It's cookie day

My need to bake something at least once a week has really been thwarting my weight loss goals. Especially once the weather starts to turn a bit cooler, it's like baking fever sets in. Now I'm not Martha Stewart by any means, but I do make pretty good cookies, although how I married someone who prefers cheap generic store bought cookies is beyond me. When I was a kid, there was nothing better than cookie day at our house. My mom would have to triple the recipe to make enough for all of us and they would be gone in less than an hour. Here's what I'm making today:

Chocolate pudding cookies with peanut butter chips. Mmmmmm. It makes the house smell so good. These cookies are really soft and the combination of peanut butter and chocolate is my favorite in pretty much any treat.

Something else I love to bake in the fall is pumpkin bread. It's making my mouth water just thinking about it. I love anything with pumpkin actually. Have you ever tried pumpkin icecream?

Well, I better get back to my baking. I can't wait for Kendle to walk through the door after kindergarten, take a big whiff, and know that it's cookie day.

Recipe for Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies or Pudding Cookies:

1 cup margerine

1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 small package instant chocolate pudding

1 tsp. baking soda

2 1/2 cups flour

*Additions: you can add regular chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, coconut, nuts, pretty much anything you like.

Mix all ingredients together and bake on greased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Do not over bake, they are meant to be soft and slightly underdone when you take them out.

The day I dread during the week.....

Welcome to :

Usaully Monday is laundry day at the Dodson house, but since it was Labor Day on Monday, laundry day got pushed back a bit. Laundry to me is like listening to a bad song over and over again. I don't mind throwing it in the machines, but folding it, sorting socks, and putting it all away is one of my least favorite chores. I tried painting my laundry room a nice color and decorating it a bit to make it a little more bearable - didn't work. It's still not fun no matter how I try to trick myself. Riley always has a ton of socks with no mates (seriously, where can they all go?) and Kendle's clothes get so dirty that I have to scrub and scrub before even putting them in the washer. I do love the clean, fresh smell after it's all done. I just wish I could take it to one of these instead -

I am seriously the only one in my family who wears just one outfit during the day; it's insane how much piles up in a week. So I just had to stop and rant a bit in between my 99 and 100th load of laundry for the day. And if you happen to be doing the same thing today at your house, happy folding to you.

Slippin Away

This is what I've been thinking about lately:

Is it just me, or does it seem as if the days are getting shorter? Not just because summer is pretty much over and it is starting to get dark earlier, I mean the days feel like they are going by faster and faster. Remember when you were a little kid and it seemed like it took FOREVER for your birthday or Christmas to come around again? Well, that's sure not a problem for me anymore. Maybe my time management skills could use some fine tuning. Old Father time is just speeding up that clock for me. Fall is coming, did I really enjoy every moment of summer that I could? I'm not ready to put my flip-flops and capris away just yet.

The real question that has been gnawing at me is - am I using my time for what's really important? When my daughter wants me to read a book with her or take a walk, why do I always tell her maybe later instead of just doing it? I hate that I feel that my house always has to be super clean or I can't relax, and that my family suffers in the process because I'm a big meany until it's done. I hate that my hair takes forever to blow dry and style (yes, even when it's short) and that I always feel like I could use another hour of sleep. And what about taking time out for myself once in a while? I'm horrible at this, because I can always think of something more important I should be doing. Why as mom's is this so hard for us?

You can't borrow, buy, or steal it - in the end Time always wins.

GAME ON

This is my sports wrap-up for the last week, which I'll probably start doing every Sunday night or Monday. Bear with me if you aren't quite a sports fan yet.


Wednesday marked the day of Kendle's first soccer practice. She seemed to really have fun, but I'm not sure what she was more excited about- playing, or getting to wear her new cleats and shin guards. Riley ran them a lot and she did seem quite tired afterwards. Pretty good deal I'd say. Their first game will be this coming Saturday. Anyone else have a child on a U-6 team with TCYSA this year?


Thursday night we watched the Oregon State vs. Utah football game and I'm happy to say the Beaver's pulled out a victory 24-7, to start the season right. Proof of OSU's amazing defense was shown once again as two of Utah's starters were injured, one being their quarterback who after a grueling game ended up with a dislocated shoulder. Ouch! Not a good way to start off the season. We kept trying to spot our family and friends who were at the game, but ended up only seeing the usual sorority girls in the front row that the camera men just can't seem to get enough of . (Gag) Anywho, go OS. Looks like Canfield will be the QB and Yvenson Bernard is still in top form. I think I"ll still be keeping my fingers crossed for the next game though.



WSU wasn't quite so lucky, but did put up an initially good fight against Wisconsin. Final score ended up being 42-21. The Cougs put a good scare in them though, and did a pretty good job of representing the Pac-10. I pretty much root for any Pac-10 team (as long as their not playing against the Beavers) because most of the other conference's are highly over rated and they never rank the Pac-10 teams as high as they should.




Pasco Bulldogs pulled off a season-opening win against Rainer Beach 28-14. Carlin Andrew is the Dog's new quarterback this year, filling Shane Kelly's gigantic shoes. He finished 8-of-12 with 200 yards. Not off to a bad start. Hope you all can get out to at least one game this year. Pasco's games are basically like watching a college game, so fun.





Friday afternoon I picked Kendle up from school and then headed to Umatilla, OR to watch my little sis Tamra play in her v-ball tournament. They ended up tying for first place and beat last year's 2A state champs. Not too shabby. She had quite a few blocks and hits and served really well. Their team has improved a lot since last year, but still need to work on jumping higher and looking a bit more enthusiastic about playing. Their coach is basically worthless, so I end up yelling a lot of unsolicited advice from the bleachers. Her next game is another tournament this Thursday at Mac-Hi. Hope I can go.


*I don't pretend to represent the world of sports, these opinions and comments are mine alone and do not represent the opinion of said college's or school's. OK, that was my disclaimer.

Hope this was at least a little interesting for all you gal's, and hey if you really want to shock your husband, ask them what they thought about Appalachian State beating Michigan.