Adele, through a 2 year old...

So, a couple of days ago we were driving along when Kennady decided to break out in song. What song you might ask? Adele's song, "Someone Like You" is the answer. For your viewing pleasure & for video proof that she's always wanted to be a singer when she auditions for American Idol in 13 years, I just so happened to catch a bit of it on video. Ignore the horrible key changes & riffs & appreciate with another mother (who knows this too well) that this little lady proves that nothing is missed in the midst of a 2-year-old. 

They.Hear.Everything. :) 

The REAL words:

Never mind, I'll find someone like you
I wish nothing but the best for you too
Don't forget me, I beg
I remember you said,
"Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead,
Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead."

Now, Kennady's version:

P.S. Prior to this episode, I knew that she knew a couple of the words, but didn't know she had it in her to nail her solo so well.  Ohhh, how I love her so.

Cookie Exchange Goodness

After we returned from our trip to Vegas, the spouses of our squadron had a big ornament & cookie exchange Christmas party. It was my first ever cookie exchange to be a part of & I had such a good time. There were at least 30 women in attendance that all brought at least 2 dozen homemade cookies each. That makes a total of 600+ cookies, ya'll! Nothing about that could be a bad thing, right?! Well, okay...if we're really going to answer that question, the answer would be yes...there is everything wrong with a collection of 14,000 calories (pure guesstimation of course) sitting on a table for all in attendance to collect whatever their gluttonous hearts desired. We were all given a cute Christmas bag to fill up with at least one of every cookie presented. There were still quite a few leftover after we all finished grab-bagging & man were there some YUMMY cookies! Amazingly enough, not even ONE set of cookies was the same as the others. We had 30 completely different cookies and recipes presented which made it even cooler.

 

Can we say a little OVERKILL, but beautiful all the same? :)

I made Peanut Butter Blossoms & have to admit, I thought they were the BEST peanut butter cookie I have ever had. It may have helped that instead of the regular chocolate kiss, I use the white/milk chocolate swirl Kisses instead or that they were rolled in pure sugar previous to baking. Still, they were SOOO good. I actually made twice as much dough as I needed (accidentally on purpose ;)) & still have the other half calling my name in the freezer. I have put off making them yet seeing as how they are the total opposite of what I NEED right now, as I'm trying to recover from this cookie exchange party & all of the other calories I took in over the Holidays. I thought I would share the recipe with you because it was just.that.good.

Peanut Butter Blossoms (Cookie Exchange Quantity...7 Dozen...eek!)

1/2

cup granulated sugar

1

cup packed brown sugar

1

cup creamy peanut butter

1

cup butter or margarine, softened

2

eggs

3

cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

1 1/2

teaspoons baking soda

1

teaspoon baking powder

Additional granulated sugar (about 2 tablespoons)

About 7 dozen Hershey's® Kisses® Brand milk chocolates

• 1Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, beat 1/2 cup granulated sugar, the brown sugar, peanut butter, butter and eggs with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour, baking soda and baking powder.
• 2Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in additional granulated sugar. Place about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
• 3Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are light brown. Immediately press 1 chocolate candy in center of each cookie. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

Here they are in all of their beauty: MMMM, MMMMM, MMMMMMMM...

 Have you had these or are you willing to try to make them? I wouldn't blame you if you did. They're pretty irresistible.  :) Sidenote: the amount can be adjusted via the Betty Crocker website to fit your needs. Happy Baking!

Feelin' Lucky...

Whew! I have a bit of posting to do to catch you all up on our crazy adventures this past month. Chad & I heard through the air force base grapevine that there was a plane flying to Las Vegas for a 4-day trip. It just so happened to be conveniently scheduled for the same weekend that our friends from Little Rock, the Webbs, would be there for a graduation celebration. It was perfect timing, really spontaneous, quite cheap for a Vegas trip, & we had a babysitter (my momma) all set up; so off we went & it was a blast! We stayed at the Flamingo again & still love it's location. It's perfectly situated for easy access to everything we like to do and see.

We had a wonderful dinner before the Jabbawockeez show at Cabo Wabo near the entrance of Planet Hollywood. Our friend Laura was our waitress, so that was an extra-cool bonus. She was also the awesome photographer who snapped this photo for us!

 Cassandra & I stopped getting our groove on for a second at Rok to snap a pic. So fun hanging out with her again!

Chad & I had a lot of alone time, got to eat some good food, see some fun shows, & spend some quality time with our friends in the city of lights! We saw the Vegas! Variety Show at Planet Hollywood & the Jabbawockeez, winners of America's Best Dance Crew, at the Monte Carlo. Both were fun and exciting shows with music and dancing. We also got to meet up with Chad's best friend from college, Joey, & his wife Laura who are temporarily (6 months) living there. We had a couple of late-night Blueberry Hill Cafe snacks with them & it was so great to catch up on each other's lives.  We walked A LOT, shopped through the awesome shoppes at Caesars Palace, explored the new City Center hotels & shops, gambled at Bill's Gambling Hall, went to the Rok club at New York, New York & really enjoyed our trip. It was a great getaway & we can now say that we have traveled 'Space A' on a C-130. It was a very laid back experience & one that I would definitely do again...especially since it's FREE! :)

More to come on how we have spent the last 3 weeks of December 2011!