Friday, February 24, 2012

Growth Spurts


Spring has sprung! 



Along with the new blossoms, my kiddos are doing their annual spring growth spurts as well. Seriously, who are these kids? I could take credit for them when they were babies but now they are these zany, funny, and smart, little beings of their own. I love seeing their personalities peek out. They have grown so much and continue to amaze me every day. 

Sienna is doing very well in school. At a recent parent-teacher conference, I was told, “I wish all the kids could behave as well as Sienna does.” Nothing puffs a Mom’s pride more than a comment like that! I was also told that Sienna is coming "out of her shell" and is much more comfortable talking in front of the class and, in general, acting more independent. This is a huge stride for her! She’s horribly shy and anxious at school – probably her personality compounded by three new schools in two years!! Of course, at home is a different story…she’s bossy, sassy and stubborn beyond belief. She drives me crazy but I really do love these personality traits that are so uniquely hers. To give a perfect example, the other night while getting into bed, I said, “Sienna, I’m going to lay down with Grant first tonight because he’s extra whiney.” Sienna responds with, “Do you really think it’s a good idea to reward his bad behavior?” I was stumped. She pays attention to everything and will catch any inconsistency or loophole. She definitely keeps me on my toes! 



As for Grant, he is the same little goof ball, as usual. Unfortunately, his happy-go-lucky personality has gotten rather whiney and bratty lately. A trend that I hope will not continue too long. He likes to cross his arms, make a mad face and yell at me, “I’m frustrated!!” Then he’ll stomp out of the room. It’s so hard to discipline him because his tantrums are actually funny to me. I usually hide my face and laugh. Still, he’s a sweet little boy and brings so much comic relief to this rather serious family. 




Despite the hard days (and there seems to be many hard days), during a snuggle session or when the kids do something to make me laugh, my heart becomes so heavy with love, like a soaking wet kitchen sponge dripping with love, it has no choice but to overflow, producing tears in my eyes. Sometimes I wish I could bottle them and consume at a later date, like when they are mouthy teenagers and I’m ready to wring their necks. Anyway, I want to preserve these moments in something more reliable than my mind. I’m hoping to capture some of that with this blog.

Speaking of, as of this month, I’ve been blogging for a year! Happy One Year, Bloggie! I can’t believe I kept this thing going for a whole year. I can’t believe YOU have been reading for a year! I really appreciate that you check in on us and I so appreciate all the comments. It helps me feel close to all of our friends and family, especially since most of you are far away. So, a big hug to you and thanks!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

I Heart Chocolate


It’s Valentine’s Day; the special day dedicated to expressing our love to our favorite ones! Since my Valentine is currently living in a tent in the desert, I’m going to take this time to talk about my first love: CHOCOLATE!! Oh, how I love you…let me count the ways…

We actually celebrated Valentine’s Day early with a Fonduezvous (Fondue + Rendezvous = Fonduezvous!) stay-in date night. It was really nice. Although, the kids “serenaded” us with their calls and crying, nothing could ruin the deliciousness of an entire pot of chocolate. Nothing.

And yes, of course, I’m going to share the recipe with you! I found the original recipe in my People magazine but I changed it a little bit. 



Dark Chocolate and Amaretto Fondue

Ingredients
1 cup of heavy cream
8 oz. dark chocolate (at least 60% cacao), coarsely chopped
1/3 cup amaretto liqueur

Directions
1) Warm heavy cream for 5 minutes on low heat in fondue pot. Stir often.
2) Add chocolate to cream and whisk until melted and blended.
3) Add amaretto and whisk again until blended.
4) Keep fondue pot on warm (on my pot, it was set on 275-degrees). You want it to be warm and slightly bubbly but not so warm that it’ll burn.
5) Serve with any combination of the following: pretzel sticks, angel food cake pieces, strawberries, dried apricots, marshmallows, graham crackers, etc.

I highly recommend you pair with any Chocolate Box red wine. I’ve only found it at Cost Plus World Market but it’s worth the trip! 



Finally, a special greeting from Grant…



Happy Valentine’s Day! May you have a day filled with love and chocolate!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes


A couple of my neighborhood friends and I decided that we’d get together every month or so and teach each other how to make something, either a craft or a meal. When it was my turn, they asked me to show them how to bake something. I decided on these Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes because they are easy to make and super-duper-mega delicious. They were a hit…and I think they’ll become a favorite for you, too! Here’s the recipe…




Ingredients

1 3/4 cup FLOUR
2 teaspoons BAKING POWDER
1/2 teaspoon SALT
1/2 teaspoon SAIGON CINNAMON*
1/2 teaspoon NUTMEG
1/2 teaspoon ALLSPICE
1/8 teaspoon GROUND CLOVES
1/3 cup VEGETABLE OIL
1/2 cup BROWN SUGAR, packed
1 EGG
1 teaspoon VANILLA
3/4 cup PUMPKIN PUREE
1/2 cup MILK

Coating:
1/4 cup BUTTER, melted
2/3 cup SUGAR
1 1/2 Tablespoons SAIGON CINNAMON*

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°.  Grease a mini muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, salt and spices.

In a separate bowl, combine oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin and milk.  Mix well.

Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stir until just combined.  

Fill muffin cups about 2/3 of the way full (I used my cookie scoop).  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until they test done with a toothpick.

Melt butter in a small bowl.  In a different small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon.  After donuts are done and have cooled enough to handle, dip them in the butter and then roll in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.  

YUM!! 

*Saigon cinnamon is a different, more flavorful variety than ordinary ground cinnamon. Worth the splurge!

Oh, little balls of happiness! :)