What, that's all for me?

Are you sure Mom, I can just put my finger straight into the cake?
Mmmm... this is good..
Awesome
This is the best day of my life.

I'm the king of the world!

This was such a fun day.. Gabe was so happy and we had a great time celebrating his birthday. No presents, just a green cake for St. Patrick's day. Should I always make the cake green etc? I guess as he gets older he can decide the themes for his birthday parties. But seriously, how did this year already go by. It is mind blowing.

Eat... Eat.. and Eat Some More

What the.....

I have been on a cruise before but I was deathly ill so I couldn't eat much. Not so this time. It was bordering on lunacy.. the amount of food I consumed. I'm not sure why I was in a state of shock when after 5 days the scale read 5 lbs more than it did the first day on the cruise. Um.. for those of you who know anything about poundage, I had to eat approx. 5500 calories per day to accomplish that feat- the 2000 my body normally needs plus 3500 more. Yikes. But we had such a great time... sidenote- these pictures were taken with a disposable camera- I was too nervous to take my expensive one. All that Sand everywhere. We had so many experiences- some fun, some weird, some scary, some disappointing all of which I wish I could tell you--but lest your forget, I had 3 little kids waiting for me when I got home and and mountain of laundry. So for now you will have to be satisfied with a few pictures and knowing that an old Canadian lesbian sat next to us every night at dinner. It was halarious. Maybe more about them to come.. but I can't make any promises.

Mmmmm......

Last night driving Home from the Gym (no less)

David: Mom, how com Daddy's stomach is not fat, he doesn't eat very much huh?

Mom: No, Daddy eats a lot, he just exercises a lot so his stomach is still flat.

David: Hmmmm

David: But you exercise a lot too mom

Mom: So you think my stomach is fat?

David: It was really fat when you had a baby inside it.

Mom: Yes, but do you think it is fat now?

David: Well it's still a little bit fat.

Mom: Really...

David: Yes, see Mom you are better at cleaning, and Dad is better at exercising.

All Hail to Cream Cheese....

Can we all agree that cream cheese frosting very well could be the greatest combination of ingredients of all time? As you know there are many different recipes out there- I am sure all are to some degree on the high end of the scale of deliciousness. But this is the one I have come to know and love. The reasons you ask? It only has 4 ingredients, is super easy and tastes like what I remember kissing felt like in my pre-marraige days. Can we also agree that kissing has lost some of it's luster since? Anyway- back to the frosting... this is a continuation of yesterday's post....

8 oz cream cheese- this doesn't have to be softened it just works a bit better if it is.
5 T salted butter- this does need to be softened
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups sifted after measured powdered sugar. - now when I say sifted I mean sifted if you have the time and energy and a clean sifter- of which I have never had any of the 3 so far- so sifting is not do or die for this fluffy goodness

What is do or die is mixing time. There is something about cream cheese frosting ingredients, I don't know what it is but I suspect it is in the chemistry of the conglomeration - that if you mix it too long the frosting will turn into a runny mess. Not that it is still not yummy...but you won't get the stiff fluffy frosting you desire.- so stop as soon as it is all mixed.

P.S. Sometimes I add heavy cream to this if I want it to be extra delicious- my secret to my cinnamon roll frosting, secret no more of course.

P.P.S. if you want to make unbelievable frosting for cinnamon rolls add some cinnamon to the frosting- I ate a whole cup of the stuff with my index finger last week and I never was happier (or sadder when I got on the scale the next morning) Thank goodness for the old treadmill...

P.P.P.S Now remember - this frosting doesn't harden or get dried out because it contains real butter- not shortening like those old pink packaged sugar cookies. So if you want to wrap them up tight and transport them you will want to use a glaze frosting that will dry and become hard. Truth be told- even when I take these little wonders to people on a plate with saran wrap over them a little frosting may come off in the unveiling but I've never had any complaints.

Dang These Are Good.....

So my good friend Angie posted recently about her Sugar Cookie Woes. From what I am gathering from the buzz around town and from my own experiences- great sugar cookies are not only elusive but really an art form that must be practiced and mastered. I am here to be your mentor. But I must give credit where credit is due.. this recipe originates from the annales of my friend Teresa's kitchen. Where she got it I don't know but I suspect it dropped from the Heavens like Manna to the Isrealites. Se here it is my friends. Don't forget to read the fine print following the ingredients. Not doing / or doing so could make or break your cookie experience.

Cream and beat til it becomes fluffy
1c butter
2c sugar ( I like to use extra fine)
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1c sour cream
sift:
4 3/4 c-5c flour (depending on the density of you flour)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

I like to refrigerate for about an hour as sometimes dough can be sticky but it is not an absolute must

roll out to 1/2 " or so. cut and bake at 375 degrees for about 7-9 minutes.

When it says 1/2 inch please believe it. I know it seems thick but do you remember those cookies we all ate in high school (actually I never did because I thought they were disgustingly fattening back then -now I realize I missed out one the great joys of pre-pubescence cause I thought I was fat- how that is possible I do not know and yes it was pre for me as I didn't "mature" til the summer of my 16th birthday) Smokes- I am getting way off track, back to high school and friends who ate those pink clouds of pure ecstasy. Dangit- it took me three tries to spell that right. Here's a shout out to Wendy, Amber, Mars who used to eat those like they they were going out of style. Go figure you were in style. It has only been post partum that I have come to appreciate the glorious wonder that is the scrumptiously soft, thrillingly thick sugar cookie. Without further ado- my last tip, the key to perfection is cooking them just the right time. Because these have real butter in the recipe (a much sought after rarity in sugar cookies) timing is everything. If butter is cooked too long it causes the cookie to become crisp which is nigh unto blasphemy when making these kind of sugar cookies (yes! I used nigh again) I am in a weird mood today- thanks for bearing with my folks- so back to cooking time. DONT' COOK THESE TOO LONG. I rarely let them go over 8 minutes. Each oven is different and the delicate balance must be discovered by each individual- these should only have the tiniest hint of brown on the bottom and so help me- none on the top. Remember there is a reason why I call these WHITE fluffy clouds of perfection. Let me know if you want a delish recipe for cream cheese frosting- a hard to transport but totally worth it topping for these little gems. And for my 6, on a good day, 8 faithful readers. I am going so far as to take a picture of some I made today.

Warning: Even if you say to yourself- all these will be given away to teachers, visiting teachees, neighbors, valentines etc. Most likely- you will not be able to resist eating at least 4 (my count so far today) and what the heck- you deserve it.

Ps. If you are wondering.. sheesh she sure has a lot of time to make these cookies and blog about them, don't worry David and Coco are occupied doing what they do best- fighting like a cat and a dog, and Gabe is happily watching the washing machine, his favorite past time. I am sure glad I got a front loader. It provides a good 40 minutes of entertainment a day for this kid.

Taxes...Taxes...Taxes...Cleanse...Cl

Waaahahooooo- I did my taxes today. All by myself. Some of you may think that is no big deal but to me that is nigh unto torture.(I used to have a boss who said nigh unto all the time and it would always crack me up- I obviously don't have the gift of using that word). I have never done it this early, in fact I have never done it before April 10th. Seriously, I am afraid if I do them later the government is going to run out of of money.....I heard California is giving IOU for State returns. Who thinks I am crazy?....,don't worry if you do, I think I am a bit of a lunatic myself.
Speaking of torture, I have been debating about whether or not to do the Master Cleanse again. I need to clean out my liver (mine works as well as a pair of dull scissors trying to cut your big toe nail.) My feet itch every night and food it staying in my stomach way too long. But for those of you who have done it, it is no picnic...mostly because you are essentially starving.... I better go, I have to go torture myself some more with the thought of starting the cleanse.

A different kind of New Years

I really hate the beginning of the year. In my puny brain for some reason there is a cavernous space when I envision the time between December 31 and January 1. I have no idea why. It is just like any other 24 hour period....second and minutes passing into each other, unstopping, without jumping over a time canyon.
There is so much pressure to make resolutions, to change for the better, to do something different. Unbelievably I have been able to master to some degree some things I have always wanted to change about my self this past year. I have always wanted to be a better house keeper, and I have gotten better. I have wanted for years to get into shape, I have almost acheived that goal. For years I thought those were the really hard things to accomplish, those were the things blocking my peace, fulfillment etc. (Just an aside -you can't be at peace while obese and living in squalor-) But like everyone knows losing weight doesn't make you happy, having a spotless house doesn't bring joy. Those things alone mind you. I have discovered that while striving for all those things that a certain degree of presence, of concentrated investment into my life and heart and into the lives and hearts of others is key to my peace. I have been thinking about this a lot lately, tried to slow down a bit- put less stock into how fast I am progressing as a photographer, what the scale is reading, whose live are practically perfect or far more exciting than mine (a dilusion often sold and bought in the blogging world).
And invest more in smelling my baby's skin (while it still smells good) dancing with Coco to her favorite cds, sitting next to David and looking into his big browns while helping him spell (his latest obsession). I can feel this time slipping by so fast and I want to remember it for the best of it.

P.S Since blog posts can be pretty boring without pictures I threw some in. Last 3- Evidence of Coco's possible multiple personality disorder.
First 2- evidence of the most darling, sweet, good natured boy every to hit the planet (besides yours of course)