Saturday Morning Bliss

Saturday morning was blissful for me.  The "boys" had gone out early so not only was it quiet, but my kitchen was filled with the sweet smells of Lilly of the Valley flowers that I had picked from my mother's yard the day before. 

Lillies of the Valley are one of my mom's favorite flowers.  She grows them in abundance every Spring - and every Spring she gives me some to transplant, but they never seem to take.  Yesterday I came home with yet another bucket full of roots that I'm going to try my hand at (again).

Maybe this time I'll get lucky.

I put this flower in the same category as Lilacs as the best scented flower ever.  My mom puts them on her nightstand, so she can get the scent while she sleeps.  I hear it promotes sweet dreams : )

Weather wise, Saturday was a beautiful day.  After a week of rain, the sun finally came out.  The air was warm, so I opened all the windows and doors and let dust OUT and the fresh air IN.

It's amazing how much dust can accumulate in a very short period of time.  With Big Band on the stereo, I dusted, vacuumed, shined, and sparkled.  It's not my favorite thing to do by any means, but after it's done I'm always happy.  I feel like I've done a good job when I have a clean house. I lit a cucumber-melon candle and took a rest. 

During the process  I took some of my favorite do-dads down off the shelves to clean them...

Isn't he cute?!  I just love this little guy.  I got him at a yard sale last year for .25 cents!!! 

This creamer is a cottage that I could see myself living in.  Yellow with green shutters, roses growing under the windows, and a big old tree in the yard.  Heaven. 

He's the .25 cent star of my shelf.  Isn't it the best when you Love something you didn't pay a ton of money for?

Anyway, I have to ask you a question.  Have you ever seen these?

These are white chocolate and milk chocolate chip swirls!!!!  I just discovered these last week.  Where have I been?   I went to the store to get white chocolate chips for my white chocolate chip cranberry cookies.  What I found were these delightful swirls.  I figured what's better than white chocolate and cranberries?  It has to be white chocolate & milk chocolate and cranberries, right?! 

They came out really good.  Mind you, you can use plain white chips if you want, but if you see these swirly chips I definitely recommend them.  Here's the recipe. 

2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 2/3 cup swirled chips (10 oz bag)
1 cup dried cranberries

Mix flour, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.

Beat butter, both sugars, and vanilla in a large bowl.  Add eggs one at a time and beat until well blended.  Gradually add flour mixture. 

Stir in 1 cup of chips and cranberries.

Drop by rounded tablespoon full on to ungreased cookie sheet. 

Top each cookie with remaining chips.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake 11 -13 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cookies cool on the cookie sheet for at least 2 minutes before removing them. 

Then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

I was pleasantly surprised how these cookies came out.  The world really does become a sweeter place every day.

As for me and my morning, all good things must come to an end.  The boys came home and the next phase of my day began. 

Big Band got replaced with The Wiggles and what I cleaned in dust was replaced with mud that got tracked in on four dirty sneakers.  Oh well, such is life.  And a sweet life it is. 

At least we have cookies!!!  Now all I need is a cup of tea. 

Have a great week to all....