Friday, April 29, 2016

Funny Friday: A Blogger's Life

Today’s post is April’s Funny Friday, a regular feature published on the last Friday of every month. Funny Friday is a collaborative project. Each month one of the participants submits a picture, then we all write 5 captions or thoughts inspired by that month’s picture. Links to the other bloggers’ posts are below, click on them and see what they’ve come up with. I hope we bring a smile to your face as you start your weekend.

Funny Friday: One picture, Five Captions | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics



Here’s today’s picture. It was submitted by Southern Belle Charm


Funny Friday, one picture, five captions | Picture by Minette of Southern Belle Charm | www.BakingInATornado.com




1. Dog to self: YESSSSS! According to this email I'm related to an African princess who's left me a fortune.

2. Dog to self: What did she mean she's not taking me for a walk until I write her a Guest Post?

3. Dog to self: I have 10 hits on my profile. This match{{dot}}com really does work!

4. Dog to owner: I told you to stop posting pictures of me in a tutu to your FB page!

5. Dog to self: Amazon . . . amazon . . . there it is. OK, now dog food . . . yup, got it. Ooh, lots of choices, guess I should try them all . . . alright, got them into my cart. Total . . . yikes that's high, but I'm worth it. Oh, look at this button, it says "buy with one click." Done. That was easy. I'll just go sit by the window now and wait for the UPS guy.


And now for something yummy, people style:

 
 
Onion Poppy Grilled Chicken: A simple dinner. Marinate in 3 ingredients, grill and serve | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner

Onion Poppy Grilled Chicken
 
Onion Poppy Grilled Chicken: A simple dinner. Marinate in 3 ingredients, grill and serve | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner

Click on the links below and let some other bloggers make you smile:

Measurements of Merriment 
Dinosaur Superhero Mommy
Not That Sarah Michelle 
Southern Belle Charm 
My Brain on Kids 
Someone Else's Genius 
 Spatulas on Parade 
The Bergham Chronicles  

Baking In A Tornado signature/logo | www. Baking In A Tornado.com | #MyGraphics


Onion Poppy Grilled Chicken
                                                                        ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
 
Ingredients:
3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup poppy seed salad dressing
1 TBSP dried minced onions
1 green onion, sliced

Directions:
*Cut each chicken breast into 3 similarly sized pieces. Place into a resealable gallon sized freezer bag.
*Mix together the poppy seed salad dressing, minced onions and green onion. Pour into the bag with the chicken and seal the bag.
*Massage the chicken and dressing so all the chicken is coated. Place the bag in the fridge and allow to marinate for at least 4 hours and up to all day. Flip the bag over now and then.
*One hour before cooking, place the bag on the counter. Spray the cold grill with non stick spray.
*Heat grill. Remove the chicken from the bag and place on hot grill. Cook approximately 10 minutes per side or until the chicken is fully cooked.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Forgiveness

I was so proud when, one year after my oldest started college, my youngest became a college student too. I knew that he was smart, moral, strong and had a good work ethic. I thought, with a pat on the back, that I had taught him all he needed to know to go off on his own.

He ended up 700 miles away in situations we could never see coming. And I was right, with support from us from afar and his own strength of character, he met each obstacle, conquered, grew and moved on.

This week was a different story.

 I had to write my son an email today. It was the hardest letter I've ever had to write.

Forgiveness: You need to know I can forgive you. I need to know, can you? | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics #parenting



Son:

I'm writing this in an email instead of a text because it's long and I want you to read it on your laptop, not a tiny cell phone screen, and truly think about it. I hope that you will print it and that all through your life, when needed, you will have it to refer to.

Of all the things we taught you growing up, although responsibility was one of them and consequences was another, I guess we never gave a whole lot of thought to helping you understand how to deal with the fallout of mistakes. YOUR mistakes. I know you learned how to forgive others, how to get past, as best you can, being wronged, but we were remiss when it comes to the process of forgiving yourself.

I put part of the responsibility on you. You are a great kid. You never got into a lot of trouble. You had a definite sense of whether or not you liked someone and held on to those feelings but you never fought with people, you chose more to walk away than deal with mean kids and drama. You kept the peace with your brother whose teenage years were quite turbulent. You studied hard, worked hard, chose friends with discrimination. your growth into independence was not fraught with some of the wild antics many teenagers get involved in.

You made mistakes, most small. Some, like TWO speeding tickets in one week, bigger. But not really epic ones. A lot of the trouble that many kids got into in high school, you didn't. You lead a sheltered life and in retrospect I think I owe you an apology for that. Now that you are hundreds of miles away at college you're going through so many issues neither one of us saw coming.

You've had a friend arrested for a serious crime, had another friend die, you broke your leg, the first bone you've ever broken. Through all of these I counseled long distance. I knew they'd be hard, physically and emotionally challenging. I thought about flying out there a time or two, but ultimately I knew you were well equipped to deal with these challenges yourself. Your integrity, maturity and character could and did get you through. I was heartbroken for you, and so very proud of you.

But this week you made a mistake. A huge one. I'm not sure we've really gotten to the bottom of it, how much was your responsibility and how much was made worse by another, but honestly it doesn't matter. It is not the mistakes you make in life or your level of culpability but what you do with them. Because of them.

At first you were confused, put most of the blame on someone else. But you showed so much maturity by not only seeking out others who were there for their perspective but really internalizing it.

There are steps to learning from mistakes and you've taken most of them.

1) You are coming to terms with the external blame. Whatever someone else did or didn't do to exacerbate the situation, you cannot change. Let it go. Adjust your relationship with them, but let it go.

2) You called your parents and took responsibility. I know that had to be excruciating, thinking you let us down. 

3) You are aware that there may possibly be more consequences and whatever you think of them, you will accept them.

4) You sat in your room for an entire day feeling forlorn and embarrassed. Good. You should. Big mistakes are not easy to get over. But there is a line between embarrassed and ashamed. You should not be ashamed. You made an error in judgement that many, actually most, kids do.

5) You learned from it. There are things you will not do again and therein lies the core of making mistakes. Learning from them and moving on as a better person.

But you're stuck on the last one, forgiving yourself. And you will truly have let us down if you don't find a way to navigate this one. You must move on, the rest of your life depends on it.

After spending a day wallowing in it, I suggested something that works for me, the reason I blog. I do it to temporarily fully immerse my brain in something else. Forget just for a while, give yourself a much needed emotional respite. And you did. Sort of. You spent a second entire day in your room working on a project, leaving only for class and for 5 minutes for dinner.

That was not what I meant.

Passover Pancakes, either dressed up with chocolate and whipped cream or made "silver dollar" style with charoses, these matzo meal pancakes are delicious | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #Passover #breakfast

Passover Pancakes

Face the friends who know. The longer you hide, not only the more you just put off the inevitable, but the less time you're spending building new experiences and memories with them. Do you want this to be how you and others define you?

If not, get out there. Red-faced at first. Embarrassed by the mistake but NOT ashamed of yourself. Hold your head high. You are not a mistake. You are a person of very high character who made an error in judgement. Do not let this one circumstance swallow your self esteem. And it is. I can hear it.

Your frat had a party that second night. you had signed up to work it and you did. I know it was hard, but first steps always are.

Now take the rest of those steps. Knowing that we, your family, are here for you. We believe in you. We don't care that you make mistakes, but we absolutely do care about what you do despite them. And what you now need to do is to release yourself from the crushing weight of this guilt. With the lesson learned, it is no longer serving any purpose.

Forgive yourself, son. Find a way. And remember how you did it. Because although this is your first really big mistake. It will not be your last.

So proud of you. Still and always.
Mom

Baking In A Tornado signature | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics





Passover Pancakes
                                                                        ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe

NOTE: For the pancake pictured I made a large pancake using about 1/2 cup of the batter and topped it with chocolate syrup, whipped cream and a cherry.
 
Ingredients (serves about 4 adults):
1 cup matzo meal
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt 
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
about 6 pats of butter

OPT: leftover Charoses.

Directions:
*Whisk together the matzo meal, sugar and salt. Whisk in the eggs and milk. 
*Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate an hour (I make it the night before and leave it in the refrigerator overnight).
*Remove batter from fridge. Melt a pat of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Place about 6 - 7 tablespoons of batter, individually and separated, into hot pan (I make these the size of "silver dollar pancakes"). Batter is thick, if you want thinner pancakes, spread them carefully with the back of your tablespoon.
*If using, place a little charoses in the center of each pancake and press gently into the batter. When the bottom is browned, flip and cook the other side just as you would with any pancake.
*Repeat with the rest of the butter and the rest of the batter.

Friday, April 22, 2016

Fly on the Wall: Can You Count to One?

Welcome to a monthly Fly on the Wall group post. Today 12 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. At the end of my post you’ll find links to this month’s other participants’ posts.

Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner


PurDude was home for about 5 minutes last month. The weather was decent for most of his time here, but on Friday it got really cold. He came down to the kitchen in shorts and I told him it had gotten cold and maybe he should put jeans on. He said he was fine. Whatever.

After dinner it got really cold and he was going out with friends.

Me: Maybe you should change now that it's gotten colder and you're going out.
PurDude: Mom, it's not cold.
Me (grabbing my laptop): Let me just look and see. Yup, it says it's a balmy 38 degrees.
PurDude: I'm fine, Mom.
Me: I think you should go put your bathing suit on. 
PurDude: You're the one who needs a bathing suit.
Me: I'm not warm.
PurDude: But you did just go off the deep end.


Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner


Hubs is 6'2" and I'm just 5' tall. The boys are below 6'. PurDude and I were talking about the fact that I think he looks just like my side of the family. 
PurDude: I do wish I'd gotten my height from dad's side of the family.
Me:Yeah, I'm pretty small. Sorry.
PurDude: It's not your fault you're short.
Me: Yeah, but it's my fault you are.



Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner

I almost got into a car accident the other day. I was about to pull out of a parking lot onto a side street and was waiting for a car to pass. As it did, I noticed that the woman driving it was . . . well . . . brushing her teeth. I was trying to maneuver up beside her because obviously I needed a picture of this. 

I had almost wound my car up beside hers when what comes next dawned on me and I took a sudden and sharp right turn.

Because, picture or not, beside her was not where I wanted to be when it was time to spit.



Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner


Hubs came in the house after work, I'd spent the day baking.

Hubs: Yuck. I'm not eating that.
Me: What do you mean you're not eating that?
Hubs: It's disgusting.
Me: It's for April Fool's Day.
Hubs: I'm still not eating it.
Me: You know it's just a cookie and frosting, right?
Hubs: I don't care what you say, I'm not eating a toilet.
Down the Drain (April Fools) Cookie, a fun April Fools joke and a delicious dessert treat all in one | Recipe by www.BakingInATornado.com | #cookie #dessert #AprilFools

And what was College Boy's reaction? 
College Boy: You need to take that fish out of there, that's cruelty to animals. 

Jeez, it's a decorated cookie. These people need to get a grip {{she says while taking a big bite out of the poop}}.


 Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner

College Boy asked me to bake a batch of PB Cup and Oreo Cookies. I pulled them out of the oven and was headed up the stairs when College Boy walked in the house.

College Boy: Can I grab one while they're still warm?
Me: Just one, I'm about to serve dinner.

You know how this went, right? I came downstairs just a minute later and there were five cookies gone.

Me: I guess you need a refresher on how to count to one. 
College Boy: No, I'm fine, I can count to one. In fact, I just did it. Five times.

Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner

Oven Roasted Whole Chicken
Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner



Moms may have eyes in the back of their heads, but my kids have the same kind of sixth sense when it comes to me doing embarrassing stuff. Especially College Boy. I always get caught by College Boy. That boy rolls his eyes at me more often than people check their cell phones.

I'm in the kitchen, sort of jumping around and sticking towels up my sleeve when I look up to see College Boy standing there, arms crossed, shaking his head.

College Boy: What the hell are you doing?
Me: I spilled orange juice.
College Boy: Up your sleeve?
Me: Well, it was up towards the top of the fridge and when I went to take it down the cap wasn't on tightly and . . .  {{sort of resigned to my fate}} there's nothing I can say here . . . right?

And College Boy just rolls his eyes and walks away.


Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner

Our cable was going to be down for an hour on a Saturday morning. I forgot to tell Hubs.

Hubs: Our cable isn't working, did you pay the bill?
Me: Yeah. Sort of.
Hubs: Sort of?
Me: Well, they're a Monopoly. So I paid them in monopoly money. 
Hubs: WHAT? 

Once I saw smoke coming out of his ears, I told him the truth. But jeez, shouldn't this guy know me by now?

Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner


I woke up on Easter morning to find I had a new twitter follower. Umm, wait a second. Willie Robertson? That can't be. Not only would he have no idea who I am, but he and I are on complete opposite sides of the spectrum when it comes to beliefs.


New twitter follower . . . or not | www.BakingInATornado.com | #humor #funny

So I look a little closer, realize he's only got a few thousand followers and know this isn't the "real" Willie Robertson.

And now I'm completely confused. Is it better to be followed by the "actual" guy? Or the fake guy? 


Oven Roasted Whole Chicken, seasoned, basted, and cooked to perfection. As moist and flavorful as a purchased rotisserie chicken at a much lower cost | recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #chicken #dinner

Just a few minutes later on the same day I'm sitting in the den drinking coffee when my cell dings. I have a text from FB asking me if I'm OK and telling me how to respond to them. Huh? That made me angry. Who asked them to waste my time texting me? And there's no way I'm answering. It's bad enough FB knows everything I do, when I look at a product online I'm suddenly inundated with FB ads for that exact product. Seems like they know exactly what I'm doing whether I like it or not.

I jump onto FB and there's a message waiting for me there too.

FB text | www.BakingInATornado.com | #humor #funny



So I'm reading the message I've now received twice and it seems that FB, who knows everything I do, thinks I'm in Pakistan.

Can this day get any weirder? Don't answer that.


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





Baking In A Tornado | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics



Oven Roasted Whole Chicken
                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
1 (5 - 7#) roasting chicken
3/4 stick butter, softened
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp paprika
OPT: 1 - 1 1/2 cups stuffing of your choice or
OPT: 1 lemon, 1 carrot, 1/2 onion

Directions:
*Note the exact size of your chicken in order to calculate cooking time.
*One hour before cooking, remove chicken from the fridge, rinse inside and out, removing any packets. Pat dry, cover with paper towel and allow to sit, breast side down.
*Also one hour before cooking, mix together the salt, pepper, onion powder, thyme, cayenne and paprika. Sprinkle 2 tsp onto the softened butter. Mash together until the butter is completely infused with the seasonings. Place in fridge.
*Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a large baking pan with heavy foil.
*Sprinkle some of the rest of the seasoning mix onto the back of the bird. Turn over and place into baking pan. Remove butter from fridge.
*Carefully, using your hands, create a cavity between the skin and the breast meat. Do not teat the skin. Slice about 1/2 of the butter/seasoning mixture into thin slices. Again carefully using your hands, place the butter slices under the skin. Pace the remaining butter into a small pan and melt.
*Place either the stuffing or aromatics into the cavity of the bird. You may want to pin the cavity closed if using stuffing. Use about 1/3 of the melted butter mixture to baste the skin. Sprinkle with the remaining seasoning mixture.
*Place chicken in the oven and immediately lower temperature to 350 degrees. Bake for 25 minutes pound if stuffed or 20 minutes per pound if you've filled the cavity with the vegetables. Always cook until the juices run clear no matter how you figure out the timing.
*Baste with the remaining butter/seasoning mixture when about 1/3 done and again when about 2/3 done. The last time you baste, if the skin is getting too dark, loosely tent tin foil over the top.
*Chicken is done when the juices run clear. After removing from oven, tent with foil and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
*Remove the stuffing to a bowl or, if using vegetables, discard them before carving.

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Know Your Balls

Know your balls? Bet you think I mean these:

Fruited BBQ Meatballs, Crockpot or Stovetop | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner #appetizer


Nope, not those balls.

Oh, baseball. After all, it's April and everyone knows how much I do love those Red Sox

Not those balls either.

Let me give you a hint: In many parts of the country, bulls need to run and hide or theirs could end up on someone's plate renamed Rocky Mountain Oysters

Yeah, those balls.

Inspect ~ Detect ~ Protect: Testicular Cancer Awareness | Graphic by www.BakingInATornado.com/2016/04/know-your-balls.html | #KnowYourBalls #Cancer



Wait. Know my balls? THOSE balls? Last I checked I didn't have any. In fact, if I remember my High School Sex Ed correctly, women characteristically don't (except my friend Betsy, and you can buy hers here: Happylicious by Betsy).

But all the men I know do. Well, that may be presumptuous, but I'm willing to go out on a limb here. Quick side note to my male friends, please do not start sending me pictures. Really, no visual confirmation necessary, thank you very much.

Years ago I wrote an entire post about the blogging trend of writing about bodily functions and body parts. In Virginia is the New Furt, I declared my intention to give that particular trend a pass. I would not be discussing my "Virginia" on the interwebs.

Virginia is the New Furt | www.BakingInATornado.com | #humor



So, of course, here I am talking about balls.

This is my story, and I'm sticking to it (you knew there was going to be a story, right?): I receive a ton of emails in relation to this blog. It's why it has its own email address. With more frequency than I'd like to admit, I'm asked to write for this or that company. I consider them all but rarely accept.

Last November when Shannon of Tommy John, a men's undergarment company, contacted me about including her brand in a post, I declined. But Shannon got sneaky creative. She contacted me again this month about participating in a campaign Tommy John is running in support of the Testicular Cancer Foundation. She said, in part, "In November, my company donated over $10,000 directly to the cause and in April we're looking to continue raising awareness of this disease - but we can't do it alone. We'd love your help by spreading the word to your readers! The more women that join the cause, the greater the impact will be."

Well played, Shannon, well played.

You see I'm not only married, and not only the mother of two boys, but I also have a friend whose husband had testicular cancer. I approached Elizabeth about this post and she generously agreed to share her story. From my friend Elizabeth:

I am the wife of a testicular cancer survivor. I'm lucky to be able to say that. My husband found a lump long before he did anything about it. I'm not sure why, but I can imagine. Maybe in our hectic young married lives he just forgot about it. Maybe he'd convinced himself it was nothing.

I was 6 months into a difficult pregnancy with our first child when he was diagnosed. From there it was a whirlwind of action and emotion. He went into treatment immediately. My pregnancy, his diagnosis, banking sperm, surgery, months of radiation before work, I'm not sure we really had a chance to process it, either of us. It all just seemed so surreal.

He recovered. Despite his delay in seeking a diagnosis, it was caught early enough. We went on to successfully have 2 more children through artificial insemination. All these years later I look across the table at my husband, I look at the beautiful family we created and I know it could have gone differently. I appreciate how very lucky I am to be able to say that I am the wife of a testicular cancer survivor.
 
Testicular Cancer Awareness | more info at http://www.bakinginatornado.com/2016/04/know-your-balls.html | #cancer #health



Some general information as provided to me:
*One male is diagnosed with testicular cancer every hour. That's 24 men a day.
*Testicular cancer is the most easily detected form of cancer.
*The survival rate for testicular cancer is 99% when caught early.
*Testicular cancer is the most common cancer in males ages 15 - 34.
*Awareness is low about the risks for testicular cancer and the precautions that should be taken, jeopardizing the chances of early detection.

So, to all the women out there, here's your opportunity. In this Testicular Cancer Awareness Month, give your men a kick in the pants. We are advised to feel ourselves up, it's only fair that we ask our men to feel themselves down . . . so to speak.

Please. It's important.

Baking In A Tornado signature | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics

 

 

PS: Be sure to visit the Testicular Cancer Foundation website where they provide awareness, education and support.


Because these people really care,
about, you know,
what ya got down there. 

Sorry, just couldn't help myself. And April is, after all, not only Testicular Cancer Awareness Month but also National Poetry Month.



Friday, April 15, 2016

Use Your Words: Social Experiment

Today’s post is a monthly writing challenge. If you’re new here, this is how it works: participating bloggers picked 4 – 6 words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once. All of the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That’s the challenge, here’s a fun twist; no one who’s participating knows who got their words and in what direction the recipient will take them. Until now.

Use Your Words | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics



At the end of this post you’ll find links to the other blogs featuring this challenge. Check them all out, see what words they got and how they used them.
I’m using: umbrella ~ drawer ~ easier said than done ~ refrigerated ~ precious ~ cut short 

They were submitted by: Tamara of Confessions of a part time working mom.

I've mentioned before that these word assignments hit me differently each month. Some months they quickly gel together in my mind and the post writes itself. Other months I look at them expecting them to speak to me, close the draft, come back another day and look at them expecting them to speak to me, close the draft and come back another day right up until a few days before posting, when panic hits.

This was one of those months where we were heading towards panic. It has nothing to do with the words, it's definitely me, in this case part of it was that I really wanted to do something different with my words. The other part was my creative process was not processing. And like most things, when I try to force it I end up drawing a complete blank. Just like, when trying to create a new recipe, coming up with absurd ideas that my kids nix just with an eye roll. Like . . . well, lets not go there. We'll just keep posting the successes and leave it at that.


Mint Lovers' Cookies, a lightly mint flavored cookie with bold mint add-in ingredients. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado,com | #recipe #cookies #mint

Mint Lovers' Cookies

So back to the words. We're getting close to posting day and I'm not sure what to do. But that's OK because I had an ace up my sleeve. I had thought, from the time I started this challenge, that if I ever couldn't use my words, I'd just . . . used my words. I would, over the next few days, now and then just casually slide a word into our everyday conversations. Could be fun. Could be funny. There was also, of course, the chance I could end up committed. 

In a strange coincidence, Tamara, whose words I'm actually using today, was in this same last-minute situation last month with the words she'd been assigned and she suggested the exact same thing. In a FB conversation she said to me "I think I should start a conversation with you . . . using my words . . . "  

In the end she didn't, but I am!

Here's how it went down, how I smooth-as-silk slid my words into casual conversations with my family members. 

Hubs is lost in the grocery store. If I send him out for one thing it can take up to 4 phone calls for him to find it. He went to get an ingredient I needed the other day and I actually showed him the empty package before he went so he'd know what it looks like. Two phone calls later he'd found it and asked if I needed anything else at the grocery store. 
Me: Yes, an umbrella.
Hubs: Are you sure? I didn't see any here.
Me: Check the refrigerated section. 
That kept him busy for a while.

Later in the day, College Boy was looking for the cookies (that his brother had finished). 
College Boy: Where are the rest of those cookies. I know there were a few left.
Me: Last time I saw them they were in the junk drawer
And he really did look. Because treats do get hidden around here.

Turns out, when you live in a house full of men, there are precious few chances to use the word precious.

College Boy has been my baking muse since he moved back in. It's been so much fun to bring his thoughts to life. He's helped me out so many times taking a partial idea I may have and pulling it together with just the right added ingredient. One of his brainstorms was my PB Cup and Oreo Cookies. Recently he came to me with a new idea for a cookie I'm calling Mint Lovers' Cookies.
Me: That's too much like the PB Cup and Oreo Cookies, we need something unique. What kind of muse are you?
College Boy: This is a great idea, different enough and we all love chocolate and mint.
Me: (standing straight, putting my hand over my heart and bowing my head): Can we have a moment's silence for a muse's life cut short
College Boy (walking away): Fine, no more ideas for you.
Me (chasing after him in a panic holding up two wooden spoons): Wait, wait, I've got the paddles, set the defibrillator to 120 joules . . . we can save him . . . don't leave me! 
Full disclosure: From the fact that I'm posting the recipe today, I'm going to have to admit that even though this cookie is a lot like the other, we all loved it.

Mint Lovers' Cookies, a lightly mint flavored cookie with bold mint add-in ingredients. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado,com | #recipe #cookies #mint


So there are my words. All used, and that was easier said than done. Now I'm off to explain to my family that they were the guinea pigs in my social experiment. That should go over well . . .


Links to the other Use Your Words posts:


Baking In A Tornado signature | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics



Mint Lovers' Cookies
                                                                        ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
1 stick butter, softened
1 stick margarine, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp mint extract
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup mint oreos, chopped (about 12 cookies) 
1 cup (about 5 oz) Andes mints, quartered 

Directions:
*Cream butter, margarine and sugars until smooth. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
*Starting on the lowest speed until incorporated, beat in the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix in the chopped oreos and the mints.
*Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or up to a day.
*Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper.
*Roll dough into approximately 1 inch balls. Place on prepared baking sheets.
*Bake for 9 - 12 minutes or until they start to brown. Leave on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes before removing them to cool completely.