Fabric softener is my new best friend

First, a bit of an explanation – when we bought our house 4 years ago, it was painted with flat paint. Over 4 years, flat paint gets pretty icky, and the stuff is pretty much non-washable. So we decided to repaint the house.

Also, 4 years ago I decided I wanted to have horse wallpaper-border in my room. It’s really pretty and it was great while it lasted, but it’s time to say good-bye.

So yesterday I decided to start stripping what I could reach without moving the furniture. It’s not that old, and it’s supposed to be the easy-strip kind, so how hard could it be?

Yeah, it was a pain. The top layer came off beautifully – but the backing stayed on the wall. Not good. I worked with it awhile, spraying it with hot water using a paint scraper, but it was slow-going so I decided to let it rest for a while.

Today I started at it again. Using the hot water method and this time alternating between the paint scraper and a razor blade, I was able to get most of the backing off. But it still left behind a gummy residue. I tried to find a sure-fire method on the internet, via Google. I tried more hot water. I tried sanding it. I tried Goo Gone. I tried snapping my fingers like Mary Poppins. I tried enlisting my little sister to do it. (Okay, so Google didn’t suggest those last two.)

Finally mom typed some magic words into Google and found something I’d missed – equal parts fabric softener and water. So I tried that too. Guess what? It worked like a charm.

And since my real best friend told me she’d never forgive me for deciding the border needed to go, I guess that Purex Mountain Fresh fabric softener is my new best friend. At least it smells good.

Mmmm… brownies!

Ok, so the one redeeming factor when it comes to my baking is that I can make knock-em-over brownies. I’ve never had a batch of this chocolate goodness fail me yet. And because I am so nice, I’m sharing my secret recipe with you.*

Better-Than-Box-Mix Brownies

Ingredients:
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
2 eggs
Scant 1/4 cup hot water
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup baking cocoa
1 tsp. baking powder

Directions:
In a small saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate chips and butter; pour into a mixing bowl. (actually, I always use the microwave to do this) Beat in sugar until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add hot water. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and baking powder; beat into chocolate mixture

Spread into a greased 13×9×2″ baking pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted a few inches from the edge comes out clean.

*Long-time readers of my blog and real-life friends, you can just not mention that I’ve posted the recipe on my old blog already, and that this is mostly a repost. Shhhh…

It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

So, my cousin has three little kids – two-year old twin girls and a just-turned-one-year old boy. The Boy had an appointment at the ENT today, and she needed someone to watch the girls. Since it’s actually easier to go along with her than it is to keep them here, and since Mom had some errands to do in Carlisle anyway, that’s what we did.

Anyway, while we were in the waiting room, “Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood” came on. It’s been years since I’ve seen the show. I know I enjoyed watching it as a child… but today I saw it through new eyes.

Now, to be fair, the show taught some great morals and values, it was pretty educational, and the part with real people at the end was always interesting. I loved the episode where Mr. Rogers went to visit the guy who had that amazing domino set-up… anyone else remember that?

But I’m really surprised I wasn’t tramuatized by the show… all these creepy-looking puppets… especially this one.

She scares me muchly.

It’s really about the cupcakes.

Ok, so first of all I am happy to report that I got almost everything done on my to-do list. Windows are washed, lawn is mowed, card is made, gift is wrapped, coasters are primed, fabric stash has been looked through and I came up empty handed. My room is not cleaned and the hanging baskets are not planted because… well, they’re just not.

But this post is really about the cupcakes.

You have to understand, I rarely bake. Sure, I can open a box, add some oil and a few eggs, and have a decent cake. But that is not baking.  I much prefer cooking because it’s so much more forgiving. I make lots of mistakes, and with baking, you just can’t make mistakes and still have the end result turn out ok. But when I saw that recipe for the Earl Grey cupcakes, I let my great love for the tea over-ride my common sense and better judgment. Well, what little of it I have left.

So this afternoon I pulled out all the needed supplies and measured, mixed, and dumped with a “can-do” attitude. The batter smelled wonderful, and the frosting was really yummy. I filled the muffin tin, slid it into the oven, set the timer, and went on to prime those coasters while they were baking.

The next time I looked in the oven, I saw this:

Yeah, beautiful. Obviously, my interpretation of 2/3 full does not jive with what the recipe creator had in mind. Ahem.

This would be really disappointing to me if I 1) wasn’t halfways expecting it to happen, and 2) didn’t just have the following conversation with a friend on IM. She had sent me this link to a recipe for Maple French Toast and Bacon Cupcakes. I made the following brilliant remark regarding the cupcakes:

Me: Interesting.
Her:  unusual.
Me: yeah
Her: certainly.

(Yes, we often have similar intellectually stimulating conversations.)

me: But they are perfectly shaped. They look quite nice
her: The cupcakes are a perfect shape?
me: Yeah. Better than mine turn out. Perfectly puffed.
her: I see. *thinks why Linz’s might not turn out right…*  *and giggles*
me: ha. ha. ha.
her: well, considering everything that just might happen in The Life of Linz…

(Yes, that is where this blog’s title came from. Thank you, dear.)

So, I’m holding to the excuse that I was jinxed.

The sorry things are all in crumbles… but thankfully my family likes to eat cake crumbled in a bowl with milk anyway. I was hoping to be able to salvage them, but they were sticking terribly to the muffin tin.

But they still tasted soooo good. If anyone out there is a better baker than I, you really should try them. Me? I’m going to stick to simply drinking my beloved Earl Grey and leave the cupcake baking to someone else.

Happy Saturday

Welcome to the new blog. I’m going to skip all the normal introduction stuff, that’s what the about page is for. Actually I guess  it’s the “Who?” page. And if you want to, you can always reference the old blog. Anyways.

I’ve just spent the whole week pretty much AWOL from home, so today I have a longish to-do list. Mow the lawn, wash windows, clean my room because I have basically been coming home, dumping stuff, and crashing. I’ve got a flat of annuals outside that need to be planted, and I’m doing hanging baskets because I hate weeding flowerbeds. They were supposed to be done last week, but I didn’t have enough potting soil. I hope to get some crafting in today as well – I ned to make a card for Mom and wrap up her gift. And yesterday I picked up six of the world’s ugliest coasters at a yard sale, as well as some vintage metal embroidery hoops. The coasters are being upcycled into mini wall art, two sets, and I’m thinking about putting some vintage fabric in the hoops. I’m not sure if I have any in my stash at the moment, so if not, they can wait. Eventually they’ll end up on my Etsy shop (that has zero listings at the moment). I have some photos to edit from a shoot I did this week, and I’m really hoping to find time to make these Earl Grey cupcakes.

So I should get moving. My coffee cup is empty, and I’m fully awake. Let’s go!