Teaser

Here's a picture of our new floor tiles. They are called octagon with cobalt dot. They are much prettier in person. I can't wait to see them installed.

Progress Report

How did it get to be March 20 already? The bathroom remodel started on March 4. The first two days were demolition. Then the plumber came and set the new tub and ran the necessary pipes. Then the electricity was tackled, which required our poor contractor to run from the second story to the basement and back several dozen times. Next came the insulation. Then the drywall crew. Earlier this week the woodwork and trim work was installed and today everything was primed. Here are some pictures so far:

ROBIN!!!

I saw my first robin today. Little Man's father seconded the motion. And...there are sprouts in the garden. The thermometer might read 20, but Spring is not far away!!!

Chocolate Fudge Cake

Little Man's father's birthday was the other day, and since I was tethered to the house to monitor the remodeling operation, I decided to try my hand at a chocolate fudge cake. After spending way too long looking on the internet and poking through my recipes and cook books, I decided on these two recipes, taken from allrecipes.com. The result was AWESOME, if I do say so myself.

Black Chocolate Cake submitted by Jeanie Bean
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsps baking soda
2 tsps baking powder
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder ( I used especially dark dutch style)
1 pinch salt
2/3 cup shortening
2 cups boiling water ( I used 1 cup water and 1 cup coffee)
2 eggs beaten
2 tsps vanilla

1. Sift together dry ingredients
2. Melt shortening in boiling water, then stir it into the dry ingredients. Beat in eggs, then stir in vanilla.
3. Pour into a greased and floured pan.

The recipe calls for a 9 x 13 pan with 30 minutes cooking time at 350 degrees.
In the review section, someone said two 9" round pans took 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Another reviewer said two 8" round pans took around 36 minutes at 350 degrees.

I used a Wilton 8" round, 3" deep pan and cooked it at 325 degrees for 57 minutes.


Caroline's Chocolate fudge Frosting submitted by Carrie Reynolds.

1/2 cup butter
3 (1 oz) squares unsweetened chocolate
1 pound confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup milk

Melt chocolate and butter in the microwave or double boiler. Combine confect sugar, vanilla and 1/2 cup of the milk. Add the melted chocolate mixture. Add remaining milk as needed.

Allow to stand until spreadable. (Frosting will thicken as it cools.)

My variation: (sorta kinda half again as much)

I used 3/4 cups butter, 5 squares of chocolate, 1 1/2 lbs of confect sugar, 2 tsps vanilla, and about 3/4 cups of a combination of milk and half & half. The consistency was wonderful and it was enough to do the 3 layers I cut the cake into, with some to spare for decorating.

Little Man's New Bathroom (or - Let the Demolition Begin!!!)

The upstairs bathroom remodeling has begun. I'm not posting before pictures, since this is a family site, but suffice it to say that this project is overdue. The color scheme was harvest gold, avocado green and orange. The new scheme will be white with cobalt blue accents. Here's one shot just to give you a feeling for the current state of chaos we are experiencing.

GEESE!!!!!

THE GEESE ARE BACK!!!!!

Yes, I'm yelling. We are about a mile south of Lake Ontario, and this time of year, 1000's and 1000's of geese stop by on their northern migration. One day we have the dead silence of winter. The next day the world is full of the sound of honking and the flapping of wings. It is a wonderful harbinger of Spring. Every night at dusk they fly over and spend the night on the lake. Every morning they fly back and spend their days on the fields in the area. It is an amazing sight and sound to hear them take off. There's a high point near here and from there you can see that the sky is filled with flock after flock. This will last for a few weeks and then they will be gone.