Sunday#10

Mother's Day! What a fun day. Cache and the kids worked so hard to surprise me. I woke up in the morning to a tray of my favorite breakfast foods; Toast, Simply Orange Juice and Pillsbury Orange rolls. I was able to spend all morning taking my time to get ready for church without the hustle and bustle of ironing clothes, doing hair, preparing snacks. Cache took care of all that. Eden was a little upset that I wasn't allowed to do her hair, but she settled on a down 'do and she looked great. At church we had a small yucky moment when we found a tick on the back of Ainsley neck and I almost started freaking out. I haven't had to deal with ticks before, but everything I have heard is to smother them with Vaseline, which I didn't have at church (nope, I don't carry Vaseline in my purse). I went out into the foyer hoping someone would come out who knew what they were doing, and a one of my sweet friends came out and said I needed to get it out as quickly as possible before it dug in deeper and became more engorged. We found someone with tweezers 9which I thought was a big no, no) and I had an alcohol wipe in my Car emergency kit. She was able to pull it out and clean the site and all was good. After church Cache worked hard preparing my meal of choice of Sloppy Joes (don't laugh they're my favorite). It was such a relaxing day and I didn't do anything except enjoy the ones that make me a mom.

And as a treat Cache and the kids made my favorite dessert.

Chocolate Frosted Angel Food Cake.

I know you are going to want the recipe, because it is so yummy. And fairly Healthy (okay healthy might not be the right word-low in calories is better).

1 angel food cake (we like to make ours from the Betty crocker or Pillsbury mix)

1 tub cool whip (you can even use light cool whip)

Nestle Quick chocolate milk mix

Make Angel food cake according to package directions, be sure to use an angel food cake pan.

Mix cool whip and Nestle quick together and taste as you go for the desired flavor.

Either dollop on individual slices or frost onto entire cake.

YUMMM.

newt+St. Patty's day

We love discovering new creatures around our yard. We found this little guy crawling into our garage. Eden wanted to put him him in Miss. trunchbulls water (from Matlida).

We stuck him in a jar for a while and then let him go after reading that newts are very poisonous and can kill any predator including a human (but only if ingested).

St. Patricks Day: I woke up the morning of the 17th to Asher's footsteps running down the stairs in hopes of finding a leprechaun in his trap that he had made at preschool. At that moment, after coming out of my grogginess, my stomach sunk because I had realized the leprechaun had forgot to come. I quickly met a disappointed Asher in the kitchen and convinced him that the leprechaun was trying to fool him into thinking he hadn't come and was hiding for the right time to pull his pranks. I told him he better go back up to bed and listen closely for anything out of the ordinary. The leprechaun then proceeded to drop gold Rolo candies around the house, tip over the chairs, and fall into the trap. Luckily he was able to use his leprechaun cane and puncture a hole through the trap and escape without having to grant any wishes. Although, Cache and I heard the commotion of his escape and made a ruckus trying to catch him so he would have to grant Asher's wish of being an Avatar. Our ruckus brought Asher back down the stairs in a hurry, but he had just missed the leprechaun escaping through the front door. He was very disappointed. The ruckus also woke up Eden who started to get teary eyed because we had started the festivities without her. She cheered up after she collected a few gold pieces. And Asher talked about ALMOST catching a leprechaun the entire day. proof is here.

evidence of a failed Leprechaun trap

That evening we enjoyed our traditional meal of corned beef and cabbage. Actually, Cache and Nahil (a woman I visit teach) enjoyed it because I had the WORST migraine and had to leave the table and take a hot shower and lay in a dark room. The kids didn't enjoy it because they simply just didn't like it.

A new addition to our meal was a delicious glaze:

1 stick butter

1 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup spicy mustard

2 TBL. vinegar

Heat in a sauce pan until sugar dissolves. pour over corned beef and vegetables.

If you make corned beef you have to try this glaze, it is so good and added so much to the meal. I did try it the next day and loved it.

smoothie

my daily breakfast........orange, banana, blueberries, milk, ice and spinach. Deeeeeelicious.

recipe found here.

Homemade bread

We love fresh baked bread at our house. Finley loves to help, although I am sad to say I don't let him help enough. This time I was in a good mood (rare these days) and let him help.

I wish I had pictures of the finished product, maybe next time. We like to use these women's recipe for our bread. We bought the DVD and it is great. I like that there isn't oil in the bread, only Lecithin. email me if you would like the recipe.

Hodge Podge

I LOVE english toffee. Love, Love, love it. Especially the stuff by V chocolates. But, because of the price I have only bought it once, I was totally addicted and I crave it all year long. Last night I made this recipe and it is sooo good (just as good as V's) and so easy. I suggest using a candy thermometer and cooking until "hard crack" instead of using her method of dropping drips of the toffee into ice water (I know this is the original method, but I have never been able to get it right).

Here is the recipe just in case you don't want to link over (it looks long, but if you use the thermometer you can skip half the instructions):

Ingredients:
1 cup of butter
½-cup brown sugar
½ cup of white sugar

1/2 cup of your favorite nuts
1/2 package of chocolate chips
Prep: On the bottom of a 9x13-glass pan, spread a light coat of butter and ¼ cup
your favorite nuts. Also, have a small bowl of ice water ready to test your toffee.

The toffee recipe needs constant attention and stirring for about 10 minutes. In a
heavy saucepan, add butter and sugars and melt on high heat. Once the butter and
sugars have melted and started to boil, the toffee will go through 4 stages.

Stage 1: butter and sugars are melted, but not mixed. Keep stirring.
Stage 2: Butter and sugars are mixed and start to cook. Keep stirring.
Stage 3: Butter and sugars are bubbling. Keep stirring.
Stage 4: Butter and sugars change color, slightly (from light tan to dark tan) toffee
looks almost like taffy, it becomes smooth not bubbly. Keep stirring and start to
test for hard crack.

Hard Crack: Hard crack is when you take a small piece of toffee and when it hits
ice-cold water, it sizzles. This is when the toffee is done!

Pour toffee evenly into buttered 9x13 pan, do not spread or stir, just pour
directly from saucepan. Sprinkle with your favorite chocolate chips on top,
the hot toffee will melt the chips in a few minutes. With a spatula, spread the
melted chips over the toffee and sprinkle with your favorite nuts.

Allow toffee to completely cool, break apart with a knife and enjoy!

Christmas is just not Christmas without a gingerbread house to display in your house. My parents and all of my siblings (except for you K&J-we understand-Germany is a little too far to travel)got together and showed our talents at house building. Here is my kids creation. Peanut was in charge of the yard and Finley was in charge of the roof. I definitely had to give up my idea of a perfect cottage-like gingerbread house, once i relaxed, it was fun to see the kids imaginations take over. And Finally.....Peanut lost her first tooth. She was worried she was going to be stuck with her baby teeth for her entire life. The thing was hanging by a string for a week. She refused to let anyone pull it except for the sister at church who promised her 5 bucks to let her pull it out. Right before sacrament meeting on Sunday Peanut searched out Sister Phillips, who was on the stand playing the piano, to ask if she could come to her house later in the afternoon to get it pulled. Sister Phillips replied by asking if she could feel it to see if it was ready. Right then and there Sister Phillips pulled it. Eden returned to our bench with tissues shoved in her mouth and one in her hand containing the tooth, in the other hand was a crisp 5 dollar bill. She was all smiles. She is like her Dad and likes to make a buck (or five), she saves like her dad too, not like her mom.

(Not the best picture, it was late at night when we realized we should take a picture and I hate using a flash.)

Muffin meal

A big "thank you" goes out to which ever blog I was on when I saw this Idea. I am sorry I can't give the proper credit to whose idea this is, but it is great. I saw Muffin meals a long time ago while blog surfing and stored it in my brain file and finally tried it last night. Basically it is just serving whatever you would normally serve for lunch, but separating it into the muffin tins. Todays muffin meal consisted of string cheese (cut up), sliced strawberries, grapes, cut up lunch meat, graham cracker, marshmallows and choc. chips. They loved it and ate every last bite. Today we had friends over and our friends loved it too. Hopefully muffin meals will pep up your lunch (or dinner) times too.

Red Velvet cake balls.

Don't these look so good? I want to make them so bad, but I don't want to make them If I don't have anywhere to take them, because then I would eat all of them. You can make them though and share one with me :) The recipe is here,

I haven't had anything to post about lately, I keep waiting for something exciting or interesting to happen in my life and day after day it is the same. Wake up, feed kids, take peanut to school, Feed Fin, take shower, clean house (if I am feeling up to it), feed Fin, Peanut comes home from school, Feed Fin, eat lunch, quiet/nap time, feed Fin(are you noticing a pattern?), supervise kids while they do their chores, prepare dinner, feed Fin, eat dinner, clean kitchen (with Cache's help), bathe kids, feed Fin, scriptures and prayers, bedtime for kids, time for some brain candy (TV) OR go to Young Womens activities and YW basketball, scriptures, prayers, bedtime.

The next day it starts all over again. Sometimes I am lucky and I get a trip to TJMAXX or Target, and that is like going to Disneyland, it is even better if Peanut is at a friends house and I get to go single childly(does that even make sense?).

Hoping for a Healthy New Year

Here is another blog find (2 posts in one day, I am on a roll). These muffins are so scrumptious. Don't be scared of the bran and the wheat flour ingredients, they're what make you healthy.......and regular :)

Banana Whole Wheat Bran Muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat bran
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed bananas (approx. 2 medium)
1 cup buttermilk (or 1 tbls. vinegar added to 1 cup milk)
1/4 cup canola oil (I used olive oil)
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (I didn't add these)
1 cup granola

mix all dry ingredients (except for granola) in a big bowl. Then mix all the wet ingredients in a different big bowl. Mix everything together. pour into a greased muffin pan or line pan with baking cups. Top with granola and bake for 12-15 minutes at 400 degrees.

Isn't that easy? I made these this morning, and they were a hit. I think I will make a big batch and freeze them so they can be enjoyed every morning.

Fin on his third muffin.

Does anyone else want to join this post for a healthy new year? If you do post a healthy recipe on your blog and leave a comment so I can come and print it out and try it. (Not that I don't already check everyones blog about 5 times a day)