Skinny Crockpot Dish

Try this skinny crockpot dish... it is delicious!!! I discovered this recipe on Pinterest.... follow along for more YUMMY EATS!!!

http://redsie05.blogspot.com/2010/10/ww-crock-pot-chicken-taco-chili.html

Pumpkin LOVE

It's getting colder outside and my instincts to hunker down and fatten up for Winter are in full swing! (I am going to try very hard to pawn some of this deliciousness off on some friends, family and Hubby's co-workers... and by the tastes of things, this shouldn't be too hard!) 


Not only do I LOVE the look of pumpkins, I LOVE the taste too, so in honor of my deep rooted LOVE for all things pumpkin... here are a few, new recipes I have been trying this weekend! ENJOY!!!

Spiced PUMPKIN Cream Cheese 

Makes 1 1/2 cups (24 1-tablespoon servings)

• 1 8-OUNCE PACKAGE OF CREAM CHEESE, SOFTENED (MICROWAVE FOR 15 SECONDS.)
• 1/2 CUP PUMPKIN PUREE, HOMEMADE OR CANNED
• 1/4 CUP LIGHT BROWN SUGAR
• 3/4 TEASPOON PUMPKIN PIE SPICE (OR 1/2 TSP. CINNAMON + 1/4 TSP. GROUND GINGER + 1/8 TSP. ALLSPICE OR CLOVES + DASH OF NUTMEG )
• 1/2 TEASPOON VANILLA

1. Add the pumpkin pie spice and vanilla.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese, pumpkin and sugar until smooth. (You could also use an immersion blender or wooden spoon.)
3. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

PUMPKIN Cookies

1 c. shortening

1 c. sugar

1 c. PUMPKIN

1 egg

2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. raisins or nuts (optional)

Cream shortening, sugar, and PUMPKIN. Add egg and mix well. Add sifted, dry ingredients. Drop from spoon onto cookie sheet and bake @ 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

FROSTING FOR COOKIES

3 TBS. oleo or butter

4 tsp. milk

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 c. powdered sugar

3/4 tsp. vanilla

Cook butter, milk, & brown sugar until sugar is dissolved. Add powdered sugar & vanilla. Spread on cookies.

Pinterest Wish Lists

With Christmas right around the corner, consider starting your wish list w/ Pinterest! I have this genius idea to start "pinning" everything I see that catches my eye, that way when someone asks, "What do the boys want for Christmas?", all I have to do is direct them to my "The Boys' Christmas Wish List" board! PLUS I have a lil' wish list of my very own... ya know, that way Hubby has some ideas!!! 


Amazon has a great "list making system" too... check this out! I use Pinterest & Amazon together to have an organized way to keep track of all things "want worth"! Happy pinning!!!

http://www.amazon.com/wishlist/universal/ref=cm_wnwin_pop_main

Adventures in Cookie Decorating

I love the idea of a decorated sugar cookie! And since becoming a Pinterest addict, the desire to do all things crafty has been forcing me to try things I once would have never dared! Don't get me wrong, I have tried to decorate sugar cookies before and swore to never do it again. It's not the decorating that scares me, it's the rolling out and cutting of the cookie dough that makes me want to scream!

I was determined to try my best to get it right this time for the love of my children! I spent some time researching ideas on the best ways to roll out that sticky dough and cut it into shapes that are eye catching and think I have finally got it down to an art. 

Here's some of what I learned while making these "parrrrrrrty" treats!

I don't know about you, but every time I've tried to make sugar cookies in the past my cookies always turn out hard and tasting more like "flour cookies" than sugar cookies! Instead of using flour to gain control of your dough when rolling it out, sprinkle your wax paper surface in powered sugar...
this eliminates the taste of hard, floury cookies!

Once you've mastered the art of rolling out the dough, stick it in the freezer for awhile before you cut the cookies. Place the rolled out dough (already on your wax paper) on a cookie sheet and pop it back in for an hour or 2 to allow it to firm back up.This makes cutting and placing the dough on the cookie sheet
(to go in the oven) much easier!

Waaaaallllaaaaaa!!! Perfectly baked cookies! And by the way, when the recipe says bake for 8  minutes, bake for 8 minutes! Leaving them in too long browns the edges and makes them hard!

Royal Icing works best for these cookies... there are tons of recipes online if you need one! This stuff not only tastes great but it's really easy to work with (it's very forgiving)! Start by outlining your cookies and make sure you let the icing harden before you go to fill the cookies in.

Now it's time to begin filling in the lines! Make sure the consistency of your icing is that of Elmer's glue... it works the best! If you need it to be runnier, add a tiny bit of warm water till you get it right. I found that a spoon and a toothpick work best for this technique! PLUS, if you have any baby food containers lying around, they make the best little tubs for coloring your icing! A little bit of this stuff goes a long way!

Here's my skull cap "filled" in. I pour a little icing directly on the cookie and move it around with the spoon and the toothpick to even it out all along the surface. Once this stuff hardens it looks nice and smooth even when your cookies have cracks (like mine)! Here's an extra tip: I prefer Wilton's gel food coloring for all my "parrrrrrrty" treats, it doesn't change the consistency of the frosting the way liquid drops do! 

Here are my boys' initials made into cookies... later you'll see how I matched them to go  w/ my pirates!

After the red icing hardens you are now ready to add the white dots. I used a  frosting bag and a tip to do these and make sure you keep the white icing a little thicker so it doesn't run!

Here's the fun part! Get creative w/ your decorating!

AND IT'S OK IF THEY AREN'T PERFECT!

Colored sugar sticks really well to this stuff for a different textured look!

"Initial" cutters are a great buy since you can use them over and over again! 

Don't go out and buy copper colored food coloring to make flesh tones. Just mix a little (and by a little I mean a tiny amount) of yellow and red to white frosting.... waaaaalllllaaaaa... flesh toned frosting!!!

ALMOST DONE! All you have left to do now is to finish up with a cute face! Make sure you add an eye patch... every pirate needs one plus it's a great way to cover any unsightly mistakes!

There you have it... decorated sugar cookies!

Time consuming YES... worth it... I think so!!!

Happy decorating!!!

Play'n Possum

In the mix of all the party planning craziness, life went on! And even though I had no time for blogging I did manage to take mental note (in the back of my very crowded mind) to remind myself to share this wild adventure! It all started last Tuesday morning when Jaxon came in from playing outside to tell me he had made a "new animal friend"!


As I flip the calendar over from September (to my favorite month of all time), October, I begin getting the itch to once again purge the closet! Instead of my own, this time I head for the boys' room. With their birthdays just around the corner I know it's time to make some room for new duds. I woke up that day with a plan to tackle not just their closet but their dressers as well. Things were going remarkably well that morning. Max was behaving and Jaxon was playing outside in the sand pile. I was making progress and was even able to have a conversation with a friend on the phone w/out too many interruptions.


Jaxon had been outside for about 10 minutes. He was in and out several times in those 10 minutes grabbing various different pieces of his farm equipment, (he was busy "harvesting his fall crops"). At one point he came up to me (while I was still on the phone) and told me to come out and meet his "new animal friend". I didn't really think anything of this because with it being Fall we are constantly seeing Preying Mantis (which Jaxon thinks are the coolest things). I assumed his "new animal friend" was just that, a Preying Mantis! I was wrong!!!


I asked my friend to bare with me as I humored Jaxon and went out to meet his "new friend". As I was walking out the door I even said to her that I was sure I'd be meeting a Preying Mantis! I got out the door and at the bottom of the steps of our side porch was Jaxon's little, blue wagon. Placed on the top of the wagon (like a lid), was another small wagon. Upon lifting the lid I discovered something I was not expecting... inside the wagon was a baby possum!


I did what any normal Mother would do and freaked out! I hung up the phone, grabbed the kids, ran back inside and made Jaxon go straight into the bathroom and wash his hands! The possum didn't just climb in that wagon, I knew he had touched it. As I regained control of the crazy, I began asking questions. Where did you find him? How'd he get in the wagon? Was he the only one? Was he awake or asleep when you found him? I thought the "new animal friend" was dead. I needed to get a picture of this to show Daddy otherwise he'd probably never believe me!


I grabbed my cell phone, quietly walked back outside (w/ both kids), put the kids behind me in a safe spot and removed the "wagon lid". To my surprise Baby Possum was awake! He had even climbed up the side of the wagon and was ready to go for a ride! I quickly snapped a picture and got everyone back inside again. Now what? So I then did what any Mother would do... I posted the "new animal friend's" photo to FaceBook and asked for some advice!

Here's "Baby George" in all his "so ugly he's kinda cute" glory, ready to go for that ride!

The boys and I then left the house for a few hours and let nature take it's course or the dog or whatever. Anyway, when we returned "Baby George" (a name suggested by a FaceBook Friend), was gone. I explained to Jaxon that his Mama had come to pick him up and that she was probably really missing him. I then went on to explain that we should never touch an animal w/out asking first and have continued to drill that in his little brain every day since!!!

Cap'n Jaxon & 1st Mate Max's Pirate Party

I'm soooooooooooooo behind on my blogging... this should explain why! I have so many new adventures to share about the last 2 weeks. Get ready for me to start flooding your pages w/ some pretty funny stuff!

But first things first... check out the Pirate Party slideshow!

Slideshow design generated with Smilebox "Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate our boys... you are very much loved & appreciated!!!" ~ Kent & Mandy

5 Birthdays

Happy Birthday Jaxon! 

1st Birthday!

2nd Birthday!

3rd Birthday!

4th Birthday!

5th Birthday!