unbroken

Several of my neighbors LOVE this book. When I told a friend that I didn't like it she was speechless--and this friend is never speechless.  I later noticed that she'd listed it on her Christmas card as her favorite book she'd read this year. 

A couple years ago I sent Unbroken as a gift to one of my parents. They never read it--looked liked a downer. They were so right. I admit, having suffered through the book, I gained appreciation for people who serve in the military and an understanding of why we dropped bombs on Japan.  But I don't enjoy vicarious suffering and this book is chapter after chapter of starvation, deprivation, abuse, detioration. War stinks. The book is very detailed--well-researched--but I wish Hillenbrand had an editor who told her to cut half the details. (But then, I feel the same about Disney's Snow White and It's a Wonderful Life. Way too long.)

'tis the season

. . . for runny noses.

We have a cold virus making its rounds.  Ellie has been snotty for weeks, but miserably so since about Saturday.  We're talking coughing half the night (ah, for the days when doctors could prescribe cough medicine for children), lying listless and silent half the day. Poor dear.  So today I am very happy that she is smiling and making macaroni crafts (quote of the morning: "I'm busy coloring my noodle").

cakeballs!

When my neighbor announced a cookie exchange for December book group, I wasn't excited. I'm not sure what it is about cookie exchanges--maybe it's that I don't really want a tray of 24 assorted cookies sitting on my kitchen counter (and taking on each other's flavors), and maybe I'd rather cook 24 of my favorite cookies than take my chances. But I think part of my reluctance is that as much as I love cookies, I don't make Christmas cookies (I make syrup), and I'm not about to show up to a Christmas cookie exchange with normal chocolate chip cookies.

 

Then I got an idea--I'd buy red and green M&Ms or chocolate chips and stir them into a favorite cookie recipe. Voila. Christmas cookies.  But then another neighbor announced a party the same week as book group and I thought, "What they hey, why not make cake balls?" As some of you know, cake balls are pretty labor intensive, and as a rule, I avoid labor-intensive cooking (most laborious activities, in fact). But I do love cake balls and hadn't made them in over a year. This time, I mixed red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting, dipped them in white mint candy coating, and sprinkled with crushed candy cane. This was my first time using the candy melts and they worked great--the coating is thinner than melted chocolate chips, but then, candy melts tend to be more expensive.  The 14 oz. bag covered about 2/3 of my 50 cake balls, so I used chocolate chips for the rest.  Then I told my kids that red food dye is carcinogenic--more cake balls for me.