Words and Valentines

We all have our own little idiosyncrasies.  They say this is what makes us an "individual"...or in layman's terms, makes us a little freaky.

Most of us are quiet oddballs, while others are very public...case in point:  Tuesday nights on Fox.  For those not "in the know", that's American Idol folks.

Seriously, people...wave those freak flags high!

I know it makes for interesting TV and all, but sometimes those auditions are bah-RU-tal!!

Maybe that's why I watch..to feel normal ;)

While (in my opinion) I am not a full-fledged crazy, I do have some things that make me a little strange.

I will share one of these.

Certain words in our English language I cannot handle.

 I might go as far to say that they should be banned.

Now I am not getting all politically correct or topical...wrong blog.

I am staying strictly superficial here...buckle up.

We'll start with a word I find ridiculous ~ "whimsical".  I HATE it.  It has to be one of the most annoying adjectives out there.  I am not a fan of the word or, really,  anything that one would describe by using that word.  I have found that I am unable to watch certain shows on DIY, or HGTV because of their abundant use of the "W" word.  Say it out loud now..see?  It's annoying.

Moving on.

"Scrumptious".  This word makes my skin feel icky.  I will never say it.  Even thinking about it is making me want to take a shower.

Next up...

"Delectable". Yes, another food adjective.  You are only allowed to say this if you are from England and you are wearing a bow tie.  Then and only then, is it appropriate.

Now, while not being a word, I am going to throw this one in...the phrase, "if you please".  I am not Siamese and I do NOT please. Thanks.

And the mother of all horrible words..."moist" .  You don't know how much that pained me to type.  It is the word equivalent to spit in the corners of someone's mouth.  Or smacking.  It's really the worst.

I couldn't possibly be alone on this.

My family is aware of these words and quite regularly try to slip them into forms of conversation, whether they apply, or not.

Example: 

Me:  "How was school today?"

Son #2:  "I had quite a whimsical" day.

Mean.  Just mean.

Now I will share a word that I personally love, but is my best friend's nemesis.

"Dookie"

Isn't that hilarious?  I love that word and it is her kryptonite.

dookie

dookie 

dookie

:)

So, if hating these words makes me weird, I will accept it, because it is the time of year that we celebrate the ones we love, word issues and all.

Valentines Day.

Some love and it and some hate it, but either way, if you're a mom your kiddo is having a Valentine's party at school you're gonna need to send them in with something sweet.

I saw this cute idea over at Sprinkle Bakes (who got it from giver's log) before Christmas and had planned on making them then, but life happens and I saved them for V-day.

Hot chocolate on a stick...

Adorable, right?

I will tell you, though, Sprinkle makes them look easy...that wasn't my experience.

But I think it was worth it in the end.

I have never worked with chocolate molds before, and actually don't own any, so I improvised.

Here's what I did:

Hot Chocolate on a Stick
from the giver's log

Makes approx 32

You will need:

2 lb. melting chocolate (don't use candy melts) you want to go with a real chocolate with a high content of cocoa butter (it helps it melt smooth)

2 cups sifted powdered sugar

1 cup sifted unsweetened cocoa powder

Ice cube trays - or some sort of mold for the chocolate (I used a mini-muffin pan)

Large ziplock 

Popsicle sticks or spoons

Now, I actually used fondue chocolate because you can find it in a big bag at WalMart, it melts well and is real chocolate.  Perfect!

Melt your chocolate over a double boiler careful not to get any water in the chocolate.

When chocolate is 2/3 melted remove from boiler and stir until all  is melted.

Add the sifted cocoa and sugar.

Stir together until smooth.

Dump the mix into your large ziplock and sip of the end when you're ready to fill your mold.

Fill molds.

Insert spoon or wooden stick.  It should stand up in the chocolate.

Let cool completely, either at room temp or in the freezer.

To remove, since I used the muffin pan, they didn't release out very well, so I put some warm water in a baking sheet and set the muffin pan in for a few seconds to heat up the chocolate, so it would slip out.

I decided to add some Valentines sprinkles, which is optional, but also hides any imperfections on the chocolate...of which I had many :)

 

I melted about a cup of chocolate and dipped the bottom in the chocolate and then in the sprinkles.

Let them cool and package.

I attached a little note

Follow the instructions and you have yummy hot chocolate

Side note--I tried to use shot glasses for the extra chocolate, but they didn't seem to release out, SOOO I had to eat them :( 

...OR :)

 

So I am dying to know, am I alone here in the word war? 

Have a great weekend!