Turning Two

I never thought this day would come. I have been blogging for two years. Two to three times a week I’ve been sharing true stories, humor pieces, opinions, memories, hopes and recipes through this blog. For two years! This is my 227th post.

I’ve never been accused of being at a loss for words. I suck at Twitter because I tend to be words, 140 characters is merely an appetizer for me. But did I think that I could write 227 pieces? With personally designed graphics, a recipe and food picture in almost all of them? Even I didn’t think I’d be able to sustain that kind of a pace for 2 years.

What shocks me most of all is how many people read this blog on a regular basis. I don’t have the most popular or successful blog. I chose to grow slowly, organically and honestly. I don’t regret it for a minute. There isn’t a thing I’ve written about that I consider to be at the expense of someone I love. Or anyone at all for that matter. Yes, one post was a complete failure, no one got it, but it didn’t hurt anyone (well, maybe MY feelings). But silly or serious or sarcastic, there’s not a piece that I’ve published that I’ve regretted. In so many ways this blog IS me.

And in so many ways this blog has saved me.

Iced Coffee Cocktail

I don’t make a secret of the fact that I’ve been going through some incredibly difficult times for the past few years. I’ve said many times that I find baking soothing, and that it does take my mind off of my problems. Blogging has enhanced that for me, allowed me to escape for a while, concentrate on writing a piece, designing a graphic, having discussions on social media in support of my posts.

I don’t know how long I’ll continue. The boys, who are undoubtedly my muses, will soon be gone. Along with them go the reason I bake. But I’m so proud to share this; I will forever know that I built a blog from scratch, I built communities through the blog challenges and groups I developed and administer, I’ve not only done it but have maintained it for 2 years. If I were to never write a word again I’ll be grateful for having gone down this road.

I’ve seen blogs come and go. I’ve watched bloggers give up and walk away. I’ve seen many take roads that I just can’t understand. But I’ve made connections, both fellow bloggers and blog readers who have made a difference to me; some even kept me going on many (many, many) occasions when I really thought I was done.

I’m not going to get all syrupy and sappy and ooey and gooey. All that stuff is for desserts (well, you knew I was gonna get baked goods in here somewhere, right)? But two years is a really long time so I want to mark this milestone with just the right words:

Thank you.

Iced Coffee Cocktail

                                                                    ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients (makes approximately 2):
1 ½ cups cold coffee
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup Dulce de Leche liquid creamer 
½ cup vanilla ice cream
2 ounces Whipped Cream Vodka
3 ounces Amaretto
2 ounces of white chocolate liqueur
1 ounce Kahlua
Opt: whipped cream for topping
 
Directions:
*Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.
*Serving options: Put in a glass with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
                        Serve over ice with a dollop of whipped cream.
                        Put into freezer until it starts to thicken and serve slushy.

June Use Your Words

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 and all 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 writer will take them. Until now.

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 incoherent ~ bologna ~ hysterical ~ hole in one ~ coffee ~ coexist
They were submitted by The Bergham's Life Chronicles.

Coffee. Every day starts with coffee. I’d be incoherent without it. Some say I’m incoherent with it, but that’s another post for another day. Truth is, my sanity, what little of it remains after raising two boys, is tied to the level of coffee running through my veins on any particular morning.

Anyone play golf? I never have. I always said that if I really wanted to go for a walk, I don’t have to hit a little ball every once in a while to do it, I’d just walk. But if you are a golfer, you’ll get this; my first sip of coffee in the morning? It’s my hole in one.

But once, ONCE, I ran out of coffee. In a raging snowstorm. I don’t know how it happened than and I can assure you that it hasn’t happened since. Not only did that day epitomize the word ‘panic”, but I literally could not function. Rational thought and I were completely unable to coexist.

If you’re here you know, of course, that I blog. No, I was not stupid enough to try to write on a day without coffee. I knew not to even attempt that, although in retrospect the result may very well have been hysterical. Epic? Perhaps. But a lesson in futility as I’m sure it wouldn’t have ended up on the blog.

I did, however, have to make dinner. I thought bout telling the family that we wouldn’t be eating that night because of the whole coffee debacle, but even I knew that wasn’t going to happen. I didn’t have to write but I would have to cook.

Roasted-style Grilled Chicken

As I frequently do, I decided to try something new. I do this as often as possible because new recipes often take time and a few different attempts before they develop into something I want to put on the blog. So when something comes to mind as a starting point, I need to go with it.

But on this particular day, due to my caffeine handicap (that’s my story and I’m sticking to it), dinner was not exactly a success. In fact, I was banned from tweaking it and threatened with losing my kitchen privileges altogether.

Family (yes, all of them): Yuck, Mom, this might be the worst dinner you ever made. What in the world did you wrap this chicken breast in?

Me: Ummmm, bologna?

Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time . . .

Links to the other “Use Your Words” posts:

Spatulas on Parade

Stacy Sews and Schools

The Bergham's Life Chronicles

Juicebox Confession

Confessions of a part-time working mom

Someone Else's Genius

Battered Hope

Healing Tomato

Evil Joy Speaks

The Sadder But Wiser Girl

Roasted-style Grilled Chicken

                                                                              ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
3 # boneless skinless chicken breasts
¼ cup oil
2 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP dijon mustard
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp thyme
¼ tsp cayenne
1 tsp paprika
 
Directions:
*Cut each piece of chicken in half. Place into re-sealable gallon sized plastic bag.
*Mix all of the rest of the ingredients together and pour into bag with the chicken. Close bag and manipulate the chicken and marinade around so all of the chicken is covered with marinade.
*Refrigerate for at least 3 hours and up to a day, turning the bag over in the fridge at least a few times.
*Grease your grill grates before starting the grill. Heat the grill to medium heat and take chicken pieces from the marinade and grill, turning once, until fully cooked and juices run clear. This should take approximately 15 minutes per side.

Love to Laugh

A few weeks ago Cluttered Genius interviewed me for a post she was writing in support of one of the collaborative books I contributed to, The Mother of All Meltdowns. In the interview she asked what makes me laugh. What a great question.

My answer to her was that I find my children’s laughter contagious. Hearing my boys laugh makes me laugh. But laughter comes so much easier when they’re little. AS they get older, sometimes you have to dig deeper to bring it out.

When my boys became teenagers I started watching the news and scanning the papers for absurd news stories. You know, the kind that make you laugh out loud and think “yup, truth is stranger than fiction.” I wanted the family dinners we had left to always end on a happy note. On nights when the conversations were more serious or stressful, I’d bring up some of those stories before we left the table. Or I’d quote some funny “bot” comments I’d gotten on the blog, or search terms people had typed into Google that somehow, inexplicably, landed them on my blog. Every meal ended with laughs all around. Perfect.

I’d done a post about funny true news stories a year ago and was asked at the time to do another. I’m pretty sure they didn’t mean a year and a half later, but I’m finally getting around to it. So from the “you can’t make this stuff up” files, here are some true news stories, some funny computer-generated bot comments and some search terms that landed people on my blog (and probably had them scratching their heads as to why they ended up here). And, of course, I’ve added some of my own comments.

Some of what we’ve been laughing about at our dinner table:

News stories:
*Someone has come up with an alcoholic drink in powdered packets (looks like a Kool-Aid packet).
     ~This is either genius or the most dangerous invention since TNT.

*Haagen Dazs is testing vegetable flavored ice creams, one with tomato and another with carrots.
     ~When reporting about it on the national news, Brian Williams said it best; “this is a purpose-defeating product if ever there was one.”

*A local man was arrested for driving his lawnmower down the street.
     ~The story gets better, when pulled over, it was evident that he had been drinking. He told the arresting officer that he was driving to a store down the street from his house. Evidently he had run out of beer.

Baked Hot Wings

 

Search terms that lead people to this blog:
*baking soda for hot flashes
     ~Wait, what? Don’t leave me hanging, am I supposed to eat it? Wear it? Bathe in it?

*alcohol free
     ~I’m so sorry but you have been horribly lead astray by Google. You are SO in the wrong place.

*name cakes happy birthday linda
     ~I’m stumped by this one too. I name my cakes but I’ve never named one “happy birthday Linda”. I don’t even know a Linda.

*domination interior
     ~What does this even mean? Who Googles this? Really, I want to know.

Bot generated blog comments:
* “Can I simply  just say what a relief to discover somebody who genuinely knows what they are discussing.” The comment goes on to say “I can’t believe you aren’t more popular.”
     ~Ummmmm, gee thanks.

* “At Trader Joe’s, the popcorn arrives packaged pre-popped and also is actually as effortless to ingest as potato chips.”
     ~OK, good to know.

* “We are a group opening a new scheme in our community. Your website provided us with valuable information.”
     ~Does this make me an accessory?

* “I was interested to find out how you center yourself and clear your head prior to writing. I’ve had trouble cleaning my mind.”
     ~Sorry buddy, your dirty mind is not my problem.


* “Permit this review and we’ll protect a fictional dog!”
     ~Wow, really? If I post your review on my blog you’ll protect a fictional dog?What do I have to do to get you to protect a real dog? Wait. Don’t answer that.

 

Baked Hot Wings

                                                                         ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
3 – 4 #chicken wings or wingettes
4 tsp cayenne
¼ tsp paprika
¼ tsp chili powder
¼ tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
1 ½ cups Frank’s Hot Sauce
 
Directions:
*Mix together the cayenne, paprika, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
*Rinse wings and pat dry. Sprinkle liberally with the seasoning mix, pat in, turn wings over and repeat.
*Place wings in a gallon bag and refrigerate for 24 hours.
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray.
*Arrange the wings, not overlapping onto the cookie sheet. Sprinkle with more of the seasoning mix.
*Bake for 30 minutes, turn the wings over, sprinkle with more of the seasoning mix and bake another 30 minutes.
*Pour the Hot Sauce into a large bowl. Take the wings from the oven and immediately put into the bowl with the sauce. Stir to coat.