Let Them Eat Cake!

One thing I've been spending too much time doing is blog stalking. Sometimes I hit "next blog" at the top of the screen, and sometimes I pop from one to another from my friends' blogs, which has led me in some fun discoveries. People are just so creative! I love the ideas I get -- some I've used right away for our ward's ladies' activities. Some I file away for future possibilities. Some things I just have to try for myself. So here's my first feeble attempt at an idea I found on a blog that I now stalk fairly regularly. They're cake pops. I would give you the link to the blog, but that would show you how bad my first shot at this was. I don't want to burst your bubble about me! Anyway, here's what I did:

I started with a chocolate cake. How bad can that be, right?

You take the whole thing and crumble it up into a bowl. Yes, the WHOLE thing.

You need a pretty big bowl. I used my big Pyrex mixing bowl, and I wished it were a little bigger. Then you add cream cheese frosting. Best thing about this is there's no measuring. One whole cake. One whole can of cream cheese frosting. (and there's no reason why you couldn't mix flavors here) You could probably make your own frosting if you wanted... buy why?

Mix all the frosting and cake together until you get a mush ball in the bowl. That's a technical term. Mush.

Then you roll it up into balls. You could use an ice cream scoop, but I felt the need to be a part of this experience. Yeah, right -- whatever. It's a little messy. She says you get about 45-50, so I made 4 dozen. I'm thinking they were a little big, and I'd probably make them a bit smaller the next time.

You're supposed to chill these babies for a couple hours or so. I went for the speed method of putting them in the freezer. I put the sucker sticks in first. (Think about it -- how would you get the stick in them if they were frozen?)

Then you take that candy coating stuff you can buy in the cake decorating aisle. I was going for a classy Valentine look, so I used pink. Melt that in the microwave. I did a little at a time, but still ended up reheating several times. I've never worked with this stuff before, so it was new to me. My first ones I tried to spread it on the ball... not such a good idea. Then I re-read and you're supposed to pour or spoon it on and tap off the excess. This is all fine and dandy, until I tapped and my stick moved and the ball started spinning on it. Fine. Back into the freezer they went. That's all fine and dandy too, until you try to put warm candy coating on frozen cake balls. The coating hardens up way quickly then. Hence the multiple reheatings in the microwave. This was a process!!



By the way, you need 2 packages of the candy melts. One doesn't do it. Then, I had to sample a bite of one of these babies... I couldn't help myself. Mine in no way looks anything close to the originals, but if you don't know what the originals look like, then who's gonna tell? Not Me! (Ok, so I'm telling now.)


Since I'm not up to elaborate decorations -- I obviously need a cake decorating class -- I just drizzled mine with melted chocolate.

If you stand them in some styrofoam, they can cool and dry really well. I took some to a lunch with some friends, and they went over ok-pretty well. At least, there weren't any left to take home afterwards. I can't say I totally love the texture -- it's kind of like when you mush cake and frosting together, you know? I've seen something similar done with Oreos and cream cheese, to make a sort of bon bon or truffle. I think I like that better for taste. I guess you

could dip those, too.

And in case you're wondering, yes here is the link to the original blog. I love Bakerella, and she certainly deserves credit where credit is due. Check out her blog at www.bakerella.com. You'll agree that I need more practice. A LOT more!

A Whole New World

For several weeks, I've tried to convince the older kids that they need to childproof their bedrooms. I have been unsuccessful in general. New skills call for a renewed reminder. Em has now learned how to climb. We used to be able to put things out of her reach and it was not a problem. "Out of her reach" has now reached a new level. This is her standing in the window seat, a former cache for unsuitable-for-Emma items. (You caught me: I haven't put away the Christmas wrapping supplies! They go in the storage area of the window seat there.) She's up on kitchen chairs, too. Plus, once she figures out that she can move a chair to whatever location she wants, the table and the counters will be unsafe.

In case you're wondering, yes -- we tell her 'no'. And no, she's not uncontrollable. But I'm putting the other kids on notice: don't blame me if she got into something of yours. You've been warned!!

Maternal Instincts

I debated even posting this (it's been sitting in my drafts for 5 days as I've mulled it over). I decided to give you a condensed version, since I have had the chance to think it through more. Here you go:

Our little Emma got a shocking introduction to the painful realities of socializing. Last Sunday, another young child (about 2-3 years old) apparently felt the need to act out, and BIT poor Em on the cheek. I heard a bloodcurdling scream from my child, and when I picked her up to soothe her, I discovered teeth prints and a big red mark on her cheek. Emma was already exhausted, so she mercifully went to sleep almost immediately, having not yet napped that day. Another parent noticed the teeth marks, and said, "That's going to leave a bruise." (It did.)

I didn't say anything to the child's parent. I wish I had. But maybe it was for the best because I'm not sure I would have been gracious about it. Plus, what's done is done. It's not like the bite can be taken back.

Emma seems to have put it behind her. Today she had another chance to socialize with (different) children, and she seemed fine & not scared of anyone. Let's just MOVE ON.

Things that go Thump in the Night

It must be understood that I was over-tired last night.

The Procrastinator informed me at nearly 9pm of the 100-point project due Today (of course!), so I was up until 1:40 am with late-night-homework-adventures. And you thought you'd be done with that when you yourself graduated. HA!

Couple that with the baby waking up at 2:00 am (yes, I know, that's only 20 minutes later), and a rising hour of 6:00 am. Things were, and still are, a little fuzzy.

So I'm not entirely sure what time it was when Todd rolled out of bed and shuffled down the hall. It had to be in the general 2:00 am range. It must also be understood that I sleep through almost everything, unless it's the slight whimper of my baby. Todd tells me that I can be dead-out snoring, but I come of it in an instant when the baby starts to fuss. What's more, when I come back to bed after the soothing session, I am usually right back asleep in under 5 minutes. Insomnia is NOT a problem for me.

On the other hand, Todd grew up sleeping in the suburban equivilent of a cave: a basement bedroom in the far corner of the house with a tiny window. Sheltered from most common noises, he sleeps rather lightly.

And he heard something. I vaguely remember hearing him open the dryer, and close it a few minutes later. When he came back to bed, it was: "There's something banging in the dryer." Now that he told me, yes I could hear it, too. More like a "ka-thunk", rather than a plain old thump. "And, the clothes seem really wet". Um, well, that's probably because they just barely came from the washer. It was one of the last things I did before falling into bed. "I've searched, and I can't find what it is. So it's still there."

Obviously, I wasn't moved enough to move, so the dryer continued on its merry way, while I buried myself in the blankets. Ka-thunk. Ka-thunk. Ka-thunk. I sleep through a LOT.

This morning, I was working through the laundry in hopes of avoiding the typical weekend Mount Washmore crisis. As I worked my way through the dryer, I found the culprit. Well, I found the evidence. The culprit is at school right now and will receive a refresher course on laundry protocol when she arrives back home again.

The leather belt will never be the same again. No, the belt is the evidence, not the method of reminding the culprit. After a washer & dryer experience, the leather is looking pretty hammered. I secretly suspect it wasn't entirely accidental, and a ruined belt is a crafty ploy for getting a new belt. That theory will be denied with a proper level of surprise and shock -- I can see it coming already.

We are not amused.

What kinds of unusual items have "accidently" made it through YOUR laundry?

When the Family Gets Together

There is something to be said for having a "normal" family, so at family gatherings, no one is weirdly inappropriate or makes anyone else uncomfortable. I love that about our family. Every other year, Todd's sisters make the long trip north to share Christmas with the rest of the family (the rest of the apples didn't fall so far from the tree). This year is the "other" year.

So on these years, I can't help myself -- I have to ask for a family picture together. This year it was not a formal affair, just a casual shot, which is probably better anyway. And REALLY, my only request was to get Todd & his siblings in one shot. REALLY. The huge family picture was just a bonus. One thing leads to another.

Christmas Eve changed a bit for us this year, since it was the first time in over a decade that we haven't had the kids dramatize the Nativity. We still did the usual singing (with chimes), and eating.
And Emma's second Christmas was noted for her love of the Christmas tree, including Brandon's Elvis ornament (which plays "Jailhouse Rock"), and un-decorating the lower branches. I still am wondering why she left Grandma's tree alone, but was undaunted in her assault against our own tree. (Those teddy bear ornaments were irresistable!)

Christmas Day was different as well, but that's for another post!

All Aboard!

I'm not quite sure how we lucked out, but we managed to do our visit to Locomotive Park in the few days when we actually had snow. Which always makes it much more fun! We didn't even get a white Christmas this year, so this little bit of snow was wonderful. Locomotive Park has grown its lights display over the years, and this year was no exception. They added a bunch of LED lights this year. Other displays include the singing trees, the arched pathways (motion-sensitive lights change colors as you walk by under them), the fireplace, the train, and the dance-pad lights, which light up when you stand or jump on the corresponding section of mat. Each year our business is one of the Winter Spirit sponsors that helps pay the light bill.


Alyssa shows off up in the engine. I'm glad they leave it accessible to climb up there. Note the zebra patterned headband -- it's her latest craze.


We brought our niece/cousin with us, and she had a lot of fun there as well. Here she's ringing the bell on the train, which you can't see, but trust me, it's there!

Emma absolutely LOVES Christmas lights! A bonus for her is that she finally gained enough weight to graduate up to the toddler car seat, and now faces forward so she can see better in the car. Cameron is really great with her and often puts her up on his shoulders so she can see more (and it keeps her contained, as well!)

Cousins! Coming from Vegas, snow was an uncommon experience. But Grandma made sure she had a warm winter coat, plus snow pants -- a good idea when you're not acclimatized to the cold!!
Todd took Em over to the big outdoor gas fireplace to warm up a little. Instead of fake logs, it has a scene of houses and pine trees, laser cut from metal. Which is a little bizarre if you really take a look at it because it looks like a whole alpine village is on fire. She didn't have any mittens (yet - she got some for Christmas)... so she's wearing socks on her hands. I am nothing if not resourceful.
So one of the new displays was this set of lighted penguins, who danced in time with the music, "Linus and Lucy" (if you're blank, think of A Charlie Brown Christmas). We thought it would be cute to get a picture with each of us by one of the penguins. Which is all fine and dandy until you get some strange random child there,who has no parents anywhere near, and he won't move from his penguin. Yep, that's him in the red coat, front and center. No clue who he was or who he belonged to!!

We ended our trip with our now-traditional trip to McDonalds for eggnog milkshakes. YUM!!

Student of the Month

Having gotten behind on our blog posts, I'm here to make up for it now. At least the news is all less than a month old! Just before school let out for Christmas break, we found out that our Alys had made Student of the Month. This is something voted on by the teachers; criteria includes good grades, participation in extra-curricular activities (band, sports, etc.), positive attitude, leadership qualities, and so on.

I'm sure a sense of humor doesn't hurt, either! Congrats to Alyssa -- and we knew she had it in her all the time. Love you, Sys!!

(Alys is well-liked by her teachers, was up for student of the year last year, and has previously been nominated several times in the last 2 years for student of the month. She won in 7th grade as well.)