Snow! Honest-to-goodness snow!

Last time it snowed here it was nothing to write home about, but I wrote about it anyway. I didn't know if or when I would see snow around here again. Well, it turns out I didn't have to wait long. It snowed today. And it wasn't that wannabe snow it was last time. It was honest-to-goodness snow! It even stuck to the ground. Huge, fluffy, white flakes of snow! It was such a beautiful sight, I wanted to cry. Unfortunately, I was at work when most of the snow was falling and I didn't bring my camera with me. I really didn't think it would snow as much as it did (and in all honesty, it only snowed enough to stick to the grass). Thankfully, Husband understands my need for snow and was willing to take time out of his busy homework schedule to snap a few pictures for me. The snow has stopped for now. The weather people say it is going to start up again tonight. I keep looking out the window, hoping to see snow. No luck yet, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed and my snow boots by the door!

Mmmm...Doughnuts

In honour of the Olympic Games being hosted by Canada and in honour of me being a Canadian we decide to celebrate in true Canada style. We invited a couple friends over the other night to watch the Games and make doughnuts! These were the best homemade doughnuts I've had! By the way, if you are wondering were the Husbands are in these pictures, let's just say they weren't much help until it came to the eating part!

Our friend Alaina and I making the doughnuts.



Looking good!

She would make a good Canadian: "Don't mess with my doughnuts!"

I had to wear my Canada shirt. Go Canada!



We don't have a deep fryer, but a heavy bottom pot works just as good. The only downside to making your own doughnuts? It uses an entire bottle of oil!

Ta-da!

Here's the recipe:

Classic Glazed Doughnuts

1 package (8g) yeast

1/4 cup warm water (about 115*F/47*C)

1 tsp golden corn syrup

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

3 cups (approx) all-purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp salt

6 cups oil (canola or corn oil work well)

Glaze

1 1/2 cups icing sugar (or as they say in the USA powdered sugar)

1/4 cup golden corn syrup

1/4 cup warm water

1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

1. Blend the yeast with the warm water and syrup; let stand for 2 minutes. Whisk the milk with the egg and butter; set aside. Meanwhile, combine flour, sugar and salt in food processor (I don't have a food processor, so I just mixed it with my hands). With the motor running, blend in the yeast and milk mixtures just until the dough begins to form a ball.

2. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface; knead for 2-3 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Sprinkle with additional flour if necessary to prevent sticking. Cover and let rise for 1 1/2 hours. Punch down dough, cover tightly and refrigerate overnight. (I almost didn't see this part, and was planning on making the dough the day of. Good thing I decided to re-read the recipe!)

3. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface until 1/2 inch (1cm) think. Using a 3 1/2 inch (8cm) doughnut cutter, or a large and small round cookie cutter, cut out doughnut shapes. Reroll the scraps once to make additional doughnuts. Cut any remaining dough into doughnut holes. Cover doughnuts with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes (Putting them in your oven with the oven light on creates a warm place).

4. Glaze: Blend together all ingredients, set aside

5. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a wok or dutch oven until it reaches at least 325*F but doesn't exceed 350*F. Gently lower doughnuts, a couple at a time, into the oil. Fry for 3 to 4 minutes per side or until golden brown (Ours seem to take less time, so just watch for them to turn golden brown). Lift from hot oil and dip into glaze to coat. Transfer to rack sitting over a baking tray. Let cool. Makes 8 doughnuts (although we got about a dozen out of this recipe.

Date-iversary

Let me start out by saying I do not hate Valentine's day. We, as a couple, just don't celebrate it. This is my choice, not Husband's. I simply feel that the day doesn't really mean anything to us. I would rather celebrate a day that has a special meaning for us and for our relationship. Because we met and started dating shortly after Valentine's Day, we celebrate that instead. We call it our date-iversary. We have been together for 3 years (and married almost 2 years). Of those 36 months, we spent the first 6 months living in two different states, 5 hours apart and only saw each other on weekends. The next 15 months were spent not only living in different countries but on different continents, as Husband served his second deployment in Iraq. So, when you break it down, we have spent more time apart than we've been together. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the key to our happiness! Just kidding!

You may be wondering exactly what one does for a date-iversary? Well, it's similar to an anniversary, but not as elaborate. We exchange presents and go out for dinner. And where did we go for dinner? Well, we actually got take-out from two different restaurants: Husband got Wendy's and I got a pasta dish from an Italian place. Why compromise when you can both have your way?

Husband got me some great presents:

I have an ear infection and the Doctor recommended Mucinex to help clear it up. I haven't had a chance to pick some up, so Husband bought some and wrapped it up as one of my presents. Nothing says I love you like a box of Mucinex. I had to laugh out loud when I unwrapped this!

He also got me flowers because I told him to get me flowers. In fact the conversation went something like this:

Husband: What do you want for our date-iversary?

Me: I want flowers.

Husband: Okay

Me: I like tulips; pink ones

(The Symphony bar was all his idea)

A close up of the pink tulips. Proof that he DOES listen when I talk.

The Ladybug Mafia

Remember my post a few weeks ago about the ladybugs? Husband and I recently had to travel out of town for a funeral. The night before the funeral, while we were in our hotel room, I noticed something flying around the room. When it finally landed on the ceiling we discovered that it was a ladybug! I know ladybugs are supposed to be lucky, but what does it mean if they stalk you? I am beginning to wonder if they aren't lucky, but are in fact part of a ladybug mafia and we have done something to make them mad. If we suddenly go missing, make sure someone questions the ladybugs!

Don't try this at home!

I'm in the middle of a stare down. My opponent? A bottle of Buckley's Cough Syrup. I have been sick for 3 days. Coughing, sneezing, runny nose, headache, aches and pains, and pure exhaustion. I don't know if I have a fever because I can't keep a thermometer in my mouth long enough to get a reading without having a coughing fit. I am only able to sleep 2-3 hours at a time before I wake up, gasping for air. I have taken Theraflu and Tylenol Cold and Flu. Neither have brought any relief. So it has come to this. Am I really that bad off that I need to take Buckley's; the cough syrup that tastes like tree sap, mud, dog poop and rubber tires, with a hint of mint? I continue to stare at the bottle. Memories of my childhood flash in my mind: Me screaming "NO! NO! NO!" as my mother forces the vile stuff down my throat. You can't even buy this stuff in the States. It is only available in Canada (although rumour has it that they are trying to expand into the States). I got my bottle on a trip to Toronto last year. It has been sitting in our medicine cabinet, just waiting for the right moment. And now, I am afraid to say, that moment has come. I open the bottle and am assaulted with a smell similar to Vicks Vaporub. I pour the horrid liquid on to a teaspoon and stare at it. Wait! Is it starting to corrode the metal spoon? No it must just be my imagination. It has come to this: all the coughing, sneezing and congestion has lead me to this moment. I knew that it would come to this, but I was hoping to put it off as long as possible. It's a battle of good versus evil. I know this stuff will help, but I can't bring myself to take it. I know that the longer I stare at it, the harder it will be to lift that spoon to my mouth. I make my decision and quickly bring the spoon to my lips. In one fluid motion, I allow the foul cough syrup to slid down my throat. It burns! My eyes water and my nose immediately starts pouring out liquid snot. I cough and gasp. And then, it's over. My throat is soothed by the pine needle/dog poop/rubber tire mixture. The hint of mint opens my nose so that I can breathe again. The burning sensation is replaced by a cool healing sensation. I feel better already. There is not false advertising for this brand. Their slogan says it all "It tastes awful. And it works." Sometimes honesty is the best policy and the best medicine.

Fun with animals

Over the Christmas holidays we house-sat for some friends of ours. They have two animals: a dog name Jack and a cat named Alex-the-lion (who we promptly nicknamed Alex-the-lion-the-cat). We love pets and we were happy to send time with the animals while their owners were away. The had a train set up around their Christmas tree, and Jack would bark at it and chase it every time we turned it on. We thought it was hilarious! The whole experience left us desperately wanting a pet, but our apartment complex requires a $400 pet deposit. So we will wait until we get a house and just visit Jack and Alex-the-lion-the-cat for now.

Hanging out with the animals

Kissy! Kissy! Alex-the-lion-the-cat is not exactly a fan of this game!

The stare-down

Pantry makeover

Over the weekend, I came across my new favourite blog: The Prudent Homemaker (see previous blog for website). I was inspired by her pantry. It got me thinking about our pantry, or lack thereof. Those who have lived in an apartment know that space in very, very limited and apartment dwellers have to get creative when it comes to using that space. We were using our utility room as a pantry, but in the November we got a washer and dryer (oh happy, happy day!) and the things in the pantry had to be distributed to various cupboards. My cupboards were a mess. But there was no way I would give up my washer and dryer just to have my pantry back. Instead, I took a couple of hours yesterday and organized my cupboards. I feel so much better now! My cupboards are manageable and organized. I was amazed by what I found. Because I couldn't see what I had, I would buy more of something, without knowing that I already had one (or several!) in my cupboards. I have 4 bottles of Italian salad dressing! Who needs that much salad dressing? I couldn't fit everything in our cupboards but I found space in our closet for some canned goods. Here are some before and after pictures (I have no idea how to put them side-by-side. Sorry).

Before: My baking cupboard. Things were stuffed in wherever they would fit. Baking was a pain because it took so long to find what I needed.

After: I don't know if you see a big difference, but I can! I found that I have 13 packages of pudding. Don't ask me why. I use pudding once, maybe twice a year.

Before: This is our food storage/cereal cupboard. As you can see, a complete disaster! It is a deep cupboard, and I found the salad dressings hiding at the very back.

After: Now I can open the cupboard and immediately see what is in there.

Our new food storage cupboard!