go ahead, pour yourself a tall glass of milk.

tonight we celebrated... we celebrated that gavin was starting pre-school. we celebrated fall, my favorite season. we celebrated a new & yummy dessert, thanks to kara jayne.

5 minutes in heaven cake, aka chocolate chip bundt cake

1 yellow cake mix with pudding
1 sm. pkg chocolate instant pudding (or use 3/4 of a large box like i did)
1/2 C. sugar
3/4 C. vegetable oil
3/4 C. water
4 large eggs
1 C. sour cream
1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

combine the first 3 ingredients. stir w/ fork or wire whip to remove large lumps. add remaining ingredients except chocolate chips. stir until smooth (i like to use a hand beater). stir in chocolate chips. pour into greased/floured bundt pan. bake @ 350 for approximately 1 hr. cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack in the pan. remove from pan and cool completely. sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve! (just make sure you don't accidentally sprinkle it with baking soda on it, as i almost did! luckily, the crisis was adverted.)

prepare yourself... for something so moist & delicious, you'll have a hard time eating just one slice. trust me, i'm telling you based on experience. oh! &, make sure you have some milk in the fridge, because you definitely will be wanting a glass.

the affair.

I'm feeling a bit a guilty, so I think it's time to confess: For the past couple of months I have been having an affair. If you want to get technical, it's probably more of an occurrence of "two-timing"...

You see, I love to run. That's right, I actually enjoy exercise! And for me, running is where it is at. I love being out on the open road. Feeling the pavement under my sneakers, the wind in my face. Running is "me" time. It's my opportunity to be selfish. As one of my favorite running shirts reads "it's cheaper than therapy." Now that you have a little background, let's get back to explaining the torrid affair.

For Christmas I got a bike. It had been on my list, but I hadn't really put much thought in to it. I'm not a cyclist. I took up spinning that last month or so of my pregnancy, and I thought it was fun. But that was the extent of my cycling experience. Struggling to come up with a Christmas list, I simply listed a bike. There was no make or model described, so you can imagine my surprise when I actually got one. But there was no mistaking it. Bright and early Christmas morning I woke up to a beautiful new bike.

I got it home, and didn't really know what to do with it. I was already running almost daily. When would I ever have time to ride this beautiful bike? Plus how would I ever be able to accomplish this? At least with running I can take the kids in the jogger. Owen is still way too little for a bike trailer. So I decided I needed to get a bike trainer so I could set my bike up indoors and take it for a spin.

Jeff set the trainer up, and for an entire week I couldn't bring myself to get on. I can't explain it, and it sounds totally dumb, but I was nervous. Finally one Saturday, while the boys were napping, the bike and I had our first "date." Boy, what an awkward experience. But I kept at. At first, I was only seeing the bike a couple times a week. But as we became more comfortable with one another, it became a daily experience. Suddenly 3 months had passed. I was still running everyday, but I was also biking everyday. Sometimes it's hard juggling the two, but they are both so much fun, I didn't think I could give up either.

As much fun as I was having, I still didn't feel like I had totally "committed" to the bike. You see, although I was riding nearly every day, we had not gone "all the way." After 3 months of riding, I still had yet to ride the bike outside, on the actual road. So today, I took the plunge. And I am proud to say, I am no longer a virgin biker. This morning (yep I know, chastise me all you want, I admit... I broke the sabbath) I took the bike on a 12 mile loop, and it was awesome! I was scared to death the entire time. Dozens of questions and fears continually ran through my head: What if I fall? What if I can't unclip fast enough? What if I stop on a hill, and have to get going again? What about stop lights? What about going downhill too fast? What if I can't keep up with the group? I am proud to say I encountered, and overcame every single one of fears, including falling. Yep, I fell, but not until the last five minutes of the ride. By then I was feeling confident, maybe too confident. I took a corner too quickly, got stuck in the ridge between the street and the curb, hit the curb and flew off. Luckily I landed on grass. No major injuries, just a bruised ego, and some aches and pains.

All in all, I think this will be an affair to both remember and continue.

note: if you've been reading my blog for a while, you probably already know that this was originally published HERE. but, because i've been spending so much time with my bike, as of late, i thought it was appropriate to re-publish it. (plus riding everywhere on my bike has left me much to tired, & not a lot of time to think of anything new to post.) see... here's proof that not all affairs are one night stands. some affairs can develop into consistent & steady relationships.

sometimes i like to pretend i'm camping.

but without all the bugs, dirt, & tents. sometimes, i just like to indulge in the little "pleasures" of camping, without having to go through all the effort and work. and everyone knows that the BEST part of camping is making s'mores. just thinking about the gooey marshmallow & melted chocolate has me going into sugar shock! yum! luckily, i've found the cure for s'mores deprivation...

s'more cookie bars
ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 (1.55 oz. each) HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bars
1 cup marshmallow creme (or a small handful of mini marshmallows, whatever you have on hand)

directions:
1. heat oven to 350°F. grease 8-inch square baking pan. (you may want to line it with foil, for easy lifting out & cutting)
2. beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. add egg and vanilla; beat well. stir together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt; add to butter mixture, beating until blended. press half of dough into prepared pan.
3. arrange chocolate bars over dough, breaking as needed to fit. spread with marshmallow creme (or mini marshmallows). scatter bits of remaining dough over marshmallow; carefully press to form a layer.
4. bake 30 to 35 minutes or until lightly browned. cool completely in pan on wire rack. cut into bars. 16 bars.

very rich, but oh! so heavenly. it definitely hits the spot!

image via hershey's

it's not easy been green.

actually, to tell you the truth, it's really not that hard & i'm definitely having some fun with it. after having four flat tires in one month, i finally decided maybe it was time to bite the bullet & invest in some new wheels. so two weeks ago i did just that. one week later, i come home from fabulously relaxing & well deserved trip, only to find one of my tires flat again. ay carumba! we haven't quite had time to make it over to the tire shop yet, so i've been chauffeuring the kids around on my bike. i'm actually loving it! it kinda makes running errands, and going to the grocery store - fun. although, i do arrive a little bit sweatier & more disheveled looking than usual. so far, nobody's made any comments yet, about me stinking too much... hopefully if i just load up on the deodorant i'll be good. maybe this will have to become a regular thing! i'm always looking for little ways i can "do my part".

fancy nancy apron

ruffles, tulle & a whole lot of sass! what more could a girl want? any & every little girl would love baking, dancing or twirly in the kitchen, in this hot little number. & with just a touch of gingham, it's perfect for this summer's tie on one apron project.