Date Cookies

This maamoul recipe makes the best cookies. I have to admit that I did mess up my first batch, but it was by no way the fault of the recipe. My husband bought self rising flour and I didn't notice. The cookie was a bit salty and I was at a loss as to how it could of happened. Three days latter when I went to make banana bread I realized the mistake. 

Time for Raspberry Leaf Tea

I want to say it's that time of the year again, but this doesn't happen every year. I am pregnant! Child number three should come May first according to doctors. I am already fussing about my doctor visits and venting my frustrations about how far apart my appointments are and the quality of my care. I can't help it I have never been happy with my doctors. I always leave the office feeling frustrated and rushed. Anyway, due to my condition I am once again off of caffeine and back to herbal tea.

 I am well aware of the caffeine vs no caffeine debate, but honestly I know my body the best. After drinking a coffee, tea, or cola I feel I have just stressed my system. Make no mistake I love black tea and coffee in all forms, but it just doesn't work for my body now. I am already thinking of my post baby coffee It's iced with cream and sugar, maybe a bit of caramel.

Back to reality. 

I shared my big news with my mother by asking for some tea. She didn't understand at first, but once I mentioned raspberry she understood. The benefits of raspberry leaf are many including strengthening the womb,so it serves my purpose exactly. Herbal tea can be great for you but really nasty in flavor. I once ordered a pregnancy tea that smelled so bad I could't even brew it. The one herb that I don't have an issue with is raspberry leaf. My mom would steep raspberry leaf and nettle  overnight for the following day for her own health reasons. I couldn't deal with the nettle, but the raspberry was drinkable in large amounts.,especially if you make some hibiscus tea and mix the two with lots of sweetener. 

I love the personal touches each Etsy seller adds to orders. I am really looking forward to a surprise tea blend that smells just wonderful. It is fruity, sweet smelling and even made my mouth water.Thanks mom.

Five Minutes

Mothers day was almost a month ago and I am just now posting the blog draft I had started. I really don't know what happened to my time, I think it had something to do with sick kids and then who knows. My husband totally surprised me on my big day with flowers. Normally he would ignore the day like all other holidays, but I was having a particularly difficult time dealing with the children and to top it off I was crying over a kids book that arrived in a surprise parcel from my mom. She sent a card/ note, a refrigerator magnet, some stickers for the boys, and one of my favorite books from childhood.

I loved the illustrations as a child and still find them delightful , but the story got to me in a way that I hadn't expected. Mrs. Large (elephant mama) is wanting a bit of time for herself so she attempts a bath, but her kids follow her and destroy everything. It is funny and horrifically true. I was crying at the end. It was so damn cute like my kids, but just awful. Seriously, I used to have time to take baths, read books, work on projects, eat a warm breakfast, and finish a cup of tea while it was still hot. That was in the past. I deal with all this and more because my boys are worth it, but it seems a bit insane at times.     

Oatmeal

Still waiting for my new Camera charger.

Son number one is a picky eater. He chews his food then sprays bits in all directions. Supposedly this is a stage some children experience. I have done everything I can think of to nip this problem, but it continues. I have taken precautions to limit the amount of mess made, but honestly I am ready to stick him and his highchair out the back door. 

 This morning he ate yogurt with no problem then half a hot dog ( No bun) with minimal issue along with milk from his milk only red bottle . I know hot dog for breakfast isn't ideal, but what can I do? We did eggs in every form only to have them smashed, spit and stopped on, other breakfast food like pancakes and cereal are even less of a win. 

The day was a cloudy dark and my mood matched. After all the crazy fun of morning feeding I needed a pick me up. What better than baking a fresh batch of Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I had to turn the afternoon around. Since I had no current recipe for Oatmeal cookies I went to Martha for guidance. Sorry mom....

cookie link

Almost French Toast

This morning a strange urge for french toast struck me. The idea of bread soaked in egg then fried and smothered in syrup seemed palatable, but then I remembered the smell and the fantasy was all over. The smell of the egg cooking  ruins it for me, not to mention  the texture of the finished product that grosses me out. Instead I remembered a recipe for french toast muffins that was all about the oven and no toast or egg soak involved . I don't know why it is called  french toast muffin , I guess it sounds better than sugar muffin for breakfast. The recipe came from  a pin I saved off of Pinterest, to go to the direct blog page for the recipe check the link
  http://velvetlava.blogspot.com/2009/02/i-am-now-in-muffin-loop.html .



















 The muffins came out great, but the topping was a bit unfinished, next time around, I am going to try filling the cups less and do a classic crumb  coffee cake topping. I did the topping this time as directed, but  used half brown sugar and half white, then put the muffins under the broiler for a minute or two. The butter and sugar bubbled to make a bit of a crust . Actually I didn't follow directions perfectly, but well enough.

Recently I have been feeling some of my long lost of energy returning. This oddly coincided with the first birthday of my youngest. He is more active than ever and quite the handful or should I say arm full ( he weighs in at 26 pounds and 30 inches)  never the less I feel rejuvenated. For better or worse my two boys keep each other occupied giving me windows of opportunity, but I also feel it's something else. A weight has been lifted form me, it could be that winter is winding down and Spring has arrived, but I feel it is more than seasonal. I have started a new personal project that takes a lot of consideration and Me Time.

My one year old (left) and his older brother of two and a half (right)

 I have been artistically uninspired  I mean this in the most severe way. I would sit with the intention of creating a masterpiece and end up with doodles and eraser marks. Epic Fail. My husband tried to be supportive and inspire me with a book project that was based around action adventure stories. I was interested but lost my zeal for the project rather quickly. It was a great idea, but not self centered enough to bring me out of my slump. I realized I have to find a center inside my self to be able to produce art that mean something to me personally, then to the viewer.
 My relationship to my work has been distant at best, and I have failed to make a connection for some time. To resolve this issue I have been picking up books rather than a brush. I am redeveloping my creative process from scratch. It is a slow going process , but I hope I will be passionate again about what I communicate in my work.