The Night Circus

Today, after work, I walked the course for my next race, The Spooktacular Chase 5K. It definitely has rolling hills, but it was a breeze compared to the lengthy runs of the past! I think it will be a great run even if I do have to go to work immediately after it. I'm even thinking of having the kids and the Mr come to watch! (The kids have really been wanting to see me run).

Sorry I've been away for a little while. Life, as usual, has been really hectic lately. We seem to have sprung a leak in our water heater closet. We called out a plumber who immediately diagnosed it as a cracked water heater. We ended up having it replaced (700 dollars later), but we are still having water issues and cannot think of where they could be coming from. So, Shane is calling the plumbers out again on Monday to take another look at the issue.

Source

On the reading front, I have started to read, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.  Since it is a one-book read, I will tell a little about the plot (well, as far as I have read). It starts out with a very talented magician and a circus that is only open from dusk to dawn. The magician is actually not a trickster, but appears to be truly magical. One evening, a little girl is sent to him with a note attached to her. Apparently, it is his daughter and the mother has committed suicide. The little girl seems to be talented like her father, so he begins to train her.

In the meantime, he calls a friend and fellow magician and makes a bet that his daughter can beat whomever the other guy picks at random as a pupil. We get the impression that it will be a duel to the death. The other man ends up picking up a hopeful pupil at an orphanage and begins training him until he reaches adulthood.

Unbeknownst to anyone involved, the girl and boy meet each other and end up spending a lot of time together. I am pretty sure (because this is as far as I've gotten) that they are falling in love with each other and have no idea that one will have to kill the other because of a stupid wager between two grown men in an essential pissing contest.

I did end up baking Tres Leches cupcakes about a week ago. I did like the way they turned out, but in the future, I think I will actually inject the milk mixture into the cupcake to get a more moist cake. It was a very easy recipe and one that I will definitely repeat and perfect. The only problem with them is that tres leches is traditionally not very sweet. So, if you are looking for a regular-type cupcake, this is not the cupcake for you! Also, I made my first batch of homemade whipped cream to use on top as the "frosting". It turned out really well, I think!