Glass Re-used

Here is the ginormous glass re-used for Fall Decor.

Aromatic and beautiful in the room.

My mantel with a touch of Fall and all things I love.

This is the ginormous glass that I received the homemade cocoa in for my birthday. I wanted to find a way to reuse it and change it every season. For Fall I decided to put a fragrant vanilla candle in it and added coffee beans around it for a rich color. The two aromas together were wonderful. Vanilla Latte anyone?

I placed it on my fireplace mantel with my fall foliage. I have to say it compliments the mantel very well. I am now in the middle of taking Fall down and putting up Christmas. I will post a mantel picture later in the month and display my decor and you'll have to wait and see what I do with the ginormous glass again.

Be Inspired to Reduce, Re-Use or Recycle.

Day After Thanksgiving Sales

Was it just me or were the sales for the day after Thanksgiving lame? On Thursday night we poured through the ads in hopes that the few things that were on our list were on sale. We were disappointed with the ads and the department stores. We thought that with the economy suffering the way it is, there would be some incredible deals out there to entice the consumer to purchase.

No, we did not get up before dawn and stand in line. We got up when we felt like it and headed out around mid morning to a few stores and the mall to hang out and meander around. We did get a few things on our list, but no great bargains were out there for what we were interested in buying. Our family is being frugal and simple with presents this year. We are also making homemade gifts to give out to family and friends.

I did take my receipt back to Video Only (for our new TV that we got two weeks ago) and got a refund for $151.00 It was cheaper today, than when we got it on sale then. Not bad, there is a little extra cash for some Christmas gifts.

For those of you that braved the crowds, I hope that you found better deals than we did.

Homemade Gifts

Last week I celebrated my 39th birthday. I think I'm handling it well. The only major change is that I cut and colored my hair. We'll see if the big 40 next year will be a mid life crisis for me or not. I did appreciate the phone calls, e-mails, b-day cards and knocks on my door with a little something for me, from my dear friends. I feel truly blessed to be loved and thought of so dearly.

I thought I'd brag about this gift from my dear friend April, because it was homemade and would be simple to make and give to others for the holidays. It is homemade Double Chocolate Cocoa. She put it in this really tall ginormous glass that can hold a gallon size Ziploc bag full of cocoa. There are different types of recipes you could use too.

I too have made them as Christmas gifts about five years ago for family and put them in snowman jars. You can put the cocoa in mason jars or in a cute jar or glass like this one that maybe you can find at a thrift store. Add a little ribbon and card with instructions and there you go. Thrifty and delicious. Keep a look out for what I have in store for the ginormous glass my cocoa came in. Can you guess what I'm going to do with it?

Hot Cocoa Recipe

10 cups dry powdered milk

4 3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar

1 3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1 3/4 cups powdered non-dairy creamer

1 tsp salt

Mix all together and store in an airtight container. Makes about 15 cups of mix or 45 servings. For one serving add 1/3 cup cocoa mix with 3/4 cups of boiling water, stir and enjoy. You may want to add mini marshmallows or a dollop of whip cream on top.

A big bowl of comfort

Ahh!!! Fall is here and winter is just around the corner. I just love making soups, stoups and stews. Whether it is a classic like chicken noodle, tomato or potato soup, or a hearty beef stew or a comforting bowl of navy bean soup over fried potatoes and onions.... or a new recipe like Reuben Soup or Cacciatore Stoup. There is nothing like a steaming bowl of pure comfort to take the chill off and add warmth to your soul.

When I make a soup or stew I make it in the largest pot I have and sometimes I make it in two pots. I ladle the leftovers into two cup containers and freeze them. They are quick and easy meals to thaw and reheat for lunch or dinner. They make great gifts too! I have brought them to a sick friend and have given them to other families in need of a meal. I have even donated a few containers of soup to one of our church bake sales and they were auctioned off. The recipients begged for the recipe.

This is a bowl of my homemade Vegetable Beef soup that has eleven vegetables in it. It is incredibly delicious. I also make a couple dozen Potato Rolls to soak up that wonderful broth. I'll post the recipes soon for you to enjoy. What is your favorite bowl of soup?

Be Inspired to warm your families heart and belly's with a big bowl of comfort.

A Jammin Day

Our family just loves freezer jam. The fruit tastes the freshest and the sugar content is far less than the store bought or the home canned type. Freezer jam is so easy to make and you could make it in under ten minutes. These are my Marion berry and Yellow Plum in half pints. They are both delish on toast or a nice big fluffy biscuit. Raspberry is my favorite and Strawberry is my family's favorite. What is your favorite kind of jam or jelly?

Tip of the Week

Tomato Paste in a tube is my fave this week in the kitchen. Have you ever had a recipe calling for tomato paste and you only need a teaspoon or a Tablespoon? You buy it in a small can and end up throwing it away because you don't have another reason to use it right away or it goes funky in the fridge.

Well, I've seen the Celebrity Chefs use this and Rachael Ray uses it all of the time. You can get it at your local gourmet grocer or even at Walmart. It is "Double Concentrated" and so you end up using less. Once open you store it in the fridge and can use it for many uses. I use it in soups, broths, pasta dishes, sauces etc... I like that it is an item that prevents me from wasting food and can serve multi purposes in one little tube.

Veterans Day & Shopping

Happy Veteran's Day to those who have and are serving our Country. Thank You for our freedom and your dedicated honor and service. My Dear Hubby was a former Army Veteran and I am proud of him dearly. I wish that I had known him when he was serving (we met shortly after he was honorably discharged). I have a thing for a Man in Uniform. But... that is a story for later or maybe not. Hubba! Hubba!

While out and about today doing errands I went to a local thrift store (Value Village) that was having their 50% off on all items for Veteran's Day. I picked up a cute piano/music station ($2.50) for my littlest sweet cheek who is 10 months old. I also picked up some Old Navy snow pants and snow suits (less than $5) for the kids for our vacation in December to Leavenworth Washington. I also found a ton of really cute princess dresses and other clothes for the lil sweet cheeks. For my pre-teen I got him a brand new pair of Old Navy Camo Cargo Shorts with tags on them, he loved them. I found myself a couple of jackets and tops. I also found a cute book called "In a Pickle or a Jam" with tons of canning recipes. For Dear Hubby, nothing. He is picky and he wasn't with me. Daddy was at home playing with our sweet cheeks while I got to go out for a few hours, BY MYSELF! Isn't he just sweet?

I tried to find something for the house to decorate with, but they really didn't have a thing that looked worth buying or I couldn't live without. Ho hum. But I did enjoy my excursion. Bargain shopping can be so much fun.

Easy Breezy

Kitchen Gadgets

This apple peeler, corer, slicer was a good purchase ($19.99 - 5.00 off coupon = $14.99 at Bed, Bath and Beyond). I was peeling, coring and slicing apples and pears on my own with a paring knife and the fruit would turn brown really fast and they would be too thick or uneven. So I purchased this gadget and thought I'd give it a try. WOW!!! It is quick, easy and the slices are even and look awesome. I didn't even get a chance to use it for a while. My pre-teen son loved using it and enjoyed helping in the kitchen.

Also shown in the photos is my semi new Nesco Food Dehydrator. I wanted one of these for a while, but was being frugal and didn't want to buy it for full price at the store or Online. I happened to stumble on this great find at a garage sale and scooped it up for $15.00 which saved me about $40.00. It had only been used once to dry strawberry's and then sat in a garage. It came with four trays but could stack up to twelve. Now I'm on the lookout for more trays. We've dried apples, pears and kiwi so far. They taste wonderful and make great healthy snacks and an added treat for sack lunches. Does anyone else dry foods and what is some of your favorites?

Weekly Menu Plan

Sun - Potluck Sunday at Church (I made Shepherds Pie, *Supreme Pizza Pasta & Pineapple right side up cake)

Mon - Leftovers for us Mac & Cheese for the kiddos

Tue - Chefs Salad and Garlic Toast

Wed - Vegetable Beef Soup (with 10 vegi's)

Thu - Hamburgers and Roasted Fries

Fri - Leftovers

Sat - Baked Chicken and Rice Pilaf

*New Recipe

Bakers Helper

Holy gadgets batman!

Here are a few of my latest bargain finds for my kitchen. I just love Ross, I always seem to find something for my home, kitchen or family. Here I purchased a bronze cookbook holder ($2.99) and a wooden pastry rolling pin ($4.99).

The cookbook holder holds my latest cookbook or my personal family cookbook. It holds the book open and keeps me from touching it or dripping something on it. The pastry rolling pin is awesome for pie crusts, cinnamon rolls, pizza dough etc... With a regular rolling pin the barrel is a lot shorter and you get indentations in your dough or pastry and may cause an uneven thickness in areas. These are great tools and I use them all the time.