My 3-Year-Old Should Come with a Spoiler Alert!

      Good evening all,  I hope everyone enjoyed Cheap Candy Day.  I know I certainly did!  I finished off a box of Ferrero Rocher before realizing that it's been about a week since my last run, and it's been two weeks since my last trip to the gym.  That certainly motivated me to hit the street for a 4.4 mile run this afternoon.  Not that it helped; according to my app I only burned about half that box of candy.  Oh well; I guess that just means I need to get back on the wagon.

     Of course, I also had a good Valentine's Day.  It was nice to have J home for it this year, since last year he missed it because of training exercises.  As y'all have probably surmised from previous posts, J is not very smooth.  He's sweet, but not smooth at all.  Not that I can fault him; I'm a pretty good sleuth when it comes to holidays and gifts.  I'm very rarely taken by surprise, and I have years of experience lifting, shaking, tapping, and feeling presents to determine what's on the inside.  This year, I didn't even have to bother thanks to my adorably talkative 3 year old.

     Tuesday, J got a little shifty when he told me he needed to go somewhere.  When I asked him where he was off to, he said he couldn't tell me that.  When I pressed him, he said to leave him alone because he couldn't say where he was headed.  At that point I told him I knew it had to do with Valentine's Day, and his silence was my confirmation.  He and Monkey left on their mysterious adventure as I left to run a few errands.  When they returned, I asked no questions, and simply continued to work on my homework and they milled around the room.  After they had settled in around me, Monkey turned to me and said, "Mommy, the pet store was closed."  J immediately perked up, but to his credit he said nothing.  Confused, I asked her why they were at the pet store.  Monkey proudly announced, "To get your kitty cat."  I threw my head back and laughed as J did a face palm in the background.  I turned to him, completely surprised, and he just shrugged.  He said the plan was to adopt a cat I had seen at Pet Smart the previous weekend, and see if they could hold him until Valentine's Day.  J had planned on wrapping the adoption papers up for me to open that day, but Monkey spilled the beans.  Monkey was so cute and proud of herself for delivering such funny news that I couldn't even be disappointed.  J was comforted when I told him that was the last thing I had expected, and we agreed to go Thursday to pick the cat up together.

     Valentine's Day came, and I honestly was too distracted by thinking up Louisiana-themed names for my new kitty to really focus in my Computer Concepts class, but when I got to the Humane Society, the cat I wanted was gone.  We browsed the rest of the animals, but I didn't really "click" with any of them.  Monkey was overly excited, too, which made every cat hate her off the bat, so we agreed give it a week before we go back.  Now we're toying with the idea of fostering a litter when breeding season hits, that way we can see how a few different kittens do with Roux and Monkey before we decide on one.  Who knows, though.  I may be back on here in a week showing off pictures of a new fur-baby.

     At any rate, Valentine's Day wound up being a good day, new kitty or no.  J and I brought Monkey home, and we enjoyed a nice dinner at home before tucking her in, and snuggling down to watch Pitch Perfect, which was a really good way to end the evening.

     Of course, I have a recipe to share before I hop off of here.  This is a recipe for stuffed, cheesy, garlic bread like the ones Peeta makes for Katniss in the Hunger Games trilogy.  They are so yummy, and they're the perfect side to any pasta dish, from lasagna to spaghetti.

Yummy cheese, oregano, and garlic on the outside

More gooey cheese on the inside

Peeta's Stuffed Cheese Buns
1 cup warm water
2 TBS yeast
2 TBS sugar
2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt
at least 8 oz of cheese (I followed along with what the original poster said and used chunks of mozzarella for the inside, but I used shredded cheddar for the outside.)
Parmesan Cheese
3-4 TBS melted butter mixed with 1/2 tsp garlic powder and fresh herbs (oregano, basil, etc) if you have any

Mix yeast and water.  Let sit for a couple of minutes.  Add sugar, garlic powder, melted butter, and oil. Add flour a little at a time, mixing with a dough hook.  Add salt.  Knead for 10 minutes.  (I did this by hand or you could use a stand mixer if you have one.)  Let the dough rise in a greased bowl covered with a wet cloth for about 30 minutes.  Preheat oven to 375.  Divide dough into about 20 pieces. (The amount you make depends on how big you want your buns).  Place a 3/4 inch chunk of cheese in the middle of each, and pinch the edges up tightly.  Bake for 11-15 minutes until bread is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly.  Brush with melted butter, and serve warm.

Enjoy :-)