Greetings from our new home…  our (cozy) Cottage in the Grove.

Cheers, because moving heavy furniture is better with wine.  #Truth

 

This week’s “Cookie of the Week” post has been delayed for just a tad. You see the problem is that the back of our U Haul is just too darn comfy, that and there’s no oven in here.

Ain’t No Livin’ Like U Haul Livin’

As you can see, if there was an intensity level in the negatives that would accurately describe Saturday mornings in the Paulsen house.

A boy, his tablet (plus a stuffed panda), his dog, and a fireplace.

What more does one really need?

 

True story.  A short while ago, the unseasonably warm Autumn weather in Minnesota resulted in bizarre swarms of ladybugs.  Sure enough, a cold spell hit and most of them died, but every now and then one or two would appear.  Randomly in your car.  Strangely enough clinging to your porch window.  They just would not go away.

Well, the day in question was a little windy and I was sauntering into the office (I like to saunter around the office, it just sounds better that way).  Any who, a citizen held open the door for me to enter the building.  I turned to him to say “Thanks” and at that very moment I felt a “thwack” in my right ear.

Not wanting to dig around in my ear with others around, I waited a second and then searched my ear with my pinky (you know nothing bigger than your elbow should go into your ear, although this will of course result in very yucky ear innards).  There I found something perfectly wedged.  Turning my head to the side, it finally popped out and there I found the culprit, a ladybug.

Yep, in Hollywood this real life tale would have been even more dramatic.  The birth of Gentlemanbug (since a male superhero named ladybug just doesn’t make any sense).  Fighting crime, our hero would have hard shell-like bulletproof skin, spots under his clothes, a deep reddish tan, the ability to fly, be vulnerable to cold temps, and sadly have an inferiority complex over anything slightly effeminate.

Now, it’s time to just sit back and wait for the royalty checks to roll in.  A hero is born.

 

Our young pup, Kirby the Beagle, has recently discovered a new passion in life, car rides.  The only rule is simple, Kirby may ride along on random trips around town, as long as he does not leap out of the car and run around like a ninny.  There you have it.  One rule.  He gets to ride along, as long as does not jump out of the car.  Simple.  Effective.  Life should be good.

Well, earlier this week, Kirby happily bounded into the car for a trip to the municipal brush site.  Simple trip.  Take bag of leaves to site.  Empty bag of leaves at site.  Return home.  Plenty for Kirby to see and a clean tiddy backyard for David.  Life was destined to be good.

Upon arriving at the site, there was only one other car accompanied by a man emptying his leaves.  I opened the back of our car to get our final bag of the season.  That’s when the Devil appears to have taken control of our pup.  Yep, as soon as daylight shown between me and the car door, Kirby bolted toward the countless piles of leaves.  Life used to be good.

Kirby experiencing his newfound freedom pranced and jumped up and down in the piles of leaves.  I soon realized that he was far too fast to catch by foot, so I took to commands.  Grumpily, “Kirby!  Sit!”  Authoritative, “Kirby!  Come!”  Desperate and whinny, “Kirby!  Sit!”  That’s when the other fella at the brush site turned to me and said, “It’s going to be hard to get him back.”  Well, thank you, Captain Obvious.  Life was anything, but good.

After a full minute or so of leaping about, Kirby finally stopped to notice that his owner was agitated and a wee bit unhappy.  That’s when Kirby plopped his furry butt down and waited for me to retrieve him.  Depositing Kirby back into the car (he likes to ride shotgun), I soon realized the brilliance of Kirby’s move.  Sure he broke the only rule, but he also provided a surprise out of the blue.  Kirby embraced life.  Kirby shared his silliness and joy with the world.  We should all remember to do the same.  Well, at least until you start making others really mad.  That’s always a good time to stop.  Remember, life is good.

“The popularity of Kombucha (tea) crosses all cultural, socio-economic, religious, and species boundaries!” 

– The Goodness Coffeehouse in Downtown Willmar, Minnesota

Kirby starring in his first advertisement (the mounds of the municipal brush site in the background).  My apologies to “Three’s a Company” for the use of the Regal Beagle reference.  I’m sure that Mr. Roper would forgive me.

 

A real man will stop at nothing to feed his family. Yes, a real man is not afraid to grocery shop, while crossing out items with the use of an extremely bedazzled pink and white pen.  #SelfConfidence #PassItOn #WearYourSunglassesBecauseThisBedazzledPenHasaJobToDo

 

FROSTED FLAKE COOKIES

“True story, several days ago I had a dream about making Frosted Flake based cookies. When I woke up, I had my quest for the day all mapped out for me.  Taking one of my favorite chocolate cookie recipes, I incorporated some Frosted Flakes, but also created a cereal coating that gives this cookie an extra crunch.  Fun, different, and not at all soggy, as my 11-year-old son put it, ‘These cookies are actually pretty good.’  No son, ‘They’re Grrreat!’  Sweet dreams.”

Cookie Ingredients

1¼ cups Butter

2 cups Sugar

2 Eggs

2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

2 cups Flour

¾ cup Baking Cocoa

½ teaspoon Baking Powder

½ teaspoon Baking Soda

½ teaspoon Salt

2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

½ cup Frosted Flakes, crushed

Coating ingredients

2 cups Frosted Flakes, crushed

6 Tablespoons Turbinado Sugar

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar.

Mix in eggs and vanilla extract.

Mix in the flour, baking cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Stir in the chocolate chips and crushed frosted flakes. Set dough aside.

Create the coating mixture by combining the crushed frosted flakes and turbinado sugar.

Take tablespoon sized balls of dough and roll in the frosted flake coating, Snickerdoodle style.

Place frosted flake covered dough balls onto parchment paper lined baking sheets.

Bake for 8 minutes.

 

Makes about 30 cookies.

Revised Source: “Brownie Cookies” recipe featured in my cookie cookbook, “Today is a Great Day for a Cookie,” which is available for free download at www.CookiesbyDave.com.

 

As we checked out with our groceries, it really came as no surprise that my 8-year-old son Sam pointed out a picture of Daniel Craig featured prominently on a Supermarket tabloid. You see, although Sam and his brothers have never seen a James Bond movie, he knows that his mother and I have been known to indulge in 007 films, as our preferred form of mind candy.

Pointing at the magazine and saying, “Look Dad. It’s James Bond!,” Sam read aloud in his charming Third Grader voice, “We made love seven times a night” (quote credited to Daniel Craig’s first girlfriend).  Wonder upon wonder and considering all of my possible responses (ranging from silly to the off color to complete silence), I was quite proud of myself answering in the only appropriate and completely truthful way with a simple “Oh my.”  Well done, dad.  Well done.  #PatMyselfontheBack

It is worth noting that my frontal cortex was mildly fried just looking at the cover of Star Magazine, much less the severe damage, which may have resulted from opening the issue. #PermanentDamageNarrowlyAvoided

 

BLUEBERRY PIE BARS

“In anticipation of our upcoming move, I have been cleaning out our pantry. This has resulted in today’s cookie challenge.  Find a yummy recipe for a random can of blueberry pie filling.  Well lucky us, this week’s recipe is a delight.  A soft chew coupled with an inviting blueberry taste and a smooth glaze, this is plenty of cookie to meet your sweet tooth desires.  So find that random can of pie filling that has been patiently waiting in the back of your pantry, its scrumptious destiny awaits.  Enjoy.”

Bar Ingredients

1 cup Butter

2 cups Sugar

4 Eggs

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

3 cups Flour

1 teaspoon Salt

21 ounce can Blueberry Pie Filling

Glaze Ingredients

2 cups Powdered Sugar

3 Tablespoons Milk

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

½ teaspoon Almond Extract

Fresh Blueberries for garnish

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar.

Mix in the eggs and vanilla extract.

Mix in the flour and salt.

Take ¾ of the dough and press into the bottom of a greased jelly roll pan. Note:  this will be a very sticky endeavor, so be prepared to use a fair amount of flour to coat your hands.  Trust me, these bars are yummy, so this minor inconvenience is well worth it.

Spread the can of blueberry pie filling onto the top of the dough.

Take the remaining ¼ of the dough and drop Tablespoon sized amounts on top of the blueberry filling.

Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is beginning to brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

Let the bars cool on a wire rack.

Prepare the glaze by mixing together the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla extract, and almond extract.

Pour over the top of the cooled bars and spread so that the surface is covered.

Let the glaze set, which takes about one hour.

Cut and serve with fresh blueberries on the side.

 

Makes about 40 bars.

Revised Source: “Blueberry Pie Bars” recipe, as found on www.lecremedelacrumb.com.

 

My biggest laundry pet peeve: inside out clothes placed in the hamper.  Really?  Does it take that much effort to place your dirty clothes in the hamper in the same state that you would like to see them magically reappear in your dresser drawer?

The laundry item that never ceases to amaze me: underwear still in their pants.  Really?  How does this happen?  Do my children actually jump out of their pants and underwear at the same time?  How is this even possible?  Superhuman vertical jumping abilities is my guess.

Laundry early warning sign: layering down below.  As I extracted the underwear from another pair of pants, I saw something that amazed me.  Double layered underwear.  This was new.  This was innovative.  What really amazed me about this was the child.  You see, they were my son Ben’s clothing.  My 6-year-old son who refuses to say goodbye to summer.  The same child who has bravely worn shorts well into November.  In Minnesota.  Well, this child appears to have been warming up by wearing two pairs of underwear at once.  Even more, they were in long pants.  Oh dear, this truly is a warning sign.  A sign that cold weather is upon us (or else he was trying to self-treat hypothermia).  A sign that double ply underwear is now a clothing option worth considering (at least among the first grade crowd).