Some Things Don't Always Turn Out Right

But they can still be good.

Take, for instance, my recent tiramisu fail. My sister asked me to make tiramisu for her and I happily agreed.

She, and some friends, were going to eat it on Friday and it needs to set 48 hours before it's really good. So I needed to make it Wednesday. We had plans that evening and I hate feeling rushed. I came up with a plan. I went to the store Tuesday and got all the ingredients so I could start on it first thing Wednesday morning and have it finished by 2pm.

Everything was going according to plan. I made the mascarpone filling, whipped the cream and brewed some espresso. All was good.

Then I started layering it.

Lady fingers. Espresso. Mascarpone filling. Whipped cream. Mascarpone filling.

Hmm, something didn't look right. It looked a little goopey. Why were there so many lady fingers left? Oh, stink. I had forgot to put the second layer of espresso-drizzled lady fingers down.

At that point I kind of wanted to call it quits. I wanted to call my sister and tell her I failed. I wanted to hurl the bad batch out down the drain. (dramatic much) But, I regrouped and headed back to the store.

The second one came together pretty quickly and I didn't hurl the bad one down the drain. I stuck it in the refrigerator in hopes that it might still be good. I mean, it's mascarpone, whipped cream and lady fingers. How bad could it be?

Not bad at all. It may not look good, but it still tasted good.

I had a good plan. I think my subconscious sabotaged it. I was bummed that I wouldn't get to eat any of the tiramisu I was making for her and then I ended up with an entire 9x11 pan of goopey goodness!

Happy Valentine's Day

The little misses and I made this for daddy.

Hope you have a day filled with love.

The Cat

We have 2 dogs and a cat. Since our little girl was born, our animals have been demoted from our babies to, well, our animals. It's very sad to me. So, in honor of our cat, this post is for him.

This is Pistol. (OSU grad, Pistol Pete)



He's a bit misunderstood.



To most, he's mean.



A killer.



A pain.



But under that tough exterior lies the heart of a kitten.



And he more than tolerates the new kid in town.

Pistol, you're a pretty cool cat.

Embrace the Camera - Pulling Hair

Yesterday we sat in front of the window watching more snow come down. I was taking pictures of us and then it happened.

Sweet P grabbed a big handful of hair and pulled it to her. I think this picture really shows a lot about this stage in her life.

Anything she sees, she tries to grab. Her hand-eye coordination is getting pretty good. Most things go in her mouth.

She also loves to laugh. I love her big, cheeky, where-did-my-eyes-go smile!

I love this girl.

Avocado for Me and the Babe

I keep waiting for the weather guys to be wrong, but they have been pretty accurate this winter.

I checked the weather and we have been on the homepage of weather(dot)com for a few days now.

With today's snow, we're inches away from the all-time record for snow in a month in Oklahoma. Wow.

There may be another record-breaker this week, the length of my roots! I'm hoping the upcoming warm weather (near 60s hooray!) lets me keep my rescheduled appointment. Until then, I will wear a hat and sit inside looking out at the snow.

yes, P, that's more snow.

And eat.

This time last year, Sweet P was the size of an avocado. Now she's eating them!

16 weeks pregnant

Here's her lunch, smashed avocado and steamed sweet peas.

And here's mine, turkey, avocado, carrot and onion sandwich with a little pickle spear.

And this is what she does while I make our lunches.

Hope you're staying warm and fed.

Sweet P Learned Some New Tricks

I mentioned yesterday that I got to watch my sister's 3 youngest kiddos for a couple of hours and I just wanted to report that I survived. Not only did I manage to get them back to their mom without any marks, I also had a blast!

Ashley brought me one of my favorite things. An iced vanilla latte from Rocket Brothers. A ginormous one. I drank it up after I caught Fire Cracker trying to steal a taste from my straw. Sweet P also tried getting a taste.

Good thing I'm still faster than her.

Needless to say, Sweet P was quite entertained with her cousins. She was especially interested in Little Brother Cousin's hair. So interested that she pulled up on her knees for the first time to get a handful.

He was great about it. He laughed and then asked me if I could get her.

The boys were amazing. They played with Sweet P's toys and gave her lots of love.

Duncan had a cuddle buddy.

And they watched a Lego movie...

...until it froze.

I tried the other dvd players and their other movies but not a single one would play. Little Brother Cousin told me I should "blow on it". This made me laugh as I thought about the original Nintendo system and how everyone I knew blew on those things. I'm pretty sure that's were that whole blow-on-it started. Anyway, blowing on it didn't work so we put one of my movies in.

When Fire Cracker woke up from her nap Sweet P was down for her's and the first word out of her mouth was "baby?" I told her baby was sleeping and handed her the monitor so she could see her Sister Cousin. She carried it around the house for a while until she saw a framed picture of her.

She loves her Sister Cousin!

And the poo-poo cookies I mentioned yesterday. Well, Little Brother Cousin asked what they were and after telling him, he told me he didn't want Duncan's poop. Duncan is my little dog. I told him that's what his Nana called them when his mom and I were growing up and explained what they were made of. He tasted one and told me he didn't like it.

Guess my cooking isn't for everyone!!

Thank you, Ashley, for letting me spend the afternoon with your kids. It was a treat and they're welcome anytime.

More Snow, More Food

We got hit with another 4 inches of snow. I'm okay with it now because I finally got out of the house. It's amazing how energizing going to the store can be!

Here are some icicles.

And Super Bowl food. Because watching all those commercials needs wings, cheese and guacamole!

What was your favorite commercial? Mine were both VW's. The Darth Vader spot and the Beetle. Not offensive, funny and creative. Good stuff.





And now I am preparing to babysit my sister's kiddos. 5 4 kids in my house. 1 of me.

I think poo-poo cookies are needed.



This is going to be awesome!!

How to Survive an Oklahoma Blizzard

Cook, take pictures of it and eat. A lot

I don't want to talk about this snow issue any more but I think I may be starting to lose my mind! I've been stuck inside my house for what seems like weeks but has only been 4 days. 14" of snow doesn't melt very fast. And, we're supposed to get more!

So I have been entertaining myself with a little baking and a lot of eating.



My mom told me about a WW recipe that uses won-ton wrappers as a crust and a muffin pan for mini quiches. Well, I didn't have any wrappers or the recipe so I made up my own version.

I made these before the snow hit using leftovers we had in the fridge. 

• 1/4 C cooked sausage
• 1/4 C chopped mushrooms
• 1/2 a yellow pepper - chopped
• 4 sliced green onions
• a handful of mixed cheddar cheese 
• 5 eggs - slightly beaten
• a little cream 
• and some salft and pepper

I sauteed the onions, mushrooms and peppers.


Then added the sausage and cheese to the cooked veggies.


Mixed in the eggs, a little cream and some salt and pepper.


Cooked them at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes or so. And bada-bing. A complete breakfast in a muffin!



Two nights ago we ordered a Ken's Style Pizza from Mazzio's. It was AMAZING. I highly recommend.


And last night I got my sister's top secret chocolate chip cookie recipe and made my husband his favorite treat while he was at work.



Not such a good idea. Me, bored and alone with a giant plate of cookies.

Did I mention I like to snack when I'm bored!

Not the best answer to beating the boredom but ya gotta do what ya gotta do.

Embrace the Camera - More Snow

As you could see from yesterday's post. We got hit by a blizzard. So, today's "Embrace the Camera" is more snow fun.





Kind of. Sweet P is only 6 months old and although she's getting around pretty good inside, it's a totally different story once she has her snow gear on.

Proud dad.

And with mom.

Maybe next year we'll get to go sledding!!!

How's the weather where you're at? Hope you're staying warm!

Only in Oklahoma

How, in a matter of days, does the weather go from this sunny and a beautiful 70 degrees.

To this record-setting blizzard?

Oh Oklahoma. You tease me with your surprisingly warm days in January. Warm enough to enjoy a day on the lake wearing a sweatshirt.

And eat lake food.

And see a bald eagle swoop down from a tree, snatch a fish out of the lake and take it back up to the tree to eat.

And out-fish the boys!

And then you shake me back to winter reality 3 days later with a RECORD snowfall. A blizzard really. My boat friend is locked away in the garage covered by a giant snow drift.

And we're stuck inside trying to entertain ourselves and stay warm.

And now we need a bit more than a sweatshirt to go outside now.

The snow is pretty and all, but can you bring my 70 degrees back?

Please.