Dr. Rosemary on BYU-TV (Feb 2)

For my family and anyone else interested, my cousin Rosemary Thackeray who is a professor at Brigham Young University, will be giving a devotional on BYU television next Tuesday, February 2nd. Set those DVR's to record at 10:00am PST or 11:00am MST. Or go to www.byubroadcasting.com to watch it on Tues.

I know she has been losing a lot of sleep over this upcoming devotional so be sure to tune in and enjoy all of her hard work.

Happy 4th Birthday Liv Bug!

My baby turned 4 a week ago! We had a great day with her pink strawberry cake and too many presents.

I took her to get her nails painted as a special treat.

Addictions 2

"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"

It's the most wonderful time of the year.
With the girls cookie selling,
and everyone telling you,
"Buy some my dear!"
It's the most wonderful time of the year.

"There'll be thin mints" they're boasting,
Somoas they're hosting
at 4 bucks a box of your dough.
There'll be tagalong stories
and much inventories
of cookies that make your thighs grow.

Oh, it's the most wonderful time OF THE YEAR!!

Oh yes people, I made up that song as a tribute to my very most favorite favoritest cookie of all time!!

Girl Scout SOMOAS!

(you thin mint lovers have a lot to learn.)

"Tender vanilla cookies, covered with caramel, rolled in toasted coconut, and striped with a rich, chocolaty coating."

It is a solid fact that one box will not last me 10 minutes. When I bite into that ridiculous toasted coconut and caramel covering I am completely happy polishing off a box all on my own with zero guilt. They are chewy, rich and overwhelming in a very good way. I don't even care what the nutritional value is...in fact, I don't have a clue. And I plan on keeping it that way. This is by far, the best $4.00 I spend all year. It is my vice and my one true indulgence!

STORY OF TRUE LOVE: Early in our marriage, I asked Rob to bring me a drink when we were getting ready for bed. Even though I was thinking a small glass of water, he brought up two large glasses of ice cold milk. I didn't want to sound ungrateful so I told him I wouldn't be able to drink it all but thanks anyway. He just starred at me with this grin and said I shoud lay down. Not one to take a hint, I said I was going to read for awhile. After several more attempts, he told me to look under my pillow. Oh! There was that famous purple box! I let out a squeal and we enjoyed a box of Somoas together with our glasses of milk. That night, even though I had to share I knew I had married the right man. The end.

Now, because of my withdrawels that insue just minutes after I consume the last cookies from the 14 count box, I have looked for year round substitutes. These are the two I have found:

Little Debbie German Chocolate Cookie Rings. Although the coconut has been ruined by the covering of chocolate, it is soft, chewy and gets a solid 7 from me as far as coming close to the perfect thing. It has a substantial amount of coconut but the cookie is more of a cake than a shortbread cookies. At about $1.29 a box, it is a good fix.Second is the Safeway Brand: Fudge Caramel Coconut Cookie. The outer shell is a bit waxy and white but it has the familiar flavors and textures of the Somoa. It give it a solid 5. It is about $2.50 a box on sale.

P.S. Not one girl scout has knocked on my door. I am every girl scout's cookie selling dream. Hint, hint.

Thai Cooking Class

Merry Christmas to me. Rob bought me admittance to a Thai cooking class in the U-District.

To anyone other than myself, this might have been an insulting hint but he knew I would love it. I love to cook the basic comfort foods but always wanting to learn the different ethnic & flavorful dishes.

Classes are held at a small cooking kitchen at Cook's World. It was hands on but I didn't ask anyone to take a picture of me cooking. The teacher was Pranee Halvorsen and she is originally from Thailand. On her website she tells you exactly where to purchase the ingredients and what brands are no fails.

We made:

Satay Neua (grilled beef on skewers)
Nam Jim Satay (Peanut Sauce)
Ajard (cucumber salad with red grapes)
Phad Khra Prow Talay (Stir-fried seafood medley with Thai basil and red pepper)
Keang Kue Sapparod (Shrimp in Phuket red curry with ground peanuts and pineapple)
Kuey Buod Chee (Banana in coconut milk)

We got to cook these things, watch, learn and then eat it all. It was 3 full meals and then dessert. It was a real treat. I learned a lot about how important some of the different essential ingredients are like Lemongrass, fish sauce and Kaffir (lime) leaves. The flavors were off the charts.

I would have to say that one of my favorites was the dish I made; Phad Khra Prow Talay. It was quite spicy with the Thai Chile pepper but it was just the right amount of heat to make you happy all over. Made with calamari and scallops, not my favorites, it was delicious. I would just sub shrimp or chicken next time.

They do all kinds of classes and I highly recommend the adventure. It was very casual but informative all at the same time.

Rob Turns 33!

Turning the big 33 on Saturday, Rob begged me for a quiet night with no surprises or outings. So, we enjoyed a night of presents, pie and peace.

It is our tradition to display all the gifts in our china hutch the week prior to each person's birthday. Kind of a fun way to decorate the room in anticipation of the big event. This way there is always a place for incoming mail and packages to be placed so they don't get lost.

Dad opening his gifts from his kids.

For dessert he asked for my blue-ribbon pie.

He loves Wheat Thins so since I happen to know someone who knows a lot about couponing, I picked him up a few boxes.

Happy Birthday baby...you know I love you.

Out of the Fog

Yes, I have joined the ranks of worst blogger ever. Every day, week, month you get behind, the harder it is to find the desire to catch up. The holidays just plain wiped me off the map and so I have decided to let the pictures do the catching up. As you can see, we have been busy:

Although this is a pathetic picture of Thanksgiving, it has my niece and nephew with my mom. We hosted at our house for the third time.

After grandpa accidently bit her finger. Priceless!

NO SHAVE NOVEMBER...in competition with who you ask? Himself. The final day of November he went through the ritual of shaving every style out of his beard with shots of each in role play(all his idea)...until he was a baby face again. Welcome back, my teenage husband.

We sold our Expedition. I went down to Portland for 4 days, helped Rob's mom with getting her into the hospital for knee surgery. Rode down on the Amtrk (loved), spent 2 days by myself in the quiet and then bought a van to drive home. Half the gas money, half price insurance, less miles and made a profit on the sale. Overall-good move. Rob doesn't like to be seen driving it. Wants tinted windows on the drivers side. Men!

Christmas down in California. Lots of family, food and presents.

Threw a New Year's Day Eve party. A LOT of work. Worth it. Dancing, food, friends, decor, DJ, laughs, games, tired.

The CHOCOLATE fountain!!

Men hard at work.

Many of you came, some did not. Your loss.

What I am looking forward to in just 5 short weeks...

Mexico here we come!!