Works for Me Wednesday!

Don't you hate it when you have a recipe you really want to make, but are missing ONE ingredient? I do! We currently have only one car, so when my husband is at work, I unfortunately cant go to the store and grab it. This was my situation today! So...I improvised!!!

I wanted to make no-bake cookies, but was missing the key ingredient...the quick-cooking oats! Fortunately I did have a big box of Quakers Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal!

Crisis averted!!!

They turned out perfect, and DELICIOUS!

Here's the recipe!

Maple & Brown Sugar No Bake Cookies

What You Will Need:

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup unsalted butter

4 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

8 packets(3 cups) of maple & brown sugar instant oatmeal

1 tsp. vanilla extract

wax paper

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa. Bring to a boil, and cook for about 1 1/2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Then, stir in the peanut butter,

then the oatmeal and vanilla.
Mix well!

Drop spoonfuls onto your wax paper, and let cool until hardened.

Yum! It doesn't get better than chocolaty, peanut buttery goodness!

Enjoy!

Note: If you wanna make plain old no-bake cookies, omit the packets of oatmeal for 3 cups of quick-cooking oats.

Bella's Birthday Cake & A Blog Bake Off!

They are having a blog bake-off over at Summer's Cakes! Check out her blog! Her cakes are Amazing! I thought about baking another concoction for my entry but this is my favorite creation that I've made so far! So here it is...Bella's birthday cake!

So for some reason I decided that I would make Bella's birthday cake this year. On top of that I decided that since she is having a tea party themed birthday, I would make her cake in the shape of a teapot. I drew out a few different designs and had Bella pick one. Not really sure what I was thinking! HaHa! This was a huge challenge! But for the first birthday cake that I have ever made...I think I did a pretty good job.

The teapot is a yellow ball cake covered in buttercream frosting and then fondant. The teacups are chocolate cupcakes also covered in buttercream and then decorated in fondant. The saucers are sugar cookies in buttercream n fondant.

This isn't a very good picture. I used neon colored fondant. It looks alot brighter in person!

Thank goodness I only have to do this once or twice a year!

Lunch!

Mommy: "Hey Bella, What do you want for lunch today?"

Bella: "Ummm. How about a knuckle sandwich? That would be yummy!"

Not Me Monday!

The "Not Me!" Monday blog carnival was created by MckMama at My Charming Kids. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing.

As for me...

My week was pretty uneventful, thus my lack of blogging. I did sell some items in My Etsy Shop which is always exciting! I have had not the least bit of cabin fever...I swear!

So when Friday came along, I most certainly did not tell my husband to take the night off from the fam and have a night out with his friends knowing that I would be bored out of my mind! Why would I do that? I did not then take pictures of myself with the web cam on my laptop, documenting my boredom!

Not me...Never!

I was not surprised in the least that my husband arrived home earlier than I expected! I was thinking that he would be out 'til the bars closed, but instead he was home by 1am. Why you ask? Well he for sure was not at a gay club! Bahahaha! If any of you know my husband, you would find this hilarious!

His good friend Lankston did not drag him and Warden to said gay club promising free drinks due to his connections! I do not now question Lanky's sexuality in the slightest...Not me! Haha! Although I guess I should have always since he and my husband jokingly refer to him as my husband's boyfriend since they are such good buddies! LOL!

The three amigos, I'm absolutely sure were not the only straight men in the bar, which for them would be awkward...which it was not. Not even when the "male performers" came out, and their clothes started coming off! This of course was not the point that my husband left to hurry home to his wife! I really wish I had pictures of that night out! Hee Hee!

P.S. My husband is not going to kill me for blogging about this!

We had a relaxed Saturday, and went searching for used books! I love the smell of old books it reminds me of the library in elementary school!

Sunday, we went grocery shopping. My hubby made some fettuccine alfredo. I made the speal! Then we sat down and watched Land of the Lost. I would like to tell you that I did not consume an entire bag of chocolate covered pretzels while watching it!

Then the wee ones were off to bed, and it was time to watch my show...TRUE BLOOD! Hooray! Its back! I'm not excited I assure you! The very first episode of season two was good...as anticipated. I was not at all peeved when my DVR cut off the end! Grrrr! Oh well!

All About Us!!!

A: The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B: Each player answers the questions about themselves.


Robby-- 10 years ago I:
1. got my first car
2. was 16
3. loved to skateboard

Melina-- 10 Years Ago I:
1. went to San Francisco n Alcatraz with Ash
2. was about to start high school
3. I was so young and in shape!!!

Robby-- 5 things on my to-do list today:
1. help Lanky pass his PT test
2. shoot expert
3. go to class
4. look good
5. get it on with my wife

Melina-- 5 things on my to-do list today:
1. Take care of Lilly Bean and Bella Boo!
2. Clean the house
3. Call the vet.
4. Make doctors appointments for me and the girls.
5. Sew something

Robby-- 5 Snacks I enjoy:
1. Mustard flavored pretzels
2. chips and salsa
3. twix
4. pistachios
5. sunflower seeds

Melina-- 5 Snacks I enjoy:
1. Popcorn and nacho cheese
2. Chocolate covered pretzels or raisins
3. Chips with salsa and sour cream
4. Milano cookies
5. mini turkey n american cheese lunchables

Robby-- What I would do if I were suddenly made a billionaire:
I would build a cabin in the woods and buy a million gallons of gasoline, a generator,food, a hundred years of books, n would never leave!

Melina-- What I would do if I were suddenly made a billionaire:
Build my dream home and decorate, decorate, decorate, build a vacation cob home in the country, buy a car, pay off our debts, take a family vacation, take a second honeymoon, take Bella n Lil' shopping, invest, learn to speak at least 3 languages fluently, help out family and friends, start new charities, and donate to others, the possibilities would be endless.

Robby-- 5 places I have lived:
1. Alexandria,VA
2. Lebanon, OR
3. Lafayette, LA
4. El Paso, TX
5. Huntsville, AL

Melina-- 5 places I have lived:
1. Spokane, Washington
2. Lebanon, Oregon
3. Lafayette Louisiana
4. Alexandria(Fort Belvoir), Virginia
5. El Paso(Fort Bliss), Texas

Robby-- 5 jobs that I have had:
1. Mcdonald's employee
2. Costco box boy
3. US Army soldier
4. federal technician
5. gas attendant

Melina-- 5 jobs that I have had:
1. Concession Worker
2. Window Display Designer
3. Sales Associate
4. Receptionist
5. Customer Service/Front-End Supervisor

Robby-- 3 of my favorite books:
1. Of Mice and Men
2. IT
3. Lost World


Melina-- 3 of my favorite books:
1. When World Views Collide
2. Eclipse
3. Breaking Dawn

Writer's Block!

I have been trying for the past 5 days to add a new post to this lovely blog of mine! I'm pretty sure that I have writers block, cause I've got nothin! LOL! So since I for the moment cannot come up with anything witty or interesting to write about, and Bella hasn't said anything hilarious lately, I will leave you with the easy casserole dish I mentioned in this post! Enjoy, and until my writer's block passes...Ta-Ta! :D

Tater-Tot Casserole

What you will need:

13x9 casserole dish

Tater-tots

1-1/2 lbs Hamburger

Salt and Pepper

1 packet of taco seasoning (optional)

2 cans Cream of Mushroom soup

2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese or mexi-blend

Frank's brand hot sauce(optional)

Preheat your oven to 350. Then line a casserole dish with frozen tater-tots as shown above!

Brown 1-1 1/2lbs of hamburger in a skillet, salt and pepper to taste.(Tip: for mexi-style omit salt and pepper, and add taco seasoning to the hamburger as directed on packet, Taco Bell brand is my favorite!)Drain. Then add two cans of Cream of Mushroom soup(Tip: use garlic cream of mushroom soup for more flavor).

Pour hamburger mixture over tater-tots in casserole dish. Make sure all of the tater-tots are covered.

Sprinkle cheese over the top and bake for 30 minutes!

(Tip: add some Frank's hot sauce for some extra flavor!)

Enjoy!

What's The Point? Wednesday!

Whats the point of taking antibiotics, if all they do is make your stomach hurt, and you are still hacking your lungs out?

Whats the point of having coloring books if your child uses themself as a canvas?

Whats the point of vacuuming your living room floor and furniture, if your lovely shedding bulldog follows right after you and rubs himself all over the newly cleaned space and then shakes so his fur flies everywhere?

Whats the point of beautifully reupholstering your dining room chairs if your four year old daughter sits in one? They are destined for dumped spaghetti sauce, spilled juice, and the results of a leaking grape otter pop!

Whats the point in buying a special Dora garbage can for your daughter's room, if every time she finds a piece of garbage, she comes downstairs and asks you to throw it away for her? Do I look like the Garbage Man? Man...I hope not! :o)

Seriously...This is my day!