Birthday Month

Holy cow this summer has been crazy! August is birthday month in our family - Zane's is Aug 11th and Morgan's is Aug 22nd. Thankfully, they're really good sports about celebrating their birthdays together every year. (I'm sure it helps that we have about 4 birthday parties for them total throughout the month.)

 

The first weekend in August, Uncle Rick and Aunt Sharon came over from Oregon and we got to spend a couple days shopping and BBQing with them. Morgan and Zane showed us how good they've gotten with their BB Guns they got on Christmas. And it's not a birthday party without cake - and Aunt Sharon found a good one!

 

 

Then this weekend, we celebrated some more! Levi and I drove up to Mom and Dad's on Saturday to go swimming at Jefferson Lake.

 

 

And then Sunday my family came out to the farm in Arbon Valley for the first time for even MORE partying. (I'm telling ya, it literally lasts all month!) My awesome balloon bouquets flew away in the wind before I could snap a picture, but trust me, they were adorable: Animals for Mo, and Spiderman for Zane. And they matched their gift bags perfectly. The kids had a blast running around with the dogs, playing on the swing set and hammock, and jumping on the trampoline.

 

 
They are such good kids. When we realized that Zane's birthday was only a couple weeks away (seriously, where DID July go??), Mom asked him what he wanted. "Mmmm..... I will be happy with whatever you get me!" :) After they left the farm, Ken and Melinda both commented on how easygoing and well-behaved they are. Made me feel like a proud momma - er, Big Sister. I only wish I could take credit!

Caramel Apple Cookies

The first time Cami made these, I fell in love and knew I had to get the recipe. They are THE BEST on a cold autumn day, with a mug of tea or cider while it rains outside. Or for breakfast. Or anytime really.

Ingredients

• Parchment paper
• 1 cup softened butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 box (7.4 oz) Alpine Spiced Apple Cider Instant Original Drink mix -not sugar free- all 10 packets (in my grocery store near the hot chocolate mixes.)
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 bag Kraft Caramels (14 oz) 

Directions

• In a small bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon.
• With your mixer, cream together butter, sugar, salt and all 10 packages of apple cider drink mix powder, until light and fluffy. (And try not to breathe in too much dust from the cider mix!)
• Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and mix well.
• Gradually add flour mixture to butter/egg mixture. Mix until just combined.
• Refrigerate for about an hour. (If you're really impatient you don't have to do this, but it makes it soooo much easier to work with.)
• When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 350° F. Line cookie sheets with parchment. (You really need the parchment!) Unwrap your caramels.
• Scoop out cookie dough ball about the size of a walnut. (I used a rounded cookie scoop-full. My scoop holds about a Tablespoon.)
• Flatten the ball of dough slightly in the palm of your hand. Press the unwrapped caramel into the center of your dough and seal the dough around it, covering it completely. Place on parchment covered cookie sheets 2 inches apart.
• Bake 10-12 minutes, or until VERY lightly browned around the edges. Please don't over-bake! Once the cookies are done, immediately slide the parchment off of the baking sheet right out onto the counter. Allow cookies to partially cool on the parchment. When cookies are cool enough to be firm but still slightly warm, carefully twist off of parchment and allow to finish cooling upside down (either on the parchment or on a rack.) If you forget about them and they cool too much and stick to your parchment, put them into the freezer for a few minutes and they'll pop right off.
• Yield: about 4 dozen, depending on how large you make your cookies (or how many caramels have been snitched out of your bag before you begin.) Store in an airtight container.

If they get hard, pop them in the microwave for 5 seconds and they'll be good as new. Ü

Cookies and Cream Fudge

Just kidding! Kinda. Do I make fudge? No. But I am slightly addicted to this fanTAStic version of "cheaters' fudge". Who knew sweet and condensed milk could be so great? I got the recipe from here and it is now a family favorite!

(FYI: My cell phone takes atrocious pictures. Someday I'll change this to a pic that will
make your mouth water properly. But for now, you get the general idea.)

Ingredients:

A bag and a half of white chocolate chips
1 can of sweet & condensed milk
10-15 oreos, broken up

Directions:

Line a 9×9 inch square pan with parchment paper.

Put the white chocolate and condensed milk in a large pan and heat very gently over a low heat, stirring frequently, until the chocolate has melted. The mixture should be smooth and stick to itself. Stir in the broken oreos.

Scrape the mixture into the pan and level it, pushing it into all the corners (you’ll probably need another set of hands here to keep the parchment paper in place until your mixture gets in there). Put the pan in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight, for the fudge to set. Cut into squares (I did 8 by 8).