Baking

Today I showed the kids how to make monkey bread (which is like mini cinnamon rolls with brown sugar glaze in a bundt pan) realizing I've not made that for several years. Thinking about it, I haven't made yummy homemade rolls for over a year either, or family fave Grandma's sour cream chocolate cake, or velvet cake or apple spice cake or...or....Jeesh, I suck in the mothering baking department over the past year and a half! I use to bake all the stinkin' time! I did make several batches of gingerbread men at Christmas, but before that?? Probably cupcakes for B's old B&M school Valentine's party LAST year--wow. That is seriously pathetic compared to what I "use" to do. I have an awesome stand mixer, wedding gift, with really cool attachments, that when we lived in Duck Ditch (hehe) remained always on my counter in a permanent spot because I used it all the time, at least twice a week, sometimes more. I was always baking cookies or treats to take to school, sharing a goodies with the neighbors, sending something to work with Mark or even just for us..just to have a treat. I suppose I could blame my lack of baking on the new house, less than half the counter space, so don't have a spot for my kick butt mixer...or I guess that's just laziness that I don't drag it out except when desperately necessary. I believe I need to do some rearranging and give my fav appliance a front row seat again. Maybe it would be one more tiny step into finding the old me that really enjoyed baking. Lately when I think about creating I usually hit the negative thoughts of needing to clear a space, drag it out, put it back, etc. That will be a goal tomorrow and I think the first thing I will make is a sour cream chocolate cake. You know something ironic, or maybe just bizarre coincidence, since we moved here I've gained the same amount as pregnancy weight for both kids. And I'm not making a weekly sweet treat?? Ok, seriously depressing that I'm carrying around more weight than at 9 mos pregnant, but how screwed up is that?? Yes, being cold and not wanting to go outside except during the summer here PROBABLY has a lot to do with that weight, but maybe I need to BAKE more!!! It's worth a shot and a lot more fun than putting on 5 layers of clothes to walk the dog! :-D

P.S. I guess it would be a good idea to drag out and dust off the ole gazelle just in case my baking/weight theory doesn't rise, lol.

View the crew

Here you go, in lieu of a post...have some pics to peek at. :-D A conglomeration of activities from the last few years :-D Enjoy!

Think I'm in love

Maybe love isn't strong enough a word...deep desire, a lusting hunger, something that I cannot drag myself away from for HOURS at a time...oh yeah, I'm talking about my heated mattress pad--whoa baby!!
I despise cold sheets and I get very grouchy climbing into bed, dog-tired then very wickedly being CHILLED to the bone and suddenly very awake! Knocks the socks right off of being sleep-deprived and desiring my oh-so-comfy bed. I didn't have this chilled-bed problem in SC mind you....and yes, there are activities you can do to heat up the bone-chilling sheets, but it's a bit difficult to enjoy those activities or even get started when it takes 20 minutes of the fetal warming position to lose the numbness of all my limbs and not to mention a very cold nose. So in determination to not grumble at frigid sheets or Mr. FixIt (for moving us north) any longer, I researched various heated mattress pad brands, reviews, etc. BTW, I love Amazon for reviews! Right before Christmas I found it....the one I wanted in a Kohl's mega sale at more than 50% off...my dream! I picked up that bad boy to look it over and Mr. FixIt promptly said, "Merry Christmas, I know you'll use THAT!" Woohoo!
....and my tootsies have been ever so toasty all night long, every night since :-D I don't think I can live without it! Well, that is unless we move south again. Otherwise it would take more than a 12-step program, not to mention a crane, to pry it out from under me!

A nifty find!

On the weekly trip to the library with my munchkins, I had a cool find in the audio/cd section...a collection of TV show theme songs! How flippin' cool is that??

This is a riot! Even if you didn't watch all these shows, hearing the songs again is a scream! I guess if I stayed up all night and watched TV Land there wouldn't be such novelty in this.
Ahem..anyway, this cd is worth checking out just for BatMan, Hawaii Five-O and The Jefferson's Movin' On Up...to that DELUXE apartment...in the skY-I-I!
Alright, maybe a bit cheesy but I like it!

I also found some tunes for Mr. FixIt...
MTV Headbangers' Ball collection. Oh yeah, 2 cds worth of hard metal and screaming lyrics...just sitting at the library to be checked out. Probably some goober sitting in the back stacks just donated that winner and was waiting to witness the first dork to actually check it out...oh wait, the dork bait was the TV Land cd...oh yea, that be me!!