S'more ways to make a s'more...

Wrapping up the cute "Stack of S'mores" teacher gifts caused a little bit of a chocolate frenzy. What a perfect little snack to nibble on while watching "The Hills" on MTV. Even after missing a year's worth of episodes, Spencer is still whining to his loser-look-a-like rich friends about a baby his wife Heidi wants to have. Anyway, who can stomach Spencer Pratt without chocolate? So, like every good mama, I always have semi-sweet chocolate chips on hand ... for emergencies. We still had lots of graham crackers left and even some coconut marshmallows from all of those bon fires I thought we'd have this past winter. Jim was being "the skinny girl" so he didn't want to have one - until he saw them!

Here is what you need:
semi-sweet chocolate chips
graham crackers
marshmallows (big!)
foil-lined pan

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line pan with foil and line with graham crackers - it could be one or lots - I needed 2 to stomach Spence (and Justin Bobby.) Cover graham crackers with chocolate chips.

Like this:



Then you pop them into the oven to melt the chocolate chips a little bit. Keep in mind that chocolate chips are designed to hold their shape - even when melted. I'd take them out after 3 or 4 minutes.

Place a marshmallow on top of the melted chips, like this:



Put the pan back into the oven for 3 or 4 minutes more - the marshmallow will puff up and you will know when to pull them out.

I like mine like this:



You can eat them like that - or do what I do - and smoosh them a little for extra ooey gooey-ness.



After eating 2 of these, Spencer and Justin Bobby almost seemed like regular guys. I always knew chocolate could fix anything!

Blueberry Crunch Cakes

Recently a few friends and I went to breakfast at J. Cristophers on Liberty Street. Some of these friends had never been and everyone deserves a chance to try their signature dish - Blueberry Crunch Cakes! J. Cristophers is a charming little diner offering loads of choices - all of them not exactly what you'd normally find on the menu at your local Waffle House. The San Bernadino Omelet was the first thing I ordered last year when I went for the first time. Eggs, cheddar cheese, roasted chicken, avocado and pico de gallo - this comes with a side of breakfast potatoes or cheese grits. The next time I went, I ordered "The Pantry Feast" - oh my. It comes with eggs, bacon or sausage, cheese grits or potatoes and a side of Blueberry Crunch Cakes. Their cappucino is excellent too!

See?




Later, after we sat for as long as the little ones would let us, we walked down to SoHo South Cafe' to show off their very artsy restaurant.



This apron was just standing there begging to come home with me...



Easy Mother's Day Gift - I will even wrap it up for myself so Jim doesn't have to!

Everytime I go downtown, I realize what a beautiful city Savannah really is. It is a shame that we can't slow down to notice this kind of beauty more often.

Homemade Taco Seasoning Packet

1 1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Add to 1 pound cooked hamburger meat (after draining) along with 3/4 cup water. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Cupcakes!

So I've recently developed an obsession for cupcakes.

I have cupcake cookbooks...



I have painted 2 (so far) cupcake boxes at Makin' Memories. (The adorable paint-your-own pottery shop in Rincon.)



And today I found these at Byrd Cookie Company... Cupcake Cookies! Who knew?



Cupcake Cookies
Each flavor is available individually in a three-ounce cupcake tube.

Red Velvet: A traditional, bite-size southern style red cookie with cream cheese frosting powdered sugar.

Black & White: A rich, bite-size dutch chocolate cookie with cream cheese frosting powdered sugar.

Birthday Cake: A sweet, bite-size yellow cookie with chocolate cream cheese frosting powdered sugar.

Chocolate Banana: A rich, bite-size dutch chocolate cookie with banana frosting powdered sugar.

And this! What a cute birthday gift to send to a far flung friend!



And this! A cupcake cookie jar!


Are you excited?

PTO Fundraiser: Butter Braids - sell 'em everytime!

One PTO Fundraiser I will always commit to ... Butter Braids. My friends had mixed emotions over this questionable dessert. First, none of us had ever tasted a butter braid and at $10 each, we weren't sure we wanted to take the chance on such an oddly named product. Second, the nutritional information is mysteriously missing from the package. Third, we were tired of being dollared by the PTO for this or that. Well, as you can see, I caved to the braid. They are D-I-V-I-N-E... All you other mamas are missing out BIG. I feel sorry for you in fact.

This is what it looks like after it comes out of the oven. Remember to let it "rest" overnight BEFORE baking on a greased, tin-foil lined pan. (Note: Do not forget to take the dessert out of the packaging. Jim did this not once, but twice! Also, do not forget to grease the foil - he forgot that part too last time.)



This is what it looks like iced. Well worth the $10!

Fat, Juicy Tomatoes!

Spring makes me think of tomatoes. I tried to grow some last year ... in an urn ... with one of those cute faux-rusty decorative trellises with a sweet bird perched at the top (surely this will function as a tomato cage, right?) Function has never been my strong suit. Poor Jim tried his best to convince me that this trellis will not work the same as the more practical metal cages that are $3 versus the $19.99 trellis I want to buy. He was right - shhh, I haven't told him yet. Sure, the tomato vines tried to sag, but I ruthlessly tie-wrapped them to the (extremely cute and rendered useless) now authentically rusty decorative trellis. Fortunately, I did get some lovely cherry tomatoes out of the bush, but this year I will be smarter. I will choose function over fashion. I will buy real tomato cages! And this year, my thumb will turn a lovely shade of green ... maybe.

Country Time has the market cornered... but they just need to tweak the instructions...

I am a lemonade connoisseur and even here in the South, I am often disappointed. Recently we walked around Tybee Island - from the park to the lighthouse, back to the car, to the Pier, on the beach - it was beautiful. It came over me all at once, having not thought about it since last summer ... lemonade would be so nice! We went to The Sugar Shack. This is a must-stop after a day at the beach - for icecream. Cookies and Cream for me, Mint Chocolate Chip for Owen, Vanilla for Miles, and Jim can't seem to stick to a favorite. The Sugar Shack is not a place to stop for lemonade.

Today Owen and Miles had their first lemonade stand. We posted signs throughout the neighborhood yesterday so the customers would line up. We painted a sign, made some cute cutout lemons and cookies to tape to the tablecloth and added some metal stick-in-the-ground flowers to add to the springtime atmosphere. We made pink lemonade and Kool-aid fruit punch for the non-lemon heads. Mommy (that's me) also threw together the fastest batch of chocolate chip cookies - and yes, homemade. At 4pm we were ready. For an investment of about 6 dollars, I thought we made out like bandits $53 later when we counted the earnings! We paid our side-kicks, Dora & Rees, $3 each for their tremendous marketing efforts - flagging down cars, smiling cheshire-cat grins and being super helpful in general. Later on, Jim corrected me with the news that he donated $18 seed money to the project, so all in all, we gained $35 - a pretty good way to spend an hour.

So, do you want to know the secret to good lemonade? You won't exactly find it at the bottom of a stack of lemon rinds... You'll find it in a can of Country Time Pink Lemonade + a little bit of Dr. TLC. Country Time might sell a lot of lemonade, but I am not even sure they know how good it is. If they did, they'd get the instructions right. First off, I use double DOUBLE what the instructions call for, I use 2 heaping capfuls of mix for a 2 quart pitcher. I also add in my own freshly squeezed lemon juice, about 1/4 cup of sugar, and I float some lemon slices to make the fake perfect. Pink lemonade is my favorite. (Pink grapefruits are better than regular ones anyday too.)

Here is the recipe:

Perfect Lemonade
2 heaping capfuls Country Time Pink Lemonade
2 quarts water
Juice from one lemon
Slices from another lemon
1/4 cup sugar

Stir lemonade mix, fresh lemon juice, sugar and water until dissolved. Slice lemon and add in to the pitcher. Serve over ice. Mint leaves are a pretty addition.

Too cute and almost gone - Liberty of London line at Target

The other day I had one of those episodes where you walk into a store and all of a sudden everything moves in slow motion and a light beams down from the sky (ceiling) and the angels sing "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah" and there it is ... something you had no idea existed and you need it, got to have it right then - one of those moments. Surely you can identify with this? Well, I had a few of those at a recent trip to Target. They have this new line called Liberty of London and everything is mismatchy-matchy and so girlie and it's HOT PINK EVEN! All of the above puts it into the meant-to-be category of things. I needed new plates, new cups, new cute cereal bowls and well they even had a tea pot and tea cups too! So this is the stuff - and most of it is sadly gone. I did get that adorable Easter dress - the yellow/black/white one, so it wasn't a total loss. Moral of the story - go without your husband to Target when you think there might be a divine (see above beam of lights, angels singing) possibility in store. Sob...

Kate Gosselin: Love her/Hate her

I have a love/hate relationship with Kate. I loved her hair for so long, but hated how she acted to her husband. Loved her show, but got squirmish as she tromped around shouting orders at Jon and her kids. Like a lot of people, I kept watching the train wreck - had to see what her hair was doing that week and marvel over the suddenly glamorous woman she had so quickly become. Now she is on Dancing with the Stars - and I am still watching. I feel bad for her, walking on egg shells as she tries to force herself to dance across the floor with her very patient partner, Tony. I see the concentration on her face as she counts the steps, purposefully stomping each foot in place to the music. At times she looks like a gladiator woman, eyes wild and dangerous instead of the graceful, lithe dancer she should be. I am sad for her - I wanted her to show the world and Jon Gosselin that she could be fun - that she could dance and be excited and happy and light-hearted. Make him realize what he left. Instead she is showing the world that she is still angry, resentful and whiny - the same Kate that she has always been. She is still on the show - someone out there is voting for her week to week - probably someone like me - who keeps hoping she will surprise everyone.

Best Intentions ...

I love to exercise. I have many exercise videos. I have bought at least 5 pedometers escalating in price with the newest one purchased. Surely a $19 pedometer will work better than a $13 one. I have a hot pink yoga mat, many pairs of yoga pants - both full length and capris. I have one of those big, huge balls to do crunches and best work my core. I have an excellent rowing machine that I was totally all over ... for about 3 months. I have hand weights and ankle weights, I have a set of those long, rubber tension bands that are supposed to work as good as weights. Ipod, special walking shoes, water bottles, the list goes on and on. This elliptical is my most recent purchase ... and sale. I had to have it. Had to have it! My parents bought it as a birthday gift from a friend who was moving into an apartment. $250 was a STEAL. I wish I could say that I used it everyday - or even every other day, but I didn't. Even after Jim moved the dvd player into our bedroom so that I could watch movies (Twilight!) while working out. Even when we got a sweet new plasma screen for the bedroom and Edward the Vampire was that much bigger and more realistic. Still I didn't get on it very much. It is an excellent clothes tree, a jungle gym for kids. It was also almost 75+ inches long and an eyesore that we had to walk around for fear of stubbing our toes on its wooden floor mat. On Monday, I drove my stepdad's monster truck to work with the elliptical on board. He doesn't have XM Radio, so it was almost fitting (in a big truck like his) when all I could find on the radio was Brooks & Dunn "My Maria." I was rocking out and on the way to sell that machine! I sailed over 3 railroad tracks on Gulfstream Road and gladly handed over the owner's manual and the fancy heart/pulse monitor chest-strap to Roger Chandler. I so loooove some fresh money! Now on to Target to get that cutesie slipcovered chair for my bedroom - all the better to watch Edward the Vampire ...and maybe I will find a new pedometer and some cute yoga pants while I am there!

Far flung friends are sometimes the sweetest friends...

I have known Dana since 1997. I met Dana before I met Jim! This is Dana beside me on the right. Dana will one day have a BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING and I cannot wait for the day! We will smash plates (or is that a Jewish tradition) and yell Oompah (?) and I will be excited - what else?! Isn't she hot? Dana is the sweetest, most giving friend. Over the years there have been many discussions over what to wear, what to eat, what to buy, how to workout and how not to, but still get skinny and MEN! Have I tried to set her up with MEN!? Did I mention what a good sport she is?! On the other side of me is Mia. I met Mia through Dana and Mia likes to talk about what to cook for dinner and what we cooked for dinner last night and what a mess we are. We vent about going crazy and drinking wine and how we can only survive when we drink and what are you eating for lunch - I am eating a boring salad... etc. All of these things are big once you get old and boring. (Currently we are all trying to decide if we are "cougars" or if we still are kittens? At what age does one become a "cougar"?) I love Dana and Mia and here we are - away from the world and at Jazz'd where we drank things like Skinny B*tch and Candy Apple Martinis. There was no sippy-cup washing going on at this table, and we didn't go to "the potty" let me just tell ya! And I even think our waiter thought we were all hot - for cougars or kittens - even though we are pretty sure he was gay. What a night!

One more! Excited2!

Here is one more!

Excited!

I have a few blogsites that I follow. These sites do the same thing in one way or another - they get me excited. Inspiration is a better word. Here is a pic from one of them - amyatlas.blogspot.com. Doesn't this just make you want to run out and have a party? A baby shower? Me too! Until the anxiety attack sets in...

Mrs. Lynn's Birthday

To say that Owen's teacher, Mrs. Lynn, is a spunky lady is an understatement. The woman exudes excitement. She is often excited herself and can barely contain it! She moves around the classroom full of energy and the kids eyes are locked on her. She is always laughing and picking at herself. She encourages creativity and encourages a different way of learning than I remember getting in all of my years in a classroom. Not only that - the woman loves hot pink, lime green and poka dots - and there is nothing better than that! So for her birthday I wanted to make something cute - something poka-dotted and something that could be used in the classroom. Here is my take on the pencil holder - a girlie version for Mrs. Lynn.

Here is what you need:
Short can of something (Bush's beans worked great for this project!)
Pencils (about 40 to glue on the outside)
Hot glue sticks & glue gun
Ribbon
Wire cutter
Craft paint to match the pencils
Craft paint for the inside of the can
Pencil sharpener

Start by washing, drying and painting the outside of your can in the same color as the pencils you will be glueing to the outside. Let dry. Measure the pencils using the can - you will want them to be about 1.5 inches taller than the can. Mark on all pencils where you will need to make your cut. Cut with wire cutters.



Sharpen the cut edge of pencils and then dull down. Hot glue to the outside.



Tie ribbon around the pencils and glue into place on the underside of the ribbon, Paint the inside of the can a bright fun color.

A little bit of heaven ... on the way to Wisconsin

A few weeks ago our family from Wisconsin came for a visit on their way to Florida to see The Mouse. We were able to fit a whole lotta fun into the weekend, but before we knew it, we were all standing in the driveway saying goodbye. A very sad goodbye. Before they left, we promised to send them some tea from The Tea Room and here it is - on its way to Wisconsin.

Easter Eggs & Boys

Today we dyed eggs. I always dream of dyeing brown farm eggs a pale shade of robin's egg blue. My two little boys have other ideas. My day will come when I can dye Easter eggs that glorious pale shade - until then, I will enjoy having little monsters spill and slosh the bright colors all over the counter, always being sure to wipe their hands on their pajamas. (409 left to sit on the spills for a few minutes makes stained counters dye free again!)

Easy Key Lime Cheesecake

Ingredients:



2 (8oz.) pkgs cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. grated lime peel
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 graham cracker pie crust




Beat cream cheese, sugar, lime peel, juice and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs; mix until blended. Pour into crust.



Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until center is almost set.



(Try not to let it crack like I did!) Cool & refrigerate 3 hours or overnight. Makes 8 servings.

Easter Dress

I went to Target for the second time this week looking for a picnic blanket. Not just any blanket, one that is water resistant on one side and I even hoped for a cute fabric on the other side and the BIGGER the BETTER. Just like on Saturday, there wasn't a picnic blanket to be found. My workout buddy, Jessica Brady, is on vacation - and this is usually bad news. Jessica not being at work usually results in me doing bad things at lunch - going shopping at Walmart, driving to Rincon and going to Sweet Peas, meeting friends from Gulfstream at Cancun for mexican. Today was no different. I headed to Target. Hey, I had to get Jim a birthday card, didn't I? And that picnic blanket. Surely they had some by now - a whole 2 days later! I walked straight into the women's clothes section - bad bad. And there it was - angels singing, bright heavenly lights shining down ... the perfect Easter dress! A bargain at only $34.99, right? I read the tag - "Liberty of London" for Target. This is bad - and not only did they have the cutesie dress, they had lamps and the plates and even file folders and cute post-it notes and even boxers for the guys! Matchy matchy, but in a cute vintage sort of way. Well, I had to have it. I didn't even try to talk myself out of it - I could wear it to Easter, to weddings, to Tea parties (should anyone ever decide to have one in Guyton Georgia.) This dress was an investment. And now, 3 days later, I still feel the same way - no guilt, no buyer's remorse - nada. Too bad I didn't get those matching post-it notes to carry around in my pocket ... if I had one! I can't wait for Jessica to get back - to show her my dress - and maybe head to Target on our lunch hour - to get her one too!

Little bit of Sass

My friend Wanda's grandson had pictures taken by a photographer in Savannah http://kimberlywilsonblog.com that I have not heard of before. Her style is very similar to my friend Danielle's wwww.daniellehobbsphotography.com. Loved this photo I found on Kim's blog. Thought I might share - I hear her prices are very good! And here is sweet Landon - Wanda's grandson.