Our maiden voyage!

Yes, I finally figured out what I was going to make first with my new mixer. It was a tough decision. Last week's cookies were such a disappointment, I wanted to be certain that today's pick was a good one. So, for the maiden voyage of the Kitchen Aid mixer that Superman surprised me with (I'm still squealing on the inside!), I decided to make these awesome Simple Chocolate Drop Cookies from Heather at HomeEc 101. As you can see, Valiant was an awesome sous chef to help me (and play with the new mixer) today and his assistance made it all the more fun. (Everyone has been so excited. They've been impatiently waiting all of 24 hours for me to try out the mixer...it is definitely a family affair!) Simple Chocolate Drop Cookies 1/2 cup butter - softened 1/2 cup brown sugar - packed 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla (okay, I never measure, I just pour) 1 egg 1 cup all purpose flour 1/4 cup Special Dark cocoa powder (I used regular Hershey's Cocoa) 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/8 tsp salt A couple of handfuls of semi-sweet chocolate chips (see Note) Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar together at medium speed until fluffy (roughly two minutes). Add egg and vanilla and stir until just combined. In separate bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Add to batter mixture and mix gently until just combined. (This is where I threw in a few handfuls of chocolate chips.) Spoon by rounded tablespoon (I used my Pampered Chef scoop) onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-11 minutes. Notes: Since I didn't have Special Dark cocoa powder, I added a couple of handfuls of semi-sweet chocolate chips to make certain the flavor was rich enough. Other than that I didn't make any modifications to the recipe (I did double the recipe for game night...I got 30 cookies out of the double batch). I must say, these are terrific and, as you can see, the kids agree! (Don't mind the tough one - he wasn't going to smile.) The other great thing about this recipe is that it uses stuff I always have on hand, so I can whip them up whenever. Give them a try, you'll really like them. One last note I just had to share with you. The Armchair Housewife found a radio station that plays Big Band era music with online streaming and was kind enough to share the find with us all, so I've been enjoying the Big Band sound for the last two hours...it is amazing. It reminds me of the times we would visit my grandparents and my grandpa would have this music on in the background. It is so fun...click here and push "play" if you want to listen on your computer. (Thanks again, Superman, I love it!)

You are not going to believe what the Fed Ex man delivered to me today!

Look, look, look! Dreams do come true! I do believe in fairies, I do! Can you believe it? I have the best husband in the world...look what he surprised me with:


I'm so excited...I had no idea...he totally got me! I'm soooo lucky! (It is so beautiful, I don't want to mess it up!)

The kids say I should name her...what do you think her name is?

I have green guilt.

There, I said it. I have green guilt. I've tried to "go green" with only limited success. After experiment for two years, I have come to certain conclusions.

1) Vinegar and Water does work better on glass and mirrors than Windex. Since it is much cheaper to use, I've completely switched. Plus one on the green side.

2) Vinegar works very well as a fabric softener and no, your clothes won't smell like vinegar. Another positive on the green side.

3) While I like line drying my clothes, no matter what I do, they are more stiff than I like, so I end up tumbling them in the dryer for five minutes. Since I am saving energy, I'll call this a positive on the green side, but barely.

4) Green dishwasher powders/liquids don't work as well in my hard-water area. I finally switched back to my beloved Cascade Complete after much disappointing experimentation with environmentally "responsible" dishwasher powders. Negative mark on the green side.

5) Baking soda, vinegar and water don't help me keep my kitchen sink or my shower clean enough. I've gone back to Comet and the white sink is white! I'm sorry, but it is wonderful to have a white sink and a white shower! Negative mark on the green side.

6) Biokleen works really well for wiping counters and tables and the like. I have no temptation to go back to 409. Positive mark on the green side.

7) I've gone back to Tide with Bleach after using Charlie's Soap for quite some time and MY WHITES ARE WHITE again. Negative mark on the green side.

Added to the negative column, I still use regular face soap, body soap, and shampoos. I still use non-green cosmetics and clothing. All of this would not be a problem, except for I am as susceptible to the green message as anyone else. I feel like I should do more, but at this point I'm doing all I can do and it will have to be good enough.

"Have you read this book?" or "My small soapbox moment"

I read a lot. I read fiction, primarily, but lately I've been adding a number of non-fiction titles to my reading. After a long wait on the library list, I was finally at the top of the list for a book I'd requested a few months ago. I finished it a few days ago and I find myself compelled urge all of you (parents and non-parents) to read it, too.

The book is called "So Sexy, So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood and What Parents Can Do" by Diane Levine and Jean Kilbourne. This books explores the hyper-sexualized society in which children are being raised these days. Television, radio, school, and stores are all pushing a level of sexuality on our children that is confusing and inappropriate and, frankly, that they are not equipped to deal with. If you think to yourself, "We didn't look that way when we were in Junior High!", you are absolutely correct. I would wager that my friends who are teachers would agree that the level of overt sexuality, inappropriate sexual behavior, and sexual awareness in the classroom is unprecedented and uncomfortable for everyone.

Let's face it...we live in a world where little girls in kindergarten know that being sexy is a good thing, even if they don't know what "sexy" actually means. They are body aware and younger and younger ages. Little boys receive their own confusing messages as they watch/listen to men degrade women and women parade around barely clothed. Even though these things might not be happening in your own home, your children are seeing and trying to process these things. Before you think your kids are too young or completely insulated, I urge you to think for a minute. Unless you live in a cave, they've seen these things. Anybody had their children ask them what "erectile dysfunction" is? What about, "What is an erection lasting more than four hours?"...we were watching History Channel this evening and my children heard and quesitoned both those things. What about that stupid Paris Hilton Carl's Jr. commercial that was on a few years ago? Remember that? She was writhing all over car squirting water on herself and moaning? Gee, what was the subliminal symbolism there? These are not "late night" commercials, either. These are commercials that are on during "prime time" for goodness' sake.

This book tackles children's exposure to inappropriate content beginning at preschool age (oh, yes, it is there) and moves on through high schoolers. Even if you are doing your very best to keep the children in your life insulated from these messages, it behooves you to understand why and how they are being transmitted to your children. Even if you feel certain your faith and your church are sending strong messages of what is appropriate, you must remember that your children are spending their days with children who might not be getting those same messages. For parents who've never really thought about combating it, or feel helpless in the face of the onslaught, the book concludes with techniques to help combat this exposure and its ramifications at every age.

Unlike some books of this nature, this book was a quick read and just reinforced my commitment to be vigilant protecting my children's right to be children. I am not a prude. I understand all human being have innate sexuality and my children are no different, but the pace at which they experience grown-up things should not be media driven.

Okay, that is my soapbox and I'm stepping off it for now. I urge you to read this book...it is worth your time. It is not preachy, it is practical.

Please let me know if you prefer me to stick to cooking and sewing and crafting. I'm not sure I'll be able to, but I'd like to know what you think.

Baked Apple Doughnuts, random thoughts and a frugal Tip...

After the huge push yesterday to get my Valentine's cards in the mail, I spent today focused on cleaning up my craft area, cleaning my house, and homeschooling the kids. I wanted to get back to work my my Valentine's towels, but that didn't happen. (I would wager that spending time catching up on my blogs didn't help my sewing/crafting, but it was so fun!) After dinner, I did make these awesome Baked Apple Doughnuts (which are more like light muffins rather than doughnuts) that I found on Bunny's Warm Oven and they were awesome. (The recipe is at the end of this post.)

So, just in case you've ever wondered what the rest of my days (the non-crafting, non-cooking parts) are like, this is how my day went today:

3 hairbrushes and 2 children should NOT equal fighting over a hairbrush

d still equals rt (d=rt) and velocity is expressed in positive and negative numbers as a way of expressing relation to point of origin and speed is expressed in absolute value.

'45 x 3' is the same as '40 x 3 plus 5 x 3'. '50 x 3' is the same as 5 x 3 with a zero at the end!

Capitals, periods, and commas are a necessary part of any paragraph...always!

"beggar" ends with an "ar", NOT an "er", even though you think it sounds like it should be an "er" and "obnoxious" is a spelling word, not just a way to describe your little sister!

Laundry still doesn't fold itself, either (darn it!)...and my bread didn't turn out today. (It was very odd...it just didn't cook in the middle...I must have done something wrong, but I can't think what...oh, well.)Baked Apple Doughnuts:
A View of America

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg (I substituted cinnamon)
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup shortening
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup grated unpeeled apple

Topping:
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup melted butter (to roll muffins in)

Directions:
(I did not read the directions completely before I made mine, so read the notes at the end.)

Sift first 4 ingredients and 1/3 cup sugar together in bowl. Cut in shortening until crumbly. Stir in egg, milk and apple, mixing well. Fill greased muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Melt butter in small bowl. Mix 1/3 cup sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon in separate bowl.
Remove doughnuts from pan and roll in butter, then in sugar mixture and serve.

Notes: Okay, so I didn't read the directions well because I went at it completely differently (and more simply) and, fortunately, they turned out well. This is what I did. I mixed the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in one bowl and set aside. Then I mixed the sugar, egg, milk, and apple in another bowl, adding the shortening after the other stuff was mixed together. The shortening obviously didn't mix well, and that was fine. I then added the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and I mixed just until it was all incorporated. (Wait, it gets even better.) Then, a la the Snickerdoodle muffins, I rolled the first few muffins in butter, then the sugar mixture, and then dumped them into the muffin tin. After three muffins, I caught my mistake and skipped those steps for the rest. So, I baked three muffins that had been baked AFTER being rolled in butter and the sugar mixture and the rest were straight dough that got rolled in butter and the sugar mixture after baking.

The result: both were really good. The butter-after-baking method adds a rich, buttery taste to the muffins and they were more "doughnut-like", but the butter-before-baking created a muffin that would save a little better and definitely serves more easily. The picture directly above the recipe is one of the butter-and-sugar-before-baking muffins and the picture at the top of the post is of the butter-and-sugar-after-baking muffins. Superman preferred the butter-after-baking, but I liked the butter-before-method. Definitely an either or proprosition. Either way, they were definitely a terrific muffin and great way to use apples that aren't so crisp anymore. So, let me know which method you follow if you try them.

And, finally, I'll leave you with a frugal tip. Stop using paper towels! In the Nagle house, we don't use paper towels except for when I fry foods and need them to soak up the grease, so I go through about 3-4 rolls a year - that's it.
So, stop using paper towels. I mean it. Just go to Target or Walmart and buy two 12 packs of cheapie wash cloths and use those instead, throwing them in the washer throughout your day...you don't care how they look, just that they get washed and ready for your next task. Seriously, this is awesome and can save you a ton of money. I keep mine in a basket under the sink and another basket upstairs. Currently, the 12 pack of wash cloths sat Target is $2.99...I always have about 24 wash cloths in rotation, so we're talking a whopping $6.00 investment. How much are you paying for paper towels...$1.50 a roll? Think about it. Assuming you only use a roll of paper towels a week (yeah, right), that is $1.50 x 52 or $78 a year (plus tax). ...and let's be real here, you know you use more than one roll a week, so you're looking at more than $100 a year on paper towels!

So, that is my frugal tip for today...I think I might start posting more frugal tips, what do you think?

Wow...I did it!

I managed to get 14 Valentine's Cards made and mailed for the Valentine's card swap organized by Little Birdie Secrets. I finished them all this afternoon and got them off in a Priority Mail envelope so they'll make the deadline!

I had never done anything like this before. I was excited to try it and I must say, I was pleased with how well they turned out. I started with little purple heart doilies that I picked up on clearance last year. The doilies dictated the color scheme, so I didn't go with the typical red/pink/white Valentine's theme. I found some scrapbooking paper in my stash that had the purple. Since they also had spring green those were my two colors. After I added ribbons and utilized my sewing machine to attach the ribbon to the cards and the card fronts to the card stock. I printed some graphic versions of "love" on the back and added an embossed embellishment on the front and, viola, a Valentine's card!

Lazy Saturday and Technical Difficulties...

We had a Saturday full of stuff and no real work, so it felt lazy and laid-back. Unfortunately, that meant Superman could play on my computer and a little fix went horribly wrong. I was off-line for 24 hours. It was horrible! As you can tell, however, I am back...Despite the technical difficulties, the mood yesterday was definitely mellow. As you can see, "Sam I Am" got with the program immediately. When he could step away from the keyboard, Superman found time to play Pat-a-Cake with Buttercup. (She says he's not as good as I am, but she's happy he's trying to get better. She does wish, however, that he'd learn not to slap her hand quite so enthusiastically!)I even managed to get out to Jo-Ann's to pick up some Modge Podge (with a 50% off coupon!) and am starting a new project.

Valiant found a crime scene in our front yard and spent quite a bit of time investigating the scene and the surrounding area.Saturdays are game night and last night was no exception. I decided to make some of my admittedly popular tortilla chips and try a new cookie recipe. The tortilla chips were awesome and the cookies received mixed reviews. The kids loved, loved, loved them, but the grown-ups didn't think there was anything spectacular about them. Oh, well, not every experiment can turn out well. Since the cookies were only okay, I won't even post the recipe...I just don't think they're worth your time and effort, but if you want the recipe, just let me know...it uses Toffee Bits and a lot of brown sugar...they seemed to have unrealized potential. (Even Charming didn't eat them!)The tortilla chips, however, are something I encourage everyone to to try. They can't be more simple: You simply cut corn tortillas into six triangles (or you can use metal cookie cutters to make them into seasonal shapes...last night, I stuck with traditional) and fry them up in small batches. Then you drain them (I use paper towels on top of brown paper grocery bags), salt them, and serve them. They are soooo good. We had them with guacamole and salsa and they definitely made up for the so-so cookies.

Doesn't get much better than this...

...my husband is out on the town tonight with a beautiful, brown-eyed blonde who has a bubbly personality and truly sparkling wit and I encouraged the date. I have to admit, I can see why he's smitten.

Father/Daughter Dance - January 30, 2009

P.S. Notice the flip flops...Who cares if it is 24 degrees out? You can take a girl out of Southern California, but you can't take Southern California out of the girl.