“How to stop time… kiss.
How to travel in time… read.
How to escape time… music.
How to feel time… write.
How to release time… breathe.”
–Matt Haig, Reasons to Stay Alive
Time
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Year: 2016
Best-Ever Amish Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
If you are an oatmeal raisin cookie lover……
You know – you love the ones that are crispy around the edges, but caramely chewy with plump sweet raisins on the inside…..
You are going to be in OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIE HEAVEN when you make and taste these amazing Amish Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.
I honestly believe these are the BEST EVER Oatmeal Raisin Cookies on the Planet!
Earth AND Mars!
Get ready to be a Cookie Rock Star when you make these!
Now go get baking! You MUST have these!
Amish Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup softened butter
- 3/4 cup coconut oil or shortening
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup molasses
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
- 3 cups oatmeal
- 1/2 cup buttermilk ( you can make a substitute by adding 1/2 Tbsp white vinegar to milk or half and half and allowing to sit for 5 min as a substitute, and it works perfectly fine!)
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups golden raisins
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Cream together butter, coconut oil or shortening, and granulated sugar until fully incorporated. Add the egg, molasses and vanilla and beat well.
Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl – flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder – and add to creamed butter/sugar mixture. Add buttermilk next, followed by oatmeal. When well combined, gently stir in raisins.
Drop by heaping tablespoon onto baking stone or cookie sheet. Flatten slightly. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool on baking stone/cookie sheet for additional 5 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to cool completely.
Enjoy these amazing cookies (that include some healthy ingredients)!
I cannot wait to hear what you think of them, and I dare you to challenge me to a better oatmeal raisin cookie recipe! 🙂
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
A Bevy of Birthday Best Wishes
I have a number of special February birthdays, so I had fun making a bevy of birthday cards to send out to family and friends. This first one above is my fave (and it is already on its way to a special cousin whose birthday is Monday!). I love the combination of purple, turquoise and yellow, and I used texturizing paste on the watercolor paper before painting to add some fun drama and dimension.
The Paper Players Challenge (PP280) this week is a Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge, so I chose, the diagonal of Purple, Pink, and Yellow which I did in Brusho Watercolor after embossing the coneflower silhouettes on these two cards – one in black and one in white.
Some of you may recognize this card below. I had made this random abstract watercolor a while back, so I topped it off with this fun Happy Birthday Die Cut I cut out in several colors.
For this last one, I splashed some fun green-gold olive and burnt umber watercolor paint and then spritzed it all with some gold glimmer mist.
Wishing all February birthday friends and family the best of birthdays!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
A Morning Mourning Dove
Mourning Dove – Mars, PA 1/12/16
In the silence of early morning
just before the break of dawn,
You are puffed up soft and fluffy,
perched and clinging high atop the tree.
What a bright, warm sight you are
amidst the dark and snowy shadows.
But your haunting lament belies
your soft, yet vibrant allure.
Oh morning Mourning Dove
what conflicting emotions you evoke…
darkness and light,
joy and grief,
morning and mourning.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Charlie: Brothers are the Best
Nick & Charlie 1/31/16
When I moved into my new home six months ago, not only did I get a new mom and and dad, I also got two new brothers (and a sister-in-law and a really nice girlfriend). My brother Nick lives here, and we have sure become buddies.
My brother Jake is married, so he doesn’t live here with us, but I really love when he comes to visit. I will never forget my first day in my new home. Jake came over to meet me right away that first day. He couldn’t wait to meet me, and even though I was very shy back then, I will always remember and appreciate his warm, loving welcome.
Funny to think back those six months ago when I was so afraid and skeptical of people. My how life has changed. I now welcome visitors, have lots of friends, and even enjoy sitting with my brother sometimes in the evening while watching television.
Moms and Dads are great, but Brothers…. they sure are the best!
Woofs & Wags,
Charlie
(apologies for blurry photo – taken in the dark with iPhone – couldn’t resist capturing!)
Swooning over Watercolor
One of my favorite, most inspiration watercolor artists is a sweet lady that lives on the entire other side of the world from me in Mars.
Debi Riley lives all the way in Perth, Australia, but because of a chance connection through WordPress and the World Wide Web, I have the joy of following her lovely work and SWOONING daily.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that she may come to the U.S. some day to visit relatives and find a way to Mars to meet and spend some time showing me how she makes such beautiful magic with paint and paper… I will cook and bake for her and serve lots of wine if only she will show me how to make such swoonable art as she does!
Debi makes it look so effortless, yet when I attempt to do the same…. ARGH! No swooning!
I keep reading, though, and I keep trying to absorb, and I keep laying paint on paper.
This little landscape card, came after two frustrating attempts to do a full-sized painting and not liking what happened. Then I realized I didn’t pay attention to cool colors for background and warm for foreground. After a while, do these types of things become natural? I just want to be loose and free and “do it” without thinking….. but it seems there really is a lot of discipline – even in (if not especially in) abstract art, which ends up looking so effortless.
If you would like to see some truly beautiful art, please be sure to check out Debi Riley’s blog here. Debi is an award-winning creative arts instructor with over 15 years experience who works in watercolor, acrylic, oils, pastels, charcoal, mixed media, and photography. She also has a beautiful Pinterest page here.
In the meantime, I’m going to keep trying, and I appreciate you humoring me by allowing me to share.
Happy Tuesday! Happy Groundhog Day! Happy day to do what makes you happy… at life in between.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Groundhog Day Cupcakes
Tomorrow, February 2nd, is Groundhog Day, a rather silly U.S. holiday, where we wait for a Groundhog (Punxsutawney Phil) to emerge from his burrow and let us know when Spring will arrive.
According to folklore, if the groundhog sees his shadow, winter will last for six more weeks. If he does not, Spring will come early.
Punxsutawney Phil is the “official” Groundhog Day meteorologist. He lives in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, which is only about an hour and a half from Mars. The largest Groundhog Day celebration in the U.S. is held here with an early morning festival and national news coverage.
When my son, Nick, told me he was going to dinner on Sunday at his girlfriend, Liz’s house for a Groundhog Day party, I immediately asked, “Can I make a dessert for you to take?” (Any excuse to bake works for me!)
Seems Groundhog Day is Liz’s dad’s favorite holiday. The family celebrates with a dinner party and an annual viewing of the comedy movie, Groundhog Day.
So I searched for some inspiration on Pinterest and came up with these little cupcakes from things I had in the pantry.
If you are looking for a fun treat to make for Groundhog Day, here is how I made them.
Groundhog Day Cupcakes
Ingredients:
- 1 box Duncan Hines Yellow Cake Mix
- 1 can White Cake Frosting
- 1 can Chocolate Frosting
- 1 bag (12) Lindt’s Lindor Sea Salt & Milk Chocolate Truffles
- 36 small candy eyes (24 for eyes and 12 to cut edges off for tooth)
- 24 chocolate chips
- Chocolate jimmies/sprinkles
- 1 tube black decorative frosting
- Green food coloring
Directions:
Bake cupcakes according to box instructions. Cool completely.
Frost cupcakes with chocolate frosting from center to about 2/3 coverage.
Tint white frosting with green food coloring and pipe around top circle of cupcake. Sprinkle chocolate jimmies on edge of chocolate frosting to appear like “loosened dirt.”
Pipe dabs of chocolate frosting onto truffle where eyes and ears and tooth and chubby cheeks and hair of groundhog head will go (I put some in a Ziploc sandwich bag and cut off small tip of corner) Add eyes, chocolate chips for ears, eye with edges cut off for tooth, and jimmies to top of head. Finish with black frosting dab for nose. Place in center of cupcake to appear like the groundhog is emerging from it’s hole in the ground.
Here’s to hoping Phil sees his shadow!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Neiman Marcus Dip
Next Sunday is the Super Bowl – an annual event in the U.S. that even non-football fans often enjoy just for the great commercials, celebrity national anthem and half-time show, parties, cocktails, beer, and yummy food and SNACKS!
This Neiman Marcus Dip is a MUST-HAVE for Super Bowl parties, whether you are hosting, taking something as a guest to a party you are going to, or just hanging with the family at home.
It is so amazingly easy and even more incredibly addictive and delicious (though probably should not be eaten too often as it is a bit far from healthy, which is probably why it is so amazing!)
I am pretty sure you will be considered a snack dip rock star if you make and serve this to your family and friends.
I first tried this Neiman Marcus Dip at my DIL Colleen’s Christmas Cookie Exchange Party this past December, and I made it for a recent Steelers Playoff game when the family was all over.
And though our Pittsburgh Steelers did not make it to the Super Bowl this year, we will still be watching, and we will surely be snackin’!
So whoever you are rooting for, win or lose, you will still be happy that you had this yummy dip!
Neiman Marcus Dip
Ingredients:
- 4 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 lb bacon, chopped and cooked very crispy
- 1 cup chopped green onions
- 1 cup slivered almonds
- 2 cups mayonnaise
Directions: Mix all together in large bowl and refrigerate at least 2 hours for flavors to meld together well. (The day before is even good.)
Serve with crackers, corn chips, tortilla chips or celery sticks.
Enjoy!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Patient enough to wait
Even in the shadows
of cold, gray winter days
the Rose of Sharon seed pod
glows with vibrant light
and hope
and promise
of pink and purple petals
and green leaves
and summer sunshine
if only
we are
patient enough
to wait.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Funsie Onesies
One of the fun little activities we had at Jackie & Matt’s baby shower was an opportunity, for those that wanted, to create a hand-painted onesie for Baby Ben.
Since I knew I’d be busy at the shower, I made a few ahead of time. A quick search on Pinterest offered tons of cute ideas.
If you are looking for an inexpensive, but unique, creative and personal gift to welcome a new bundle of joy, consider creating your own little funsie onesies with a little fabric paint and a pack of cotton onesies. (Be sure to pre-wash the onesies before painting.)
There are so many cute and creative possibilities!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
the creative life in between 