{Catching Up} Playing with the Neighbors

We had one last, big hurrah with our awesome neighbors before the end-of-semester grind hit us hard. Ty and I found big blocks of white and milk chocolate at the grocery store for a pittance, so we scooped some up to play with.

The result was an extremely enjoyable Sunday evening.

(I love how Stephen's other hand is in his pocket. "It's so easy I only need one hand to make magic happen!")

I only have a few pictures of the fun because I was busy melting chocolate. Holly has more. Send me some, Holly? :)

We wrapped them up and distributed them to our visiting teach-ees and home teach-ees. A fun and easy treat to make and even more fun to eat.

Recipes from Bakerella:

Oreo Truffles - http://bakerella.blogspot.com/2008/01/grocery-item-turns-gourmet.html

Nutter Butter Balls - http://bakerella.blogspot.com/2008/01/grocery-item-goes-gourmet-part-2.html

Oreo Truffles

1 package oreo cookies (divided… use cookie including the cream center)
1 8oz. package cream cheese (softened)
white chocolate bark

1. Finely crush 7 cookies in a food processor or place them in a ziploc bag and crush into a fine consistency. Reserve for later.
2. Crush remaining cookies and stir in softened cream cheese. Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together.
3. Roll the mixture into 1" balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet.
4. Melt chocolate as directed on the package and then dip balls into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry. You can sprinkle the tops with the 7 crushed cookies for decoration.
5. Once dry, refrigerate and enjoy!

Makes about 36 truffles.

Nutter Butter Balls
1 pkg. Nutter Butter cookies (broken… use cookie with the cream center)
1 8oz. package cream cheese (softened)
chocolate bark

1. Finely crush all but 5 cookies in a food processor or place them in a ziploc bag and crush into a fine consistency.
2. Combine with cream cheese. Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together.
3. Roll the mixture into 1" balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet.
4. Melt chocolate as directed on the package and then dip balls into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry.
5. Once dry, refrigerate and enjoy!

Makes about 30 balls.

{Photo from Bakerella}

{Catching Up} Sissy's Having a Baby!

Holly is due with her first baby any day now! Maybe even any moment. It's been a rough pregnancy, health-wise. But if you know Holly, the only clue you had to how awful she was really feeling was the fact she couldn't get off the couch. She smiled throughout the weeks of incapacitating illness and her regular answer to "how are you feeling?" was usually "like a peach". (Yeah...I still don't know that that means).

Since incapacitating illness means no blogging for Holly over the last several months, I thought it would be nice to pull together a few photos to illustrate her journey to mama-hood. (I know she's been working on a similar post...but she's about to have a newborn so I don't think it'll be coming any time soon. But I hope you still do it, Sissy!)

Holly's 5 week photo, mid October. This is the day Holly told me she was pregnant! I wasn't allowed to tell anyone yet....not even Ty. Holly only told me this early because we saw each other nearly every day....I would have figured it out pretty quick.

Holly & Stephen came up with a darling way to tell their parents of their growing bundle of joy. They created a "Christmas List" that listed vague baby-related items to outright baby gear and at the very bottom they made a flap. The outside had a picture of a snow-woman and when you opened the flap, it showed the same snow-woman holding a snow-baby.

Very clever.

Unfortunately, the pictures taper off dramatically after this time. I had planned on taking a weekly photo to document the cute swelling tummy (since I was living vicariously through Little Sister-thanks, Little Sister), but it didn't quite happen. I do have several pictures of the intervening weeks from October to Christmas, but most of them look like this:

Poor sick Little Sister. I'm sorry, Sister.

But right about Christmas time, hallelujah! Sister started feeling miraculously better and there was MUCH rejoicing in the land.

Hi, cute Sister.

The night before the 20 week ultrasound, I borrowed a fun idea from Cathi, and baked a half blue, half pink cake to test out an old wives' tale.

I had loftier goals for a delicious, from-scratch cake, but school work often dashes the best intentions. So, about 8pm or so, I threw a box cake mix together, separated it into 2 bowls, mixed in some food coloring, and then Ty and I poured the two colors at the same time to achieve the desired effect.


Could this be the first clue? It looks like the pink is seriously dominating the blue. Hmmm...

And yet, looks can be deceiving... (Please ignore the hastily applied frosting, K, thanks).

According to those old wives', Daddy-to-be spins the cake, Mommy-to-be chooses where to slice. The color of the slice indicates boy or girl. Simple enough, right?

Even though we had discussed the procedure before, at the critical moment I called out the wrong instructions. Holly knew her part, despite my unintentional blooper, and did not cut the cake. Stephen, recognizing the mistake, spun the cake again and when Holly sliced into that gender-deciding cake, we got a definitive answer.

BOY!

This is the day Holly found out she had her own personal papparazzo. I took as many pictures as I could as often as I could. Muwahahahaha.

Stephen informed us he was making the "arrow".

Cake or no cake, we still felt this baby was a girl. We decided that the first spin would surely have resulted in a pink slice, and the second spin must be predicting their second born...a boy! So Cathi, don't use this example. We messed it up. But if they DO have a boy next, we'll breathe a sigh of relief that the Cake is indeed always right.

And the ultrasound said......it is indeed a girl! Yay!!!

February 22nd

March 4th



Obedient Holly not lifting, but dragging 20 lbs of potatoes across the kitchen floor to the pantry - while I took pictures. :)



March 8th

That baby really popped out!

So here I am, only a few days before the official due date, waiting ever so impatiently for the call announcing Baby's birth! I am so sad I can't be there (we're working out of state this summer and my job does not allow me the leeway to jet off to Utah). It has been delightful being with Holly during this first pregnancy and I am so very excited to hold my new niece at the end of the summer!

And this particular baby girl could not come to more deserving parents. She will be loved and guided by two of the best people of my acquaintance. They will be wonderful parents and I look forward to watching this little girl grow up as sweet as her mom and as self-less as her dad. Good luck, Sissy and Brother! I love you. A lot.

Come out, Baby! We can't wait to see you!

May 31st