“May I share with you a formula that in my judgment will help you and help me to journey well through mortality… First, fill your mind with truth; second, fill your life with service; and third, fill your heart with love.”
― Thomas S. Monson
Cursed Counter
If you’ve seen the counter on the right side of my blog, you may have noticed that my cute little boy in Siberia will be home in just over 300 days. This sweet little timer makes me happy every time I look at it–especially since it has finally slipped below the year mark.
So, you can imagine my…ummm…dismay when I opened up my laptop the other day and saw…
this. Dismay is too calm of a word–more like heart attack!
Now, I’ll admit, every once in a while a missionary has been known to ask for an extension so that he can stay in his country a bit longer. But…what the…a TWELVE YEAR extension?!!
I think not.
Don’t even try it buster.
I know how to swim.
The Perfect Model
I asked Miss Chompy if she would let me take some pictures of her wearing the pretty little crocheted headbands that I’d just finished for the shop. She said, “Sure, Drammy.”
So, I ran to get my camera and by the time I came back…well, the Ladybug was ready for our photo session.
Now, why didn’t I think of wearing them that way?
Heh, heh.
Wicked Buttermilk Syrup
Last week, in the French Toast post, I casually mentioned “…serve with Buttermilk Syrup.”
I assumed that there were others on the earth, like me, that would actually lick the plate clean of every last drop of this glorious, syrup of the gods. And that’s only because I haven’t figured out how to hook it up intravenously. Little did I know that apparently everyone doesn’t have Buttermilk Syrup sitting around in a jeweled flask–oh, the shame.
In fact, some folks have never even heard of it. Yikes.
That will be corrected this very minute.
Ingredients:
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
1 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp corn syrup
2 tsp baking soda
1 -1/2 tsp vanilla
Directions:
*Note: You will need a large pot for this recipe–bigger than you think. The baking soda will cause it to foam more than twice it’s original volume…so be ready.
In a large pot combine butter, sugar, buttermilk and corn syrup and bring to a boil. Allow to boil for about 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and add baking soda and allow it to bubble up. Add the vanilla and stir. Mixture will thicken as it cools. Serve on pancakes, waffles, French Toast or scones.
Or just hook up an IV.
Either way.
Wicked Buttermilk Syrup
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 Tbsp corn syrup
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 -1/2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- In a large pot combine butter, sugar, buttermilk and corn syrup and bring to a boil.
- Allow to boil for about 3 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add baking soda and allow it to bubble up.
- Add the vanilla and stir.
- Mixture will thicken as it cools.
- Serve on pancakes, waffles, French Toast or scones.
Notes
*Note: You will need a large pot for this recipe--bigger than you think. The baking soda will cause it to foam more than twice it's original volume...so be ready.
Bird Watch
Now, I know that you have seen more beautiful bird pictures in your life–and I’ve certainly posted better ones myself, a million times. But there’s something very special about these ones, so lame or not, I’m sharing them with you.
You see, for several months now, I’ve completely neglected the bird feeders and left those lovely birdies that we love so much, to find food…elsewhere. Sounds heartless, I know, but I had a good reason, or at least it feels like one to me.
Not too long after I posted this, a sad, terrible thing happened. One afternoon, Lyndi sat watching a pretty little finch nibbling away at the seeds in the feeder–happy as a clam. When from out of nowhere, the ugly, rotten, loser, orange cat from across the fence sprang up onto the deck, and in one fluid motion, grabbed the bird and dove back down. Just like that. No warning whatsoever.
Maybe, if your not an avid bird watcher, you’ll think this is silly, but honestly, it broke my heart. It was so awful to think that now the birds wouldn’t be able to trust our yard and wouldn’t come around anymore because, it wasn’t safe. After all our work to lure them here just so we could watch them. I have two cats of my own, for Pete’s sake, but they would never do such a thing. And now, we would be known in the feathered kingdom as the “bird slayers.”
It’s been months now since we’ve seen any of our sweet little friends, so when I looked out the window this morning and saw this brave little orange finch, I snapped pictures as quickly as I could. She just sat there…waiting. It was like she was asking us if, after all this time, it’s safe to come back now.
Trouble is, I have no idea. And I don’t really want to put more seeds out with the “cat from the dark realm” still lurking about. So, I still need to figure out a safe way to feed them, and enjoy them, that doesn’t make them…bait.
Do you have any ideas?
Because, really, really…I think they miss us too.
