Cranberry Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies A modified version of the Quaker Oats VORC (look under the lid). As with all cookie recipes, freezing your chocolate chips and cranberries will make a huge difference in the finished cookie. The chips will hold together under heat and cranberries won't puree in the mixer. Let these cookies cool completely! Ingredients: 2 sticks unsalted butter 1 cup packed dark brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 2 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 3 cups Quaker Oats - regular, not the instant or overnight 1 tsp baking soda 1 cup chocolate chips - not minis 2 cups cranberries Process: Cream both sugars and the butter until soft and fluffy Add the eggs and vanilla and mix Mix the flour, baking soda, cranberries, and chocolate chips in a large bowl and then add to the mixer and combine at low speed for a minute at most Add the oatmeal and combine at low speed Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper Roll the dough into 1" to 1-1/2" balls and place on the baking sheets Flatten them if you want crispy cookies, otherwise leave them as balls to get chewy centers Bake 13-15 minutes or until the edges start to get brown Cool completely on racks. Yields around 3 dozen cookies

I just installed KM antique oatmeal w/ ebony glaze. I LOVE them!! I was reluctant about my decision, but I am very happy with my choice. There are portions of the cabinets where the ebony glaze is more prevalent, but that is what I like about them. It gives them a more Old World feel. I will have to say that are more whitewashed looking than I expected. They look much darker in the KM idea book. You will have to be careful when picking paint colors and countertops. I went with Silestone-black canyon for the cabinets. Granite didn't work for me. The island will be antique onyx cabinets with a butcherblock counter. I really don't have much to show yet as just the cabinets are in, no counters, molding or appliances. I bought a majority of my cabinets at the KM outlet in Lordstown, OH for a steal. I'm not sure I would have paid the extra $$. Hope this helps.

Huango Ideally you want the stop sign a block before your house. The way it works though, they hit the breaks just in the middle of my house (100 feet from corner) and I never hear it. Neither does my neighbor on the corner. Plus before this traffic was really wizzing by. What happened is my street is an offshoot of a really busy street and a cut through for the 100 houses who live on the surrounding blocks. So people were wizzing because we were the quiet part of a fork, not realizing that this is a quieter street. Now I think of the stop sign as a way for them to stop and think and when they start again it is usually slower. You can couple it with some children playing signs For us it would be the same school district (they actually go to religious school which will stay the same) either way and in a sense, if there is a pecking order, they will be further up because they live in the expensive neighborhood. However I may not be happy because most of my life I have been the one with more in the less expensive suburb. I think it would be weird for me to suddenly be the poor one. I did learn about a study in sociology class in college, I believe the study was done in the 1970s. People who made 40k and lived in a neighborhood where most made 20 or 30k I forget felt themselves richer (not necessarily happier) than people who made 40k and lived in a neighborhood where everyone made 60. They felt poor We will still provide music lessons, karate and ipods, all the trappings of suburban youth. I will often try to say to our kids that things are too expensive, whether they are or not. I think they really have no idea where we are financially. It is interesting because a friend is having some money troubles and in the same breath as she spent 2 hours on the phone to save on the ride to the airport (125), she got her 10 year old ds a Chocolate cell phone for his birthday (has an MP3 player and she spent 100 on it). We had a long discussion both about purchases (he actually did need a cell phone because she is sometimes stuck in traffic and he has to let himself in) and also although this would thrill him as the coolest cell phone in his class (at least 5 out of 17 kids have them), we did discuss that he may attach to much import to this thing. That it would have been ok to get this for Ben Smith in his class whose family owns a chain of stores because it would be just another thing. For her son we decided it would set him up to expect more and more which she and her DH could not provide right now. She ended up returning it for the RAZR which is less expensive and he was thrilled with that (so maybe hte message got lost anyway). However this digresses from the topic. I guess my point is that the top of the less expensive market is not that far from the bottom of the more expensive and it seems like you get so much more (less than .3 v more than .5 usually) "A house in a good location will nearly always hold its value. The one with an unchangeable negative to its location will always be hard to unload" Well said and I guess that is the issue. Since DH does not work in something requiring relocation I guess I should worry less about that. Still you never know what market you will be selling into. I do sort of regret not selling my house 3 years ago when everything was selling

I didn't know which one you wanted so I scanned them all: REMARKABLE FUDGE Butter sides of heavy 3-quart saucepan. Add 4 cups granulated sugar, one 14-1/2-ounce can (1-2/3 cups), evaporated milk, and 1 cup butter. Cook over medium heat to soft ball stage (236ú); stirring frequently. Remove from heat; add one 12-ounce package (2 cups) semisweet chocolate pieces, 1 pint marshmallow creme, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 cup broken walnuts. Beat till chocolate melts, Pour into buttered 13x9x2-inch pan. Score while warm, cut when cool and firm. BLUE RIBBON FUDGE Butter sides of heavy 2-quart saucepan. In it combine 2 cups granulated sugar, one 6-ounce can evaporated milk, two l-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate, dash salt, and 1 teaspoon light corn syrup. Cook and stir over medium heat till chocolate melts and sugar dissolves. Cook to soft ball stage (236ú), Immediately remove from heat, Add 2 tablespoons butter without stirring. Cool to lukewarm (110ú). Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and beat vigorously till fudge stiffens and loses its gloss. Quickly stir in 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, Push from pan, (don't scrape sides) into buttered shallow pan. Score while warm; cut when firm. OPERA FUDGE Butter sides of a heavy 2-quart saucepan. In it combine 2 cups granulated sugar, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup light cream, 1 tablespoon light corn syrup, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, till sugar dissolves and mixture boils, Cook to soft ball stage (238ú). Immediately remove from heat; cool to lukewarm ,(110ú) without stirring. Add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla, Beat vigorously till fudge stiffens and loses its gloss. Quickly stir in 1/4 cup chopped candied cherries, Spread in buttered 9x5x3-inch pan. Score while warm; cut when firm.