Llamacorn Cookbook (unsolicited review)

On a whim a few week's ago I bought Syd this cookbook. It seemed cute enough and the girls love all things llama and unicorn. I didn't have high expectations but it was cute and relatively cheap and, well, pandemic. I've bought some weird shit.

 I'm here to tell you, if you need a gift for a tween or your kid is starting to want to bake, get this book. Syd is tearing through it and peruses it ALL THE TIME. And the even better is that the recipes turn out well, which I think is a boon to her confidence in the kitchen and means that we don't have to eat gross concoctions.  

Some recipes are a bit complicated, like these s'more cupcakes that called for a kitchen torch

Others are more simple. These were originally Ladybug Cookies but she took creative liberties with them. Essentially they're vanilla wafers decorated with frosting, chocolate chips, and mini-Oreos

And it's not all desserts (thankfully)! Last week Syd made us all quiche for dinner. How cute are these little flower quiches?

Averson was a big fan of the lemonade floats made with fresh-squeezed lemons and raspberry sorbet

Syd's been making so many of the recipes that I've begun gathering some of the less common supplies. Tip for if you get this cookbook: Amazon carries meringue powder and this really cute line of sprinkles in various themes including llamas (with cacti!) and unicorns, which includes the necessary unicorn horn sprinkles needed for the llamacorn cookies. 

I saw a meme the other day that said that maybe kids will come through the other side of the pandemic with all of those lifeskills we lament them not having. I think for sure Syd will come through with a lot more kitchen skills. The rest of us will probably come out with cavities and a sugar high.

Lake Day

I've been trying to get off my damn phone more, and one of the strategies I'm using is to try to go for a good hike every weekend. Without practices and sports and all the other things that we typically fill our time with, the weekends can get a bit long and punchy. So we run the kids a bit, C typically fishes, and I inevitably get a sunburn. It's pretty wonderful.

Yesterday we tried out a lake a friend recommended (Caples Lake if you're local). The drive was longer than we'd usually commit to, but it was totally worth it because it seemed to deter the crowds. We found this beautiful lake in the woods with good swimming spots, promising fishing spots, and lots of cool natural obstacle courses (we're all obsessed with The Floor is Lava right now). One of the few groups we ran across was camping up there and now I'm kind of obsessed

Averson's a natural with a fishing pole

Sometimes maybe they don't hate each other

Happy, tired, and some of us missing our clothes because they fell in the lake

Future album cover

A smile! With teeth! 

A tortoise named Taco

You know what I did NOT do? I did not get a pandemic puppy. We did, however, let Syd get a tortoise. In my defense, we made it really hard for her AND it’s basically the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. When she first started talking about it, we told her she’s have to pay half. Tortoises are not cheap and she’s the stingiest McDuck ever, so I thought it would be a non-starter. She didn’t even bat an eye. Then I made her write a research paper. Two pages later she’d identified the exact breed she wanted, based on size, lifespan, and complexity of care. THEN I tasked her with finding said tortoise. After weeks of calling several reptile shops, a friend’s daughter said she could order her one. And two weeks later...

Taco Shelldon Turnip II

He’s the cutest damn thing I’ve ever seen. We’re all obsessed (and a little anxious) and I *may* have woken him up this morning at 6:00 so I could say goodbye on my way to work. But just for a second

Quarantine chic

She's been asking for this haircut FOREVER, but I was nervous that she'd have cutter's remorse. But if you're eventually going to have to rock a weird grow-out, quarantine seems like a good time to do it. 

She loves it SO MUCH and it really suits her personality

Obviously...

We've reached the point in time where I don't even notice that my 7 year old's mascara is running