Birthday Girl
Today is Olive's third birthday! I wanted to fill up a Kong to give her something special to chew on (she normally doesn't get Kong's). I looked and looked for the rubber toy all over and finally found it upstairs under our bed. I brought it downstairs and gave it a squeeze and out came a plume of dust, like stepping on a puff ball mushroom. Spores! Inside was a petrified piece of peanut butter bread molded almost beyond recognition. The last time I filled up the Kong was probably in May. It has been fermenting under my bed for three months! Aaacckkk!!! I tried to dig out the dried lump of bread but it kept smoking out mold dust so I just stuck the toy in a bowl of water to mush it back up. I'll try to clean it out later. The worst part is Olive saw me futzing with the thing now she won't budge from her spot in front of the sink. She is staring at me sitting on the other side of the counter and is huffing and whining. You'll get it later, I promise pups.
So I am on a once a month posting routine that I so foolishly said I would get out of last time I posted. Some things have come up in the last month that I have been working on. I hope to share them with you in the next couple of weeks. Please stay with me!
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Summer, Summer, Summer!
Everything has been blooming so beautifully in the heat. My foxgloves were so amazing this year. If I understand them correctly, they bloom their second year then die. I think they come back from seed. I'm hoping they come back from seed because all of them were blooming this year so I don't know if I'll have any next year. The pretty rose was just purchased. It smells spicy and fruity and starts out as the palest pink then ripens to this peachy-pink hue. it is a climber called 'Pearly Gates' and upon further research I found out it belongs in a zone 6, not 4. I'll try to baby it this winter but it may not be making a repeat appearence next year, either.
So I'll enjoy it all now!
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Going & Going
I have been all over the place lately. Scott and I went to Chicago for our second anniversary on June third. We stayed for two nights which gave us enough time not to rush. We went to the Art Museum, The Field Museum, and the Shedd Aquarium and had so much fun. The weather was nice and our hotel wasn't impossibly far from the attractions so we walked everywhere.
On our last night we ran over to the Sears Tower and 9:30 and got to watch the Navy Pier fireworks from above. Much more exciting than being on the pier. The opnly thing I wish we would have done was get some caramel corn from Garrett's . Next time.
We got back home on Thursday and I still had the rest of the week off. The weather didn't want to cooperate, though. it rained and rained. The flooding has been awful around us. Reedsburg, our hometown, Lake Delton, Baraboo, Spring Green, and many others had so much damage. I hope these next few days remain sunny and water-free so everyone can start cleaning things up.
I've got so many things going or things I want to do that I feel like I'm running down a steep hill and can't keep up. I guess I'll just have to run faster and I promise to be around here more. See you then!
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New Baby
Not mine. She is my Momma's new mut. We went out on Sunday afternoon to see her. The little peanut doesn't quite have a name yet. When we left it was either Panda or Nelly, leaning towards Nelly because it fits so well with naughty. That is what she is- totally naughty and sassy. She was already telling Olive how things were going to be and claiming Mimi's bed as her own. Olive wasn't quite sure how to handle her. She wanted to play with her so bad but when she got even the slightest bit rough the puppy would cry and run to find Momma. Poor Mimi is too old for this puppy stuff. She was always the subordinate dog before the other two (Winnie and Gilbert) died and she has been by herself for about two years. Now this little bruiser is running the show and Mimi is too tired to argue.
She really is adorable and funny like all puppies, but she is going to be a handful!
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Cookie Dough Bars
My cousin Clarissa had made these one year for her little boy's birthday party and they were so good. I made them last week to take to work and they were all gone by the end of night. The recipe is from Taste of Home's Dessert Lovers Cookbook but I'll share it with you because a good bar recipe shouldn't be kept secret.
Cookie Dough Fudge Brownies
Brownie Layer:
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350.
Melt chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Cool slightly. In another bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Stir in melted chocolate. Combine flour and baking soda then add to batter. Stir in walnuts.
Spread the batter into a greased 9x13 inch pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool.
Cookie Dough Layer:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3 tbls milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup chocolate chips
Cream together butter and both sugars. Mix in vanilla and milk. Gradually add in flour then stir in chocolate chips. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto cooled brownie layer then spread evenly. Cut into squares and eat.
These need to be stored in the refrigerator. You might want to explain to your husband that the dough stays soft on the top and does not become a brownie/cookie super duo, so when you offer him a bite of the finished product he doesn't look at it and ask "Are you sure you cooked it long enough? it's still doughy."
Enjoy!
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