Christmas Cookies!!

Ron's Mom Jane hosted a wonderful cookie party this past Sunday. There were a lot of people, and a TON of cookies!! 

The day after boards were finished, our friend Peggy took the day off work and came over for a "Cookies and Dawson's Creek Marathon" Day. It was fantastic! All we did all day was bake cookies and watch predictable, teen drama television, what better way to celebrate being done with vet school?!!?

Peggy made  Cake Balls. One of the easiest, most ingenious recipes I've ever seen.

Cake Balls

Ingredients:

1 Box of store-bought cake mix if your choice

1 tub of icing of your choice (Preferrably something that goes well with your choice of cake)

1 Package of Almond Bark (again, your choice on variety)

Instructions:

1. Bake the cake according to instructions on the box, in whatever pan is handy.

2. Let the cake cool for 30-45minutes

3. Smash the cake into crumbs in a big bowl, and mix with the entire tub of icing.

4. Roll the cake/icing mixture into 0.5-1" balls and place on a cookie sheet (it helps if you line the cookie sheet with wax/parchment paper.

5. Put cake balls in the freezer for 15-20 minutes

6. Melt the Almond Bark in a bowl while the cake balls are freezing

7. Roll the cake balls in the melted Almond bark and place on the cookie sheet again to harden.

Finished Product:

That's it! They're fantastic, take my word for it! They were voted "Best cookie" at our cookie party if that says anything.  The combo we liked the best was red velvet cake, with cream cheese icing, and white chocolate Almond Bark.

I made Peanut Butter Cup Cookies. Very easy recipe and they're very yummy.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2c Sugar

1/2c Firmly Packed Brown Sugar

1/2c Butter Softened

1/2c Creamy Peanut Butter

1 Egg

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 1/4c All-purpose Flour

3/4 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Salt

1- 13oz Package of Miniature Peanut Butter Cups, Unwrapped

Directions:

1. Heat Oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin pans with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

2.Combine Sugar, Brown Sugar, Butter, and Peanut Butter in a large bowl.  Beat at Medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy.  Add egg and vanilla; continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; add flour, baking soda, and salt.  Beat, scraping bowl often, until well mixed.

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place each ball into prepared mini muffin cup. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until lightly browned.

4. Remove from oven; press peanut butter cup into center of each cookie.  Cool 30 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely.

 

(Makes 4 dozen)

Finished product:

I also made some Eggnog Cheesecake Bars, and homemade Eggnog Ice Cream, but I will put those in another post. Enjoy!

It's all over but the cryin'....

Well, it's over!

I took my exam on Tuesday. Lots of people have been asking what the exam is like.  It's all computerized, so you have to sit in a room with a bunch of other people with cameras and mirrors and such all over you.  I practically got strip searched prior to going in to make sure I wasn't bringing cheat sheets or anything in with me, and they give you a dry erase board, marker, and eraser for notes.  The exam itself is 6 sections of 60 questions each, over everything from cows, to sheep to dogs/cats, birds, turtles, and even business questions.  The maximum amount of time allowed for the whole thing is 7.5 hours, it took me about 6.5.  That's a long time to be sitting at a computer using your brain!

Needless to say, I was completely fried when I finished, and I really have no clue how I did.  There are lots of questions that are "trial" questions, and they don't count, so it's hard to really try and figure out how you did. Once everyone is finished taking the exam (The testing window ends December 13), they will go through everything and decide who passed and who didn't, and we'll get something in the mail in Late January/early February. So until then, I'm just going to enjoy life! 

Speaking of which....I now have the daunting task of cleaning the apartment/unpacking. Since I moved in last week and had no time to do so, the apartment is just a huge mess right now, and I really have no idea where we're going to put everything, but we'll figure it out somehow I suppose!

I decided today that if I was going to attempt to clean anything, that I should probably try and remove the one thing that makes the MOST mess in the place. DOG HAIR!

So here is my attempt....

2 Hairy Dogs (well actually, it's really just Sam that's the big problem, but Ryno wanted to be in the picture too).

PLUS

 A wonderful Piece of equipment (Furminator)

EQUALS

A large amount of hair that's in my garbage, and not on my carpets! Holy Crap! 

(Yes, that can was empty before we started!). 

1 more day

Apparantly Sam and Ryno think that my studying is as boring as I do...

 

 

Almost There!!

Everyone keeps calling to ask me how much I'm enjoying being free!!!

Well unfortunately I'm not free until Tuesday (the 9th), when I take National Boards.

Since I came home on Wednesday night, I have pretty much been spending about 18 hours a day studying. It sucks but I think I'm ready, and I still have a day and a half!  Hopefully things will go well, otherwise I'll have to spend some time studying again in April! (when the test is offered again).  Anyway, I thought I would update everyone!

It's been wonderful being here with Ron, a bit surreal that I don't have to pack my car up anytime soon and go back to Columbia. =)

Back to studying, I'll update next week with pictures from my post-boards celebration!

I Made It!!!

I finished school on Tuesday this week, and drove to KC on Wednesday!  Our apartment is a mess now with all of my crap (see pictures below), but I'm here!!! It feels so great to finally be able to live together and attempt to be a normal couple.  

The apartment will just have to remain a mess for the next few days because I am spending 95% of my time studying for national boards which I take on Tuesday the 9th. Then I'm free to do anything I want for the rest of the month!!

The Mess I've created:

In the Kitchen....

 

And in the Hallway...

       

In celebration of me finishing I got some GORGEOUS flowers from my Mom and my Aunt Carmen (or Caaahmen as we call her).  I am taking a short study break to take some pictures to show you all.

 

On another note...for those of you in the Chicagoland area, we will be home for Christmas this year. We plan on leaving KC on Saturday the 20th, and we will be there for a week.  (We're driving with both the dogs...should be interesting!)  Hope to see you!