Edible Gifts

What is your opinion on edible gifts? Personally, I think they are great. They are fun to make, somewhat personalized, and you can wrap them all pretty! I have to do a Santa Buddy thing for work- something secret- and something Monday thru Friday until the big reveal. That is 5 days of surprising the same person.

I was of course hoping for a woman, but I got a man. But, if I had to get assigned a man, I can't think of a nicer one. He is a volunteer fireman, a hardworker at school, a "work shop/tech. ed" teacher -so same interests as my dad- and he is a giving, Christian man who always thinks of other people before himself. He arranged a fundraiser at work for socks to hand out clean, new socks to low-income families in the area. He also dropped off bags of food at one of MY student's houses because he heard the tough time they were having. What a nice guy! So, I am excited to do something nice for him everyday next week.

Back to edible gifts--I am thinking this is one way to go because he has a family that he could share them with. I always worry if they won't like a certain food, or if they have allergies, but I think he enjoys most anything (he is built like my daddy!) ;-)

My mom was super crafty and productive yesterday and was telling me over the phone that she made homemade fudge for all of her co-workers and they tied a homemade "Cinnamon Stick Santa" ornament to each fudge box. She used a Food Network recipe, so I was impressed. I wish I were at their house to taste it!

Here is the recipe: 

Chocolate Fudge Melt 1/2 stick butter, 4 cups marshmallows, 1 cup cream, 2 cups sugar and a pinch of salt in a saucepan. Simmer, stirring, 5 minutes. Off the heat, stir in 3 cups chocolate chips until smooth. Spread in a foil-lined 9-by-13-inch pan. Let cool and cut into squares.

Sounds pretty simple! And yummy. Who wouldn't want chocolate melted with butter and marshmallows.

Did I ever tell you that I think marshmallow should be spelled MarshmEllows because that is how you say it? Well, Merriam Webster never consulted me.

What edible gift ideas do you guys have to share? 

The Wonder of the Golden Arches

Friday night I spent a few hours with my 8th grade students. I helped start a new club this year-World Language Club- and our first excursion was Friday night to 10,000 Villages. 10,000 Villages sells beautiful artisan crafted items at fair trade prices.
 
We have a huge store near us --about 15 minutes from the school- so a group of teachers took the WLC members. It was "provide your own transportation" so that meant I would need to drive the kids there. My parents were in town anyway, so they took their big car and drove all 6 of us! Our plan was to eat at the cafe there. However, when I asked my students which menu item they wanted (quiche, fruit, cheese, bean soup, salads) they all turned up their noses. So....we went to the golden arches after exploring the store. This boy below-- maybe one of the funniest people I have ever met in my.entire.life. He wanted a "large cheeburger with french fries and a 'big' soda from the 'machines'."

Can I just say how adorable it was to take them there? One girl had never seen a fountain soda machine before and was trying to fill the cup by hitting the picture and not the lever. Then she was just standing there waiting. THEN she would hold it all the way to the top and tilt her head to watch. She was so funny and it was adorable. She is brilliant though, and I actually don't teach her anymore because in just THREE school years she caught up to all her native speaking peers with little/no prior education in Thailand!! Amazing. She is now nominated (only one in the school) for a 1,000 scholarship. I am SOOO proud of this girl!

One of my boys (right below) ordered 2 McDoubles a large fry and a Reese's McFlurry and asked if I was proud of him. He is such a sweet Christian boy and is so wonderful at being a friend to the other boys in ESL.

We had a great night laughing and it was surprisingly a fun way to spend my Friday night. I have been so blessed with my Middle School class this year. :) It has been my best Middle School class so far. Note: I only said best MIDDLE school class. ;-) We aren't talking about the High School this year, k?

This chica below is my gal pal in class- she is the only girl! (well we are getting a new student soon!) but she keeps me company and we love to chat about the latest fashion and nail products.


It made for a VERY long day- "working" for about 14 hours then grad. class at night...maybe that is why I came home today from work and slept for 3 hours. My weekends have been more busy than my work weeks. Who has time to relax?
But, I would spend every Friday night at McD's with these wonderful, beautiful kids! :)

Appetizing, Eh?

Here is a good quote from my 3rd period class:

(2 Asian boys are talking at a table working on a COMMA worksheet, so I am not sure how this came up)

Boy 1: Miss Palmer, Have you ever eaten dog?
Me: No. I would get sick.
Boy 2: It's so good. But, you have to take a shower after you eat it.
Boy 1: Yes it's true.
Boy 2: And...it makes you crazy in the head.
Boy 1: But it's so good!
Me: Why do you have to shower after?
Boys together: Because the dog taste like hot.


.....and there goes my breakfast.

Cookie Day Featuring Peppermint Patty Cookies

This past weekend after Thanksgiving, we had the 3rd annual Christmas Cookie Day. We made about 11 or 12 different varieties. As you know, I am ALWAYS trying NEW recipes. Last year my cookie was a PB cup wrapped in dough with chocolate drizzled on it. YUM. It turned out to be popular because this year many people brought that kind.
So, let me share the recipe for Peppermint Patty Surprise cookies. I will try a new recipe next year, but you can bet I'll bring this kind to the 4th annual Cookie day, too!

30 15 45

Peppermint Patty Surprise Cookies:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 1/2 sticks (6 oz.) unsalted butter, slightly softened
• 1 egg
• 24 miniature (about 1 1/2-inch) York patties, unwrapped and chilled
• 6 oz. white chocolate (not chips), chopped- I used Baker's chocolate
• Peppermint candy canes or candies, crushed or finely chopped- I used red course sugar sprinkles

How-To:

1. Using an electric mixer, beat the flour, cocoa powder, both sugars, salt and baking soda on low speed. Beat in the butter, then the egg. Turn out the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap and flatten into a disk; seal. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment. Working with 1 tbsp. of dough at a time, use your fingers to evenly encase each peppermint patty with dough. Place on the prepared pans and smooth the dough with your fingers. Bake, switching the pans halfway through, until just firm to the touch, about 15 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and let cool slightly. Transfer the cookies on the parchment to a rack to cool completely.
3. Meanwhile, in a double boiler or small, heatproof bowl set over a small saucepan of simmering water, melt half of the white chocolate, stirring until melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining white chocolate until smooth. Using a large spoon, drizzle the white chocolate over the cookies. Sprinkle immediately with the crushed peppermint candies. Let set completely before serving or storing.

 

According to my dad, they are best with a cup of hot coffee. Enjoy!! What are your favorite kinds of cookies to make for the season?

Websites and ideas needed!

Hey guys!
As noted in my previous post, I am getting a new bed soon...which means I need new bedding (must be King size) and I am trying to find room inspiration. Anyone know of any cool home-decor bedroom Pictures online to inspire me?
Corey and I typically like jewel tones- teal, deep purple, rust orange, gold, deep chocolate brown....we are not really into red. We have also considered (I act like Corey has considered this and that's maybe a lie- he has mentioned...) that we could have neutral bedding (white or cream or tan) and then decorate with fun colored pillows. Thoughts? Bedding websites? Decor inspiration websites?

Thanks for your help!
Here is our bedroom set so you can see the coloring and help us find good ideas!

Matching Furniture

This weekend has been very exciting! I am finally starting to feel better, and this morning I went out LOOKING for furniture- I suppose eventually we will need to furnish an entire apt or house and rather than buying it ALL at once, I thought I should see what I could do to start the collection.

I ended up calling Corey and told him to meet me at the furniture store to help me decide between 3 bedroom sets.

So, I walked out of there with a yellow slip and a lot poorer, but very excited because next week I can go pick up my (for right now)/ our new bedroom set--it is dark brown wood and includes a king size sleigh bed with 2 drawers at the footboard for extra storage (LOVE this), a tall chest of drawers, a nightstand, and a dresser with a mirror on top. I'm really excited---of course, it will be very tight for now in my house, but that's OK.
:) Exciting stuff, huh? Well...exciting to get it, not buy it. And now I just need to save up for a king size mattress. For now, I will just put my queen on it and it will look silly but who cares until I can afford a nice mattress. We went with King size because it was only going to be 100.00 more for the bed so it just made sense. Plus, Corey likes the idea of having the CHOICE to be far away in case he is hot in the summer. I made him promise me 10 min. of cuddling each night because we laid on a king mattress and I felt SOOOOO far away from him. He's an odd duck but I love him.

Registry Dilemma

Here is my dilemma about wedding registries:

1. I think they are great, because many people can be specific about what they really need or don't have yet in their house.

2. How do you register ahead of time if the stores are just going to change their inventory after Christmas---but every magazine tells you to register around 8 months before your wedding. How do I know what will be in stock still? What if something better comes out? It would be annoying to have to change it a bunch of times. But, of course, some people (like mom & dad) want it before Christmas to shop for me and Corey. Which, by the way, I'm sure Corey can't wait to get a garlic press for Christmas. Haha.

3. OK- here is my REAL dilemma-or question: How many stores should you register at? (Sorry to end a sentence with a preposition. Gross. ) I have family ALL over the country coming and some family members don't have certain stores. Plus, some stores have kitchen things I like and others have decor things I like, etc. Is 4 ridiculous? I don't see why it would be a bother to anyone except the registrant (me) because I have to manage and keep up with 4, but if I am organized I think it will be OK. Thoughts?

It is already confusing because I have a pretty stocked kitchen for a 25 year old single gal. So I need to track what I still need and then figure out what I want new of, and then I can pass my older stuff to my beautiful sisters. More wedding lists....

Sorry if this post sounds vain- it's odd to talk about people buying gifts for me. But, if I were shopping, I would like to have the options available to me.

Also- it is tough to register if you do not know what or where you will live- apt? house? Is storage an issue? Will you need 1 shower curtain or two? What colors do I have to work with? My first apt. had hideous AQUA and PINK tile all over the bathroom. It would have been tragic to have registered for like a red and black zebra shower curtain- you see what I am saying?? If only we knew what STATE we were living in---if only we knew if we would even live together after we get married (for a year we may do distance-also gross). Will we need to pay two rents plus all of Corey's 7 years of college loans? ::sigh::

Our "Not So Scary" Halloween Party [in the snow]

Julie kisses our visiting Mummy for the evening.

So, it started with the idea that we wanted to have our first "party" at OUR house, so we invited about 10 people to come over. Then, it snowed. Crazy. And then only 3 people could come (many were coming from about an hour away so I understood). Julie and I trudged out in the deep snow to get ingredients that morning, and we spent the entire day cleaning, baking, and cooking. and decorating. We had a blast! Here are some of our menu items:

1. "Witches Fingers"- these actually taste really delicious- we didn't use a recipe, but my mom had this idea and passed it along. It was fashionista Julie's idea to "paint" the witch finger nails with red food coloring for sex appeal, of course.


2. Cookies and Scream- also yummy. Thank you to Food Network for this idea. I love that magazine. These are NO BAKE peanut butter and fluff cookies. YUM!


3. Toffee Dip with Cortland Apples


4. These pumpkin cupcakes were so delicious! They had a surprise cinnamon streusel filling and the frosting was homemade cream cheese! YUMMY!


5. Cauldron of fiery cheese dip! SOOOOO addicting.


6. Hot Apple Spider


This was our mini beverage table. The hot cider was a mix of OJ, pineapple juice, a splash of lemon juice, 2 quarts of fresh apple cider, cinnamon sticks (I think I put 2 in), a dash of nutmeg, and I think that is it. I simmered it on the stove for 30 minutes. DELICIOUS! With a bit of tang, too.

I am sorry the photos are dark- I snapped them on my phone and didn't edit them at all. But, you get the idea. Here is what the decor looked like....

Lots of spider webs, candles, old twigs from the backyard, Julie's fun twig pumpkin (Crate & Barrel) and of course all of my awesome Willow House dishes and decor. :) It's nice because our house looks kind of old inside so it was a bit spooky. I tried to capture the pics on my camera, but it decided to die 5 minutes before the party.

The party ended up being a quiet girls night in with good conversation, some wine & cider, lots of laughter, and too many sweets! :) I guess everyone needs that once in awhile. We have leftovers if you are in the area. ;-)

And, in case you don't believe me about the snow- this picture was taken 24 HOURS after it had fallen. Our front yard- still covered the next sunny day. We had around 8 inches, I think.

I am terrible at writing in this blog!

For my current grad class, I need to keep a journal every day for six weeks. So all of my "writing" is going to that journal, and even my efforts there are less than impressive! :-/

Let's see---- what is new:

• Rihanna is amazing. Her songs get me every time. I just downloaded "We Found Love" and I can totally feel the music moving through my body when I hear it. It's like my little radar immediately starts searching for lights in a club. Preferably the one I went to in the enormous city of Seoul, South Korea, where I danced until almost 4 AM (with class the next morning at 8) :) I think this song will be on replay for the next hour. Good thing my sister loves it, too, because she will have to deal with it playing over and over and over...
• Save the Dates- were SENT- for the most part! It makes it more official that the wedding is coming up! I really really can't wait to marry Cor-baby (as my sister Julie calls him ha!)- he has just gotten extra adorable lately. All responsible and stuff...it's cute. I get to see him Friday for the 1st time in 3 weeks. I am hoping for a date night!
  
• I sat at a craft show with mom for SIX hours and we sold nothing. :( What a bummer and a waste of the entire Saturday.
  
• Thanksgiving break (6 days without students) is around the corner. Let's just say this has been the roughest toughest year so far, so I need a break!
  
• Julie and I joined a gym. We did Zumba last Thursday. Result? I couldn't move on Friday.
  

I want to post pictures of the Halloween party that Julie and I had- it was cute and fun to set up, but the snow kept people at home and we had only 3 people show up. :-/ Thank you to Bethany, Korina, and Scarlett for stopping by...but I still made 32 servings of hot cheese dip so it looks like Julie and I will be in a cheese coma until Christmas.

Kisses from Grandpa

The family reunion was a wonderful day of fun catching up with my mom's side of the family.
I only have 3 cousins on my mom's side (and one of those I never see-he wasn't at the reunion) but my mom has lots of cousins around my age, so I am not sure what the technical term is for your relation to your mom's cousins- but anyway, it was great to see them! Two of them have 1 year old children who I hadn't even met yet! Amy has Sophie and she lives in West Virginia now. Her husband was one of the only people missing. And Josh and his wife Erica had baby Tristin. We found out that Amy is pregnant with baby #2, too, so Sophie will be a big sister. She is due in June, so I hope they can still make it to my wedding in July!

Friday- Started with a text from Corey mid-day saying "passed the bar" and I just about freaked out!!!! So proud of him. He did not want to take it again, and I didn't want him to take it again! Once was enough!!! Then, a day in the car- we (dad and I) went from Lititz to pick up Corey near Cherry Hill- saw his new apartment for the first time. The apartment is nice (albeit VERY empty with basically just a mattress on the bedroom floor), the area does not seem nice. From his place, we headed up to Massachusetts. It took us ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL night. I think we were in NJ for about 5 hours. My poor dad was exhausted.

Saturday- Woke up early and headed to The Big Apple in Wrenthem, MA. Ate fresh donuts, homemade spiced hot cider, and a caramel apple. SOOOO GOOD! For lunch, my family went to Papa Gino's for some yummy pizza!!!

Courtney at The Big Apple

Then we went back and rested at Auntie Jo's. My only 2 first cousins who were there (Isaac & Elizabeth) played on the docks and searched for snails and snapping turtles. They live in New York, but we don't get to see them a lot.

Isaac (age 9) catching snails on the dock at Auntie Jo's house. Yes, he is in his pajamas. :)

At night, we headed to the church for the BIG get together to honor my 95 year old great-grandpa. He has slowed down so much and doesn't really talk anymore. I sang Jesus Loves Me to him and he mouthed a few of the words. It was so precious. Then, I put my cheek up to his lips and he kissed my cheek! :) It is very hard to say good-bye to someone who is still sitting in front of you. I don't think I will see him again. But, the memories are good. They transported him to the church in a wheel chair and drove over his recliner so he could rest.

Kisses from Great-Grandpa

At night, we went back to Auntie Linda's and about 25 of us played games and had a great time laughing until 2 AM!!!! I figured since I was only there for a day, I better live it up!

Sunday- We packed up and headed to Boston Airport to drop Courtney off. Then, I rode home with mom and Julie all the way to Lititz. Another day of about 9 hours in the car.

Overall, it was such a wonderful weekend. I had MAJOR post event depression this morning. Didn't want to be back in chool, especially since many of the cousins stayed up there today and were going to the beach in Rhode Island. I hate missing out!!!!

I feel really blessed to have a loving family on both my mom & dad's side. Of course, I didn't get as many pics as I wanted to, and when I did, my terrible camera/camera skills made them turn out weird, but here are a few of my favs.

Hope you all had a fun, fall weekend. The weather was fantastic!!!

Hello, Blog.

Apologize for the hiatus in blogging. My excuse was that I just finished the toughest course of my life. EDUC 570, you almost killed me.
Just submitted my final paper yesterday- came out to 104 pages. That was the second paper in our course of only 9 weeks with an entire textbook to read and a scary final and weekly assignments thrown in there. *Shudder*
Anyway, enough complaining- now that is OVER. 36 credits down, 4 to go!!!!

So this week I will feel as though I have gobs of free time, and no one is here to hang out with. My sister went on vacation and my good friend in Lititz is on her honeymoon this week! :)

I guess to play catch up I will give a list of the recent highlights:

-October started with only one event on the calendar- a wedding- then all of a sudden, I had something planned for every weekend. NICE! :) Last weekend, it was spent with Corey's family. His baby cousin, Matthew Sean, was baptized and then we had a nice lunch at his Aunt and Uncle's house. His Uncle Dominic will be his best man, so it was nice to spend time with him. This weekend was spent with friends- next weekend is spent with mom's family, the following with dad's family, and the last weekend with friends as my sister and I host our first get-together at our house! :)

- One of my best friends, Jen (mentioned above), got married Saturday 10/8 in Bryn Mawr. NICEST weather ever for her wedding, she looked gorgeous, and my date was hot. Duh.

-Three day weekend: LOVED it. I swear- all weekends need to be 3 days. One day to work, one day to relax, and one day to have fun. Makes sense, right? I hung out with Dad and Corey yesterday and today- watched the Eagles roll over and die for like the third time in a row....Cici's pizza buffet....and a shopping trip to Wegmans.

-Corey loves his job. That makes me happy.

-I got TWO new cooking magazines this weekend- and will actually have time to read them since the class of doom is over.

-Upcoming fun weekend- family reunion with mom's side of the family- in New England-in the fall. YES! How pretty! We are going to honor my great-grandfather's life. He is now in the care of hospice and may be joining the angels in heaven soon. He will be 96 next month- so we will get together and love and celebrate him/his legacy.

Hope everyone enjoyed the beautiful weather this weekend. One sad update: My beloved cat, who goes by 400 names, is sick. I woke up at least 3 times each night at odd hours worried about her. This morning I took her to the vet with dad and they ruled out leukemia and her kidneys and liver are OK. Praise the Lord. It only cost $330.00. She has a fever and hasn't been drinking or eating anything. They gave her a shot of antibiotics and I PRAY she feels better soon. I'm obsessed with that beautiful cat- I have had her since I was in like 6th grade.

A New School Year is Upon Us

Well tomorrow September is half over and guess how many school days we have had? 4. Only 4. Due to the crazy natural disasters that PA has uncharacteristically experienced lately, they shut down school during the first week. So we already used our snow days, and they have extended the year later into June. I am convinced we used snow days in Sept. because I am getting married in the summer so I'll conveniently be working right up to my wedding. :-/

Anyway, in the first 4 days....

Honestly, I was nervous about my class lists this year. I knew several of the kids (have taught some for the last 3 years) and it was looking bleak. BUT, I have been pleasantly surprised for the most part. I went from disliking the middle school environment to LOVING being there. My students (all boys & 1 girl) are eating out of the palm of my hand. They participate, pay attention, do their work, and even sing along to my crazy song chants for verb tenses! YES! 12-year old boys singing in class! AMAZING. They don't get my jokes, which I think are stellar, but that's ok. All in time, all in time...


Now, the high school class (only 5 students) is a bit exhausting. I come home ready for a winter hibernation nap daily and eat my way through stress. I have some challenging new students, and some challenging returnees. But I am praying for confidence and wisdom and it hasn't been terrible. Here are some favorite "first 4 days quotes:"

"The most important thing in my life is the Bible. No one can take it from me."--David, age 12

"Let me tell you about my family. Well I can't remember anything...but my mom is age 41." --Rigo, age 12

"My favorite class is ESL- even though it is only the 2nd day of school."--Dan, age 13

"Mizz, even though yer white, can you dance with good moves?" --Manny, age 19

"Miss Palmer, are you gangster? In a gang? Your eyes look dark and puffy like a gang member"--Samuel, age 15

"Oh God, I can't believe I have you for a teacher for the 4th year in a row. Can I leave?"--Karla, age 16, 1st day of school. :) Don't worry, she stayed after school chatting and working with me for an HOUR after school today. She loves me.

"Does anyone have any questions about pronouns or nouns?"-Me
"Yes, when can we leave?"--Bored student

There are about 3 more comments that are too inappropriate to write here. I swear, every year, I have one that just loves to make my face turn bright red by asking random awful questions.
It will be an interesting year to say the least.

Ok--time for bed! I need to be up in like 5 1/2 hours.

cooking up a STORM

One week ago today we were waking up to a flood in the basement. Maybe 6 or so inches of water and all our stuff "floating." While Hurricane Irene went tearing up the East coast I had a storm in my own kitchen cooking and baking.
I tried a few brand new recipes and everything was delicious. It made it bearable to be trapped inside of the house.

Here was my cooking list:

• Fresh Peach Lemonade!
• Pasta Primavera
• Lemon Meringue Pie (with Swiss Meringue!!)
• Bananas Foster Chex Mix
• Hot Ham & Cheese roll
• Beef Pot Pie
• Rhubarb muffins with lemon zest

Many of these things were made with fresh produce and it was a great way to wrap up the flavors of summer. Especially that fresh peach lemonade. You only need 2 fresh peaches and a fresh lemon on hand and you have a delicious drink that tastes like summer.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 4 cups water, divided
• 2 medium peaches, chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 medium lemon, sliced

How-To:

• In a small saucepan, bring 2 cups water, peaches and sugar to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until peaches are tender. Remove from the heat. Cool. Strain, discarding peach skins.
• In a large pitcher, combine the peach mixture, lemon juice and remaining water. Add lemon slices. Serve cold or over ice.