The Robert Scholes Family

Nanaimo Bars...

2011-01-04T07:20:00.000-08:00

NANAIMO SQUARES

Nanaimo Squares are a candy based on a favorite Canadian sweet, from beautiful Nanaimo, British Columbia on Vancouver Island in Canada., the Nanaimo Bar. A base of cocoa, graham crackers, coconut, and nuts is topped with vanilla buttercream, then the whole package is dipped in chocolate. Here is what the package looks like (if you want to do it the "quick" way!!)

I didn’t have the custard powder or vanilla pudding mix, so I substituted corn starch and add additional vanilla extract.

Here is what mine look like (maybe not as pretty, but definitely tasty!!)

Ingredients:

For Bottom Layer:
4 ounces (1/2 cup, or 1 stick) butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
5 tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup finely ground graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup finely chopped nuts
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
For Middle Layer:
4 ounces (1/2 cup, or 1 stick) butter
2 tbsp heavy cream
2 tbsp vanilla custard powder or vanilla pudding mix (instant or regular)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar
For Chocolate Coating:
1 lb chopped semi-sweet chocolate, or chips
2 tbsp shortening

Preparation:

1. To make the bottom layer: prepare an 8x8 pan by lining it with aluminum foil and set aside. Combine the graham crumbs, coconut, and chopped nuts in a large bowl.

2. Fill a saucepan with about an inch of water, and place it over medium heat. Fit a double boiler or close-fitting metal bowl on top, and place the butter, sugar, and cocoa in the double boiler. Stir occasionally until the butter is melted and the mixture is entirely smooth.

3. Add the beaten egg to the cocoa mixture and stir continuously until it cooks and thickens. This process should take 2-4 minutes. The mixture will get very thick and shiny. If the fat seems to separate out, continue stirring or whisking until it reincorporates.

4. Once cooked, scrape the cocoa mixture into the bowl with the graham crumbs and stir to combine. Once there are no dry patches in the ingredients, scrape the candy into the prepared pan and use your hands to press it into an even layer. Set it aside while you prepare the next layer.

5. To make the middle layer: Place the softened butter in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat it until the butter is creamy. (Alternately, you can use a hand mixer and a large bowl.)

6. Add the powdered sugar, custard powder or pudding, cream, and vanilla extract, and beat on low until combined. Scrape down the bowl, and then turn the mixer to medium, beating for about a minute until the buttercream has lightened in color and texture.

7. Spoon the buttercream out onto the crust and smooth it into an even layer. Refrigerate the candy until the buttercream layer is very firm and set, about 2-3 hours.

8. Once you are ready to dip your squares, place the chocolate and shortening in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted, stirring after every 30 seconds to prevent overheating.

9. Using a fork or dipping tools, dip each square in the chocolate until it is submerged. Bring it up out of the chocolate and allow excess chocolate to drip back in the bowl. Scrape the bottom of the fork against the lip of the bowl to remove excess chocolate, and place the dipped square on a foil-covered baking sheet. Repeat with remaining squares. If desired, you can sprinkle the tops with toasted nuts or coconut while the chocolate is wet, or drizzle them with white chocolate for decoration.

10. Nanaimo Squares will keep for a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

2008-12-19T12:31:00.000-08:00

It has been a month since the last posting, and one thing that has not changed is the weather. We have alot more snow, and it is much colder. It is -5 out, and gets to -30 to -40 with the wind chill at night. It chills you to the bone to be out in it. Right now it is snowing like mad, the wind is blowing. There is a severe weather warning, it is advising that we stay at home from now (Friday afternoon) through Sunday morning because of the wind and snow that is headed our way.

Robert starts his new shift at work Sunday, 6:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. That is early! The kids have school Monday and Tuesday, and then they are off for the rest of the week and the next week for Christmas break. I had a Dr.'s appointment yesterday in Bismarck to have a stent taken out and have a ct scan taken. I have a stone in my kidney, we will leave it there until it decides to move or causes a problem. Hopefully it will just stay where it is or disappear!

We hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a very peaceful and blessed New Year!

Winter is here...

2008-11-18T06:36:00.001-08:00

It is the week before Thanksgiving, and it is really, really cold. I can't remember it being this cold on any Thanksgiving before since we moved here. My parents will be here on Saturday, and they are in for the shock of their lives! I told them to bring gloves, I should have told them to bring snowsuits! I imagine they will spend the bulk of their time in front of the heaters wrapped up in blankets! I wish we would get some nice, soft snow. What we have right now is melted, then frozen snow, so everything is jagged, slick ice. It is miserable.

The kids are ready for Christmas break, already. It seems like the teachers at school are, also! Everybody is ancy. I think it is the weather...we can blame everything on the weather!

I am still dealing with my big friend, Mr. Stone, Kidney Stone. I have to drive to Bismarck tomorrow for a CT Scan to see where it is, so the surgeon can prepare for surgery to take that bugger out. I will be so glad to be rid of it! Robert and the kids have been so patient with me - I have been such a whiner!

We hope you are all doing well, hopefully enjoying much nicer weather than we are!

Brrr...

2008-11-15T16:59:00.000-08:00

It is half-way through November, and it is cold here in North Dakota! We have a couple of inches of snow on the ground and the forecast is calling for more this week. Grandma and Grandpa Cutler will be here in a week - they are coming from Arizona for a visit for Thanksgiving. They are not going to be prepared for this chilly weather! We are all ready for a little break from school and work. Robert is back with his nose at the grind stone at the station. The kids are back into the school-routine. I have been trying to get myself into the swing of things at work, I've been having some troubles with the remaining kidney stones, so we will have to see if that works itself out this week or not.

More to come later...

...Sunday...

2008-11-07T16:44:00.000-08:00

Our last day on vacation, and we spent it wandering up and down the Las Vegas strip! We had a great time in the M & M store, where there are M & M's in every color of the rainbow. We also tried Coca Cola products from 16 different countries in the world (some were nasty!). Robert, Cheyenne and I went to a show that evening - a magician named Steve Wyrick. They thought it was great, I am not so crazy about magic. It was a fun evening, though.

...Saturday...

2008-11-07T16:34:00.000-08:00

Everyone headed back to their corners of the world today. Mike and JayLyn (Xander, too!) left very early - they were flying to Spokane, Washington. They live in Postfalls, Idaho. Bill, Linda, and kids were next. They had a little problem with traffic, and end up missing their flight. After a jaunt to another airport, and a long wait, they finally made it home to Boise, Idaho. Grandma, Grandpa, Alan, Ryan, and all of us drove back to Las Vegas. We were going to stay there for two nights with Dad's Aunt LaRue and Uncle Larelle. We arrived in the late afternoon. The Suttons were generous enough to let us stay in their R.V. Michael called it their "van" (see the trend - lots of "vans" on this trip!). When it got dark, Robert and I took Michael and Cheyenne downtown to Freemont Street where all the old casinos are. They have built a canopy covering the street and they show a laser show every hour. It wasn't quite as spectacular as we thought it was going to be, but we had alot of fun watching a group of strange people we found! Afterwards, we headed home for bed.

...Friday...

2008-11-07T13:05:00.000-08:00

Our last day all together in California. Uncle Mike, Uncle Alan and Uncle Ryan went to Magic Mountain. For some reason, they HAD to get more roller-coaster riding done! They had a really good time, it sounded like. Everyone else slept in. We went down to the beach just down from out hotel. It was a nice beach, with black sand. There were lots of surfers to watch. Grandma and the kids searched for shells, which they found lots of. They even found a bunch of sand dollars. Grandpa got to read. Everyone got a little wet. Uncle Bill found a washed-up surfboard! We basically just wanted to spend our last day all together. That evening, the boys hung out around the hotel, some watched football, others napped. The girls (and Shane, not a girl!) went to see High School Musical 3 on its opening day. Samantha and Cheyenne loved it. Mom was a little less enthused, but glad that the girls were so happy! We headed back to the hotel, where Uncle Tim was there waiting to say goodbye to us. I was especially sad to do this - I miss him alot. He kept me company when he lived in North Dakota - he would take me shopping or in to Minot, or take me to see movies that Robert wouldn't go see or to restaurants that Robert didn't want to go to. Anyhow, after a little teary farewell, we all said "goodbye" to Uncle Tim. We also had to say "goodbye" to Uncle Mike, Aunt JayLyn and Xander. They had to leave really early the next morning. It was sad to see them go. We had so much fun with baby Xander - he was so cute - and the happiest little baby ever!

...Thursday...

2008-11-07T13:00:00.001-08:00

Cheyenne went to Universal Studios today with Uncle Alan, Uncle Mike, Aunt JayLyn and Xander. They met her cousin Jon there. He works there. It was fun to see him! From what she says, she had a blast. There are a few rides, lots of shows/sets to look at. She took a lot of pictures. They got to eat dinner at Bubba Gumps, which made Mom totally jealous! Mom, Dad and Michael stayed in bed until 11:00 - then we found a laundromat and did laundry. Some of the other family members went back for more Disneyland fun - at the end of the day, Mom, Dad, Michael, Grandpa, Uncle Ryan and Tim went to dinner at Joe's Crab Shack. We ordered chicken strips for Michael, just assuming he would have no part in eating crab legs. Wrong! He ate as much or more of our crab legs and shrimp than Mom did! So, next time we will know!

...Wednesday...

2008-11-07T12:45:00.000-08:00

Today we spent the day at Knott's Berry Farm. Or, "Not Very Far" as Michael refers to it as. Either way, what a fun day we had! Here we discovered Michael has a love for very fast, adult-sized rollercoasters! There was a new one there that once you are buckled in, the car you sit in rotates in complete circles while it races along a track, zipping up and down, around and around. I wouldn't even ride it, while he rode it with anyone he could get to join him! He rode it for the first time with Aunt Linda. I fully expected him to come off sobbing in fright. No, he didn't want to get off! Cheyenne is a little daredevil also - she will ride anything! She and Linda rode the Supreme Scream - which takes you to the top of a huge tower, then drops you in a free fall! I just sat in my wheelchair and shook my head. Even Robert won't ride that anymore! If is twists alot or suddenly drops, Robert shies away from it. Something about "oh, my stomach..."!

...Tuesday...

2008-11-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

Disneyland California Adventure - Today was a slower paced day. This park was only open from 10:00 a.m until 5:00, so we knew we wouldn't be as exhausted as we were the day before. There were lots of shows to see, and not as many rides. There was one show, "It's A Bug's Life" that was shown in 4-D (which means you wore 3-D glasses, and there were also special effects, like water splashed at you!). Michael hated it, there were lots of scary spiders and stuff! He and our cousin Alyssa were screaming bloody murder by the time it was done! But, after that we went to see another show, "Mickey Mouse Club House", and that was AWESOME! We saw some of Handy Manny, Winnie the Pooh and Little Einsteins! This sure was a fun day. I think we even swam some that night. We still didn't go to bed very early that night. But, isn't that what vacations are for??

...Monday...

2008-11-07T12:27:00.001-08:00

Disneyland - what more do we need to say? We got ready early and headed north to Anaheim. Michael was more excited than everyone else combined. He could hardly contain himself. We stood in line, waited, and waited, finally getting into the park. Oh, I guess I should insert a little something in here in case you see me in a wheelchair in a picture. Two weeks before our trip, I had a kidney stone attack. Not one stone, not two stones, but 17 of them. I was put in the hospital for a few days, underwent a couple of surgeries, had them sonically blasted, yada, yada, stents put in my kidneys, blah, blah - I went to California pretty banged up and bruised, and under Doctor's orders to not ride any rides. I thought I would be able to march around the whole time, and keep up with everyone, no problem. After half a day of marching around, my ankles had swollen up like an elephant's and I could hardly stand up straight I had such pains in my abdomen. So, I was confined to a wheel chair for that day and most of the week. I must say, I made for a good place to hang purses while the kids rode rides! We did get to cut to the front of some of the rides, also!

Anyhow, the first day at the Happiest Place on Earth, was exactly that. We went back to the hotel with the Sleepiest Children on Earth, and definitely the most Content Children on Earth. They had a blast. Michael was amazing, he soaked in every bit of it, loving everything (except the Haunted Mansion - he does NOT like spooky stuff!) Cheyenne LOVES everything - the faster, the spookier, the more thrilling, the better!

...Sunday...

2008-11-07T12:16:00.000-08:00

By now, everyone else had arrived. We decided before the busy week started, we would take a day to relax and visit as a family. We all loaded up into "Our Moving Vans" and headed to Coronado to the Silver Strand Beach. It was a long drive, but worth it. The beach was beautiful, and we were the only people there. It was great! Everyone was there - Grandpa, Grandma, our family, Uncle Alan, Uncle Ryan, Uncle Bill, Aunt Linda, Samantha, Shane, Alyssa, Uncle Mike, Aunt JayLyn and Xander. We missed Stephanie like crazy. We always do. We know where she is, though, and we feel her with us in spirit!

Family Reunion, continued...

2008-11-07T12:03:00.000-08:00

Our first day, Saturday, was beautiful and sunny. I was especially excited, because one of my best friends, Tim, had a special day planned for me. Now, some of you may find this strange, but I met Tim through my husband. They are great friends, and I kind of stole him from Robert! Anyhow, I really miss doing "city things", so Tim took me for brunch at the Hotel del Coronado, (which was amazing!) then to see a play at Balboa Park. Loved it!! Thank you so much - I had the most lovely time! Tim knows how much our friendship means to me and our family. We really appreciate all he does for us!

While I was relaxing and enjoying myself, Robert, Cheyenne, Michael, Uncle Alan and Grandma went to Sea World. Michael was so excited, he talked non-stop for weeks before about seeing sea turtles. He, for some reason, thought he was going to ride one! Cheyenne has posted some great pictures of their adventures there - they say the had a blast. The kids especially had fun - I don't think there was enough time in the day to see everything there was to see!

Our friends Jay and Debbie Montez live in Lakeside. Debbie cooked a Mexican Feast for us that night. Oh my, she can cook like a gourmet chef! First of all, it was so much fun just to be with their family and visit - we would have loved just to do that! But then to get to eat her cooking - that is a treat in itself! Yum!! Thank you guys! We always have so much fun when we get to see the Montez's!!

2008 Scholes Family Reunion

2008-11-07T11:56:00.000-08:00

October 2008 - Grandma and Grandpa Scholes took the ENTIRE family to California for a week for our family reunion. We packed up and headed to Bismarck on a Thursday afternoon. We spent the night there, took the shuttle early Friday morning to the airport. We flew into Las Vegas (the flights out of Minot are ridiculously expensive!). We had rented a car there, but the company was out of regular cars, so we got an SUV (which Michael promptly deemed "Our Moving Van"). We piled into Our Moving Van, met up with Rose and Von and headed West towards sunny California. We pulled into Oceanside in the early evening. The hotel where we would be staying the week was located there, in a central location, which was perfect. After we made ourselves at home, we got ready for what would be the funnest week of the year!

California Trip Day #1

2008-11-06T12:31:00.000-08:00

On Saturday Cheyenne, Michael, Robert, Uncle Alan, Uncle Ryan, and Grandma went to Sea World. Some of Cheyenne's favorites there were the water raft ride, the new ride Journey to Atlantis, and the Seymore & Clyde show. Some of Michael's were the sharks, penguins, and the Seymore & Clyde show. Cheyenne, Michael, and Robert at the manatee exhibit

One of Cheyenne's favorite rides

Uncle Alan, Grandma, Cheyenne, Michael, Ryan and Robert going to Sesame Street 4-D!

Shamu during the Shamu Show

"Tiny" the walrus!!

Cheyenne, Michael, and Uncle Alan at the starfish exhibit

Dolly the Dolphin jumping over a rope

Michael wasn't too excited to get wet at the Shamu show!

2008-10-31T09:57:00.000-07:00

Michael is the newest addition to our family, though after more than two year, it hardly seems like he is a "new addition." Michael came to us when he was two as a foster child. We didn't know how long he would be with us, nor did we know much about him. He was frightened - yet surprisingly outgoing. Within weeks he was a rambunctious toddler. I was more unprepared for a two year old boy as a mother could be. We are easing into place gradually, and things are starting to get a little easier. Now, we are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. By the end of this year, we hope to have finalized our adoption of Michael. He has been a joyous addition to our family, and we would not have things gone any other way.

About Us

2008-10-30T10:16:00.000-07:00

Our family moved to Bottineau, North Dakota nearly 5 years ago, from sunny San Diego. Robert works for the Federal Government, and we (he!) thought the move would be a nice change of pace to the busy life style we led there. California was getting to be more expense than we could handle, and a change of scenery seemed to be just what we needed. So, we packed up and headed north. And headed north is indeed what we did...it seemed to be the north pole that first winter! We arrived a few days after Christmas, to what the locals said was the coldest winter they had ever seen. There haven't been temperatures that low since, thank goodness, though they say we may see them this winter!