i'm a quitter

Generally, quitting is for losers. I like to stick things out, see things through to their logical conclusion, get the job done! But, today? Today, I quit! I've had enough.

You see, for the last couple of months, my reading routine has been disrupted by The Twilight Saga. I set aside a list of much anticipated books to read the series because, well...everyone was doing it. (Que mom's voice over, "If everyone jumped off a bridge, would you?")

.

And I have to admit, the first three sucked me in. Hours and hours of my time was spent hunched over this, admittedly, creative tale late into the night. Thousands of pages. Many stolen moments. Lots of laundry left undone.

But as I plodded through the first few pages of the fourth in the series, Breaking Dawn, I had a revelation: I just don't care how it ends. I don't care if Bella and Edward end up together. I don't care if I never know what happens.

I quit. I'm going back to my regularly scheduled reading - which, at this point, could be anything as long as it's not teen vampire romance written at a 4th grade level. I've never read romance novels until this series. And now I know why. Unfortunately, that's a whole lot of time I'll never get back.

To make up for it, I've just started Joyce Carol Oates' The Gravedigger's Daughter, and a girlfriend of mine recently gifted me a copy of Pride and Prejudice. Hopefully they'll aid in the recovery of my mushy gray matter.

.

With love from The Valley of the Sun.

desert treats

A lot of things in the desert are still very foreign to me; the weather, for example. I mean, it's mid-December and I don't even know where my mittens are. Or, maybe it's the fact it's mid December and flowers are blooming.

.

And then there's the fruit. The oranges and grapefruit are coming right along. In a few weeks, they should be ready to pick and eat. Last week on one of our afternoon walks, a kind gentleman offered us one of the most beautiful lemons I've ever seen. It smells...incredible. I wish I could link to its fragrance because you'd be complete bowled over.

.

On that same walk, we came passed one of our neighbor's houses. They have a large tangerine bush in the front yard, and another bush covered in tiny, yellow orbs about the size of key limes. There were a lot of them already fallen to the ground, so Kat and I gathered some up to use for a Christmasy art project.

.

The next day I ran into our neighbor at the mailbox and felt compelled to admit we'd pilfered a few handfuls of fruit. Never mind most citrus in The Valley goes to rot. It just seemed the right thing to do. Since I didn't know exactly what we'd taken, I had to ask. I figured they were over-ripened key limes. As it turns out, they're Mexican limes, perfectly ripe, perfectly usable for cooking, limeade, pies, or just looking pretty.

.

And the fragrance? Yep. Wish I could link to it. It's heavenly.

With love from The Valley of the Sun.

honey bee cookies

Cookies are the ultimate comfort food, I think. Probably even more so than a warm cup of soup or steamy bowl of chili on a cool winter day. Because generally, at least in my book, soup and chili don't have the same effect on my inner child; the slow stroll down childhood's memory lane. We don't tend to attach a lot of emotion to soup. Or stew. Or even mac and cheese, for that matter.

.

But, cookies? They're all about fond memories. I know I have a lot of memories of baking with my mom. My most sentimental attachments are probably to her Molasses Crinkles and her Snickerdoodles. When I opened my lunch box and found one of those homemade cookies tucked sweetly inside...man, I was in heaven!

So when I bake cookies with Kat, I like to try recipes that might have the same effect on her one day. For example, the lemon lavender cookies did NOT have that effect. We won't be making those again any time soon. Lemons. Lavender. They just don't give you the same warm fuzzies as brown sugar, cinnamon and...honey! This recipe came from Adrianna and Caroline over at A Cozy Kitchen. Thank you, ladies!

Honey Bee Cookies

Ingredients:

½ cup butter, softened
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup honey
1 egg
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Beat together the butter, brown sugar, honey and egg in a medium bowl until smooth, scraping the sides occasionally. Stir in all remaining ingredients.

Drop spoon fulls of dough onto a greased or lined baking sheet. Bake about 7 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies are set and the edges are beginning to brown. The cookies will still look shiny when they’re done.

*Cook's Notes: The Cozy Kitchen cookies were puffier than ours. Ours seemed a bit on the flat side which I attribute to baking soda that hasn't aged well. I've since bought a new bag and I think that would greatly enhance the puffy factor. Because they were thin, I thought they were a little chewy...but delicious. They were even more delicious a couple of days later, after they flavors had had a chance to mellow a bit.
.

Bon Appetit from The Valley of the Sun.

the house that kat built

It was a most exciting day at school today; the kind of day I could have guessed I'd open her lunch box when we got home and find most of it uneaten. Because who wants to eat something healthy and nutritious when...

...you made a completely edible graham cracker "gingerbread" house during snack/art time and maybe, just maybe, had to do some taste testing during the construction. You know, because you'd never, ever want to put a bad gumdrop on your "gingerbread" house, would you?

With love from The Valley of the Sun.

little star

Kat just finished a 10 week dance program through Arizona State University Herberger School for the Arts (formerly Herberger College for Kids). We had a bit of a rocky start with lots of tears and anxiety over the fact I would leave the room and wait in the hallway while she danced. Honestly, there were times I was ready to throw in the towel. Sometimes I thought neither my patience nor my heart could take the emotion of it all.

.

But I made myself stick it out. I didn't give in. I didn't pull her from the class despite pervasive thoughts it was doing more harm than good. Because, it wasn't. I just had to convince myself of that fact and accept it. None of it was going to cause irreparable harm.

.

And it didn't. In fact, this weekend at the Tempe Festival of the Arts, Kat did something I never in my wildest dreams thought she would do: she danced. In front of strangers. Without tears.

.

There were moments I could hardly contain my own tears.

Getting their tiaras before the performance.

Miss Jessie with all her "Little Stars."

If there are moments in motherhood about which I could say, "This is what it's all about," well, this is one of them. I'm feeling, pretty much, like my heart could just burst. {Sigh}.

.

With love from The Valley of the Sun.

it's about time

Finally. Finally. Finally. Fall is here. The hot weather (I hope) is now safely behind us for a few months and we can get out and amble around the neighborhood like we used to...eight months ago.

Kat and I were out walking last week and found one of our favorite desert plants. One of few not covered in spikes; the Baja Fairy Duster. I just love this plant. It's whimsical and delicate and textural and so pretty to photograph. So I shot off any number of images and thought I'd share them here. It's just about time we can get out and enjoy the surroundings again.With love from The Valley of the Sun.

prayer vigil for devon hollahan

There will be a prayer vigil for Devon and his family today at Shepherd of the Desert Lutheran Church, from 1 p.m., to 3 p.m. The church is located at 9590 E. Shea Blvd., Scottsdale. All are welcome.

With love from The Valley of the Sun.