Almost every day, Michael says to me, “You need to update the blog or else people are going to start to think I’ve chopped you up into little pieces and put you in the freezer!” I made a grand “I will update the blog more in the new year” resolution…and then immediately broke it by avoiding the blog for weeks. Not for any particular reason, but I just couldn’t get into the writing mindset. But it’s almost February, so I wanted to squeeze in an entry so I didn’t miss an entire month!

Tomorrow we are hosting a Super Bowl party, for two reasons: Michael is a die-hard Steelers fan, and we are the owners of an awesome TV that Michael mentioned in his last two posts. So I spent the first 5 hours (literally!) of today surrounded by cookbooks and my laptop, trying to figure out what to make. I decided on:

Sweet stuff:
Vegan lemon-blueberry cupcakes
Vegan jelly donut cupcakes
Mocha bourbon balls (also vegan! I made these tonight and they are SO DELICIOUS)

Meat stuff:
Brown-sugar glazed kielbasa (I will use the Crock Pot that Michael got me for Christmas…for the first time)
Sausage balls

Other stuff:
Cheese bites (basically cheese in a croissant cup)
Spinach-parmesan dip
Chips n’ ranch dip

I love having parties–and just having people over in general–but Michael always gets the pre-party crankies, where he moans about how everything isn’t going to get done and the apartment is a mess and woe is he…but then, of course, it all works out and everything is fine and his worries are for naught. But his stress is definitely contagious, even though I try to inject some rational thought in there from time to time.  I know the party is going to be great, though, because I love our friends. And: go Steelers! (And don’t forget about the PUPPY BOWL on Animal Planet!!!)

On a completely unrelated note (because I’m writing this in a rush before getting back in the kitchen to whip up some spinach dip), last weekend I went camping for the first time! I was a little apprehensive, mostly because I don’t like to be uncomfortable and I have the worst morning bedhead that you’ve ever seen, but I really enjoyed myself. I don’t think I’ll ever be a camping enthusiast, but I will do it again. We went to Point Mugu, and one of my favorite parts (besides drinking Irish coffee around the campfire at night) was waking up super-early and going over to the beach with Michael to watch the waves.

Okay, first entry in 2009 is done! Shoddily, perhaps, but the ice has been broken and hopefully now it will be easier to keep up the habit. Happy belated new year!