Mila's Rose Photo Shoot, Volume 4

I'm about six weeks late getting to it, but when it comes to half birthday photos, close definitely counts. I mean, I certainly don't remember if I was on time with Mila's previous rose photo entries.

I mostly just remember how very difficult that middle one was to get. HOOBOY is 1 1/2 a rough age for cooperation.

3 1/2 isn't much better.

It *is* better. "Much" is the key word there. While 1 1/2 was pure hell, this year Mila mostly cooperated.

But only because I realized something after a few minutes of busting my butt trying to be funny and such so Mila would smile and look at me and all of that.

Sisters exist for a reason.

They exist because they're REALLY funny and can do wonders for getting a kid to play along for pictures.

So now I have no idea which of the dozen or so REALLY good photos will end up framed, which is exactly the kind of problem I like to have. Good job, Alexis.

Stuffed French Toast

I don't really know why it didn't occur to me to do this before, but STUFFED FRENCH TOAST, Y'ALL.

In theory, it is the most perfect breakfast food ever. French Toast is always a good idea and throwing cream cheese into the mix is a solid idea. But, even though Alexis and I are both all in on the components of Stuffed French Toast, neither of us have ever been happy with it when we order it out. It's always just a bit too much. Too sweet, too rich, and too much.

FIXED IT.

So, future Alexis. Here is the Stuffed French Toast that you loved as a kid. It's a little different than the stuff at IHOP or Eat 'n Park or anywhere else, but you can always add something to take it to that extreme.

Or leave it just like this. That works, too.

Stuffed French Toast
Texas Toast
Eggs
Milk
Almond extract
Cream cheese
Apricot jam
Fresh strawberries

Let's start with talking about quantities of stuff, shall we? I didn't list them because reasons. This is one of those things that you need to make for however many people you have so let's work it backwards. Each person gets:

- 2 pieces of Texas Toast
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon milk
- Dash almond extract
- Enough cream cheese to coat one piece of that fancy thick bread
- Enough apricot jam to coat one piece of that fancy thick bread
- Two chopped up strawberries

Like this:

So multiply and all of that and figure out your total quantities of all of the things. Got it? Good.

2. Do that spready thing with the cream cheese and jam. Sprinkle on the strawberries until you match the photo above. Then slap those suckers into sandwiches.

By the way, you're using Texas Toast because it's good and thick and balances the rich of the other things.

3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and almond extract. Then dip the giant sandwich thing in the egg batter and coat all sides.

4. Toss that egg coated majesty into a non-stick skillet. In a perfect world, it should have some melted butter in it before you do. The tricky part of this she-bang is that you have to cook the French Toast over a medium to low heat. Seriously. It's important. If the heat is too high, you'll burn the outside and have raw egg on the inside, so it's better to have the heat too low if you're going to miss the mark. At our house, the perfect temp is a notch below the halfway mark. When one side is done, flip the whole thing over and cook the other side.

5. Top with a little powdered sugar and fresh strawberries. It doesn't need syrup or anything crazy like that, but feel free to do as you please.

2017 In Review - Forks in the Road

There's this weird thing that happened in 2017 that I didn't expect as a parent - there were a few events that occurred where I *knew* that what was happening would alter Alexis' path in life. It wasn't that there were a bunch of bad things that happened, it was more that she experienced things that opened her eyes to opportunities.

There were a bunch of them, but two stand out.

The first was in January.

A long time ago, Alexis looked up the word "feminist" in the dictionary. I encouraged her to do so because she was hurt when someone she cared about threw the word around like an insult. I thought it was important that she see for herself what the word actually means. The end result was that the wound cut deeper, but the scar from the wound grew stronger.

She now proudly declares herself a feminist and will challenge anyone who thinks that's a bad thing.

A big part of that scar becoming thick and powerful was the Women's March. Being surrounded by thousands of people who knew that dictionary definition and believed in it was an experience Alexis won't ever forget.

I don't know what she'll do with it, but she definitely chose a path after that day.

The other event that changed the course of things was our quick trip to Las Vegas for a cheer competition.

While the competition was a good experience, that's not what presented Alexis with a new path. It was the travel. That was the trip that made Alexis realize that she wants to see All of the Places. She already knew she loved New York City, but now she wants to see every major city everywhere. There was a moment when she realized it's a big world out there and she wants to see it all for herself.

Earlier today, Alexis and Mila were sitting on the couch planning their trip to China. Alexis has decided to learn to speak Chinese (and is using YouTube videos to do it) to prepare. They've got a few decades until they can venture off on their own, but I have no doubt that they will.

Alexis is 20 steps past the fork in the road, well along her path.