Camping out on the Sofa.

Last night, in an attempt to make Elisha understand that he was indeed sleepy and needed to go to bed, we set him up on the sofa with his sleeping bag, pillow, a sippy of milk and some Pirate Booty.

I must add that, despite the look on his face, he was happily watching Barbie Nutcracker. I must also add that the ploy did not work and he stayed up way past all of our bedtime... sigh...

Silly Faces.

Sebastian said he wanted to take some pictures for Aunt Jenn. The results follow:

The silly faces of a 5 year old are a precious thing. You are loved, Jenn!

Samoas Goodness!

It is girl scout cookie time. Anyone else notice the crazy price and cookie shrinkage? I was greatly dissapointed when I went to pick up some of my favorite cookies, the Samoas/Caramel Delites. What is a girl to do with the unreasonable price of that cookie goodness? Why, do an internet search and find a recipe, of course.

I came across these Samoas Bars, they also had cookies, but it was quite a laborious recipe, so I opted for the easier bars.

I was pleasantly surprised. While they were not exactly like the cookies, they still tasted very good and satisfied the yummy coconut-caramel craving.

Homemade Samoas BarsCookie Base:

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

First, make the crust. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper. In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepapred pan and press into an even layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.

Topping

3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)

12-oz good-quality chewy caramels

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp milk

10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.
Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping). Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish. Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

How crunchy are you?

What is a crunchy mama, you ask? Well, urban dictionary definition as follows: Mother who supports homebirth, breastfeeding, baby wearing, cloth diapering, co-sleeping, gentle discipline, etc. One who questions established medical authority; tends to be vegetarian and/or prepare all-organic foods. See crunchy and hippie.
Basically, it is parenting in a natural and environmentally minded manner. I would consider myself a crunchy mama, many call me a hippie. And I found an online test to gauge ones crunchiness... whoohoo!

http://www.themoralesfamily.us/granola.htm

So how crunchy does this test say I am?
Out of a possible 225 points, I scored 172: WOW!~Crunchier than Grape Nuts!
I lost points for circumcising and not being able to sew, lol. But I would say that I still ranked decently high on the crazy meter, at least by most of modern society's standards.

So how do you rank?