Pack it, tape it, stack it

Today is supposed to be a very productive work day in my classroom. I have a mountain of flat boxes that need to be taped together - and an entire classroom to squeeze into them. So far I have 6 filled, only hundreds to go. Alas, I am so easily distracted.....here I am posting!?! I blame my short attention span on my vocation, when you work with 3-5 year olds you have to keep things fun and entertaining.....we move from one thing to the next at a moments notice. Easily understood in young children, not so lovable in an adult.

I met my friend Kristin at our downtown local coffee place this morning at 8:30. She shared pictures they took at the baseball game on a recent vacation. The prize photo is their family with Joba Chamberlain - pitcher for the New York Yankees (X Husker pitcher :-) !!!!). It's a sweet shot, they all have the biggest smiles on their faces. He asked if they had brought the entire town of Norfolk with them.....he knows this part of the country well. It was good to sit and relax and laugh. That's what my goal is for summer, to laugh a lot! Oh right, and get my room packed!

I found a recipe from a friend that did Relay for Life with me a couple of years ago. It's a fun sinful punch that you might like to pull out of your hat for special friends. Hope your day is great, looks like rain again here. I'll still squeeze in a few laughs to keep things interesting.

Chocolate Mocha Punch

7 cups water
1/4 cup instant coffee granules
2 cups powdered milk
1/2 cup sugar
dash of salt
1 quart chocolate ice cream
1 cup chilled whipping cream
ground nutmeg
1/2 can Hershey's chocolate syrup

Heat 1 cup of water to boil, dissolve coffee in hot water. Stir in rest of water, powdered milk, sugar, salt and chocolate syrup. Mix and chill 3-4 hours or overnight.

Beat whipping cream till soft peaks form and fold in 3-4 tablespoons sugar one at a time until dissolved.

To serve: Put ice cream in a punch bowl, be sure to break it up into smaller pieces not just a large block. Pour coffee mixture over and top with dollops of whipped cream. Sprinkle a small amount of nutmeg over whipped cream.

This makes 16 - 3/4 cup servings. Probably better make 2 batches!