Pink Paper Peppermints Sweet ♥ Crafty ♥ Goodness

pumpkin gingerbread, homemade whipped cream* and a reconciliation attempt

My printer and computer no longer wish to be friends with me. 

I don't know why.

I thought everything was going fine and then one day last week, I leaned over to print something and the printer just turned his face away...all like..."I'm really not in the mood right now"...it was weird...

*sigh*

As you might imagine that makes it difficult to do...well...*anything* I need to get done around here...

So for now I'm posting this delicious pumpkin gingerbread recipe that I promised to some twitter friends and hopefully tomorrow, after some counseling, my technology and I will be able to get some stuff done.

(I have the cutest turkey project to show you!)

This bread is the *ultimate* Thanksgiving treat.  Really. You will love it.  It makes your house smell so cinnamony and good.

Serve a big, thick slice of it, warm from the oven, with a dollop of homemade whipped cream* and you will be in Thanksgiving Heaven!

Pumpkin Gingerbread

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 cups sugar (play with this amount. it can handle 3 cups if you like it sweet or 11/2 to 2 cups if you don't)
1 cup vegetable oil (or replace 1/2 c oil with applesauce)
4 eggs
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree

1 1/2 Tablespoons ground ginger
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground cloves
2 teaspoons ground allspice

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or bread flour if you have it on hand)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9x5 inch loaf pans. (or you can use a sheet pan but you'll need to reduce the cooking time)

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, oil and eggs; mix until smooth. Add buttermilk and mix until well blended. Stir in pumpkin.

3. In a medium bowl, combine spices, flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and blend just until ingredients are mixed.

5. Divide batter between prepared pans.

6. Bake in preheated oven until toothpick comes out clean, about 45 minutes to an hour. (this really depends on your oven, so keep an eye on it.)

That's it!  Slice and enjoy.

*the astrixical situatuion:

Alright people look...

You *must not*  buy that tub of whipped, frozen, chemical, fake, fat this year, ok?? 

Really. 

Do you know how easy *real* whipped cream is to make?

so. easy. 

Come on.  Try it:

Homemade Whipped  Cream

Ingredients:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tablespoon to 1/4 cup powdered sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (or other flavoring as noted below)

I'm only giving you those ingredients so you won't be scared.  The truth is I don't even measure any more it's so easy.

Tips:

-The first thing you want to do is make sure your mixing bowl, beaters (or whisk if you don't have a mixer), and cream are icy cold.  

-I pop mine in the freezer for about 10 minutes before I'm ready to whip.

-Next pour your cream into the bowl and turn the mixer on (slowly at first or you will be wearing the cream- guess how I know that?)

-Gradually increase the speed until you get to med-high. 

-I have found that if I let the cream whip for about 30 seconds to a minute before I put the sugar in it whips up with more volume.

-Now add the sugar in a little at a time and then drizzle the vanilla in.  You can use any extract you like for this part depending on what you're serving your cream with. 

-Try making Lemon Whipped Cream or Orange Whipped Cream.  Add a little cinnamon or cocoa powder in with the powdered sugar for Cinnamon or Chocolate Whipped cream! (Cinnamon is especially good with my pumpkin gingerbread recipe up there.)

-If you want a soft whipped cream look for soft peaks to form, for a thicker, fluffier whipped cream look for stiff peaks to form.

-Whatever you do, stay right there and watch so that you don't *over whip* it or it will curdle and get weird and gross and liquidy. (again, you probably don't need to guess how I know that.)

-That's it!  It takes like 3 minutes and the first time you taste your own fresh, homemade whipped cream on a piece of pumpkin pie you will never go back!

-A cup of cream makes about a cup and a half of whipped cream and you can store it in the fridge for a day or two, but I think it tastes best fresh, so I try to make mine right at the last minute if I can.

Hope you are all having fun planning your Thanksgiving holiday with your families.

Peace and Grace,

♥ Melissa~

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"And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God."
-Ecclesiastes 3:13

feeling fallish

Today I felt very fallish (like lemurish, but more pumpkin spicy, heh-heh)  I got all the fall decorations out and started planning pumpkin spice bread and pumpkin cranberry muffins and other wonderful fall baking moments.

 

I think what started it all was this little glass turkey I found at Jo-ann this weekend.

Isn't it sweet?  My grandmother had one like it, (or maybe it was my great-grandmother, sort of  hard to remember now) and I just felt all mushy when I saw it. 

(Plus it was 60% off and I had a coupon so they practically gave it to me.

No. Really. They said, "Please, take this turkey and here's five dollars too"...

well, you know what I mean.)

The coupon I had was a teacher discount coupon.  If you're a homeschooler did you know that you can sign up for the teacher discount program at Jo-ann?

I don't  know about you, but I buy a ton of supplies there for school projects and crafty educational things.

There are all kinds of specials for teachers and you get a card for 15% off *all* your purchases!  You need a homeschooler I.D. card (like from your support group) to sign up in the store.

Or you can get an access code from PEAH (Parents Educating at Home) here if you want to sign up online. Neat, huh?

While I'm on the subject, another great place for homeschooler bargains is the Homeschool Buyers Co-op.

We've been able to get lots of great deals on educational supplies through the group buys they set up.  Plus they have a field trip database and free printable student/teacher I.D. cards for members. And it's free to join!

So back to my fall feeling.  I thought I'd share one of my family's favorite fall recipes and a little flickr inspiration too.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:

3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil (can be replaced with applesauce)
2 eggs
1 15 oz can of of pumpkin (not pie mix)
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup of chocolate chips plus a tablespoon of additional flour.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Prepare muffin pan with grease and flour or use paper tin liners. (look at these cute ones! Or maybe you are the eco-friendly type!)
3. Mix sugar, oil and eggs.  Add pumpkin and buttermilk.
4. In a separate bowl mix together the baking powder, baking soda, flour, spices and salt.
5. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir just until combined.
6. Add tablespoon of flour to chocolate chips and stir (the flour keeps the chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom of your muffins.) Add chips to batter.
7. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full with batter.
8. Bake in pre-heated oven for 15 to 25 minutes, depending on your oven.

And here is more fall decorating inspiration for you.  My favorites from flickr:

1. Fall Centrepieces, 2. Candle Light Glow, 3. Pumpkin Centrepiece, 4. Centerpiece, 5. Pumpkin Centerpiece, 6. more pumpkins!, 7. fresh pumpkin and white chocolate cupcakes, 8. pumpkin pie pumpkins, 9. Pumpkin-Cranberry Muffins, 10. A Sea of Pumpkins, 11. Pumpkin Pecan Cupcakes, 12. Scarecrows guard pumpkins at Matices Riversbank Farm Blenheim, 13. Thanksgiving Table, 14. Thanksgiving Table Detail, 15. thanksgiving decorations, 16. Thanksgiving Decorations, 17. Pumpkin family, 18. DSC07468, 19. autumn decor, 20. Cute pumpkins in Mishawaka, 21. Fall Cookies, 22. Fall Decorating, 23. Autumn's Bounty, 24. Fall Decorating

So have you started decorating for fall yet?  What are some of your favorite recipes or traditions?  I'd love to hear about them!

Grace and Peace,

♥ Melissa~

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"...the Word of God makes them happy, and they think about it day and night. They are like trees growing beside a stream, trees that produce fruit in season and always have leaves. Those people succeed in everything they do."
-Psalm 1:2-4

yes it is

Originally uploaded by Chris[topher] Lin

108 yesterday... 106 today ...too... hot... to....blog.... somebody fan me...

Grace & Peace,

♥ Melissa~
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"But blessed is the man who trusts me, God, the woman who sticks with God. They're like trees replanted in Eden, putting down roots near the rivers— Never a worry through the hottest of summers, never dropping a leaf, Serene and calm through droughts, bearing fresh fruit every season."
-Jerimiah 17:7

the summer sun's callin' my name

I think I'll go for a walk outside now, the summer sun's callin' my name...

summer evening

summer splashin'

summer swimmin'

summer toes

summer swingin'

summer squash

And a recipe for the summer squash:

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

This is so moist & delicious!  And what better way to eat zucchini than with chocolate??  (you can replace the oil with applesauce to lower the fat content a bit too)

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp cinnamon
3 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
2 cups peeled and grated zucchini
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 F

2. Grease and flour two loaf pans (bout 8"x4").

3. Sift dry ingredients (flour, salt baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon)

4. Cream wet ingredients (eggs, oil, vanilla and sugar) in a large bowl.

5. Add sifted ingredients to creamed mixture and beat well.

6. Stir in zucchini and chocolate chips, mix gently until combined.

7. Pour into prepared pans

8. Bake for 35  to 55 minutes (depending on your oven and the size of the pans) or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

9. Let cool 5 to 10 minutes and remove from pan allowing to cool an additional 10 minute before slicing.

And just in case that song is not already stuck in your head from the title of my post, play this while you're whipping up your zucchini bread it will make you smile:

Hope you're havin' some sunshine days!

Peace and Grace,

♥ Melissa
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"Oh, how sweet the light of day, and how wonderful to live in the sunshine! Even if you live a long time, don't take a single day for granted.  Take delight in each light-filled hour..." -Ecc 11:7

Cupcakes & Recycling Flowers | 31 Crafty Flowers in 31 Days - Day 30

 

Day Thirty-We're flower nerdy!

Today I've got some more fabulous flower tutorial links for you!

Cupcake Bouquet!

That's right, a bouquet of cupcake roses! So pretty and yummy!

and

Recycled Newsprint Flowers

Patricia at A Little Hut shows how to make super gorgeous flower artwork with recycled newsprint!

and finally

Recycled Soda Bottle Flowers

Wow, these are neat-O!

Ok have fun with these and I'll see you on Monday for our very last 31 Crafty Flowers in 31 Days!

Grace & Peace,

♥ Melissa~
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 "The fig trees are producing their early fruit. The flowers on the vines are giving off their sweet smell."
-Song of Solomon 2:13

French Toast Flowers! | 31 Crafty Flowers in 31 Days - Day 27

Day Twenty-Seven-We're still in flower heaven!

Today's flower tutorial for 31 Crafty Flowers in 31 Days  is fun and yummy and a perfect way to celebrate the arrival of summer! 

I think it would be so fun to make these from French Toast, but for simplicity in the tutorial I just used regular toast which is a little quicker and turned out cute too!

 Here's what you need to get started:

-Whole wheat bread
-Butter
-Decorative Sugar
-Flower shaped cookie cutter
-soda bottle cap
-knife
-French toast recipe & ingredients (if making french toast)

Step One

While bread is toasting (or french toast is cooking) cut a 1/4 inch pat of butter for each toast flower you will be making.

Step Two

 

Use your soda cap to make little round pats of butter for the center of your toast flowers. 

This works best if the butter is firm but not rock hard, so let it sit out for a few minutes before beginning.

Step Three

Once your toast is ready, center the cookie cutter over it and press firmly. 

Before you lift the cookie cutter, pull away the scraps of toast on the outside. 

Tip:

Don't throw these scraps away!  Throw them in a baggie and store them in the freezer.  The next time you need bread crumbs for a recipe just toss the scraps into the food processor and you've got homemade bread crumbs! (You can do this with the heels of the bread as well.)

Step Four

 

Now add your pat of butter to the center of your toast flower!

Step Five
 

For a special treat, you can sprinkle sanding sugar or decorative sugar on the butter centers.

Step Six

 

Cut freehand leaves with your knife.

Step Seven

 

Now put together your toasty flowers! 

This would make a fun birthday or holiday breakfast treat! 

For dad, on Father's Day, you could use a fish or sports themed cutter!

Have Fun!

Grace & Peace,

♥ Melissa~
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"His cheeks are like beds of spices, with sweet-smelling plants. His lips are like lily flowers giving off drops of perfume."
-Song of Solomon 5:13

chewy oatmeal raisin cookie yuv

We made oatmeal raisin cookies yesterday (and oatmeal chocolate chip too - yum!).  The whole house smelled so delicious.

The last time I posted a recipe several people asked about my measuring cups. They (and my pretty red mixing bowls) are from Gooseberry Patch. 

They don't seem to be available now, (I got them on clearance at the after-Christmas sale), but they do have some that are similar although *definitely* not on sale - eek!

I would really like to tell you that the recipe we used is a super duper secret family recipe, but the truth is it's just the recipe right off the lid of the oatmeal box. But it is yum-mum-meee!

I didn't even change anything except that for the Chocolate Chip version I replaced the 1 cup of raisins with 1 cup of chocolate chips. 

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon   
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups of Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
1 cup of raisins (or chocolate chips)

(I love using my macro setting on cookies, look at all those delicious nooks & crannies!)

Directions:

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2.Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. (this usually takes me 3-5 minutes)
3.Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.
4.Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well.
5.Stir in oats and raisins; mix well.
6.Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls (I use a small cookie dough scoop) onto ungreased cookie sheet. (I use parchment paper)
7.Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.
8.Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies

(as I was taking this picture I saw a little hand sneak into the viewfinder in the upper left corner -so cute )

The best part of the day for me was when Little-O took a bite out of his cookie and then said,

"Yook, Mama, a hawt.  I'm savin' dis for brover 'cause I yuv him."

Sweet, sweet, sweet (brover didn't really want it though - "ew, he bit off it??").

I will be at the dentist  the you-know-who when you read this.

See you tomorrow. maybe.

Grace and Peace,

♥ M~
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"How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in
unity!"
-Psalm 133:1

ten on tuesday -crafty & cakey & what can you do with old egg shells from Easter?

ten random thoughts on tuesday
(on wednesday night again - maybe I should rename it "ten on wen"... you know that would rhyme if you said it with a Texas accent...really...try it...."tin on win"...see?)

one

It's cupcake week on Martha Stewart!  Have you been watching?  So much yummy fun.  I think we should have cupcake week around here. Then I can make more of these.

two

My little guy is turning five tomorrow.  This hurts.  And also makes me feel a little crazy, because *yesterday* I was changing his diaper...yesterday people! 

And I don't really want him to stop calling me mama and kissing me every time he walks through the room and saying  "I yuv you" instead of "I love you".

But it will happen.  I know. 

So I'll just treasure every moment and take a million pictures and blog every cute thing he says and does (even if you guys get sick of it...heh-heh)...and then I'll remember...and then I'll start it all over again with grand-children! yippee!

Since his birthday always falls right around Easter we tend to combine the two and he actually *loves* having an egg hunt at his birthday party.  He calls it his "easterbirthday".  So sweet.  So here's some snaps from the party we had on Sunday:

Little O and his great uncle (my uncle).  So funny.

Chocolate cheesecake, yum (his request)!  I'll post the recipe this week.

Little O attacking the pinata.

I *love* this one.  My nephew's little feet as he runs for the pinata candy.

Nephew and Little O grabbing that pinata candy!

Egg hunting at the "easterbirthday"

Squirt gun fight broke out after present opening.

three

Remember the yummy salsa I told you about?  The unusual ingredient is watermelon!  I know it sounds gross, but I'm telling you it is soooooo good.  You have to try it!  The watermelon replaces the usual tomatoes.  Most people don't even realize this until they taste it.  Here is the recipe:

Watermelon Salsa

Ingredients:

3 cups chopped watermelon
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
3-5 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
2 tablespoons chopped jalapeño pepper (this is spicy, cut it to one if you are chicken)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a large glass bowl and chill for at least an hour.  The longer you let it sit in the fridge the yummier flavors taste together. 

2. Serve in the hollowed shell of the watermelon to delight and confuse your guests!

A couple of hints:

-DO NOT rub your eyes after chopping up the jalepeno...you will be sorry if you do.

-You may want to put the chopped watermelon in a colander over a bowl for a half hour or so to let it drain a little bit because otherwise your salsa can be a little too "juicy".

four

I really don't like junk mail.  It's like people mailing trash to my house that I have to then sort and make decisions about.  Like I don't have enough to do.  Junk mail...yuck.  I am going to have to think of some crafty things to do with junk mail.  Here are some ideas to start: Junk Mail Gems

five

We made a fun craft with our leftover easter egg shells today.  Super easy too!  Pictures & a tutorial in the next post. (right after this one or maybe before by the time you read this...heh-heh) EDITED: It's here!

six

I'm teaching myself embroidery!  It's so fun and it seems to go along with my new love for fabric.  I found a really fun link that has lots of free vintage embroidery patterns!  So cool! 

seven

Another fun link I wanted to share with you is this one-Free printables at Wondertime.  Fantastic fun for homeschoolers or even just preschool moms or scrapbookers or babysitters...you get the idea.

eight

Did you see my new button about subscribing to my RSS feed (over there on the right)?  I completely made that up. Just thought I should tell you. 

I *do* think you'll feel more crafty after hanging out here though.  And the best way to hang out here of course is to subscribe to my feed.

I know I've told you about bloglines before (so cool).  But just in case some of you still aren't gettin' the whole RSS feed thing, I found a great video to help explain it.  It's by the same guys who did the Twitter video I showed you earlier, Common Craft (they're geniuses).

nine

My friend Janice at Everyday Education, wrote a really wonderful article a couple of days ago.  It's geared towards homeschooling parents, but really I think if you're a parent at all you will be blessed by this article.

The two lines that spoke to me the most were these:

"Remember that children don’t remember what you do; they remember how you made them feel."

"Understand that this season of life will be over before you know it. Don’t put off doing the fun things!"

Those two lines really speak to what I want this blog to be all about.  I'm always striving to have fun with my kids, to soak up every minute of my time with them and make sweet memories with them that they can carry into adulthood and their own parenthood.  I want to teach them how good God is and I want to share with you all the ways I figure out how to do this.

I'm actually working on a pretty big project related to this and in the mean time I hope that when you come and visit here you are inspired in some way to create things and have fun and celebrate with your children or even as a child yourself .

Go read the article, it will bless you.

ten

Thanks for my three volunteers who played tag with me!  Here they are:

Quirky at Quirky is a Compliment

Alison at Barefoot in Boston

Erin at Fully Alive...Ready To Smile (Actually she hasn't done it yet, but said she would so I'm linking her in anticipation...heh-heh...)

Ok, now time to go put up the egg shell craft.  Hope ya'll are havin' a great week.

♥ M~

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"Come, children, listen closely; I'll give you a lesson in God worship."
-Psalm 34:10

ten on tuesday - 8

ten random thoughts on tuesday (night)

one

I have been tagged by three sweet friends!  Deanne, Marianna and Quirky.  I  just wanted to say thanks ladies and I am working on these!  There is so much to post and so little time! 

two

We made Glazed Lemon Scones the other day.  Oh what fun! They were yummy too, only I think I flattened them out a little too much so they weren't quite as high as I think scones are supposed to be. I'd never baked scones before though, so I was pretty happy with the way they came out!  The lemon glaze was *dee-licous* I could just eat that with a spoon - yum!  I found the recipe in the most recent issue of Family Fun Magazine. 

three

Here's the recipe and some visuals:  (you can also get the recipe here)

Ingredients:

Scones:
2 cups flour (I used cake flour and this made them very moist)
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Finely grated zest of one lemon
3 Tbsps cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup heavy or whipping cream, plus a little for brushing
1 egg yolk, beaten slightly
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Lemon Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp lemon extract
1 Tbsp melted butter
2 Tbsp heavy or whipping cream

1. Heat the oven to 400°. Grease a large, heavy baking sheet (preferably not a dark one) and set it aside.

2. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add the lemon zest and toss the mixture with your hands.

3. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.

4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour in the cream, the yolk, and the vanilla extract and use a fork to blend the liquids within the well. Then use a wooden spoon to combine all the ingredients, just until the dough holds together.

5. Scrape the dough onto a flour-dusted surface and then, using floured hands, knead it gently three or four times to form a ball. Flatten the ball into a disk about 3/4-inch thick, then cut it as you would a pie into 8 wedges. Transfer the pieces to the baking sheet, leaving at least 1/4 inch between them. Brush the tops lightly with cream.

6. Bake the scones in the center of the oven until golden brown, about 16 to 18 minutes. Allow them to cool on the sheet for a few minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack.

7. While the scones continue to cool, make the glaze. Combine all the ingredients in a small mixing bowl and whisk them until the mixture is smooth. If necessary, you can thin the glaze with water, stirring in no more than 1/2 teaspoon at a time. When the scones have cooled for another 10 minutes, drizzle each one generously with glaze. Makes 8 scones.

(can you see my banner in the tea kettle?? heh-heh - love that - can you see the fridge open?  LittleO was getting a snack...)

four

Okay, if you've been reading my blog for any amount of time you know that I have a squirrel thing (not like a "thing" for squirrels - that would be weird - a squirrel thing - click here to catch up). 

Well yesterday when taking a peek at what people were searching for when they came across my blog I found the most hilarious search term ever.  Someone was looking for "squirrel bureaucracy".  I kid you not.

five

After I finished laughing I thought...what in the world were they looking for? What human being would want or need to know about squirrel bureaucracy?  I mean, actually, I thought I made that term up...you know?...I don't think there really *is* a squirrel bureaucracy..is there?...

Wait a minute...do squirrels get internet?  Maybe the *squirrels* were doing some research....

six

Congratulations to Lisa at The Scrap Princess Blog she won my prize at The Ultimate Blog Party! Look here to see what she won!

seven

Speaking of prizes I won *two* prizes during the blog party.  How cool is that? 

I won an Arbonne goodie bag from Stacey at The Truest Thing and some *fantastic* felt pins from Katrin at Cuteacious (you must go check her etsy shop, Kaleidoscope Style - so pretty). New bloggy friends and prizes!! What a blessing! 

eight

The quilt show was fabulous.  amazing.  I really can't describe it with words. 

I've always been a paper girl myself, but my mom has been wanting me to sew and a friend or two have encouraged me in that direction so that I was feeling kind of fabric-y already when my mom called and invited me to the quilt show.

nine

I am *so* glad I went. There was so much color and design and texture, everywhere I looked.  It was astonishingly inspiring!  Look at this!!!

This quilt was so tiny!  No bigger than your hand (those are the mini-binder clips holding it up)!

 

Felted cupcakes!! Can you get over it??

ten

My mom bought me fabric and goodies that I can't wait to show you tomorrow (plus more quilt show pics).  So much pretty!

I can't stop touching all the fabric.  Is this normal? 

I never liked the term "fat quarters" before because...you know... it had the word "fat" in it ...heh-heh...but now I {heart} the words "fat quarters"!

You know what they mean to me now?

"Here is some very expensive fabric that you cannot normally afford, but we are going to cut you a little, fat piece of it and only charge you $2.00!!  Now you can have some.  Aren't you happy?"

Yes! I am so happy!

My mom also got me a book on how to make fabric yo-yo's and ideas to use them *and* a heart-shaped yo-yo maker!!

I am so excited, I want to cover *everything* in heart-shaped yo-yos!!

But then

will I have to cut my fabric to do that?

Because I don't want to cut it.

I just want to touch it,

and hold it

and love it.

I have to go now, the fabric is in the other room and I can't reach it from here.

♥ M~
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"All you who fear God, how blessed you are! How happily you walk on His smooth straight road!...Enjoy the blessing! Revel in the goodness!"
-Psalm 128:1 (the message)

mmmmm - fudgie (or the best chocolate cake in the world)

Okay, I was reminded that back at Valentines I promised the *best chocolate cake recipe ever*  and I forgot to post it. (by the way, that's *not* it in the picture, it's just the only chocolate cake picture I have right now.  I'll take a snap the next time I make it.)

This truly is the most delicious, moist, chocolat-y cake you will ever eat.  And really you should only eat it once a year, on special occasions because it is *not* figure friendly, if you know what I mean. 

In fact, it will beat your figure with a stick...that's how unfriendly it is.

But good...oh so good...

A few notes. 

-Don't substitute.  I know, I know, who has cake flour in the pantry?  But it is *worth* it big time....so go get some.  Same with Buttermilk and the Dark Chocolate cocoa...all necessary for the insane goodness that is this cake.

-I like to use parchment paper on the bottom as well as grease & flour because this cake is a *very* moist sticky cake - and can you believe it I found video to show you how to do it!  How cool is the internet??  Check it out:

-The batter for this cake is super thin, like liquidy thin, so don't freak out, it's supposed to look like that!

-You might want to put a pan underneath or some foil because this batter tends to run over a bit and drip.

-The baking time really varies from oven to oven.  Just keep an eye on it.  You don't want to burn it cause it smells and tastes really yucky when it burns.  (you can guess how I know this little detail.)

-You don't have to split the layers, (it's really tricky with this moist of a cake) but if you want to, guess what?  That's right!  I found a video:

-Make the Ganache filling before you start the cake because it has to sit in the fridge for a couple of hours before it's ready.

-When you whip the ganache to create the filling it will seem at first that it's not doing anything.  Just keep whipping and at a certain point it will start to lighten and then all of a sudden it will look like chocolate whipped cream.  Stop whipping!  If you over whip it will get grainy and gross. (again, no mystery how I know this, huh?)

So here it is:

Melissa's Ultimate (your-brother-will-demand-you-open-a-
bakery-when-he-tastes-it) Dark Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups of cake flour

2 cups + 2 Tbs white sugar
1 cup Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder
2 tsps baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs beaten
1 cup of cold brewed coffee
1 cup of buttermilk
3/4 cup of vegetable oil
2 tsps of pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Grease and flour 2 9" round cake pans.

2. In  a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Make a well in the center and pour in the eggs, coffee, buttermilk, oil and vanilla.  Mix well. The batter will be *thin*.

3. Pour into your prepared pans.

4. Bake the cakes in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

5. Let cool completely before splitting each of the layers into two for filling.

Chocolate Ganache Filling

Ingredients:

16 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped (you can sub semi-sweet chips here)
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. Heat cream slowly until just before boiling.

2. Pour over bowl of chocolate pieces and let sit for about one minute to melt the chocolate.

3. Whisk until smooth. Let cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for a couple of hours.

4. Once chilled, whip it with an electric mixer or stand mixer using the paddle attachment.

5. Spread between layers of cake. (or you  know...eat it with a spoon if no one else is home and you have enough stuff to make more...not that I've ever done that...)

Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing

{oh you thought we were done?...oh no my friend}

Ingredients:

1 8 oz package of cream cheese

4 Tbs heavy whipping cream

4 cups of powdered sugar

1/2 cup of butter, softened

2 tsps pure vanilla extract

1 cup of Hersheys Special Dark Chocolate Cocoa Powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese, heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, cocoa powder and cinnamon until creamy.  (don't over mix or you will create air bubbles and they don't look pretty.)

2. Spread onto layered and filled cake. (or you know eat it with a spoon....etc etc.)

So there you go.  Your diet will hate me, but you will love me and want to send me gifts and money when you taste this. :)

♥ M~

PS Can anyone tell me what that title quote is from? "mmmm-fudgie"
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"Jesus told them, "When you're celebrating a wedding, you don't skimp on the cake and wine. You feast. Later you may need to pull in your belt, but not now."
-Matthew 9:15

heart day snaps

As promised here are the photos from our lovely Valentines Day celebrations.

The homeschool party was wonderful.  So well organized and a tiny room filled with dozens of sweet, well-behaved children.  It made a mama proud. I wish I could show you photos of all the cuties there, but of course I shouldn't without permission. (ooh, I'm tempted though...they were so cute!)

One of the older girls had this t-shirt on that *totally* cracked me up:

In case you can't read it, it says:

Satan is bad.
Jesus is good.
Be like Jesus!

So funny.  I want one.

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This was Little O's first experience with Valentines boxes & cards and he was *so* thrilled to pass out the valentines he'd made.  I just love this shot of the little tongues sticking out in concentration.

He was even *more* excited when he got to his box and saw that it was full.  "Mama!  Someone put valentines in my box too!"  Man, it was cute.  He had no idea he was *receiving* Valentines too.

I showed you the fronts of his little valentines in this post.  Here's what we put on the back:

He also signed his name and then I scanned it in and printed it so he could glue it on. (I'm a big fan of copywork, but I am not gonna make a 4 year old sign his name 50 times!)

They had crafts set up for each age group.  Little O finished his and then joined Teen O in the "teens" area.  They were supposed to be making these roses with pipe cleaners, but the glue wouldn't hold so Teen O started crafting a helicopter! 

It was actually pretty cool and he had quite the fan club of little boys standing around him whispering as if he were a master craftsman, "How's he doing that?" "Oh cool, look he's making blades"  One of them even asked him how long he had been "working with pipe cleaners". (! *LOL*)  Of course he didn't mind the attention with two cute homeschool *teen* girls sitting right across from him. (hee-hee, don't tell him I told you that or I'm in *big* trouble!)

After the party (and the requisite running around that comes with having the car for the day) we went home and had our little family party.

I was going to make home made chicken and shrimp lo mein.  I even had the meat marinating in the fridge all day,  but I was so tired by the time we got home from errands and picking up hubby at work that my fabulous husband suggested we order take out instead (I so love that man).  He was going to order pizza but, (and please don't laugh at me here) I had planned little "take out box" favors to go with the  lo mein I was going to make so I made him order chinese take out to stick with my theme. 

Here are my little favor boxes:

Found them at Target.  I plan to reuse them for all sorts of stuff. They are so cute!

This is the cake I made for dessert:

I would give you the recipe, but I tried a new one and let's just say it looks a lot yummier than it was.  I do like that pan though.  Isn't a heart shaped bundt cake the coolest thing?

By the way, I *have* a recipe for chocolate cake that is the most yummiest recipe *ever.*  My brother & sister-in-law demanded that I open a bakery when they tasted it.  It's very tender and moist though so I didn't think it would hold up to the bundt shape and I *really* wanted to use that pan!  I'll share that cake recipe one of these days.  remind me.

   

So this was my centerpiece.  I just stacked a bunch of cake plates and then sprinkled them with little paper hearts left over from making valentines.  I put a little heart basket with some tinsel that I've had *for years* on the top.

Ok, well, o-man is *literally* standing over me, waiting for me to come and spend a little time with him before we crash so I will see you all tomorrow.

Blessings,

M~
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"Still, if you set your heart on God and reach out to him, If you scrub your hands of sin and refuse to entertain evil in your home, You'll be able to face the world unashamed and keep a firm grip on life, guiltless and fearless. You'll forget your troubles; they'll be like old, faded photographs. Your world will be washed in sunshine, every shadow dispersed by dayspring. Full of hope, you'll relax, confident again; you'll look around, sit back, and take it easy."
-Job 11:12-13

oh the snacky happiness

Cupcakes!

Here they are fresh from the oven:

I got the recipe from a site I just recently found and I really should delete it from my bookmarks because it is *dan*ger*ous*.  Know what I mean Vern? (oh my gosh, I am *so* old.  Please tell me someone else remembers those commercials?)

Anyway the site is Cupcake Bake Shop and this woman is just a cupcake genius (I just misspelled the word 'genius' *and* the word 'misspelled'...evil spellcheck is mocking me). 

I am warning you *Do Not* click that link if you are hungry, or like cupcakes...or you know...have an oven and some sugar....because you will be sorry...(I'm just kidding...go there right now...so many pretty cupcakes!!)

Here is the recipe:

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cupcakes
24 regular cupcakes / 350 degree oven

    3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter
    2 cups sugar
    3 eggs
    2 cups flour
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    3/4 cup cocoa powdered
    2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
    1-1/2 cups milk
    2 teaspoons vanilla

1. Beat butter until softened. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating 30 seconds after each addition.
3. Measure the flour, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder, and espresso powder into a medium sized bowl and whisk to combine.
4. Measure the milk and vanilla into a measuring thing.
5. Add about a third of the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar and beat to combine. Add about a half of the milk/vanilla and beat to combine. Continue adding, alternating between dry and wet and finishing with the dry.
6. Scoop batter into cupcake cups about 2/3’s full.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

After I made the batter I realized I had just put *coffee* in cupcakes for kids who will most likely be eating three tons of sugar and chocolate... I feel bad, but you know, they are *mini* cupcakes...and it's really not *that* much.... only 2 Tablespoons in like seventy-five little cupcakes....and.... please don't tell the other homeschool moms ok?

I made buttercream frosting using a recipe I've had (and tweaked) since I taught cake decorating classes years ago:

Buttercream Frosting
    1 1/2 cups (2-1/2 sticks) butter
    6 cups powdered sugar
    1/4 cup milk
    1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1. Beat butter until softened.
2. With mixer on low, alternately add milk, sugar and vanilla
3. Beat until mixed thoroughly
4. Be sure not to over mix or you will create air bubbles in the icing.

Here they are in all their frosted and sprinkled glory.

In spite of my own recipe saying not to over mix I *did* in fact over mix the icing and created a bunch of air bubbles, but other than that I think they turned out pretty cute. 

I'm ashamed to admit how many pictures I took of them.  In fact I'm not going to tell you. 

Here's a sliced one.  I was trying to get a shot like the cupcake lady, but it didn't turn out quite as good as hers.

So now off to lick the icing bowl do a final load of laundry and get myself to bed.

I will not be here tomorrow, but I have cleverly *scheduled* a special valentine post just for you.  I think you will like it.  (if you've been reading my blog for awhile it may be a repeat, but it's so, so good I just had to post it again.)

Happy Heart Day Eve!

M~
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"When you're given a box of candy, don't gulp it all down; eat too much chocolate and you'll make yourself sick..."
-Proverbs 25:16 the message

cold night thankful {heARTs} and warm soup

brrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Wow.  It is really *ccccold* in Texas tonight!

thankful thursday

What a difference a week makes!  God is so good and my dad is doing so well.  My heart is overflowing with gratitude towards those who have been praying for us.  I really do feel your prayers and I count it an honor that you would take that time in your chatting with the Lord to mention me & my daddy. Really, I do.  It's humbling.

I'm thankful for so many things, but today I'm especially thankful for this box of bolts and fuses sitting next to me (hubby is correcting me somewhere in his head right now - fuses, bolts, circuits, whatever) that has allowed me to take a peek into some of your lives, pray for you, laugh with you, go on wild, rabbitty blog trails (spell check is outraged at the word rabbitty - ha!) with you, finding other amazing women who are just trying to be good moms and not throw the tv out the window (or some other mommy impulse) every day. 

I am really grateful that God is showing me that I'm right where I need to be, doing exactly what He wants me to be doing right now. 

That being a mother is valuable.  yep.  it is. 

That loving and nurturing these two little people (well one is *hardly* little anymore, but you know what I mean) is critical to the success of the mission.  I'm needed here right now.  And I'm so thankful that I'm finally getting that.

So thankful.

{heART}

Remember my e-zine from the other blog?  "The {heART} of the Matter"?  I'm gonna start that over here.  Soon.  I have lots of ideas and a whole new implementation concept (you know, like um...actually doing it).  Anyway...look out for a little sign up dealie in the sidebar and a little treat for those who sign up first!

and more {heART}


I am so ready for Valentine's Day!!  You may have guessed from the colors of my blog that I like pink & red. No. really.  I do.

As you can imagine Valentines is my funnest!

(heh-heh, kidding...I know that's not a sentence a grown up would say - it's just fun saying it...don't freak out writer types and grammar peoples...k?) 

So I am getting ready to make lots of pretties!  Look!

The fabric & ribbon is stuff I've had for awhile.

I just picked up the above today.  Pink legal pads...isn't that the greatest??  How inspired are my notes going to be now??

I'm actually going to be sewing some fabric instead of paper for a change so I needed some straight pins and a...pin...holder...thingie.  Now I know the tomato pin cushion (there it is - pin cushion) is sort of utilitarian and *not* handmade and I actually saw some sweet ones on Etsy that I loved, but when I saw the tomato today...well...it just reminded me of my mom and being a little girl

(who refused to learn how to sew, by the way, when she had a fabulously talented seamstress of a mom willing to teach her and whose grown up self does not now appreciate that she was so hard-headed about that!)

and I don't know...I felt sentimental about it...plus...you know it's red and look how cute it looks against that pink notepad!?

So I am hoping to get lots of craftiness done this weekend and have all kinds of good papery, fabric-y things to show you on Monday!

warm soup

And finally what we had for dinner tonight:

I typically don't do packaged stuff...yuk...but this is "all natural" and really it's just the dried beans and spices, which unless you're planning on growing and drying your own beans and spices....(I know there is someone reading this who probably *does* that!)....then I think it's ok.

Besides which, it has ribbon on the package and really...how bad can a food product be that comes with ribbon??

So here it is after just pouring it in to the water.  Doesn't it look pretty?

(Just FYI, if you are the "non-instruction-reading" type and go and just pour the beans into the pot...you may end up pouring the little seasoning packet into the pot too...and then have to fish it out...not that I did that or anything...'cause...you know...I *always* read the instructions....)

I added some sauteed onions, peppers and garlic as well as a little chopped smoked ham and it turned out pretty yummy.  I think next time I will add more veggies though, like celery, carrots and more peppers. 

Alright then...snuggle up with your families and friends or just a good book and hot mug of tea and keep warm tonight!

Don't forget to enter my bloggy giveaway  if you haven't....it's the last night before I pick a winner!

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"At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way."
-Luke 10:21