How long has it been since you ate an Oreo?

I know some people consider these cookies to be the ultimate indulgence - especially with a glass of milk. I don't drink milk and I have never really craved an Oreo. However, this past weekend I bought some in order to make a dessert for the youth group. Of course the recipe didn't call for the entire bag...so I took a bite...and ended up eating several cookies. =)
I cannot think of Oreos without also thinking of a particular woman at our church. She is an older lady and is very much into all things natural (which I am certainly not against, but she is on a whole other level than I am!). Anyway, whenever she mentions junk food she equates it with coke and oreos. She cannot imagine how anyone could crave such things. (I've had this conversation with her more than once.) She is very direct and will look you right in the eye and ask, " Do you REALLY enjoy cokes or oreos?" =)
Here is the recipe for Oreo Ice Cream Dessert. It is always a hit with young and old alike. Don't expect to have any left-over!

1 - 1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, slightly softened
1 carton of Cool Whip, thaw to spreading consistency
24 Oreos, crushed
1 stick of butter

Fudge Sauce
4 oz of unsweetend chocolate
1/4 C butter
2/3 C sugar
2/3 C milk
dash of salt

Make the chocolate first so it can cool while you put the rest of the ingredients together. Over med-low heat, melt the chocolate and butter together and then add the sugar and stir. Add the milk and a little salt and cook for a few minutes stirring constantly so the chocolate will thicken but not burn.(You can use other types of chocolate -german, semi-sweet, etc. Just taste it to be sure the proportions are right. I never measure the ingredients for the fudge sauce, so I'm only guess here!)
Crush oreos in a bag and sprinkle in a 13x9 pyrex dish. Pour melted butter over the cookies. Scoop ice cream evenly onto the cookie crust. Pour cooled chocolate over the ice cream. (It doesn't have to be completely cool, just not too hot.) Spread the cool whip over the chocolate. Sprinkle nuts or oreo crumbs on top if desired. Store dessert in freezer. Allow a few minutes to thaw before cutting and serving.

Bathtime Fun

When the tub is in use, there is always the sink!!

Photos

In December we had some family photos taken. It was a bit of a challenge with a 2 year old and a 5 month old but our photographer was patient and good humored. To view more of her talented work, visit her photo blog.
Thank You Abby!!!

(There are lots more pics and I plan to post more on my dropshots site...check under December 1.)

Tidbits

SO MUCH has been going on around here these past few weeks that I don't have time to chronicle it right now. I'll just post a few things I'd like to remember
We're still plugging away with potty training Lydia. The novelty of getting to go when the kitchen timer buzzes has totally worn off. She protests every time I require her to try. She does prefer to wear her "underwears" though, so I hope we're done with pullups and diapers really soon. We've had several completely dry days -- and even a few dry naps. She has recently decided that she prefers to be alone when she is in the bathroom, proclaiming to me "Don't come in, Mom." Last week I did follow her into the bathroom soon after she had climbed onto the potty and this is what she said (nearly verbatim): "Mom, I told you not to come in. You did come in. You did not obey. Now you need to get a spankin'." I wanted to laugh, but I held myself in check while trying to explain that she must obey me while I do not have to obey her.
Lydia is quite the nicknamer! She gets it honestly, I must say. Her Papa (my Dad) is the king of nicknames -- and the ones he creates have no basis on reality! A few I remember from childhood that he gave to us kids: chili-down-chookus, slim R muscle bullet, low, lobus-tootmo....you get the idea. So Lydia has come up with a few of her own. I am frequently Maman (but the last few days she is testing out Mom-puh), Ben is Dad-o, Lauren is baby sis-a-ler, Kate has morphed from Katie-boo-boo to Katie-boob to Katie boob-a-loo, Liz is usually Auntie Liz or sometimes Aunt Lizzie. Lydia got a kick out of hearing someone call her Elizabeth, so she decided to try it out... "Uh-wizz-a-biff." While Ben's parents were here for the holidays she finally decided to drop their proper names (Grampa Rob and Gramma Kaffee) and called them just Gramma and Grampa. That was nice to hear. She did decide to try out Grampa Robbie once or twice and even called him plain "Robert" once. That was funny as no one calls him that -- we don't know if she heard it or if it was another example of a nickname she thought she was creating!
My baby has started solids and is crawling!!!It is by no means a coordinated crawl, but she can maneuver herself really well. She gets on all fours and begins the rocking motion. Then she usually launches herself face first and begins that inchworm crawl. She is one determined baby. Lydia was playing Memory the other night and Lauren really wanted to get some of the cards. She spied them from several feet away and decided to go for it. Just as she reached her prize, Lydia grabbed the cards off the floor saying, "No baby sis, no no no. Those aren't yours!" We removed Lauren and she immediately headed for the game again. On her third time making it over to the game and her third time being thwarted, she began her "I'm mad" cry. Feeling a bit sorry for her, I relented and let her play with a couple of cards. =)
Well, I've forgotten whatever else I was hoping to record here! Oh well =)