Memorial Day 2017

Remembering all who sacrificed......

I know this weekend is full of family time and BBQ's and swimming pools opening.  I love the excitement of the unofficial start of summer that occurs this holiday weekend.  But most of all, I'm eternally grateful for the bravery of the men and women who serve, and have served our country.  THANK YOU!!  You and your families are the true heroes.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!!

Thankful Thursday

Hi!    A second post in March - a St. Patrick's Day miracle😏

I haven't done a TT in quite awhile, so here goes....

Springtime!  It has yet to feel that way, but tomorrow is forecasted to be 70!!  Windy, but 70.

Spring break for my kiddos started today around 4pm!  I have tomorrow off from work, and next week I'm working very limited hours, so I'm excited because it feels like I am on spring break too.  The last few weeks have been so hectic that I am looking forward to some down time and while we have a couple of small things planned, nothing major is on the horizon.  I'm sure things will fill in, but right now I'm excited to just rest and B.R.E.A.T.H.E.

Warm chocolate chip cookies.  Peyton makes awesome cookies.  I've eaten too many already.  Tomorrow is a new day.

Loud, shrieking girls.  I am a "go to bed at 9pm and read quietly before falling asleep before 10" kind of girl, so having teenagers up and about with their friends late at night is not my favorite thing, but it makes them happy, so it's my favorite thing :)

National Puppy Day.  I'm not what you might call a "dog girl" but I can appreciate a cute puppy (or full grown BEHAVED dog) for others.  As a matter of fact, I adore doting on friends' dogs while NOT having to scoop the yard!

Having "shoulders to lean on" kinds of friends and family.  I know I have a support group to lean on for those challenging days.  I aim to be that for others.

Well, it's almost 9 and we know what that means.  My bedtime is still at least 2 hours away since it's a non-school night.  I might just doze off while sitting upright. 

Happy Thursday!

Ides of March

Hello!  I think I can commit to this once-a-month blogging thing without too much angst.  I always mean to post more (I have lots of thoughts, double chocolate or not, swirling in my head.  By the time I get to the computer, some of them have taken the highway out of town with no chance of returning.)

I would love to have some exciting pictures or epic stories of cupcakes and cookies, but truthfully it has been rather blah in this department lately.  I did make some basketball cake pops for a friend's work event (I will stick with cookies next time, it is NO JOKE trying to pipe those seams on a 3D surface.  As much as I didn't want to, I stressed the whole time for fear they would look sloppy and I was running a pretty tight schedule, so no re-do's were possible.  But she was happy, and hey, they were chocolate on the inside, so win-win!

In other news, we are wrapping up basketball and Cub Scouts for Kevin, getting ready for track for Peyton, and moving toward SAT testing for Reaghan.  Though she is the one putting in all the work for that.

I've been working both inside and out of the house - my normal dentist office job, plus some lunchroom subbing at the kids' schools, and trying to get spring cleaning started on the house.  We had the most beautiful burst of weather about 10 days ago and it motivated me to open the windows and start decluttering and really getting things in order.  So far, I've vacuumed the stairs and kept up with laundry.  We've all got to start somewhere.😏  I really can't believe the kids will be starting the 4th quarter of school in just a few weeks.

Other than that, I'm looking forward to getting outside consistently to run, and trying to get on track for some spring baking and decorating.  With multiple family members (myself included) being sick in February, I didn't bake one.single.Valentine.thing.  I didn't get too upset about it, but I definitely reminisce about the days of doing more.  Oh well, there's usually another season right around the corner to strive for.

Have a great month in case it's April before I get back here again!!

Super Bowl Sunday

So.....who else ISN'T watching the game and blogging instead??

We had fun plans and then I came down with a really bad cold this week that turned into a sinus infection.

So....I'm staying inside and resting up and doing all the boring stuff and enjoying the fact that I get to recuperate instead of trying to push myself too hard.  I didn't have much emotional interest in the actual game to begin with, but I usually tune in a bit to watch commercials and the half-time show.  As is my custom, I tend to feel a bit "meh" about things when I have a sinus infection, (other than being stuffy and miserable, it's one of the signs that gets me into the Dr's office) so combined with staying in and not feeling festive, I opted to flip around various TV shows instead.  I can always catch up later on You Tube and about 500 news channels, right??

In other news, how was Christmas??  And New Year's??  And Groundhog Day??

Yes, I'm apparently quite far behind.  January flew by, and it would seem February is well on its way.  Since I'm not a fan of winter, I'm sort of okay with us zooming toward spring. 

To recap, we had a wonderful Christmas with family, a low-key and fun-filled New Year's with friends, and Groundhog Day?  Well, does it really matter if that mammal sees his shadow or not?  Is it 6 more weeks if he SEES the shadow, then supposedly less if he DOES NOT?  Being from the Midwest, if there are truly only 6 more weeks of winter from February 2nd,  (shadow or not) COUNT ME IN.  Usually it's more like 11 weeks.

In other news, I didn't even bake this weekend (gasp) what with being ill and all.  Hopefully, I can be on the mend in enough time to get some cute Valentine's Day treats going - I always love to see red and pink sprinkles :)

What's new with you?

Twelve Tips of Christmas (Days 8-12)

I am combining lots of days to finish up all the things:)

So......every Christmas season I have a grand plan of everything being done the week before, and then figure I'll be able to drink hot cocoa every evening, (with zero calories) watch Christmas movies for 6 hours (without falling asleep!), have the house cleaned with everything in its place, and then have time to spare because all the neighbor cookies and cards have been delivered, so I'll just fit in an extra workout.

And every year, none of this happens this way.

Granted, with the passing of my father-in-law last week, I knew things would go a lot differently this week.  But even in years passed, unexpected glitches happen and throw the plans like confetti in the air.

With that said, here are some final tips I'm applying, and then I shall let the confetti fall where it may and just enjoy the season with my family.

Tip 8:  Put your elves to work.  Today this will mean my kids take on the majority of the laundry, (I think this should take a sabbatical in the month of December, but it never does)  and my husband will be finishing the gift purchasing and delivering the neighborhood cookies. 

Tip 9:  Sit and savor your cup of coffee (or two, like I did) and then jump in.  As soon as I finish this post, I'm off to start the day.  No more Facebook or blog time for me until tonight.

Tip 10:  Clutter and junk sitting around your house??  Throw it in a basket and shove it in a closet.  Closets full??  Hang a bow on that basket and put it in a corner ;)

Tip 11:  Box brownies with a can of store bought frosting (gasp!) and some crushed candy canes are yummy.  And so festive.

Tip 12:  Do what you can do and then give yourself permission to let the rest go.  Easier said than done.  But one day, these sorts of scenarios make much better stories than a Christmas perfectly done days ahead of time.  At least, that's what I'm telling myself!

I wish you and your family the Merriest of Christmases.  Ok, three days and counting......

Twelve Tips of Christmas (Day 6 and Day 7)

Five days til Christmas!!!!!

Time to start combining days, lol!!

Tip 6: Make your final grocery list TONIGHT. I am working tomorrow,  but am planning to be up and out early Thursday morning for my last minute ingredients. 

Tip 7: Plan when you will prep your Christmas morning breakfast.  I generally do this Christmas Eve afternoon. If you are looking for ideas, here is what we serve every Christmas:

Tator Tot Casserole:

1lb ground sausage, ham or bacon 

2 cups shredded cheese 

1 cups milk

6 eggs

2 lbs tator tots

Salt and pepper 

Spray a 9x13 pan and spread out tots.  Sprinkle meat and cheese over, then whisk milk and eggs and pour over. Season to taste. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes, or until eggs are not jiggly.  

Monkey Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting:

2 loaves Rhodes bread dough

1 small box cook and serve vanilla pudding 

1 stick butter

1 tsp vanilla 

2 tsp cinnamon 

1 cup brown sugar 

1/2 cup milk

Grease a 9x13 or a bundt pan (my favorite) and cut bread dough into bite size pieces.  Spread in pan. Melt butter, then add the remaining ingredients and whisk smooth. Pour over bread.  Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.

Icing:

1/2 stick softened butter

4 oz  cream cheese 

2 cups powdered sugar 

1 tsp vanilla

4+ tbsps milk or 1/2+1/2

Beat butter and cream cheese til smooth. Slowly add remaining ingredients until a slightly pourable consistency is achieved.  Drizzle over warm monkey bread. 

Both of these dishes can be made 24 hours ahead and refrigerated.  I stick these in before we open presents and then it's ready to be served right about the time we crawl out of the wrapping paper.  

BAKING HINTS : Rhodes bread dough is sold in the freezer section.  I will set out on counter for an hour or so, then cut while it is defrosting. So much easier to cut than when the dough is sticky.  Secondly,  I prefer to make monkey bread in a bundt,  because the center core ensures everything bakes evenly.  Sometimes,  in a 9x13, the center is undercooked.  

I hope this finds you warm and cozy and enjoying this week!

Twelve Tips of Christmas (Day 5)

Here we are, nearly half way through and I'm waaay behind!

We lost my dear father-in-law earlier this week, so posting has taken a back seat to lots of other pressing issues at hand.  He was a sweet man who will be greatly missed.  He was one of my biggest fans in the baking department and I would love to have one more chance to make a rich, chocolaty cake for him.  I will miss his excitement over "what's Mindy bringing for dessert????"

In honor of his memory, I thought it fitting to offer up another baking tip involving chocolate.

Sometimes, even the best recipe will not turn out like it should.  It could be weather related, an oven issue, or in my case, a combination of butter that wasn't quite soft enough (but didn't have time to mess with it) and forgetting to add salt to the dry ingredients.  WHAT?!?!?  I'm blaming this on my overtaxed mind.  Sometimes little things fall out of your brain when you are juggling big things.

So.....I had mixed up a double batch of Heath Cookie Bits dough. Of course, it would have to be doubled.  A single recipe I may have chalked up to a small loss and moved on, but 4+ cups of flour?!?!?  I don't think so.  I knew it needed to be salvaged. 

I baked up the too thick dough, and the texture turned out to be okay after all.  The taste was.....well, it was bland what with the whole "no salt" thing.  But then I remembered I had coarse sea salt and chocolate for melting - yay!  So, I drizzled some melted chocolate, then sprinkled a bit of sea salt over each cookie.  Voila!  I still prefer the original, but this cookie worked for what was needed, which was a sturdy cookie for packing up to give to teachers.  I didn't try this,  (mainly because I had filled up on cookie dough and was stuffed ) but because it's a little thicker, I think it will be a good "dunking in coffee or tea" type treat.

So, today's tip is - panic first, then then think outside the box.  Sometimes you will come up with a just right solution.  And sometimes, you may have to throw it out and start over, but at least run through some options in your head first.  You might surprise yourself!

P.S.  About 3 years ago, I had baked a fabulous cake that included eight melted Milky Way bars.  Yes, you read that correctly.  Anyway, due to the caramel and the very dense batter, this cake REFUSED to let go of it's cozy bundt pan.  I dug everything out into a big heap on my counter.  I was ready to cry and throw away, then it occurred to me - what is better than cake and ice cream??  I made a base layer out of that messy cake by pressing it into a 9x13 pan, softened some ice cream enough for spreading, then drizzled hot fudge and sprinkles over the top and cut into squares.  Everyone raved about it.  Sometimes your biggest error can run into something really good in the end :)

P.S.S. I think it's funny that spell check doesn't recognize the word "bundt."  :) :) :)