We sing this song every April 1st.  What a fun way to celebrate a silly day.

Let’s see, do I have any silliness to report today?

Why, yes, yes I do.

It’s like a game.

See if you can match the right question with the right answer.

1. How many gerbils live in my house?
2. How many Butterfly larvae live in my house?
3. How many rabbits in my backyard?
4. How many birds in my front room?
5. How many snakes live in the den?
6. How many tarantulas live in my dining room?

• A. 14
• B. 4
• C. 1
• D. 60 (?!?!)
• E. 12
• F. 3

You only get one hint.

Ok, first we need to play a little pretend.

Let’s pretend I’m not on a diet.  Let’s pretend that it’s ok for me to talk about cookies.  And while we’re at it, let’s pretend that it’s ok for me to actually consume a few of the afore mentioned cookies. (insert Jedi mind mess hand wave here)  And as long as we’re pretending, let’s pretend that it was actually only a “few” cookies that were wolfed consumed!

Ok, everybody got their imaginations workin’?

Alrighty then.  Let me tell you about the most perfect cookie in the world!

A very good friend of mine gave me a Wilton Cookie Press for Christmas.  I have never in my life owned such a cool little gizmo for making cookies!

These little cookies are so easy to make and they came out so perfect!  It was like a little cookie miracle happened in my kitchen.  I had more fun making these little bits of yumminess!  I really wanted to let Sally Mae in on the fun and make this a Sally Mae Cooks post, but she just doesn’t have the hand strength to make a cookie dough or to operate the gizmo.  We’ll have to come up with something else for her to do.  This puppy is all mine!

Aren’t these cookie clones just the cutest thing on a tray?

And tasty too!

Alright, back to the regularly scheduled diet.

End of imaginary diet break!

This post is linked to:

• Tempt my Tummy Tuesday
• Works for Me Wednesday
• Things I Love Thursday

Is it vain, or merely a foregone conclusion to say that, in our efforts to rise early and read READ read our Bibles on the 90 day schedule, the enemy is after us?  Giving his best shot to nip this new deal in the bud!

Yesterday was great, being a Holiday, we had time on our hands.  Plenty of Bible reading time.  We didn’t adhere to any kind of schedule or even rise from bed at any designated time (read: slept in real good!).

We read our Bibles at our leisure.

Enter Saturday. Whole different story.  Today we have a schedule, a tight one.  Hubs and the three bigs had to be out of the house by 6:30.  When they get home later this afternoon, it’ll only be to shower before the whole family rushes out the door for the REST OF THE DAY.

Not a normal Saturday for us, by far.  We’ll get home tonite just in time to roll into bed.  Not a minute of spare time for the rest of the day.  So the Bible reading had to be done first thing this morning!

Cap that off with a touch of (Mad Cow Disease related) insomnia last night coupled with a late(ish) showing of Lethal Weapon in my den last evening and we have a real good case of tiredgrumpysleepycranky this morning.  (Planning break-down!)

Today’s portion of Scripture was Genesis 17:1 – Genesis 28:19.  I got it read, and I have already been blessed by it.  But it sure would have been easy to just sit there sipping coffee and gazing, thoughtless, into nothing.

I’d like to think that today’s hurdle was the hardest one I’ll encounter in this 90 days.  But I know better.  I know I’ll be tempted far worse than I was today.  God is able and I’ll rest in His strength.

Happy New Year from my family to yours!

My Family from WiddlyTinks.com

I’m going on an indefinite vacation from blogging.

Have a Merry Christmas!  And a Happy New Year!

It’s too soon to take off from regular daily life (school) but it already feels so much like Christmas I’ve  got that antsy, chompin’ at the bit, rarin’ to go Christmas spirit.

I’m sure it’s due to the cold weather.  Funny that those of us who live in south Texas even have a “White Christmas” expectation.  I think it’s due to tv specials that teach us that for a really and truly home-style Christmas there will be snow, and all contrary weather is a big let down.

Well, we got our sweaters on now, so it must be Christmas!

The other thing that is prompting this Holiday feel is that the big three Cowboys have been goin’ to work with Hubs every day.  Weird, that.  It’s a neat deal for the littles to have me to themselves for the whole day, and at the same time, it’s a whole ton of work for me since my plan depends on a certain amount of assistance from those big Cowboys.  I even had to carry laundry baskets and put away my own groceries and water rabbits all by me onesie.  (Sorry - channeling Jack Sparrow for a second there!  {hi, carri})

The point is, it’s just odd here.  I am seriously considering taking the day off from school and just baking cookies and making cocoa.  I think I will!

Want my horribly sinful sugar cookie recipe?  It’s so bad for you, in many ways, but it’s the very tastiest cookie and stands up to little helpers wielding rolling pins and cookie cutters and the dreaded SPRINKLES!  (sprinkles are nasty, imo)  But these cookies are the BOSS of all sugar cookies!

Trail Boss Sugar Cookies

• 1 cup butter flavor Crisco (If your store is out or the butter flavor you can use plain.)
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 T milk
• 1 t vanilla
• 4 – 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1½ t baking soda
• 1½ t cream of tartar (If you don’t have any, go ahead and omit.  It doesn’t make a huge difference.)
• 1 t salt

In a large bowl cream the Crisco and the sugars together.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time.  Add the milk and vanilla, mix well.

In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt.  Give it a stir and mix it into the creamed mixture a ¼ at a time.  Mix well.  Cover the cookie dough, put it in the fridge and chill for an hour while sipping hot cocoa!

After you’ve enjoyed your cocoa, go clean the kitchen.  It needs it and you’ll have more room to work with hot trays of cookies coming out of the oven if you just clean up now, go, do.

Heat the oven to 350°F.  Roll out half of the dough at a time, to about ¼” thickness on a floured surface.  Cut with cookie cutters.  My favorites are the star, bell and tree.

Place the cookies about 2″ apart on an un-greased cookie sheet.  Bake for about 6-7 minutes until edges are golden.  Remove immediately to a rack or tea towel laid on the table.

And speaking of your table, do the whole job there if you can.  It’s so much easier for the elves to help you if they can climb up into the chairs and work at the table than trying to work around the chairs they are gonna want to bring into the kitchen so they can reach the counter.

Now, you may ask, “Why, Mother Hen?  Why do you prefer the star, bell and tree cookie cutters over all the others?”

So, I’ll tell ya.  The star, bell, and tree cookies can be frosted (and look lovely) with un-colored frosting.  I may be willing to allow my kids to eat these cookies even though they have Crisco, sugar and white flour in them, but I draw the line at adding food coloring to the frosting!   Of course, you can use any cookie cutter you want, I know we’ll use a bazillion different ones.

And the hidden benefit of using only un-colored frosting is that it’s just simpler.  I won’t have to deal with a zillion little bowls of  differently colored frosting.  Yay!

Buttery Cream Frosting

• 4 cups confectioners sugar (Deep breath, remember, it’s just for Christmas!)
• ½ cup butter flavored Crisco
• 1½ t vanilla
• 6-7 T milk

In a medium bowl (Aren’t you glad you cleaned the kitchen a little while ago?) combine the first three ingredients.  Slowly blend in the milk to the consistency you like.  Then beat on high speed for five minutes.

Now, have some fun watching your elves frost the cookies!

Be sure you let the cookies cool all the way before you frost them.  Also, let the frosting dry all the way before you try to put them into a cookie jar or a ziplock bag.

Linked to Tempt my Tummy Tuesday and Chickens in the Road.

When you need your house to smell wonderful and Christmas-y right away, get out your big pot and fill it about halfway with water.  Slice up a couple of apples, oranges, lemons (any combo ya like, all I had today was apples, so that’s all I used) and toss them into the pot.  Then add your favorite Christmas-y spices.

• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Allspice
• Cloves

A teaspoon or so of each.  Then bring the pot to a boil and turn it down to a slow simmer.  Leave it uncovered.  Add water throughout the day as needed.

This gives your home a nice Holiday feel!  And also you get the added benefit of throwing some water vapor into the air.

The Reading Mother

I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
“Blackbirds” stowed in the hold beneath

I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.

I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Gelert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness blent with his final breath.

I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch,
Oh, that each mother of boys were such!

You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be-
I had a Mother who read to me.

by Strickland Gillilan