Daring Bakers: I'm crying inside, and out!

After 12 months and a huge variety of recipes, it finally happened. I am missing a challenge. Not just "a" challenge, but Mary and Sara's Ultimate Challenge, Julia Child's French Bread!

And am I happy about it?

NO I AM NOT!!!

You see, when the ladies announced this challenge, I was a bit intimidated but excited. Who wouldn't be intimidated by 18 pages for a recipe? The first recipe since I started not to make it on to my cupboards. Not because I didn't want to make it, but because I don't have enough cupboard space to hold 18 pages! Instead I carried the recipe back and forth to work with me, reading and rereading it, until I felt comfortable enough to dive in. I even held off on the one day I had free to make the recipe so I could join in with Mary and the other Daring Baker's to make this on line together!

Which was one of my mistakes.

My other mistake was getting out of bed one Friday morning, and walking, in a snow storm, through the park on my way to work. Then I bent over at some point in the morning to pick up a small toy car.

Did you hear the whimper from me as I pulled that muscle? Did you hear me wincing as I spent the next week on prescription muscle relaxants and was under doctor's orders not to do anything to aggravate my back? Did you hear me cry when he said kneading bread was probably not a good idea? How about when Mary confirmed this doom?

I still joined in on the IM chat this last weekend, to hear how the others were fairing with their own breads. But still no bread for me.

Fear not, however, as I will make this bread. But not just yet, and not until I can go a few consecutive days without some kind of back pain. As yesterday was my first day back at swimming since I pulled the muscle, I can tell you that I still have some "resting" to do before I can pull out the yeast and bake those loaves.

And now, I'm off to work, with plans to spend my afternoon reading about the hundreds of other Daring Baker's who were able to make their loaves. No wine for me, but I do have some cheese, and a box of kleenex, just in case. And my 18 pages of the recipe, with a red pen, in case I need to add a few more notes along the way.