Just write something…

Today I decided I need to start writing on my blog again. I just couldn’t decide what to write.  So I’ll do some eeny-meeny-miney-moe and get back at ya.

Pastel de Tres Leches.

This cake is not good for you, but, in the words of Ferris Bueller, or my brother, or both: “It is so choice.”

So here we go, as promised:

Pastel de Tres Leches/Three Milk Cake

Recipe by Kris Rudolph
Yield 1 cake – 12-15 slices

Ingredients:
2 Cups flour
1 Tablespoons baking powder
1 Teaspoon salt
7 eggs
1 Cup sugar
3/4 Cups milk
2 Tablespoons vanilla
13 ounces sweetened condensed milk
14 ounces evaporated milk
1 Cup cream
2 Cups whipped cream
Procedure:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease two 9-inch cake pans.
3. Place the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and blend.
4. Separate the 7 eggs. Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form, then slowly adding in the flour mixture.
5. Add the sugar, milk, vanilla and egg yolks to the egg whites. Beat one minute.
6. Pour the batter into the cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes or until done.
7. While the cake is in the oven, whip the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk & cream in a blender,
8. Once you remove the cake from the oven, place the two layers onto separate large trays with a rim. Start pouring the three milks onto the hot cake, using a toothpick to prick the cake and help the milk soak in. (This step must be done while the cake is hot.) All the milk should be absorbed. Don’t stop until it is.
9. Spread fresh whipped cream on one layer. Carefully stack the second layer on top, then decorate the cake with more fresh whipped cream. (You can omit or reduce the sugar from the whipped cream because the cake is so sweet.)
Variation: Chocolate Tres Leches Cake
Add 1/4 Cup milk and 1/4 Cup cocoa to the batter. Also add 1/4 cup cocoa to your whipped cream.

I don’t know who “Kris” is, but he/she deserves a delicious medal of honor for posting it in some random corner of the world wide web so that I could find it.

I think it’s time to try the chocolate version.

One last pic:

Cake.

If there is one thing I learned from the movie Labyrinth, it is you never, ever say “It’s a piece a cake!”

Words of wisdom, my friends. Words of wisdom.  What do David Bowie movies have to do with this post?  Nothing.  Absolutely nothing.

All right, that being said, it’s time to catch up on some family events that should have been posted when they happened last year. The theme here: Cake. Birthday, to be exact.

Chunk #1 asked for a Lego Cake. That blue one is a single stud Lego. His idea and I loved it.  (No, I don’t do fondant) (Yes, I probably should in order to make the cake look better) (No, it probably won’t ever happen because nothing beats homemade frosting.)  (Yes, that’s what I said, Nothing).

Chunk #2 asked for a penguin cake. I’d like to point out the nest of chocolate rocks in preparation for this penguin’s babies. The Chunks’ idea. So funny.

El Jefe was down with me making him a Tres Leches cake. It was an experiment and it was bombdiggity. I should share the recipe. It’s here somewhere……..

While I look for it, here’s a better view:

This was probably the best cake I’ve ever made in my life. In my life.  In. My. Life.

And let’s not forget the birthday boys and girl posing with the birthday cakes:

Chunk #1 trying to control his enthusiasm.

Chunk #2 loves her little friend (please note the added marshmallow/”egg”).

And “Sloth love [this] Chunk” 🙂

Good times…Here’s to a new year of actually posting these things when they happen….. XOXO …..

Animal

So, I haven’t given any indication on the blog about the latest schooling decisions, but we had some major changes. In August of last year I decided to homeschool the Chunks. Reasons: a) I’ve always wanted to and b) I felt good about the timing. Really. The timing felt good. This detail is very important in the history of my little family because well, so many things happened after that.

More on that later. I just want to focus on this girl:

So, we homeschooled from August to December. After Christmas, I decided it would be good for us if the kids went back to public school, at least for the rest of this year.  The morning of the first day, this girl was up and at ’em, a clear indication that she was excited.  I was glad because I mostly worried about the transition for her more than Chunk #1.  She had only attended public school for kindergarten and never had a six-hour day.  But her enthusiasm made me think she would be ok.

She was ok.  Except for one little detail.  You see, about a year ago Chunk #2 had a habit of sucking her lips so hard that the skin around them would turn red.  She looked like she had lipstick on or a really strange rash.  The habit stopped and I hadn’t thought about it again…..until she got home from school on January 3rd.  It was back,  along with a very clear light bulb.  Ah, it’s a nervous habit!  No doy!

So we talked.  We talked about feeling safe, about being loved by mommy, about having her friends back (she was soooooo glad to see her old friend, let’s call her Guadalupe).  I also made a joke – I said: “When you get nervous and start sucking your lip, think of Animal in the Muppet Movie.  Just say ‘under control’ just like Animal.”  This made her laugh (just go see the Muppet Movie for your reference).

The next day I picked her up and she updated me on her lip-sucking progress.  “Mom, when I went to suck my lips I did what you said.  I said ‘under control’ and I didn’t suck my lips.”

“Did you actually say ‘under control’ or think it?”

“I whispered it to myself” (lots of giggling).

“Did anybody hear you?” This was a casual question, really.

“No, I don’t think so,” still giggling.

This made me laugh.  In my exaggerated motherly concern I imagined “the new homeschooled girl” off in a corner of the classroom whispering to herself “under control” in the voice of the most incomprehensible muppet.  It was a great image. All she needed was a mouthful of paste.  Aaaah the things I think about when it comes to my kids.

Oh well, she is like a Muppet.  In any case, she seems to be transitioning well.   She is still a little shy but has made more friends and enjoys all the perks of being a first grader (you know, P.E, Art, etc…..). 

FYI, if you were wondering when the early morning enthusiasm would end, it only took about a week.

Sun-chip

A real one.

The new blog

Photo by La

I’ve brought to fruition a tiny seed that was planted in my brain approximately one year ago. How’s that for procrastination? “Well, what is it?” You may ask. 

I have a new blog.

“But, La, your blog is so, so, Rad!” you may say. “Don’t leave Rad!” No, no. That won’t happen. All four of you just settle down now.

I’ve started my writing blog.   For a long time I’ve felt like I’ve been straddling two pathways in my, er,  blogging journey.  On the one hand, I love writing about my kids and their experiences and my experience as a mother.  On the other hand I just want to delve into more writing and discipline myself.  The problem was the possible exploitation of my home life and making my family vulnerable to strangers. This blog is for family and friends.  Anytime I joined writing prompts and essentially invited strangers to my world, I felt the shadow of a cringe in the back of my head. I need to leave my children, and their pictures, out of it.  Solution?  Two blogs.

   So, the blog, here, is “Us” represented by me.  The other blog, over there, is “Me” represented by me, and an opportunity to step into a new writing community. 

(How reliable the narration is on either blog is yet to be seen). 

For more Chunk shinanigans and Mamacheetah musings, stay tuned.  For a glimpse at some other writing, please go check out the new place:  “My Blue Bungalow”. 

And if neither interests you, well, then what are you doing here in the first place?

I haven’t gone running for about a year…

…but this poster makes me want to run again —  so I can think about it  —  and crack up as I go…

Source: Uploaded by user via Jenn on Pinterest

(Good ol’ pinterest…)

Looking back #3

Last May we went to check out some birds at the Springs Preserve. As you can see, it was a thrilling event.

I liked it because I finally got to see what a falconer does. We also saw some ginormous owls. I can’t remember everything about the bird show but I’m bringing up this memory because of these little baby Bald Eagles.

Not only did we get a close-up view, but we had a chance to pet these little guys. Cute aren’t they?  Sweet.  Adorable.  Innocent.  One might even forget that they grow up to be keen-eyed, noble, predators. 

Maybe it’s that her fingers are about the size of a juicy worm (although, I’m aware that’s not what Bald Eagles feed their babies), maybe it’s that the baby Bald Eagle was protecting his sibling, but poor Chunk #1 got a nipped by the middle guy  while petting the green-headed one.  Suddenly these little featherless balls weren’t so cute anymore.

She was brave, she held in those tears until we walked away from the crowd.  But when the time was right . . . well . . . you know.

****Post Edit: Ok, so  I was curious what baby bald eagles eat.  I googled it and discovered that sometimes, in a nest, the older eaglet (especially if she is female) will kill the younger eaglet. The parents just look on and don’t stop it.  I would say Chunk #2 was lucky wouldn’t you?

Looking back #2

On March of this year we went to San Diego (yes, I am playing serious catch-up on this Rad blog). We went with a home school group to Sea World, and no, we weren’t home schooling back then but I believe in not letting school get in the way of my children’s education (thanks Mark Twain). My incredible niece, let’s call her “Chuck”, allowed us to stay with her and her hubby and then she accompanied us to Sea World.

Touching this starfish was a big accomplishment (Chunk #1 would have nothing to do with it)

Chunk #2 gave this Dolphin the endearing name of  “Dolphy”.  Later, after she was splashed, she felt differently.

At the temple

Ain’t she great?

The next day we did our usual trip to the Mormon Battalion

After this I went looking for the IKEA.  I thought for sure I could remember where it was.  I couldn’t.  After passing the zoo twice, the historic district and a certain mall five times, I gave up.  The Chunks were patient but very tired so I headed for La Jolla and we found-

The. Best. Tide-pool. Beach. Ever.

It was a Thursday afternoon.  No one was around.  This was OUR beach (for about an hour anyway). It was one of those perfect moments in my life.

Chunk #1, you told me that your favorite part of this beach was seeing the little crabs and seashells and sea anemones.
Chunk #2, your favorite memory of this beach was touching the sea anemones that were covered in sea shells.

11/11/11 at 11:11 am

Dear Chunks,

         One day when you look back on your life, I want you to know that on the 11th day of the 11th month in the 11th year of this century, you were at a Veteran’s Day Parade. We went and got doughnuts at the shop down the street called Real Doughnuts. You two brought your scooters. We parked at LVA, walked/scooted up 6th street so I could say my usual “See that parking lot right there, the one with the half naked statue of ‘Justice’? That’s where your grandpa used to live.” Then we headed to the 5th street school and I said my usual, “This is where your grandpa went to school” ( One day you’ll start saying “We know, Mom!” Until then, I will just keep saying it). We watched the parade and I got weepy at the Pearl Harbor survivors. I also got teary-eyed when the bag-pipes played and when the mothers of fallen vets marched or rode by with life size pictures of their sons and daughters. At 11:11 am, Veterans were handing you your own American Flags to wave during the parade. I also want you to know that it was the last time we would see Pearl Harbor survivors in this parade since there are only a handful left in our town and the youngest is 89 years old. You were there. That may be your only connection to that time. When we got home, you pulled out your Pearl Harbor story we got at the library and read it. It was a good, simple day. Life is full of these, I hope you remember it.
Love you,
Mom

Photos from last year’s parade because Dad brought his film camera to this year’s parade (Who DOES that right?  Your Dad.)

photo by El Jefe with his medium format film camera

 

photo by El Jefe with I don't know which of his many cameras

 

photo by El Jefe

 

This is from last year but we saw the same guy in the car this year as well

 

I think this man was in the parade this year as well. Glad to see he's still truckin' along

 

Every parade should have a band of Bagpipes. That, and Shriner's Cars, which, regretfully, were not in this parade.