The Cookies...

I use the same basic recipe for most of the cookies I make.  My Mom called it:

COWBOY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
1 3/4 c sugar
1 3/4 c brown sugar
2 c shortening
4 eggs
1 t vanilla
4 1/2 c flour
1 t baking powder
2 t salt
2 t baking soda
2 c quick oats
1 bag chocolate chips
1 bag butterscotch chips
-Mix it up!  Drop onto cookie sheets.  Bake at 350 for 7 to 10 minutes.  Makes about 100 cookies.

-When I make this version, I use a cup and a half of shortening, and about a half cup of vanilla or plain yogurt.  And I don't use the full two cups of quick oats, only about three handfuls.

Here are my variations:

PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
-use 1 c shortening and 1 c peanut butter
-use peanut butter chips instead of butterscotch
-sometimes I add Reese's Pieces as well

"HEALTHY" COOKIES
-use 1 c shortening and 4-6 ounces vanilla yogurt
-use wheat flour instead of white
-add about a half cup almond meal
-use chocolate and white chocolate chips
-add dried cherries and dried cranberries

APPLE COOKIES
-use 1 c shortening and 1/2 c applesauce and one small container (4 oz) plain Greek yogurt
-omit all chocolate chips, instead dice up about 4 apples and put in
-add 2 t cinnamon and 1 t cardamom to dry ingredients

The Enemy...

I have expressed before my life-long hatred of non-native invasive species.  (Here.)  When I was in college I learned in my wildlife ecology classes very clearly the devastating impact brown tree snakes have had on the ecology of Guam.  My classes also showed videos of the snakes climbing through windows into baby bedrooms, and hanging out of trees like spaghetti.  You know, normal invasive creature stuff.  I therefore vowed, when I married B, that although he was joining the Navy, and although there was a military presence on the island of Guam, I was not, under any circumstances, ever going to go there.  Hmmm...  How he got me to acquiesce is a long story, but it involved him telling me there were no longer any snakes here.

Sooo.  We went on a walk between the runway and the cliffs overlooking Tarague Beach.  The fence surrounding the airfield has snake traps every so often.  We checked them out.

They're quite interesting.  Each one has a fat, furry little mouse inside.  Some were white, some brown, some black and white spotted.  The mice live in a little cage within the cage, with food and a potato for water.  They looked pretty content.

 And what did we find inside one of the traps?

Ha ha!  One of the evil tree snakes, in the flesh!  I was so excited.  He was quite tiny, but still... creepy.  Can you see his yellow beady eyes in there?  And the mouse was just hanging out safe behind him, having a good time.  I loved it.  

 I read in the paper that the USDA captures 10,000 brown tree snakes a year on Guam, and 4,000 of those are right here on Andersen Air Force Base.  I may need to tone down the anti-snake rhetoric though...  Miss M (3) has been telling people in the grocery store that she's going to take a machete and chop some snakes' heads off.

New Friends...

One of the great things about being in the military is that there is always the opportunity of making great new friends, since new families are constantly moving in.  Of course, the bad thing about being in the military is that great friends are always moving away, too...  Anyway, we have been blessed with wonderful friends here in Guam.  Our new friends got here the first part of September.  We showed off the base beach to them.

 The big kids had so much fun jumping in the waves.

 Miss R loves the sand...

 And eating coral...

And walking, sort of...

Miss A and Miss K were mermaids.

 This is Miss H.

 Utter joy!

Fall Pinterest Attempts...

I saw this on Pinterest:

It's cute!  The site it links to is all in Italian or something?  But pretty self explanatory...  So I had my girls and their friend try it out.  Ours were not so... cute.  Not pinstrosity level by any means.  (Haven't heard of pinstrosity?  It's fantastic.  Here.  You're welcome!)

 Here is Miss A's, and Miss J's, and my little one in the middle.

And here is Miss M's.