Not that I'm not already biased towards Tom Petty, but I always really liked his one Christmas hit:
I'm proud of myself. I actually managed to make three different kinds of cookies to give away this year, and I managed to put together some simple gifts for many of my loves.
Darin and I started our Christmas tour with a cousins' breakfast on Christmast Eve Morn'. It was a great success, and evidence that we all turned out as okay adults. We then drove over to Chris and Kelly's, where we had dropped off Daisy earlier. She and their dog, Rufus, get along swimmingly, no thanks to Daisy. Luckily, Rufus is probably one of the most well-socialized dogs I've met, and doesn't respond to Daisy's provocations. What a good ol' boy. Kelly whipped up some HEARTY potato soup and we channel surfed while Darin napped on their couch.
We went to the Christmas Eve service at my parents church, where I got to briefly see some second cousins and a ton of adorably dressed children. We went back to my 'rents and ate some of Mom's lasagna -- the best in the world. Per tradition, I wrapped all of the gifts from Dad for Mom, refusing to wrap the Wii that my mom bought for herself. We decided to take it out of the box and play it instead.
The next morning, we exchanged gifts and watched Darin and Ry battle over high scores on the basketball shoot-out game on Wii. Then we hit up Grandpa's, where we managed to pile ourselves into his tiny apartment, despite his plan to have us "stop by at different times". Darin and I won a combined $23.00 in lottery tickets gifted to us by Grandpa and Marylou. Score.
We traveled onward to suburban Michigan to celebrate with Darin's dad's family, which is always a blast because there are a lot of them, and they love to jest. And play poker. We stayed for a couple of hours and drove home to watch a Netflix movie. It was a good holiday for all, expect for Fred, my parents' poor cat, who spent the whole time in the basement hiding from Daisy.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Blog Changes
There are a couple of small changes on my blog (the title and some of the info on the side), with more to come. But I have revamped my Google Reader and subscribed to a dozen Speech Language Pathology blogs. I will report back about which ones I like best.
Classes start in two and a half weeks! I need to get my workspace organized and functional, with a place to put everything and some visual inspiration a la ma copine Jen. Pictures to follow.
Classes start in two and a half weeks! I need to get my workspace organized and functional, with a place to put everything and some visual inspiration a la ma copine Jen. Pictures to follow.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Monkey Bread Mishap
I invited a couple of my friends over the other night for some much-needed catching up and girl time. A perfect excuse to bake, I thought, as I pulled out my mom's delicious Monkey Bread recipe. Angela and Stacey sat on the couch and we talked while I coated bits of biscuit with cinnamin and sugar. However, the recipe calls for a sugary glaze overtop, which has to be boiled.
Apparently, sugar burns pretty quickly. Before I knew what was happening, there was smoke rising rapidly from the saucepan on the stove, and the bubbles of liquid inside had turned black. Eventually, the entire apartment was filled with smoke, and my guests had to run into the hallway to seek fresh air. Daisy was panting because she couldn't breathe!
It was awefully embarassing, but entirely hilarious. We grabbed Daisy and our coats and went for a walk down the street while I aired the apartment out with a fan and an open window. I'm glad my friends can see the humor in that kind of situation. The Monkey Bread turned out pretty mushy, but they loved it anyway.
Next time, I will 1.) Bake ahead of time, before my friends come over. 2.) Not leave sugar + a heat source unattended. Stay tuned for my next adventure in cooking!
Apparently, sugar burns pretty quickly. Before I knew what was happening, there was smoke rising rapidly from the saucepan on the stove, and the bubbles of liquid inside had turned black. Eventually, the entire apartment was filled with smoke, and my guests had to run into the hallway to seek fresh air. Daisy was panting because she couldn't breathe!
It was awefully embarassing, but entirely hilarious. We grabbed Daisy and our coats and went for a walk down the street while I aired the apartment out with a fan and an open window. I'm glad my friends can see the humor in that kind of situation. The Monkey Bread turned out pretty mushy, but they loved it anyway.
Next time, I will 1.) Bake ahead of time, before my friends come over. 2.) Not leave sugar + a heat source unattended. Stay tuned for my next adventure in cooking!
Wednesday, December 08, 2010
Nutshell News
In cooking news: I tried another recipe from The Moosewood Cookbook, a Christmas gift from Darin last year that keeps on giving. Mollie Katzen's "Feta Walnut Dip" is savory and addicting. I also stole some recipes from Mom that I loved as a kid, the two gems being "Sunshine Cookies" (orange-flavored sugar cookies with icing), and "Monkey Bread".
In educational news: The ball is rolling on my admissions status. I just have to sit and wait, basically. I am getting more and more excited for January. I can't wait to start learning about articulation and communication disorders. Nerdy.
In work news: I'm going to be so sad to leave Mrs. V's class. Next week is my last week. After that, they'll have hired the permanent parapro. I worry about how the transition will be for my student, especially because there is no official behavioral plan set in place for him (which would provide something consistant). Hopefully I can help with the transition.
In homestead news: We're getting rid of our cable, in an effort to downsize financially. It's nice to have when you just want to sit down for reruns of "The Office", but I know myself enough to know that it will be a major procrastination tool when school starts. Hopefully, I'll use the time more productively and creatively. The only huge bummer is not having access to the Red Wings games.
In educational news: The ball is rolling on my admissions status. I just have to sit and wait, basically. I am getting more and more excited for January. I can't wait to start learning about articulation and communication disorders. Nerdy.
In work news: I'm going to be so sad to leave Mrs. V's class. Next week is my last week. After that, they'll have hired the permanent parapro. I worry about how the transition will be for my student, especially because there is no official behavioral plan set in place for him (which would provide something consistant). Hopefully I can help with the transition.
In homestead news: We're getting rid of our cable, in an effort to downsize financially. It's nice to have when you just want to sit down for reruns of "The Office", but I know myself enough to know that it will be a major procrastination tool when school starts. Hopefully, I'll use the time more productively and creatively. The only huge bummer is not having access to the Red Wings games.
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