Happy Birthday to Meine Mutter!

Today is my sweet mom's birthday!
I traveled to celebrate with her and it should be a joyous occasion.

Dear Mom,

I love to shop with you.
I like to bake with you, too.
I like to watch movies and hang out with you when I am blue.

You taught me how to cook.
You taught me how to sew.
You have taught me so many things, starting many years ago.

You didn't teach me how to organize.
Or how to box up my thoughts.
But you help me when I need it, like reading my paper lots and lots.

I'm thankful God chose you as my mother.
I'm thankful for the prayers you have prayed for me.
And for the ones you will pray in the future, you showed me how to believe..

You are one of my favorite friends.
The animals, they all love you.
No one will ever replace you.


Much Love,

My Ideal Birthday Cake!

When I was growing up, we had a "31 Flavors" in my town. It was always a special treat if my brother and I would go with my mom or dad or both to get ice cream. Especially if we got one of the clowns or on really special days, an ice cream cake! I loved loved loved when it was my birthday and we would order an ice cream cake because I loved them so much. I was never much for regular birthday cakes. You see, I only really like chocolate if it is cold, or at least a little chilly. Hints the Katie Beth idea of perfection that is the ice cream cake!

Anyhow, back to my story about growing up. I think by the time I was twelve probably, 31 Flavors had closed, but there was a TCBY close to our house and that sufficed for a bit.
That is, until TCBY also closed.
Apparently people in my sweet small town don't have enough of an ice cream obsession or maybe Dairy Queen and MickeyD's satisfy their cravings. Shall I say lack of taste? (Not to diss on DQ &McD really).
So naturally by the time I was in college, I had forgotten how much I loved ice cream, frozen yogurt, and particularly ice cream cakes because I don't think I ever really got much ice cream!
Now I was not completely deprived because we had Coldstone every now and then (when we saved up our dough!!) or occassionally Marble Slab if I were out of town visiting friends, but these occasions were so few and far between that I was spared the freshmen fifteen and all other ice-cream induced weight gain during college.
Now, sometime after beginning graduate school, I learned that at Baskin Robbins will make you a milkshake of chocolate ice cream mixed with Oreo cookies 'n' cream ice cream that is probably how I will end up gaining the newlywed nineteen if my wallet doesn't have anything to say about it. But that is a little beyond the scope of my story.
What I have been trying to say is that my birthday is coming(!) and I cannot remember the last time I had a dang good slice of ice cream cake. And that is what I want so much this year! I am not sure if it makes me a twelve-year-old at heart, but I can hardly wait to order a Baskin Robbins cake and to slice it open on my birthday! (And to eat those little pieces of icing that they scallop the bottom with, for a few mid-day snacks in the days following.) Mr. Ruggedly Handsome and Lovely Mother, you do not have to order on my behalf even though you have probably been devising plans to do so. I will be more than happy to march myself into that store and choose the most perfect birthday cake for a 26th birthday! But if you would like to do so, here are some ideas: Maybe something colorful and festive like so:

or maybe one of the pretty chocolatey-ones that are a little more elegant like this:

or this:

With some of this deliciousness:

Oreo Cookie Ice Cream!

and

Devils Food Chocolate Cake!
to make up the substance!! Oh it is going to be a fantastical birthday. I was thinking it would be my second sweet 16, but realized that should probably be the 32nd birthday instead of the 26th! So I'll think of another nice name and get ready to party like its 1996: just me and my cake. (oh, and my man, and my parents, and maybe some friends too.)
Do you have any birthday name suggestions for a 26th celebration? I wish I could invite you over for some cake.
I'm here. And I'm still writing,

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie.

So I promised a recipe (some time ago) and it is finally coming!
Handsome's birthday was August the 8th. We were planning to be out of town from August 7th(ish) to August 12th(ish), so seeing as I had nothing really going on except trip preparation on the 6th, I decided I could prepare a birthday dinner for the man. I bought some bone in rib eyes and stuff for a salad, but most importantly I bought fresh strawberries, fresh rhubarb, pie crusts (I know I was cheating), and a few other necessary ingredients for the man's birthday cake...eh hemm, pie.
Mr. Ruggedly Handsome's absolute, most favorite dessert is Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. Prior to dating the man, I had never even heard of this. And after we started dating it took several trips to a local dessert bakery for me to gather enough courage to try it... but I did and now some three or four years later I have finally made one.
Some time before his birthday, but after we knew we would be on a trip, the Mr. requested a pie for his birthday. The idea of making him a pie was not that exciting to me for two reasons: 1. I don't know how. and 2. I don't really like pie. Actually, maybe three reasons with the final being 3. Handsome's mom makes him this pie for his birthday each year and everyone knows a good wife just really can't compete with a good mother as far as the man's favorite birthday dessert. (Oh, we don't all know this? Well, my man's mom is a really good cook... but I digress).
I searched the web and came up with this recipe which I thought looked simple enough to attempt, yet also delisch.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 cups rhubarb stalks cut into 1/2 inch pieces (Trim outside stringy layer of large rhubarb stalks; make sure to trim away any and discard of the leaves which are poisonous; trim ends.)
• 1 cup strawberries, stemmed and sliced
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 Tablespoons of quick cooking tapioca
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of grated orange peel
• Unbaked pastry for two-crust 9 inch pie

The instructions say to cut up the strawberries and rhubarb into little-ish pieces. Mix together with the sugar, quick cooking tapioca, salt, and orange peel.

You let this sit for 10 minutes while the oven is pre-heating to 400 degrees. It will get gooey.

I rolled out one of the pre-made Pillsbury piecrusts and floured it just a bit (per package instructions because of the sugary-ness of the pie).

Then you fill the empty crust with the cut up pieces of strawberry and rhubarb mixed with all the other ingredients.

Here you need to trim the edge of the bottom crust. Then you will cover with the second pie crust...

Fold the excess of the top crust underneath the bottom crust once its on.

Then you have to press it together, make it pretty and cut slits in the top to let heat escape while cooking.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake an additional 30-40 minutes. And cool on a rack.

If you cut it while its hot it will be runny and gooey... but if you wait until it cools, it will stay together a little better and you can enjoy a piece. (I like mine with chocolate ice cream... He likes it with vanilla.)

So there you have it... Happy Birthday Pie for the most handsome man I know. We enjoyed it. I hope you will too.
I'm here. And I'm still writing...
P.S. I got the recipe from Simply Recipes (and their pictures are a little better than mine :)...)

August.

August is a busy celebratory month. Why of course it is! I am on vacation from school... No no. There are a lot more reasons for celebration than it finally becoming summer. August is perhaps the biggest celebration month on Handsome's and my's year long calendar. And that is because, with the joining of our families, we now have 7 celebrations that occur on 6 different days throughout the month! I am very excited. It will be fun and it will be busy... The anticipation is filling my soul with joy...

August 8: Mr. Ruggedly Handsome's birthday! 25th to be exact.

August 9: KB and Mr.'s anniversary (1st one!)

August 11: Mr.'s Dad's birthday

August 16: KB's parents anniversary

August 19: KB's Daddy's birthday and Mr.'s Parents anniversary

August 20: Mr.'s Mom's birthday.

We have some fun-filled celebrations ahead. And you can bet there will be pictures. (Because I am working on taking pictures for the blog, remember?) I spent the whole morning preparing for our first two celebrations.

Shhh. Don't tell but we are having Mr.'s birthday dinner tonight because Saturday night will be busy busy watching some baseball (He knows this part already). Can't. Wait. I will begin baking his requested pie (that he probably doesn't think he will be getting...) in a just a few minutes. I will definitely be reporting back. :) with photos.

Oh, and this year could very well be my last first day of school. Ever. It isn't a for sure thing because who knows what will happen in the future, but its possible. And that is both happy and sad, so I'm just gonna go ahead and add it to my list of celebrations:

August 24: KB's last first day of school.

This will be my 21st first day of school I think. I'll have to count and check with my mom, but I'm fairly certain that is the truth. Madness I tell you.

I'm here. And I'm still writing...