that we bargained for, but somehow we hang on tight, close our eyes and sometimes scream really loud..... but until the ride is over there is NO getting off, so keep your hands and arms inside the car.... and ENJOY THE RIDE!!
This is my "ever changing bunch"... but one thing will never change... How much I love and adore
them.
So here is the question that is on my mind and probably yours too.. why have a blog and who is this "Hillbilly Helen" that thinks she has something to say that hasn't already been said. Given the scope of blogs that can be found in cyberspace in today's world it seems almost pointless to blog, I mean really, who is going to read another blog.... it's already been done.... and many of the blogs I read have millions of readers, followers, and even some creepers who have become obsessed with what these bloggers are doing... some are posting on Instagram all day long and it somehow draws us in.... we for some reason become obsessed with seeing into the day to day life of other ordinary people just like us, who eventually get so many followers they gain "rockstar-like" status. I admit it... I really enjoy watching some of these Instagram stories and YouTube videos and reading about what other people do all day! It's entertainment... or something like that!! Am I seeking rockstar status or millions of followers?? ... no, probably not, unless of course that some how gets me millions of dollars (I mean lets be honest... who doesn't want that) .... maybe I could insert here that MONEY also makes the world go round... there I said it... I know you were thinking it. So no, it's not about followers or money or anything other than maybe ..... Therapy. Since I can't really afford the kind of therapy I need I've decided I want to write.... about my days and nights.... for me.. myself. I want to keep track of what I'm doing... I want to keep track of what I'm reading and doing and learning from other blogs and people and places and how those things are getting me thru my day to day "rollercoaster rides".
A few weeks ago, thinking about possibly writing a blog post, I again looked up the word "Hillbilly" I found my favorite definition at dictionary.com
Hillbilly is often used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting, implying that a person who lives far away from a town or city lacks culture or education. However, this term is also used in a humorous way without intent to offend, and it is sometimes a positive term of self-reference.
My reason's for being "Hillbilly Helen" have evolved/changed, but non-the-less are still valid. This blog is coming from someone who gets most of her good ideas from elsewhere .... other blogs, so most of what I share ... other than my writing will be credited to someone else..... so that's me!! Creativity has never been my strong suit... But I love it when I can use someone else's creativity to "hack" my own life and make it better.
This week I discovered something that is perfect for me
http://funcheaporfree.com/2017/08/what-is-shelf-cooking-plus-the-official-shelftember-challenge-freezer-giveaway/
the #shelftember challenge. If you are interested this gal has some great ideas for using what you have and spending very little on groceries for the month of September
here's some of what I've done this week for #shelftember
this idea from IG ... only I used hamburger buns that I cut in half.... the gang loved these!!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYs3uJ1HuBs/?hl=en&taken-by=funcheaporfree
Turned leftover rice into this rice pudding-- just the pudding part-- not the cheesecake part. Rice pudding made on the stove top like this is a breakfast staple for us.
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/cheesecake-rice-pudding-plus-a-chocolate-version/
used some corn tortillas from the fridge and turned them into taquitos with some shredded cheese and this leftover taco meat... they were also inspired by a favorite taquito recipe (I just used the meat and cheese and they were super yummy)
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/tacos-supreme/
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/baked-chicken-taquitos/
Made this fried rice from some leftover ham and brown rice
https://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/restaurant-ham-fried-rice/
Another breakfast staple for us is this baked oatmeal.... If you still have not tried baked oatmeal.. Just do it!!
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/baked-oatmeal/
So I didn't snap photos of everything I made... and I used my iPhone ... so in true Hillbilly style the photography here is not too great, but here is what I have to show for my cooking this week...
There you have it!! My first post in.... what feels like a lifetime of change (even though it's only been about 2 1/2 years). I Don't know what the future holds... as my hubby always says, "The Future is Unwritten"... That's for sure! I hope to share what I learn.. from other places... a kind of "look what I made today.. or watched today... or read today .. or heard today....or this week... and this is where I found it. What you see is what you get.. I'm just me ...HILLBILLY HELEN
First of all I want to make a little statement about change. Whatever you may think about what makes the world go round.... it really could be any number of things.. you choose. For me, what I think makes the world go round is change!! That's right, I'm going to go right out on a limb here and say that I think CHANGE makes the world go round... I'm sure this could be argued for hours and from a bunch of different angles, but since I'm the one doing the writing ... I get to say it's CHANGE. In the past 3 years so many things in my life have changed that I could write pages and pages about it, come to think of it ... I have done that.... most of those things should never be made public, so I'll just share the stuff that it's ok to make public... The things that most people who will read this already know about me and my life. Some examples are.. My oldest daughter got married and is coming up on her 3 year anniversary in a couple of months. My oldest son returned just under 2 months ago from spending 2 years in the country of Armenia as a missionary, and he speaks Armenian and now he's an almost 21 year old college student. Just 18 months ago my husband and I moved our 5 youngest children to the town where I grew up after living for 19 years in the little central Utah town of Ephraim. We moved right in with my 87 year old mother to help care for her. Which turned out to be a wonderful blessing as she lived almost exactly 1 year to the day from the day we moved in. it's been exactly 6 months tomorrow since she left us. It's been sad and happy ... she had lived 30 years without my Dad and knowing that they are together again, can't help but make me feel a little happy for them. Even though being without my mom is not much fun. Along with this my mother-in-law also passed away just a little less than 5 months before my mother. She had been battling cancer for 4 years and had fought valiantly. She did not want to leave us and would never have chosen to go, but her body had taken all it could. So in just under 5 months time my kiddos lost both of their beloved grandmothers. I think they all kind of feel like the "poster children" for CHANGE... and I really don't blame them. I will say this, they have totally taken on the challenges they have faced and withstood the storms and changes in a way that I had never imagined possible. For this I am so proud and grateful for them. If I was writing an essay for an English class I think I would feel obligated to better develop and support my hypothesis that CHANGE is what makes the world go round, but since I'm trying to get to something else I'm just going to say... I think you get the idea... CHANGE is a super big deal in life and it can really throw us into a tail spin. I've been known to use the analogy that life is like a big roller coaster ride.... one that we don't always necessarily choose to ride on... sometimes the hills, thrills and speeds can be way more that we bargained for, but somehow we hang on tight, close our eyes and sometimes scream really loud..... but until the ride is over there is NO getting off, so keep your hands and arms inside the car.... and ENJOY THE RIDE!!
This is my "ever changing bunch"... but one thing will never change... How much I love and adore
them.
So here is the question that is on my mind and probably yours too.. why have a blog and who is this "Hillbilly Helen" that thinks she has something to say that hasn't already been said. Given the scope of blogs that can be found in cyberspace in today's world it seems almost pointless to blog, I mean really, who is going to read another blog.... it's already been done.... and many of the blogs I read have millions of readers, followers, and even some creepers who have become obsessed with what these bloggers are doing... some are posting on Instagram all day long and it somehow draws us in.... we for some reason become obsessed with seeing into the day to day life of other ordinary people just like us, who eventually get so many followers they gain "rockstar-like" status. I admit it... I really enjoy watching some of these Instagram stories and YouTube videos and reading about what other people do all day! It's entertainment... or something like that!! Am I seeking rockstar status or millions of followers?? ... no, probably not, unless of course that some how gets me millions of dollars (I mean lets be honest... who doesn't want that) .... maybe I could insert here that MONEY also makes the world go round... there I said it... I know you were thinking it. So no, it's not about followers or money or anything other than maybe ..... Therapy. Since I can't really afford the kind of therapy I need I've decided I want to write.... about my days and nights.... for me.. myself. I want to keep track of what I'm doing... I want to keep track of what I'm reading and doing and learning from other blogs and people and places and how those things are getting me thru my day to day "rollercoaster rides".
A few weeks ago, thinking about possibly writing a blog post, I again looked up the word "Hillbilly" I found my favorite definition at dictionary.com
Hillbilly is often used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting, implying that a person who lives far away from a town or city lacks culture or education. However, this term is also used in a humorous way without intent to offend, and it is sometimes a positive term of self-reference.
My reason's for being "Hillbilly Helen" have evolved/changed, but non-the-less are still valid. This blog is coming from someone who gets most of her good ideas from elsewhere .... other blogs, so most of what I share ... other than my writing will be credited to someone else..... so that's me!! Creativity has never been my strong suit... But I love it when I can use someone else's creativity to "hack" my own life and make it better.
This week I discovered something that is perfect for me
http://funcheaporfree.com/2017/08/what-is-shelf-cooking-plus-the-official-shelftember-challenge-freezer-giveaway/
the #shelftember challenge. If you are interested this gal has some great ideas for using what you have and spending very little on groceries for the month of September
here's some of what I've done this week for #shelftember
this idea from IG ... only I used hamburger buns that I cut in half.... the gang loved these!!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYs3uJ1HuBs/?hl=en&taken-by=funcheaporfree
Turned leftover rice into this rice pudding-- just the pudding part-- not the cheesecake part. Rice pudding made on the stove top like this is a breakfast staple for us.
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/cheesecake-rice-pudding-plus-a-chocolate-version/
used some corn tortillas from the fridge and turned them into taquitos with some shredded cheese and this leftover taco meat... they were also inspired by a favorite taquito recipe (I just used the meat and cheese and they were super yummy)
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/tacos-supreme/
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/baked-chicken-taquitos/
Made this fried rice from some leftover ham and brown rice
https://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/restaurant-ham-fried-rice/
Another breakfast staple for us is this baked oatmeal.... If you still have not tried baked oatmeal.. Just do it!!
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/baked-oatmeal/
So I didn't snap photos of everything I made... and I used my iPhone ... so in true Hillbilly style the photography here is not too great, but here is what I have to show for my cooking this week...
There you have it!! My first post in.... what feels like a lifetime of change (even though it's only been about 2 1/2 years). I Don't know what the future holds... as my hubby always says, "The Future is Unwritten"... That's for sure! I hope to share what I learn.. from other places... a kind of "look what I made today.. or watched today... or read today .. or heard today....or this week... and this is where I found it. What you see is what you get.. I'm just me ...HILLBILLY HELEN
P.S. I dab (haha)
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