Ok, so I just about t itl

ed this post, Thursday Afternoon Drinks. Then I was like, Um, Mel…no. Not a good title.

I finally figured out the Diet Coke thing…which may change our “coffee” date slightly some weeks.

On Thursdays after Bible study I usually go with friends to either McD’s or BK so their kids can play and we can chat.

And I always have Diet Coke.

Always. (Yum…I love Diet Coke.

Do you know that about me yet? Well, now you do!)

Hence the reason I’m always drinking it on Thursdays! Today I’d rather have coffee, though, so after I finish it, I’m there. I found dark chocolate creamer last week that is so, so GOOD. Mmmmm.

So it’s been kind of a blah week in the Schroeder house. We’re all good…just lacking energy to do much. It would help if we could have a warm, sunny day…all day. (Not just part of it!) We’re still waiting on the house (and getting slightly impatient) and to top it off, the shower went crazy on us a couple days ago.

Really?!

I’m trying not to be completely annoyed. But is it so much to ask to just be able to take a hot shower whenever I want?

And I have to say here that I just need to suck it up and be thankful and remember all the cold showers I took in Indonesia due to various water issues.

This. Is. Not. That. Bad.

Thanks to those of you who prayed for Don, the man I posted about a couple of days ago. He passed away early this morning. Please pray for his family and those who were close to him. He will be missed. I am always so sad for the people who are left behind to cry and grieve and hurt. He got the better end of the deal, and I know the choir in Heaven is already sounding sweeter with his tenor voice adding to it.

I’ve really struggled with his situation/death this week. It’s very sobering to see someone and, literally, be standing a few feet away from them and praising God together…then a few hours later they’re gone. From what I know of him, I think it’s incredible that he “went out” doing what he was so very gifted at and what blessed so many people. But that doesn’t make it easy for those who loved him.

Next Tuesday is a big day for me…for me. Not really for anyone else, but that’s ok. I’ll be the guest blogger here, and I’m scared. Those thoughts that I so easily splashed onto my computer are now going to be published for a lot of people to see. It’s cool. And scary. And my stomach turns thinking about it. I’ve never been published before so it’s kind of a dream that’s finally happening. Cool cool.

So if you actually were joining me for an afternoon drink…ahem, talk…I’d be pulling out the runny oatmeal cream pies and grayish-purple scones.

It’s just been that kind of week in the kitchen of Mel. I found a recipe on Monday for Oatmeal Cream Pies that looked UH-MAZ-ING. I had to try them.

The recipe even looked more whoopie pie-ish, so I decided to give it a go. And here’s the thing…you should always read the reviews that people post because…um, these people have actually TRIED the recipe. I did read some of them.

Several said that the cookie parts were too crunchy so I baked them for a lot less time and they turned out ok. But the buttercream in

the middle? I even borrowed my awesome neighbor’ s mixer

so I could actually make the recipe the RIGHT way and whipped the SNOT out of that butter! (Ok, figuratively…that’s kind of a gross choice of words, isn’t it? )

It still ran everywhere.

Fail.

I put them in the fridge after I slapped them together, and that salvaged the batch for the most part…as long as we eat them cold.

Enter cooking venture #2. I made these scones over the weekend for my in-laws but substituted strawberries for raspberries. They were slightly messy to make but not really that bad. And if they were good with strawberries, I figured they’d be even better with raspberries! (Oh, and they were to take to Bible study…aka: people outside of my house were going to eat them.)

I don’t know what went wrong.

First, the dough was so sticky that I ended up adding about two extra cups of flour just to get it to a point where I could work with it. (And it was still sticky!)

Then, the juice from the raspberries ended up turning the scones this grayish-purple color. I can’t say I was a fan of the color, but whatever. Color is secondary to taste and texture.

And while they tasted fine, the texture was slightly rubbery.

I was oh-so-very-frustrated by the end of the scone-baking drama yesterday that I vowed I will never bake again.

If this is true, you can guarantee that my hubby and I will both lose weight! And…ahem…that my kitchen will be a lot cleaner. Really, some people should just not be allowed in a kitchen, and I think I might be one of them.

But enough about my cooking skills…or lack of them.

Do you have any plans for Mother’s Day?

So this is kinda my first. I mean, I was…um…really pregnant last year.

But with Tob still in Indo and me in the States, there wasn’t really a celebration. And I was kind of expecting this year to be a big deal which I realized is pretty selfish. So I’m gonna bare my soul for a minute. This is a coffee date, after all…usually there’s a lot of soul-b

aring going on!

Expectations have gotten me into trouble in the past, and I can see where they’re taking me this weekend, too. It isn’t good.

Sunday is Mother’s Day.

You know, that day I’ve looked forward to for almost 33 years.

In my narrow, self-centered, bratty way, I expected it to be about me. And I realized today that I need to stop that. I mean, we all have our bratty moments, but I think I have more than the average person.

Bear with me…I promise I’m getting there.

As I was driving home from McD’s today, I was reminded (for about the millionth time!) that I have the most beautiful daughter. She blesses me every single day…every single hour…every single minute…and second, too. I love her so much.

And she is someone I celebrate being mommy to every day, not just one day out of the year.

So, hon, if you read this. (And you better cause supposedly you keep up on the blog… ) Don’t go out of your way to make Sunday a crazy, all-about-Mel day. Instead, let’s just spend the day together…the three of us. And be happy that we get to be the three of us.

That’s what I want for Mother’s Day.

And with that, I think I’ll close…cause I topped 1,000 words a few paragraphs back.

Happy Thursday to you all! And Feliz Cinco de Mayo, tambien!