• Book: “Speaking Mom-ese” by Lisa Whelchel

    This book was given to me after I had the girls, Speaking Mom-ese by Lisa Whelchel.  The first few months after the girls were born were a blur after having 12 weeks of bed rest, followed by an early delivery, complications, and time in the NICU.  It was encouraging to have a devotional from a Mom’s perspective even though a lot of the stories were regarding older kids.   The devotionals were short, sweet, and hit home during those exhausting months.  Since then I have gone through the book again and different devotionals touched my heart this time around.

  • Recipe: Monkey Bread

    Monkey Bread

    Perfect recipe to share at parties.  It has an amazing sweet taste especially when it is still warm from cooking.  Delicious!  I have adopted this Monkey Bread recipe which given to me at my bridal shower from Charlene.

    • 2 cans of Biscuits
    • 1 stick of Butter
    • 1 cup Brown Sugar
    • 1/2 teaspoon of Cinnamon
    • 5 tablespoons of Water
    • Optional – 1/2 cup of Coconut & 1/2 cup of Chopped Pecans

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease the bundt pan.  Optional: sprinkle coconut and chopped pecans in the bottom of the pan.  Mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut individual biscuits into quarters.  Roll biscuits in the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture.  Place into bundt pan.   Mix butter, remaining brown sugar, and water in a pot, bring to a boil.  As soon as it starts boiling remove from heat and pour over biscuits.

    Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  Let stand for 5 minutes then turn out onto a serving dish.

  • Giving Thanks

    I am blessed!  There are so many things in my life to be thankful for today and everyday.  Life may not always go as planned but I do have a lot of blessings in my life.

    I am thankful for…

    • My husband who is my best friend, loves me, makes me laugh, encourages me, cheers me on, lifts me up when I have fallen,  takes care of me and our girls and so much more.  Love him to pieces!!!
    • Our kids bring a lot of laughter and joy to my life.   Each one brings their own dynamics to the family and I am proud of my girls.
    • Fun Memories with my family and friends.  I have blessed with a lot of amazing memories, events, and great times with the people in my laugh.
    • Family is an important part of my life both my immediate and extended family members.  Thankful to have so many family members that love us, pray with us, and are an active part of our lives.
    • Friends who have been with me through the joyous parts of my life as well as some tough times while being an encouragement, blessing and prayer partner. I am thankful for those true blue friends in my life.
    • A Home to live in and provide shelter for my family and a place to host fun events with family, friends, and neighbors.
    • Our Pets have been a blessing in my life, whether it is relaxing on the couch with my hubby watching the fish or taking a walk with Skipper.  They all have left a mark on my heart for which I am thankful.
    • Neighbors because they have become part of my life and provide opportunities for us to help, pray, and encourage others.
    • Food we have never had to go starve or go without a meal.  My husband is an amazing cook and I love it when he cooks for the family.
    • Clothes we have always had plenty of clothes to wear.
    • Hugs & Kisses are a true treasure.  A hug from my girls or friend and a kiss from my husband are a blessing.
    • Snuggles provide the quiet time with my family I enjoy very much, whether it is reading, watching a movie or just sitting on the couch and talking I am thankful for these precious moments.
    • And Most Important God’s Involvement in my life, He has shown me a lot of love, grace, and mercy in the past 30 plus years for which I am very thankful.

    Thanksgiving is a great time to look at all the blessings in our lives.   Let us try to remember all the good things in our lives everyday.  Life is more enjoyable when we have a positive outlook.

    HAPPY THANKSGIVING!


  • Thanksgiving Recipe: Hugs & Kisses Cheesecake

    The best for last…..yes dessert!  I love dessert, pretty much any type of sweet is good with me!  I started making this chocolate chip cheesecake about 10 years ago.  Not sure where we got the recipe from but it has been a hit at many events.  If you are looking for something delicious but different for the Thanksgiving dessert try this one out.

    Hugs & Kisses Cheesecake:

    • 2 – (3 ounce) packages of Cream Cheese, softened
    • 1 (14 ounce) can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
    • 1 Egg
    • 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
    • 1 cup mini Chocolate Chips
    • 1 teaspoon Flour
    • 1 prepared Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust (8 or 9 inch) OR make your own with 2 cups of Oreo Cookies and a tablespoon of melted butter.
    • Hershey’s Hugs & Kisses (optional on top as decorations)

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix cream cheese until fluffy; slowly beat in the Sweetened Condensed Milk until smooth.  Add egg and vanilla and mix well.

    Toss chocolate chips with flour and stir into cream cheese mixture.  Pour into the crust.

    Bake for 35 minutes or until the center springs back when lightly touched.  Cool completely.

    Optional – Chocolate Glaze:  Heat 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips and 1/4 cup whipping cream in a saucepan over low heat.  Stir until thickened and smooth.  Immediately spread over cooled cheesecake.

    Optional – Decorate the edges of the cheesecake with chocolate shavings and / or Hershey’s Hugs & Kisses.

    Once complete refrigerate until ready to serve.  Serve chilled.

    Picture courtesy of Tastebook!

  • Gift Giving: Twice as Nice

    Buying used toys that are in good shape works well for those of us who are on a tight budget.   My girls love books and we rarely buy them new.  Same goes for toys.  If you can find good quality toys and books for an inexpensive price used why not get them as a gift for your kids.

    Recently, Goodwill did a 50% off day on everything in the store and if you got the red tag you received an additional discount.  I picked up a whole stack of books for $0.25 and some clothes (shirts, pants, skirts, dresses) for as low as $0.50.  I was thrilled because the books and clothes will make great Christmas gifts for the kids.  That day the following two purchases were the most fun:

    Princess Baby Doll Bed

    I know a little girl who will LOVE this bed for her babies!  It is in excellent condition and it only cost me $4.

    Lizard CD Holder

    The Lizard CD Holder was a lot of fun.  I have been looking for a place to put their CDs so they can access them without making a mess.  It is going to be hilarious seeing their faces when they unwrap this one.  The best part is I paid $3 for it.

    Both the Princess Baby Doll Bed and the Lizard CD Holder were a hit with several other people at the store that day too.  I was beginning to wonder if I would to make it out of the store with the two items.  I was asked how much they were numerous times, one person took them out of my basket to look at, another person told me that she needs them more then I do, and a guy tried to take them from me while I was paying.  Guess my excitement for finding the treasures made everyone else think they really were special, ha.

    If you are on a tight budget this year, check out some of the local secondhand stores.  You might just find a treasure with a bargain price tag on it that’s the perfect gift for your kids.

  • Thanksgiving Recipe: Mandarin Avocado Tossed Salad

    We all have a recipe for the Green Bean Casserole and other family favorites.  I am going to share a Salad Recipe for a side dish at Thanksgiving dinner.  We adopted this recipe several years ago thanks to Taste of Home!  It has a mix of colors, shapes and textures that the everyone enjoys.  The whole family, including the kids, love this delicious salad.  Sometimes with add in halved grapes for an extra touch to the salad.

    Mandarin Avocado Tossed Salad:

    • 1/2 cup Sunflower Kernels
    • 1/2 cup slivered Almonds
    • 2 tablespoons Butter or Margarine
    • 1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
    • 3 tablespoons Cider or Red Wine Vinegar
    • 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
    • 2 teaspoons Sugar
    • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon ground Mustard
    • 1 Garlic Clove, minced
    • 4 cups torn Leaf Lettuce
    • 1 can (11 ounces) Mandarin Oranges, drained
    • 1 ripe Avocado, peeled & cubed
    • 1 to 2 Green Onions, chopped

    Directions:  in a small skillet, saute sunflower kernels and almonds in butter.  Cool. Meanwhile, in a jar with tight-fitting lid, combine the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, salt, mustard and garlic; shake well.  In a large salad bowl, toss the lettuce, oranges, avocado, onions and sunflower kernel mixture.  Drizzle with dressing. Serve immediately. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

    We usually prep everything the night before and add the dressing when you are ready to serve.  A wonderfully refreshing salad for any meal.

  • Thanksgiving Recipe: Hendrich & Kejr Family Dressing

    My Grandma Willa gave me the family recipe for the Hendrich & Kejr Dressing for our first Thanksgiving together as a couple.  You can do several steps the night before to save you some time on Thanksgiving day.  We have enjoyed a lot of wonderful meals and created many memories at Grandpa and Grandma’s.  Thankful for a family that celebrates together.

    • Cook Giblets with a little salt and pepper, 1/2 cup of onions, 1 stalk of celery in enough water to cover, until tender. (It works well if you do this piece the night before Thanksgiving).
    • In a large bowl put 12 cups of crushed dry bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon of poultry seasoning, 1 teaspoon sage, 2 tablespoon of caraway seed, add 1/2 cup melted butter.  Pour over the bread crumbs and stir.  (This can be done the night before as well).  If using seasoned bread cut back on seasoning all but the caraway seed.
    • Add 1 to 2 cups of hot broth and stir together. (You can use giblets for gravy use water or canned broth) stir together all of the above and add 4 eggs beaten lightly with 1/2 cup milk and stir into the above.  If dressing seems dry add more liquid. (You want it to be soft yet hold together slightly).
    • Sprinkle turkey inside and out with caraway seed.  Stuff bird and cook according to directions on the bird.  (You can bake separately as well if you choose).
    • A 10 to 13 pound young bird usually takes 3 1/2 to 4 hours to cook.  For gravy use chicken broth and drippings or Giblet broth and pan drippings.  I go either way.

  • The Exploding Spice Cabinet

    It had become apparent over the last few weeks that our spice cabinet was overflowing with goods.  We try to keep a stocked spice cabinet (buy ones we use when they go on sale) and haven’t had any problems until recently.  When my husband went to get the garlic salt out of the cabinet and a whole mess of stuff came tumbling down I decided it was time for organizing.

    Our regular spices have always been in alphabetical order on the first shelf.  (It really does help when you are trying to find a spice for a special recipe, my husband loves it that way too).   That shelf was in pretty good shape.  The second shelf holds baking items, sprinkles and bigger containers. This shelf was a little crazy and appeared to where most of the items were falling from lately.  The third or top shelf was where we stored the spices we buy in bulk or extra spices when they go on sale.  I pulled everything out and found what was causing all the commotion.

    The problem was that since having kids we have purchased more “sprinkles”!  When I pulled all the sprinkles out of the cupboard it was amazing how much extra room we had for everything else.  We had Princess Sprinkles, Cars Sprinkles, some for Halloween, Fall, Colored Sprinkles, Holiday Sprinkles, Balls, Shapes, and more sprinkles.  We had different 19 containers of just SPRINKLES (and none of them the same so we couldn’t just consolidate)!  The girls love to help me cook and a lot of their cookies or goodies they make have sprinkles on top so while they are necessary it had gotten out of control.

    The Solution was to go through the sprinkles, find out which ones were almost gone and put them in smaller container or set them aside to use soon.  After re-organizing the sprinkles I even had a little empty shelf space left in the cupboard.

    Sprinkles make everything taste better!  Have you ever tried them on pancakes and waffles?  We love our girls and sprinkles!

  • Thanksgiving Recipe: White Cranberry Brined Turkey

    The turkey is a great part of the Thanksgiving dinner.  There are so many different ways to cook a turkey……smoke, bake, or fry.   If you are looking for delicious new way to cook the turkey try this one out.  We have tried several great recipes for the turkey.  I found this several years ago in a Ocean Spray booklet.

    • 128 ounces of White Cranberry Juice
    • 1 gallon of Water
    • 2 cups of Kosher Salt
    • 1 cup of Sugar
    • 2 tablespoons Whole Black Peppercorns
    • 8 cloves Garlic (crushed)
    • 8 Bay Leaves
    • 8 to 12 pound Whole Turkey

    Mix together all ingredients (except turkey) in a 13 to 14 quart stockpot until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Place the turkey in the brine.  Refrigerate turkey in the covered stockpot for 12 to 18 hours.  Discard brine.  Dry turkey with paper towels. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Roast unstuffed turkey for 2 3/4 to 3 hours or until internal temperature of the thigh reaches 180 degrees.