This pretty much sums it up, my difference is once the kids hit 13, I want to experiment with them! And I am fortunate to have siblings with offspring so there have been a few teens and beyond to test theories upon !
You’ll have to read her entire post – which is long – so ya know, only if you have the time/ care 🙂
Hubby’s Birthday fell on a weekend this year so we took one day for us and one day with friends. Here’s the card I created for him:
And here’s the Black Forest Dump Cake:
And here’s the cake on a plate with the freshly whipped cream:
Really, this post is about the cake. Dump cake – who knew?!? There were a few small variations I chose to do to Rachel’s recipe – go directly to her site for the fudge sauce recipe and replace the regular sugar with brown sugar.:
As 2015 is bringing me to examine how I do thing and what changes I need to make
to improve my daily existence, it also is helping me spiral around to previous paths that added benefit to my world.
I love food, baking, cooking and I tend to use recipes as a base for a concept and go from there.
As I am trying to set aside more time for the things I love that are not work related, I really enjoyed taking time yesterday after seeing clients to do some baking.
The ginger apple upside down cake recipe I followed pretty closely, ( Here is the link: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2009/11/gingerbread-apple-upside-down-cake/ or you can find it in the posts here: Facebook.com/bellywood ) skipping the honey, used whole wheat flour and yogurt with water instead of buttermilk.
The eggs- pretty simple but I mixed the yokes with mustard, a bit of apple balsamic vinegar and lime oil instead of mayo.
And the Oatmeal butterscotch chocolate chip squares were a total creative journey.
2 cups of oats
1/4 cup margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
¼ cup molasses
1tsp vanilla
2 eggs
about ½ cup dark chocolate chips
Mix it all up really well and bake for about 25 minutes at 325.
Hoping the ladies enjoy these as much as I enjoyed making them!
The cleaning in the title refers to some clothing swap items leaving home today too – yay!
Yesterday was our wedding anniversary.
17 years ago, on a beautiful February morning, a small group of our friends and family joined us outside to help us celebrate the moment:
And this morning, I’m up early as usual and my hubby sleeps < our system works great for a pair of self employed people>, and I can take a moment to be grateful for his existence.
It is hard to believe it has been 17 years, while at the same time, it has always felt like we’ve know each other forever. We have our ups and downs like everyone.
We have a LOT of respect for each other and that basis in friendship carries us through the moment of WTF?!?
And this little one is our second fur baby, Sprocket.
Boing was our first and she helped shape all of our future decisions about our growth as a family. 3 days into having a dog, and we knew we were going to shelf our ideas of having homeschooled children that would take over the world for us. We would instead stick with a four-legged creature that would infiltrate the hearts and minds of all around us and keep them in her thrall.
And ADOPT- DON’T SHOP of course! Our fave rescue is the Minpinerie, but there are a lot of great places!
We are a couple who values the contribution that parents/breeders make to our world and enjoy borrowing our nieces and nephews when possible . And so long as we can live in our illusion of being the cool but elusive Aunt and Uncle, that works for us. If we cross over into the Strange aunt and uncle, that’s ok too!
And as long as The Next Generation has been replenished with both Vibert and Leroux genes – thanks to our siblings who have taken this on – it’s all good!
So, I could ramble on about how wonderful married life is, and bore you all to tears.
Make choices that work for you – be it a single you or a collective you.
And remember…an’ it harm none, do what thou wilt.
Oh and always try to eat Black forest cake and drink wine to celebrate your anniversary – traditions are important!
Posted for my mom – it was her mother’s recipe and it’s always been awesome! I have not made it for awhile, but perhaps our next generations of bakers will give it a try and share 🙂 Apologies for my chaotic script from my early 20s when I would have written this in my cookbook. If you need any clarification, post in the comments 🙂
Head over to my flickr page for Photos of the fun…
It kind of started Thursday when my digestive system began to run amuck and I had clients to see, dance practice I wanted to attend and a busy Friday the next day. But it all flowed okay-ish so on life goes…
The next morning, I had another round of not feeling great, but I don’t have that cold/flu that’s going around, so I figured, buck up buttercup, and get ‘er done. Saw clients, had my sewing helper over and one final meal of beef that she brought out of the kindness of her heart <sadly, a greater than normal consumption of beef is the suspected culprit in my digestive adventures>
And Friday evening ended on the futon, rumblytumbly, but relaxing as I had 2 more clients due Saturday morning.
I got up early Saturday, feeling worse again, and managed to get some last minute work done, clients met and sent on their way and then I was able to relax and sleep and let my system empty itself out of it’s burdens.
Sunday morning, sleeping in, typing out the Dancer’s News from bed in order to stay there as long as possible and then off to a tea and toast brunch at our Bollywood For Fun Brainstorming Brunch < which went very well!>.
So really not actually a totally crappy weekend, just an undercurrent of not feeling great throughout.
Final socializing involved a trip to the Hubby’s fave pub to visit with the in-laws before coming home to rest some more – I had had a very busy morning.
Since Hubby had work to do, settled into the bedroom, listening to my audio book du jour – Terry Goodkind’s, Wizard’s First Rule, and after what seemed like only a few minutes, I was already dozy, snoozy and generally half asleep with a little Sprocketdog curled up with me. Ah, peace.
Calmly, Hubby steps into the bedroom, ” Don’t panic, but get ready to go.” and he steps out again. Once the door had opened, I then heard the hallway alarm going off. Had I fallen asleep, and Hubby gone out, I likely would have been rescued by a lovely Ottawa Fire Fighter, but I’m ok with the turn of events as they happened.
I looked around, unplugged my phone, turned off the audio book and headed to change into outside pants < was wearing pj bottoms, ya know> – I took the “don’t panic” as a good guideline. Pants, socks, dog, coat, laptop, boots, dog onto leash with her coat, Oh crap!
And yes, I made the choice to walk down the hallway to grab the two wedding dresses of clients who are getting married/ heading off to get married within the next week.
True Story: One of the brides was actually happy that her dress was staying for some minor final adjustments as she did not want to leave it at her mom’s – her mom has a fireplace and it would end up with a wood smoke smell… seriously.
Back to the adventure.
Dresses in a large tote bag, dog on leash, husband with laptops, coat and boots and scarves and off we go.
Hubby left the apartment door unlocked- this is a good idea – fire folk have to go and check every unit, so would you not rather they be able to walk in and do their job without delay or sledgehammer?
Oh, and BTW, the entire time before he changed into his outside pants, Hubby was on the phone with 911, then he hung up as the sirens were blaring. Silly us, we both put our phones down to change and left them in the apartment. Priorities were all good though.
We were leaving the apartment and down to the outside door as we could see smoke coming from our neighbours door in the basement. Hubby had already been knocking on all doors, talking to neighbours and making sure everyone was ok and out.
Anyone who has heard me talk of the “superintendent” in the building knows he’s not really up for the job, and sadly this was another moment of reflecting that. Everyone in the building was out, except for him, and fortunately, he opened his window which is at ground level and a fire fighter pulled him out.
His comment was that he thought the landlord was there testing the alarm system, until he opened his own door into the hallway and saw the smoke from the other apartment.
He had no shoes, no coat, but the fire fighters popped in when it was safe for them to do so and got him shoes and coat. His cats were fine, but ere left in the apartment the entire time.
Be prepared people. You just never know.
Meanwhile, I had tossed the very important dresses into my car, moved it back out of the way as much as I could, left the dog in the car too and spoke with the police to help make sure that everyone was accounted for.
Hubby was checking on the neighbours, we got to know them a bit more – but never a good way for this to happen.
Street blocked, multiple emergency vehicles including police, paramedics, fire trucks and on King Edward, an OC Transpo bus was there for us to wait in and keep warm. Ottawa’s emergency services do a great job. There may be situations where people are injured and sadly die, but based on the quick response we received and the communication and care given – the Red cross and Salvation army were also in play, especially for the couple who cannot go back into their home until that’s cleared.
So, thank you Ottawa services. Thank you neighbours who also came out to see what had happened and offer us a place to stay and anything we needed. Thanks friends on Facebook who checked in after seeing our first post, and again making generous offers. And thanks Mom for emailing 🙂
We are fine. We’ll have to deal with the smell in our apartment, but I have to wait to see what the landlord does in the hallways as it just keeps drifting in. Windows open while they can be, and laundry pile growing for when it feels like we can wash stuff without having to wash it again – hopefully later today< Monday>.
And so ends a sort of crappy weekend, but it could have been very different, so I’m grateful for my Awesome Hubby, and my snuggly doglet. and for all of you.
UPDATES:
Monday – the cleaning crew arrived with this:
and told me to run it for 3 days…and it worked.
Tuesday: I’m given the gift of calm – thanks to Laura for her thoughtfulness …
Wednesday: They are back cleaning the hallway. I’m taking a lot of today off, as my Hubby has developed the same symptoms as I had last week so I am hoping he feels better before Friday!
If we can make it out:
1 We hit the Museum of Nature for Nature Nocturne – there will be both Anime < for Him> and Ping Pong < for her> in celebration of the Year of the Goat!
Then on the way home, we hope to pop in on the Fundraiser set up to help out our neighbours who lost their apartment: Help get Kitty a home
I spent this morning making a batch of my annual truffles, and remembered that I’ll be seeing some non chocolate eating friends…
I decided to try something new:
Basic truffle recipe:
½ cup butter, softened
¼ cup cocoa powder
2 ½ cups icing sugar
1/4 cup coconut milk or dairy cream
1 tsp vanilla
smush all of it together really well, chill it, roll it in cocoa. Oh and you can add booze.
Little Gurl Balls
Skip the cocoa , add a bit more icing sugar to make stiffer.
Use equal parts ginger and cinnamon- or add nutmeg and cloves if you got ’em- to roll the little balls.
nom-kick in the taste buds – nom!
Every once in a while, I remember.
This summer, while on our annual camping trip, I was reading a thought-provoking book called, The Ancestors Are Arranging Things, and segments of it discussed Allumette Island – where I spent time as a child. and it brought up many memories.
It was a long time ago < 1981> that my Dad passed away on a summer vacation that would change a lot in my life.
That which I remember before that, is only moments, snippets in time.
Snippets of Dad:
– cooking his home grown swiss chard and eating it himself – I think no one else liked it.
– boiling water and pouring into his glass grape juice jar that was kept in the fridge, and if you drank it and didn’t refill it, well….
-supper at 4:30 p.m. so that he could grab a nap before heading out for civic duties.
– his garden and compost set up.
And the cottages….
-the night I saw a family of skunks crawling out from under the porch when I needed to venture out to the outhouse. Pretty sure everyone was awakened for that adventure.
– map-o-spread on graham crackers with hot chocolate and resoundingly loud singing along with the 78’s on the wind up record player. “She’ll be com in’ ‘round the mountain” as a long-time standard.
– the gift of an inside set-up of a port-a-potty for Mom, to which I may have innocently declared, “That’s not vey romantic”, but now as an adult, realize it was a phenomenal gift of comfort and security to his wife at the rustic cottage.
-and canoeing and the peddle boat, and the hours he spent on upkeep of a beautiful piece of land, where I learned to love the outdoors. I would not have had the opportunity if I did not grow up with every summer involving a trip to the cottages thanks to Dad, and Mom, of course.
And then, after my Dad passed away, my sister picked up the torch. So,thank you Ginny too, for taking the time to pack up your little sister, a big black lab and head out for those weekends in the small cottage. And yes, I remember the bear crossing the road ahead of us as we were about to pull into the long winding lane and our sudden trip back to Waltham for Grandpa’s hunting rifle. We never needed it, thankfully, but it was the thought that counted.
And our long canoe trek, from the cottages to Waltham, through what now might be considered pretty small rapids, but you made your little sister feel somewhat safe, as we “road those rapids”.
As I am blessed now with a husband who I have been camping with each August since 1996, I know I am most appreciative of it due to those seeds planted in my childhood.
I was never a strong swimmer and am still not today. But I love the canoe, and flat water paddling for the sheer relaxation of it, with a few small challenging trips through slightly rougher water, once in a while, to say I can still do it.
And stars, and the wild blue berries and raspberries and blackberries that bring back memories of summers at the cottage and heading out to our blueberry fields for picking.
The only thing I don’t think I’ll ever replicate is lying in the back of the family station wagon in my PJ’s headed into town to the Dairy Queen and maybe a drive-in movie.
—
Sadly and unexpectedly, recently I was back at the cemetery where my Dad is buried. I was deeply saddened to be there for the loss of a childhood friend , but it allowed me to take a fresh photo of his headstone.
Thanks Mom for the company and helping me find it.
Sometimes we all need a reminder that this life is precious, so don’t hesitate.
There are folks out there who just ooze enthusiasm. They rave about the things that are amazing in their world. And they do it in real time, in your face, up close and personal.
They freak me out a bit.
But I do appreciate them a lot. It saves me the energy of having to put that kind of effort into things and allows me to just get S*&T done.
I’ve been noticing a few of them around lately, and just thought I should take a moment to thank them. They won’t notice this as they are too busy being gleefully involved in the exciting things in their life. These people actually say ” mmmm” with a musical quality when they eat. AS I say – freaks me out a bit…. But they are still cool.
So thanks all you Passionate People – keep up the good work! Just keep the volume in check around my delicate ears 🙂
