Today summed up in 6 words

Looking outside my window about ready to get off this computer and go outside. The sun is shining, the teens are all sitting out there having fun, and it just looks like a beautiful day.

What a Beautiful Day Today Is

Black Bottom Vanilla Cream Pie

Here is a great recipe for family reunion, church picnics or any time you are looking for something great to serve up.

Black Bottom Vanilla Cream Pie


9-inch baked gingersnap Cookie Crumb Crust
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups milk
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

Prepare crumb crust. Then combine first 6 ingredients in a medium saucepan, whisking well to blend. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, for about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the butter and vanilla.
Place chopped chocolate in a small microwavable bowl. Microwave at medium power for 1 minute. Stir and repeat. Stir and cook the chocolate 30 seconds more if necessary, or until smooth.
Remove 1 cup of custard from saucepan and stir into melted chocolate. Spread chocolate custard evenly in bottom of pie shell. Spoon remaining vanilla custard on top. Cover top of tart with a sheet of wax paper to prevent skin from forming. Chill vanilla cream pie at least 3 hours or overnight.
To serve, whip cream and confectioners' sugar until stiff. Spoon or decoratively pipe whipped cream on top of tart.

Small Talk 6

The topic this week at Small Talk 6 located at MomDot.com is 6 most useful websites and mine would be:

1. mapquest I use alot to get to where I need to go
2. amazon.com a place I am slowly starting to fall in love with
3. dailyregister.com - hometown newspaper
4. craigs list where I have found great buys before
5. facebook where I keep up to date with all my friends

Then Sings My Soul Saturday:

I hope you enjoy this video as much as I did

Oatmeal Crusted Chicken Tenders

1 cup regular oats
3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound chicken breast tenders
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 450°. Place oats in a food processor, and process for 20 seconds or until coarsely ground. Add cheese, thyme, salt, and pepper. Pulse to combine, and place in a shallow bowl. Place each chicken breast tender between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Coat both sides of tenders with cooking spray; dredge tenders in oat mixture. Place tenders on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until browned

Source My Recipes

The Giving Tree

We recently found a copy of the book The Giving Tree for Princess. One of our favorite books The Giving Tree tells the story of life. I read this book to my children when they were little, my kid brother and I shared it as well. Now that life has changed for me and those I read it to I am so glad that my daughter can now read it to her daughter. The Giving Tree is a great book to share. It is a tale about the relationship between a young boy and a tree in the forest. While the boy is young the giving tree provides the boy with what ever he wants and needs from branches to swing on to apples to eat the Giving Tree gives all it can. The tree even allows the boy to cut him down and make a boat out of it. Leaving the tree to be just a stump and the boy leaves for many years but returns when an old man to which the tree still gives what the boy needs a place to rest. If you are looking for a great book to read to your children check out the book The Giving Tree.

This post was shared on the blog The Adventures of Motherhood and Feed Me Books Friday

Food Trip Friday : hamburger and horseshoe sandwich

While the hamburger and fries look delicious and oooohh so good. Here in Illinois the delicious horseshoe sandwich is a treat.

The horseshoe sandwich is created with a piece of toast on a plate with a hearty hamburger patty resting on top and covering all of this is delicious french fries. Pour cheese sauce over the top of all this and you have a horseshoe

Garden Pasta Salad

My frugal tip today is to eat out of your garden. We did this as a child and still do this even today with my own family. From corn on the cob to leaf lettuce you can eat something out of the garden every day. Here is a great recipe to get you started.

Garden Pasta Salad

1 1/2 cup elbow or small shell macaroni
1 large tomato, diced
1 cup zucchini, chopped
1/3 cup bottled Italian dressing
2 tsp parsley, chopped
1/8 tsp black pepper

Boil water with a small amount of salt in a large pan. Cook pasta until tender, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta and allow to cool slightly. Place pasta, diced tomatoes, and chopped zucchini in a large serving bowl. Add dressing to moisten. Toss lightly. Add parsley and black pepper, toss lightly. Serve warm or cold.

Growing Up

This week I have watched my children graduate from highschool, prepare for college and mature a bit more as well. I am delighted that they are finding their way through life. I am still there if they need me but they can also do it by their selves. I am watching my son as he prepares for his mission trip, making decisions without me is very special to me. I loved being involved but I also love watching from the side line as well. I watch as my oldest son prepares to go to the university. I am there for support but he takes the reins and leads the way as he prepares to change his life he changes the way I see him a bit as well. I watch my daughter as she realizes that she has made mistakes and decides how to fix the mistakes. Once again I am there for support and to catch her if she falls but she claws her way back to where she needs to be in life, fighting all the way in the spirit I watched as she grew up is once again there. For all these things and the ways my children are changing I salute these as my finer things in life this week.

Friday Photo Flashback

One of my favorite pictures. My little princess and her uncle (my son). How sweet this picture is the background is great looks like it is about dusk when this picture was taken and both of them looking straight at the camera. One of my favorite pictures from last spring

Aloha Friday : weather

Aloha Friday, a meme that is hosted by the blog An Island Life and is set up where bloggers ask easy questions to each other. The reason behind Aloha Friday is the fact that Friday is a day of rest in Hawaii where you take it easy and prepare for the weekend.

Here we go the weatherman is starting to talk about warm weather near the 90s. Temps here have been in the 5os and 60s range and now in just a few days will be muggy in the 90s. Sounds like summer is approaching quickly. So with this in mind I was wondering what the weather was like where you are located so for

Aloha Friday question:

What is weather like where you are located?

Pillsbury Banana Cream Toffee Shortcakes

Banana Cream Toffee Shortcakes

2 Pillsbury® Grands!® frozen buttermilk or southern style biscuits (from 25-oz bag)
1/2 teaspoon butter or margarine, melted
2 teaspoons toffee bits (not chocolate covered)
1 snack-size container (4 oz) vanilla pudding
1/4 cup frozen (thawed) whipped topping
1/2 small banana, sliced
Caramel topping, if desired

Heat oven to 375°F. Bake biscuits as directed on bag; place on cooling rack. Brush tops with melted butter; sprinkle with toffee bits, pressing down slightly. Place pudding in small bowl; gently fold in whipped topping. Carefully split warm biscuits on serving plates; fill with pudding mixture and banana slices. Drizzle with topping; sprinkle with additional toffee bits if desired

Source where you can find this and other great recipes at Pillsbury here

Brownie Recipe for when its Too Hot To Bake

Microwave Brownies

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
Preparation
Mist an 8-inch, square microwave-safe baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Place butter and cocoa powder in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high until butter is melted, 30 to 90 seconds, depending on power and size of your oven (check it every 15 seconds). Add sugar and whisk to combine. Let mixture cool slightly, then whisk in eggs and vanilla. Stir in flour. Scrape batter into prepared baking dish.

Microwave on high until brownies are just set in center, 4 to 7 minutes, depending on power and size of your oven (after 4 minutes, check batter every 15 seconds). Let brownies cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Cut brownies into 8 squares and serve.

Source: My Recipes

All Day Breakfast Salad

All Day Breakfast Salad

4 slices Canadian bacon (4 ounces)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
8 ounces baby spinach leaves (about 8 cups lightly packed)
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Cook the Canadian bacon in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes, turning once. Remove from the skillet and cut into 1/2-inch strips. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, and mustard. Season with salt and pepper.
Place the spinach in a large serving bowl. Add the dressing and toss to coat evenly. Top with the tomatoes, eggs, Canadian bacon, and parsley, and serve.

Free Sample South Beach Living Fiber Fit S'mores bar

Get a Free Sample of South Beach Living™ Fiber Fit S'mores bar by going here

Chocolate Coffee Fondue

Chocolate Coffee Fondue

- 6 ounces semi-sweet dark chocolate - chopped
- 2 ounces unsweetnened chocolate - chopped
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- teaspoon instant espresso or coffee granules
- 2 tablespoons liqueur (Kahlua or your choice)
- 1/2 cup chopped nuts, if desired, for dipping
may use all semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate if desired
fresh fruit, whole strawberries, large chunks of fruit: apples, pears, bananas, kiwi, etc

Chop chocolate with a sharp knife into small pieces.
Prepare double boiler over low heat. Add chocolate, cream, and coffee into top of double boiler, stir frequently until well blended and chocolate pieces are completely melted.
Remove from heat and stir in liqueur.
Light the container under fondue pot. Pour chocolate into fondue pot and have fondue forks available to dip fruits of your choice into the chocolate

Baby Banz review and giveaway

I love my perfect little Princess and want to protect her in every way. Her favorite place to be is outside. But the sun UV rays are very dangerous making her favorite place a bit dangerous as well. That is why I love Baby Banz.

Baby Banz were first sold in Australia in 2001. An Australian mom was unable to find a proper pair of baby sunglasses for her infant son and this led her to take action. The action led her to starting a company known as Baby Banz. In 2002 Baby Banz was introduced in America. Now, Baby Banz offers baby and children's sunglasses and UV protection world wide. The Baby Banz line of products includes adjustable baby and toddler sun hats, UPF 50 swimwear and flap hats, cool looking retro banz and in the winter Baby Banz offers ski Banz. The goal of Baby Banz is to preserve the sensitive eyes and precious skin of little ones everywhere. Baby Banz will continue to develop UV protection gear such as sunglasses, hats, swimwear and accessories that not only protect little ones from the suns UV rays but also are comfortable, fun to wear and strong enough to last.

I was impressed with the selection of products available at Baby Banz. The great color assortment as well as product line. Both boys and girls will find the perfect products to help them stay safe from the sun UV rays. When allowed to choose an item to review from the Baby Banz line of products I thought of what my mother and grandmother always said about protecting our eyes and heads from the terrible effects of the sun.

Baby Banz has the perfect thing to protect those little eyes and heads from the dangerous UV rays. The great thing is one of Annies Home readers will be able to win the same great set that I reviewed.

Buy: you can purchase any of the great Baby Banz products from their website located at
http://usa.babybanz.com/

Giveaway to enter the giveaway visit the Baby Banz website and let me know another product that you like

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog


• follow baby banz on twitter


• follow my blog on twitter


• look through the website and let me know a safety tip that baby banz shares on their website.


• tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet)


• comment on another post on my blog (1 entry per comment)

Giveaway starts now and will run through June 3, 2010. Good Luck Email must be on comment or on blog profile or entry will not count.

Thankful Thursday

hosted by Women Taking A Stand

Today I am thankful for so many things. I am thankful for the things in life that we have come to count on. I am thankful that when we get sick we can go to the doctor, when we need groceries we are able to go to the store, when we need to be with friends we reach out and can gather wherever we please with little restriction. Many of these are things that we take for granted that others can not. I was watching the news this morning and there were many stories on that were about individuals who do not have it as well as we do. Others do not have the rights that we do. Others do not have as much as we do. So today I am thankful for what I can do and what I have and feel blessed by God.

Salada Search for Spokesperson Contest + giveaway for Year Supply of tea

Salada Tea you may recall is the company that is on a campaign to change people mind they drink tea. They want tea drinkers to switch from the bottled tea that they use to freshly brewed tea made with tea bags. Fresh brewed tea offers many advantages ranging from health to environmental issues not to mention the price difference. Now Salada has launched a nationwide search for their first ever consumer spokesperson. They are looking for a spokesperson who will help educate Americans on easy ways to live a healthy lifestyle using green tea while continuing to spread the company's "Unbottle Your Tea" message. The lucky individual chosen as their spokesperson will earn $10,000.


The search for the spokesperson contest began on May 3 and will continue through June 13, 2010. Individuals who enjoy Salada tea are thought to live healthy and environmentally friendly lifestyle and are living with the need to teach others how to have the same lifestyle. If this is you then you have the opportunity to tell Salada why you should be the official Salada Spokesperson by following this link www.unbottleyourtea.com/spokesperson

Eligible Applicants must:

• Be willing to provide tips and suggestions to others for living a healthy lifestyle, attend health and environmentally focused events across the country, blog, tweet and continuously help spread the “Unbottle Your Tea” message
• Complete an online registration form
• Submit a video entry no longer than 30 seconds at www.UnbottleYourTea.com/Spokesperson describing why he or she is the perfect choice for the role of Salada’s spokesperson
  
  

Salada Tea will evaluate all submissions and the top 10 finalists will be announced June 28. The video submissions of the finalists will be posted on Salada's YouTube channel where they will be voted on by all of America. Public voting will run from June 28 through August 11 at ww.YouTube.com/SaladaTea. Salada Tea will then announce the winner of the spokesperson search and the $10,000 brand representative contract in August 2010.

All information including registration, instructions, and official rules can be found at www.UnbottleYourTea.com/Spokesperson. The contest is open to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and the District of Columbia who are eighteen (18) years of age or older

Salada Tea started the "Unbottle Your Tea" campaign in September 2008 to encourage Americans to choose freshly brewed tea. Freshly brewed tea contains 95 percent more healthy antioxidants, is less expensive and can help reduce the millions of beverage containers wasted each year. For more information on this campaign visit this website www.unbottleyourtea.com. Salada Tea is manufactured by Redco Foods Inc. in Little Falls, N.Y. Salada produces 16 different flavors of green and white tea and is available at supermarkets nationwide. Salada is the leading tea company in sales and sells more than one hundred million tea bags a year. Last fall saw the release of four new flavored green teas by Salada. These flavors included pomegranate berry, strawberry, soothing mint, and classic lemon.

Giveaway: One of Annie's Home readers will win a years supply of tea.

Enter this giveaway by telling me what your favorite Salada tea is or one that you would like to try

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
• subscribe to my blog
• follow Salada Tea on twitter
• fan Salada on facebook
• follow my blog on twitter (1 entry per tweet)
• tweet about the giveaway
• share the giveaway on your blog, another giveaway site, facebook etc... (5 entries per item done links in comment please)
• comment on any post on my blog (2 entries each)

Giveaway starts now and will end on June 2, 2010. Good Luck Email must be on blog or in comment or entry will not count.

READEO review and giveaway (5 winners)

I do not live in the same town as my little Princess and many times I do not get to see her for weeks sometimes months. That sometimes makes me sad and always makes me look for things to keep us connected. That's why when I was contacted about reviewing readeo I jumped at the chance. Readeo was founded in 2009 by CEO Coby Neuenschwander. Coby saw the distance between his own son and his grandparents hindering their relationship. Visits were few and far in between, phone calls did not create a great visit, and all though video chat was available this did not hold his sons attention for long. Reading would be the means of strengthening the relationship between grandparent and grandchild.

What is Readeo? (as explained by website)

Readeo is a patent-pending product that combines the best children’s books with high-quality video chat to create a shared reading experience called BookChatTM where people can see, hear, read and interact with grandchildren, nephews, nieces, and others—just as you would if you were in the same room. Readeo allows families to connect and interact in a meaningful way—even when they may be far apart.

Readeo allows guest to sign up for a 7 day trial period. This is a great way to try Readeo. Five of Annies Home readers will receive a free one year subscription to Readeo. This is a $99.95 value and would be so nice to have to stay connected to your little ones. What a great gift this would make for grandparents, aunts, uncles and parents that are away from their little ones.

Buy: You can purchase a month of Readeo for $9.95 or for $99.95 you can purchase a full year of Readeo.

Giveaway: to be one of five winners to win a year of Readeo visit the Readeo website and come back and tell me a book that you would love to read and what special little one you would share it with.

Extra entries:

• follow my blog
• subscribe to my blog
• subscribe to Readeo newsletter (at bottom of page)
• follow Readeo on twitter
• follow Readeo on facebook
• follow my blog on twitter
• tweet about this giveaway

Giveaway starts now and ends June 3, 2010. Good Luck open to U.S. and Canadian residents. Email must be in comment or on blog profile for entries to count.

We recieved a membership to Readeo for review purposes. The thoughts and comments in this post are mine alone.

Sunglass Warehouse

Sunglasses can do many things they can keep the sun out of ones eyes, help one to hide red eyes, help one to look cool and adorn ones face for beauty. What ever you are looking for a pair of sun glasses for you can find them at the Sunglass Warehouse. Looks for men, women and kids all available and look great. Sunglasses for fun, sport, dress and casual look are all available at Sunglass Warehouse.

The Sunglass Warehouse was founded in 2002 and is a company that is passionate about sunglasses. They not only want to sell their customers a pair of sunglasses they want to provide their customers with the best service and shopping experience. They offer free shipping on all orders over $25. Our money back guarantee and 365 day no hassle return policy means any purchase is returnable for a timely exchange or refund. The Sunglass Warehouse.com does not sell copies of brand name designer sunglasses they offer sunglasses specially made to capture style and charm of designer looks. Just take a look at some of the great looks available at Sunglass Warehouse.

I have great news for all of you, One of Annies Home readers will receive a $20 gift card to purchase your own pair of sunglasses from the Sunglass Warehouse. If you are like me and need a bit of help choosing the right pair of sunglasses then the Sunglass warehouse can help you out with that as well. They have created special tip sections such as choosing the right pair of sunglasses for your skin tone and choosing sunglasses for the shape of your face.

Buy: you can purchase any of these great pairs of sunglasses as well as many more styles that are available at the Sunglass Warehouse from their website located at http://www.sunglasswarehouse.com/
Giveaway for $20 gift card from Sunglasses Warehouse:
to enter visit the sunglass warehouse website and let me know how you would use the gift card if you were the lucky winner.
Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
• follow the sunglass warehouse on twitter
• follow my blog on twitter
• tweet about this giveaway (1 entry per tweet)
• fan the sunglass warehouse facebook
• follow the sunglass warehouse blog

Giveaway starts now and will end June 8, 2010. Good Luck. Email must be on blog profile in comment or entry will not count
We received a pair of sunglasses for review purposes from the Sunglass Factory. All opinions and thoughts are those of my own

Sweet and Tangy Meatball Subs

Sweet and Tangy Meatball Subs

1 can (15.5 oz each) Manwich® Original Sloppy Joe Sauce
1/2 cup salsa
2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar
1 pkg (16 oz each) frozen cooked meatballs
4 hoagie rolls (about 8 inches each)
1 cup shredded lettuce
1/4 red onion, cut into thin rings
1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (1/4 cup = 1 oz)

Directions
1.Heat sauce, salsa and brown sugar in large skillet over medium-low heat 5 minutes or until hot, stirring often. Add meatballs and heat 10 minutes more or until hot.
2.Cut rolls in half lengthwise, leaving bottom hinged. To make sandwiches, fill each roll with equal portions of meatball mixture; top with equal amounts of lettuce, onion rings and cheese. Serve immediately.

Source: Simple and Delicious

Turkey Lettuce Cup Tacos

Turkey Lettuce Cup Tacos

2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1 lb. lean ground turkey
1 cup canned tomatoes, drained
2 heads bibb or butter lettuce, separate into cups
1 cucumber, cut into 2-1/2-inch spears
2 cups julienned jicama (1/8 x 1/8 x 3-inch strips)
2 cups julienned carrots (1/8 x 1/8 x 3-inch strips)
1 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese (about 4 oz.)
Tomato salsa*
1/4 cup Wish-Bone® Ranch Dressing

Heat olive oil in 12-inch skillet over medium heat and cook onion and garlic, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Stir in cumin chili powder and ground turkey and cook, stirring occasionally, 12 minutes or until turkey is thoroughly cooked. Stir in tomatoes and simmer 10 minutes or until heated through. Season, if desired, with salt and pepper.
Arrange lettuce cups in stack on large platter. Place remaining topping ingredients in small bowls on platter. Garnish, if desired, with cilantro sprigs and lime wedges.
Fill lettuce cups with turkey mixture, then top with your favorite toppings. Just before serving, drizzle with Wish-Bone® Ranch Dressing

Marinated CrockPot Ham Sandwich

The crockpot can come in very handy in the summer time. Not only does it allow you to cook without heating the house up but it also allows you to place the meal in the crockpot and continue on with busy summer time life.

Marinated CrockPot Ham Sandwich

1 1/2 c packed light brown sugar
3 tbsp dry mustard
1/4 c Worcestershire sauce
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 (5oz) jar horseradish
3 (51/2 oz) cans grapfruit juice
5 lbs shaved ham
24 sandwich buns


Combine the brown sugar, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, horseradish and grapefruit juice in a slow cooker. Add the ham and cook on Low for 4 hours. Serve on sandwich buns. Serves 25.



find more great crockpot recipes here

Sack Race

Here they are the super duo. My two little nephews hopping in sacks having a great time.

Zucchini Bread

One of my favorite summer memories is my mom raising her zucchinis and then making all sorts of goodies from them. One recipe that she made a lot of was zucchini bread.

Zucchini Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup egg substitute
1/3 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 cups shredded zucchini (12 ounces)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients (through baking soda) in a large bowl. Combine egg substitute and next 4 ingredients (through egg) in a large bowl; add sugar, stirring until combined. Add zucchini; stir until well combined. Add flour mixture; stir just until combined. Stir in walnuts. Divide batter evenly between 2 (8 x 4-inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

source: My Recipes

ABC Wednesday : R is for Rocking Robin

The ABC Wednesday Letter of the day is......


The Letter R which to me is for Rocking Robin.

Lemon Flavored Aquafina Flavor Splash

As you all know I am an Aquafina Flavor Splash Mom. This week we received another package of Aquafina FlavorSplash 6 pack of water in a new flavor. The flavor this week was lemon. I am a huge fan of lemonade it is so delicious. In fact let me share a couple of great lemonade recipes with you.

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade

1-3/4 cups sugar or superfine sugar (Superfine sugar can be made from regular sugar by simply placing it into a blender. )
8 cups water
1-1/2 cups lemon juice

Mix together the sugar and one cup water in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil to dissolve the sugar. Cool. Combine the sugar water, water and lemon juice in a pitcher.


Lemonade Orange Juice : Mix equal parts lemonade and orange juice.

Ginger Lemonade : Place one tablespoon of sliced fresh ginger in a saucepan with two cups of water. Bring to a boil and cool and remove the ginger. Mix in equal parts lemonade and ginger water.

Mint Lemonade: To make mint lemonade, boil 1/4 cup fresh mint with two cups water. Let cool and strain. Mix equal parts lemonade and mint water.
Strawberry Lemonade : Purée a 10-ounce package of fresh or frozen strawberries. Add the desired amount of purée to the lemonade until you have reached an equal balance of strawberry and lemon.
Iced-Tea Lemonade : Mix equal parts lemonade and iced tea.

Now if you are like me and love lemonade and lemonade flavored drinks you may not want to use your calories on it. That is the reason that I love the lemon flavored water by Aquafina FlavorSplash. I was very surprised when I tasted the Aquafina FlavorSplash water and discovered that it actually tasted very near lemonade flavor and the best part is there is 0 calories in each bottle and helps you to get the recommended daily amount of water. While I must say that I love the lemon flavored water by Aquafina FlavorSplash you will have to try it for yourself

“I am a participant in a Mom Central campaign for Aquafina FlavorSplash and have received various FlavorSplash samples to facilitate my participation. Mom Central will send me a gift card at the end of the program.”

Wordless wednesday: Just hanging out

shared at 5 minutes for mom

Word Filled Wednesday

As we begin to make summer plans I realize none of us know exactly what will come of tommorow. It is by faith that we wake up and make plans. For we can not see what will happen in the future but have the faith that with God there is nothing that we can not do.

The Alternative Baking Company

The Alternative Baking Company is the company that sells the perfect cookies for everyone. They sell eleven different cookies that are all heavenly. The classic cookies are made with organic wheat flour and the wheat free cookies are made with organic barley flour. All of the cookies are sweetened with fruit juice and organic unrefined cane sugar. We recieved a few samples and let me tell you they were delicious. If you are looking for a cookie that taste delicious and has the alternative ingredients that make a better cookie then look no further than The Alternative Baking Company

Kithchen Tip: Keeping Picnics Safe

Warm weather has arrived and with it comes picnic season. I love a great picnic and the only problem is that we must make sure to be safe with picnic food so the good times keep going. Here are some tips:

• Keeping everything clean is one of the most important tips. Find out if there is a source of safe drinking water where you will be picnicing. If there will not be you need to bring some water for preparation and cleaning. You may want to pack some wet wipes, disposable cloths or moist towelettes as well as paper towels for claning hands and surfaces. Keeping hands clean before and after handling food, not using the same platter and utensils for raw and cooked meat and poultry. Having a set of utensils for cooking and a seperate set for serving is a good idea as well.


• Keeping hot food hot and cold food cold is sometimes hard to do when on a picnic but is a very important need. Unsafe temperatures of food is a leading reason for foodborne illness Coolers should be placed in the shade when possible. Food should never be out of the cooler or off the grill more than 2 hours and if the temperature is above 90 degrees that time is cut to 1 hour


• If cooking food like hamburger patties, hotdogs, lunch meat, or chicken be sure to pack in an insulated cooler that is packed with plenty of ice or frozen gel packs. Both raw meat and poultry should be wrapped securely to prevent cross contamination of the ready prepared foods. Don't pack the cooler until ready to leave the house and keep the cooler in the coolest part of the car when traveling


• Be aware of the danger zone where bacteria grows the fastest. The temperature of the danger zone is anything below 40 degrees or above 140 degree.


• If you bring hot take out food on the picnic such as fried chicken or barbecue you still need to be careful as these foods need to be ate within 2 hours of purchase.


• If you plan on grilling then you need to remember to pack the food thermometer to be sure that all that you grill reaches safe temperatures. If you decide to reheat food at the cook out then you need to be sure that food reaches 165 degrees. Cooking only the amount of food that will be eaten will cutdown on worry of leftovers staying at safe temp. Any leftovers that remain and are cold should be tossed.

Roses adorn my yard

I love my rose bushes they make spring time so special. Here is a picture of a couple of them. There are more but these two are the ones nearest the house.