I made these, I believe, on Monday and we are STILL eating them. Luckily, I cut the entire pan in half and gave the rest away to some girlfriends. They are truly lovely. They are perfectly gooey, kinda like a blondie, with a nice hint of pumpkin.

After I took the shot of these three lovers below, I devoured them. Ok, so I gave a couple of bites to Rt, just so he would stop crying. (Not really. He just whimpered a time or two.)

Bottom line: If you are wanting to make something festive from now until Thanksgiving, this should be it.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares

original recipe by In Good Taste.

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp pumpkin-pie spice (I used a combo of cinnamon, ground ginger and nutmeg instead.)
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 package (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving an overhang on all sides.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, pie spice, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until smooth; beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in pumpkin puree (mixture may appear curdled). Reduce speed to low, and mix in dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely in pan.

Lift cake from pan (using foil as an aid). Peel off foil, and use a serrated knife to cut. These will be thick and gooey, so let cool before cutting.

**********

Earlier last week I asked Twitter what I should do with a can of pumpkin I had recently purchased from Trader Joe’s. Kakaty was kind enough to respond with these goodies. Thank you Kakaty for the perfect idea!

Ok, so I’ve decided to do NaBloPoMo this year. I think I need some sort of pep in my step in these here parts, so this is the only thing I can think of to get me off my ass and start writing more frequently.

This is where I need your help. Is there anything you want to know, want to me to talk about? Anything I’ve mentioned before, but never got around to sharing? I’ve got 30 days to come up with decent material, so help me out a bit, mmmkk?

I did this two years ago during the month of November (so I know I can do it.) However, I was pg with Hola and had nothing better to do. I can say asking your sister-in-law to borrow her laptop during Thanksgiving so you can get your post written seemed a little SILLY, but it was the end of the month and I wasn’t going to lose out on all that work! (why I didn’t bring my own computer, I have no idea. Wait, maybe they didn’t have wireless…..)

Anywho, wish me luck!

e

When I was in college, I attended a formal dance located at the local race track. It was a crazy night filled with me walking across a slippery (beer induced) dance floor, falling on my ass and tearing ligaments in my thumb. At the time, I had no idea what I actually did, but I knew it REALLY hurt. I had to fake it cause the security guards on duty wouldn’t think I was a drunk ass sorority girl, (even though that’s EXACTLY what I was.) (Well, that and the floors WERE slippery. I SWEAR!)

So, next day, I drive my sorry little ass to the emergency room to get checked out. While waiting to be seen, I saw a little girl and her grandmother in the stall next to me. She had hurt her elbow. Somehow, someway, I got the conclusion that the grandmother had pulled on her arm too vigorously and the elbow came out of socket.

Little did I know, this memory would come back and visit me while I was back home in Oklahoma just last month.

Most of our recent trip was spent in Tulsa. Most of my family lives there (besides my bro and his family who are in OKC) and are able to house our larger clan for long periods of time. Prior to my weekend down at my alma mater, we all spent an evening together at my aunt and uncles house. They share some 30 acres with two other couples. They built their house right off of a small pond and house several horses in their barn. It’s a magical place to be.

I was busy following Hola around the property towards the end of this day. My uncle suggested I take a load off and sit down and drink my beer while he watched over Hola until dinner. Hola continued to wander and made his way towards the garage and my uncle followed. Not long after, Hola began crying and my uncle yelled from afar, “he’s fine!”

I thought nothing of it and continued to catch up with one of my cousins, but Hola didn’t stop crying. He just wandered the driveway in utter tears making his way over to where we were. I thought he had had enough of the day and was overtired. I picked him up and walked around with him. Didn’t do much good. I got out my Ergo carrier and took off down the road hoping he’d pass out from the relaxing walk.

All I felt while we were on the walk was his legs squeezing my hips ever so often. Later, I realized he was in physical pain somehow, someway. We spent the next THREE hours with a crying toddler, even treating an imaginary wasp sting on one of his elbows. He really calmed down while we were icing it, but the cold ice distracted him from the original pain. I carried him around the rest of the night. He was better in there. If I tried to take him out, he’d burst into louder hysterics.

I stood throughout dinner, eating at the kitchen island while the rest of the family enjoyed fine wine, steak and salmon around the dining room table. It’s not like anyone else could do any better, so I didn’t mind the burden. (It reminded me when he was a newborn, in the sling. Eating around this large mass in front of me.) I just wished I knew what was wrong with him, so I could help.

Then that trip to the ER long ago dawned on me. All my uncle had said while they were in the garage was that they were walking hand in hand and Hola tripped and went down to his knee, no real fall. BUT, he had been holding onto his hand the entire time.

I then laid him down on the bed. Tears rolled down the sides of his face. He took one hand, crossed over his body to wipe off a tear from the opposite side. THERE. I saw it. He wasn’t using his left arm. AT ALL. I put a small shoe near that same arm. He took his other hand and removed it. The hurt arm had been the one that was hanging down low in the sling, immobile. Even while we iced the hell out of that other elbow, that arm still didn’t move.

It seems SO obvious, yet it wasn’t for such a long time.

Luckily I was with my family when it happened. I then followed my cousin back to his house. He put his twin boys AND Rt down for the night while his wife and I took Hola to Urgent Care, or the “Doc in the Box” as we call it. It was 9p.m by this time and we were really worried about a long wait. The place did close at 10p.m., so the wait wasn’t much more than half an hour. Thank GOD.

Moments after I told the lovely doctor the story and my assumptions, she held Hola’s hand in one hand and her other held his elbow. She began to lift up until she reached a 90 degree angle. Right then, she felt two CLICKS and that was that.

3 minutes later I was putting his pajama top over his head with his arms high in the sky and he didn’t even flinch. He was cured in an instant.

It’s called nursemaid’s elbow or babysitter’s elbow. When the elbow is twisted slightly/pulled out of socket it pinches on a nerve the whole time it is “out.” Poor, poor Hola. We couldn’t help him for so long. He was a trooper, I have to say, for going through that entire ordeal without losing his shit. He was very much in pain, but you could just see it in his eyes. He was trying SO hard not to feel bad.

So, now you know. BE CAREFUL when you are walking hand in hand with your younger children. One weird twist and simple fall could make for a quick and painful trip to the doctor’s office.

e

Wait, is it Friday? Good grief has it taken me a bit to get back into the FmF game. I swear, being out of town makes it truly difficult to get anything accomplished once I get home. There is too much laundry to do. And if I am doing laundry, the kids are messing up every other part of the house. And since Hola climbs onto everything, I keep everything else out of his reach on my counter top. So, it’s a mess too. Luckily, that didn’t keep me from trying the latest Pioneer Woman’s spaghetti. It was super delicious and quite easy to make. I added chicken to mine, since hubs doesn’t like artichoke that much, but the funny part about that is, he ate the entire thing, not once mentioning or caring they were in the meal. I’d say that is great success. The hearts broke down in layers as this meal cooked. That and the parmeasan made for a lovely flavor. Light and hearty too.

Chicken Spaghetti with Artichoke Hearts and Tomatoes

2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
1 14.5 ounce can artichoke hearts, drained
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup heavy cream (I used half & half.)
1/2 cup chicken broth
salt & pepper to taste
1 pound thin spaghetti
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbs chopped chives/basil or parsley

Cook spaghetti till al dente. Drain and set aside.

Melt olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Add artichoke hearts and tomatoes. Stir and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in cream and chicken broth. Add salt (a decent amount!) and pepper to taste. Cook over low heat until heated through, then turn off heat.

Place drained pasta in a large bowl. Sprinkle with 1 cup Parmesan. Pour sauce over the top. Add chopped chives. Toss lightly to combine and coat; add a tiny bit of reserved pasta water if sauce seems too thick.

(This makes a whole LOTTA pasta. So, if this is just for a party of two, then split it. We’ve got noodles over here for days. Think I should freeze the rest for a night I don’t want to cook anything.)

Enjoy!

e

How do I know this? Cause today is Hola’s half birthday. 18 whole months old baby! My father-in-law shot this picture of him while we were camping in Yosemite this past weekend. It just might be one of my favorite photos of him EVER. It captures his essence, his spirit, his eyes and that toofy grin.

It’s been an amazing ride, this little one. He has kept me on my toes more than I ever thought possible. He is a gift and no matter what he gets into, on top of, jumps off of, he has this spirit about him that I hope to never deflate.

Here’s to you little one. You’re my little daredevil. Thank God you’re my second child. Otherwise, I’d be committed by now.

e

What we thought was going to be an enjoyable family reunion camping in Yosemite with over 30 of hub’s extended family turned into hoping the 4 1/2 yr old wouldn’t vomit for a 6th time, cause there was no other place to put it.

I know. Gross.

Just think how we felt stuck in a tent in 30 degree weather dealing with the mess? There is only so much you can do under those circumstances. I recall looking at hubs around the 3:30am mark wondering if there was anything worse than WHAT WAS HAPPENING TO US IN THAT VERY MOMENT? (Yes, there are plenty of things that are worse,) but this was, MESSY.

And it stunk.

And I don’t do well in the smell department.

All was well, at first. We got to our campsite late afternoon on Friday. We set up our tent, the pack ‘n play was assembled, and the food was stored in the bear bins. (You can leave NOTHING out because the bears, squirrels, and crow birds will come and destroy everything for that one peanut m & m you left behind.)

Rt had drank a large amount of water when we got there, then complained of a stomach ache not long after. He did look a little peak-ed but he had only barfed once before in his life, during the night, so we had no idea what to look for in regards to “signs of the puke a coming.”

Hubs carried him around a bit, hoping he’d come around soon. Moments later, he heard some gurgling sounds and immediately turned him around and leaned him over. Round 1 complete! Moments later Round 2 showed its horrible self.

And that was that.

This is where it got confusing. Was it car sickness? He had played his Leapster almost the whole way down, so we thought that may had been it. OR, it could have been the NASTY chicken planks he ate from Burger King. It was so nice they had apple fries and a low fat milk to go with his order, but those fried pieces of friedness with a bit o’ chicken in the middle is no healthy eating. We thought the food could have been the culprit.

Rt started to perk up, began playing more with the other kids and seemed mostly himself by dinner time. So, what did we give him? Mac ‘n cheese, a smore, and another marshmallow for good measure. He was put to bed around 8:30pm and we really didn’t think much more of it.

HOW COULD WE BE SO WRONG?

We didn’t check back in with the tent until 10:30pm. As I unzipped the zipper, I smelled a hint of something just “wrong” coming from inside. I made my discovery known and hubs went in with a flashlight to scope out the situation. We saw a little bit on his pillow in front of his face and honestly thought it wasn’t all that bad until hubs rolled him back some more to see he was sleeping in a whole PILE of mess.

DUDE.

So, we stripped the pillowcase, took off his sleeper (the only warm item we had for him to sleep in) along with his long underwear top. We had to put the remains in the bear bin so the animals wouldn’t come after it, but the thought of adding those clothes next to our food was even more nauseating. We then used a few dozen wipes to “clean” the sleeping bag edges and got in bed for a long, long, night of really no sleep.

12:45am, the gurgling sound again. In 2 seconds flat, the barf bag was put under his face while the other person turned on the overhead tent light. Small mess, but the ordeal woke the toddler who was doing JUST FINE in his pack ‘n play up until we disturbed his sleep.

So, I put him in my bag, the light was turned off and we hoped, again, to fall asleep at SOME POINT in the night.

3:30am. Cough cough. We now have hit the dry heave stage. THANK GOD. As the boy was recovering from his last effort, he mentioned how he didn’t like throwing up. Poor thing! We got through it, even faster than the time before and we all settled in for the night, once again. (Not sure, even at this point, if we had fallen asleep at all. Maybe 30 minutes?)

7:15am DAY LIGHT. HOORAH!!!! (so 7:15 minus 3:30 = 3 hours and change of sleep. Not TOO bad.)

The first thing Rt said when we all of us got up was, “I love camping!”

Got to love that kid. Luckily, that was the last of the vomit sessions and he came around as the day went on. We had a blast, spent lots of time with family, took a couple of bike rides around the valley gazing at all the rock formations, enjoyed some great campfire food, and took a large amount of photos to capture the moments forever.

Can’t wait to go back next year.

e

Heading to Yosemite tomorrow with the family to meet up with the rest of hubs entire clan for a reunion of sorts. I still can’t believe we are camping with a 17 month old (PLUS a 4 1/2 yr old.) We are bringing our pack ‘n play and the 4 of us are sleeping in a 5-man tent. (HALP!)

Can you say a little somethin somethin to someone who “matters” for us? I am desperately hoping we get some sleep out of this deal. Nothing is worse than camping AND being a crab apple ESPECIALLY with little ones to coral and such. This girl is already pooped from last weeks 10-day extravaganza.

And I thought we never got out much. Boy, do I need to rethink that one!

e

Hey. It’s me! Mel. I’ve been out of the country, washing my hair….

No, I’ve been in Oklahoma attending a wedding, hanging out with my family and spending some “alone” time at my alma mater.

I’ll be back at some point with some interesting tidbits from my trip. It includes a late night trip to the doc in the box for a mysterious injury of my 17 mo. old. Let’s just say I had to hold a crying child for FOUR hours until we figured out the cause of his terrible anguish.

stay tuned!
e

p.s. Did I mention hubs did not come with us on our trip? That means I have spent this entire WEEK being main caretaker of these puppies.

Send help! And wine.