Christmas Shopping

I feel pretty awesome about the status of my Christmas shopping this year. I've bought nearly everything I want to buy and have put off buying some big purchases so I can make those on Black Friday while visiting with my family. I'm going a little different this year with things that I've made personally. That's always a little iffy in my book because if they don't like it then that's all on me...but I hope that they appreciate it more because I made the effort.

Speaking of visiting with my family, I can't wait to get out of Radford and spend Wednesday to Sunday in Hampton. I also cannot wait for a break from my students. I feel like I might kill someone if I don't get some quality time away from them. I don't mean to gripe, but the teenagers in my classes are just so disrespectful and hateful that sometime I wonder why I do what I do. I wonder if it's just a low socioeconomic area problem or just a problem with teenagers in general. Either way if they don't change their ways they'll have a hard time keeping a job, having a stable personal life and in general they will be a burden to society, which is sad and frustrating to me. At any rate, I am glad to take a break from that and I hope when we get back in December we'll be able to tolerate each other better.

Randomness

The weather here has been amazing for mid-autumn. Usually it's getting pretty chilly even during the day, but it's been getting into the mid to upper seventies during the day lately. It's nice enough to go outside with just a comfy sweater on.

We have finally discovered what gets Hershey to stop barking...a large cup of water poured over his head. He doesn't like that at all. Whenever he sees the orange cup, he usually stops barking or jumping or whatever he's doing. Maybe one day I will be able to clean the muddy paw prints, nose prints and slobber off the back door. We'll see though.

I'm having one of those cranky days today. Everything is frustrating and irritating today, which is frustrating and irritating. Colby whining and not following directions really gets my blood boiling. What is so hard about following directions? What is so difficult about sitting in his chair and eating his lunch? And what is so hard about holding my hand in the parking lot? I know, I know, he's only 2 and a half...but still. I can't wait to get over these terrible twos.

Adventures in Red Pepper Jelly

My mother-in-law buys this amazing red pepper jelly and she often pairs it with cream cheese to make a dip. Unfortunately she can't get the jelly around here. So...I thought maybe I could find a recipe to MAKE red pepper jelly and then give it to her for Christmas, so this past weekend I canned my first jelly. It was not hard to make and it wasn't even hard to can and guess what?! It was DELICIOUS!!! I took some leftover jelly over to her house on Sunday (I couldn't can that last half a jar) and let them try it and she said "It tastes just like the other stuff I buy." I was thinking cha-ching!! I took a jar to Bible study yesterday with a block of cream cheese and some veggie ritz crackers and everyone loved it! I felt like superwoman :-) So, here's the link to the recipe: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Red-Pepper-Jelly-236699
Don't let the word spicy fool you. It has a little kick, but I don't really like spicy foods and I LOVE this dip. If you like it hot, add some more red pepper flakes. It makes me want to try new things with cooking more frequently :-)