Lemon Bars

A cicada's loud rasp on the branch above, startles as it zips to nearby branch. Dappled sunlight plays capriciously on the brow of my little one, appearing and disappearing through maple leaves. Breeze riffles through fern-fingers and bent-over grasses and our chestnut hair. Splish-splashes of water, carefully poured from the spout of silver watering can, feeding thirsty thyme and spiraea. Snack-break for all. Little bars of sunshine, powdered in white, on the windowsill. Teeth sink in, through bright curd and buttery shortbread. A pungent tartness smarts slightly on the tongue. Big, dark eyes inquire for more. We both reach for another. A perfect day. 

Magic Cookie Bars

Do you have a go-to recipe? A recipe that you love, that's easy to whip up and keep the ingredients on hand? Something that you can run to the cupboard for when someone comes over unexpectedly, or maybe you have a craving or you need to take a treat to that party? 

Magic Cookie Bars: our family's go-to recipe. My mom would make these on Sunday nights after church. We'd all be roaming the kitchen, opening the fridge multiple times and staring blankly at the contents. Then mom would mention these bars and we'd all perk up and go sit at the island until they came out of the oven. 

I think a similar recipe, with added butterscotch and white chocolate chips, is known as "Seven Layer Bars." However, in my family we call these magic cookie bars, probably because they magically disappear as soon as they are made! 

Granola Bars

It is mid-afternoon here. The sun is golden and warm and streaming through my front windows with vibrance. It is quiet. Jack is asleep upstairs and Emma is asleep in her little bouncer in the kitchen. Dreams are flickering across their faces. 

Supper is in the oven and the house is picked up. A rarity these days. It's a moment of peace in the crazy busyness of life. I love these moments when life is calm. 

But it's not always that way. Sometimes there are train tracks all over my floor. And pacifiers tucked in nooks here and there. Sometimes (most of the time) there are dishes all over the counter and oats all over the floor. Sometimes a baby is crying in one room and the toddler is crying in the other. Sometimes these rooms smell of diapers or burnt granola bars. Sometimes there is no sun shining through my windows and it's raining. Not a nice spring rain, but a cold, dreary, unhappy sort of rain. 

But that's life right? A topsy-turvy mix-up of peace and chaos. Storm and serenity. A blog I read once said that "Life is a process of making messes and cleaning them up." And it's oh so true. Learning to smile amidst the mess and say, "Yes, Jack, let's make the granola bars, together."

Pumpkin Sheet Cake

I really enjoyed Halloween last year. My family didn't do much with the holiday growing up. We lived way out in the country and I only remember someone coming to the door for candy once! But last year was Jack's first Halloween, and one of our first in our new home. My sister was living with us at the time and she was really the impetus behind getting Jack dressed up. We decided on a lumberjack costume, dressing him up in a flannel shirt, carhartts, a beanie hat and an axe made out of a toilet paper tube and tin foil. And to complete the look, a scruffy little beard fashioned out of mascara on my sweet ten-month old's face. 

He was so cute. 

Raspberry Squares

As a child, I loved summertime. Growing up with lots of land meant lots of time outdoors. One of my favorite places to play was down by the pond. The pond wasn't too large, was just deep enough to swim in and was filled with fascinating creatures: spiders that skimmed the water's surface, little minnows that darted away as I came near and gelatinous clusters of frog eggs that clung stickily to cattail reeds. As summer wore on, I would watch the tadpoles form legs and their tails shorten bit by bit. Soon they were itty-bitty frogs that would sun themselves amongst the short, mossy grass that fringed the water. I would walk around the edge as quietly as I could, hoping to sneak up on an unsuspecting frog. I would get oh-so-close before they would jump alarmingly into the safety of the water and out of my reach.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies

Wanna know a secret?

I don't usually make homemade brownies. Betty Crocker Fudge is what most often graces my table.

I'm usually disappointed with homemade brownies. They are too dry. Or they just don't have enough chocolate punch. Brownies from the box are always chewy, fudgy and oh-so-chocolatey.

However, I got a recipe from my mom a little while ago that meets all of the necessary brownie qualifications. Strong chocolate flavor is wedded with a chewy texture. A small bite reveals a light, peanut butter mixture that winds its way through your morsel, punctuated by bits of melted chocolate. This is one of those recipes that people will beg for after taking just one piece.

Toffee Bars

Chocolate is the king of all sweets. Add chocolate to any dessert and it becomes infinitely better. Silky and smooth with deeply rich, cocoa flavor, chocolate is pleasing to the tongue and satisfies the sweet tooth.

I'm one of those people who eats chocolate chips as a snack. Ask me my favorite dessert and I say, "Anything with chocolate." I remember as a little girl, tip-toeing into the kitchen, climbing onto the counter and sneaking chocolate chips from the cabinet. And then I would be amazed when my mom (upon smelling my breath) would say, "You've been in the chocolate again, huh?" How did she know? The scenario today is much the same, except now it's my husband, smiling reproachingly at my mouth full of chocolate.

This recipe is pretty easy...a buttery, toffee crust topped by silky-smooth, milk chocolate. Beware though, they are sort of addicting.