Cake

!!!

I made cake. It's tasty but not what I want, so it's back to the drawing board. Basically, I found that the almond flour is competing too much with the lemon flavor. It's not bad, just different from what I'm looking for... it should remind me of lemonade. Lemonade you can take big bites out of, and then lick the sweet-and-sour off your lips.

I had retail therapy today. I took off for 3 hours. I returned some stuff at Target and picked up some stuff for the house, and then I hit the mall looking for t-shirts. Actually, I don't want plain t-shirts because the necklines are too high and my chest is completely flat now and the high neck just makes that worse. I must've tried on 3,000 horrible shirts. I was looking for a nice scoop-neck, couldn't find any -- although I did see some with 3/4 sleeves, but I don't want 3/4 sleeves for summer.

I went in NY Co for the first time ever. They have cute clothes but I didn't like their t's... got a long knit dress in a nice pink(!), though. Everyone was having sales, and the mall was packed. It was hot today (103) and being the holiday, I'm sure that had something to do with it... I quite literally went into 8 different stores before I found really nice quality v-neck t's at Eddie Bauer. Then I wandered around a little and loved everything, and picked up a natural color long linen skirt, a red hoodie, a beautiful openwork cotton cardigan, a black rib long sleeve sweater and green long sleeve v-neck t... plus 2 short sleeve t's, all for $118. Now I can purge some more of the old/ratty/stained stuff out of my closet. Yay!

So I was out for a while, I really needed that break. I kept wondering when DH was going to call me for something-or-other, but the cellphone never rang. I felt so much better after getting out for a few hours.

I cam home and baked the cake, then tried a new biscuit recipe (eh), and made coleslaw to go along with our bbq take-out. I wonder sometimes if the people at Joe's know we are regulars because they gave us so much extra... which is great because that's another night I don't have to cook! Hee!

After supper I taught the kids how to play Yahtzee. We had a blast, even though we did not finish the game, but they all wanted to finish it tomorrow, so we will. It is a good game to play with little ones (I keep score for everyone, it's simpler); each turn goes very quickly. They all root for each other, and the few times when someone was close to getting a yahtzee, they were so excited. It's really cute. It's also a stealthy way to teach math!

I told DH, times like that, playing a game with them when they are all happy and we are having a good time, then I feel like I am a good mom. We all get along very well, for now. I know there will most likely come a day when I'll suggest something and they'll all look at me and roll their eyes and say, "Mom, that is so lame!" For now I really enjoy spending close time with them like that. I know that just escaping for 2 or 3 hours every so often allows me to do that -- I just let go of all my frustrations and let everything dissipate, then I can come home and really be here again.

* * *

DD woke up around 11 with a headache and an earache, and sat up with me and watched "What Not To Wear", intermittently whimpering and feeling like she was going to throw up. I finally got her to lie down on the futon and she went right off to sleep, poor dear. Who knows what caused it? I suspect not enough to drink today, dehydration can do those things. The earache thing was a little odd, though -- not an inside-the-head earache, she said the outside of it, like the cartiledge, hurt... well now it is very late and I want to go to bed, so I'm off, hoping DD will be OK in the morning.