Oxford Presidential Debate

Check out this short film about the Presidential Debate held this Fall in Oxford, MS. I was happy to see Girl Scouts represented in the film as well as my friend Holli, owner of Holli's Sweet Tooth, a candy and ice cream shop right off the Square in Oxford. This was huge for Mississippi, and although I have never liked Ole Miss, I was very proud they were able to hold this event on their lovely campus. http://itss.outreach.olemiss.edu/mpdl/?p=549

Where did my baby go?

JC is looking like such a big boy these days. A four-year-old big boy. I cannot beleive it.

Banana Pudding

Ya'll, my Mamaw would have been so proud of me! I made a homemade banana pudding. Like with the pudding that you cook - not the kind you mix with milk and pour over your bananas and vanilla wafers. Which, don't get me wrong, is still some pretty good pudding. But, this pudding was great. Here is how it went down:

1 cup sugar, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup flour (I used all-purpose)
2 cups milk
3 eggs, separated
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Vanilla wafer cookies
2-3 bananas, sliced

Simmer 3/4 cup of sugar, salt, flour, milk, egg yolks and vanilla in a double boiler on medium heat, continually stirring, until thickened. (Let me say to you that, no, I do not have a double boiler, but I have seen Paula Deen use a glass bowl over a pot of water so that is what I did. It worked GREAT, but beware of the steam that escapes right around the edges. Ouch!) There was one mistake I made that I want to caution you about... I did not cook my pudding quite long enough because for some reason I thought that it would "set up" after I put it all together. It didn't, so go ahead and cook it until it is really thick.

Place a layer of vanilla wafers down in your serving dish. Add a layer of sliced bananas. Continue layering until all cookies and banana slices are used. Pour pudding mixture over top.

Now, on to the meringue. Those of you who know me know that I HATE meringue, but I thought it would be an integral part of my pudding. Plus, since I was going all Paula Deen and making this homemade concoction anyway, I at least needed to try my hand at the meringue since I had never made it myself. I remember from cooking with my Mom that meringue works best in a glass bowl (completely free of and moisture), so be careful. Meringue is tricky because any little thing can "deflate" your egg whites. And no one wants soggy deflated meringue. Start beating the egg whites until foamy and then gradually beat in the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. You beat and beat, even if your child is yelling to turn it off because he can't hear Spongebob. Keep on beating until you get those stiff peaks you hear fancy cooks talk about. I was tickled with how mine turned out. Not too bad for a first timer, eh?

Spread your meringue on top of the pudding and bake in the oven (about 350) until the meringue is lightly browned. Don't get impatient like me and turn your broiler on to get the instant gratification of perfectly browned meringue and almost burn it... Oops... It was fine - just a little too brown!

The finished product can be served warm or cold - try it... I bet you will like it!!!

I am having so much fun with my new-found love of cooking and trying new recipes. Just last night I tried BooMama's Tater Tot Shepherd's Pie and it was a pretty big hit with me and my guys as well. Do you have any great recipes you like?

I gotta get me some weave

Have you ordered your Girl Scout cookies yet???

Because if not, we can totally hook you up...No really, we have plenty... And I bet, we even have your favorite... Caramel deLites? Shortbread? Thin Mints, anyone? Perhaps you would like to try our new figure friendly Daisy Go Rounds in 100 calorie packages.

You will not believe how many cookies this leader got into her minivan... Go ahead, try to guess...

Give up? 183 cases with 12 boxes of cookies per case. Now, that's A LOT of cookies. She was determined to get them all in there, and with careful stacking and packing, we did just that. I think she even drove home with a few boxes in her lap. That's hardcore, people. Here at Girl Scouts we don't mess around. Ha!

You go girl!!!

Just a Glimpse of Spring

Last week the weather was SO PRETTY here. It really was beginning to feel like Spring. We took an afternoon to enjoy the sunshine at the park. Then, this week - COLD again. I think God was just giving us a little teaser.

JC enjoyed riding his bike....

...and playing with his school friend, Xander, who also happened to be there.

Hello, Elmo!

Elmo came to the mall to see the kids for Valentine's Day! We love getting to meet differnt characters when they come to our mall!

JC and I on the Carousel. Stunned self-portrait look from JC. and weird open-mouth smile from me... Note the t-shirt! :) Yeah, that's how I roll! Such randomness...HA!!!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! I hope you have a great day with the one(s) you love!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Sorry ya'll... I couldn't resist...

Taco Soup

Ya'll, I made taco soup tonight, and it was seriously SO GOOD! If you have never made it, make it soon. You will LOVE it!!!

TACO SOUP

1.5 lbs ground chuck
1/2 onion chopped
2 pkgs. taco seasoning
1 pkg. Ranch dressing mix
1 can whole kernel corn
2 cans Ro-tel
1 can light kidney beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can Great Northern beans (you know, the white ones)
Salt and pepper to taste
4-6 cups water

Brown hamburger meat and onions. Season meat with salt and pepper. Drain fat. Add taco and Ranch packets. Add in all cans of veggies undrained. Stir to combine. Add water. Simmer on medium for about 30 minutes to an hour. Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips. DELISH!!!

Do you Twit?

On Twitter, I mean. As if Myspace, Facebook and this blog were not enough... I signed up for Twitter yesterday. It was cool because the first person I saw there was my bother (AccountingDawg - btw: cute and creative name, Brad!!!). Apparently he keeps us with MSU Athletics via Twitter. Neat.

So, now, as you can see I have my Twitter updates posted in the upper right corner of my blog so the whole blogosphere can see my random babbling. Lucky you!!!

If you are on Twitter, please let me know so that I can "follow" you and read your random babbling too. Or, if you need something else to keep you from doing the work you need to be doing, go ahead and sign up for it and "follow" me (loriandcurtis).

Enjoy wasting time with me!!!

Identity Crisis

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: Bingo Malibu
(first pet, current car)

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: Chocolate Macadamia Nut - Now that's gansta!!!
(favorite ice cream, favorite cookie)

3. YOUR "FLY GUY/GIRL" NAME: L Rob
(first initial + first 3 letters of your last name)

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: Purple Giraffe
(favorite color, favorite animal)

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: Lorielle Eupora
(middle name, city where you were born)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: Roblo
(first 3 letters of last name, first 2 letters of first name)

7. YOUR SUPERHERO NAME: The Brown Tea
("The" + 2nd favorite color, favorite drink)

8. YOUR NASCAR NAME: Henry Loyd
(your Grandfathers' first names)

9. YOUR STRIPPER NAME: Amarige Kiss
(name of your favorite scent/perfume/cologne, favorite candy)

10. YOUR WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: Joyce Lamar
(your mother's and father's middle names)

11. YOUR TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: Collum Cincinatti
(5th grade teacher's last name, a major city that starts with the same letter)

12. YOUR SPY/BOND GIRL NAME: Fall Daisy
(Your favorite season/holiday, flower)

13. YOUR CARTOON NAME: Pineapple Ringy
(favorite fruit, article of clothing you're wearing right now + "ie" or "y")

14. YOUR HIPPY NAME: White Chocolate Mocha Magnolia
(What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree)

15. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: The Scrapbooking Sunny Tour
("The" + your favorite hobby/craft, fave weather/climate, + "Tour")