Mother Nature Mix Up

Or is Mother Nature on track. .

and my kids are mixed up??

Anyone driving by this afternoon. .

May have peeked into our yard and thought it was summer!!

I, myself found it necessary to consult the temperature queen.

Hmmmmm.   I know that the water coming out of this hose. . .

Wasn't ANYWHERE near 69 degrees!!

But they didn't seem to mind. .

only when Cami took off her panties too. .did they really mind. .

when the panties went back on. .

Life was cool!!

They must have played in this ice cold water for 30 minutes or longer. .

"It's not cold" they assured me!! 

Uh huh. .

That's what I thought!! 

As I turned to go back into the house. .I noticed these clouds!!

These clouds coming in are bringing us a 50% chance of rain

or SNOW

later this afternoon or evening!!

I say. . .

REALLY???

Please, mother nature. . .

Just make up your mind. .

We can't take the teasing anymore!!

From Snow to. . .

Spring. . .??

Back to winter. . .Sigh!!

We were sure glad to get a little of this stuff a few weeks ago!!

This particular snow was absolutely beautiful on the pond!!

It wasn't the 12 inches that some of you got..but it was the most that we have recieved here for a while!

It didn't take too many days for it to disappear. .and was promptly replaced by temperatures very near 80!! The pond water was above 50 over the weekend (after 3 days of very warm weather and no freezing at night) and the fish were out and about.  We fed them some rice krispies to be easy on their tummies! It was great to sit out on the rocks and just watch them glide through the water. .it would have been very peaceful too. .had the boys not been able to fire up their go-kart! Oh well!  Can't have everything my way I guess.  Luckily we don't have any close neighbors to annoy!

Last week I sowed seeds for several varieties of peppers and tomatos. .as well as some purple basil and regular sweet basil.  And just for kicks. .I sowed 3 yellow squash seeds.  I thought that I could put them in a big pot in the greenhouse and see how they do in there as we patiently wait for spring. .that from someone who has never grown yellow squash before in her life.  As of last night. .nearly everything was sprouted. .woo hoo! Better scenario than last years oven fiasco for the non-germinating seeds!  I also have some butterfly weed large enough to transpant into their own pots. .but no coneflower or black eyed susan plants. .I think the seed just got too hot this summer in the greenhouse. .I have since moved my seeds into a more temperate climate in my hall closet. I have strayed from my usual beefsteak varieties. .and found myself seeding Brandywine heirloom, chocolate cherry tomatoes, a regular cherry, and one called Mater Sandwich (we love Cars. .and I was tickled at the name). I also started a new variety of paste tomato (they totally make the best salsa!).  The Big Mama variety that I have planted in the past grew huge paste tomatos. .so I hope this one does as well. .the seed catalog didn't offer it anymore. .and I hope this one works out.

Speaking of tomatos. .We have been eating a few tomatos from the greenhouse for a couple weeks.  They have been tasty. .and the vines have stayed very small. .despite the fertilizer and ample sunshine we have had this year.  So now I'm thinkin'. .maybe I can plant smaller pots and double the tomatoes next winter. .hmmm!! I have only gotten to eat on one of them. .the rest disappear off of my counter before I even know it!  My basil cuttings didn't do well, but the chives are finally looking good. .and the geranium has been blooming a lovely pink.  Jeremy let the outdoor wood stove burn out before he left last weekend for his motor head weekend. .and didn't turn it on until Monday morning.  In the meantime. .the outdoor temperature Sunday night got down to 18.  I was pretty worried about how I would find things inside. .and was annoyed that I hadn't thought about having him turn it back on (we knew it was going to be much colder). But the plants seemed to weather it fine. .my thermometer is in need of a new battery. .so really no idea how cold it got inside. .but apparently not to freezing.Which is great to know!

It has been great to be able to kick around in the gardens for a few days. .and to soak up some vitamin D.  I think that I will surely be able to hang on till spring now!!

The days are getting longer. .enjoy them!!

Saturday Nite Worship Jam

Psalm 63:3-4 "Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name."

And that's just what we did!

The 3rd Annual Rock and Worship Road Show came through Dodge City last weekend.  We took a caravan of 4 large vehicles to the new arena to watch.  The older boys and I had been to one a couple years ago. .and this one was just as great!!

Since we met another vehicle of people from our group in Dodge. .we had over 30 kids and parents sitting in our section.  We were so thankful to be able to sit together. .right after being thankful that we got in.  Because it was $10 at the door seating. .it was first come, first serve.  The new arena, which holds 3500 people was near capacity! We had seats on the floor. .and the viewing was much better than that of the coliseum a few years ago.  

Devin was pretty impressed with his first loud rock concert!! And he couldn't believe that we were watching people that we hear on the radio!

There was a lot of great worship music. .and lots of hands in the air praising God! 

There was some visiting of friends!! One cool thing about going to a concert in a smallish town in western Kansas was that we knew lots of other people there too. .and kept bumping into ones that we knew. The boys found lots of friends from sports and various camps they have been to. . and watched from the door part of the time so they could catch up with old friends. 

There was lots of standing up, dancing, hip swinging, clapping, and singin'! Many of the groups had their lyrics on the big screens so people could sing along! 

Psalm 47:1 "Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with loud songs of joy."

Psalm 149:3 "Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre."

                                     

They don't use lighters anymore. .Now they use ipods and cell phones to wave in the air.  This picture was taken as the Afters sang Light up the Sky.  Awesome music!! 

I had a blast trying out my new camera in the dark setting.  Many other people were using their phones to catch pictures.  Actually, Devin took the photo above, which I loved when I viewed it from my computer. 

The kids had a great time.  But my boys didn't care for the really heavy rock band. .or the loud aspect of the concert.  Devin did really well until about 9:30. .and then he began to fade. .F.A.S.T!!  Finally, by 10:20 he was BEGGING to leave. ."Please. .mom. .even if they AREN'T done. .can't we just go anyway!" Of course, the final band was Mercy Me. .my favorite. .and I made him suffer it out! 

Besides. .he needed to get GOOD use out of this blinking mouth piece that he HAD to have. .good thing he brought his own wallet!! He couldn't wait to wear his new Mercy Me t-shirt to school today!

The rest of the weekend was so beautiful and warm!! We engaged in a lot of outdoor activities. .and Jeremy and I even went for a spin in his old model A.  I found lots of signs of life coming up from the ground. .and the water was warm enough to feed the fish a bit on Saturday.  They looked hungry.  It's cooler again this week. .back to February!! But the seedlings coming up in my basement are fun reminders that spring will soon be here.  Have a great week!

Psalm 81:1 "Sing aloud to God our strength; shout for joy to the God of Jacob."

The Final Talk

So, it has been a crazy week here that is nearly over now. Yesterday I spent the day in Wichita shopping for the ingredients to build our bathroom remodel. .scheduled to take place sometime next week.  There is so much thought that goes into planning something like that. .especially when you don't have your own designer!! Thankfully, our carpenter happened to be in Wichita yesterday too, and met me to help get everything together. .what a blessing!!

Tonight, we are headed to the Rock and Worship Road Show. .featuring Mercy Me, Thousand Foot Krutch, Matt Maher, The Afters, and Jars of Clay. For $10 at the door in Dodge City. Can't Wait!! If you were reading my blog right after I started writing 2 years ago, we attended their Wichita show during the first annual tour that they put on. Mercy Me and the Afters performed that year as well, along with several other bands.  They rocked the house!! And I'm not sure you can beat Mercy Me (who sings I can only imagine).  It should be a great time!! And Dev is excited to attend his first concert!

Hope to have some pictures to show later. .but true to my promise. .I have posted our final talk from the week.  Grant is trying out the electricy project this year.  For Christmas he got a small project kit designed to teach different electricity concepts.  He is enjoying it so far. .and that's what we used to base his talk on.  Now, you may recall that I actually write the talks and then the boys practice and perform them.  I know NOTHING about electricity. .and I don't particularly care to know anything about electricity!! So much of the information came from his guide book! Grant had his talk nearly memorized on Monday. .but read much of it in front of the judge. .which was disappointing to me. .but I settled myself by being glad that he got up to perform without alot of complaining or nervousness!! He also got a blue ribbon on his talk!

Wishing everyone a great weekend!!

Have any of you ever wondered how something electric works? Like the light in your own bedrooms? Today I’m going to tell you a little bit about my electricity project. Hi my name is Grant Dunn. This is my 6th year in 4-H and my first year in electricity.

Electricity wasn’t invented by humans. It is something that has been around since the beginning of time. Some of the first known observations of electricity include the Egyptians finding a species of fish that was electrically charged and could shock people. Can you imagine how “shocked” they were over that?? (Grant thought this was the corny-est line EVER. .but he did elicit some laughs from the crowd-much to his annoyance!) Lightening is another phenomenon that has been observed for thousands of years. But it wasn’t until about the year 1600 that anyone actually recorded their studies about electricity. About 150 years later, someone you’ve all heard about by the name of Benjamin Franklin tried to demonstrate the electrical properties in lightening by flying a wet kite in a thunderstorm. I wouldn’t try that at home if I were you!!

Electricity is a natural force that is all around us. .all the time. Perhaps the easiest experiment to learn about “static” electricity is one you all have probably already tried yourselves. You’ll use a balloon that has been aired up. Rub it on your head at least 20 times. .now place it against the wall. .The electrical charge built by the friction of your head is what holds the balloon to the wall. Cool, huh??

There are a lot of things to learn and know about electricity for it to make sense. For Christmas I got this essential electronics kit because of my interest in the subject. One of the first things that I have studied and experimented with are circuits.

An electric circuit is a sequence of electrical components in a closed loop through which electrical current flows. By using circuit diagrams like these (show book), I can hook the components together to make a light bulb glow. Watch and see. I will show you a simple series circuit. This type is the most basic. .the electric current flows around a single path. .First I will take a 9V battery and hook it to these two cords. Then I will hook the resistor up, then the capasitor, then the led light, and it will glow up.

Pretty cool right?? A second type of circuit is the parallel circuit. .Components are connected in parallel (show them with your hands what parallel looks like) then the same voltage is applied to each component at the same time. Watch as I light up two bulbs with this parallel circuit.

So, I hope that the next time you turn on the light in your room, you might stop to think a minute about what an awesome phenomenon electricity REALLY is. .are there any questions?

Instant Oatmeal Rocks

This year Tristan did a talk about making your own instant oatmeal packets.  It was a good lesson in economics for him. .and it put the rest of us on an oatmeal kick!! He is getting more comfortable talking in front of crowds. .and that is an enjoyable thing for me to watch!! One of his first demonstrations was on making a bluebird house.  He practiced and practiced making them, and we just unscrewed the boards each time and let him put it back together as he did the talking.  The night of his demonstration in front of the club, he was so nervous that he had the screws coming out of the side walls so you could see where they entered and where they exited!! Jeremy stayed home with Devin, who was just a toddler.  He took one look at the birdhouse and said. ."what the hell happened to THAT??" We still laugh about it.  He's come a long way. .and I am hoping that he might take an interest in the forensics group next year in high school.  By the way. .his little oatmeal packet came in handy this morning as I flew out of the house to work!! This might be something you moms out there might want to try!!  He got an alternate blue on the talk in the senior division. .and he had a good critique by the judge.  Following his picture is the narrative demonstration that he used as a guide!! Hoping that everyone is enjoying the beautiful spring-like weather that we are having here in Kansas this week!

Today’s shopper is challenged to buy the best deals for their families. When it comes to groceries I have found a way to help buy more for less.

Hi my name is Tristan . .this is my 6th year in 4-H and my 6th year in the foods project. Cooking from scratch doesn’t have to be inconvenient and it can also prove to be very economical. .as I want to demonstrate to you today while I show you how to make your own instant oatmeal packets.
A box of brand name instant oatmeal packets like this one (Quaker) can cost around $3. .a little more some places, and a little less if you buy it on sale or purchase a generic brand. That makes each packet around 30 cents. By purchasing a large oatmeal container like this. .42 oz for approximately $3.98. .which will make roughly 42 packets of instant oatmeal will cost 9 cents a packet, costing 2/3 less than the prefixed oatmeal. And who wouldn’t love to pay only 1/3 of the price?? That’s a big bang for your buck!
It’s easier than you might think! Let’s go! Start with 3 cups of quick cooking oats. Place 1 cup of oats into a blender or food processor in small batches to blend the oats into a powder. I have already done this at home to save time. The purpose of using oat powder is to thicken up the finished oatmeal in your packet, so it isn’t too watery.  Take 8 small ziplock bags and into each bag put ¼ cup quick oats. Add 2 Tbsp oat powder and a small pinch of salt. Now, since I’m not a plain oatmeal fan. . this is where you can really get creative and make fancy flavored oatmeal packs. Of course, when you start adding ingredients to your basic packets. .the finished cost will also be more, but since you won’t add preservatives, can adjust the amount of sugar, and can add more fruits to your packets than what comes in the instant packets. .they will certainly be healthier than the pre-made packets.

You can experiment with all kinds of different add-ins, but I will share my favorites with you today to get you started. Because most of us don’t eat enough fruits and veggies, adding them to your breakfast is an easy way to increase the number of servings you eat. I like dried blueberries. .so I add 2 Tbsp of them to one packet of oatmeal and to make it creamier, I also add 1 Tbsp non dairy flavored coffee creamer. .and that comes in tons of flavors. .so you see what I mean about getting creative!! I also like an apple combination. .so I add 1 Tbsp brown sugar, ¼ tsp (or so) of cinnamon, and 2 Tbsp chopped dried apples. After it’s cooked I swirl in a heaping spoonful of peanut butter and stir till its melted. Delish!!
When you are ready to eat your oatmeal packets, just add ¾ cup boiling water and let stand for a couple minutes. .like while you brush your teeth!! When you come back it’s ready to eat. Now that didn’t take long at all did it!! By the way. .if you like to go green for the environment. .just toss the empty baggies into a drawer and use them again the next time you make oatmeal packets.
So, I hope you were listening. Maybe if you can help your mom save a few bucks in her grocery bill. .she’ll donate the extra savings to your allowance fund!! It’s worth a try. Are there any questions??

Proud Mama!!

After 6 years of working with my kids in 4-H, I have searched for a lot of different things on the internet related to 4-H. .from project ideas to service ideas to public speaking ideas.  In the way of public speaking, I have found very little!! I want my blog to be helpful to people (in addition to keeping my far away family informed of our crazy lives).  So I decided to do some posts this week highlighting the kids' 4-H talks that they have prepared.  I usually write the talks and then the boys practice and perform them. .though Tristan is coming to a point where he will start doing both.  My littlest man has been a great trooper and so I decided to post his talk first.  Tonight we had our 4-H day. .where the kids perform talks, demonstrations, singing, instrumentals, or readings. Devin LOVES to be up in front of people (Yeeeees!!) and was excited to do his demonstration on spooky spider snacks.  He gave it last night at our 4-H meeting and read the whole demonstration (when he actually had most of it memorized). So I told him that I planned to turn his paper over so he couldn't read it since he already knew it (mostly to see what he would do).  He replied "OK". .so we did just that. He had the paper on his work tray but it was turned over. .and you know. .he did just fine without. .maybe better than any other 8 year olds I know (and maybe I am just biased!!). But. . .he beat his brother Grant and got the 3rd highest blue ribbon in the junior divsion. And we are pretty proud!!  The other boys did well too. .but their stories will be for a different day this week. .when I can manage to get them on here.  Hoping that anyone needing ideas for kid speeches or talks will feel free to use our format and do your own thing with it!!

To those of you that could care less and are signing off now. .just letting you know that Jeremy started my shadow box using the old glass kitchen cabinet door from my great grandparents homestead that we picked through over Thanksgiving. .I hope to show photos soon of how it turns out. .and the cool antiques that I get to showcase in it!! I also received word last week that my bathroom remodel will be a go NEXT week!! EEEEEK!! So after I cleaned yesterday. .I took the "before" photos. .and I can't wait to see the "after" photos!! Not to mention that I have seeds started under the grow lights. .and we are eating tomatos from the greenhouse. .So TONS going on here. .would love to blog about it all. .but simply not enough time!! Stay tuned!! But for now. .hope you enjoy Dev's short little demonstration on spooky spider snacks!

            

I sure work up a big appetite when I spend all day in school. If you do too, you’ll enjoy this quick and easy snack that you can make yourself when you get home from school.

Hi, my name is Devin . .this is my 2nd year in 4-H and my 2nd year in the food project. I’m pretty good at fixing my own afterschool snacks and I wanted to teach you how to make these spooky spider treats.

First you need round butter crackers. .two crackers for each treat you make. Next you need peanut butter, chow mein noodles, and raisins, dried cranberries, or mini chocolate chips to make into eyes.  Spread one cracker with as much peanut butter as you like. Peanut butter is high in protein. .this helps our muscles to grow. .it also contains healthy vegetable fats which helps keep you full until supper time. Next you put 8 chow mein noodles on the peanut butter for legs. .4 on each side. Chow mein noodles are little fried noodles used in Chinese cooking. They belong to the grain group. You should eat about 6 ounces from the grain group each day. These make the perfect squiggly legs, don’t you think?  Place the second cracker on the top. .pressing down lightly to make them stick together—Be careful here. .you don’t want to break your cracker—so make sure you use enough peanut butter to help them stick.  I’m using these dried cranberries for eyes because I think the creepy red color looks cooler!! Put a little bit of peanut butter on the cranberry. . .like this. .and stick it to the top cracker. Repeat with another cranberry to make the eyes.

There you have it, a spooky spider snack. These are great, nutritious snacks. .but they are even better when you make them for treats around Halloween time. .and they make good party snacks. So ask your mom to buy the ingredients if they aren’t already in your kitchen. .She will be impressed that you know how to make your own healthy snack! Are there any questions? If not, that concludes my demonstration. Thank you.

Thanks for stopping by today!! Have a great week!

A Little Valentine Poem

In honor of the Valentine holiday today. .

I wanted to share the very quirky. .

very truthful

Valentine card that I recieved last year from my dear hubby!!

AWWWW. .

Happy Valentine's Day to all!!

Valentine Chocolates

My life seems to be one double batch after the next.

But as I fixed a double batch of these treats a couple weeks ago for the youth group crew, I thought that it would be a fun recipe to share. I used to LOVE the homemade peanut butter cups that my school made when I was growing up!! It had been so long. .I'd even forgotten that they made them. .until my little 4-H cookers fixed them last month. .and I got a good bite out of one. .It took me RIGHT back to the school cafeteria. .have you ever done that?? We've fixed them 3 times since we tried it out last month. No one has disliked them so far!

Devin and I made them again today to share with their Valentines at school and daycare!!

We started by pulverizing some graham crackers in my food processor. .a blender would work just as well. .and probably so would a hammer and a ziplock bag (see. .anybody can make these :-)

The food processor makes short work of cruching those babies down!

The recipe calls for real butter, and I haven't been brave enough to substitute anything else yet. By the way. .these pictures show my double batch from a few weeks ago. .so don't freak if you don't have a bowl that big.

It mixes up into a nice peanut buttery-ball!

We used these mini muffin papers for our Valentine candy.  It takes about a slightly rounded teaspoon-full of dough in the cups.  If you're not into individual servings. .use a 9 X 13 pan.

We also like dark chocolate. .so we mixed regular chips with dark chips.  MMMM.

Spoon a little melted chocolate over the dough.  You could spread it around to cover the whole ball. .we just left our glaze like that. .Lazy Rustic, I call it!

Or spread it over the pans, if you used those.  I put waxed paper down at the bottom of mine. .but I'm not sure that you would need to!!

I know a lot of little Valentine kids that are going to love these!!

No Bake Peanut Butter Candy

1 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs (slightly more than 1 sleeve of crackers)

1 lb (3 1/2 C) powdered sugar

1 1/2 C creamy peanut butter

1 C (2 sticks) real butter, melted

1 12oz bag chocolate chips (milk, semi-sweet, or dark, you pick!)

2 tsp peanut butter

In a large mixing bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and peanut butter and butter and beat until combined. Press into a parchment (or waxed paper or foil) lined 9x13 pan. Place chocolate chips and 2 tsp peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals, stirring after each one, until melted and smooth. Pour chocolate over peanut butter mixture and spread out evenly. Place pan in the fridge just until chocolate is set and then cut into bars. Tip: If the bars chill until the chocolate is too hard to easily cut, use a sharp knife and score the cuts first, then gently cut through. Can be stored in the fridge or at room temp. They will stay firmer if stored in the fridge.

In addition to making candy and practicing 4-H talks, we started

another little project that I will be sharing soon!!
And another exciting BIG project coming our way soon too!!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

Backwoods

What we do on snowdays. . . 

Yes sir. . .

 

She's

ALL

Mine!!!

Happy Thursday!

Is Metal a Color?

We're glad to all be upright so far this week.  Sunday night Jeremy helped D work on his Valentine box for school.  Dev and I had all kinds of ideas last week about how to fix it. .but they changed them all and went for flashy silver motorhead (AKA aluminum foil) on a plain old box.

He cut out lots of little hearts from some of my scrapbooking paper and stuck them on to

the shiny, "metal" box!

The box kept him busy for an hour or so. .and he throroughly enjoyed himself.  I think the affinity little kids have for doing craft projects is so sweet. .This was the coolest lookin' box you've ever seen in your life, according to D!!

If they only would have asked. . I would have shown them where the glue was,

instead of the tape. .Oh yeah, I did show them where the glue was. .

My advice was disregarded!

He's hoping that lots of valentines will go through that hole. .and the candy that will go with the Valentines!! Dev, Cami, and I will start working on their Valentines soon. .maybe tomorrow if school gets called and I can't make it in to work either. D has been working very hard on practicing his 4-H talk to give next week at both the meeting and in front of a judge.  He's more excited about his than the other two boys are about theirs! Finally we are getting some snow!! Just in time to cancel BB games/pep band and our church soup supper tomorrow night.  We're just thankful for the moisture!

The chef in training and I are

praying everyone stays safe and warm!!

Survival of the Fittest?

From the depths of my heart. .I'm not sure if the term TGIF (Thank God it's Friday) has ever been such a serious, heartfelt statement in my life as it has been this week.  From emotional friendship issues to spiritual heartaches, heartbreaks, and prayer warrior issues to physical well-being. . .or not so well being. .issues.  From family to weather to extra-curriculars. . .the week has been full of anything and everything.  I have learned alot. . .about myself. . .my friends. . .human nature. . .mother nature. . .and my family.  It's not all been good. .but it has all been purposeful, thought provoking, and character building.  It has not been an easy week. .but one week of the most persistent challenges from all angles that I can easily remember. Now, no one went to prison. .no one received a terminal health diagnosis. .and growth and recovery will take place. I preface you with my vague recount of the week to remind everyone (and myself above all) of my favorite verse in Lamentations 3:23. . .Great is thy faithfulness, His mercies begin afresh each day!!  And they are! Praise God!!

So, after a 3 day siesta from the real world this week, while confined to my bed during the coldest cold snap I can record in my mind. .I celebrated my walk among the living by spending part of the day at work (making up work :-) and the remainder of the day serving the children I live with and teach!  Seriously, I was totally glad to be feeling well enough to have our bigger kid cooking session yesterday afternoon.  That age group is so hard to get together because of all their extra curricular activities. .but I accumulated 6 junior high kids and I wanted to share some footage and a very yummy recipe that we tried out!!

As it worked out. .3 were in 8th grade and 3 were in 7th. .so we split their groups that way instead of boys and girls (they also tend to get more done that way :-)   

I'm known to some degree as the "queen of wing." Meaning, even though I am a pretty organizational fellow, (and I prefer to be organized) I can also wing it on whim and generally escape unscathed!  Just always been lucky that way!! We tried 2 new-to-me recipes. .and I think all voted them to be hits!! 

The first was a recipe called Stuffed Pizza Rolls which can be found at Our Best Bites. We just stuffed squares of pizza dough with our favorite toppin's sealed them in and baked 'em up. .just like that! Those 6 kids (plus Dev. .oh and a couple for myself. .and 1 for Jake's dad) gobbled up 4 dozen of those little yummies in the blink of an eye! We dipped them in pizza sauce, and swallowed them down!

A great idea for your super bowl appetizers if you still need one!

The next recipe we tried was one I have been waiting a year to make.  I found it on Pioneer Woman last winter, and intended to have the kids make it then. . not sure what happened. .probably life! 

But we made good on it yesterday. .and I wasn't disappointed!

For our Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles (really. .could YOU resist a recipe with THAT name??) we whipped up a batch of eggless cookie dough, chilled it,   

rolled it, and chilled 'em again. .and then drenched them in chocolate. 

And who wouldn't love to take those home to their mamas (um the chocolates. .not the kids) !! By the way. .junior high kids are just odd. .mine, perhaps a little more odd than the rest. .but overall an odd bunch just the same :-)

Hope you all enjoy fixing these for your own crews soon!

And, by the way. .don't worry about me. .I AM faring well. .and Life will soon return to normalcy. God blessed me with great big and wide shoulders and a heart of compassion. .and he is paving our way!

God Bless. .and enjoy the big game tomorrow!!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup milk

1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

14 oz dark chocolate candy coating

Beat butter and sugars and in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt and mix on low speed (or by hand) until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover and chill dough for 1 hour.

When dough is firm enough to handle (it may help to lightly flour your hands), form dough into 1" balls and arrange on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Place sheets in freezer and let chill for 30 minutes.

Melt chocolate candy coating in a double boiler or in microwave according to package directions. Using forks or a dipping tool, dip cookie balls into candy coating to cover. Tap fork on side of pan to remove any excess coating, and return to waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Chill until set. Store, chilled, in an airtight container for up to 1 week