Welcome Back, Peanut Butter Cookie!! (and Christmas knitting update)

I used to make batches and batches of peanut butter cookies for my Uncle Dave. But when Dave died in 1999, I couldn't make peanut butter cookies anymore. The smell of the peanut butter was just too much for me to handle and made me miss him too much. After years of abstaining from the peanut butter cookie baking, I made a batch this summer. I used the same recipe that I had used all those years ago but I didn't like them anymore. Absence in this case did not make the heart grow fonder. They were too crumbly and just not what I want in a peanut butter cookie. I had resigned myself to being peanut butter cookie-less for the foreseeable future.

However, after yesterday, I see peanut butter cookies in my future once again. I made the Peanut Butter Cut-Out Cookies from Hershey's. I didn't roll and cut them out because I have bad luck with that. Instead I just sliced and baked them. They are so good. Instead of using peanut butter, you use peanut butter chips. They taste like real peanut butter and they are soft and chewy. I made these for the Baking GALS box I am sending to our soldier in Iraq since her favorite cookies are peanut butter. Mom and Princess Ivi agreed that they were so good and I thought I would have to fight them off with a stick to be able to get enough cookies to ship. I also picked up two boxes of cocoa, some tea and some chocolates for the package and Mom is making me a batch of caramel corn to include so it should be great.

The new Knitty is up. I just took a look at it. There are some really pretty patterns in there. The Zora Cardigan is beautiful. I also like the Quadrat Pullover although I am not much into the belted look. The Pyroclastic Sock is awesome. Maybe I could beat second sock syndrome...or maybe not. I am adding them to my list of projects to knit. With these, my Ravelry queue is 30 projects long...hmmm.

As for Christmas knitting, I finished three surprise knitting projects for Princess Ivi this weekend. I can't post them here but I will post them after Christmas. I also cast on for a pair of Alice Wristwarmers for my niece. They are neon green and white striped. I made good progress with them and am extremely pleased.

I did some shopping on Saturday. My sister and brother-in-law are done (well, my sister will be done once I locate the gift I bought for her months and months ago). My nephew is almost done. I am picking up Princess Ivi's gifts tonight on the way home. As for my niece, nephews and brother, they are going to have to wait for the Christmas bonus.