New favorite cookies

2.75 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
0.5 tsp baking powder
1 c butter, thoroughly softened
1.5 c sugar
1 egg
0.75 tsp vanilla extract
0.25 tsp almond extract

1. Preheat to 375F.
2. Mix flour, soda, and powder.
3. In a separate bowl, cream together thoroughly softened butter and sugar. (They're much much better if butter is soft but NOT melted!) Add egg and extracts; blend well. (This recipe is double the "normal" amount of vanilla because I love it. If you're not as crazy about it, or if you're using a very strong extract like Mexican vanilla, knock it down by half.)
4. Combine all ingredients and mix just until blended.
5. Make small teaspoon sized cookies. Cook 8 minutes for soft, 10 minutes for crunchy cookies.

Makes 4 doz.

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I found this recipe on allrecipes.com and it had 1,592 highly positive reviews. A large number of those I read were posted by people with really crazy handles, like "2CUTE4UJAN". Really? It's just so unladylike! You need to read Miss Manners for the web, Jan.

Rinconada Park

Sunday afternoon. (Luke's taking the picture ON HIS PHONE. Did you know phones could do things like that??)

I forgot all about this video, but Ellen (who tells me she's having some Scott withdrawl) reminded me about it. Here he is, adorable and juicy!

Filmed by Ellen last month

In other sister news, Bridget and Kelly have moved to med school and are getting oriented, Lauren went to forensics camp (?), and Karen is all about Bikram yoga. (I took an Ashtanga class tonight and am glowing. I love it. I love my back again. I love you! Love love love.)

Putting words in his mouth

This morning, Luke is fixing things and Scott grabs the screwdriver to play with. He's standing, holding on to the dresser with one hand and pointing the screwdriver at Luke's face with the other, looking very serious.

Luke, doing Scott's voice-over: "Give me your money . . . very slowly, over the next eighteen years."

:)

Looking for a sister/mom/roommate ...

Umm, e-fashion question:



Is it a bad idea for me to wear my socks sticking out of the top of my boots like this? Or rather, how bad an idea is it? Because it's really comfy and cozy, like the grown-up version of carrying a blanket around all day.

Hmm, I'm sure the internet was not intended for this use.

P.S.-- Cute Scott (in our long grass):

Baked Oatmeal

Very good breakfast recipe. I've made it every weekend since I found it!

1-1/2 cups milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla or 0.5 vanilla & 0.5 almond extract
2-1/2 cups oats(quick or old fashioned), uncooked*
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

-Heat oven to 350 degrees.
-In medium bowl, combine milk, eggs, oil and vanilla; mix well. Set aside.
-In 8x8 square casserole pan, combine oats, sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon. Add to liquid ingredients in bowl; blend well. Let stand about 15 minutes.
-Grease casserole pan and pour in mixture. Bake, uncovered, 35 to 45 minutes or until center is almost dry and firm to the touch. Cool slightly before serving.

Recipe from frugalfamilyrecipes.blogspot.com

* Oatmeal is, in my opinion, one of the few things that is worth buying name-brand. I always buy Quaker old-fashioned oats, just like my parents. I am never so hurried that I'd rather eat bad 1-minute oats than good 5-minute oats. When I'm that rushed I eat cereal.

Playtime in the neighborhood

I love our apartment. Our last apartments in Texas had a sign out front that said "Apartment living ... AT ITS BEST" (written with that punctuation and capitalization) and I used to laugh about it, but I would hang a sign like that outside our current home proudly. Living here is like living in a really good grown-up dorm. Our neighbors are cool. We share tools and cookies and breakfast breads. We don't have (or need) AC, so the windows are open in the evenings and the preschoolers hear each other heading out to the courtyard in the evening for playtime.

I feel like this place has the potential for capturing the best of city and country life: clotheslines and gardens in the yard, public transportation and wine festivals downtown just steps from the front door. Plenty of space for us, but I can still vacuum the whole place without unplugging.

Kisses to our little Apt #9.

Scott takes his first solo-with-walker steps
P.S. - THANKS TO ELLEN for being videographer, seamstress, and nanny!