Best Peanut Butter Cup Cookies EVERRRRR

So at the wedding shower this past weekend, I got a TON of new recipes. Which I plan on sharing with you. So get excited.

In an attempt to become the favorite wife at Mark's office I decided that every few weeks I'll send him in with a baked good. This will hopefully lead to some teasing for him while he is at work, plus I like to bake and really I can't just have three dozen cookies lying around the house. So really, everybody wins.

So today I sent Mark into work with the below cookies. The recipe came from my Mom and she calls them "Peanut Butter Cup Cookies." I'm going to call them "So good you can barely get to the point of baking them because the dough is so flipping delicious/Whoever invented peanut butter is a goddess"

And yes, I'm just assuming the inventor of Peanut Butter is a woman.

On to the goodness:

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter (yes, that's two sticks. I never said this was healthy)
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter (I even used natural and it worked out fine)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
10 oz peanut butter cups
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl.
3. In a separate large bowl, beat the butter, peanut butter, sugars and vanilla until light and fluffy.
4. Taste the mixture with your finger and just about die because it's delicious.
5. Repeat tasting with your finger if desired.
6. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition until thoroughly blended. Stir in with wooden spoon the dry ingredients until smooth.
7. Taste the mixture with your finger and just about die because it's delicious.
8. Repeat tasting with your finger if desired.
9. Coarsely chop the peanut butter cups and fold into batter along with chocolate chips
10. Taste the mixture with your finger and just about die because it's delicious.
11. Repeat tasting with your finger if desired.
12. Spoon a heaping Tbsp. of dough about 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until slightly firm to the touch about 10-13 minutes (I had to go with the high end on the baking time.)
13. Cool before transferring to cooling rack.
14. But be sure to taste one when it's still hot and gooey.

***Steps 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11 and 14 are completely necessary. Otherwise your cookies will fail.***

The recipe says it makes 3 dozen... but I got closer to 4!

Enjoy!

A birthday and sibling rivalry

I have this (free!) iPhone app called 31 Seconds. Everyday it tells me famous birthdays, when the sun rises and sets, a little history tidbit, and a quote.

Today's quote I loved:

"I never wanted to be famous. I only wanted to be great." -Ray Charles

Now, I don't always blog on family birthdays... but I think this quote perfectly describes my Dad, who as fate would have it is having a birthday today. He strives to be great both for his family and at work, but he never wants any recognition for it.

Well, too bad, because I'm the boss around these parts. So today you get recognized.

THANKS DAD FOR EVERYTHING! YOU'RE THE BEST! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

I also wanted to add at this time how a normal birthday goes in our family. See, my siblings and I tend to be very competitive, and I'm not sure when it happened, but at some point it became a competition to be the first person to wish the birthday boy or girl happy birthday.

So a normal birthday call goes like this:

Ring, ring...

"Hello?"

"HAPPPPPYYYY BIRTHDAY!!!"

"Thanks, (insert name of caller)"

"So how does it feel to be (insert age of birthday family member here)?"

"Not much different than any other day."

"I know what you mean. So.... did I win??"

"(Laughing) yes, yes you did." or "Nope sorry, (insert winner's name here) beat you too it! Better luck next birthday."

These may not be the most heartfelt or sappy birthday calls on the planet... but we have fun. I LOVE my family :)

Oh, and just for the record, today I totally won :)

Love is in the Air!

Mark and I are getting married in 73 days!!! It's crazy that more than a year ago I was saying "YES!" on Catalina island.

This weekend was our wedding shower... and it was amazing! We are blessed with great family and friends, and I'll be sharing pictures soon.

And with all this wedding stuff going on, it occurred to me... did I ever tell you how Mark and I met? It's hard to believe that 3 1/2 years ago I didn't even know him, and now he's my best friend and helloooo my FIANCE WHO I GET TO MARRY IN LESS THAN THREE MONTHS EXCUSE THE ALL CAPS BUT I'M SO EXCITED.

So picture this: We are in a club called Louie's on South Padre Island. On Spring Break. I know-- not exactly where you think you meet your soulmate but just go with it. Mark's brother spotted us because someone in our group had a Purdue hat on or something.

I don't think Paul reads my blog so it's okay that I'm about to make fun of him. He was all "Hey ladiessss...." in the best pick-up line voice possible. He then began to tell us that his brother, Mark went to Purdue, too. Cue introductions with Mark. Then Paul wandered into the mass of men who were ogling at the half-naked beer models throwing out hats and beads.

But Mark stayed behind. And so we chatted. And I liked him. Sure he was dressed a little dorky (to this day checkered or plaid shirts still give me this opinion) and sure he was fried to a crisp. But I liked him. And so I broke one of my cardinal rules and gave him my number. And we left. The girls teased me about the boy I was flirting with, and I just smiled, never really expecting to see him or hear from him again.

And of course he didn't call the next day. He says now that he thought I was just being nice and giving him my number out of pity-- that I was out of his league. But as luck (fate?) would have it the next night one of the girls just HAD to stop at Long John Silvers for hushpuppies on the way back from another club. And while we were waiting in a line of 29840438 drunk college students... I spotted him as he walked in the door. Mark--only this time without a checkered shirt, and therefor much cuter.

And he was visibly happy to see me again, and so I teased him about not calling. We left separately, but the next day he texted me.

And so we invited them over to our condo the next night, along with some other spring-break goers from Purdue that we had met during the week. I'm trying to make this post as short as possible, so I'll just say that our condo wasn't allowed visitors, and so there were some fake hotel bracelets, some running from the security cards where we got split up, but Mark and Paul still managed to find our room (fate again?) And I was totally into him. Here is our first picture together:

So maybe that deck of cards, and the three cups are the main focus of this picture,
but we are clearly already into each other.  Also note: plaid shirt!
Though it has become my favorite due to sentimental reasons.

He told me about getting in trouble for golfing into the ocean, one time, because the sea turtles will choke on the golf balls (something that to this day he can't believe I was actually listening to.)

I made him his first Lauren-cooked meal. A quesadilla (classic.)

He told me he was a Delt and I immediately changed my outlook on him from sweet to skeptical (he could have been a sleazy frat boy! Good thing I turned out to be wrong!)

He even asked me to move in with him that night. I pretended to think he was joking because only a creeper asks that the first time you hang out. And later he told me that he was in fact dead serious because he thought I was too good to be true. But when I laughed it off, so did he-- he didn't want me thinking he was a crazy or something.

When Mark and Paul left, Mark kissed me on the forehead and I was swooning because seriously who does that? SO SWEET.

We didn't know at this point that three years and seven months later we would be getting married.
Otherwise we probably would have put down our drinks to smile.  

When we got back to Purdue I wanted him to call SO BAD. But of course I wouldn't be the one to call first. The girls teased me some more at practice that Monday, and told me to call. But when I got to my car (cue angels singing!) I had a missed call from Mark and a nervous voicemail asking me out on a date.

We went on a date every night that week. And saw each other at every possible moment after that. I finally got the courage to ask if we were officially "together" three weeks after Spring Break (a total girl thing to do) Mark just laughed and said, "We've been together since the first time I saw you in Padre, haven't we?" Which was exactly what I had been thinking. The rest as they say, is history!

Mark & I at Purdue's Grand Prix (April 2007)

Our first camping trip. (And my first camping trip ever!) April 2007

After our first "I love you" (on that camping trip) April 2007, but that's another story.

So that's it! The story of love at first sight on March 13, in South Padre Island.

Random Update in Pictures

Don't have a heart attack but I'm blogging two days in a row. I know it's sort of crazy so I'll give you a minute to take it in.

Still with me?

Good.

While I haven't been so great about updating my blog, I have been good about taking iPhone pictures about my life. So here's a totally random update on my life... thanks for being a loyal reader :)

First off, when I got onto my blog today the ad that was running was for suspenders. What on Earth did I blog about to have an ad run about suspenders? Just in case you are a new reader I want to be clear: I am NOT and old lady, and my blog is NOT boring enough to warrant an ad about suspenders. That being said, feel free to click on the ad if it interests you because of course, I get paid if you do that. But I'm not really sure I'm actually allowed to say that. So just do it if you WANT to. No pressure. (Click the image below to enlarge the screenshot I took of the ad.)

Here's a picture I took on one of my long drives. I don't know where I was headed. Either to Cleveland or Indy or my parents (any of which is at least 6 hours...) I was trying to capture an awesome sunset storm (the iPhone failed me in this regard) but it did manage to turn the light reflecting of the raindrops into music notes... which I love.

Speaking of driving. Here's a picture I sent to Mark on one of my firsts drives to Cleveland. 

And here's one I sent to him on one of my drives to Cleveland after making about a million long drives (moving... wrapping things up in Indy... wedding stuff at home... etc...) Yay for driving.

I've been cooking a lot. The Pesto Shrimp Mac & Cheese was a big hit. Recipe to come.

I made homemade coasters that are super simple and cost maybe $5.00 for 6. Craft project to come.

We got a King size bed. Which Mark still somehow manages to take over.

King also likes the King bed, and when I can't find him during the day all I need to do is walk upstairs.

I'm obsessed with sunsets through the trees in our backyard. And the firepit we built in it. And when I say we I mean Mark. But I was totally there for moral support.

I'm also now obsessed with Teavana (details to come.)

Last weekend we went fishing. King, like myself refused to get out of bed until the clock read 5:00AM (Mark tried to get us up at 4:30)

But we did manage to get out on the water for a gorgeous sunrise.

Which King really enjoyed.

And King followed Mark everywhere on the boat. Which was hilarious to me, but annoying to Mark.

You'll notice there are no pictures of fish to go along with our fishing excursion. That's because we didn't catch any. 

Okay, I've exhausted my recent iPhone picture collection. I think I'll pull out the "real" camera and keep it handy so the next post like this actually has quality photos.

My life is a sitcom

Okay.

You know that movie the Truman Show? Where everybody is in on the secret but Jim Carey? It's a big conspiracy where everything is a giant movie set, and everyone is an actor.

Well sometimes I think this is my life, just a sitcom to entertain you. And people are trying to play tricks on me, just to see my reaction on the millions of hidden cameras... just for your amusement.

And so that's why, when Mark asks me to come outside and look at the amazing rock he discovered, I just smile and nod. Here's the rock (sorry about the photo quality in the post they were taken from my iPhone):

"Babe," he tells me "that rock would cost $5.00 if we tried to buy it somewhere!"

"Yes, hunny," I say, smiling and nodding... pretending to be as proud about his discovery as he is, because I want the people who are secretly watching me on camera to think I'm supportive, "but what are we going to do with just one, albeit very nice rock?"

He answered something about using it as a centerpiece in our non-exsistant garden, but I honestly failed to listen because I looked over and saw this:

Two GIANT holes dug into our backyard.

And so I laugh. Because if a million people are going to watch my reaction, I at least want to look good natured about it.

"Um, sweetie?" I ask, "Why are there two giant holes in our grass? Where the were no holes before?"

In my head I'm thinking: You honestly had me come out here to look at a rock and expected me not to FREAK OUT about the two giant holes in our backyard. My life is a sitcom, My life is a flipping sitcom. But on the outside I'm smiling. Smiling and laughing.

And Mark proceeds to explain. "Well, I was walking in the grass and I saw this pipe peeking through, and I wanted to see what it was and where it went so I just started digging. And that's when I found the rock. And so I just wanted to show you the rock, but now I have to keep digging to see what the pipe is."

"Can't we just call the realtor and have him find out?" I plead.

"No, I think I should see for myself." And off he was to continue the mutilation of our backyard.

Maybe Mark is secretly planning a honeymoon in China.

Or maybe my life is just a big conspiracy and the secret producer of my sitcom just wants to see how long I let my crazy fiancé dig up our backyard on a search to find the "end" of a random pipe in the ground.

Well, producer of my sitcom, the joke's on you because I am just going to let Mark dig his little heart out.  But so help me, if the grass doesn't look back to normal in a month you better fix it. Or else, I'll stop being interesting, and your ratings will drop and then where will you be without my sitcom?

And in the off chance that my life is not a sitcom... I'm now taking donations for our grass seed fund.

Kill a bajillion birds with one stone!

What if I told you I had an activity for you that would:

-Save you money.
-Give you a workout.
-Get you a tan.
-Save you money (yes, again.)
-Entertain your dog.
-Potentially find buried treasure.
-Help you deal with your fear of snakes.
- AND Put a smile on your face.

Okay, okay... I'll tell you what it is. Cultivate your own garden (yes you heard me! A REAL garden... not a Farmville one!)

Step One:
Buy one of these from Home Depot:

It costs $22 (here is where you save money the first time, instead of going for the fancy schmancy electric or motorized one, or paying someone to do it!)

Step 2:
Put on your sunscreen. I think doctors would recommend SPF30, but come on, who really gets tan that way?

Step 3:
Find a sunny plot of land in your front or back yard. Maybe a 10x10 area? I've got two 5x15 plots going...

Step 4:
Start tilling! Insert workout and tan here. Also insert scanning the grass like crazy for snakes.

Step 5:
Laugh at your dog as he helps you dig and de-root.

Step 6:
Keep an eye out for buried treasure. All I found was a lousy ear of corn. And not even a real ear of corn... a plastic one! Which is both weird and creepy to me.

Step 7:
Add soil and plant your cute baby vegetable plants that you are just planting now because you just moved into this house! Don't worry... I only planted things that will grow in about 50 days!

Step 8:
Save money (again!) because you don't have to buy produce at the store. $1.00 for a pepper? Or $1.00 for a whole pack of peppers? You do the math. Now I'm wishing they sold pickled peppers and Mark's name was Peter, so I could have said Peter planted a pack of pickled peppers. But I digress...

Step 9:
Smile at your beautiful garden.

So maybe I've only made it to step number 4, but I'll be sure to update you as things progress :)

Like pulling teeth

Here's what I was thinking with this whole move thing:

We would upsize on space and downsize on stuff- and voila our life would be more Real Simple/Martha Stewart and less that show called Hoarders with the crazies and all their junk.

So we were over at Mark's mom's house going through boxes and boxes of stuff he had over there. Dividing into trash, keep, and goodwill.

I opened a box which was full of toys and told him I was putting it in the Goodwill pile.

At which point I was suddenly engaged to a four year old. He opened the box and his face lit up into what I imagine my face looked like when he proposed to me. That excited.

"Ohmygosh we can't throw THIS away... this was my favorite toy!" He picks up some sort of helicopter thing. And all these little pieces fall out.

"Oh and this was my favorite toy too... there should be a key for the bottom around here somewhere and then we can watch it can morph." The key was nowhere to be found.

At which point I informed him that things morphing don't really interest me. And does he know what the term favorite means? They can't ALL be his favorite.

"Oh I bet you didn't have one of these when you were little (holding up a Talkboy) we can't throw this away it's a classic!"

At which point I informed him that no, I didn't have one, it was called a TalkBOY and I was a girl and so maybe that's why I didn't see the magic in it... but I did know that it along with all the other toys were going to Goodwill.

"But look at this toy car... I totally rebuilt it myself when I was seven!" The car was missing a wheel, and what I would call an axle. It was a remote control car... with no remote to be found.

At which point I informed him that now he can rebuild real things. Like the flipping boat he bought last year.

"Oh my gosh look! A whole bag of marbles... perfectly good marbles... we can't throw these away."

At which point I informed him that he could only keep what he planned on actually using in the future. And that if he planned on pulling out his half-broken toys and playing with them on our new living room floor then I may have to re-evaluate our engagement. PLUS think of all the little kids just like him that would be soooo happy to have those toys! AND someday we will have kids of our own and I promise he can play with their toys whenever he wants.

And with a sad, sulky look on his face he took the box over to the Goodwill pile.

I have never been so proud.

But we did have to do some negotiating. And so we kept the friggin' marbles. But so help me if he doesn't play with them in the next month they are going in the trash.

Excuse me while I freak out

So here's the deal. We are semi-moved in and we really love this house. And one of the best things about it is when King whines to go out, all we have to do is open the back door, and off he scampers into the backyard. The fenced in backyard! Hallelujah!

But since I still don't put it past him to jump over the fence or dig his way out, I usually go out with King and walk around the yard encouaging him to "potty."

I am a barefoot kind of girl... If it were plausible for me to go barefoot all the time, I definitely would. Which is why on our first night here (Monday) I went out to the backyard--barefoot with King for his last potty of the day.

And there I was standing in the middle of the yard when I felt it: something slithering under my foot.

Insert here very girlish, squealing, freaking out noises.

King and I went in to report to Rambo that it is very important that we be able to walk around barefoot in our own backyard... So he better get his butt out there and let all the creepy and slimy critters know that it's time for them to move outside of the fence.

Of course he didn't. Something about how that's not possible and it was their home first... Yada yada...

So I climbed into bed and convinced myself that I probably stepped on a slug (the least evil of all that I was imagining) and went to sleep.

Then about ten minutes ago I went to take King out again. With my flip flops on. There I was happily walking around the perimeter of the backyard planning my future garden... I had already made one lap around and was going for lap number two... waiting for King to finish his business when I saw it:

Between my flip flop clad feet,

in all it's slithery and slimy grossness,

A SNAKE.

A FLIPPING SNAKE PEOPLE!

Insert jumping around, freaking out and "oh oh oh no no ew ewwww"s.

It slithered over to the fence and I lost sight of it. Now I'm not going to exaggerate and say it was a humongous snake with five heads and three tails. It was just a skinny thing maybe a foot long, but it was still a flipping slimy, slithering snake in just about the same area where I stepped on the "slug" a few nights before.

GAG.

Happy Birthday America & King!

Happy Birthday America!

And guess who else has a birthday today?

Happy First Birthday to my King baby!

Yes, I'm that girl who gets her dog a birthday cake, and a giant birthday bone. But he's just too cute not to spoil :)

Hope everyone had a fun and safe Fourth!

4th of July Ideas

I won't lie to you: I'm stressed. This house buying thing that was all unicorns and rainbows a couple of weeks ago is getting more and more complicated. Hence the lack of blogging. I swear, once we have a place to live, I'll be back at it.

What are we doing for the Fourth? We'll be celebrating King's birth (he will be ONE!) and... wait for it... PACKING!

Which I am bummed about because the Fourth is one of my favorite holidays and all I'll be doing is complaining all day long about "How heavy this box is" and saying things like "No, we can't throw that away! My freshman year college dorm mate made that for me and clearly it took hours!" and "I don't care if it will just sit in a box forever, we have to keep it."

And what's worse we are packing to move out of the apartment next weekend, and at this point... we have no where to go but a hotel! Who in Cleveland wants two temporary roommates and a SUPER-fun dog who occasionally eats your favorite shoes? Don't all volunteer at once!

Sorry for being all whiney, but I hate not having a plan-- which is where we are now. BUT ANYWAYS...

Since you all will be having fun this Fourth of July here are a couple of ideas that I blogged about over on Examiner (if you aren't subscribing to me there yet... shame on you!)

DIY: Liberty Carnations
Berry American Trifle

And since I will be living up my Fourth of July vicariously through you I have to know... what are your holiday weekend plans??