Baked Ham Glazed

Baked Ham Recipe
1 - 8 to 10 pound smoked ham
whole cloves

Glaze for Baked Ham

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup orange juice
1 cup packed light brown sugar

Preheat oven according to package cooking directions. Place ham fat side up on the rack of a shallow roasting pan. Insert meat thermometer through fat side into center of thickest part of the ham, but don't let it touch the bone. Bake ham according to package directions. About 1/2 hour before ham is done prepare glaze by combining ingredients and mixing well. Next remove ham from oven and pour off drippings. Peel away any rind that is left on ham and score ham with a sharp knife. While scoring make diamond shaped cuts. Insert a clove into each diamond. Spread ham generously with glaze and return to oven. After applying glaze, bake until
desired internal temperature is reached. Remove ham from oven and allow to stand for about 20 minutes before slicing. If desired, remaining glaze can be poured over sliced ham.
Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Old Fashioned Pink Lemonade

An Easy to Prepare Old Fashioned Southern Beverage Favorite
Homemade pink lemonade is wonderfully refreshing. This thirst quenching drink
is also a southern favorite, running close second to homemade lemonade.
This recipe calls for grenadine syrup which is made from pomegranate juice and
sugar. This ingredient is used in a variety of products including cocktails,
carbonated drinks, desserts, liquors and marinades.
Pink Lemonade Recipe
Ingredients
6 – lemons
2 – teaspoons grenadine syrup
1/2 to 3/4 – cup sugar
4 – cups water
1 – cup crushed ice

Mixing Instructions
This is a very easy recipe to make. Rinse lemons thoroughly. Prepare lemons for
squeezing by rolling them between the palm of your hand and the kitchen counter
top, to break up the pulp and produce more juice.
Next cut lemons in half and squeezed out the juice. If you have a juicer use it,
if not just squeeze your juice into a bowl. Remove the seed from the squeezed
lemon juice.
Pour lemon juice into a pitcher and add grenadine syrup, sugar and water. Stir
vigorously until sugar is completely dissolved. Next add crushed ice and serve
immediately.
Enjoy your Pink Lemonade.

Pecan Pie

Pecan Pie Recipe
Recipe ingredients:
2 - Frozen Unbaked 8 Or 9 inch Pie Shells
1/2 - Pound Butter Or Margarine
2 - Cups Pure Fine Granulated Sugar
6 - Eggs
1/2 - Cup White Corn Syrup
2 - Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
2 - Cups Finely Chopped Pecans

Cookware and Utensils:
1 - Measuring cup
1 – Mixing bowl
1 – Stirring spoon
1 – Cooking Bender

Recipe instructions:
As always the key to great cooking is preparation and quality ingredients.
Preheat oven to 350.
For starters, go ahead and cream your butter. Once the butter is creamed add
sugar and continue to cream until your mixture is light and fluffy.
Next add your slightly beaten eggs and the other ingredients. Give your mixture
one final mixing.
Finally, pour your mixture evenly into your two unbaked pie shells. Bake for 45
minutes at 350 degrees on your lower oven rake.

Preparation Time = 30 minutes
Cooking Time = 45 minutes
I'm sure you wiil enjoy this southern dessert favorite.
Quick Tips
You can cut your preparation time considerably but buying finely chopped pecans
from your local grocery store.
If you like ice cream and pie just add a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream to your
piece of Pecan Pie.

Source: Yahoo Group Friendly Recipe Swap Laura Brown

Peach Cobbler

In honor of one of Southern Illinois favorite crops and the Peach Festival that started today I am sharing a delicious peach cobbler recipe with you

Quick & Easy Peach Cobbler

1 lg. can peaches (we used real peaches)
1 c. flour
1 egg
1 c. sugar
1 stick butter
1 tsp. vanilla (optional)

Place peaches and juice in an 8 x 10 baking pan and dot with extra butter. To make pastry, combine butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla. Stir in flour. Drop by tablespoon over peaches. Bake at 400°F for 30 minutes

Shared at Friday Foods @ MomTrends

FingerPrints on the Fridge

Frozen Fruit Salad

I can remember the first time I saw this wonderful dessert. My mother was having a party ( in those days she had tupperware, toy, fuller brush etc... ) Parties all the time and this would be the treat for the guest. It looked so delicious and mother served on best dishware. It was very special. It is very easy to make as well.

FROZEN FRUIT SALAD

1 (12 oz.) carton Cool Whip
1 can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 can Cherry pie filling
1/4 tsp. Almond extract
1 small can pineapple, chunks or crushed (drain and reserve juice)
2-3 bananas, chopped
Optional- 3/4 cups chopped nuts

Pour pineapple juice over bananas then drain. Mix all ingredients and freeze.

Win Mead Products For Back To School

Summer time is a lazy sort of season for many of us. The heat makes it too hot to be serious in my opinion. Schools are out and students can often forget some of what they learned if they are not careful. Mead has created a series of books writing is fundamental series. These books can help your child get a jump start on the new year. She Scribes is hosting giveaway where a lucky winner will win the series of books from Mead. This giveaway ends August 14, 2010.

Summer Project

How do you like the new pond in my friends yard? I think it looks great. This was a project that she worked to get done with her husband. She is so proud of it.

Outdoor Wednesday

One of the activities / service projects at church during VBS was car wash. The kids loved this activity and I believe so did the workers. Here is the first grade group that my son led.

Winning Wednesday

Winning Wednesday is here again time to share with you all the winner of the giveaways ending this week

• Winner of the OnTray giveaway is
  aledol said...
  "OnTray proudly donates a
  percentage of its sales to
  Feeding America."
• Winner of the Good Earth Dinner Kit is
  bison61 said...
  Tuscan Chicken with penne pasta sounds good
• Winner of the Easy Lunchbox System is
  cherdon said...
  I follow The Easy Lunchbox System on twitter
• winner of the BuyGreenWare.com cup and plate set is:
  kyla g said...
  I like the corn cutting board!
• winner of the cangles gc is
  anna said...
  love the women's 7up bangle in silver~thx for the
  giveaway~
• winner of the Gortons seafood coupons are
  susan said...
  I love the fish sticks and would love to try the grilled shrimp -
  
  stroker881 said...
  I love their fish sticks...but would love to try their crunchy popcorn shrimp!
  
  Owen's Mom said...
  Daily tweet #3
  http://twitter.com/notimeMom/status/18952766062
  
  js22 said...
  I love the Butterfly Shrimp.
  I'd like to try their Grilled Shrimp Scampi.
  Thanks for the giveaway!
• Winner of the Purse Perfector:
  Donna said...
  I follow your blog
• Winner of the Baby Bunch Cupcake Onesies:
  Blogged: http://pocketfullofsprinkles.blogspot.com/2010/07/baby-bunch-giveaway.html #7

Tips for Kids In The Kitchen

I have always been a mother who has always loved working with my children in the kitchen. There are great times to have in the kitchen working closely together with your child will allow you to create a bond and memories. There are few things that you should be aware of when working with your children in the kitchen.

Safety Tips:

• Working with your child in the kitchen means that you must keep your eyes aware of all activities. It is always a great idea to have a small talk with you child(ren) about what they are allowed to do, what they should never do, and what they need help doing.
• Glass items should be up and out of the way. Little hands do not need to get hold of these older children when allowed can help in this area when allowed.
• Knives and sharp instruments should only be used with adult supervision or by adults only depending on child's age

What can children under 10 do to help in the kitchen:

• Children under 3 can spend time with mom and dad in the kitchen as well. Most of their time will be spent time playing but they can help do small chores as well. My granddaughter has her own play size pots and pans and kitchen as she pretends to work along beside her mother in the kitchen. She can however help om with small things like cleaning up small dust piles, getting cans together, and small task such as those.
• Children ages 3 to 5 move up the work chain just a bit as they can do more to help in the kitchen. They can set the table, get condiments out of fridge, help put together small dishes such as salad with the help of a grown up. One thing that my children always loved to do was to make ants on log made with peanut butter, celery and raisins. They love to help whenever and where ever they get the chance.
• Children ages 6 to 10 years of age are now in school and have learned to do more activities independently. School age children can use peelers to peel vegetables, set table, take out trash, help with dishes, wash counters, and learn to sweep floors. Many children this age can cook using the microwave and I can remember my mother sending me outside to shuck corn, snap green beans and peas/ children this age can also start preparing easy desserts with assistance of a grown up.

I hope you find time to work with you child in the kitchen. Have fun and get to know each other better.

Book Review : How To Reach Your Full Potential for God

This was a book that I thought was very interesting and shared it with my son shortly before his 18th birthday. There comes a time in life when we are really not sure who we are or where we are going. Dr. Charles Stanley, renowned speaker and author, created a vision of life when he wrote the book How To Reach Your Full Potential for God. Charles Stanley shares with us in this book about the many damaging lies Christians tell their selves. Lies like "Things Will Never Change" "I can Never Get Better" etc... The lies are what we make in our minds but is not at all how God sees us. God loves us beyond measure and sees us as his children. Through this book Dr. Stanley shares with us how he believes God sees us. Through the loving pages of the book How To Reach Your Full Potential for God readers are guided and come to acknowledge that the thoughts and lies we have believed are all untrue and strive to reach the goal and life that God has planned for them.

Smiling Tomato

A lady here where we lived grew this tomato that looks as if it is smiling. WHat do you think. Have you ever raised any oddities in your garden?

Quite A Fish Story

Ruby Tuesday

This is my son leading his group. I am so happy that the red truck was there so I could share these pictures on this post and meme.

This is my daughter in the back of her group as they go up the hill

Summer Baking Tips for Serving Desserts & Staying Cool

While many of us love desserts the heat of the summer can slow our love of baking down a bit. There are a few different things that you can do to avoid the heat.

• Using the microwave to cook delicious desserts can save time, and help you avoid the heat.
  5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake
  
  4 tablespoons flour
  4 tablespoons sugar
  2 tablespoons cocoa
  1 egg
  3 tablespoons milk
  3 tablespoons oil
  3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
  1 dash vanilla extract
  
  Add dry ingredients to a large, microwave-safe mug and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. EAT ! (this can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous). And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world? Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night! Source: CD Kitchen


• Cook early in the morning or late at night can help you avoid the heat as well. The sun is down and often the house is cooler at these times


• Use the crockpot to bake those desserts. The house will stay cool and you will have a delicious dessert as well.

Crockpot Apple Crisp
6 medium cooking apples, peeled, cored, sliced
1 1/2 cup flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
***Optional toppings:***
Vanilla ice cream, if desired
Maraschino cherries, if desired
Whipped cream or whipped topping, if desired

Grease crockpot, line with apples. Mix together flour, sugar, spices and margarine in a bowl. Cover the apples with this mixture. (Pack it on top.) Cook on high for 3-4 hours.
Scoop out a portion and serve with any or all of the optional toppings.

• Quick and Easy Desserts are great for summer time. They keep the house cool, are easy to fix and are less time demanding

Heavenly Hash

1 small box instant vanilla pudding
1 medium can crushed pineapple
2-3 handfuls miniature marshmallows
1 can fruit cocktail
1 9-oz Cool Whip

Mix pineapple, juice and all, with pudding mix. Drain fruit cocktail. Add other ingredients. Stir together. Chill.

• Cold desserts such as ice cream, pudding and desserts that are kept cool are wonderful for the summer time.

Apple Snicker Dessert

4-6 red or green Delicious apples
1 small box instant vanilla pudding
4 Snicker candy bars
1 cup milk
8 oz tub Cool Whip

Blend pudding, milk and Cool Whip together. Dice unpeeled washed apples and add to vanilla pudding mixture. Add cut up Snicker bars. Refrigerate until ready to serve

I love to serve desserts to my family year round. I hope that these tips have helped to inspire you of ways to serve desserts to your family and staying cool.

Asian Chicken Slaw

Slaw:
2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast (about 1 pound)
3/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped sugar snap peas
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 (10-ounce) package angel hair slaw
1 (8-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained

Dressing:
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Remaining ingredients:
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted

To prepare slaw, combine the first 7 ingredients in a large bowl. To prepare dressing, combine cider vinegar and next 6 ingredients (through black pepper) in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Pour dressing over the slaw; toss to coat. Cover and chill 1 hour. Sprinkle with slivered almonds and sesame seeds before serving

Source: my recipes

Creamy Stove Top Mac N Cheese

4 cups uncooked medium elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 1/4 cups fat-free milk
1/4 cup (2 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and set aside. While pasta cooks, place flour, salt, and pepper in a large saucepan. Add milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Drop cream cheese by teaspoonfuls into milk mixture; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat; simmer 2 minutes or until thick and cream cheese melts, stirring occasionally. Stir in mustard, Worcestershire, and garlic; simmer 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add cheddar cheese, stirring until cheese melts. Combine pasta and cheese sauce in a large bowl; toss well.

Source: My Recipes

Random Thought Tuesday

Wow!!! Can you believe August is here? Back to school time and back to an empty house for at least part of the day here. While my daughters who are to be attending college have dragged their heels to get things done I am proud to say my sons were on the ball and they are ready to go. Things are starting to look better for the girls as I believe the last of the paperwork has been turned in. I for one hope for a good year for all of them.

My mom has a little shop in a small town where she sells new, old, rare and even odd items. She started out being the only shop on the block now there are several shops on the block and it is becoming harder and harder for her to find a parking spot let alone the customers. This I believe is when you know it is time to look for another location. I wish them the best of luck in whatever they do as they have been doing great business as of late so the decision to move is a hard one.

VBS is over and a week from this coming Sunday we will have our big Back To School boost. This is always great for the children who need items and the workers who show up to meet, greet and help. I am one of those workers and my children work as well. If you are a praying person I ask that you keep this event on your list.

Well that's about all the random I have right now what do you have on your mind? Would love to hear and share in your thoughts as well.

Follow me Back Tuesday

Follow Me & I will Follow You Back.

Bella Sara Review and Giveaway

Bella Sara is a magical world of horses that lets every little girl dream about the what ifs. Skills of imagination are build by playing with the wild magical horses. Americans were first introduced to the world of Bella Sara in 2007 by Hidden City Entertainment Inc. What if horses were magical and could make all the bad things go away? Just for a moment while collecting magical themed cards and miniatures they can escape into a magical world where things are full of magic and fun. Bella Sara is featured in trading cards, a virtual world @ BellaSara.com, DVDs, toys, books, video games, arts and crafts, games and puzzle, apparel, and back to school items. Now after introducing magical horses Bella Sara introduces Moonfairies.

Moonfairies is the newest collectible card series from Bella Sara. Moonfairies were released June 1st, 2010 and are available at Wal-Mart, Target, Toys R Us, and several other independent retailers. Inside each pack of Moonfairies is a secret code which can be activated at BellaSara.com and unlock magical adventures that can be played.

Win: Bella Sara wants to give one of Annies Home readers the chance to win a miniature moonfairie and card.

To enter giveaway: Visit the Bella Sara website take a look around and let me know which item you find to be grand

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
• subscribe to my blog on email and/or reader (2 entries each)
• grab my button and let me know where you place it (3 entries)
• follow my blog on twitter and tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post (1 entry per tweet unlimited at least 1 hour between tweets)
• share this giveaway on your facebook, blog, etc... (5 points each ) link or what you shared in comment

Giveaway starts now and ends August 17, 2010. Good Luck Email must be in comment or on blog profile

My Wonderful VBS helpers

I was so pleased to work with my son and daughter during VBS this year. Don't they look like great help to you.

No Bake Cookies

One of our favorite after school treats are no bake cookies. My mom used to make these for me and I loved them and now I make them for my children and grandchildren. They are fairly easy to make. Want to try some?

1/2 cup milk
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups instant oats

Combine the first 4 ingredients in medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for two minutes, then remove from heat. Add the peanut butter and stir well. Add vanilla and oatmeal, mix well until oats are well coated. Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper. Let cool and serve.

mad skills monday
keeping it simple

Monday Morning Meme with a little jingle (will you remember it)

1. What’s the best fortune you found within a fortune cookie? Did it ever come true?

I do not eat a lot of Chinese food so never had a fortune that I can remember

2. What’s your favorite commercial? What is it about this commercial that you like? (Find it on YouTube and link it on your blog!)

3. What’s a word you always misspell?

received

4. How would a woman president be different from a man?

woman have been running households for many years and doing good jobs it just may mean the countries finanes may be better as well

5. Bonus: Write a caption, poem or short story inspired by this picture:

Is My Under Arm Protection Still Working IN all This Heat?

Win a Kroger GC and go Shopping

I live in a small town so the places to shop are limited. There are only two real shopping sources here where I live and one of those is Krogers. I am so glad that Krogers has great sales, great prices, and such a great variety of products. PS Mom Reviews is hosting a giveaway for a Kroger gift card that I have entered and hope to win. You can enter as well deadline to enter is August 15, 2010

SmartyRents.com review and giveaway

We all know that educational games for the games our kids love are very expensive. SmartyRents.com rents educational games that fit into the educational game systems like Leapster2, clickstart, vsmile and many others.

The system works like popular video rental places where you pick your rental package, the game is then sent to your door, you can keep the game as long as you want, when you are done with the game return the game and choose another. SmartyRents has a variety of rental packages starting at $9.99. There is no shipping fee you simply select the rental package, pay the charge and choose your game. With no due dates or late fees you can keep the game as long as you choose to. If you decide you want to keep the game you can purchase it at a discounted charge.

SmartyRents has been established by two credentialed teachers. Who wanted to make it possible for families to be able to provide educational games for their children as well. They realized that their children learned from the educational games and wanted others to do so as well. SmartyRents carry games for children from the age of 9 months to 10 years. SmartyRents allows all the top games from LeapFrog (Little Leaps, Clickstart, Leapster and Didj) as well as from Vtech (V.Smile Baby, V.Smile, V.Motion and V.Flash) to provide your children with a fun, educational experience.

To get started, there are four simple steps:

• Register as a SmartyRents member.
• Choose the rental package that best fits your needs: 1 game, 2 games, 3 games, or 4 games at a time
• Your game(s) will be delivered to your door to keep for as long as you want to play. If you love the game so much that it pains you to part with it, then take advantage of our "LOVE IT" option. The "LOVE IT" option allows you to keep the game by purchasing it at the "LOVE IT" price.

SmartyRents.com would like to give Annies Home readers a free month of rental simply use the promotion code d1cbdd This promotion ends August 31, 2010. In addition 5 of Annies Home readers will recieve 3 free months of service from SmartyRents.com.

To enter this giveaway you must visit SmartyRents.com and let me know a game that they offer that you would choose if you were the lucky winner.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog (2 entries)
• subscribe to my blog (2 entries)
• grab my button and let me know where you place it (2 entries)
• follow SmartyRents.com on facebook leave a message letting them know Annies Home sent you (2 entries)
• follow my blog on twitter leave your twitter ID in comment tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet unlimited must be at least 1 hour between tweets)
• blog about this giveaway (5 entries) leave link in comment

Giveaway starts now and ends August 17, 2010. Good Luck. Email must be in comment or on blog profile or entries will not count.

Technical Comfort System Two Piece Set

Technical Comfort System® Two piece Sets

Halo has some of the greatest products for newborns through toddlers. I have shared with you many different reviews of their products you can read the review I created for the Halo Sleep Sack or their Early Walker Both of these wonderful products kept our little Princess warm, safe and comfortable. We recently were able to review one of their newest products the Technical Comfort System. It was adorably pink but is also available in a variety of other colors. Halo did a wonderful job in creating this product as well. Many young children suffer from skin problems like eczema and Halo was aware of this. So when they designed the Technical Comfort System they created it using CoolMax® fabric which wicks moisture to keep skin dry.The National Eczema Association (NEA) has awarded the Seal of Acceptance to HALO Technical Comfort System. The NEA Seal of Acceptance is awarded to products intended for children and adults with eczema or sensitive skin. Other great features are:

• The soft, silky feel of the outfit is friction free and helps reduce irritation and itching
• Fast drying. Helps regulate body temperature for greater comfort
• Helps prevent skin rashes by wicking moisture from delicate skin
• Smooth seams prevent irritation at pressure points Those tags and seams in other outfits are quite irritating to my Princess skin.
• SPF 30 which helps to protect her from the sun
• Cuff bottom pull on pants with logo waistband are very cute and stylish.

Buy: you can purchase the Two Piece Technical Comfort System Set from the Halo website for $22.95

Win: Halo would love to give one of Annies Home readers a two piece technical comfort system set

To enter the giveaway visit the website and let me know (1) what color you would choose if you were the lucky winner (2) another product that was not mentioned in this post that Halo has.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog (2 entries)
• follow Halo on twitter (2 entries)
• follow my blog on twitter (2 entries)
• tweet about this giveaway (1 entry per tweet unlimited must have at least 1 hour separating tweets)
• Like Halo on facebook leave message letting them know that you entered the giveaway on my blog (2 entries)
• buy a product from Halo (10 entries) let me know in comment what you purchased
• blog about this giveaway (5 entries) link in comment

Giveaway starts now and ends August 16, 2010. Good Luck Email must be in comment or on blog profile or entries will not count.

Win Green Giant Potatoes

The Cartoon Lovin' Mama is hosting a giveaway for Green Giant New Baby Potatoes. I just love baby potatoes and Green Giant Baby Potatoes come in 4 delicious flavors. You can read all about them on the blog The Cartoon Lovin' Mama where this contest will end August 3, 2010.

Tiny Prints Gets Ready For Back To School With Free Cards for Teachers

Getting ready for going back to school takes a lot of preparation. For both the teacher and the student a new school year can be a source of real excitement. Tiny Prints creator of stationary that is sold online has a wonderful offer for teachers everywhere. Teachers like I had in third grade where Mrs. Anderson made us all feel special no matter who we were. Desks were arranged differently each week and parliament was learned with each of us having a different position of serving each time. We learned allot about each other, about life and in the end developed wonderful friendships because this special teacher helped us to create a bond. It takes a special person to be a teacher one that students will remember forever.

Be sure to share with the teachers in your life about the free teacher cards that are available from Tiny Prints. Simply visit http://www.tinyprints.com/greeting/teachers-cards.htm Tiny Prints is offering these personalized greeting cards for free starting Monday, August 2nd through October 31, 2010. Teachers will just need to apply the code: Apple2010 at checkout.

I wrote this while participating in a blogger contest where five $50 Tiny Prints gift cards that will be awarded by random draw. There will also be a Tiny Prints Teacher Greeting Card Twitter Party with the tag #makeitpersonal this Wednesday from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. ET/1:00 to 2:00 p.m. PT.