The Year of Embracing Simplicity

What is your New Year's Resolution this year? Anonymous comments are now allowed, so all you lurkers can finally chime in. You can no longer pretend that you don't stop by because I just added a counter a couple of weeks ago and it is already at 245, and it will only counts each person once. I know because I tried to artificially inflate the count by hitting "refresh" over and over.


The book "This Year I Will...: How to Finally Change a Habit, Keep a Resolution, or Make a Dream Come True " suggested naming your year after your resolution to make it easier to change something in your life. Last year our resolution was to fully fund our Roth IRA's and we were wildly successful (which means we squeaked it out at the end of December.) It was wonderful to have a challenging goal that we actually reached, but it just doesn't have that special ring to say "I am funding my Roth IRA this year."

Initially, my resolution was going to be implementing the "One In, One Out" policy, which means that every time I buy something new, I have to get rid of something I already have. But I couldn't think of a way to name it, so I decided that the spirit of my resolution was to enjoy the simple things, and not look for fancy new things. Sipping chocolate milk and reading a book under a cozy blanket is going to be how I spend my free time this year - not shopping for another shirt. (The one in, one out policy will be part of it.) Hopefully we will end the year with less clutter and more peace.

Here is Katie enjoying the simple goodness of a glass of chocolate milk. It is in the not so simple glass that Aunt Louise gave me. Isn't it wonderful? She said I was the fanciest cook she knows, which I find very hard to believe. But they are beautiful and I am thrilled to have them, so I didn't put up too much of a fight. Katie kept saying how pretty they are. She was so happy to be able to drink her milk out of one. Thanks, Aunt Louise! She gave me them in the final days of 2008, so they don't count toward the "one in, one out" rule. That rule didn't start until today.

Chocolate Milk in 5 Minutes

1 pint heavy cream

4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat the cream on medium and then throw in the chocolate chips. Whisk until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Put it into a small empty ketchup bottle in the fridge. It will get really thick as it sits in the fridge. It lasts for about a week. Or more if you are adventurous.

When you are ready for your milk, add a few tablespoons of the syrup to a glass of skim milk and stir it up; there will be yummy pieces of chocolate in your milk. Sit back and smile as you enjoy the chocolaty goodness.