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Today's TRDC prompt is about people that get under your skin. This story is fiction. The names are fake and so are the people.  “Kids......time to go to school!” I say to my three little munchkins. I throw on my favorite sweater and scarf, and slip into my Uggs. My keys to the Rover are on the counter with my bag. “Come on everyone! Chloe, Parker, Madison, let’s go. Mommy’s ready.” I shout up the stairs with a little more urgency. The school is only about 3 blocks away, a quick two-minute walk, but with three kids and daycare the opposite direction it’s just easier for me to drive. We finally get in the car and get to the school in one minute. There is always a line of cars in the drop off lane. The kids are fidgeting in the back. Parker is eyeing Chloe’s lunchbox. They are so darling. I’m such a lucky girl. We finally get to the front of the line. Oh good. There is a spot right by the main entrance. I have no idea why everyone pulls...

Today I am doing something special. I'm helping promote a cookbook for blogger friend, Michelle Stern. Her blog is called What's Cooking with Kids . Not to be confused with my What's Cooking blog. She's a chef. I'm a hacker. Her blog is all about teaching kids to eat healthy food by introducing them to locally grown fresh ingredients and then cooking together. I really admire what Michelle is doing. She flew to Washington D.C. to campaign for better food for kids in schools. She's rallying her son's new school to have better food available for all the kids. She's on a mission to get junk food out of our schools. She knows that eating healthy, yummy foods, makes for healthy happy kids. She's really trying to make a difference. Here she is with her amazing family at their home. Oh, did I tell you she also lives here in the Bay Area? The Whole Family Cookbook from Michelle Stern on Vimeo . Her cookbook is full of delicious rec...

I ran up the steps two at a time to get my charger. I left it upstairs and needed it before my computer died. As I ran into the playroom/office I could hear the humming of the printer. It was shooting out a printout of something. I didn't print anything so I curiously glanced over to see what it was. I was shocked to see page after page of full-color printouts with one word on them. And when I say full-color I mean the entire white page is now red except for one teeny word. Lily. When I saw all these pages printing it just caused my brain to spasm and I freaked out. Money is tight. The ink in the cartridges is getting low. I've been smacking them against my palm to loosen every bit of ink powder. I ran downstairs "Ellllllllllli! WHAT are you doing? What are you printing? You're wasting all our ink. What is this?!" I shouted. Elli just stared at me like I was some sort of psycho mommy and her eyes immediately welled up with tears. "I'm sorry, I jus...

Ok. So I was reading my friend Lisa's blog Hearts and Logic today and saw a link she had to a website for a guy looking for a wife. She knows him. I trust her judgement. So, if you know any single ladies send them his way. If he marries your lady friend you get ten grand. Nice. Click here to check out Chas. Oh, the guy wants kids. So I suppose he's looking for a gal that can still pop out a few munchkins. Which pretty much rules out all the people I know. We're all teetering on the can't-do-that-anymore line. But I bet you know someone. Eh?

Today's TRDC prompt was to write a story (fiction or non-fiction) about the picture of the donut. I don't know why, but something about the picture made me imagine I was really tiny and I wanted to climb on the donut! So I wrote it as if I was an ANT. Don't ask.  Sunday is my favorite day because we get to eat a donut from The Donut Palace. My dad picks the biggest donut he can find and carefully carries it so none of the frosting or sprinkles fall off. He waits in line with the other dads. Then they all march in unison back to the colony. Their feet move quickly and with purpose like a silent army. "They're here!" we all yell. We see a rainbow of colors. We can barely contain our excitement. This is going to be the best Sunday ever. The donuts barely hit the ground and we are all over them like flies at a picnic. "Dad, what's the donut shop like?" I ask with a mouthful. He's told me a thousand times, but I never get tired o...

Our county has just launched a campaign to help all the schools in Marin survive the massive budget cuts that are being inflicted due to the budget crisis in California. It's called Schools Rule Marin . The goal is this: "Together with the communities and businesses of Marin, we can bridge the gap between state funding and what it actually takes to produce happy, well-rounded, well-adjusted little members of society." Just how much is "the gap" you ask? $55 million. In one county. Yowzer. Just this morning Don and I just got to watch all the 4th and 5th graders at Elli's school perform dances they learned. The entire dance program is funded by another non-profit group here in Mill Valley called KIDDO! They have been raising money since 1982 to help support Mill Valley Schools. This year they raised $2.2 million dollars . Without Kiddo there would be no arts, dancing, music, poetry, technology, teachers and aides. So many things wouldn't ...

I'm tired of all my usual chicken recipes. Tired of eating them and tired of making them. I'm in a chicken rut. Then I remembered a chicken recipe I used to make when we first got married (ages ago) that Don and I really liked. It had mushrooms in it and gravy. I'm pretty sure we called it chicken and mushrooms. I used to make this a lot. We haven't had it in over 10 years, but I couldn't find the cookbook. So I started searching for something else. Then Don came in the kitchen and asked me what I was going to make. "I don't know. What do you want?" I said in my most whiny, tired, sad, would-you-cook-dinner voice. I was really hoping he would magically jump in the kitchen and make dinner. "Remember that chicken recipe you used to make a long time ago with the mushrooms and the gravy? Can you make that?" he asked. Holy crap. Did he just ask me to make the very same recipe that was rambling around in my head? Have we have been married s...

I don't remember what I did to set him off. But he was in a rage. His whole body was tense. His face was beet red, the sandy blond hair askew, the veins on his lean arms stood out. I had to get him out of the house. It's a blur now, but he left. So I locked every door. The front door, the back door, the garage door all locked. I was safe. I kept a close watch on the windows to see where he had gone. A loud thundering clap hit the house with a thud. The force was so strong the house rattled and shook from the vibration. And then I heard it again, and again, and again. The banging on the door and the screaming. "Let me in! Open the door! Open the door! aaaaaaaah!" he screamed desperate for the door to magically open so he could come charging in and confront me face-to-face. He raced around the outside of the house and tried every door. They were all locked. He tried the side door on the garage thinking I would have missed that one. He was wrong. Finally he could...

Have you ever thought about what happens to a town that has one major industry and that industry gets shut down? You could try to reinvent the town. Or, you could just shut it down and erase it from the map. That's what this town did. CLICK TO WATCH I first saw this video on Dooce back in February and it's kind of haunted me ever since. When I was young we moved around a lot. My dad was an executive on the fast track which meant we moved for the next opportunity. We enjoyed going back to visit the old neighborhood to see what our house looked like, and how big the trees had grown. I can't imagine going back and seeing nothing. Besides the story being interesting. The way they tell the story fascinates me. It's kind of a slide show/video/hit the NEXT button kind of thing. The music is haunting, the pictures will remind you of those your parents probably have laying around in their house, and the cast of characters are in every town. Watch and tell me what ...

"Holy crap. What do you mean they lost the account?" I said stunned. "They lost it." he said. "But we already sold the house. I quit my job. Oh my gosh. What are we going to do?" I whined. "I don't know. We'll figure it out. They still have one piece of the business. Just not the retail portion. It looks like moving to California will be a bigger adventure than we thought." he said. We were unemployed and homeless. Sort of. He was technically still employed. We just needed to stay positive and hope everything would work out and as we made the big cross country move. Three months later.... "It's over. We're letting you go. We just don't have enough income from the account to keep you." his boss said. Craaaaaaaaaaap. And then came the big announcement. "I'm done. I can't do this anymore. I'm done with advertising." he proclaimed. "Fudge! What do you mean done? Like, you...

Today is St. Patrick's Day. And I kind of forgot. I'm wearing green because I still feel like some kid in the 6th grade may run up and pinch me any minute. Or my brother. He was good at that. He lives in Germany now. But I can still feel his strong hands pinching my arm on the one day when pinching was allowed. So today I'm posting a cookie that is not Irish and has nothing to do with a saint or Patrick. Except that every Patrick I know will love this cookie. And since St. Patrick's day is known as feast day I think we're ok. So instead corned beef and cabbage how about a cookie? Or two. My offer from yesterday is still good too. These cookies could be yours. UPS is ready to deliver. White Chocolate Chunk and Coconut Cookies 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) 1 1/2 c. granulated sugar 1/2 c. brown sugar 2 eggs, room temperature 1 1/2 t. vanilla paste (or vanilla extract) 3 c. all purpose flour 1/2 t. baking soda 1 t. salt 1/2 bag of white chocolate...

Don ran in The Run for the Seals in the Marin Headlands last Sunday as practice for the big half marathon which is May 1st. He did it! He finished. He ran the whole way. Even up the hill which tortured all the runners at the very end. Elli and I were so proud of him. We waited anxiously at the finish line for our superman to finish. Here he is!!! Yay, Don! 27th annual Run for the Seals to raise money for the Marine Mammal Center . View of the ocean from the marine mammal center. Proof that this was serious business is around 1:30 of the video. Elli and I were concentrating really hard on all the runners looking for Don. I saw the camera guy (only because he walked right in front of me) but he didn't say anything to me or make eye contact so I figured he wasn't filming me. Check out my stern, un-fun face. What a dork. I could have smiled. Duh. Oh well. But it's not really about me, is it? Don did awesome. He beat the old lady that he w...

I was a fat and happy baby. The pediatrician asked my mom what she was feeding me. She nervously said she was feeding me formula. And they both looked at this big, fat, chubby baby on the examining table with big blue eyes looking up at them. I was grinning ear to ear. He then asked my mom how she was diluting it. Because back then the formula came in a concentrated form in a can and you had to dilute it with water.  My poor mom had one of those "Uh oh." moments. "Diluting it?" she asked? "I didn't know I was supposed to dilute it. I just pour it in the bottle." she said. I'm sure the doctor acted very professional but was cracking up inside. He then calmly explained to my nervous mom that by not diluting it she was essentially feeding me heavy cream. No wonder I was so fat and happy! I went on my first diet when I was about five months old. this is me at 5 months Needless to say, the new diluted-formula-diet trimmed my chunky b...

Thank you to P&G’s Have You Tried This Yet? program and Kroger for sponsoring my writing about trying new things and breaking out of my everyday routine. Click here to find great savings on high-performing P&G products at a Kroger store near you. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective , which endorses Blog With Integrity , as I do. Let's talk about pudding. Butterscotch pudding to be more specific. I have had a thing about butterscotch for years. And it's not a good thing. I haven't touched a butterscotch candy since about 1978. My grandma Madge used to keep a tin of hard candies in her Buick. These candies would sit in the tin on the little ledge behind the back seat baking in the hot Florida sun. The entire car smelled like butterscotch. I'm prone to getting car sick. So riding in the back of that Buick smelling those candies and her perfume just about did me in. It was a nauseating smell. Now don't get me wro...

We're still out of crackers here. So when I saw the recipe on Smitten Kitchen for Goldfish crackers I had to make them immediately. I seriously read the recipe and headed straight for the kitchen. I dug through Elli's collection of mini cookie cutters hoping I would find a mini fish. I didn't. So the little heart cutter was going to have to work. Because I seriously wanted to make them right then. The crackers are light, and cheesy and addicting. Whole-Wheat Goldfish Crackers (from Smitten Kitchen) 1 1/2 c. sharp cheddar cheese grated 1/2 c. whole wheat flour 1/4 c. all-purpose flour 1/4 t. onion powder 1/4 t. salt cayenne pepper (optional) onion salt (optional) 1. Preheat oven to 350º 2. Mix all ingredients in a food processor for about 2 minutes until the dough forms a ball. I added a few shakes of cayenne pepper to give them a little kick. This is optional. 3. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8" thick. 4. Use mini cookie ...

The house is quiet. I have the kitchen to myself. I'm relaxed, and my mind is clear and uncluttered. It's early Saturday morning and everyone is still asleep. I get the coffee brewing. The smell of coffee gets my senses going. Then I start pulling ingredients. I already know what I'm going to bake. I've been thinking about it and smelling the sweet smells of cake in my head all night. I gently sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and the other dry ingredients. Butter and sugar are creamed together in my mixer. I gently toss the blueberries in flour. The cinnamon and sugar mix is gently stirred while the oven is preheating. I quietly mix everything together. I don't want to wake everyone up. The pan is greased. The batter is gently folded in. And in the oven it goes. I sit down with my coffee and enjoy the taste of freshly ground beans as I sit in the dark in our living room.The sun is starting to glow. I love morning. The house is so quiet. I can hear ...

What do you do after a job interview? I bake these. Blondies with chocolate chips, toasted coconut and nuts I had an interview in San Francisco last week. It went ok. Definitely could have gone better. No fault of mine. Just not a perfect fit experience-wise. That happens. But I was still kind of bummed. A few things crossed my mind as I was pulling away. The first was shopping. The second was eating (it was lunch time). And then I thought of shopping again. One of my favorite stores in San Francisco is Isda & Co. and it wasn't far from where I was. The Ferry Building with the Blue Bottle Coffee store was also close by. But shopping isn't what an unemployed person should be doing. So I went home before I did something I would regret.  I made myself a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich and looked up recipes on Smitten Kitchen to find something to bake. I always love her stuff. The Blondies recipe was just what I was looking for because it is flexible. And flexi...

It's The Red Dress Club Friday. Today's topic is WATER. Check out my post on my newly created TRDC tab. Go. Then come back here to get the recipe for the soup. Buh-bye.

You won't believe this, but I actually Googled "What to do with a big pot of chicken stock." I have a kitchen full of cookbooks and I couldn't think of anything to do with this giant pot of stock other than 1) put it in jars and freeze it 2) make chicken noodle soup. I have no room in my freezer for jars of stock and I wasn't in the mood for traditional chicken noodle soup. I stood there for a while thinking. What can I make.....tap....tap.....tap...... Then it suddenly hit me. Chinese soup. That's what I want. Wonton soup. I thought to myself that has to be the easiest soup on the planet to make, right? But I don't know how to make it. Recipe. I need a recipe. Only I would need a recipe for the easiest soup on the planet. I have a cookbook YAN CAN COOK. So I looked up Wonton Soup and it takes like 4 ingredients. Bingo! All I needed was chicken broth, sesame oil, frozen wontons, and rice noodles. And I have all that stuff in the kitchen. PERFECT! ...