it's a marshmallow world in the winter

Yesterday I made homemade peppermint marshmallows. YUM, and FUN.

A pristine pan of uncut marshmallows... I thought I was pretty cool at this point.

And then... I attempted to swirl/marbleize red food coloring on the top (since they are peppermint-flavored.) Yeah, that didn't work... especially when I tried to go all crazy and fix it. It looked, in Eva's words, like "mangled face." Yum!

My FIRST attempt at swirling wasn't horrible, but not great either. I decided to nix it and go for the perfect pristine white and fluffy marshmallow.

It just required some extra cutting... seriously how pretty is a big block of marshmallow??

(It's this pretty, in case you were wondering. And super-soft and fun to play with. Yes, that means if you get handmade marshmallows from me, I probably played around with the large block a bit. And let a few cut blocks drop to the floor and bounce, they're so springy... what of it, what.)

I would like to have a bed made out of marshmallow.

Pretty, cut blocks... with a light dusting of powdered sugar to keep them from sticking together...

Sigh.

And now I forever have the "It's a Marshmallow World in the Winter" Christmas song in my head. Totally worth it.

every day that I am single, some guy is MISSING OUT.

I actually say that quite a bit, but pretty much only when I've cooked something especially good or am having an especially good hair day. Which is quite a bit (when I try), if I'm going to be honest... honesty is another desirable quality in a girlfriend/fiancee/spouse, right?


Here are three reasons why some guy is missing out TODAY:

1. For dinner, I cooked (for myself--alone! Sad.) the following: seared flank steak with a four-spice rub; roasted mushrooms; spinach salad with goat cheese, dried cherries and a balsamic vinaigrette; and baked sweet potatoes with maple sour cream. YUM.


2. I only ate small portions and didn't eat dessert, because I am very very skinny.


3. My hair was looking pretty good.

Okay, so Number 2 is actually a lie-- while I did only eat small portions of a pretty balanced (post-fast) dinner, I had a few little Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Shortbread Stars later while watching a Christmas episode of Little House on the Prairie. And I'm not very very skinny. Or very skinny. Or, skinny, really... huh. But my hair was still looking pretty good.

(photo and recipes courtesy of Martha Stewart Everyday Food magazine. Easy, and yummers.)

Is santa real? You tell me.

A lot of you have been asking me what I would like for Christmas. I think that most of you have been asking that in your head instead of outloud, though, and since I don't want to push anyone out of natural shyness, I'm just going to go ahead and answer your query! Very generous of me, really.

So here we go (and remember, YOU ASKED. And I don't do things small.)

JENNIE'S WISH LIST 2008-2009*

1. Discovery Channel Shark Week DVD box set
2. LOST Season 4 dvds
3. bobbin winder (that feature on my sewing machine is broken)
4. new MAC makeup for my tired winter face and the vampirish-but-not-pretty dark circles under my eyes
5. Origins Never A Dull Moment face scrub
6. iPod Nano (black or silver, I can't decide)
7. a desk
8. a wingback chair with ottoman for my bedroom, to read in
9. a trip to Nepal
10. a really good makeout (or two, or three)

What. I'm just sayin'.

Now, because I am Single, I generally buy my own gifts. Not big-ticket items like the above list (books, always, and last year's haul included some Emergency Prep gear), but something to put under the tree and/or justify selfishly buying when I should really be Feed(ing) the World or something. But when you don't have a spouse and/or your own family to think of you, you have to fend for yourself. It works out great, though, because I know exactly what I want... and come to think of it, I've given myself some super-fanstastic stuff over the years. Thanks, me! (please note: I don't write myself thankyou cards, though-- THAT would be weird.)




I wrap my gifts to me and fill my stocking, too -- if I didn't, virtually all I'd have to open on Christmas morning (alone, of course) are the cool gifts some of my students give me -- mmm, asian boxed cookie extravaganza sets! Nail polish! Coffee!** -- and cry. Instead, I get to open the various gifts I'd purchased over the past month or so. Sometimes I'm embarrassed by my generosity to me. It's very cute and unassuming.

And so far, here is the great image that will greet me this 25th of December: me finally getting to read the Twilight "Complete Illustrated Movie Companion"*** I gave myself and waiting to open whatever awesome thing Chad and Lucy (of the Not-Ugly Babies) were so generous to gift me with. There should also be another pile of wrapped books behind me, and a Marshmallow Tree from See's in my stocking. Yay!

COUNTDOWN!

Only 20 days to go!!

hurry Christmas, hurry fast!

* This is a real wishlish written in the back of my 2009 pocket calendar. I figure I'll eventually get numbers 1-5, 6 if I'm lucky, and #10 is a pipe dream. Sigh. But a good pipe dream.

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** I do truly appreciate anything given to me by students. Not just so I have something to open, but it's so sweet that they think of me and make that effort. And the coffee is great for re-gifting :)

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*** While it may APPEAR that I am reading the Twilight Complete Illustrated Movie Companion in this photo, I am NOT-- I am just PRETENDING to, for the shot. I would not ruin the anticipation of Christmas morning! Though I may have learned that the sun came out just at the right moment for the shot of Edward's skin in sunlight, diamond-sparkle twinkle-twinkle-sound-effects.

this post is titled, "Chad and Lucy Don't Make Ugly Babies"

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I mean, SERIOUSLY.

including their other two still-babies-to-me:





I wish I could say it's the doezie genes for sure, but I'm thinking it's more the combo of both of them. They are beautiful people--



(never mind that certain photos seem to indicate otherwise)