Snap, crackle, pop . . .

. . . drool, smile, chomp.

Your favorite marshmallow crispy rice treat.

Only better.

And slightly more time consuming.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 vanilla bean
1 10.5 oz. bag mini marshmallows
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 cups crispy rice cereal (sometimes referred to as Rice Krispies)

1. Melt the butter in a large pan over medium low heat.

2. As the butter is melting, cut open the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into the pan. Yes, you can substitute vanilla extract, but if you do, add it after the marshmallows are melted, but before you add the cereal.

3. Once the butter has melted, you are going to wait for it to brown. This is one of the things, along with the vanilla bean and salt, that makes this recipe extra special. It will bubble and hiss, but not boil, for about 4 to 5 minutes before it starts to brown. You need to watch carefully because it is a very short trip from brown to burnt.

4. Add the marshmallows and salt as soon as the butter starts to brown. Stir over low heat until marshmallows are completely melted and seeds are evenly distributed.

5. Stir in cereal until well combined.

6. Pat into prepared pan.

7. Let sit for about half an hour, if you have very good self control, then cut and enjoy!



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I have this many pennies.

Yesterday, we resorted to my last ditch effort to get a new house.

We called our favorite builders (meaning they had the lowest bid).

Okay, they also seem honest and reliable and are not ridiculously condescending. And did I mention they had the lowest bid?

And we said, 'we have this many pennies, how much house can we have for that?'

Fortunately, the owner came along for the meeting. He has a very reassuring habit of saying how inexpensive everything is.

We do have to wonder why they bid everything at 250% of the reasonable numbers he is letting slip.

Let me add that the worker bee, who puts the bids together, is looking uncomfortable at the rapidly shrinking profit margin.

Too bad, so sad. Keep those numbers falling!

Today, we get the new and improved number.

Now, for the building inspector. Permit, please?


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What makes Mother's Day Great

We got a copy of a Sheri Dew talk today in our ward. No flowers, no chocolates, no accolades to the greatness of Motherhood even, really. Just a stapled version of a talk entitled 'Are we not all Mothers?' from 2001.

I admit to surreptitiously leaving it sitting on the table in the lobby. I kind of have a no more paper policy at my house. And, what with the Internet and all, let's be honest and admit that we don't need quite as much paper as we used to back in the day.

I will also admit that I have a no guilt inducing Mother's Day gift policy. I do just fine convincing myself of my inadequacies all on my own. But because our bishopric seems to appreciate women, and Mother's in particular, I assume the intention was not to tear us down, but to build us up.

With that thought as my inspiration, I looked up the talk and skimmed the content. I feel confident it is quite nice, and will plan to read it someday that is not Mother's Day. Instead, I had some chocolate and contemplated what makes Mother's Day great.

I had a perfect model to contemplate, because I had a Mother's Day as near to perfect as is possible when half of your children are out of the country.

Yesterday Dave planned a trip through New Hampshire and Maine visiting Architectural Salvage places. This was my request as a Mothers Day gift. The surprise came about 45 minutes into the trip when Dave said he wanted to stop at McDonald's for a smoothie. Okay, I said. Kind of weird, we're not really smoothie people, but if Dave wants a smoothie, I'm fine with that. He went in and came out 10 minutes later, with McKay and Annie! They had driven down to surprise me for the weekend.

I was really surprised! And really happy. They came at Easter, and I was not expecting to see them again so soon. We had a wonderful day driving through the New England Spring ( half the day was sunny, half was rainy, just like a New England Spring should be) and looking at cool old stuff I might some day use in my house.

Sunday morning Dave made homemade Belgian waffles with strawberries and toffee sauce. Absolutely delicious! After church he cooked one of my favorite meals of grilled salmon, asparagus, and roasted potatoes. Delicious again!

After lunch, we called Kami in Chile and it was amazing to hear her voice. It it a surprise every time we talk that her voice sounds the same. It is very reassuring to a Mom to hear her child's voice sounding happy and health. About 45 minutes into the call Chase called. We were able to conference him in and I had the relief of hearing his voice as well. They got to talk to each other. In Spanish even. I heard all my children on the phone together laughing and talking. It was marvelous!

I can hear three of them upstairs laughing right now. The most wonderful sound in the world.

My children talking to each other, and to Dave and me, is a priceless gift. That I have a family that loves each other, and loves to spend time together, is wonderful.

Having children is what makes Mother's Day great. Having a loving husband makes it perfect. I feel like the luckiest Mom on earth.


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Location:Nantasket Rd,Hull,United States

This is the house that Jack built.

Yes, this is the view from my front window.


as opposed to this, which is the view out my back window.




And yes, it is sunny in front and cloudy in back and I don't know how that works.

But I do realize I'm lucky.

And I do envy just a bit that little bird in my lantern who is building her nest by the sweat of her brow, with supplies she finds herself. No million dollar framing bids for her.

I am tempted to follow her lead and see what I can find laying around the neighborhood.

There is quite a lot of wood washed up on the shore these days. I just might use it!

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A is for application.

Building, loan, FEMA, etc.

B is for bids, which come in today. The anticipation is like Christmas. The dollar amounts are like my own equivalent of the budget deficit.

C is for cabinets. Which I ordered yesterday. And paid for in ADVANCE, which is a huge construction no no. They were 1/5 the cost of the bid from my kitchen designer. I love my online shopping guru husband.

D is for despair. Which is a regular companion to the home building process.

E is for euphoria. Ditto above.

F is framing. Ours is apparently particularly complicated. Like me.

G is for good weather. Which we have had for 2 days running. It makes everything in life better!

H is for home sweet home. Which will be 3 bedrooms and a bathroom for the next few months if everything goes according to plan. Like camping inside. Which is my favorite kind of camping.

I is for income property. Which we do not have. Ours is an outgo property.

J is for justification. Which is sometimes useful in budgeting for fixtures and finishes.

K is for kidding around. Which is a useful way to pass the time while waiting for bids to come in.

L is for looking. For bargains. On everything we need to build a house.

M is for money. We keep spending it. And, we haven't really started yet.

N is for now. Which is when I would like my new house to be done.

O is for organization. I'll get right on that.

P is for piles. Of information important to the building process.

Q is for quickly. Which is how I need to get get things done once I finally realize they need to be done.

R is for running. In circles most of the time.

S is for sinks. I like really special sinks. See justification.

T is for today. Which is a sunny, warm day. Hooray!

U is for unless. The word that comes before a long list of undesirable possibilities.

V is for vacation. Which we just had, but seems like a long time ago.

W is for work. Which I need to do more of.

X is for x-ray. And xylophone. Which are not really applicable to this conversation.

Y is for yay! Which is what I say every time we move forward on our project.

Z is for zippadeedoodah! which is what I will sing the day they start excavation.

You get the idea. I think we are really, really close to starting construction. Keep your fingers crossed!




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Location:Hull, MA

Once upon a time

Once upon a time I promised a friend I would post my Coconut, Oatmeal, Raisin Cookie recipe.

I did not post it.

Now, I am posting it.

The End

The Most Amazingly Delicious Oatmeal Raisin Cookie ever! (according to me)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cubes (1/2 pound) butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups sweetened, shredded coconut
1 cup raisins

1. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl.
2. Beat softened butter (remember that soft butter is veeeeeery important) with the granulated and brown sugar until light and fluffy. About 5 minutes in a kitchenaid type mixer. 8 or 10 if you are using a handheld mixer.

**mixer saving note: use the paddle on your mixer for almost everything. The wire whisk, although much more fun to look at, tends to break if you use it on anything thicker than cake batter.

3. Beat eggs into butter mixture until well combined.
4. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture on stir speed. This is the point at which more is not better in the mixing department.
5. Stir in the coconut, oatmeal, and raisins until just incorporated. (FYI, I use rolled oats, but quick cooking will also work.

Bake at 300 F for about 20 minutes, or until they just start to look golden brown around the edges.

I will now give you some cookie tips. Are you excited?

First, for a consistent cookie outcome, cookies that retain their shape and volume, and don't spread too much during baking, I recommend shaping and freezing your cookies before baking. This also allows you to have fresh baked cookies whenever you want, which is a definite benefit. You will need to add a little extra time to the baking time. I do realize that sometimes you need cookies really fast, so any chilling possible is good.

Second, if at all possible, use parchment paper when you bake your cookies. It helps to keep the bottoms of the cookies from browning too quickly.

Third, I am always aiming to have a soft and chewy cookie that is just barely done. If your ideal cookie is different from mine, feel free to disregard "first", and "second".

Happy cookie baking!





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Location:Hull, Ma

If you're lucky enough to live at the beach . . .

. . . you're lucky enough.

I was walking Milo this afternoon and saw this quote on a neighbors house. Again. It speaks to me every time I see it, and yet I forget within a day or two how meaningful it is.

When people ask what our child rearing technique is, Dave and I always say the same thing. We have high expectations of our children. For the most part they meet and exceed those expectations.

Perhaps I have let that idea get away from me. I have high expectations of life. I must have what I want when I want it or things are not right! That might not be the most appropriate way to live life.

I've come up with a few variations of this quote that would serve me well to keep in mind:

If you are lucky enough to have a home to live in, and food to eat, you are lucky enough.

If you are lucky enough to have a loving family, you are lucky enough.

Most importantly,

If you are lucky enough to have the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, you are lucky enough!


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Location:Hull, Mass.