Another teenage girl

I realized it's been awhile since I've blogged about one of my foster kids. Our house has been a whirlwind of activity since last April. We've had 5 kids come into our home, 4 kids leave our home and our child come home from abroad (you can click to read that story). Between kids, work and everything else, I haven't been blogging as much as I want to.
So I figured I'd catch you up on one of the 5 kids (I'll tell you about the others later). After our little man left I was heart broken. But see that's how God is good. He knows what we really need and he sends it our way. Sometimes it means we take a break, sometimes it means he fills the void. This time he filled the void. He sent us a teenage girl. We got the call for a "temporary" placement. Another family was trying to get certified because they wanted her to live with them. It would just be a couple of weeks.....
Spunky K showed up at our door that afternoon. She was a chubby teenage girl with blue hair, lots of piercings and full of attitude. Oh crap, what did we just get ourselves into?? The first two weeks, she spent most of her time with the other family. She really wanted to live with them. She did not want to be with us. Then the news came that they were denied certification. So our "temporary" placement would be a little longer. However she had family out of state that was wanting her.
Spunky K decided to start to get to know us. She was determined to keep us at arms length though. She had a few issues with things like drugs. We handled them as they came up. The more I got to know her, the more I started to like her. She died her hair after about a month of being with us and the piercings slowly started coming out (at least some of them). We never said a word to her about any of it though. If that was what she needed to feel good about herself, then so be it.
Spunky started working out with me. It really boosted her self image. On Mother's day I wanted to do go on a tough hike. I love hiking and I can only get my husband to do it on special occasions. We hadn't done this particular hike for 2 years. I forgot how tough it really was. It's only 3 miles, but it's a steep switchback start and a long loop after. Spunky K had never been hiking in her life. She kept up amazingly. In fact our other foster teenage daughter quit 10 minutes into the hike and wanted to wait for us at the park. I really was impressed with Spunky. She did it and was so proud of herself.
I think our hike was a new start for her. She realized that she could do something hard.
After that Spunky and I started a new leaf. She is an amazing kid who has never really had someone believe in her. She loves babies and old people. She is a talker, and has to get all her words out everyday.
Spunky K is still with us. Her family has not been doing anything. So now the judge is talking about permanency options for her. She wants to stay with us. She is part of our family already.  I introduce her as my daughter. My other teenage daughter has moved on to another foster home, but my two teenage girls get along great, most of the time.

Hot spiced apple cider

Apple cider has never been one of my favorite drinks. It's one of those things I can take it or leave it. That being said, I came across a crock pot recipe I wanted to try. I have a love affair with my crock pot afterall. I'm always up to try new recipes involving my crock pot.

Our winter has been brutally cold so far. I wanted to make a warm treat for the kids when I found this recipe.

Ingredients

 2 quarts (64 ounces or 8 cups) apple cider
Six 3-inch cinnamon sticks, plus more for serving if desired
 1 medium orange
 ⅛ cup cloves
Additional cinnamon sticks for serving.

Instructions
1. Pour apple cider into a 2.5-quart or larger Crock Pot or other slow cooker. Add cinnamon sticks to cider.
2. With a toothpick, poke holes all around the orange, about ½ inch to 1 inch apart. Carefully poke the cloves into the toothpick holes in the orange. Place orange into the cider in the slow cooker.
3. Cook on low for about 4 hours. Ladle into mugs along with an ounce or so of rum if using. Place a cinnamon stick in each glass. Serve.

It was yummy and warmed me right up! The kids even asked for seconds.

19 Years of Marriage

Yep that's right today is our 19th anniversary. We were married when we were very young. Most people we know said we wouldn't last this long, and to be honest there were times I questioned it too. We have been through a lot of ups and downs, but we have made it through! I love my husband with all my heart. He recently shared a little bit of our early story on his face book page. I want to share with you what he wrote

The story of us-

It was 1991. I was on the wrestling team and my friend was Javier Mejia. We had a wrestling match and Javier was over his weight limit. Coach Rodi told me to go find him and tell him if he wasn't cutting weight, that we were going to shave his head. When I found Javier I told him what coach said. From around the other side of him I heard a girls voice say "I don't think so!!" And that was the first time I saw the Girl that I would spend the rest of my life with.

I remember looking at her and thinking "be quiet woman, he has to make weight." She annoyed me but I was excited about the match so I got over pretty quick.

Two weeks later, at another wrestling match, She came up to me and said "Hi, I'm Jenise and this is my friend Janna. She thinks you re cute." And walked away. I was standing there, looking at this girl who I had never met. So we talked and started dating that night. Some time later I went to wrestling practice and Javier was sitting in our circle. "Dude, she broke up with me" he said. I remember being angry with her and saying "what the hell is her problem. Sorry, man. You can do better anyway" of course, I was lying. Even though I was angry with Jenise for breaking my friends heart, I remember thinking she was absolutely gorgeous. Not long after that, Janna broke up with me. When Jenise heard, she felt bad and gave me a hug. I was in love. She said she was sorry that it didn't work out and told me she would write me a letter. She said she expected me to write her back, so I did. My letter was longer than hers and she took it as a challenge. We went back and forth, writing each other about the dumbest things, always writing one more page than the last. She finally quit after my 21 page letter. It was a lot of fun because I felt like we were getting close. But I wasn't Jenises type. I was 6 feet 2 inches and I wrestled at 152 pounds. To put that in perspective, I am currently 230-235 pounds. I was skiiiiiiiiiiiiinny.
We ended up drifting apart a little. Jenise was now a senior and I was a junior. She was dating air force guys and wouldn't even consider a younger guy. We talked to each other in the halls between class and occasionally would talk about her boyfriends with me, but not much beyond that.

One day, Jenise walked up to me in the hall. I was talking to some friends and she pushed her way through them to get to me. She got right in my face and asked me "Do you want to go to prom with me?" At first, I couldn't speak. I didn't think it was real. Somehow I managed to say yes, and she threw her arms around me and gave me a hug. Then walked away. Obviously, my friends thought I was so cool because a senior girl had just asked me to go to prom with her.

Prom night was a dream come true for me. We went with some of her other friends and rented a limo. At the end of the night, I walked Jenise to her door and kissed her goodnight. It was May 2nd, 1992. It was our first kiss. I was so scared and nervous.
After prom Jenise graduated and enlisted in the Navy. We drifted apart again and I had assumed she went in the Navy. Her father had a heart attack right before she was supposed to go to boot camp and she ended up not going. I was enlisted in The Marines but had one more year of high school. I hung out at the recruiters office every day. One night while I was there, a friend of mine, Vanessa Bakeman was there at the Army recruiter. She said she had two more pictures left on her roll of film and wanted to take my picture. Apparently, several months later, Jenise and Vanessa were looking at some pictures and came across mine. Jenise said "Hey, that's my little Vic." Jenise called me her "little Vic" in high school because I was so skinny. Vanessa told her I worked at Vons and that she and I would be a cute couple. Jenise came and saw me at work. She brought her little brother, Matt with her who I think was about 10 years old. When I was bagging her groceries her little brother looked at me and said "my sister likes you." She hit his arm and said "quiet, Matty." I walked her to her car and she stood on the curb of the planter. She kept looking at my chest and shoulders. You see, I had moved out of my parents house at this time so I had to quit wrestling so I could work. When I quit wrestling my weight went from 150 to 185 in a very short time. Jenise started touching my chest and saying "Victor, you are so big now. I guess I cant call you my little Vic anymore."
We never "officially" started dating. After that night Jenise asked me if I wanted to get lunch one day and we did. For the next couple of days we just talked. I was so attracted to her. The problem was, I had a girlfriend named Rozz. And I was in loooove with Rozz. She was one of the most popular girls in school and somehow had taken notice of me when I finally filled out. Rozz and I soon broke up. I was still kind of a dork, even though I was big and had a nice physique and Rozz was still out of my league. Which is why I was so shocked Jenise was interested in me. She was graduated and only dated older military guys. As soon as I told Jenise that Rozz and I broke up, she came over to my house. I was living with my friend David. His family had an extra room and I rented it for $100 a month. Jenise came over and kissed me. She was always the one I wanted, but never thought I had a chance with. To say I was on "cloud 9" is the understatement of the year.

We were inseparable from March until a week before I graduated. I bought her a promise ring for $600 and promised that one day I would marry her. But Jenise was enlisted in the Army and I enlisted in the Marines. With only a couple of days left before I was supposed to go to boot camp, I broke up with Jenise. I didn't think it would work since there were no Marine bases close to any Army bases. She cried a lot. I was the first guy she ever dated who was younger than her and I was the first guy who ever broke up with her. We agreed to stay friends and keep in touch. We wrote letters to each other and stayed in touch.

One day when I was in MCT (Marine Combat Training) I got a letter from her. She said she was getting a medical discharge from the Army and was getting out. She wanted to get married and spend the rest of her life with me. This was in October of 1993. We were married on January 1st, 1994.

That was 19 years ago today. You have since then, become the most important thing in my life. You have brought me more happiness and joy than anything or anyone in my life. I love our story. I love our history together. I love our memories and I love you.


I had to edit it a little because he added some personal stuff that I would rather not share. I am loved by this man and he is loved by me!!

Hot chocolate cookies

Yesterday I told you I tried a new cookie recipe on my kids. Unfortunatly I did not get to taste it, since it has gluten, but the kids and their friends loved them. In fact I had a few kids begging for the recipe for their moms. So I guess that means they are good.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup room temperature butter

1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 1/4 cups flour
4 packages instant cocoa
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips
1 cup mini marshmallows
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add in eggs and vanilla and stir until combined
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, hot cocoa mix, baking soda and baking powder.
5. Add in flour mixture to butter mixture until well combined.
6. Fold in mini marshmallow bits and chocolate chips.
7. Drop by 1 1/2 tablespoon rounds onto parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Bake for 9 – 11 minutes until edges are lightly browned.
9. Remove to wire racks and cool.

They didn't turn out pretty, but like I said the kids loved them. I will have to try this recipe with gluten free flour and see how it tastes for myself.

Paleo chocolate chunk cookies

Being gluten free has not been a huge problem for me. There are a few things I miss though. Homemade chocolate chip cookies used to be a favorite of mine. I could eat almost a whole batch by myself. It took months to be able to make them for the kids again and not have it be a temptation for me. Now I can make them for the kids and I don't even want one.

Billy also has a problem with gluten. He really misses mom's treats. So he went out and bought a bag of coconut flour and asked me if I could make something for him with it. So I started researching recipes and found one for Coconut Chocolate chip cookies. Billy is also intolerant to milk, so I made a few adjustments to the recipe and came up with this.

Ingredients:

1 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup coconut oil
3 TBSP honey
4 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup shredded coconut
3/4 cup gluten free dark chocolate chunks
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Melt the honey and coconut oil in a small pot until the oil is liquid (about 1 minute). In a large bowl, combine the oil/honey mixture, eggs, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the coconut flour, coconut and dark chocolate chunks. Roll dough tightly about golf ball sized, or use a cookie scoop (a small ice cream scoop). Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and slightly flatten (they do not expand or flatten on their own). Bake 11-13 minutes, or until golden brown.

They turned out pretty good. Billy loved them. I liked them better with a glass of milk. They didn't last 24 hours in my cupboard.

Since I made this treat for Billy, I made another new cookie recipe for the other kids. I'll blog the recipe tomorrow.

Pool Table cake

Ok this will be my last cake post of this year. I'm ending it with the best cake I've made to date!

My husband's birthday is 2 days before Christmas. I have always made sure we kept it a separate event and tried to make it fun for him. This year I had a party for him with a lot of our friends. I saved up cash for months to buy him a pool table. I managed to find a great deal on one during the black Friday sale. I was so excited and managed to hide it from him for a month!!

I wanted his cake to go along with his gift. So I started researching pics of pool table cakes other people had made. I found a few of them that I liked and thought I could use. See when I make a cake I like to get ideas from other pics and create. I don't try to replicate what other people have done, just parts of what other people have done.

So back to my cake. I had this idea to make a pool table with balls, a cue stick and some chalk. I wanted it to look as realistic as possible. Here is what I came up with.

I made a double layer German chocolate cake with coconut pecan filling (that's tradition for his birthday). I baked it the night before and put it in the freezer. That way it would be ready for me to decorate. Once I had the two layers trimmed up, I put the filling in the middle and put them together. Then I made my fondant and pulled off sections to color and get ready. I next took some gumballs and covered them in fondant to match pool balls. I cut out little white circles to write the numbers on later. While those set I covered the cake with homemade white frosting so it would be able to hold the fondant on the cake. Once that was done I rolled out a layer of light brown fondant and covered my cake with it. As that set I rolled out strips of fondant to look like the raised edges of a pool table. Once they were on the cake I covered them with short layers of fondant so they would blend. Then I rolled out green fondant and cut it to fit the top (a friend showed me how to make it fit right and still hold it's shape). Once that was done, I cut out 6 circles for the ball holes.

My friend who has made cakes for years came over to help me for an hour. She made the pool cue for me by covering a dowel with fondant. She also helped me put the final dark edges to give the table a more real look. Then I put the black holes in place and scattered the balls around the table.

I am so happy with the final product. This was the hardest cake I have ever made, but it was so much fun! A lot of our friends thought I had it professionally made. At first I was offended, but I realized it was actually a complement. Thanks guys!!

Holiday cupcakes

Christmas is just around the corner. I have been so busy with work, kids and cooking. This year I wanted to make cupcakes for my staff. I didn't have nearly enough time to get everything done. So what I came up with that would be quick and good, was snowflake cupcakes and candycane cupcakes.

For the snowflake cupcakes I used a candy mold. I have never worked with a candy mold before, so I didn't know what to expect the final product to look like. I had envisioned these pretty light blue shapes with little white balls I had positioned and clear sprinkels. Well that's not how they turned out at all! The turned out a little different. The melted candy engulfed the white balls and most of the sprinkles. Here is the final outcome...

I guess I better practice with candy molds a little more.
For my pepperment cupcakes, I used a dual bag method I found on Pinterest. You put frosting in your bags, cut the tip of them off then put them both in another bag together. It worked out great, but it was kind of hard to get the frosting out evenly and a huge mess to refill the bags! The first set turned out quite pretty though.
My cupcakes where white and I used pepperment extract in the frosting to flavor it. They were yummy!!

Next year I will plan a little better and come up with something incredable. My staff liked them as did my kids enjoy the leftovers!