Happy New Year!

We are in California visiting my parents right now.  Samantha adjusted immediately to the three hour time difference.  I figured she would be going to sleep at 4 pm local time (7 pm Ohio  time), but she stayed awake until 7 or later.  Each morning she has been waking up at 6 or 7.

Last night some people came over.  We played UNO and had a good time.  Samantha refused to go to bed.  At home when she gets sleepy, we just lay her in her crib.  She usually talks and plays for a few minutes and then she falls asleep.  Last night when we tried to lay her down, she would start crying even before we let go of her.  After 11 but before midnight, I put her in bed and let her scream.  I'm not used to making her cry herself to sleep, so it was difficult for me to listen to.  The alcohol helped me but nothing helped her.  Eventually she wore out and gave up.  She was up bright and early at 7 this morning.  Way too early.

Disconnection

They're shutting us off! I opened up a notice from the water company which states that our payment is late and so they're shutting us off December 26. (How nice of them to let us have water for Christmas.)

I figured that I must have forgotten to send them a check. (Yes, I still pay my bills with paper checks.) I grabbed my checkbook and wrote out a check. It wasn't until I went to record the check that I saw that I had just sent them a check on November 28. The notice was dated December 10. I know that companies sometimes send out statements that don't have the most recent payments credited to the account yet. I called the water company. The woman said they haven't received anything since my previous bill back in September. She said that she would note my call in her computer. She suggested I call my bank and then call back.

It's a Thursday night. I bank with the local hometown bank. I'll have to wait until morning before I can talk to anyone. But they do have online banking (I just don't use it to pay my bills), so I went online to see if the check had posted. It hadn't. Funny thing though. I wrote four checks on November 28. Three of them posted on December 3. The last one is still missing. I don't know where it could be.

I'm not sure if I should stop the check or not. That will cost $30. If I don't pay, then it will cost $41.65 to reconnect plus the overdue amount. We'll be gone to California for a week. We won't need water while we're gone. We also won't be using any during that time either. That would almost make it worthwhile to not pay the water bill. However, the mark on my credit would not be worth it.

Cake

Mom decorated cakes when I was little, but I never learned how. I tried, but I wasn't very good at it controlling the flow of the icing out of the bag. It was too frustrating.

But something made me want to try. Or perhaps I should say someone. Tomorrow is Samantha's birthday party. I decided to make her cake rather than buy one. Very scary thought. I went to the store and bought a cake decorating set that came with some tips, couplers, bags and icing color. I also picked up a beginner's guide that included pictures and directions for several basic cakes.

I've baked many cakes, but somehow I never made the icing. I guess it's because the stuff in the tub is so much easier. Mom always made her own from scratch. There were points during the process when I wondered whether I was doing it right. The directions said to mix in all the powdered sugar into the shortening before adding the water, so that's what I did. It went from a stiff paste to a wet gloopy mess. I don't remember mom's icing ever looking like that. I kept beating it and eventually it turned light and fluffy.

For my first cake, I don't think it looks too bad. What do you think? As you can see, I'm a bit of a minimalist. I could have kept going with the flowers, but I reached this point and the little voice in my head said that the cake was done. I did a white zigzag with pink dots at the base of the cake. The top edge has white stars. The little pink drop flowers have a white center and green stem.

Pouting Chair

Samantha's pouting chair arrived today. Woodworking was one of my grandpa's hobbies. He made the chair before he died several years ago. That was back before he had any great-grandchildren to sit in one of the chairs. Mom sent the chair here so Samantha could have it. Doesn't she look cute sitting in it? It's a perfect size for her except for her feet not touching the ground.

Hey

I've been sorta awol for a while.

Samantha had been cold-free for a few days, but now she's got a yucky nose again. I think it's a sinus infection. She's got green snot. That's gross in and of itself, but the halitosis is terrible. It smells like spoiled cow's milk. She makes a point of exhaling right in my face. I seem to recall Mom telling me I had bad breath when I was sick. Now I know what she was talking about. She seems like her happy self. Maybe a little sleepier, but it's bedtime so that's to be expected.

Mom is enabling me and my Starbucks habit. I received a Starbucks card in the mail from her today. Thanks Mom! I made sure to register the card at starbucks.com. I registered a card once before and they loaded $5 on it. I hope they do it again. I love getting free stuff, but you knew that already.

Tomorrow is the final CSA potluck of the season. I'm not sure what I'll take. Mom sent me a roasted butternut squash recipe along with the Starbucks card. It looks tasty. Very seasonal. I'm not sure how warm it will stay or even if that will matter. It's supposed to be in the 50's tomorrow, so fall foods will be appropriate. I think winter squash qualifies as a fall food.

I need to pick up some apples for Samantha. She really likes them. Fresh or sauced -- it doesn't matter to her. Sauce is a little better for sending in her lunch at daycare. She would stuff an entire apple slice in her mouth if I let her. Instead, I hold a piece and let her gnaw off a bite.

Last weekend we ate dinner at the Sippels' house. Lots of good food, but the most unusual thing I consumed was a shot of cider vinegar. This was like no other cider vinegar I had ever tasted before. It was the real deal. You could tell that it used to be hard cider. It had a wininess that is lacking in most cider vinegars because they bypass the alcohol step and jump right to vinegar. I would tell you that the flavor had a different shape in my mouth, but I can't find the right words to describe the sensation, so I won't.

Sauerkraut

I checked on the sauerkraut today as I have been doing over the past month. I noticed more scum than usual so I pulled it out of the closet and set out to skim off the scum. The bread container looked a little funkier than I liked, so I thought I'd wash it. Of course, that meant removing the cabbage from it. The removal process gave me an opportunity to smell the stuff. It smelled kinda like beer. Definitely could tell that it was fermenting. As I started filling up the new container, I started wondering how I'd know if my sauerkraut was done. Afterall, my recipe gave me a length of time, but it did not tell me what signs of doneness to look for. I checked my blog and saw that the cabbage went in one month ago tomorrow. That should be the right amount of time.

I decided to brave it and taste the kraut. I'm not used to eating veggies that have been sitting out for a month. They usually rot before that amount of time. If I don't survive the night, then let Joe know that the sauerkraut in the fridge should be thrown out! I don't know if I had ever eaten real sauerkraut before. It tasted different. Like I said above, the fermentation gives it some beer like flavors. It was crunchy but not like it was when fresh. I never made it to Penzeys, so the only spice I added was the caraway seeds. The commercial kraut I typically buy does not have any spices. However, commerical stuff has that vinegary flavor from the fast pickling methods they use. My kraut has no vinegar.

Now I want to try the kraut with food to see how Joe likes it. It would probably make an excellent Reuben, but for that I'd have to make my own corned beef. I'll probably just try it with a little smoked sausage. That would be good. Or on brats. I will be passing through Bucyrus on Thursday. If they're open at the time, I may stop in Carle's for bratwurst to take home. Or not.

I would like to try another batch. Maybe seedless. One with the juniper berries might be nice. But honestly, I don't think we eat that much sauerkraut in a year. Samantha would have to start eating it, but it's got too much salt for her to be eating now.

Recipe Contest

I have entered the Marion Star's annual recipe contest for the past four years. Each year they have selected one of my recipes for the cookoff. I won my category the last two years. Their rules are pretty simple. It does not have to be original or anything. There are about ten categories and you submit the recipe based on one of those categories. Then they read the recipes and pick about four in each category that sound good to the judges. If you're selected then they notify you to bring the prepared dish on the appointed evening for final judging.

Well, I was glancing at today's paper when I saw the cookoff mentioned on the front page. I knew that the deadline was soon, but I hadn't really paid any attention. You see, I only subscribe to Saturdays and Sundays of the paper. Even those usually wind up only half-read. I turned the page to find a copy of the entry form. I have until October 18th at noon to enter. That's this Thursday! I don't know what to submit. I ran out of tried and true family favorites last year when I entered Italian Beef. I have less than five days to find an award winning recipe. Now is not the time to create something new. I need help. Any ideas?

Oh, you might want to know what the categories are. This year, they are:
-- Edible Centerpieces
-- Appetizers
-- Brunch
-- Cookies & Candies
-- Cakes & Pies
-- Meats
-- Youth 18 and under
-- Ethnic Dishes
-- Casseroles
-- Crockpot Favorites

Obviously, I am not a youth, so that's out until Samantha is old enough to cook in a few years.