Forever Fourteen

Why is it that I feel like I'm stuck with the same set of insecurities I faced as a young teenager?

• Who are my friends?
• Does this new person like me?
• Will they be my friend?
• Why doesn't anyone want to hang out with me?
• What's up with my hair?!

There's this group of moms at Caitlin's school that I've seen and waved to since kindergarten, but since I'm always worn out with the twins, I've never had time/taken the time to get to know them. This year, since the twins are a lot more interested in hanging out after school and playing in the sandbox, I've taken the time.

You know, hang out and chat. And I think...I think...they might even like me! Today I even went on a walk with one, after drop off. It went well! The twins got to go on an hour long walk/ride and I got to talk to an actual adult during school hours.

Imagine that!

So what I want to know is this: is it really this hard to make new friends and click with people? Gah! Has nothing really changed inside since I was 14? I'm still worried about making and keeping friends. I still freak out (quietly) when they don't call me for weeks on end. I still wonder what I've done or said or should've done or said that would have kept someone my friend longer. I keep wondering if I'm ever going to get over this feeling that I just don't fit in.

Besides, how do I explain all of this to Caitlin? Do I really tell her it never really gets better? That she's going to spend the next 32 years wondering if they're talking about her once she leaves the room? Ack!

Is it just me? Do you ever stop feeling like the kid on the other side of the fence?

humpf. I bet your grass is greener, too.

They Turned Two!

Blowing out a pair of tea candles.*

They made it through another 365 days, believe it or not. And what do I have to show for it? Not very many pictures at all. Fortunately for me, Misty stepped in to do some shooting, because I was so busy messing with the cake that I didn't take any until the party was ending. Of course, to make matters worse, I didn't take the time to empty my card, so there are even fewer photos than there might have been. Sorry Misty!

It's been a tough year, alrighty.

Anyway, yeah. The twins! Are two! Holy moly!

Emma wants to know what the big deal is.

I just wanted a clean house and a cake. I got a mostly clean house and a chocolate cake. The twins got to eat cake with Grammy and Grampy in the backyard, who didn't realize that the twins would eat the entire piece I put in the bowl and had to come back for more. I was gonna say something, but they moved so fast out of the kitchen and the massive pile up around the cake that I never had a chance.

Small surprise that those two can say "Cake" really clearly, isn't it?

I realized, later, that I was so busy cleaning right up until the first knock on the door that I never changed my own clothing into something nicer or their clothing into something more festive. Dang it! So. Hmm. Scruffy.

Year Two is all about The Scruff.

Logan showing off his chocolate face.

The company was good, though. Even though I keep trying to keep the parties small, once you get past immediate blood family, you have close friends that you always have to invite and then suddenly it's a party of 8 adults and 9 children. Eek! That's my version of small, alright.

Otter was there and cute as a button, although still terrifying to Logan. Again. (Photo by Misty!)

Everyone brought snacks to share and there was general hanging around, snacking, singing, cake and ice cream. By request there was only one present to open (Because this house is Full. No Vacancy to new toys.), which the twins descended upon once everyone said goodbye and we were entering the Calm after the Birthday Party Storm. Turns out that Grammy and Grampy need not have bothered with anything other than tissue paper.

The real thrill of birthdays: wrapping paper.

Oh and they liked the little cars, too, once the tissue paper went away.

Over all, it was a good day with little explosions of melodrama as these days usually are, but that just seems to be how we roll.

Happy birthday to my monkeys! Onto the Terrible Twos Times Two! Yeee-haaaaa!


* I've got a pile of number candles. Where are the 2s? Why can't I find any regular candles? Did someone eat them or something? Had to make do with tea candles. The twins didn't care since they didn't blow out their own candles this year anyway. Maybe next year.

Jam On!

Wonder Canning Powers...activate!

Form of:
Jam. And ice cream toppings. Because once you start canning, it's kinda hard to stop.

My first set:
Spiced wine peach jam and mango-raspberry jam. There's a whacking lot of sugar in jam! Yow!

Second set:
No sugar added peach jam and no sugar added cherry jam. This was in direct response to the huge amount sugar in the first two batches. Next time, I'll probably just use a cup or two of sugar instead of none at all. Strangely enough, these are a little tart and considering I was using really ripe fruit that seemed odd. Those two tablespoons of lemon juice packed more of a punch than I realized!

My third set:
Pecans in praline syrup and walnuts in a maple syrup sauce. Just because.

I noticed when I jumped into the first batch that it was really easy to run a second batch immediately after you finished processing the first one, since you were already set up with everything you'd need and the water was already hot. Thus the seemingly enormous different types of jams. I have plans for shipping several of them off to my mom and sisters (Shhhh!) as early Xmas presents. Hopefully I did a good job processing them!

I'm pretty sure I did, they all did that "Ping!" thing to let you know the jar was vacuum sealed.

I found out that while I really liked making all of these different jams, it's really hot work and is better saved for cooler days. Also, that it's only possible to get through one batch before the twins wake up.

Oh and that the twins really like my jam.

"Oooh! Pretty!"

It's funny how cracking out a new skill for me, which is actually a very old skill, makes me feel all industrious. Next thing you know I'll start collecting farm animals, churning my own butter, and wearing gingham aprons...

Or maybe not.

Have you ever canned before? If so, how'd it go?

Are you STILL using disposable plastic water bottles?

Watch this trailer.*




* Totally stolen from Fake Plastic Fish.

I think because our trash is taken away by large trucks and hauled off somewhere else, we don't realize what kind of an impact we have collectively. It's only when you either see the giant trash heaps or see the giant garbage pile swirling around in the North Pacific gyre. So in case you're wondering why it is I keep on making my own yogurt, kefir, sour cream and buttermilk when I have so many other things I could be doing, that's why. Reading that article is what made me want to stop buying bread all the time and instead, make my own. It's what led me to make more of my own dairy products, buy more products in bulk (loose leaf tea, flour, oats, etc.) instead of individually wrapped bits, use cloth diapers and make Caitlin's lunch. It's why we cook at home most of the time (that, plus it's less expensive plus twins).

All of these things add up to less trash to dispose. Less plastic for turtles to eat. A smaller carbon footprint. Also? A smaller trash bill.

We have the smallest trashcan (33 gallons) we could rent from our trash service. We have two larger recycling and compost containers that handle twice the volume that our trashcan does. I still compost all of the vegetative matter, but now the service will take all of the icky stuff I couldn't compost: meat scraps, bones, fat, dairy, and the giant seed-filled weeds from my yard. Of which, this year, there are a lot. Maybe next year the twins will be safer in the yard and allow me to get out there and weed without worrying about them ripping green tomatoes off the vine or crashing into the miniature pond. Either one makes mommy cry.

Does it take more time to make these things at home? Certainly. However, knowing what goes into all of these different foods that we're putting into our bodies and reducing the amount of plastic waste that we produce makes it worth it to me. So much of the plastic we consume in our society is completely useless. Everything is disposable. Getting out of that mindset is more important than you might think. Have a look at your own trash and note how much of it is plastic. How much is recyclable? How much of it can you compost on your own or, if you're lucky like I am, send off with your curbside composting service?

Thanks to Julie, over at Chez Artz, here is a link to some trash facts. There are some scary numbers in there, but without opening our eyes and acknowledging what we're doing, we can't change.

What are you doing to make a positive difference in the world?

Quiz Time!

1. Burn it all down and start over?
   
   OR
2. Burn it all down and cackle madly?

Answers and reasoning in the comments! For bonus points, explain how you'll get away with it all.

No.

Most of my days are spent uttering the following:

• No.
• Put that down.
• Leave that alone.
• Not for you.
• Stop.
• Leave it.
• Leeeeeeeave it.
• Close the door.
• Put it back.
• Don't touch.
• No, baby.
• What?! No!
• Stop!
• ARGH!
• Why can't you leave that alone?
• Did I mention that that's not for you? Because it's NOT FOR YOU.
• No, you may not.
• Quit it.
• Why are you doing that?
• Should you be doing that?
• Wait! No! [Crash!] Siiiigh.
• Get down.
• Where's your father?

Most of those things are said while I have something in my hands. Or on my hands. Or the oven door open. Pretty much, I'm always tied up when short people decide they need to get into trouble.

They're plotting against me, I tell you!

Ayup.

Twenty Three Months

The twins want you to know that they plan on partying hard in just 26 more days. Yes, indeed.

Since they survived their wild attempt at mountaineering in their bedroom, I thought you could use a few photos. Also? I'm late on the 23 month update. Surprise!

Emma stares deeply into your soul. "Cookie?"

Emma wants you to know that in addition to her fabulous verbal skills (Chatter! Chatter! Chatter!), she's also a great mimic. She's taken to imitating Caitlin, at Caitlin's worst, to me. As in, the other day she turned to me and folded her little arms together: harrumph! And then grinned. See? It's cute when you're small, but not when you're 8.

The food thing is still and on-again, off-again issue. Some days it seems like they won't eat anything but carbs and then other days, they chow down on coconut curry chicken soup.

"Yum!" Logan has the best grin.

That was my soup, just so you know. They won't eat on their trays, but pop them in your lap and poof! All of your food disappears. I dislike it when it appears all over the floor but am OK with it going into their tummies.

While the twins still are madly in love with having baths, they don't really like being told that it's bedtime, unless there's a lot of this going on:

So tired!

In which case, they'll happy climb the stairs lickety-split and head to bed.

Up the stairs! Up the stairs!

It seems like they're just a little bit away from walking up the steps like big kids. Just a little...bit...more. I'm not in a hurry, though. Logan will occasionally practice going down the stairs by holding onto the bannister, it's very cute. They'll also hold your hand and walk down the "normal" way, as well as up, but they'd really prefer that you carry them.

Emma, aren't you coming?

As has been the trend all along, Emma continues to be taller than Logan. I point this out because it's really obvious in the next picture.

"You ready yet? You so SLOW!"

She's got at least 2 inches on him and uses it to her advantage. She gets on and off chairs, sofas, boxes, bookshelves...you name it, she climbs it. She's been trying to climb in to the cribs and can so long as the side of the crib is down. Luckily, she hasn't tried to climb out yet. I'm not quite sure how we're going to handle the transition to regular twin beds yet. There are no other rooms for them to sleep in, so they'll still have to share a room, but I'm not certain how much sleeping will take place once they can actively get in and out of their own beds.

Note that they haven't figured out how to open doors yet, so we're safe from that skill for a little while longer.

"You ready for night diapah, yet? I hep you get ready."

Their language skills have taken a big jump this last month. They are saying many different words, bunches of them are quite clear, too. Emma said "Monkeys!" very clearly today in response to a picture. They make many different animal noises, with a nice roar being the clear favorite. They also listen pretty well to direction. Especially when you say something like "Get him!" This is the result:

Strange blue tones are from bouncing the flash off the very blue ceiling. Whoops!

Looks like a hug...


No! It's a take down!
Emma drags Logan down, giggling.

"You OK, right?"

But she also checks to make sure that he's OK.

They really like to tickle one another and chase each other around screaming. Chase games are even more fun if Caitlin and I are involved. Of course, the volume goes way up if that's the case.

There are still plenty of hugs

Squishes!

and kisses

Mmm-wah!

going around, but you never know when it's going to go from gleeful hugging

into a wrestling match,

complete with hair pulling.

Good thing Logan thinks it's still funny.

Recently, Logan has been waking up in the middle of the night and screaming his tiny head off. I'm not sure if it's teething (they're still getting teeth in) or if it's because someone didn't eat enough at dinner, but it's no fun. He squeals like a stuck pig. LOUDLY. Then there's all the guilt from hearing him call your name over and over again. If you go in, he calms down, but only as long as you're in there. As soon as you leave, he screams louder.

Somehow, Caitlin sleeps through all of this. It's amazing.

Last night I went in armed with water and a muffin and after he'd calmed down, fed him the muffin and water. Eventually he let me leave without too much additional screaming. Emma woke up and stood up in her crib. Since it was pitch black, I couldn't tell for certain but I'd swear that she fell asleep again standing up next to me. After putting Logan back in his crib, I picked her up and laid her down. Not a peep out of her. Poor, tired monkey!

They love going 'side (outside) and will open the back door, if you leave it unlocked, and wander out. The only problem is that they're not safe in the backyard.

Or, rather, the yard isn't safe from them. They rip green tomatoes off, willy-nilly. Rip flower heads off with great abandon and make mommy cry. It's bad enough when the mice do it. So it's become impossible to garden with them in the garden, which means my garden currently looks like hell. During the day, it's too hot to weed and at night, while there's still light out, I'm busy making dinner. Sigh. Maybe in the fall?

The twins have discovered a great love for the playground where Logan will fling himself down the slides like a maniac. Emma follows, but at a much slower pace. She's more than willing to climb to the very top of the structure, but is less willing to just go down the slide once she gets there. Both of them have an unnerving tendency to change their minds and suddenly want off the level they're currently on and will back out over space. You have to be ready to grab them at a moment's notice. Park trips aren't easy with only one parent.

Logan's favorite vehicle is currently the plane. Whenever (and I mean whenever!) he hears one flying overhead he will start yelling "Fly! Fly! Fly!" until you acknowledge the fantastic sound of jets flying over.

Oh and he wants you to know that any round, reddish fruit is an apple. Even if it's a peach. It gets called an apple. You can insist all you want, he doesn't care.

On the potty training front, I haven't even tried, yet. If you have any recommendations on how to do it for twins, let me know in the comments. I'm worn out before breakfast is over. Having to stop and try to get them to sit on the potty? Not happening. Yet. Maybe we'll try a crazy weekend approach. I don't know, but I'm willing to listen to suggestions!

That's it for now. Now for a quick quiz. Which baby is which in the following picture without scrolling back up?

They look most like twins from back here. Can you tell which is which?

Make your guesses in the comments! The winner gets a warm feeling of satisfaction from being right. You know you want it!

Important Safety Tip: Attach your child's dresser to the wall

The twins tried to kill themselves this evening.

It's true.

One month before they turn 2 years old, they tried to off themselves via their dresser. This dresser:

Yeah, it looks innocent, doesn't it?!

Except that it's not that clean anymore and has stuff all over the top, like that trashcan that you see to the right in the photo. Babies like smelly trash, as it turns out. It also has other things sitting on it like wipes, creams, possibly dirty/clean clothing and sneakers. Babies like to wander off with their shoes, you see, and then when it's time to go out? The Great Shoe Hunt begins.

Oh and all of the handles have been removed from the bottom four drawers because short people kept trying to get into the drawers and fling baby clothes all over the place. You know, that's not nearly as much fun to clean up every 30 minutes as you might think it is. Oh, and they'd try smashing each other's fingers in the drawers, just for fun. So off went the handles.

The one thing we didn't do? We didn't attach it to the wall.

Why?

Because the entire time Caitlin was small, she never once tried to climb her dresser. Her dresser which is skinnier and taller and more top heavy than the twins. The dresser from which we never removed the handles. Apparently we thought that for SOME REASON the twins wouldn't really think about climbing theirs, either. Especially since they couldn't really get the drawers open without handles. (You can see where this is going, can't you?)

Tonight, while I was downstairs washing dishes and cleaning up the Dinner Blast Zone, Eric was upstairs doing laundry, Caitlin was off doing Caitlin things and the twins were in their room. Safe.

We thought.

Then there was the loud rumbling crashing noise, the sound of babies crying and Eric yelling for me. I dropped the sponge as soon as I heard the loud rumbling and crying and sprinted up the stairs.

I haven't learned to teleport yet, but I'm still working on it.

I leapt into the room to find Eric straining to hold up the dresser. All 6 drawers were open and the twins were laying at its base, crying and scared. I grabbed the other end and started shoving the drawers back in and pushing it back upright. Clearly, they decided that tonight was the night to try to climb Mt. Dresser and were bloody lucky that upon tipping over, the drawers themselves stopped the dresser from falling on them both and crushing them.

That dresser is not light. It is completely full, as well. They could have been killed.

We were lucky.

So fucking lucky that we were both home and that one of us was right there, next door to their room. Incredibly lucky that the drawers stopped it from falling further and that neither one was hurt.

You never know what might happen to your children. You can't be with them every single second of the day. And, let's face it, you'd like them to be safe in their own rooms. First thing tomorrow, Eric is going to install wall anchors.

If you haven't already done so, please go out and get some anchors for your children's dressers and bookshelves (and anything else heavy you think they may consider climbing). YOU may not be so lucky.

Don't let your child become a statistic.

Fromage blanc

Did someone say "Cheese!"?

Hmm. Must have been me.

Late last Friday, it was time to make our first tentative foray into cheese making, starting with a simple soft cheese: fromage blanc. First we brought the milk to 86 degrees and then innoculated it with the cheese culture which smells just like cheese. Then we ignored it for 12 hours.

I like making stuff that's easy like this!

On Saturday the real work began. We had to drain the curds,

Curd draining apparatus.

by ladling the now curdled mixture into a cheesecloth-lined colander set over a large pan.

I'm not grumpy, I'm concentrating.

Then, tie it up and let it drain for the next 12 hours.
That was it.

I said I liked it easy, didn't I? Tying it up was the hard part. I started with a piece of butter muslin that was a little too small and spilled curds and whey down the counter and onto my foot. Whoops! However, once we worked that part out, we walked away and did other things while the draining took place.

When it was over, our gallon of whole milk had turned into 3 quarts of whey (1 quart has been turned into 4 loaves of yummy bread, so far),

No whey! Yes whey!

and 2 lbs of fromage!

Look ma! I made cheese!

The hard part has been coming up with a good way to make use of the cheese. By itself, it's a bit bland and sour. Sort of like cream cheese. I mixed some up with honey and orange peel and I think it would be great in crepes (which I haven't made yet, probably this weekend). I salted some and added Herbs de Provence, but don't care for the combination. The way I've liked it best is on bread or crackers, plain, with fresh peach jam slathered on top. Yum!

As far as being a first experiment, it was easy-peasy.

This weekend, I'm going to jump ahead and make some mozzarella! I feel a pizza or two coming on!

In other dairy-making news, I made my very own sour cream (looks just like yogurt or buttermilk in a jar, so I didn't bother photographing it) and yet more yogurt (I found detailed directions on yogurt making at the cheese making web site. It's worth a peek, if you're interested in making your own yogurt.). Next up: kefir and clotted cream. Time for tea and scones!

What have you been up to? Something yummy?

Tomato Turf Wars

After all that build up at the beginning of the summer, you're probably wondering why I haven't posted any tomato pictures. Well, it's because we've had very few tomatoes.

This is our actual first tomato harvest as of August 14th. Sad.

Cause: mice.

Those little bastards aren't happy with my compost any more. They are munching on all of my Black Krims that are ripe, or partially ripe. I haven't had a single one yet! Then, when that wasn't enough for them, they started in on the Green Zebra and the Romas. I admit, I let it go on for too long. I was hoping that if I left the one they were chewing on still on the vine that they'd leave the others alone. No luck. Those mice were too greedy.

My first ripe Black Krim! Nooooo!

After being depressed by the blossom end rot I've been fighting with and flea beetles, the mice were the last straw.

I'm not willing to share.

It was time to break out the big guns. DEATH was on the line! Tiny little mouse death. (Suburban Correspondent would be proud.)

I must admit, it makes me sad to have to kill them, but they're messing with my tomatoes and around here, that's a killin' offense. Since I don't want them to suffer, I put out standard mouse traps. SNAP! and they're dead. (Except for this one mouse, who was apparently using his foot to test the trap...but we won't go there. Note that Eric* rescued the little guy and let him loose.) I don't want to poison them, because they may crawl off and be eaten by a hawk or owl and then I'd have poisoned them. (And what a horrible way to go for both parties!) I don't want to use sticky traps, because then you're just starving them to death.

Instead, I chose the sharp, swift death.**

Within 24 hours, I had caught 5. This morning, two more. I sure hope the one that got away has told all of his friends that they're no longer welcome in the vegetable garden, because I really don't want to have to keep setting and resetting traps.

But I will.

Don't mess with Hatchet's tomatoes!



* Eric suggested I compost the mice and couldn't understand how I was wasting perfectly good compost material like that. Um, honey? Ewww!. I suggested we could leave them out in the open for a hawk or an owl, but he suggested we probably didn't want to encourage carrion eaters to show up in our yard.

I'm grateful for one thing: at least they're not rats!

** Just so you know, I'm taking full responsibility for my murders. I am the one setting the traps and clearing them out. I mourn each little mouse I kill. However, a gardener's gotta do what a gardener's gotta do. If you have a better idea, let me know. Seriously.

Corn! CORN! CORRRRRRN!

First corn from our garden!
This is the very first time I've ever grown corn, in my memory. I remember selling seeds for Burpee when I was in elementary school as a fundraiser, but I don't remember growing any.

I wasn't sure how the corn would do in our raised beds, tightly packed together, but the truth is, it did just fine!

And let me tell you, it was tasty!

Or wait, I don't have to tell you. The kids will.

Emma shares some bites of my ear of corn. I'm such a good mom. I share.

Om nom nom nom!

Dis mine?

NOM! CHOMP!

Nibble! Nibble! Nibble!

They liked it. A lot.

I guess I'll have to make room in the garden for corn again next year!

My favorite comedy skit related to corn. It starts at 3:15 and kills me at 4:17. Bobby Lee is hysterical!

First Day of 3rd Grade

On Thursday, Caitlin started school again.

Hooray for school being in session again! Hooray!

I'd like to tell you that our morning getting ready was idyllic and peaceful. Everyone getting ready as they were supposed to, babies happy to tag along and get Caitlin to school on time. However, I live in the real world where no matter how excited your 8 year old is to go back to school, she still doesn't want to brush her teeth or hair. After addressing those issues, we ate breakfast and zipped off to school.

Caitlin, before school in her Rock 'n Roll pose.

I had meant to walk her up with the twins in the carriage, but mornings are pretty crazy as is and we never seem to have the extra 30 minutes to spare. Besides, pushing ~40 lbs of twins and ~20 lbs of carriage up hill is no joke at 7:30 am.

We arrived in plenty of time for the general hanging out with all of the other moms and dads. Caitlin did better this year on the willingness to say hello to all of her classmates (Unlike last year. Wow! Look at how much younger she looks one year ago!), for which I was very glad. After a few more minutes and a few more requests to not read books in class, they all marched indoors and the school year was officially under way.

I noted that this year she now has just as many years left in elementary school as she has completed: three. An odd thought, that. It seems like it's lasting for-EV-er, and yet it's half way over! I also note that in 3 more years, the twins will be starting elementary school. [Heavy breathing ensues.] Not that I'm counting or anything.

After school, I did trudge up the mountainous hill to pick her up, with twins in their gianto-mobile. There were smooches to be had.

Caitlin prepares to eat Logan whole.

And smooches to be withheld.

No smoochies for you!

But she's still my Caitlin.

3rd grade? Already?!

And I had to drag the details of the day out of her.

Some things just never change.

Logan says: All you ladies not to worry about mah smoochies. I gotz plenty more for you. Mmmmwah!

How did your back to school rituals go? Smoothly? Not so smoothly? What's your favorite part?

Buttermilk and Yogurt and Cheese! Oh my!

I said I was going to do it and now I have. In my continuing travels into insanity, I bought Ricki Carroll's book Home Cheese Making, as was mentioned in the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.

Well, first I borrowed it from the library, got a feel for what all was in it and then months and months later, finally bought it. After poring over it for a couple of days I sidled up to the computer and placed my first order for cheese and other dairy making gear. It arrived on Monday and Monday night, late as usual, I made my first batch of yogurt with the Yogotherm from the Dairy Kit and it was awesome! Much better than my previous yogurt. Thicker, too. I think the insulated canister and the longer resting time helped. That 1/4 cup of powdered milk seems to be the key. You have to whisk like mad to incorporate it, but then it's just a matter of heating up the milk to 185, cooling it down to 110 (Next time I'm going to put 110 degree water in the sink and then put my pan in to cool it down. I think I cooled it down a little too fast this first time.), adding the culture and waiting 6 hours, plus cooling time. (As Elisava mentioned in the comments on my yogurt post, you can buy packets of the yogurt culture and keep them in your freezer until you want them.)

OK, so it's not as easy as making buttermilk
(Heat milk to 86 degrees, add culture, ignore for 12 hours.), but --! It's so good! Also, it means less plastic containers in my life. Besides, it's hard to dislike having 2 quarts of fresh yogurt in the fridge which pairs so well with the fresh peach jam. Together they are delicious!

Add in a blue cornmeal muffin and you've got breakfast!

Next up, determining which cheese I'm going to make first. I'm debating between fromage blanc or a really simple buttermilk cheese or cream cheese. Or maybe just some sour cream?

I'm a wild woman, I am.

- - - - -

A friend asked me, not too long ago, when looking over my bizarre collection of cookbooks (e.g. bread making, cheese making, preserving, grilling, slow cooking, complicated Cook's Illustrated cooking) why I was doing this to myself? Life is hard enough and complicated enough with the twins and the 8 year old. If I barely had enough time to keep up with the ordinary housework, why was I adding all of these extra layers of crazy homemaking on top of that? Homemade marshmallows? Really? Why?!

I thought about it for a minute and what it really boils down to is this: I don't get to go out, alone, much at all. I can't currently go back to school. I am not currently working outside the home. This is my way of keeping myself challenged, intellectually, in a way that has big positive benefits for the whole family. It keeps me sane, even though I complain about my messy house and the fact that I haven't weeded the garden for months now. I get to learn new things, muck with science-y procedures (I play with bacteria!) and then I get to eat my experiments!

How cool is that?!

Pretty darned cool, actually.

I suppose I could clean the house from 9:30 pm until 12:30 am instead, but where's the fun in that? Making 2 quarts of yogurt that we inhaled half of in the first 24 hours after it was done was time better spent, I think.

You decide.

While the yogurt is just as ephemeral as a clean house, the yogurt has way more bragging rights associated with it. As an extra bonus, you can give some to your friends.

But only if they get here before we finish it off. Better hurry!

Snack Attack!

While Caitlin was away on her Big Adventure, I promised her that when she got back we'd make marshmallows together once she got home. Yes, marshmallows. Well, that moment finally came last night.

Me and my lovely assistant.

You'll want the recipe, if you want to follow along at home.

After gathering up our ingredients and an impromptu math lesson (Yes, Screamish, you have to know math to be a mom. Or at least learn as they're learning. Fractions again?! Argh!), we started on the stovetop by dissolving our sugar, cornstarch and water together. After it reached 240 degrees, I poured it into the mixer that was holding the softened gelatin (3 1/4 oz packages + 1/2 cup of water). Then we had an impromptu kitchen safety discussion since someone was messing around on the step stool. I didn't really want to wear the 240 degree sugar solution, you see.

Around and around it goes!

After about 15 minutes and with the addition of the vanilla, our mixture now looked like this:

Marshmallow goo!

Are you excited yet? Caitlin sure was!

We then scraped it into an oiled pan and let it set for 4 hours. Caitlin got to taste test the whisk, while Eric and I scraped bits off the spatula. Yum!

Setting up.

Since I can't possibly start any project during normal daytime hours, we started this one right before she went to bed. After those 4 hours were up, it was late.

So at 11:30 pm, I coated the marshmallow slab in the cornstarch/powdered sugar mix and sliced it up using a pizza cutter as was suggested in the recipe comments. I recommend reading the comments, there was some good info in there! I also cut out a few heart shapes, using a small cookie cutter and one bear.

Slicing and dicing.

The pizza cutter worked like a charm after the initial pass, it was just sticky enough that you could coat it in powdered sugar and then it sliced the slab perfectly.

Yes, my heart is soft and squishy.

Eric and I tasted them last night and they were good. Caitlin had to wait until the morning, but she gave it her Seal of Approval. Unfortunately, she ate the first one so fast that I only have the dust on her face to prove it.

Marshmallow monster.

She was so excited about having a hot chocolate with marshmallows that I made one for her and topped it with love.

Food = love.

I have to say, this recipe was pretty darned easy, fun and very tasty. Also, the part you can't tell is how incredibly sensuous these things feel as you're cutting them up and coating them in sugar. They're all soft and pillowy and squishy. You should make some! Just to prove you can. They're no harder than icing, really. Next time I'm going to make them with coconut extract and roll them in toasted unsweetened coconut. Because, oh yes, there will be a next time!

Also in our snacking future: s'mores (Updated to add: Yum! Woo!) and rice krispy treats.

Next time, I'll tell you about my granola bar adventures!