BS at PU

When things get really rough, when I'm so stressed or angry or sad (or all three, depending on what's going on at any given time) that I can feel my blood pressure about to blow the top of my head off, I always say the same thing "please, dear G-d, just let me live long enough to get my youngest son through college." 

If you read this blog and/or follow my Baking In A Tornado FB page regularly (you do, right?) you know that last weekend it happened, PurDude graduated. Not really sure that bodes well for my whole head explosion situation. In retrospect, maybe I should have thought a little longer term.
 

I struggled, 4 years ago, when (after my older son chose a college about an hour away) we packed my youngest up and drove him to school 10 hours away. It was bittersweet, setting up his room, and as you knew I would, lining his window sill with 9 dozen cookies for his new friends and crying the whole way then driving home without him.

Dark and White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Four sometimes devastating and often equally delightful years later, we went up to Purdue last week to reverse the process. He's living in a house with a couple of friends instead of a dorm this time, but cookies once again included, of course.

We spent the weekend walking the campus, meeting more of PurDude's friends and visiting some of our favorite places. I'm going to have to admit here, as a mom, that there were places I could have lived without seeing. He'd sent me pictures of the outside of the house he was renting and it certainly was run down looking, but that's part of the whole student experience (or so I thought). I also thought I was paying rent for him to live in a house and all this time it turns out it was a cave. And that bathroom? I may need therapy. 

Speaking of therapy, Purdue has just the place. There was no question that we'd be stopping by Paddy's Sweet Shop for one of their famous milkshakes. This place is so cute, isn't it? 

 And we had our share of laughs. Like when we saw this bike and PurDude explained to us that on campus if you leave your bike without locking it up, it won't be where you left it. Don't worry, it wasn't stolen. Everyone knows to just look up.

 Graduation was amazing. I have to admit I've never been this entertained by a commencement before. Purdue has produced more astronauts than any other school and it happens that 2 are on the International Space Station right now. One of them received an honorary doctorate and since our son's degree is from the school of science, it played out in the graduation ceremony (one of six in total) that we attended. This segment of the graduation was actually done through a live hook-up to the Space Station and concluded with the astronaut addressing the new graduates. NASA even covered it live on their TV channel also.

If you want to see it, the link is to the video on the Purdue FB page is HERE. If you don't want to see the whole commencement, you can scroll forward to the Space Station part. If you do watch it, watch to the very end (even after the waving), it's pretty funny in places, and I love how it ends.

 The highlight for us, of course, was hearing our son's name called and watching him cross that stage to receive his degree. A Bachelor's Degree in Science with a major in Computer Science and a minor in Organizational Leadership Skills. GPA: 3.2. Yeah, I may be just a little proud.  
 
Among the many obligatory pictures we were sure to get one of PurDude and Neil Armstrong. Now they are both Purdue alumni.

And then it came. Time to say goodbye to his friends and his housemates and work on packing up to come home. We had limited space, his car and our SUV and that's it. We looked into renting a small truck but driving it one way would cost about 5 times what we paid for the items we'd be taking. Cheap college furniture is easily replaced. We had room for one large piece so PurDude had a decision to make, which had the most sentimental meaning to him. 

He was living in a house with 2 roommates so he did have some furniture that we'd bought him: a mini fridge, a desk, a futon, an air conditioner. Whatever he didn't take he was donating to his frat brothers. None of what we bought was expensive and all had served him well for 4 years so it didn't matter to us what he decided to keep. 

So what did he do? In the end it wasn't furniture we had bought him that came home with us after all, it was something he'd acquired along the way.

Why yes, that actually is a Kegerator sitting in my garage. 

Oy.

But if you go inside my house, climb the stairs and walk into the room on the left, there you will find my boy. Temporarily, of course, but for now all is right in my world. Perfect, in fact.

Dark and White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients (makes about 3 1/2 dz):
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
1 stick butter, softened
1 stick margarine, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg, room temperature
1 3/4 cups flour
2 TBSP baking cocoa
1 cup quick oats
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
*Melt the dark chocolate chips until smooth when stirred.
*Cream the butter, margarine, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Beat in the egg and melted dark chocolate.
*Slowly at first until incorporated, beat in the flour, baking cocoa, oats, salt and baking soda. Mix in the white chocolate chips. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper.
*Roll the dough into about 1 inch balls. Place on the baking sheets and press down gently with the heel of your hand. 
*Bake for 12 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before removing to cool completely.

And all I got

My older son graduated from High School a couple of days ago. As his Mom, I'm going to take this as a personal accomplishment. Yes, he did do it. But it’s very possible I dragged him through, kicking and screaming the whole way. So yes, I’m taking some of the credit. And yet, for all my effort, I didn’t even get a t-shirt. What DID I get? Well, let’s see . . .

My son graduated from High School and all I got was:
* a migrane. Actually, more than one.
* selective hearing. It’s a skill. I had to work at it.
* lots of practice baking.
* grey hair.
* a nervous tic. Sort of like a fashion statement, it goes really well with the gray hair.

 Angel Food Trifle

* the ability to fall back asleep after being woken up by the front door slamming at 1:00 am.

* a blog. One that sometimes seems to take up more of my time and attention than my kids do.

* a renewed appreciation for mixed drinks. And a skill for developing new ones.

* bragging rights. Which, I have to admit, are being well and frequently used at the moment.

* the bill for college. Best bill ever.

It cost me about $100 to have this put into his yearbook. And although I’m not one to throw money out the window, I’m going to call this well worth it:

All you’ve conquered and accomplished

shows how brave and strong you are.

So Proud.  Every Day.

Love,

Mom, Dad, JB

Congratulations, Son.

Angel Food Trifle
                                      ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

 

Ingredients:
2 (15 oz) angel food cakes or loaves
1 1/2 lbs. fresh strawberries, washed and slices
2 (3 oz) packages of strawberry jello
2 cups whipping cream

Directions:

*Make one package of jello and put in the fridge for about 45 minutes, just until it starts to set. Don't let it set completely, it still needs to be liquid, just thickened.
*Beat the whipping cream until stiff peaks hold. Beat in the thickened jello. Put in the fridge. NOTE: If the jello has set too much, whisk in a little bit of warm water before using.
*Cut one of the angel food cakes into squares. Mix with half of the strawberries and put into the bottom of a large glass bowl.
*Make the second package of jello. Pour half of it over the cake layer and push down into the bottom of your glass bowl.
*Gently layer half of the whipped cream mixture over the angel cake layer.
*Refrigerate to let these bottom layers set a little.
*Repeat all layers. When you push down on the second cake layer, make sure to do it gently and not push it into the whipped cream layer below it.
*Garnish top with a strawberry.