Diabetic December

In the words of one of my SD friends: "Tis the effin' season"

I know it may be January and this post is titled with December but lemme just say last month was a lot of fun and deserves a post about it.  Winter Break is almost done for me and athough it will be sad to leave home and go back to San Diego.  I think my gut needs it.

I left San Diego cooking all of my meals which were just brown rice and chicken and SMALL PORTIONS to come home and find delicious home cooked meals everyday from my mom and a lot of going out to eat more delicious food and I think I am starting to pay for it but UGH ITS ALL JUST SO GOOD.

I just thought I would share with you all a little bit of the best desserts I had this Winter Break.  Also, sorry if the title is misleading but I DO NOT HAVE DIABETES ... but after eating all that I ate I have no idea how that is.  

Every year it is a tradition that my mom and I make Christmas Cookies together.  This has been going on for 6 years now we realized and were very surprised after calculating because we thought somehow it was only our 2nd or 3rd year.  Another tradition is our changing patterns of whether or not we share with people our cookies.. it varies every year depending on how generous and hungry we are feeling (this year we did not share with anyone... hence this post).

CHECK OUT OUR PRIDE AND JOY FOR CHRISTMAS 2013

These were our jelly cookies, the ones on the left were our "challenge" for this year.  We had never made them and they were pretty difficult to make since the cookies were fragile (hard to spread jam) and also you should know that the centers are supposed to be Christmas Trees... supposed to be.  The ones on the right we have been making every year and are my traditional favorites I usually eat 2 or 7 of them not too many 

The bars on the left are another set of "cookies" we have been making every single year and are my Mom's favorite and indeed are pretty dang good.  They have white chocolate chips, craisins, pecans, condensed milk, and clouds from the heavens.  OK but NO YOU GUYS LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THESE COOKIES ON THE RIGHT - this was our first year making them and holy crap they are mainly the reason we did not share treats this year.  They have chocolate, pretzels, and TWIX chunks in it and I LOST IT WITH THESE COOKIES THEY WERE GOOD.

But HOLD UP! There was more! We all have a bit of a creative side in my family and also hold the tradition of making sugar cookies which we later decorate as we please.

Now I know you are dying to know and YES I did make that cow and I also should let you know I made the Santa with the beard on the bottom left... the original cookie was a Christmas Tree shape but the oven did not like that and deformed it so I worked around it.

NOW THESE BABIES ARE MY PERSONAL FAVORITES OF XMAS 2013 BAKED GOODS

(cuz I decorated them)

They are just regular cupcakes but my mom found this marshmallow snowmen idea online and I let my creative side out (1. on the far left you can see a "melting snowman" 2. in the far back [hard to miss] is the "KING SNOWMAN" I dubbed him lastly, 3. is that guy on the right with half his head missing and a surprised expression on him... his story is that he was hit by a snowball and is still recovering from the shock haha)

Mmmmmmmmmmm it was all so good .... but guess what, it did not end there, 

and I am so glad it did not end with that

These delights are my expertise which I actually made back at school when my friend was down in the dumps and when my dad saw them on Instagram he made a personal request for some to made while I was home.

Their Name? Nutella-Mallow Pillow Pockets ... yes, that is their full name and they deserve each bit of it with how delicious and savory they are.  In case you could not tell from the name, they have nutella and marshmallow in them and are fluffy and crispy and chocolatey and marshmallowy and delicious and oh no I am drooling again.

We had them for post-dessert dessert while we watched a Christmas movie with some Hot Chocolate my sister had made and I decided to take the vanilla marshmallow that was all warm and gooey and lathered it on top and Oh Crap I Should NOT HAVE DONE THAT because my heart stopped, went to heaven, and wrote a personalized thank you letter to the angels for allowing us to have such goodness on Earth.

SO MUCH DESSERT AND DELICIOUSNESS IN DECEMBER I DO NOT KNOW IF MY BODY WILL EVER RECOVER FROM IT ALL BUT HONESTLY I THINK IT IS OK

More Than Just a Kids Movie

Dreamworks needs to make another movie like Rise of the Guardians.

No, Rise of the Guardians is not the owl movie with 'Tom Buchanan' from The Great Gatsby voicing a flying bird.  I seriously underestimated the greatness that would come with this movie since I thought it was just going to be some rinky dink kids movie it turned out to be so entertaining and heartwarming.  In fact, I have watched it so many times and recommended to so many friends (above the age of 12 years old) with not a single one coming back disappointed.

Rise of the Guardians is the story of the Guardians of the world who protect the innocence of the children who have just recently teamed up with Jack Frost.  

Not only is the story just all around awesome, but I mean the casting is just as great.

• Jack Frost - Chris Pine
• Santa Claus - Alec Baldwin
• Easter Bunny - Hugh Jackman
• Tooth Fairy - Isla Fisher
• Pitch Black (Boogeyman) - Jude Law

And of course there is Sandy the Sand Man, the sweetest most heartwarming character I have seen in any movie in a long time (not counting Guido from Cars) who is not actually voiced by anyone but proves so much how Actions really do speak louder than words.

One of the main things that I LOVE about this movie was the ideals they made each guardian stand for.  

(*Kinda Spoilers but You Will Still Enjoy the Movie If You Read What's Next*)

I just have to mention this one specific scene where Santa Clause first introduces this idea of each of them having a "center" (what special thing they have inside of them that each guardian protects for children).  So Santa Claus stands for the WONDER and IMAGINATION of children that must be preserved which he represents through one of those Russian Matryoshka Dolls

as he states:

"[I have] big eyes very big. Because 

they are full of wonder! That is 

my center. It is what I was born 

with. Eyes that have always seen 

the wonder in everything! 

Eyes that see lights in the trees, 

and magic in the air!

This wonder is what I put into the 

world, and what I protect in 

children.

It is what makes me a Guardian."

Now if that quote doesn't make you wish it were December right at this moment and doesn't make you wish you were seven years old again on Christmas morning than you MUST watch this movie and bring joy in your life.

And if that quote did tickle your fancy than even more reason to go watch the movie.  

Trust me, you will not regret it 

NOW GO ON!

And FIND YOUR CENTER!