The Oatmeal Cookie Experimentation

I have useless far too long. I am sick and tired of being off my feet. Today, I started getting a baking bug (I don't get it often but I get it occasionally). The California FRG sent an email asking people to donate recipes for a cookbook and I really want to do that so I got online and started looking for soemthing  fun.

My kids used to eat Instant Oatmea. It was somewhat healthy and filling and I was thrilled. But they have now decided they are morally oposed to eating oatmeal...eh, what can you do, huh? The thing is I went out and bought a huge box of instant oatmeal. Long story short? I looked to see what I could do with instant oatmeal.

I actually found an oatmeal cookie recipe taht I could the instant oatmeal.

This was the orginal recipe...

1/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of flour
1 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 cup of margerine
3 packages of instant oatmeal (any flavor)

Preheat oven to 350
Mix in medium size bowl
Grease baking sheet
roll mixture into balls and kind of flatten them
Place on baking sheet, bake for 15 minutes at 350

The recipe said if you were using instant oatmeal use less sugar (because instant oatmeal has sugar). I did as I was told and this was my finished product...

They looked like oatmeal cookies and they tasted like oatmeal cookies but ehhh... They weren't bad, let me start there, they were in fact edible but they were just a little bland.

So, back to the drawing board...I decided to alter the recipe. Here is what I did:


1/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of flour
1 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 cupbutter
3 packages of instant oatmeal (any flavor)
Dash of vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon of cinnamon sugar


Preheat oven to 350
Mix in medium size bowl
Grease baking sheet
roll mixture into balls and kind of flatten them
Place on baking sheet, bake for 15 minutes at 350

The only changes I made were using butter instead of margarine. I added Vanilla extract and cinnamon sugar. Last time I used half the recommended sugar because I was using the instant oatmeal and that is what it said to do, this time  I used the full recommended amount.

here is my finished product:

Well, ...ok, not as pretty as the first batch but they tasted really great. The few changes I made actually made a big difference.

I had a good time and enjoyed my results. I am going to try a few more recipes and see what I like the best. But this is a contender.

Injury report.

Ok, quick update everyone on the busted ankle and foot. I went to the doctor today and it’s a good news/bad news scenario. (A little more bad than good though)

Let’s start with the good news…My cast is off. It is nice to see my leg again. Unfortunately that is about it where the good is concerned.

Now for the bad, my ankle has no strength at all. It is almost harder putting weight on it now than it was right after injury. I know that physical therapy will give me that strength back but seeing as I am alone here with the kids all day I am scared of a reinjury. Thankfully they gave me a brace that I can use with an athletic shoe. I know this isn’t permanent but I am currently filled with all kinds of anxieties

.

Moving on to the second part (and maybe the more significant part) is my left foot. Now originally my right ankle was a much more severe injury hence why it was in a cast and my foot was just in a boot. However, now it seems that my right ankle has healed pretty much completely and my left foot hasn’t healed at all in the last 4 weeks. Now, that is not good as I am sure you have realized. The doctor said she is going to try and get me a bone stimulator. I suppose that will help speed up my recovery? She said if that doesn’t work and I am still having issues 4 weeks from now (that will be my next appointment) then we might have to look into surgery. That S word scares me. I can’t even describe how much this scares me. I guess all I can do is hope for the best.

I am so happy that I am on the down slope of my recovery but I have a lot of anxieties. I am scared of reinjury. I am scared I am going to step on a stray toy or a toddler will get under foot or I will fall over my own feet and break it again. Not only will I be in pain again (the memory of that pain still makes me catch my breath) but I will be useless to my family once again. That is a huge fear for me. With my ankle so weak right now I am actually scared to be alone. It’s just really stressful.

The there is the idea of surgery...ahhh!!!! That is me screaming on the inside in case you were wondering. I can't even find the words to describe how that will mess things up for me.

I am going to try and be positive but right now…in this moment…it’s hard.

Freedom of Speech works both way

*Disclaimer, the following blog post has second hand information obtained by unverified internet sources. If any “facts” written her are incorrect, please point it out to me (politely, if you please?). Thanks.*

This particular blog post is not actually related to my life as a SAHM or housewife nor is it related to my family’s day to day life. But this is my blog and I can rant when I want to.

I have always been a rather outspoken individual (that is the nicest way to describe it, I am sure there are others who have less flattering ways to name my personality). For many years I let everyone and anyone know what my political beliefs were. Now, I am not ashamed of what I believe and I never will be but I have had gone quiet on my beliefs mostly because I am tired of defending my right to believe what I want. 

With that said, I am breaking my silence because I have something that I feel needs to be said.

Freedom of Speech works both ways. 

I feel that I have a somewhat unique view of social issues. I don’t really consider myself a social conservative nor am I social liberal. I believe there are compromises that will satisfy most parties but there are radicals on both sides who believe in all or nothing. I believe that compromise is the one of the most important parts of life.

But regardless of where you stand on any issue you have a right to express yourself. The inspiration for this, the Chik fil a issue. 

I will start by saying I am not really sure why Dan Cathy feels the need to be so very vocal about his views on gay rights. As inferred from my above statements I don’t believe anyone should be ashamed of what they believe or try to hide it but I do not understand what his views have to do with his business. I find it slightly irresponsible for a business man to blur the lines between personal. One the flip side? Based on what I have read there is a difference between what they believe (and fund) and how they treat their customers. There is no actual discrimination against any customers going on (if there is I would be interested in hearing about that). 

What am I trying to say? Is Dan Cathy not allowed his own beliefs? Is Dan Cathy not allowed to decide what groups his company will or will not fund? Just because he is in a relatively high profile situation does that negate his personal rights that are guaranteed to us all? And before anyone says anything I fully believe people have the right to boycott Chik fil a. I don’t like their chicken so I never go there anyway. I don’t care.

To me the biggest issue here isn’t about gay rights or boycotting. For the Mayor of Boston to actually suggest that a place of business is not welcome in his city because of the business’s point of view on a social issue he does not agree with? Wow, that is beyond irresponsible and downright juvenile. He is a political leader and should act like one. That is intolerance in and of itself, right? Just saying.

I am not sure if my little rant her made any sense. That is just my point of view.

Broken bones update

So, went back to the ortho doctor today. She X-rayed (sp?) my foot and ankle again. She said my left foot (5th metatarsal fracture) is almost healed, Yay!!! But they discovered a second fractured in my ankle. I am looking at being off my feet another 4-6 weeks (minimum). They replaced the splint on my right leg with a fiberglass cast. They let me choose a color and what did I choose? Can you guess? You could if you knew me at all. PINK. Yay me. I am very happy about being in a cast but at least it is pretty.

Now, we are working on getting me a wheelchair so I can actually leave the house for something other than a doctors visit.

Sticks and Stones may break my bones...

…and so will falling down stairs, just for the record.

So, last week I was multitasking and I fell down the stairs. I called my hubby who rushed home and ushered me and my toddlers to the Emergency room. There was a nice bunch of girls in the Emergency room who were nice and able to make me laugh which helped distract me from the pain. Long story short, I was diagnosed with a left metatarsal fracture (foot) and right distal medial malleolus fracture (ankle). I was given a boot for my left foot and a splint for the right and sent home with a referral to an orthopedic doctor and pain meds.

Then the fun really started.

Not so extreme makeover: The Croley house episode 1

So, I have recently taken on the task of upgrading (is that the right word?) my house. I just want to make it a little more homey. My husband has dutifully taken the task up also and I must say has been patient and pleasant throughout the beginning of this undertaking. He goes along with everything and even adds his own opinion without being prodded. He makes suggestions and listens to all of my plans and rarely (if ever) complains.

We have only done little things thus far. We can't make any real altercations because we are renting (no painting, no large holes in the walls etc...) But nothing major needs to be done because this house is only 3 years old and has recently been renovated (or modernized as they called it.) I'm just trying to make it look like we live here.

I have never been accused of being a decorator but I think we are pushing alone nicely. I'm going to make updates here and there that will update you all on our progress. if you find it boring feel free to skip these posts. I will make sporadic updates on our progress.
 Here is our front porch furniture (that my husband put together because he is super sweet)

These are in my kitchen. The pictures were taken on my phone and are not so good.

These are in my dining room. Again, The pics are not so great.

This is the cabinet we put in our downstairs half bath (again built by my master craftsman hubby). We have no storage in there and we had to find something decorative and useful. This is plain but nice, I think.

This is the back patio chairs. They are staked because it is going to rain today (Booo)

 This is the table on the back patio (again plain but nice, I think)

 Back patio umbrella (it is being stored under the cover cause of the rain, again booo)

Welcome to toddlerland...

Hi, I am Aimee. I am a proud Navy wife and a stay at home mom. My son Frankie is almost 3 and is the most energetic kid you would ever meet. He would put the energizer bunny to shame. Sammy is almost 2 and she is spunky and sweet. She is affectionate and adorable.

My husband, Bryant, is a second class petty office in the Navy. He is a wonderful husband and even more amazing father. Our kids adore him and he adores them right back. He is gone sometimes (as would be expected with his very demanding job) and we miss him terribly but he does his job and does it well. I am immensely proud of him.

I hope to make my future blogs more interesting than this one but I felt a short (ish) intro was necessary. Hope you can keep up.