Cookie Monster Magic

I married the ultimate Cookie Monster who devours dozens of chocolate chip cookies a week. I've experimented with a few different recipes but my cookies have always turned out flat and either too crunchy or too soft...until I discovered the magic ingredient: instant cheesecake (or vanilla) pudding mix!
It creates a cake-like center with a crunchy edge. Jeff likes the consistency of the chew and how the cookies stay soft for a while in the cupboard. It's a little sweeter than the normal chocolate chip cookie so I add a little salt.
Here's the recipe:

1 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. white sugar
2 eggs
1 3.4 oz. instant cheesecake pudding mix (the Jell-o brand)
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 Tbs milk
1 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips (or just throw in the small pkg)


DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cream the butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl. Add pudding mix, milk, eggs and vanilla extract. Combine flour, baking soda and salt; add to mixture and mix well. Add the chocolate chips.
3. Drop by tablespoons on baking sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes.

I like this variation because I can choose either vanilla, french vanilla or cheesecake pudding mix. Chocolate chip cookies are all Jeff likes for dessert so this allows me to change up the weekly recipe a little.

Lasting Love

I'm in the mood for love after attending a dear friend's wedding shower this afternoon and watching as my former colleague, Meg Johnson (a TV anchor at WMBD-TV), was proposed to last evening.
Jeff & I attended a Carnivale fundraiser for the MS Society on Friday, which enabled me to chat with many former colleagues who wanted to know the scoop on our marriage. I only have great things to say, I gushed. Marriage gets better and better.
I hope that feeling sustains itself in the coming years. I logged onto Oprah.com in a moment of boredom and there was a link to secrets of lasting love.
The suggestions were:
1. Be nice to your partner and tend to little things like back-rubs, constant affirmation, & gestures that show affection.
2. Deflect anger when the tension rises and get back on an even keel.
3. Attraction is the lifeblood that keeps a marriage happy. Compatibility isn't enough. There needs to be some magnetic pull that draws one person to another.
4. Common goals, not common origins, are key.
5. Nurture a deep friendship and mutual respect.
6. Fight fair. No name calling when the frustration escalates.
7. Keep the balance of exchanges in the positive.

Finding God in Nature

Last night on the phone with my grandmother, she said, "Well, sweetie, it seems like we'll be looking at the sunset while you're looking at snow."

It's easy for me to sense the immediacy of God's presence while watching a blaze of colors dip into the sky along the sandy beaches of Hawaii. It's like meeting our Creator face to face, watching His manifestations in our surroundings...and no one has to explain it to me.

Psalm 19 says:

1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.

3 There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.

4 Their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,

5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

6 It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is hidden from its heat.

A friend struggling with speaking to the Lord in prayer asked me for help. I suggested she take a long walk by the Riverfront (of course it's nicer when it's not frozen over!), take a hike in the woods at Detweiller Park, or stroll the Forest Park Nature Center...and talk to God along the way. Whenever I've been stuck, nature has never failed to facilitate a discussion between me and the Lord. Clarity of thought occurs when I'm first in awe over what the Lord can create and I cannot...and in reverance I can best go before Him in prayer.

Let the Games Begin!

Max the Memory King...He's always frustrated with me for turning over the same mismatched tiles.

"Families that pray & play together, stay together."
If someone asked me to create a family motto, that would be it.
In our house, playing board games is a top priority. Once dishes are cleared from the table, Jeff & the kids debate over which games to play that evening. The TV is almost always turned off in favor of board game interaction.
It's the most fun and enriching habit I've adopted in my life thanks to the addition of Jeff and the kids. The Hopkins clan is most certainly a game-playing bunch and more than anything I look forward to the camaraderie, competition and strategizing involved in the fun. I spent Sunday night playing game rounds with my mother-in-law and Jeff and we had a blast.
I love the tight rapport and paradoxes it produces. It's a great stress-diffuser but it can also create conflict. There's always a winner and a loser. Sometimes you win by strategy, sometimes by luck. It can build teamwork or teach you to think on your own. It's a fabulous connector of people. I'm a big fan of games--except when Jeff wins!

My Funny Valentines

Isn't he cute? I love Jeff's smile!



At M&M World...Watching a 3-D movie...



Ah...Four Winds...Kids can have fun anytime, anywhere!