...because they're bite-size!
I took my standard brownie recipe and divided it into mini muffin cups. What would normally make an 8x8 pan of thick brownies made about three dozen brownie bites.
They're so cute I just want to eat them up!
...because they're bite-size!
For Today... March 9, 2009
Outside my window... it's chilly and windy. A nice change from the rain we've gotten over the last two days, though.
I am thinking... about ways to get more organized!
From the learning rooms... coming up with ideas to make sure Chickpea has plenty of playtime with other kids.
I am thankful for... my red dishpan.
From the kitchen... cinnamon muffins, pizza dough, and pepperoni bread.
I am wearing... my not-favorite jeans, and a 3/4-sleeve cable-knit sweater.
I am reading... a lot of books, and a whole lot of blogs!
I am hoping... that I can achieve my goals this month.
I am creating... a simple knitted square. At least, I'm trying to create it!
I am hearing... Chickpea talking non-stop about doing taxes. DangerBear gave her some blank IRS forms, and she's trying to fill them out and work out all the numbers. Right now she's asking me where the tax tables are, as referenced in line six. Um... no idea.
Around the house... keeping up with the laundry, and trying to get caught up with the ironing.
One of my favorite things... my laptop!
A few plans for the rest of the week... work at DangerBear's business, continue working on my goals, get going on garden research.
Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you... the gorgeous sheets my mom gave Chickpea for Christmas. Oh, how I love Pottery Barn bedding!
The weather yesterday was absolutely gorgeous: Seventy degrees, sunny, and breezy! Ah, Spring! Chickpea and I took the opportunity to play outside without wearing coats.
After a while, I went back inside to work in the kitchen, and I let her play outside the front door. After a while, she came in and asked for a drink of water. I gave her one, and she took the cup outside with her. A few minutes later, she came in and asked for more. And a few minutes later, she asked for even more. At this point, I'm thinking she's either going to wet her pants or she's up to something. I peek out the front door and see:
You can't tell from the photo, but the bucket is filled with water.
It is, apparently, a well. Except the water comes from my water pitcher instead of from the ground. A reverse well, I guess. I especially love the rocks arranged at the bottom.
No doubt about it, the child has a thing for sticks and rocks. Add some string and a little scotch tape, and who knows what she'll come up with?
About a month ago, I started a new laundry routine that I hoped would help me keep it up-to-date, as I was constantly falling behind. Just days after starting that routine, something went wrong with the washing machine. It didn't take long to fix, but it totally threw me off, and I ended up abandoning the routine. I couldn't help but think that maybe Satan didn't want me to achieve my goals of becoming a better wife and homemaker and so threw a wrench into my plans.
Fast forward to last night. One of my March goals is to go to bed with a clean kitchen. That means wiping down the counters, putting away any dishes that were hand-washed, etc. It also includes running the dishwasher right after dinner and unloading it before I go to bed. Waking up to a clean kitchen and empty dishwasher makes it so much easier for me to keep the kitchen clean throughout the day.
Amazingly enough, I've achieved my goal every day of the month! (Alright, I know it's still the beginning of the month, but still.) Anyway, things were going smoothly, until... (cue dramatic music)...
I was nearly done cleaning up after dinner last night and started draining the water from one half of my double sink. I heard a bad, splashy sort of sound. I looked in the cabinet under the sink and, lo and behold, there was water pouring out of the pipe! I quickly plugged the drain and ran to DangerBear for help.
Apparently, the plumber didn't see the need to actually connect two of the pipes under the sink. They just sort of sit together. Normally, it worked fine. It seems, though, that there's a clog and since the water can't continue down the pipe, it comes out and pours into my cabinet. Sheesh.
So this morning I took the remaining water out of the sink and took out a red dishpan I'd been using to organize things in the office. The kitchen is clean, and no matter how long it takes to get it fixed, I will clean my kitchen every night!
I know it's a small thing, and in the grand scheme of life, dirty dishes isn't a big deal. Still, DangerBear has told me that he really appreciates coming home to a clean house and kitchen. So whether this is Satan trying to discourage me, the Lord testing me, or just plain bad luck, I'm gonna keep going! So there.
One of my goals for this month is to find a better system of dealing with papers. Keeping track of tasks is one part of that, and I decided to tackle it first!
This is something I just started doing yesterday, but it's been working so well that I wanted to post about it.
I still have a master task list, but I needed a better way to keep track of the things I wanted to do each day. I picked a few high-priority tasks, wrote each one on a Post-It note, and stuck them to the wall behind my desk:
(Please excuse the chipped paint!)
Now I can easily see what needs to be done today. It's also easy to add tasks as things come up during the day. Finally, if I don't get a particular task done, there's no need to re-write it on the next day's list. I simply leave the Post-It note on the wall.
It's also really satisfying when I complete a task, because I get to crumple up the note and throw it away!
