Tonight the Babe wanted to eat in the "restaurant". She wanted to make a menu, and be served in our dining room. Daddy was to be the waiter, and I was to be the chef (not a big stretch there). My husband was meeting a business associate a little later in the evening for dinner, but came home early to see the Babe. So, he was able to be the waiter...dressed in running shorts and a t-shirt (before he changed for the evening). The dining room may be more upscale, but the service apparently isn't at this restaurant.
The Babe started dinner with a salad, all by herself. Well, when you set only one place setting, clearly you don't want to eat with the riff-raff. We put on the radio for some background music, and every so often she would call for the waiter. Unfortunately, this waiter got a business call mid-service, so the chef had to step up. Then the chef was allowed to join the Babe, and chat while the Babe finished her first course. Apparently the customer is dating the waiter, and they both have the same blue eyes that are dazzling and sparkling. The waiter buys her secret shirts, and they dance ballet together and hula hoop. It was a very enlightening conversation (and fun).
Soon, dinner was ready to be served. The waiter had to leave, and the chef was allowed to join the Babe for dinner. It was very nice. I suspect the Babe will be returning to this restaurant again in the near future. Its very exclusive, by invitation (or demand) only.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Friday, April 19, 2013
Change of Plans
The Babe isn't happy right now because our scheduled play-date isn't happening. The other mom forgot to write it in her calendar. While she's disappointed at the moment, from a selfish standpoint, my house is clean and dessert is baked. Ok, not my entire house, just the first floor. Having company is a great motivator. Yes, I rushed around all morning, rather than "leisurely" cleaned. But its done. The question now is should I continue with this and tackle the second floor, or collapse on the couch with the Babe? I don't know. For now I am enjoying the cookie pie I just made.
Monday, April 15, 2013
Context is Important
This is going to probably sound really bad taken out of context, so please read all of this post. My husband had called to check in during the course of his work day, and asked how the Babe was doing. Specifically, he asked her if she was being a good girl. We told him yes, so good, that she had even gotten some badges. She then told him she got, "a badge for kissing, a badge for loving, and a badge for rocking". That doesn't sound right.
Here's what she meant. She wanted to wear badges, like what Girl Scouts wear. So, out of some felt, I made her a sash. Then she wanted the badges to go with it. What to make? She gave me a sweet kiss on my cheek, so I said she gave such nice kisses. So we made a badge in the shape of a mouth to represent a kiss. Then she gave me a nice hug. So she got a badge in the shape of a heart. Lastly, she just got a kiddie sized rocking chair yesterday, and is enjoying rocking on it. Hence, a rocking chair badge. And from a kiss, a hug, and a rocking chair, we get badges for "kissing, loving, and rocking".
Here's what she meant. She wanted to wear badges, like what Girl Scouts wear. So, out of some felt, I made her a sash. Then she wanted the badges to go with it. What to make? She gave me a sweet kiss on my cheek, so I said she gave such nice kisses. So we made a badge in the shape of a mouth to represent a kiss. Then she gave me a nice hug. So she got a badge in the shape of a heart. Lastly, she just got a kiddie sized rocking chair yesterday, and is enjoying rocking on it. Hence, a rocking chair badge. And from a kiss, a hug, and a rocking chair, we get badges for "kissing, loving, and rocking".
Monday, March 25, 2013
Happy Passover!
We currently live about an hour away from most of my side of the family. Despite that, this year we will be celebrating Passover once again at home. Tonight, I will be hosting a Seder for two, and tomorrow for three. Hosting? Nope. No one to host. My extended family will be gathering tonight at my aunt's house, to which we were invited. However, I do not feel it would be safe to bring the Babe, even with any allergy accommodations (and I wouldn't want everyone to adapt, just so we can leave shortly after getting there if we had a problem). Tomorrow my sister will hold her own family Seder, as she did not want to exclude her husband's family. We know no one locally who needed a place to go for the holiday, either. So once again it is just us.
Tonight it will just be the Babe and myself. My husband was supposed to be here too, but weather and the airlines aren't cooperating. He had a business meeting on the East coast, and they proactively cancelled his return flight home. Hopefully tomorrow we'll be able to celebrate together.
I could have attempted to have a sitter so I can join the extended family, but I don't think its fair to the Babe to leave her behind on a holiday. Plus, she is old enough to start learning these traditions. So, while there will only be the two of us, I will put out a tablecloth, fill the Seder plate, and hold a Seder just for the two of us. While I don't normally drink when its just the two of us, I will definitely have a little tonight (no, not four full glasses as instructed in the Hagaddah, but at least four sips). On the plus side, I guess that means more brisket for me!
Tonight it will just be the Babe and myself. My husband was supposed to be here too, but weather and the airlines aren't cooperating. He had a business meeting on the East coast, and they proactively cancelled his return flight home. Hopefully tomorrow we'll be able to celebrate together.
I could have attempted to have a sitter so I can join the extended family, but I don't think its fair to the Babe to leave her behind on a holiday. Plus, she is old enough to start learning these traditions. So, while there will only be the two of us, I will put out a tablecloth, fill the Seder plate, and hold a Seder just for the two of us. While I don't normally drink when its just the two of us, I will definitely have a little tonight (no, not four full glasses as instructed in the Hagaddah, but at least four sips). On the plus side, I guess that means more brisket for me!
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Warning Board Game Players
Its time for me to publicly admit something. The Babe is a board game cheat. That's right, I'm warning you. She may not play by the rules, she might jump spaces. Her latest scam just happened. I was in the other room while she set up the game of Candyland. When I sat down, I quickly realized that she put the special cards at the top of the deck. She didn't realize that I could get as far or farther then she would depending on who drew which card first. So she's not a hardened criminal yet. While we had a good laugh at her attempt, I also made sure she kept that mood knowing that she might lose, because the Babe is a sore loser. Pouty and whiny are not so cute. So with each game we played, I reminded her that she had to be a good loser (ahem, gracious) if she lost. Lucky for her she won each game (honestly because I shuffled the deck).
Thursday, February 21, 2013
A Sad Goodbye
This has been a long week for me. A little over two weeks ago my grandmother went into the hospital with what was initially thought to be the flu or respiratory infection, seemed to have been improving, and then suddenly took a turn. For a little over a week, we watched her decline. During that time, she still remained mentally with it, even remembering to have us dial the phone so she could call a relative to wish her happy birthday. On that day, she could barely talk because her breathing was so challenged. That's how remarkable a woman she was. I say was, because sadly she passed away Monday. Had she lived five more days, we would have celebrated her 103rd birthday. Instead, we said goodbye to a kind, generous, warm, thoughtful, loving woman. Her age was but a number. She lived a good life by example and deed. She never spoke bad of others, she gave unconditional love and support. Besides how wonderful she was in spirit, she had many other talents. A talented pianist, an exceptional knitter, a lover of crossword puzzles, and a good cook. She left a legacy of warm memories for all who knew her. I will miss her.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Sugar Cookies
Baby its cold outside! Every time I'd start to sing those lyrics, the Babe would complain, and thought I made them up. I explained the lyrics are older than I am. They are definitely appropriate. We haven't gone anywhere for a few days due to sub-zero windshields. Today the air temperature reached the teens, so I felt it was time to bundle up and head out. Where did we go on our big adventure? Just to Walmart. I didn't really need anything, but besides a few grocery items, the Babe got some stickers, and we got some more cookie cutters.
I have a decent amount of cookie cutters now (even before today's trip), so that means I should be making cookies, right? I may have mentioned certain cooking/baking issues have intimidated me in the past, even though they really aren't a big deal once conquered. That would include handling ground beef (what do you do with the fat after browning...yeah, got that one), raw chicken (major ick factor for the first five years of my marriage, but now no big deal), and anything involving a rolling pin.
While sugar cookies are delicious when made with real butter, eggs, and wheat flour, I didn't know how they would come out once you took away the butter, the eggs, and yes, the wheat flour. Gluten free baking is tricky, and anything vanilla-based can get "interesting" (slang for yeah, we knew it wasn't the real thing before more than a dot of it crossed our lips, and debating if we should swallow it or brush our teeth to get rid of the aftertaste).
Anyhow, we did make sugar cookies. We made the dough yesterday and baked one batch. We made the rest today. The Babe had fun using the cookie cutters, and enjoyed our creations. There is a slight after-taste, but they aren't bad. That means edible, and I'll have a second, thank you. I think they need to be frosted, which might cut the aftertaste, but I haven't done that yet. I know this description must be really inspiring, and make you want to run out and try some. So, just in case you can get past my waxing lyrical here about the aftertaste, here's my recipe for Gluten-free, Egg-free, Dairy-free sugar cookies.
Gluten-free, Egg-free, Dairy-free Sugar Cookies
3/4 cup margarine (prefer Earth Balance Buttery Stick)
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp ground flax meal + 6 Tbsp warm water
½ Tbsp vanilla extract
¾ C Sorghum Flour
¾ C Brown Rice Flour
¼ C Tapioca Starch
¼ C Potato Starch
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp xantham gum
1 tsp salt
Additional 1-2 Tbsp of Rice flour
In the bowl of a mixer combine margarine, sugar, flax-water mix, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed until all ingredients are fully combined (a few minutes).
In a separate bowl, blend sorghum, brown rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, baking powder, xantham gum, and salt. Add dry mixture to wet mixture and mix on low speed until well incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour. The dough can be refrigerated for up to a day.
Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Remove dough from refrigerator. Take a handful of the dough about the size of a baseball and make into a ball. Set the ball of dough on a floured surface (using 1-2 Tbsp Rice Flour). Roll out the dough so that it is about 1/8 inch thick. Cut dough into desired shapes using cookie cutters. Place cut-out shapes onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 8 minutes or until cookies are done. If frosting, let cook for about an hour. Otherwise, eat when cookies are cool enough to handle.
I have a decent amount of cookie cutters now (even before today's trip), so that means I should be making cookies, right? I may have mentioned certain cooking/baking issues have intimidated me in the past, even though they really aren't a big deal once conquered. That would include handling ground beef (what do you do with the fat after browning...yeah, got that one), raw chicken (major ick factor for the first five years of my marriage, but now no big deal), and anything involving a rolling pin.
While sugar cookies are delicious when made with real butter, eggs, and wheat flour, I didn't know how they would come out once you took away the butter, the eggs, and yes, the wheat flour. Gluten free baking is tricky, and anything vanilla-based can get "interesting" (slang for yeah, we knew it wasn't the real thing before more than a dot of it crossed our lips, and debating if we should swallow it or brush our teeth to get rid of the aftertaste).
Anyhow, we did make sugar cookies. We made the dough yesterday and baked one batch. We made the rest today. The Babe had fun using the cookie cutters, and enjoyed our creations. There is a slight after-taste, but they aren't bad. That means edible, and I'll have a second, thank you. I think they need to be frosted, which might cut the aftertaste, but I haven't done that yet. I know this description must be really inspiring, and make you want to run out and try some. So, just in case you can get past my waxing lyrical here about the aftertaste, here's my recipe for Gluten-free, Egg-free, Dairy-free sugar cookies.
Gluten-free, Egg-free, Dairy-free Sugar Cookies
3/4 cup margarine (prefer Earth Balance Buttery Stick)
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp ground flax meal + 6 Tbsp warm water
½ Tbsp vanilla extract
¾ C Sorghum Flour
¾ C Brown Rice Flour
¼ C Tapioca Starch
¼ C Potato Starch
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp xantham gum
1 tsp salt
Additional 1-2 Tbsp of Rice flour
In the bowl of a mixer combine margarine, sugar, flax-water mix, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed until all ingredients are fully combined (a few minutes).
In a separate bowl, blend sorghum, brown rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, baking powder, xantham gum, and salt. Add dry mixture to wet mixture and mix on low speed until well incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour. The dough can be refrigerated for up to a day.
Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Remove dough from refrigerator. Take a handful of the dough about the size of a baseball and make into a ball. Set the ball of dough on a floured surface (using 1-2 Tbsp Rice Flour). Roll out the dough so that it is about 1/8 inch thick. Cut dough into desired shapes using cookie cutters. Place cut-out shapes onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 8 minutes or until cookies are done. If frosting, let cook for about an hour. Otherwise, eat when cookies are cool enough to handle.
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