Daddle Saddle

Leave it to Brent to come up with a gift that had us all laughing. Eric and Jill are the proud owners of a Daddle Saddle.

Brent found it on Amazon, but I have no idea what he searched to come up with such an obscure product. He can't remember. But we will definitely remember Kinley going for her first ride on the Daddle Saddle. At this point, she needs a little help to climb aboard - and stay aboard, for that matter.

You have to give it to the manufacturer: The name is a winner. Kinley's "Daddle" strapped on the fabric saddle using the straps reminiscent of a backpack. It comes "complete with adjustable stirrups, soft saddle horn and a latigo strap designed with Dad's comfort in mind."

Like all good little girls, Kinley was willing to share her new toy with her cousin Hannah. Likewise, Eric was glad to share the opportunity to "daddle up" with his brother Brian, Hannah's Dad.

Photo by Jillian

So, during Kinley's birthday party, the two girls perched in the Daddle Saddle. Who needs a rodeo clown for western-style laughter?

Photo by Jillian

Hannah evidently thought she was on a bucking bronco.Yeehaw!

Photo by Jillian

As the packaging says, "Daddle up! It will bring hours of enjoyment to your home." We'll see if the "Daddle" thinks so as Kinley gets bigger.

It's good to use up leftovers from Christmas. Who says the leftovers have to be food? Here were a few other "funnies" from our holidays:

Brent bought Kinley a Wildcat hat. It was a little small, so that provided a little comic relief, too.

Grandpa continued his quest to make Kinley a cat lover. I wish I had a video of her reaction. When he would bring a cat into the house, she made this strange, high, keening sound. The calico cat tolerated the noise. Big Cat - who is a one-man cat anyway - was not a fan of Kinley's high-pitched song. He was shown the door.

I thought this one was funny. Kinley didn't really get a Crock Pot for Christmas. But it sure seemed like she was contemplating what she could make in it.

One of my other favorite moments was three kids in a tub at my parents' house. Braden, Neelly and Kinley all took a bath before getting in PJs for their journeys to their next Christmas celebrations. But I'll leave those photos for their baby books - not for public consumption. I wouldn't want some random person to find photos in their all-together and torture them some day when they are in junior high.

Laughter: It was one of the best gifts of Christmas.

Thank You Cookies

It's not just any cookie that packs enough punch to say, "Thank you!"

Thank you for taking time out of your day.
Thank you for all those evenings of training.
Thank you for dropping everything.
Thank you for turning on the sirens and coming quickly.
Thank you for being good neighbors.
Just thank you!

We delivered a cookie tray last night to the Alden firefighters who responded to our not-so-controlled controlled burn. We have one tray left to go. Sterling firefighters meet on Wednesday evenings, so that's on the agenda for tomorrow. (The Raymond and Quivira National Refuge cookie trays have long since been consumed.)

I made some of my tried and true, never-fail favorites for the thank you trays. But I also tried a new bar cookie recipe to include with the other selections.

Peanut Butter Cup Fluffernutter Blondies definitely were good enough to say "thank you." They were also a hit on my Easter cookie trays at home and church. If you like peanut butter, you'll like these moist, yummy cookies.

Peanut Butter Cup
Fluffernutter Blondies
from Cookies and Cups

1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 tsp baking soda
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2 cups coarse chopped peanut butter cups (10.5 oz bag)
3/4 cup marshmallow fluff
1 cup peanut butter chips (opt. for topping)

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.

Cream butter and peanut butter together. Add sugars and beat until light and fluffy. On medium speed, add in eggs and vanilla, and mix until incorporated. Stir in baking soda, salt and flour until just combined. Fold in chopped peanut butter cups.

Spread the batter in prepared pan. Drop marshmallow fluff randomly on top of the batter and swirl in with a knife. Bake for 30-35 minutes until toothpick placed 1 inch from side comes out clean. Don’t overbake. Remove from oven and let cool on wire rack. Cut into squares when cooled.

If desired, melt peanut butter chips and pipe the cut squares with zigzags of the melted candy. It's just a way to add an extra-special touch.

Note: I used one, 8-ounce bag of the new mini peanut butter cups (a little less than the recipe called for, but it seemed plenty to me.) It was super easy. No unwrapping. No chopping. Just dump them in.

I also made Macaroons. These are easy as can be, but they always look impressive.

And I made a variety of other flavors by using my Back to Basics cookie dough and choosing different add-ins.

My mixer can handle a tripled recipe of the basic dough. So, I made a triple batch two times so I could have a big variety on the cookie trays without a lot of extra work.

This time, I used:

• White chocolate chips & chopped macadamia nuts
• Cocoa & Almond Joy bits
• M & Ms
• Chocolate chips and peanut butter chips
• Hershey's Cookies and Cream drops, along with more white chocolate chips
• Oatmeal Raisin
• Heath Butter Brickle chips & oatmeal

Enjoy! I just hope nobody has to make this many cookies to say THANKS to firefighters!

I am linked today to Two Maids A Baking and Crazy for Crust and Mandy's Recipe Box Totally Tasty Tuesdays.

One Size Fits All

There is a new wrinkle thrown into the mix of my holiday shopping this year. Instead of purchasing a gift for a particular person for our Moore family Christmas, we are trying a new feature for the annual gathering. Each of us is to bring a grab bag gift.

Since we are an opinionated crew, there was great debate about how much we should spend and whether or not the gift should be geared toward the male or female persuasion or suitable for either.

I lost that battle. The gifts are to be unisex.

I thought and I thought. And then I stumbled upon advice from that great gift giver, Erma Bombeck:

Wouldn't it be wonderful to find one gift that you didn't have to dust, that had to be used right away, that was practical, fit everyone, was personal and would be remembered for a long time? I penciled in ... Gift Certificate for a Flu Shot.

Thanks, Erma, for the perfect gift idea. I'm sure my family will love it.

Hey, everybody! Be sure and watch when I come through the door at Mom and Dad's. You won't want to miss getting this thoughtful gift. It's in the green and red wrapping paper.