Fly on the Wall, September 2014

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 13 bloggers are inviting you to catch a glimpse of what you’d see if you were a fly on the wall in our homes. Come on in and buzz around my house.

It’s dinner time and I hand Hubs a Warm Chicken Pocket I want him to try.
Me: How is it?
Hubs: It’s good.
Me: The flavors work well together?
Hubs: Yes, it’s really good. I like it and I’d eat it again. Didn’t you like it?
Me: I didn’t try it yet.
Hubs: You didn’t try it?
Me: Well, I wanted to be sure it was  . . . you know . . . edible first.
Hubs: It is. What are these, cherry tomatoes?
Me: No . . . strawberries.
Hubs: And lettuce?
Me: No . . . spinach.
Hubs: What else?
Me: Sunflower seeds.
Hubs: There are nuts in my tortilla?
Me: It’s not a tortilla, it’s a pita pocket. You know what, I don’t know what you’re eating but I think I’d better just try it myself.

I was looking through some old pictures. There’s a beautiful family picture from one of our trips to Boston. My Mom and Step Father, my boys and their cousins are all in this picture and it’s a treasure. Until I look a littler closer at my younger son. Wish he were here so I could ask him what kind of a face he was making here.
Practicing to be a zombie maybe?

I’m sure this is TMI but just so you know that it isn’t just my family that drives me nuts, sometime I can do it all by myself. Like the day that a guy was coming out to look at the house at 2:00 pm and I got “the runs” at 1:30 pm. And FYI, the anxiety of knowing someone’s due to ring the doorbell does not make the runs better. Quite the opposite.

College Boy was home over the Labor Day weekend and came down to the living room on Sunday night. Here was the conversation:
College Boy: Mom, can I borrow your car?
Me: Ummm, have you looked outside lately?
College Boy: Yeah, it's raining.
Me: It's not just raining, it's pouring and the trees in the woods are bent almost in half.
College Boy: I can drive in the rain.
Me: See those flashing words at the bottom of the tv screen? What do they say?
College Boy: I'm not going far, just over to a friend's house.
Me: You DO know what the words "tornado warning" mean, right?
College Boy: You're not going to let me borrow the car, are you?
Me: I'm pretty sure that would be a "no", but thanks for playing.

 


I talk a lot about needing my coffee but take my word for it, I NEED my coffee. One day last week I got up, put the laundry in the washing machine and went to grab my coffee.
When the washing machine was done I put the clothes in the dryer and sat back down on the couch.
Then I spent the next half hour trying to figure out whether I ever put laundry detergent in the washing machine with the clothes.

 

Coffee Bread

Speaking of needing my coffee, I set my coffee maker before I go to bed so when Hubs comes downstairs before work at about 7:15 am, the coffee has just finished dripping into the pot.

It was a tough summer for me. College Boy worked on a farm and left for work at 4:30 am as many as 6 days a week. I’m the lightest sleeper so I’d hear him from the time he got up until the time he left. Now that College Boy’s in school it seems that my body or my subconscious or something must have gotten used to being awake at 4:00 am.

I realized this the other day when I woke up and went downstairs for coffee. I turned on the lights and sat on a counter stool in a bit of a daze waiting for the coffee maker to turn itself on. I don’t know how long I was sitting there before I looked at the clock and saw that it was 4:00 am.

PurDude is away at college and his car is sitting in the garage, he can’t have one at school for freshman year. I told him I’d start it up and drive it once a week. I took it out for the first time and it was bittersweet. I love that little red BMW, I did when it was mine before he got his license and took it from me. But now it’s all his and I smiled as I looked around and saw a few of his belongings: sunglasses, movie stubs. And then I caught a glimpse of the big roll of black duct tape in the side door pocket. Yes, I’m afraid to ask.

I wanted to be able to see PurDude every now and then when I talked to him. The day before he left for college he downloaded something called ooVoo onto my computer and showed me how to use it. I was thrilled.

Almost.

Oh, I can see him and hear him well enough. But I’m upside down. To both of us. And I DO NOT like talking to him while he talks to the under side of my chin.

I wonder if I can still do a head stand.

Better make sure my insurance is paid up.

How to give your mother heart failure in one easy lesson.
PurDude had been at school for two weeks when, over Labor Day weekend I was in the shower and had missed a text from him. The text conversation went like this:
PurDude: Are you guys home right now?
Me (later): I was in the shower. So sorry I missed your text. We're here.
PurDude: I wanted to video chat with you earlier today but now I'm busy.
Me: Call when you can.
PurDude: Will you be home tonight?
Me: Yes, bad storms coming through so we'll be home. Everything OK?
PurDude: Need to talk to you guys, I might call tonight. Please don't comment on how I look.
Me: When I get out of the cardiac unit I'm going to need more information on that last comment.

From the “I should know better than to ask” files:

I made a new cookie and asked College Boy to try it. He poured a cup of milk and drowned my poor cookie.

Me: I just asked you to taste that cookie for me, why are you dunking it in milk.

College Boy: I always dunk cookies in milk.

Me: I need to know how the flavor of this cookie stacks up against others without being drenched in milk.

College Boy: This is how I taste all cookies, I’m just leveling the playing field.

Me: Can you try one for me without the milk?

College Boy: Now Mom, are you asking for special treatment? That would just be unfair. Where are your morals? Your cookie will be judged exactly as all the others are. Can you pass the milk?

Grrrrrr.

Now click on the links below for a peek into some other homes:

The Rowdy Baker

Just A Little Nutty

The Momisodes

Spatulas on Parade

Follow me home

Stacy Sews and Schools

Menopausal Mother

Go Momma O

Dinosaur Superhero Mommy

Juicebox Confession

Someone Else's Genius

Battered Hope

Coffee Bread

                                                                          ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
4 TBSP sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
 
2 1/4 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 TBSP baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp instant coffee powder
3/4 cup coffee, cooled
1/4 cup French vanilla coffee creamer (can substitute milk)
½ cup oil
1 egg
 
1 TBSP prepared, cooled coffee
2 tsp water
½ cup powdered sugar
 
Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan. Mix together the 4 TBSP sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon. Set half aside and “flour” the loaf pan with the other half of the mixture.
*Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and instant coffee powder.
*In a separate bowl, whisk together the cooled coffee, coffee creamer, oil and egg. Add the flour mixture to this bowl and mix until just incorporated.
*Pour about 2/3 of the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the remaining sugar and cinnamon mixture on top and swirl into the batter. Pour the rest of the batter into the pan.
* Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until the center springs back to the touch.
*Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Gently run a knife along the sides of the pan and turn upside down to remove the loaf.
*Allow loaf to cool.  Mix the coffee, water and powdered sugar together. Drizzle over the top of the loaf.