Celebrations, Scones, and Snakes...and All Before NOON!

Today my Brooke is 14 years old! I cannot believe my little girl can be that old! Can I turn back the clock 10 years, please? Where did the time go?

First thing this morning, I surprised her with a tea party. Her best friend spent the night last night and we called Nana to come join us this morning.



Teeny gave her a great necklace - a swirly blue guitar pick that said "pick Jesus" on the front with a scripture verse from Romans on the back. And lots of yummy smelling tarts from Yankee Candle for Brooke's electric tart burner.

We had "blooming tea." My sister-in-law bought me a box of them for my birthday and I've been saving them for a special occasion. This morning, I discovered a special occasion. I let Brooke's friend pick which one and she picked "Heart of Love." It was a yummy rose jasmine tea.

I made Mango Scones. We all adore scones and Brooke adores mango. What a great combination!

Mango Scones

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

5 tbsp cold butter, cut into cubes

1 cup whipping cream (you see, this is a low calorie scone - hahahahaha)

1/2 cup peeled, chopped mango

Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly spray scone pan/baking sheet with non-stick spray. Skip this step if you use a well loved Pampered Chef pizza stone.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter with pastry blender or fork until crumbly. Stir in whipping cream. Add mango.

On lightly floured surface, knead dough 5 or 6 times. Roll dough into 1/2-inch thickness. Cut into triangles. Place dough triangles on prepared pan. Brush tops with either a little cream or an egg wash.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with Devonshire Cream and lemon, orange, or lime curd. YUM!

Then when I was bringing Cosette out to potty, she stopped to sniff something just off the concrete right at the back of the house. All of a sudden, she jumped back and I saw a snake strike at her. Thankfully, it missed and I immediately called her to me and put her inside. I called the girls to bring me three essential items - my keys, my cell phone, and my camera.

This is the snake. It is a southern copperhead. That is a venomous pit viper, for all you uninitiated. If they feel the least bit intimidated, they strike rather than retreat. It kept striking the whole time I was snapping pictures, calling my policeman neighbor, and watching the snake with hoe in hand, afraid to hit it for fear my blow wouldn't kill, but only make it turn on me. And his reach was about as long as mine. The policeman neighbor came with a very sharp shovel and the copperhead was separated from the copperbody. :::snort:::

Whew! Not quite noon and I was ready for a nap! Later in the day, we spent quite a while at the barn. Brooke and Morgan rode. Then it was homemade pizza and Pioneer Woman's Best Chocolate Sheet Cake. Ever.

Now I'm off to the hospital to pick up Steve, who had to unfortunately work a 16-hour shift today.

Happy Birthday, Brookie Girl!