Yes, MY special day is finally here!!! Who knew???
It’s National S’mores Day… a special day to celebrate a very special treat.
What could be better that toasted marshmallows squished between graham crackers & chocolate?! Not much, right?!

Unfortunately, we who live in the City don’t always have access to a good campfire. And I’m not sure my neighbors would appreciate me lighting up one on the back deck of the condo building?! So while I still hope to “celebrate” with some toasted gooieness later today (even if it is in my fireplace?)… I did find a couple other “options” just in case. Can’t let the holiday go un-celebrated now can I?!

Today was the “Cookie Bake-Off” with my Summer Campers.
We had twelve homemade options to choose from thanks to some very talented baking kids!!! Yummy… and quite entertaining to see my campers after all that sugar!!! A sampling of all twelve cookies for everyone to taste-test and vote!!!

Here are the twelve different varieties…

Yes, that last one – the white Sugar Cookies were the WINNER!!!
And will win the coveted “Best Cookie” Trophy plate that I made.
Congratulations Max… great cookies!!!

Say it isn’t so… but then again, you know I would try almost anything!!!
Even these!!!

Thanks to Amber for sharing this… and for getting my hopes up?!!!
Even though I’m pretty sure this is a hoax, you never know with the crazy influx of crazy Oreo flavors. Find a new flavor and send it my way!!!

Today is July 11th… also known as 7/11… or even better…
HAPPY 7-ELEVEN DAY!!!

Which means it’s also FREE Slurpee Day! Don’t forget to stop by your local 7-11 store today before 7:00pm to get a free small Slurpee!!! Go ahead, get crazy… go for a Brain Freeze!!!

Okay, here it is…
FIND A STRANGE OREO FLAVOR… AND SEND IT TO ME!!!

It was such a great surprise to get the Fruit Punch Oreo’s in the mail. And yet now I hear there are other flavors I haven’t even seen here in Chicago. Flavors like Watermelon & Limeade!!! So if you have a new, strange, and possibly Limited Edition of Oreo’s in your area… I’d love to get some “imported” to Chicago!!! Bring ’em on!!!

Here are some of the ones we’ve already had…
*  Regular.
*  Double Stuff.
*  Mega Stuff.
*  Triple Double.
*  Mint.
*  Peanut Butter.
*  Birthday Cake… both chocolate & golden cookies.
*  Lemon.
*  Candy Corn.
*  Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.
*  Crispy Rice Treats.
*  Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
*  …and now Fruit Punch!!!

I’ve heard rumor of crazy flavors like…
*  Watermelon.
*  Limeade.
*  Neapolitan Ice Cream.
*  Banana Split.
*  Orange Creamsicles
*  Ice Cream.
*  Rainbow Sherbet.
*  Gingerbread.
*  Candy Cane.

So tonight in class we had the “official” taste testing of the Fruit Punch Oreo’s that I received in the mail. It was a great surprise when I got the package last night… but I just had to wait to share them with my class!!!

One of my students actually said that “they taste like a Girl Scout meeting.”
And odd mix of cookies and Kool-Aid… ahhh, childhood memories!!!

I thought they were surprisingly not bad. I actually enjoyed them.

Now remember, I have the palate of a four year-old… and Hawaiian Punch has always been a favorite. So not too much of a surprise that I liked them. Luckily we had a few other flavors in class so those not so “enamored” with Fruit Punch had other sweet options!

Thank you again Amy in Alabama!!!

So after three weeks of working in Dover & a fun holiday weekend, I finally made it back into the studio tonight to get back to work. I was expecting to find some dead plants, some pieces under plastic that had dried out, and quite possibly a reclaim bucket that had gone a little past being “reclaimable.”

Instead… I found a surprise care package!!!
I knew I hadn’t ordered anything recently, so I was more than intrigued.

I cautiously opened the box… and found one of my favorites… well, kinda…
You know I’m a huge fan of the Oreo and its many variations, but I must admit that I’m a little leary of the Fruit Punch variety. I haven’t seen them anywhere in Chicago yet, so someone out there sent me the “perfect” gift!!! And a sweet welcome back to my studio!!! I decided to wait until class tomorrow night to open them up so I can share them with my class. Expect another blog post tomorrow night with my “official” Oreo taste-test review!!!

Along with the Oreos, I also received a beautiful note from a Fire When Ready Pottery fan in Alabama!!!

And here’s the cute Alabama paperweight…
THANK YOU FOR MAKING MY DAY AMY!!!
You rock.. and I love your use of texture!!!

You know how you need snacks for a good road trip?!
I decided that my favorite jumbo marshmallows might be the perfect “road trip” snack. Bite sized. Sweet. Sugary. No utensils required. So I bought a bag of huge marshmallows on my way into the “glitter gig” so I would be able to zip out quickly at the end of work. Little did I know it was going to get so hot today?!

So I had been driving for about two hours when I decided it was time for a snack. So I reached over to open the bag. I reached in to pull out a jumbo marshmallow… and all I got was goo!

Who knew that marshmallows would melt in a hot car?!

So there I was with a finger full of gooey marshmallow. As I sat there wondering what to do… I had to have another finger full. And another… and another! But then it started to get messy. I needed a new plan. So here’s my thought… when the temperature goes back down, or if I turn the air conditioning on, will the marshmallows solidify again?!

Well, I couldn’t wait that long.

New plan… with a corner already ripped open in the bag, I figured I could squeeze the bag and have marshmallow goo squeezing out like a pastry bag. Well, not so smooth. Since the marshmallow is kind of sticky, it didn’t come out so easily. It kind of “bulged” out in a big white blob. So there I was trying to carefully bite off mouthfuls of marshmallow goo while not making too huge of a mess. Oh yeah, and driving at the same time!!!

Needless to say, the marshmallows tasted incredible!!!
Soft & gooey. Smooth & sweet. Yet sticky & messy everywhere.
So much so that I didn’t feel like I could set the bag down.

So I had to keep eating.
Before I knew it… the whole bag of goo was gone!!!

Sure, I could have pulled over to buy a new bag.
Sure, I could have pulled over and had a real meal instead of marshmallows.
Sure, I could have done a million other things.
But no, instead I squeezed all the goo into my mouth.

Yes, I have the palate of a four year old.

So I’m not quite sure how to feel about this on a couple levels.
A Facebook Fan sent me this message today…
“Saw this while at Wal-Mart today. Thought of you.
Not sure how I feel about them.”

I agree that Tropical Fruit flavored Oreo’s seems a little strange.
But it’s the “thought of you” that kind of freaks me out…but I’m oddly okay with it too?!!!
Made me smile. Go with your strengths, right???

So now I need to go “seek them out” here in Chicago.
And if I can’t find them, my Facebook Fan has offered to send me a bag!!! Yeah!!!

One of my students gave me a “gift” tonight. So thoughtful.
She has quickly become aware of my penchant for Oreo cookies – and figured I REALLY had to have this wonderful new cookie “appliance.” Unfortunately we didn’t have milk in class tonight… but…

And I’m really not sure how I feel about it looking more like an oversized dental flosser than a fun tool to help me eat even more Oreo cookies!!!