Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

This was my favorite cupcake and probably Jono's too. So I thought I would share the recipe...

Ingredients: 

Chocolate Cake Mix - we used duncan hines milk chocolate

3 eggs

1/3 cup oil

1 1/4 cup water

1 cup mini chocolate chips

4 teaspoons of mint extract

Sprinkles and Cholocate chips to decord

Vanilla Icing

Instructions: 

1.  Preheat oven 375 degrees

2.  Line cupcake tins with liners

3.  Mix cake mix with oil, water, eggs, mint and chocolate chips about 3 minutes

4.  Pour cake into liners and cook 16-20 minutes until toothpick inserted comes back clean

5.  Let cool

6. Ice and decorate

It might seem like a lot of mint extract but I actually it's money.  It might also be good to use andes mints but I was going with what was on hand.

Happy Birthday Schreve and Smash!

May you both have an awesome day!

I hope you enjoyed your 8 kinds of cupcakes. Yes that's right I made these ones....

8 flavors included

• White
• Chocolate
• Nutty
• S'more
• Funfetti
• Chocolate Chocolate Chip 
• Orange
• Mint Chocolate Chip - My personal favorite recipe to follow soon.

Movie - The Way Back

I crossed another movie off my list last night. The Way Back - which is the story of six men who escape from prison in Siberia and walk like 5000 thousand miles to freedom from the communists in Russia. It was a great story with some beautiful imagery, with a mix of disgustingness too- with the subject I  think is only natural. I give it extra bonus points because I feel like I now how to survive an blizzard, fight Siberian mosquitoes, and cool myself should I be prolonged in the desert. Since we knew the movie was based on a true story we left an needed to google more about it. And we were deeply saddened to learn that the guy who wrote the book the movie was based on actually stole the story from one of the guys who lived it. Anyhow though it was still a movie worth seeing and worthy of oscar nominations. If only for the great story of perseverance and a quest for freedom and love.

The January 2011 Happened List

As part of my process of documenting life happenings lists each month just in case someday I get caught back up on scrapbooking, or want to know about all the things that were blogged or weren't.  I'm such a dork I know. Anyhow here's the list from January (sorry for boring you). -

• Ringing in the new year mellow like with the Pwagwag's
• Seeing Mark sing at church
• Walks with Grandpa
• Stanford vs VT bowl game
• A Bench in the bathroom
• Passing out on the love seat
• Making pot stickers with Thea
• Visiting Michael house
• Extra time off 
• Yoga daily
• Extra Naps
• Card Making 
• Hands and foot
• Organizing layouts
• Going on a Penguin retirement adventure
• Getting lost looking for Esther Price
• Seeing my childhood best friend again it's been like 20 years
• Revisiting OBF
• Hot Tea Craze
• Sew-a-thon
• Going to the office 4 days
• Masterpiece Theater
• Lunching with Rob and Jilly
• Talking to Holly again 
• Jeopardy game nights
• Movies seen - true grit, black swan, kings speech, country strong, blue valentine
• New bathmat
• Largest turnout for the Indy Modern
• Jono's move
• Returning to Boston
• Flatbread dinner

I've already started a list for Febuary so look out.

#3 Best of Life Video Series: January 2011 - This is the New Year

So excited about making these each month it's really fun - I need to learn to add words so they don't look weird so I left them off for now.  I actually made two versions of these one with the original sound (not shown here and one with the music).  This is for #3 on my list.   Making a mental note to take better video for the rest of the year.  Anyhow here is the first segment of the Best of Life 2011 Video Series entitled - "This is the New Year."

FYI the song is Ian Axel - This is the New Year.

Highrise in Cambridge

I am back in New England. I guess I should never say "this is my last night in Boston" because sure enough I'm a boomerang for the place.  Although I did stay gone for just under two months.  This week I'm staying in a high rise hotel in Cambridge last night my room overlooked Cambridge tonight it overlooks the Charles River.   Anyhow I have started a 15-week tour of MA,  I'll be going home most weekends but will probably stay a few as well - I'm just waiting for the COLD and SNOW to stop - they are expecting twenty inches Tuesday and Wednesday so I might not even be teaching those days. 

Oh and one more thing.  I think in Feb I'm going to take some photos that are NOT on my iPhone.
And one one more thing - I did take my january #13 photobooth photo Friday and I have the video of the month#3  in the process of being edited for my list, and of course I saw more than one movie this month so that's keeping me on track for my monthly goals.

"Blue Valentine"

Tonight I saw Blue Valentine (another movie down). I'm still not sure how I feel about it. It was real, it was sad, it was funny, and it was a little raunch. I'm on the fence because I love Ryan Gosling (hello - The Notebook, Half Nelson, Remember the Titans), however wasn't so thrilled with the ending. But I love Ryan Gosling. But the ending. But Ryan Gosling - oh and that Michelle Williams she's good too. But the more I think about it I think the ending wasn't bad it was real. Oh and one more thing... I wish Michelle would have brushed her hair, it seemed all knotted the whole time. Instead of sharing photos I'm sharing the trailer as this shows my favorite scene where they were dancing and singing outside a store.

Fav Thing Friday - Kicking off Shoes at the Backdoor

Today is Friday and I am picking my favorite thing as - Kicking My Shoes off at the Backdoor!  I'm a person who would prefer barefeet or at least flip flops (I have issues with wearing shoes when I teach too).  So first things first when I get home I like to kick off my shoes, and since nobody enters at the front door they pile up at the back.  

As a result we have a giant mess of shoes as you walk in back there - but I it doesn't make me like kicking them off any less.  I have a basket for the shoes but they still collect on the floor wet boots don't do well on dry shoes.  Oh and did I mention you enter thru my kitchen - the horror.

My mess of shoes looks like this of course only in big people sizes (we also don't drop coats in the mix...>>>

 

 I'd rather it look like this >>>

Or even this >>>

That however would probably require that I only have like 3 pairs of shoes (and no boots).  Here's to bare feet in the house for Friday.

Thrusday - Jono's Sun

 
I wanted to start a new quilt tonight - well I was tired of sewing with the pink fabric. And I didn't know what I wanted to do.  So I asked Jono when he came home for some inspiration he said "a sun."  And with that I started sewing up a sun in probably the most non-conventional manner (Note: I should have had a better plan).  The center gave me the most trouble I should have sewn it before I made completed the circle.  I haven't trimmed it yet as I am not sure if I want it to be a circle, rectangle or square.  He doesn't really have any complimenting blocks yet so it wasn't a real thought out plan. 

Wednesday - Super Simple Straight Lines Block

Since yesterday's blocks needed to be finished I decided to finish those and then make these tonight. Yet again I only made two when I planned to make six. But I did get the others finished.  I like to call this the super simple straight lines block.   Seems I need more white if I'm going to keep on making blocks for this same quilt.