Oops.

For those of you interested in making the Chocolate Mint Marvels that I posted earlier in the week, I've goofed on the recipe. Here is the updated recipe. Everything is the same, but I put the wrong amount of butter on the last one. (I've changed the old post) These cookies really are SO good! My neighbors and teacher friends love them! I highly recommend them. And to our family in Jersey - don't worry. I'll be bringing plenty with us!



Chocolate Mint Marvels (Don't you love that name?)

3/4 c. butter (stick and a half)
1-1/2 c. brown sugar
2 c. chocolate chips
2 eggs
*********
2-1/2 c. flour
1-1/4 t. baking soda
3 or 4 pkg of Andes mints

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter and brown sugar in saucepan over low heat. Add chocolate chips and stir to melt; put mixture into a bowl and let cool. Add eggs, and then mix in flour and baking soda. Chill dough for 1 hour. Roll into balls and place on baking sheet. Bake for 9 minutes. Remove cookies from oven and place an Andes mint on each one. As the candy melts, spread it across the top of the cookie with the back of a teaspoon. Makes 3 dozen.

They are yummalicious.

My 12 Days of Christmas

Sweet Freedom.
School is out for one and a half weeks. Yipee!

Here are my 12 Days of Christmas that relate to these past few days.

12 - Students munching on pizza for lunch. (We had a pizza party today - I love me some Papa John's)
11 - As in A.M. I will be sleeping until this time tomorrow morning.
10 - Times that one of my students said my name in about 10 seconds.
9 - Hours of driving (Actually it's 9-1/2) this Friday.
8 - Pieces of leftover pizza that I snagged for dinner tonight.
7 - Time that I'll probably be in bed tonight.
6 - Number of students I had in school today due to the flu bug hitting our school with a vengeance.
5 - Days 'til Christmas.
4 - Number of neighbors that I need to bake cookies for. Mmmm, Chocolate Mint Marvels...
3 - Adoption portfolio books that I finally finished - Hope you like them Kristy!
2 - Days until we leave for New Jersey to spend Christmas with Dave's parents, sister and brother-in-law.
1 - Tired, but happy teacher.

3 more days...

Only three more days of hyper students. Students who can't stop talking about Ho-Ho (Santa) and asking me if I'm going to buy them the racecar that they want for Christmas. Three more days of high-strung elementary students who are having trouble sitting still for 3 minutes straight. Three more days of paperwork that is due 2 days (2 days!) after we return from Christmas break. Three more days.

But, in those three days, we're gonna have some fun too!

Monday: Bowling for our Community Outing and a birthday party for one of the assistants in my room.
Tuesday: Lunch in the Community with my students' parents and decorating gingerbread men (and eating them!) in the afternoon.
Wednesday: PARTY DAY! Our two classes are doing a gift exchange, craft session and pizza party - throw in an assembly and a visit from the Big Guy himself and we'll send those sugared-up kids home and call it a day.

Now I just have to figure out when I'm going to do my paperwork.

On the docket for today:
Baking and LOTS of it! I have about 20 people at my school that I'm giving cookies to. I love to give gifts and baking seems to be the best way to do that without breaking the bank. I got these cute little tins at a candle outlet for 10 cents each...so I'll be filling them with 3 cookies and tying them up to give to some unsuspecting teachers/staff. It's not big, but it's fun.



The cookies I'm putting inside are amazing. I found the recipe in the American Way magazine when we were flying to Mexico. I ripped out the recipe and brought it home. (What? They always tell you to take the magazines home with you...) If you like to bake, here it is. It's not hard to do at all:



Chocolate Mint Marvels (Don't you love that name?)

3/4 c. butter (stick and a half)
1-1/2 c. brown sugar
2 c. chocolate chips
2 eggs
*********
2-1/2 c. flour
1-1/4 t. baking soda
3 or 4 pkg of Andes mints

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter and brown sugar in saucepan over low heat. Add chocolate chips and stir to melt; put mixture into a bowl and let cool. Add eggs, and then mix in flour and baking soda. Chill dough for 1 hour. Roll into balls and place on baking sheet. Bake for 9 minutes. Remove cookies from oven and place an Andes mint on each one. As the candy melts, spread it across the top of the cookie with the back of a teaspoon. Makes 3 dozen.

They are yummalicious.

Oh Mexico...numero dos

So I wasn't too quick on the 2nd part of our Mexico trip. Christmas decorations came out, cookies have been baked and work has been taking up a lot of time and energy. Here is the rest of the vacation story:

It's time to answer those burning questions.

Questions 1: How much guacamole can one person eat?


A lot. And when I say a lot, I mean every day for lunch. Not kidding. It was SO very good!

This was our last night there eating Mexican food.



They had an Oriental restaurant and we all got to try the sushi. I was not much of a fan, but Annie was.






Question 2:
Do iPods survive dips in the pool?


No. They do not. I accidentally dropped my parents iPod in the pool (it slide off of my swimsuit). It was literally in the water .2 seconds and the thing was fried. Thank goodness for that first year warranty! I just spoke to my mom last night and she already has her fixed iPod back in her hands...with no charge for anything - not even shipping! Thank you Mr. Macintosh!


Question 3:
Did anyone in our party wear a speedo?


Oh my goodness yes. My brother-in-law, Dylan was feeling quite (ahem) comfortable around us. It was his first time to wear a speedo and he let us know "I've never had to use this much sunscreen before."
You can read more about Dylan (and Molly) here.


Question 4:
How many times was I told "no" on this vacation?


Once. The last night we were there we had Mexican food. I ordered steak fajitas and they brought out corn tortillas. I asked if they had flour and they came back from the kitchen apologizing over and over that they did not have flour tortillas. This was the only time of record that I was told "no". I threw a complete fit and made a scene.

Not really.

Question 5:
Can you really order two steaks in one sitting?


Yes, yes you can. Ask my brother-in-law Walt. He did it twice.


Question 6:
How lazy can one person get?


6 words for you: Room Service 24 hours a day. Pretty lazy.


I highly recommend this place if you ever find yourself in Mexico with some travel money.

Aventura Spa Palace is:
"The seventh tier of heaven" ...Walt
"Like Willy Wonka for adults" ...Annie

The Voice of an Angel and Convincing a Non-Blogger

If you do not own this cd, promptly get up from your sofa and go to the nearest cd-sellin' store. It is wonderful!

In other news - I'd like to throw a shout out to Kristy in New Mexico. See, I'm trying to convince Kristy that she needs a blog. She has all the perfect ingredients:

1. She's funny
2. She's a great writer
3. She takes amazing photos
4. She's really funny
5. Seriously, she takes a TON of photos

So, help me convince her to start a blog. Any comments I get, I'll send on to her (or she can just read them). Come on...tell her how much fun it is!

Thrilla in Manila

I'd like to say a big "Welcome" to my sister-in-law, Val. She has joined the blogging world. She lives in Manila, Philippines with her hubby and their two precious little girls. (We miss you guys!) Go check out her blog. It's going to be loads of fun!

A Saturday "To Do" List...

1. Unpack the suitcase that has been sitting in the middle of the dining room for 5 days. But if I do this, it will mean our Mexico trip is truly over...

2. Clean my entire house from top to bottom. Not a big goal, really. (Why do I do this?)

3. Drag up all of our Christmas decor from the basement and sprinkle it throughout the house.

4. Grab the Mr. and go pick up our very first fake tree. (I'm breaking down...this is HUGE for me - in 28 years of my life, I've never had a fake tree.)

5. Start some holiday baking.

6. Rake and "winterize" my flowerbeds.

7. Oh, and we've got to do something about this:


The winds were just a tad bit strong yesterday. (That's our garage under the tree)

Para Tu, Mamasita

Happy Birthday Mom!
I feel so fortunate to have you in my life.
And you're just so much fun to hang out with!


(I know, I know. we all have 3 chins in this shot...but it still makes me laugh)


I love you!