[If you haven’t already, enter my latest giveaway, it ends 11/20/11. It’s for Chinese Food. Yum.]

As I type this it is exactly 2 days 17 hours and 07 minutes and 56 seconds before Breaking Dawn Part 1 comes out.

THIS IS A HUGE DEAL.

I read all of the books in the span of 2 weeks. There are 4, and they are huge, and I have 4 kids. That’s a big deal.

I watched the first movie Twilight at home with my husband and I fell in love all over again, with him, cinema, and ummm. . .errrrrr. . . .Edward Cullen. Vampire Extraordinaire, for lack of a better term.

The second movie, New Moon, I watched with a group of my girlfriend’s friends at a midnight showing. That was a little weird. But the movie was ON POINT, so it was totally worth it.

As to not make the same mistake I made with the second movie, I flew my husband and myself to California, to watch the third installment, Eclipse, with my bestie. She’s the one who introduced me to this world, and she did not disappoint. We sat in line for 3 hours to get the best seats possible, we made our husbands come with us, and we watched a marathon of the first second and third movies. It was like 9 hours of pure nirvana. I get chills just thinking about it.

And now, the fourth movie is about to come out, Breaking Dawn Part One, and I have had my plans in place for approximately 1 year and 4 months, give or take a day. I’ll be watching the movie at midnight with my best friend in a totally posh theater, with reserved seating *squeal*! Stadium seating in leather recliner over sized chairs. There will be pillows and blankets provided and a locker for my purse. Popcorn, yes. Cooked in Truffle oil. Have mercy. Silly contests on Wolf howls and door prizes and so much fun that I just peed in my pants thinking about it.

I’m so excited, I don’t know what to do.
And all I ask is that the Woo family come with me on the grand adventure. That they come to the barbecue my bestie has planned. That the children bounce in the bounce house reserved just for them. That they eat, play, and make merry on this very joyous occasion. That Warwick talks and laughs and jokes with his old football buddy (my bestie’s husband). That is all I ask. That is all I ask.

But they say, it’s too much.
They say they have soccer banquets that weekend.
They say Southern Methodist University is playing football in Houston that day. And tailgating cannot be missed.
They say they have softball games, and tournaments, and skating parties with cake and ice cream, and THIS IS THE WORST WEEKEND EVER FOR ME TO PULL THEM AWAY FROM IT ALL.

“But I want you with me. It won’t be the same with out you there. I won’t enjoy the movie like I could. Please come. Please come.” I beg.

But still, they cry. They complain. They roll their eyes in total defiance, and call me selfish and mean.

“FINE!!!!!” my heart cries out. “I WILL GO BY MY DAMN SELF!!!! And you all can stay here and do all the stuff you always do. . . to make your lives happy. NEVER MIND all the sacrifices I make every day of my life to make you people happy. I just wanted 1 WEEKEND. But no. YOU. CAN’T. DO. IT. Fine. ”

And as I lay my sword down, and blood is gushing out of my neck, I’m ready to die a martyrs death. But in an instant, I remember the famous lines from the first movie, Twilight. . . . .

Edward: And so the lion fell in love with the lamb …
Bella: Stupid lamb.
Edward: Sick, masochistic lion.

And I start to weep. It will be no martyrs death for me today. So I pick up my sword, and I yell, “STOP ALL YOUR MOANING AND COMPLAINING! I’M not going to be dissuaded. Edward fought for the love of Bella, and I am going to fight to see this movie! Gosh durnit. And all 5 of you are going to be sitting in a house nearby playing and having a good time while I do it. That includes the 2 year old!!!! And I don’t want to hear any lip!

Call me selfish if you want. . . . But you better. . .call me A FICTIONAL VAMPIRE LOVER.
That is all.”

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

It had to be done. I’m not much of a Martyr.
It seems lovely in theory, but yeah. . . .I think I’m a little too selfish to go out like that.

It is going to be so sweet.
To my mind. To my thoughts. To my world.
Just like this Bread Pudding is to my lips. Melting away all my worries. Making me forget about any trials or tribulations I may have.

You just take your spoon, and break into the slightly crunchy, sweet exterior, to find underneath pillows of butterscotch custardy goodness, sweetened with caramel and cream flavors. You take a bight, and your world is forever changed.

And you remember what it is to feel good. And to be happy. And to live life to the fullest. And you promise yourself not to forget.

Whole Wheat Butterscotch Bread Pudding
This recipe is a combination of my Mama and Nigella Lawson. Who in some odd way remind me of one another. My mother used to make a creamy bread pudding with raisins hidden inside, and a rum sauce on top. I would eat the rum sauce straight out of the container. Shhhh. Don’t tell.

Oh. And you may notice that this recipe has no butter, nor brown sugar, which typically are key components in a butterscotch concoction. But trust me. You’ll never miss them.

Ingredients:

Stale Whole Wheat French Loaf (about 10 oz.), torn into small bite size pieces*
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup water
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk (I used 2%)
4 TB Brandy (I used Courvoisier, but I would have happily substituted rum or whiskey)
4 eggs, beaten (I’ve even made this with Egg Beaters. It still comes out very nice)

*This measurement is not exact. I apologize. But really it doesn’t matter. Just fill up your 2 quart baking dish with bread until you come to an inch from the top, and that will be perfect. Also, no whole wheat bread? Any of your favorites will do. Nigella makes a pudding with croissants.
Yum.

Directions:

1. Spray the bottom and sides of a 2 quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Place torn bread into your baking dish, you should have enough to fill the container up to an inch from the top rim.

3. In a saucepan, combine sugar and water. Whisk to dissolve. Turn the heat on to medium heat and continue to whisk the sugar mixture as it bubbles. You want a light brown/amber color that will take about 3 minutes to obtain once the boiling starts.

4. Turn the heat down, and slowly add the cream, milk, and brandy. The pot will start to splay and sputter, but don’t worry. Just continue to whisk, and any solids that form will melt over the low heat. Once the solids have melted, remove from the heat, and slowly add the beaten eggs so that they are not cooked. Pour the entire creamy mixture over the stale bread. Let sit for 5 minutes to absorb the liquid.

5. Bake for 30 minutes or until light brown on top and the center is set.