Dec. 29, 2008: Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip

For Christmas I got a KitchenAid Professional 620 (thanks Wilma!) and the Martha Stewart's Cookies book (thanks Mom!).

While snowed in (again? still?) the other night, I had a brainstorm: Make 40 cookies in 52 weeks.

So, my new year's resolution for 2009 is to choose all the cookie recipes that intrigue me, and make all of them by this time next year. It was just a coincidence that I ended up with 40. That means I should be making, on average, three recipes a month.

That idea turned into the Cookie Journal. After all, why not keep track of the successes and failures? It might also be a good way to track what happens in my life over the course of a year.

So here goes.

I started last night with a recipe that my husband picked (not one of the 40--just a practice): Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, pg. 58. They were okay. I still prefer the recipe on the back of the Toll House bag.

It's Dec. 29. My dad's 61st birthday. Should probably call him before it gets too late. Seattle and Maple Valley have almost dug and melted themselves out of the worst snow in almost 20 years. I've been stuck at home with our two boys since Dec. 16, not counting one brief, wonderful day at the office on Dec. 23. My husband, James, is recuperating from shoulder surgery. Although today, the surgeon scolded him for not resting enough. Did he re-tear the rotator cuff and tendons? Only time will tell.

So, anyway, the boys (Christian, age 10, and Ian, age 4) are engaged in a two-week long fight involving name-calling, punches, trips, kicks, Lego destruction, potty words and outright physical violence. I'm trying to work from home, although that's difficult given the chaos in the other room. I've tried a play date for Ian (marginal success) and threats of grounding (temporary respites). We've all been too much in each other's company/way for too long. Christmas was a good break from the monotony, but being snowed in makes for the crazies.


Domestic worries of the day:

1. Will our attorneys and the Maryland bankruptcy judge allow us to escape the financial failure of DBSI with our investment properties intact? Will James get to have an income in 2009 or will we lose one or both properties? A small worry that grows bigger by the day. And if there's a lay-off in my future, oh, man, that would be bad.

2. Will Christian patch up his tiff, or whatever it is, with his friend Noah, who is our neighbor and my friend's son? Don't know what went wrong and can't understand why I'm so upset about what's probably a normal bump in two boys' friendship. Maybe I've been home too long.

3. I don't think we've been eating enough fruits and vegetables. I fear we're on our way to the rickets or something like that. I blame the snow.

4. I have had almost NO exercise for about three weeks. Get winded climbing the stairs. Again, I blame the snow.

5. My four-year-old is now asking me if we're Christians or pagans. Uh.... Not sure how to answer that one. Would rather he asked about sex.

6. My ten-year-old is calling the four-year-old a pervert. I pretend not to hear.

I know I should balance this list with an equal number of blessings. But I'm just not in the mood. Feeling anxious and worried about the future--and the present. Maybe it's the caffeine. James got a Rialto for Christmas, and we're overdoing it a bit I think on the coffee. Should have eaten dinner instead of drinking that mocha. See Worry #3 above. And probably Worry #4.

New Year's is on its way. And so is a wind storm, so they say. Power outages? Downed trees? More school closures?! God--and goddesses (see Worry #5)--help us.

Trying to look on the bright side of things: kids make up, shoulders heal, winter ends (didn't it just freaking start?), and the little guy wins in the end, right? Damn, I hope so.

Oh, and we have 40 cookie recipes to look forward to! Hope that KitchenAid is up to it. It's pretty, but is it up to the challenge?