April Cookies

Yesterday I made Brett his "cookie of the month". They are Peanut Butter Surprise cookies...and they are TO DIE. Even though I made these cookies with crunchy peanut butter instead of smooth ( which, yes, would have been better...but I had TWO jars of opened chrunchy peanut butter ( how did that happen?!?) so I went with what I had...) these cookies still turned out amazing. 

It was really a miracle that they turned out so well because I made them while in a terrible mood. Usually Rage Cooking rarely works out for me, but this time the recipe was so simple that I could make no discernible errors. Seriously. One should never, ever cook while angry or remotely mad....I for one find that food does not do well with High Emotions. This is why I feel that chefs are very calm people. This is probably not at all true. But I'm going with it for the sake of my point. 

The point being you can make these cookies while both angry and while having Low Blood sugar...which for anyone that knows me can tell you, is directly related to the angry part. 

Let's just say that my poor, dear husband had to work allllllll day yesterday and was still working at dinner time, so I made dinner while he was still working away in the dining room and then two hours later he was STILL working and dinner was officially cold and I was OFFICIALLY low-blood-sugar-angry. Incidentally, just in case you were not aware, Low-blood-sugar-anger is based off of NOTHING...and is not valid in a court of law, or in my marriage as it would turn out...so bottom line: it was good that I made cookies and eventually got fed-especially since my poor husband is working again today. Bless his heart. Its the LEAST I can do to give him cookies once a month. *sigh*  

blurry lines

As an Army wife, one of the perks has been, up until this point-the fact that we move every year or two giving us the opportunity to not become contestants on the show Hoarders. Having to move keeps my priorities in line on the whole "necessity" verse "luxury" situation.

However, we have now been at our current location for almost three years (!!!) and the lines are getting blurry....for instance I saw this on someones blog today and I came thisclose to buying it.

 Its a wall hanging, just in case you can't tell...but I kind of have a thing for owls. And I felt like it would go well in my guest room...plus, it was only 16 dollars!!! SHUT UP!

Anyway, if your also one of those people with blurry lines, you can get it here.


I was able to resist. This time.

Sharing!!

So, I wrote a little blog post for a College Ministry blog this week....You can read it here.  I was asked to write for them back in DECEMBER...and, yeah, its taken this many months for me to actually follow through. I guess this is just a perfect example of how loooong it takes me to write anything these days! I'm trying to do better ( but I say that every time!).

The drink of fathers

When I was little Papa would drive me to school. We'd listen to NPR's Morning Edition and Papa would drink coffee out of a normal mug ( no travel mug for him!), he'd  balance the mug on the dashboard which was pretty precarious, but there was no cupholder for mugs in his truck. He'd take a sip, we'd swerve a little, he'd make an "ahhhhh!" sound and he'd position the mug back on the dash so that he could focus on yelling at the Liberals on NPR.
These memories are so strong that I can literally smell the coffee and hear Bob Edwards voice.

And now, already, Ransom also associates the sound of the hot water kettle ( with which we make the hot water for the French Press coffee) with his Daddy ( this morning I was making a cup of decaf and he heard the sound  and literally ran yelling "Daddy!" into the kitchen), and any time he sees any mug at all he says "caught-tee?"

I am so glad that Ransom's own childhood memories will be just as permeated with the smell and sounds of coffee...There is something kind of comforting about it.  While its really not that important-I doubt that I could have married a non-coffee drinker. For the sake of our children.  ;-)

P.S. Will it ever NOT be heartbreaking when Ransom asks for his Daddy and he's not able to be there?!?!

two teeny tiny problems

So, as I have mentioned on this blog before, I've been having some ankle issues since December. And after several doctors appointments, 4 x-rays, a bone scan and an MRI, plus almost 4 months of no exercise... today I went in for another appointment where the "specialist" orthopedic doctor told me that there were officially no stress fractures as I was previously told, and that there was nothing wrong at the bone level. blah blah blah. Here's your cortisone shot, rest a few more weeks, come back in six...

Can, I just be honest for a few minutes!? I would like to admit that when push comes to shove I was disappointed in today's appointment because NO ONE mentioned my teeny tiny feet and ankles.

Bottom line is that it doesn't matter what's wrong with my ankle or how it happened, I feel POSITIVE that my size 4 and a half feet should NOT be supporting my 5'6'', size 6/8 frame...And while I've had every single friend/stranger that has ever seen my feet comment on how freakishly small they are, I really really wanted a Medical Professional to take note. To say something like, "Holy Cow, Woman, you are a modern day miracle!! The fact that you can walk around on those tiny stumps is amazing in itself, so OF COURSE you twist your ankles on a regular basis, and fall over all the time!! That only makes sense!"

But he did not mention this and I'm pretty disappointed. Now my ankle is pretty sore and I'm waiting not so patiently for the "dramatic relief" that cortisone shots supposedly give...for one thing I'd like to go for a run again before its officially 104 degrees outside at 8 in the morning ( that could be any day now!), and I'd also like to continue my current eating habits ( read: eat cookies) without my pants becoming increasingly tight...so I'll definitely be counting the days.

ALSO the next time you see me in sparkly pink shoes just remember that I have to shop in the CHILDRENS DEPARTMENT and that while it has not been medically verified, I think I deserve a little more "support" in life.

My favorite

He's my favorite

I tell Ransom he's my favorite all the time. I usually say something like, "you're my very favorite child."

This is of course very true since he's also my only child, but I still like to say it. And I have a feeling that I'll say it even when we have more children. I'll probably tell my other child that they are my favorite too.

It will be no less true.

I get away with this because by definition Favorite ( adjective) means: Preferred before all others of the same kind.

And I feel like Ransom is the only one of his kind. As will be true of all future offspring. There. Explained.

So this Friday one of my dear friends is throwing a Favorite Things Party. The basic idea is that everyone invited brings three of their favorite things, categories are endless, and then we all put our names in a hat and everyone draws and gets three new favorite things to take home....

How totally fab is that?!

I've been so excited about this party for ages ever since my friend explained the concept to me. As you know, from my giveaways last year, I am a fan of sharing my favorite things...and I have a lot of them.  What blew my mind was that some of the other invitees where having trouble coming up with things to bring. I'm personally having trouble narrowing down my list!!

So, if you were invited what would you bring? Here are some of the things that didn't make the cut for me:

Restaurant trips with a baby/toddler made easier....

I love wearing this ring...and getting strange looks and remarks like, "what's THAT?!"

This one couldn't make the list because it's technically not "mine"...but Ransom looks like such a little dude when he wears these, and I love it
.

I literally use one or more of these babies every single day in the kitchen.

If I could get away with it...I'd wear this skirt every day 

I'm currently using this as my "diaper bag"...but its more like my "take the sink with me" bag.

I bought this because I have a kid...but I've actually used it more on my own sad little ankles (its oh so cute!) 

If you haven't seen this movie, its not just for "people with kids"...It is one of the greatest tales of humanity I've seen, and while its been ages...I still think about this movie. 

I just read this book over the weekend and it made me laugh/cry.  Bonus: It's by one of my favorite bloggers!

Good Friday

I'm reading the most incredible book as part of our Home Church. Its called, The Untold Story of the New Testament Church. I am only on chapter 7 and it is SOOOOO GOOOD.

I felt like I had to share this quote today, because I don't think I have ever before thought of the significance of the actual DAY of Jesus' crucifixion. I know its just a bit underselling God by a ton, but man, He had such perfect timing! Such powerful imagery.

Today I thank God for our Sacrificial Lamb, the one who ransomed us so that we might have a relationship with our most high God.

April 7, 30 

From noon to 3 p.m. the cries of the spotless lambs fill Jerusalem as they are slaughtered for the Passover feast. At the same time, Jesus Christ-the real Lamb of God-is crucified. As Jesus breathes His last breath, an earthquake hits the land, and the curtain which encloses the Most Holy Place in the temple is rent in two, from top to bottom. This signified that the way to fellowship with the Father has now been opened for all man to experience. 

March cookies!!

So, Brett's cookies for the month of "March" were actually made on April 1st...but they were no joke. ( HA! see what I just did there?!? )  And while I was a day shy of the month of March, I think Brett forgave me since it wasn't like he was actually HERE during the month of March really anyway....

Here's the recipe: Salted Carmel Thumb print cookies

So, ok these cookies definitely need some tweaking. First of all, I hate, hate, hate using "cookie mixes"...cookies are so easy anyway, it doesn't seem right to use a "mix"...but since it was my first time making them I went with it...next time, I think I'll just make a classic sugar cookie recipe with a little added flour. I also think I will use Caramel Fudge topping rather than just "topping"....I think it'll be thicker and less likely to run and not set. I felt like the caramel in these babies never REALLY set, and consequently when I put them on the rack to finish cooling the caramel just sunk through the middle of the cookie on several before I caught it and put them on more solid plate. 

That being said...these bad boys tasted like tiny pecan pies and they were AH-MAZING. I think Brett really liked them because instead of taking them to work to share, he sat on the couch with the tupperware in his lap and ate most of them in one sitting. That, my friends, is the goal.