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Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Going to the Lake for a Spooky Halloween

I think Abby and I will carve our pumpkin at the lake on the porch while Jon does some Deer hunting Saturday morning.


We are going Trick or Treating at Gran Mas and Paw Paws. Maybe have some soup and corn bread - that would be Yummy! Abby is going to be a ballerina this year and I am going to be a pregnant witch - hehe.

On Sunday we are going to Madison for Miss Morgan's Baby shower for baby Isabella. How Fun!!! This weekend is jammed packed full of fun. We cannot wait to see everybody.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Fall Festival - Recipes






Spiderweb cookies-


Ingredients
Cookies: favorite brand of Sugar Cookie mix
icing:
3 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons milk
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Directions
1. Cookies: Heat oven to 350°. Coat 2 baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray. In bowl, prepare cookie dough as directed on package
2. Drop Tablespoonful of dough onto prepared sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Spread slightly with spatula. ( I prefer to roll into balls - the cookie dough will flaten as it heats up)
3. Bake 1 sheet at a time in 350° oven 13 to 15 minutes, until toothpick inserted in centers tests clean. Remove cookies to rack to cool.
4. Icing: Blend confectioners sugar, corn syrup, vanilla and 3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons milk until smooth. Remove 1/3 cup icing to small bowl and stir in cocoa and remaining 2 teaspoons milk. Transfer chocolate icing to plastic bag; snip off corner.
5. Turn cookies flat-side up. Spread white icing over one cookie. Beginning in center, pipe a spiral of chocolate icing onto cookie. Starting in center of spiral, drag a knife through spiral for spiderweb pattern. Repeat with all cookies. Let stand until set.
** I have changed this recipe to make it easier to make**
Spooky Surprise Cupcakes












1 (8 oz.) block cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1 pkg Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Devil's Food Cake Mix
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tub Duncan Hines® Creamy Home-Style Classic Chocolate Frosting
1 tub Duncan Hines® Creamy Home-Style Classic Vanilla Frosting
chocolate decorating decors
Blend together cream cheese, 1 egg, sugar, until smooth and creamy; set aside.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Place paper baking cups in muffin cups.
Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Fill each muffin cup 1/2 full of batter. Place a dollop of cream cheese mixture in center of each cupcake.
Bake for 23-26 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan 5 minutes then remove to cooling rack to cool completely before frosting and decorating.
To decorate cupcakes -- frost top of each cupcake with chocolate frosting. : set aside. Place vanilla frosting into plastic resealable bag. Cut a pinpoint hole in one corner of the bag. Starting in the center, pipe frosting in circles on top of cupcakes, making each circle larger than the previous. Drag a toothpick through the circles in an outward, spoke like motion to create a spider web.
**you do not have to do the creamcheese filling** if in a crunch - make cupcakes acording to box and To decorate cupcakes -- frost top of each cupcake with chocolate frosting. : set aside. Place vanilla frosting into plastic resealable bag. Cut a pinpoint hole in one corner of the bag. Starting in the center, pipe frosting in circles on top of cupcakes, making each circle larger than the previous. Drag a toothpick through the circles in an outward, spoke like motion to create a spider web. :) **


Pumpkin spice cake



1 pkg Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Spice Cake Mix - or any other flavor you desire
2 large eggs
1 cup water
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup chopped nuts
2 tubs Duncan Hines® Creamy Home-Style Classic Vanilla Frosting
green, red and yellow food coloring
1 flat bottom ice cream cone
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 10-inch Bundt pan.
Combine cake mix, eggs, water and pumpkin in large bowl. Beat at medium speed with electric mixer for 2 minutes. Stir in nuts. Pour into pan.
Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 25 minutes. Invert onto serving plate. Cool completely.
Measure 1/4 cup frosting into small bowl. Tint with green food coloring. Place ice cream cone upside down on waxed paper. Frost with green frosting. Refrigerate.
Tint remaining frosting with red and yellow food coloring until frosting is desired orange color. Measure 3 tablespoons orange frosting in small bowl; add green food coloring to brown frosting.
Frost cake with orange frosting. Make eyes, mouth and nose with brown frosting as desired on pumpkin. Place green frosted ice cream cone in center hole of cake for stem.

Projects for a Rainy Day

Whew with all of this rainy fall weather - I needed some crafts to keep me busy... We headed to Joann's today and got the material for the stockings. I was so proud of miss Abby, I was in there for about an hour-and she did so good- her reward was candy corn.(which she can pronounce perfectly- I guess we work on those things that really matter :D ) The snowmen will be for Jon and me and the reindeer will be for Abby and Nate. I chose to do the cuff a color - so the cuff on the snowmen stockings will be red and the cuff on the reindeer stockings will be brown.




For Abby, I think that this little bag will come in very handy when she goes to church nursery and starts preschool next year. I do have to give props to Jessica, she gave me the idea- she is so crafty!! I do not do embroidery at all so,I went with the iron on letter. The ribbion will go below the letter and in the center there will be a bow.


Whew. Looks like I have my work cut out for me... but I like doing this kind of crafting. It just makes me feel like " oh yes I can " - I will post pictures when the projects are complete. :)

Friday, October 9, 2009

Nathan's Room is DONE!!!

Cinderellie!! Cinderellie!! No joke seriously that is what I feel like, but it is my own fault. I just do not remember it being like this when I was pregnant with Abby. Probably because I was not also chasing after a very active toddler. Whew, okay so we made it to storytime today at the library just in time to see Dinosaur Man- and boy was he funny. He taught Abby and me all about carnivores, herbivores and extinction - plus the importance of eating our veggies.


So after storytime we went to Joanns because they were having a AWESOME columbus day sale! We got Nathan some baskets for his closet to put the non hangie up clothes in. Like socks, mittens, and hats and little onesies and stuff like that. Abby would have been content if we bought all of the baskets so that she could sit in them and throw them and do as she pleased. I was not sure if she and I were going to get out of Joanns in ONE PIECE. Just kidding. So of course it was getting close to nap time, and today I was lucky she actually took a nap! So here are the fruits of my efforts. I was able to get all of Nathans little clothes in the new baskets while she napped.


Plus - she and I are both fighting seasonal allergies - can I just say that Zyrtec is a blessing. I never knew why they charged like $25 for such small bottle of medicine - but it is well worth the money paid!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Please share this information with at least one woman you know. You could make a difference in their life.

http://www.nbcam.org/index.cfm

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Nathans Room

Nathan- We are ready for your arrival little man.

Baby shower in disguise-Diana and I went shopping today - Whew what a day... She entertained Abby while I was able to pick up several things that we wanted for Nathan. Then when we went to check out - she said - I am getting this... WOW!! How wonderful! Nana and Papa Bill you all ROCK!! Abby was such a trooper-she played with the toys - then we went and had lunch at Chick-fil-a, where she had her nuggets and fries and of course played on the playground. Today was a very sucessful day. Jon and I are so blessed to have great family so close.

















What we got

  • Hooded Towels
  • Burp Cloths
  • Gowns
  • Holiday Clothes
  • More Clothes
  • Mittens (for newborns)
  • kiddopatamus -swaddle me blanket
  • Lulliby bear that sings Jesus loves me

Looking out my backdoor



While we were eating dinner last night - three deer trotted across our front yard. It was a beautiful site to see. I love this time of year deer are on the move and they are everywhere.