Brrrrr

It's really f*cking cold out in New York. A great couple of days for the building boiler to be on the fritz.

A Conversation Between A Brother And A Sister

Sister (amidst pity party): "No. No real friends. Bet if I died there'd be no more than 15 people at my funeral".

Brother: "No, c'mon, that's not true."

Sister (shaking her head dramatically): "No, it's true."

Brother (smiling): "No, it's tnot rue. I'd have at least 15 of my friends come to support me".

Sister, laughing out loud. Pity party over.

*Yes, ladies, he's available.

Help! Baking a Birthday Cake Ain't So Easy.

This year the mini requested only one thing for her birthday: a cake free of eggs, nuts and seeds. She was very specific about her desires: it has to be the same cake for everyone. It has to be layers, with chocolate on every layer. And, of course, chocolate icing on top.

Mini tolerated the chocolate chips with the understanding that her mother would remove them all in order for her to be willing to eat it.

Poker Chick used New Year's Eve as an opportunity to "test" a cake. The one on the right was made thanks to the help of Vermont Nut Free chocolate as an ingerdient. Mmmmm. It's definitely the best egg-free chocolate cake she's had. So it is a contender. But not perfect. It tasted ok. But the texture of the cake itself could have been lighter. And the layers (there were two, with icing in between), were so thin, the whole cake was pretty much as tall as one.

And here's the other problem. This cake could serve 6 or 8 kids but not 20. How does one make a cake that looks as impressive as a store-bought "real" sheet cake with a recipe like this? And how does a "non-cook" do that? And by "non-cook", we mean the above is about the best this non-domestic girl could do, and it still took three hours.

Not to put anyone on the spot or anything, but we're hoping some of our allergy-mom friends can offer some been there, done that advice. Whether it be daring bakers, the allergic kid, nut-free mom, or anyone else, we're sure someone out there has been brave enough to bake a cake for a kid's birthday party.

Help!

A little rest

Poker Chick is trying to get some rest for a few days. Just a run-of-the-mill virus, but she didn't want you peeps to think she'd forgotten about you. Unless it's meningitis (which those recent commercials have gotten her thinking about, hmm....) she'll be back to her mocking self soon.

Allergy Mom Dilemma # 3,179

Today's issue: Someone gave the mini a gift. Very thoughtful, only it was a Princess oven bake-type thingie that has product with trace eggs and nuts in it. Why, oh why would you give the mini a real food present? Allow Poker Chick a moment to vent: ARGHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just want to whack my head against a wall!!!!!

OK, now that that's over with, we are faced with just two choices:
1) Say something to the parent (in which case, what?)
2) Say nothing, write a thank-you note, and regift it to someone who has no common link whatsoever.

Thoughts????