Twenty Four At Heart

Hawaii - Day 4

My family does not appreciate me being on the computer.  As a result, like any good addict, I have to sneak my time in to write posts while on vacation.  I take perverse pleasure in dashing off a quick post while they're showering after a day at the beach.  I know, I might need help for this blogging addiction, right?  

Or maybe not.

Did you hear a hurricane might hit Hawaii in 4-5 days?  One of my readers informed me about it last night.  I haven't been keeping up with the news at all while here.  I've never been in a hurricane.  I suppose sitting on a bluff on the edge of an island might not be the best location to sit one out.  

On the other hand ....  How exciting!

I did a whole lot of nothing on Day #4 on Maui.  I want to share with you some of the foods I'm living on while I'm here.

First of all, there's a lot of this:

Just kidding.

Day #4 was more about tequila.  

We grilled fresh mahi-mahi on the beach and made fish tacos for dinner from it.  We made our own fresh guacomole, added some salsa and it came out fantastic.  The accompanying margaritas (and possibly a shot or two of tequila straight up) added to the celebration.

We bought a new shot glass on Day #4.

Sorry if the photo is a little fuzzy - it might be a result of the tequila you drank.

* Ahem *

Nearly every day I purchase a fresh sashimi grade loin of ahi.  The fish looks like this when I bring it home:

I slice it very thin.  It doesn't get cooked at all.  I make a side dish of wasabi, pickled and sliced ginger and serve it with soy sauce for dipping as an appetizer.

It's a family favorite when we're here.  I never serve sashimi at home because I don't know of a good source for really fresh ahi.  Maybe one of my Orange County readers can give me a tip?

We eat other sashimi here too.  We frequently will purchase fresh ahi poke which looks like this:

My family also enjoys poke kim chee tako which is a spicy octopus sashimi.  It looks like this:

Notice the tentacles creeping out of the bowl?  I made sure that was visible just to freak you out.  

Your welcome.

Last year we brought a friend with us to Hawaii.  He had never eaten pineapple before.  I was shocked because it's a fruit I grew up eating all the time in California.  Nonetheless, I know it isn't readily available everywhere.  For those of you who have never seen a pineapple, they look like this:

You slice off the top and bottom and remove the prickly skin.  The fruit is cool and refreshing.  We eat a lot of fresh fruit for breakfast.

This is a papaya:

And these are mangoes:

We have mango trees right at our condo complex which is convenient. 

My new discovery this year is Dragon Fruit.  Have you heard of it?  It looks like this:

 

It tastes a little like kiwi.  It's a deep red inside.

I cut up whatever fruit we have handy each morning and we sit out on the patio enjoying it for breakfast.  Bananas grow just a few feet from our front door too.  I drink a cup or two of chocolate-macadamia nut coffee each morning while listening to the waves crashing on the bluff.  It makes for a perfect morning. 

© Twenty Four At Heart

Turgid Nipples

I'm in Chicago today.  I have my laptop with me, but I knew I might not have time to write during my first 24 hours in town.  I pre-wrote today's post for you for that very reason.  I'll have a Chicago update for you on Monday for sure.

I have a friend named Jane Devin.  Jane and I have been communicating back and forth about our love for the phrase turgid nipples.  It started as a joke and it progressed when I used the phrase in a post a few days ago.  Somehow it morphed into the decision we should invent a new cocktail.  

I'd like to take credit for the creation of the Turgid Nipple cocktail, but in truth Jane came up with the recipe.  The only thing I contributed was my love of limes.

Here's the recipe:

1 small can limeade (lemonade if you don't like lime)

4 oz. pomegranate vodka

1 tbsp maraschino cherry syrup (or to taste)

lime (or lemon) for garnish

paper umbrella optional

** Mix first three ingredients in a blender.  

** Pour into tall glasses and garnish

** Get a little chilly and tipsy

** Turgid Nipples will result

Enjoy!

© Twenty Four At Heart

Need a Little Spice in Your Life?

My life is super exciting this week as I recupe from surgery.  (Yawn!)  By next week I imagine I'll be back in the Money Town scene, but for now I'm playing a hermit.  Letting my perky size C boobs heal up before I undoubtedly flash them at someone in town.

I had a couple topics to write about today and I decided to scratch all of them for the time being.  I wanted to do something different and change things up a little bit.  Most of my readers come from outside of California, and I thought I'd give you a little glimpse of the California lifestyle today.

Because the weather here is pretty nice year-round, we tend to use our grill for cooking year-round also.  (I'm going to make all my southern readers shudder when I tell you we call it a barbeque, not a grill.)

Spicy food is also pretty common in Southern California because we are so close to Mexico.  I grew up eating a wide variety of spicy food.  Briefcase grew up on the east coast and he is still shocked to see our kids throw Tabasco and/or salsa on everything.  Briefcase had never even tried salsa until he went to college in the south.  

In any case, I thought I'd share with you an easy summer dinner we had recently.  It might be something you're interested in trying yourself if you don't mind a little "kick" to your food.

It starts with thin skinless chicken breasts and this:

The Chili-Lime Rub is available at Williams Sonoma for $10 (you can get it online from them also).  There is enough of the rub in a can for more than one meal.  (And no, they are not sponsoring me to write this!)  It's a little spicy, but not overpowering.  Really, the rub just provides a nice blend of spices.

It takes maybe a minute to rub the spices into the chicken:

After that it's another few seconds to throw it on the grill:

I like to chop up a medley of veggies to cook in a mesh pan on the grill at the same time.

A lot of time we husk corn and throw it directly on the grill too.  There's no reason to turn the stove or oven on at all in warm weather.  The veggies are done when they look like this:

The chicken is done when it looks like this:

It's so easy!  

It takes a few minutes to scrub down the grill when you're done.  In addition to being quick and easy, the rub makes the chicken really flavorable.  It's a great day to day choice for yourself, but it also makes an easy meal for guests.  

If I were all Martha-Stewart-ish I'd have a picture for you of the meal displayed beautifully on a plate.  

Um ... I'm nothing like Martha Stewart, did I mention that?

© Twenty Four At Heart

I'm All About Balance

Wow, I've got a lot of whores reading this blog.  The comments on yesterday's post were hilarious!  How funny is it that people were begging to be considered a whore?  And trying to prove to me they are whorish enough to get into my whore club?  And telling me they could improve on their whoring abilities if I'd just give them a little time?  And asking if I could make whore blog badges for them to display on their own blogs?

You make me laugh my ass off!

I was embarrassed to see I had several first time visitors stop by yesterday.  I'm sure I successfully scared them away.  Imagine stopping by for a first time visit and seeing my contest to join a Whore Club.  I'd like to add, I find it hilarious that some of you would like to name the Whore Club Twenty Four's Twats.

Ha!  You're a creative group!

I had some law enforcement folks visit yesterday too.  I'm not even kidding.  Once they realized I'm not running the future Mustang Ranch they moved right along.

Sometimes I forget I'm not writing just to my best friends when I sit down to pen Twenty Four at Heart.  Other people with rules and agendas and strong opinions wander through here too. My apologies to all of them.  I'm an offensive human being and I openly admit it.

Also?  It's kind of creepy because there are automated robots out there in cyberspace. They secretly roam the web and find stuff for people and/or companies.  I don't really understand how they work, but there's no doubt that they're creepy and supernatural. 

I'll have an announcement on the contest winner tomorrow.

Yesterday I ate a Balance Bar for lunch.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with them, they're protein bars stuffed full of vitamins and other (gag!) healthy stuff.  I'm sure you're wondering why I ate a balance bar for lunch, aren't you?  

Because what I ate for lunch is fascinating, isn't it?

And no, this is not a paid product endorsement.

It has something to do with bathing suits, St. Lucia, bathing suits, and the fact I haven't tried to lose one ounce of my precious body fat in preparation yet.

And yes, my body fat is precious.  Someone has to appreciate it and if I don't, who will?

As an aside, let's place bets on how many days it will be until I hear from the Balance Bar people, shall we?  Since I know they'll be stopping by I'll just say this right now.  If they'd like to give me a lifetime supply of Balance Bars for free (those suckers add up!) I'll go on a diet and document right here on 24 how those yummy (bleh!) bars helped me look 24 again.

A lifetime supply probably consists of TWO.  I think it might be possible to force down two in a lifetime.  Like all protein bars, they taste like ass.

In any case, as I was choking down delighting in my peanut butter flavored bar lunch I contemplated the wrapper.  I realized my life, really, is all about balance.  I should be a role model or something because I'm all about moderation.

Let me give you a few examples.

If I have a cup of very hot coffee in the morning with a whole box of few Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies for breakfast it balances out very nicely with a protein bar for lunch.

If I have one or two or five margaritas I make sure to eat a full plate of nachos with them to absorb the alcohol.  Balance! 

If I don't exercise for four six twelve months it's absolutely no problem.  Why?  Because I can then exercise three times a day every single day for a month before I go to St. Lucia and make up for it.  That works, right?  

If most women have one sex toy, I *hypothetically* might have been gifted a full collection.  For the sake of balance, of course.  (I wouldn't want to wear out any one toy too quickly!)

If other people slowly tan in tanning booths beginning with 3 minutes a session, I find a way to burn my cooter to a crisp with a 10 minute exposure on my first visit.  Why waste visits after all?  Less visits means more time for balance in my life.

Do you have balance in your life?  Do you practice the art of moderation?  And most importantly, can you say crispy cooter ten times real fast?

© Twenty Four At Heart

Strawberry Salad Forever (Sound Like a Song?)

My guests are still here which leaves me very little time for writing.  The weather over the weekend was a little disappointing, but we still managed to have fun.  Having company is not a good thing for my St. Lucia bathing suit look.  I tend to indulge people with too much alcohol and food.  If I indulge them, I indulge myself while I'm at it.  Our house?  Has been one big par-tay lately.

I was told I'm very amusing after sipping only very small quantities of vodka.  What do you think of that? Do any of you find that to be shocking or surprising news?

Also, I think I'm really neurotic.

Are you thinking Doh!??  

I have a really hard time sleeping with people in my house.  It makes no sense whatsoever, but it happens every time we have house guests.  As a result, I'm pretty much running on empty at this point.  Once everyone leaves I'll probably snooze for a good 12 hours.  Do you have that problem too?  House guest insomnia?

Years ago, a good friend of mine invited me over for a barbecue.  

Wait a minute - time out ....

Here in California, a barbecue is what many of you call a cook-out.  Or what some of you refer to as having people over to grill.  Which, to me, sounds like an interrogation or cannibalism, but what do I know?

Anyway, my friend served the most delicious and somewhat unusual strawberry salad. My family went bonkers-crazy for it.  She was kind enough to share the recipe.  I've fixed it for years now and my family loves it as much as ever.  It's a frequent side dish when we invite people over for barbecues.  I've never met a person who hasn't loved it.  In fact, one of my good friends promised me her husband would hate it because he's very picky and refuses to eat a few of the salad ingredients.

He not only ate the salad, he went back for seconds.  And thirds.  And he insisted his wife get the recipe.  She now makes it for him frequently herself.

I've only given out one recipe here before (pumpkin chocolate chip cookies).  However, I served this salad last weekend to my guests and it disappeared in record time once again.  I thought it might be a recipe many of you could use in upcoming months at picnics and barbecues. We grow a lot of strawberries locally here, and this salad will give you a little taste of California.

Look for fresh, red, plump, strawberries at the store or your local farmer's market.  I don't follow the recipe quantities exactly, but the recipe is a good guideline as a starting point.  Also, I frequently make the dressing ahead of time to cut down on my "day of the party" chores.  OK, here it is ....

Strawberry Salad

The Dressing:

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

3/4 cup sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon paprika

Mix all dressing ingredients together until sugar has dissolved.  Shake well before using.

The Salad:

1 large head romaine lettuce torn or chopped (no iceberg!)

1 pint strawberries halved (I use more)

1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese

1 medium red onion, diced

1/4 cup chopped walnuts 

Mix all of the salad ingredients together in a large bowl.  Add the dressing right before serving so it doesn't get soggy.

This salad is a great accompaniment to steak, burgers, or just about anything else you might choose to throw on the grill.

Enjoy!

© Twenty Four At Heart

Dining With Money Towners

A group of managers who work for Briefcase give him a bribe gift every year for Christmas.  For the record, it's never expected, or necessary, and they are extremely thoughtful and very generous people.  For the second year in a row, we were told the gift was to be used at one of the finer Orange County restaurants.  

Two years ago, they gave him a gift card specifically for Mastro's Ocean Club. I love Mastro's, but it's too pricey for us to frequent except on special occasions.  Of course, we thoroughly enjoyed a "free" evening there courtesy of their gift.  It was fantabulous. Honestly, I love that restaurant.    

Last Christmas, the same wonderful group of people gave him American Express cards to use at the restaurant of our choosing.  We ended up last Saturday at  Charlie Palmer for dinner.  (And yes, for you Real Housewives fans, this IS the restaurant they filmed last week's episode at.  For some reason those ladies go to a lot of the same places I do.  Maybe they are stalking me?  I'm sure they are.)  

Charlie Palmer is located at (inside/as part of?) Bloomingdales in Costa Mesa.  It's pricey, but not as outrageous as Mastro's so we walked away at the end of the night with some leftover Amex cards.

Visions of curtains danced through my head.

What was I saying?

We had a nice evening out and everything was great.  In spite of the terrible economy, the restaurant was still pretty busy although not every table was filled.  The service was good; the food was good; everything was wonderful.

This is what I enjoyed the most though.

I loved reading the cocktail menu.  I know this picture is probably hard to read, so I'll help you out.  I found the menu very amusing because Money Towners are the most self absorbed people on earth.  Clearly, the restaurant wanted to tip it's hat to it's best customers. 

By the way, I didn't steal this menu.  Our waitress was quite happy to give me one upon my request.  I think she gave it to me so I would, kindly, leave my camera in my purse.  I don't think she wanted me to start snapping photos of the menu, the Money Towners, or the ho woman seated behind me.

What a spoiler.  You would have loved a picture of the woman seated behind me.

One drink is named Nouveau Rich.  Really, that name sums up a huge portion of Orange County's population.  Another drink is simply called The OC.  Fittingly, The OC has orange in it although the menu doesn't clearly state orange juice, so it does make a person wonder what type of orange flavoring is in the drink.  A third drink is named OMG.  Does that stand for OMG I have a hangover?  OMG it's so good?  OMG I can't believe the things I did after drinking it?  Or simply, I live in The OC so I say "OMG" at every opportunity I can because that's how people talk here?

The restaurant also offers the Rich and Skinny on it's cocktail menu.  I've mentioned this drink before.  It's quite popular here because Money Town women do not eat, ever.  It's against their religion and I'm convinced it's why they are all such bitches.  Money Town men, I know you are concerned about keeping a trophy on your arm, but when you can't take the bitchiness anymore you should insist she eat.  

Your welcome.

I snorted out loud when I noticed the Cougar Cosmo on the menu.  Honestly, there are times when I feel like PT is filled with at least 80% cougars.  They seem to flock there.  I suppose they have nothing better to do during their daylight hours than try to hit up The Torturer for a butt massage.  Or something.

Anyway .... 

For the record, I ordered the duck for dinner and Briefcase had a steak (and some of my duck).  Everything is served a la carte.  I think we over-ordered in an attempt to spend our gift cards.  We tried two appetizers and also ordered two sides to share with our meal.  The food was excellent, but I was way too full by the end of the meal.  (Briefcase, however, thought the quantity of food "was just right.")  Of course, I didn't have to eat the food just because it was there, did I?

Sex Toys And Sandwiches

You can continue to enter my Decadent Indulgence Contest through this Friday, at midnight Pacific time.  Prizes include a Breville Panini Press and a Decadent Indulgence sex toy.  They add up to a combined dollar value of over $250!  To enter, please click here.

Well, the contest seems to be off to a good start.  Thank you for participating and I wish the best of luck to each and every one of you!  Remember, you may enter as many times as you like.  Obviously, your odds of winning increase the more times you enter.

A few of you sent me emails saying you already have a panini press but would like the sex toy, or you have enough sex toys ** snicker ** but would love a panini press.  You can always use one of the items as a gift if you want.  

I'll be honest, all this talk of good food and great sex has really been on my mind.  I can't help you out with the sex part, so I thought I'd give you a few tips on making the best-ever panini sandwich today instead.

If you're on a New Year's diet you can modify the following with whole grain bread and low fat fillers and spreads!

Panini Tips  (Sounds kind of dirty doesn't it?)

Use the freshest, best, sourdough bread you can find.  Foccacia and ciabatta are also great options.

Optional: Fire roasted peppers are traditional on a panini, but not everyone likes them.

Fresh basil can be the key to taking your panini above and beyond an ordinary sandwich.

Use an assortment of thinly sliced sandwich meats to give your sandwich a more interesting flavor.  My family's favorite paninis include genoa salami, turkey, prosciutto, pepperoni, ham and a little cappocolla. 

Tomato, onion, avocado, and pepperoncini are all great options.  Lettuce just becomes limp when heated, I don't recommend it.  We wouldn't want limp, now would we?  

(What is WRONG with me today?  It must be the giveaway ... or something.)

Provolone and/or mozzarella cheese both melt nicely, but any cheese you like is fine.

Mincing a clove of garlic and mixing it in with some mayo makes a great, flavorful, spread.

To give the bread a great color and the perfect crispiness, brush the outside of both pieces of bread very lightly with olive oil prior to putting the sandwich in your press.  This is the KEY to a perfect panini!

Toast the sandwich in your pre-heated panini press for 5-8 minutes depending on its thickness.  You should end up with a nicely browned, crispy panini.  When you bite into it your tastebuds will explode at the combination of flavors.  The gooey melted cheese inside will send you over the top.

Are you hungry now?

You can still enter my contest to win a panini maker and a sex toy!

Decadent Indulgence - A Contest!

Eden Fantasys (not Fantasies) contacted me last month with an offer too good to pass up. They offered me the opportunity to peruse their website, pick out any sex toy I wanted, and agreed to sponsor a contest giving away the toy of my choosing.  They are not paying me anything, nor am I accepting any of their products for my own use.  But hey, if they want to give me the opportunity to give YOU something ... hell yeah!

I started thinking long and hard (**ahem**) about the zillions of toys I had to choose from. I went back and read a lot of the comments you've left me in the past.  I decided pretty quickly on a rabbit.  Several readers have mentioned in the past how much they would love to have a rabbit.  Next, I started narrowing down WHICH rabbit because Eden Fantasys has so many to choose from.

And then ... yes, and then.  I started thinking back to a few comments left on a previous post.  

Sex toy giveaway? That should boost your counter stats. Maybe you could get Williams Sonoma to throw in a panini press... and bundle the prize as a "Sandwich Some Fun into Your Busy Day Giveaway."

You are amazing! Love your blog...Posted by: sometimessophia 

And then there was this one:

Did this company happen to mention if they have a sex toy/panini press combo unit? That's one of those things that if I had one, I'd probably never leave the house. Except to get sandwich stuff, and (ahem) personal lubricants.  Posted by: Irish Gumbo 

There were more comments too regarding the joy of combining sex and good food.

For that reason, I have decided to co-sponsor this contest and donate a Breville Panini Press (approximate retail value of $150) to the winner.  That's right - the winner of today's contest will get a Breville Panini Press AND a Decadent Indulgence 3 rabbit sex toy which is valued at approximately $93!  If you factor in tax and shipping costs, the contest winner will walk away with over $250 of prizes.

You can click on the links of both items to get more details, but I want to tell you a little about them.  (Because some of you are lazy asses and won't click on the links!)  The Breville Panini Press is the one I recently purchased for myself and I love it.  My family has gone panini-crazy.  Every time the boys have friends over, or the family is watching a sports game on TV, I get a request to make paninis.  You can also grill meats, fish and vegetables on it.  It is AWESOME!

Now let me tell you why I picked the Decadent Indulgence 3.  This toy is the rabbit of all rabbits. It offers over 300 functions to tickle your ... fancy.  The buttons to operate it glow in the dark so they're easy to find.  (There's nothing worse than having your partner miss your button at a critical moment.)  The "rabbit ears" of a traditional rabbit sex toy are different on the Decadent Indulgence 3.  The DI3 has an elephant for clitoral stimulation instead of a rabbit. (An elephant has a trunk, and big floppy ears in case you forgot!)  

Ladies, think about it for a minute.  Would you rather have a tiny little rabbit in bed with you ... or a nice, big, strong, hard, elephant?  This is a toy which was designed to make the earth move repeatedly.

Whew!  Can someone hand me a fan?  I think I'm getting a little hot and bothered just thinking about it!  Sex, sandwiches, sexual sandwiches - whoops!  Did I just type that out loud?

As far as I know, this is the first-ever Internet contest offering a panini press and sex toy simultaneously.  Don't you just love it when exciting things happen simultaneously?! 

Contest Rules:

You may enter as many times as you wish.

Leave a comment listing something you enjoy as a decadent indulgence.  (It can be a bite of chocolate, a walk on the beach, a favorite sandwich, a candlelit bath ... anything you wish!)

** Make sure you type in the verification letters.  There will be a slight delay before your comment shows up after you've left it! **

Each comment you leave counts as one entry.

The contest closes at midnight Pacific time, this Friday (January 16th).

I'll be using a random number generator to pick the winner.

The winner will be announced next week on Tuesday, January 20th!

Are you one of my shy lurkers?  You can enter the contest using a fake name, just make sure to leave me a real email address.  No one will see your email address but me.

Thank you again to Eden Fantasys for co-sponsoring this very sexy, sensual, contest with me!

Giving Thanks

It's Thanksgiving here in the United States.  It's a day when we recount the many things we're thankful for.  We follow that by gorging ourselves on way too much food.  I'm always in charge of cooking the "feast" for our family.  I actually began with some of the cooking duties last weekend.  I've been preparing various dishes every day since.  

This morning I rose early and went straight to the kitchen.  I will remain there cooking in my PJ's until mid-morning.  At that time I'll take an hour break to shower, dress, and nag my kids to take care of whatever needs taking care of.  I will then return to the kitchen for many hours to come.  I love cooking so I don't mind.  Thanksgiving is a day when I don't have to feel the least bit guilty about doing nothing but cooking.

The males in my house will be watching football and will maybe even play a little football themselves with some of their friends.  They'll walk into the kitchen no less than one million times to see what I'm making, tell me how wonderful things smell, and ask when they can eat. Never mind if it's only 10 a.m., they'll want turkey.

TR is home from college and she'll be helping with the cooking.  She'll be my "right arm" so to speak and help out with some of the things I'm still not able to do with my injured arm. We'll plug my iPod into the stereo, crank the music and work away.  In the morning we'll sip coffee as we cook and by afternoon we'll have switched to wine.  

Holidays often make us reflect back on the previous year.  Where were we a year ago? What's changed?  Is life in a better place now? I have a very blessed life.  I could write pages upon pages of things I'm grateful for.  So as not to bore you, I've listed five things I'm grateful for this Thanksgiving.  I'm grateful for:

1.  My family and their health.

2.  The gains I've made in my recovery since last year at this time.

3.  The fact that TR is able to be home from college for the holidays.

4.  Our family hasn't (yet) been hit too hard by the downturn in the economy.

5.  Each and every friend, and reader, I've come to "know" through Twenty Four At Heart.

Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one of you!  What are you feeling thankful for this year?  

Sex or Cookies?

In the last week or so we've talked about Faking Orgasms.  We've also talked about a bigamist.  (By the way, I've already learned a little more about Joe the Bigamist and I'll update you on him as I hear more.)

What we haven't talked about yet are cookies.

I know, this is far from a cooking website.  Just hang with me for a minute. 

I was at my surgeon's office the other day.  You may have heard about him.  Dr. Schobert has been mentioned repeatedly during the Olympic coverage.  He's also been mentioned on Dancing With The Stars.  He takes care of some of the Olympians including Misty May (volleyball Gold Medalist).  In fact, Misty May was in his office with me this week.  He's fixed her shoulder (which works perfectly - way better than mine).  Recently she ruptured her Achilles tendon on Dancing With the Stars and he fixed that too.

Dr. Schobert doesn't take insurance because he doesn't need to.  People fly in from all over the country to see him and gladly pay cash for the privilege of going under his knife.  I, of course, was in a little different situation.  First of all, I had no cash.  Second, Doc won't take car accident victims because he doesn't want the legal nightmare car accidents involve. 

Dr. Schobert and I had met and become friendly years ago, however.  For some reason he's remembered me for all these years.  He heard about my situation (three failed surgeries) from a mutual friend last February.  A week later he was operating on me and rebuilding my entire shoulder.  Three weeks later he did a follow-up, more minor, surgery.  Doc did stuff to my arm and shoulder that hasn't been invented yet in the world of orthopedic surgery.

It was the worst thing I've ever gone through. 

It was the best thing that could have possibly happened to me. 

Getting my arm to work again has become his personal and professional mission.  I'm very grateful for that.  I think back constantly to a year ago when I would sob daily because the pain I was in could not be made tolerable by the strongest of pain meds.  I realize I will probably always have pain and limitations but where I was and where I am now .... Well, it's been a remarkable improvement.

This week as I was leaving Dr. Schobert's office he grabbed a homemade cookie a patient had brought in.  As he talked to me he sighed with joy over his cookie.  He offered me one, but I turned him down.  I was in a hurry to get going.  Then he paused and he said, "You know it's better than ClassOneDrug."  Yeah, doc thinks a homemade cookie can give you more peace/relief than the strongest pain narcotics on the market.

It got me thinking.

I doubt if I will ever offer another recipe here on Twenty Four At Heart, but I'm going to give you one today.  I am famous for my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies.  With Halloween approaching, and with Dr. Schobert's words in my ear, I've decided to share the recipe.  They're easy to make and I've yet to meet a single person who hasn't loved them.  I've had the recipe for so long, I'm not sure where it originated from. 

If you have time, try making them this weekend.  They are moist, they are healthy (for a cookie), and they are ... yummy!  Honestly, they are the favorite cookie of all 3 of my kids and all of their friends.  I only make them in the Fall and people start begging me for them towards the end of summer each year.  They're easy, I promise!

This recipe makes a ton - plan to give some away!

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Ingredients:
1 + 1/2  c. butter (no substitutes)
2 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. sugar
1 15oz. can pumpkin  (pumpkin's healthy!!)
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
4 c. all purpose flour
2 c. quick cooking oats  (oats are healthy!!)
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
12oz. choc. chips  (I use milk choc, but semi-sweet are good too!)

Cream butter and sugars in a large bowl.  Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla.  In a separate bowl combine the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.  Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture.  Stir in chocolate chips.  (If you want some plain pumpkin cookies without chocolate, you can remove some of the batter prior to adding the chocolate chips.)  Drop by tablespoonfuls, two inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 for approximately 10-12 minutes. 

Enjoy!