Egg Hunt

Katelyn and I took the kids (I love saying "the kids" it makes me feel like they are mine) to a couple Easter egg hunts this morning. It was intense. The first one was at a park, and thankfully it was nice outside. There were eggs everywhere in the park, real eggs. Within 45 seconds all the eggs were gone. Jakey and Lauryn got a few but they weren't too excited about having real eggs.

The second egg hunt was inside which I was very thankful for. They had 6,000 eggs! All dumped out on the floors of the mall. We got there 45 minutes early and Lauryn did not want to have to wait. Poor thing. The Easter Bunny was there and she loved giving him (what gender is the Easter Bunny?) hugs. All in all we had a great time. The kids came home with a lot of eggs filled with candy and were wired the rest of the day.

Easter Eggs

We went to Jay's parents house last night to dye Easter eggs. A good time was had by all. Jay really wanted to make an "ugly" egg so he kept dipping his egg in different colors. For some reason his egg would only turn pink, no matter what color combination he tried. Good thing we bought the "anti-brown" coloring.

Kiss the Cook

Andrea asked that I post my recipe for corned beef and cabbage but it is super easy, you follow the directions on the corned beef then cook the cabbage in the left over juices. So there you go.

I made truffles the other day and they were divine. My neighbors took some and then came back a few minutes later for more. The recipe makes about 45 truffles and you will eat them all within the 5-days that they are good for. Trust me. Is it bad that I did Turbo Jam and then ate a truffle as a reward? I added heath bars to the ganache recipe and then rolled the chocolates in crushed up toffee. I think I am going to make a ton of different kinds during General Conference. The truffles are REALLY easy, the only hard part was dipping them in chocolate, does anyone have any tricks on making this easier?

Basic Ganache

12 oz. chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

*The recipe calls for semisweet chocolate which I hate, so I used milk chocolate and it was divine.

Grind the chocolate in a food processor or blender until it reaches the consistency of coarse meal, about 30 seconds. Bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the cream to the food processor and process until smooth, about 10 seconds.

If not using right away, transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate.

Hot Chocolate

6 cups whole milk

1 recipe of Ganache

Pinch kosher salt

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat until simmering. Add the ganache and salt and stir until smith. Serve in mugs with whipped topping.

Truffles

1 recipe Ganache

2 Tbs. butter, softened

1 cup cocoa powder

8 oz. chocolate chips (again, semisweet but I used milk chocolate)

Make the ganache and add the butter to the warm ganache still in the food processor. Process until smooth, about 10 seconds. Transfer to a medium bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.

Put the cocoa in a large bowl.

STEP 1 Using 2 teaspons, drop rounded, heaping teaspoons of truffle mixture onto a large, parchment-lined baking sheet.

STEP 2 When all the truffles are scooped, dip them in the cocoa and use your palms to roll the truffles into smooth 1-inch balls (don't worry about making them perfect; slightly irregular truffles have an appealing homemade appearance). Transfer the truffles to the refrigerator.

Melt the chocolate chips in a medium heatproof bowl set in a small skillet of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Transfer the bowl to a work surface.

STEP 3 Working in batches, use your fingers or a couple of forks to coat the truffles with the melted chocolate.

STEP 4 Coat the chocolates with cocoa or nuts, and return them to the baking sheet.

Let the truffles sit at room temperature at least 15-minutes before serving. If not serving right away, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where they will keep for up to 5 days.

Engagement Anniversary

Is there such a thing as an engagement anniversary? It was one year ago today that my prince charming got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I never really said yes, I didn't actually say anything, for the first time in my life I was speechless. Three months later we were married in the Idaho Falls temple. It was the best wedding you could imagine. After the wedding and pictures we went and got snow cones then got ready for the reception, a bar-b-que in my parents back yard. It was perfect. He is perfect. The past year has been wonderful.

Popcorn Popping

Today my little friend Lauryn came to play with me. We had a grand old time watching "Winnie the Pooh" and "The Rescuers". We decided we wanted some popcorn and since I can't stand the microwave stuff I got out the air popper. Lauryn grabbed a chair and pushed it over the counter so she could see what was going on. She got so excited when the popcorn started popping and over flowing the bowl. I just love watching kids and being able to enjoy the simple things in life.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day has always been a holiday we celebrate in our home. So Jay wasn't too happy when I woke him up by pinching him. The guy has to learn to wear green to bed, otherwise he will get pinched. When I got home there was a cute little message on the mirror, "A leprechan was here (On a ladder of course) What a dork. Since he had to work we weren't able to do the traditional corned beef and cabbage meal but we will be trying it out on Wednesday with Greg and Britt. Wish us luck and Happy Patty's Day!

Spring Break

For Spring Break this year we went to Idaho Falls. The original plan was to stay until Wednesday, come back to Moscow and we would both work for a few days and chill. We arrived in Idaho Falls on Friday night and on Saturday morning we began painting. After Jay showed off his mad "cutting in" skills my parents begged us to stay. Really they just wanted him but we are a package deal. We stayed until the following Saturday. It was AWESOME! My parents added on to the house and they know have a HUGE bedroom with a closet bigger than my bedroom. They added two more bedrooms downstairs for McKayla and Justin so we all have a bedroom now. It will be great when we go home and all have our own rooms. I always felt so guilty kicking Andrew or McKayla out for a week. Although we painted the entire time it was possibly my favorite trip home. We all spent time together. We were in the same room, working together to complete a project. I can't wait to go home again in a few weeks and see it completed.

Sucker

Ok, I am a sucker with capital letters. I am dumb, Jay should take away my credit card. I really wanted a free Digital SLR though, it's not my fault. I got an e-mail that said I could get a free laptop, then when I went to the website it said I could also get a free camera, worth $1500! Now normally I delete these said e-mails but a few months ago I took a chance and did one of them and when I got my check in the mail on Monday for $500 I was a believer.

So the stupid website said complete 2 and you are done. So I did. I completed two. I bought makeup for a dollar plus shipping which I will cancel as soon as I get it and then I bought movies for .49 each plus shipping. I got Goonies, because I have never seen it (I know, I am a loser) some veggie tales and I don't know what else. Then I was done. I clicked wahoo done and then it was my digital camera, all I had to do was complete one more, Disney movies popped up. Could a girl ask for anything more? I signed up for some disney movies, which I may cancel, may not, Jay and I can discuss later. So I started reading the terms how do I get my free laptop and camera. Well, turns out there were hidden pages. I had to complete 4 more things. No biggy right, well this time I was smart and read on. The items on the last page that I could choose from were $1500 a piece! So no laptop, no camera, and 3 different memberships that I have to cancel. I am such a sucker.

I wouldn't post this because it displays for the whole world how stupid I am, but I just wanted to let everyone know, don't click! No matter how great the deal is, don't click!

Humpty Dumpty

My life-saving husband donated blood last week. I am so proud of him for donating. Did you know that 1 in 5 people will need a blood transplant at some point in their life? Anyhow, Jay donated blood and was about to enjoy cookies and juice when he passed out. That's right folks, he passed out. The way he tells it he slid off the chair (very gracefully I'm sure) hit his head on the ground (which made a very loud noise) and his glasses fell and cut his face. So he has a huge goose egg on his forehead and gash on his cheek bone. His glasses are bent and his ego is a little bruised. Apparently everyone heard the loud bang (from his head hitting the ground) and came running. He wasn't concerned that his face was bleeding or that he might have killed brain cells during his passing out, he just wanted to know when they would let him up so he could go to work. He didn't even bother calling me, his wife, to tell me about the experience. I didn't find out until I was off work and on my way to have dinner with him. But alas, if you are one of the five who needs a blood transplant please know that Jay might have risked his life for you.

Bragging Rights

I just want to take a minute and brag about my husband. He is in IBC, the business college at the University of Idaho. It is a very intense program. He has one class that is three hours long but is three different course numbers. So the first few weeks of class was strictly Business 340, he took the test and he is done, he will never be tested on that information again (except in real life when is managing a multi-million dollar business). Anyhow, he just got his grade back and he got an A! I am so proud of him. He studied his butt off for that class, and for all his other classes. It's good he doesn't require a lot of sleep because he is always studying!