Progress

Since my last post I've been doing the January thing... Eating more green vegetables in my dinners (then, against my better judgement, following it  up with Twizzlers AKA poison, and waking up feeling terrible). Cleaning out my closet (triumphant without caveat). Going back to the Power Center where I have found that my fears of working out with 18 year old Division I scholarship athletes has been replaced with the even grimmer reality of working out with 13 year old boys. A horrifying situation for sure, but when I get past my urge to run out the door, I find it's actually an opportunity to put my middle school gym class feelings of inadequacy and isolation to rest once and for all -- which is not to say that I don't always finish last in all the exercises, or that I don't feel like screaming out "You know I had a baby 5 months ago!!!" but I'm getting there. Actually I find that my mom tendencies are more predominant -- I want to yell at the kids for being obnoxious, half-assing everything, and not doing all 3 sets of reps. Then I just tell myself, they are kids, and not your kids. Let them learn life's lessons at their own pace, which, after all, is the only pace at which anyone learns anything anyway. 


Yesterday morning I was mentally patting myself on the back for not buying anything in the month of January (sure it was only 12 days but it felt like SO much longer) when I got an email from my boss alerting me to a flash sale of brightly colored pillows on One King's Lane that she felt I just couldn't miss. Damnit! I ended up buying two pillows for our new couch (which still hasn't arrived yet). At checkout, next to the total you're spending, it says "You're saving $X amount!" which triggered all my rage and shame about our American consumer culture and made me feel like a stooge for making the purchase. But I did love the pillows, and we will give them a good home, and I can use them in any of the rooms of my house for a long time so I got over it. (Also in this category: I am looking to get a rug for P's room and have decided only to get a rug she won't grow out of and that we can use in other rooms. I had visions of a baby pink rug on the curb in 8 years.)

At the end of the day I will never be a minimalist.  
Hopefully just a manageablist.

Next. I was cleaning out my desk at work (for maintenance, I'm not going anywhere) and couldn't bring myself to toss this very old doodle. Ridiculous. This morning I decided to scan it and get over myself. I feel better, even if it is only a slip of paper. Does this count as posting a drawing? I have been meaning to draw something for a while now. Sigh.

Admit it: this would be the illest print on a pillow.
Totally worth keeping for 4 years.

Full disclosure, I also bought a bunch of watercolor markers yesterday. I think I must buy art supplies every winter, since all I aspire to do is stay in all weekend and make stuff (which actually happens once a year). Which is probably why I am so creative in all my fantasies about what our lives will be like if we move to Maine. Promise to post something I make with them soon, since that will further justify their purchase. Also I swear I am going to get my office organized, which means all my art supplies will have a beautiful nook to dwell in. More fantasies!!

And coming up: Stolen Goods Bake Shop will be popping up at The Market at Porta for Valentine's Day, on February 11th, noon to 4. We'll be bringing some excellent alternatives to Whitman Samplers that you can impress your valentines with. Thank me later.

Oh! And little P is rolling over, sitting up, and eating solids. Time flies!!!

Happy January.

Stolen Snapshots. Too tired to write!

Now that I've tried Grandma's Crumb Cake, I don't think I can eat any other kind.

Cupcake porn. They sure are pretty.

Getting to know the Booze Cake. Tough, but somebody's got to do it.

Whoopie pies are definitely attracting a following.

Raspberry Pinwheels. Never made them before. As tasty as they are pretty. 

Apple Cranberry Pie Squares vamping it up.

Whoopie Pie Experiments

Today I made whoopie pies for the first time, inspired by my trip to Maine and the delicious Friars' Bake House version.

I perused a lot of variations in my Making Whoopies book... Since they were such a regional treat for so long there are a lot of longstanding family recipes that use different tricks and turns. I will spare you the knowledge of all the stuff that goes into these guys (trust me, you don't want to know why they taste so good), but basically there are two schools of thought: pro marshmallow fluff v. pro egg whites.

Although the Friars don't use fluff, I was reluctant to make the egg white version since I am testing them out for Stolen Goods Bake Shop purposes. All the grandmas in the book say "no one's ever gotten sick!," but why take the chance?

I intended on making mini cakes, but tablespoon dollops of batter spread a bit more than I thought they would. And upon first tasting I thought the filling was a bit more buttery than necessary, and definitely very different than the Friars' version, but when I tried an assembled whoopie pie... They are pretty awesome. I think I'll try another recipe next time I make them, but I have to say, it may be impossible to make a bad whoopie pie.