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Everyday Special Touches

May 16, 2012 By

A few weeks ago I posted How To Add Special Touches to Store-Bought Desserts and today I wanted to share my everyday special touches. As Moms we know everything about our children. We know their favorite things, their dislikes, when they are lying {usually} and what makes them happy.

You probably don’t even realize all of the special touches you do for your family everyday! Whether it’s serving your family’s favorite meal, surprising them with a fun activity or making their favorite dessert.

At our house, ever since we put up our outside dining set, Colton requests to eat dinner outside rain or shine. When it’s a nice day out I usually set dinner up outside and it makes his day!

It’s also the little things that make my husband happy. The way to his heart is through his favorite foods {easy enough, right?!} During the summer months I like to make his favorite ice cream cake and watch his face light up like a little kid. I’m sure your family will appreciate this simple summer ice cream treat as well!

OREO Ice Cream Cake

(1) 15.5 oz package of OREOS
(1) 12 oz jar of Hot Fudge
About 1.5 quarts Vanilla Ice Cream {or try different flavors!}
(1) 8 oz container of COOL WHIP
Drizzle of Chocolate Syrup
Sprinkles

  1. Place the OREOS in a ziploc bag and crush with a rolling pin or mallet. Layer them in a 13x9x2 inch pan and press down.
  2. Warm up a jar of hot fudge (you can do low cal or reduced fat) as per jar instructions and spread over OREOS.
  3. Spoon and smooth your ice cream down for the next layer.
  4. Spread COOL WHIP over the ice cream and drizzle about 3 Tbls chocolate syrup over the top. Top with sprinkles.
  5. Freeze overnight. Enjoy!

If you haven’t yet, check out the April issue of Better Homes and Gardens, Real Simple or Everyday Food for my COOL WHIP ad! To see behind-the-scenes video of our photo shoot for the ad and for more recipes visit COOL WHIP’s facebook page.

I am working in partnership with the COOL WHIP brand and I am receiving compensation for my participation in this campaign. All thoughts/opinions are 100% my own.

Filed Under: Blog, Desserts, Promotions, Recipe Box Leave a Comment

And 3 will become 4….

May 8, 2012 By

The thoughts of adoption have been with TJ and I even since before we were married. The idea of bringing a child into our family that was not biologically ours was never a drastic idea for us, it always seemed right. This idea was kept at the back of our minds as we went through college, graduated and got settled in our first home. With each passing month, the idea slowly came back to the forefront.

The discussions between TJ and I became more frequent, as did the prayers. We both agreed and felt that when we did adopt, we wanted to adopt a child older than 3. This decision was mainly based on us watching Colton over the past few years, so innocent and dependent, yet full of personality and imagining all of the children just like him without homes.

After several months, we knew there was nothing more to discuss, but the next step was to take that leap from talking to doing.

From there came the research.

First we looked into domestic adoption in our state of Iowa because even in the United States there are so many children in need of homes. The point and goal of the foster care system is to reunite children with their biological parents or relatives and we learned that rarely does a child 3-4 years of age become available for adoption in Iowa. Even then, we would have to become foster parents and that route just didn’t feel right to us.

Next came the research into international adoption, which to us seemed out of the question in the beginning because of the staggering price involved. We are a 24 year old couple on a budget, with a five year old son, who just bought our first tiny home last year. We thought money was the only thing standing in our way… but we continued forward.

After researching different countries and local adoption agencies, we settled on an agency… and the Africa adoption program. Our agency goes through both Ghana and Uganda, so our child will come from either country.

It’s hard to imagine that he’s out there, somewhere, right now. Just the thought brings tears to my eyes. I wonder what he’s doing. I wonder what he’s thinking. I wonder what he’s feeling.

And 3 will become 4…. 

This was exciting/shocking/wonderful news for my family. I wanted to come up with a way to share it with them that would be just as exciting. I made these hollowed out eggs with the message for my three brothers on Easter..

Colton is and has been the only grandchild for five years on both sides of our family, so you can imagine how exciting the news was.

I know the adoption process is very hard and unpredictable, but we are ready for the journey. I am sure I will be sharing more about the process, especially after our homestudy next month. I appreciate all of the support from our family and friends and I am excited to share this news with my online friends as well…

I hope to learn and connect with others who’ve gone through this process before us and I’ll be here to document our journey for all those that will be after.

{Adoption Print: Red Letter Ink Etsy shop}

Filed Under: Blog, Family & Adoption 32 Comments

Scotcharoo Dessert Pops

May 3, 2012 By

Everything’s better on a stick, right?

The infamous cake pop has been appearing at birthday parties, weddings and baby showers across the world. There are hundreds of cute, intricate and time-consuming designs. I even have a cake pop pinterest board of pops I’ll probably never even try to make.

Why?

Maybe I’m just a cake pop failure, but mine never turn out like the photos. The balls end up bumpy, the chocolate isn’t smooth and they end up looking like my five year old made them.

In come Scotcharoos, one of my favorite childhood desserts. The rice krispie mixture makes them easy to mold into shapes and it takes far less time than cake pops!

Use your favorite recipe for Scotcharoos. I like the recipe from ricekrispies.com.

Scotcharoo Pops 

    • 1 cup light corn syrup
    • 1 cup sugar
    • 1 cup peanut butter
    • 6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
    • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
    • 1 cup butterscotch chips
    • Sprinkles or other decorations for garnish
    • Lollipop sticks or Wooden Treat Sticks
    1. Place the corn syrup and sugar into a saucepan and cook over medium heat, continuously stirring, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to boil. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter. Then pour in your Rice Krispies and stir until combined. Press mixture into a pan coated with cooking spray. Set aside for 20-30 minutes so the mixture can cool and harden a bit.
    2. Cut your rice krispie mixture into 1×1 inch squares and roll each of those into balls. Stick the Lollipop sticks in the center and set aside.
    3. Melt the chocolate and butterscotch chips together in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until melted. Dip each “pop” into the melted mixture and then roll in sprinkles. Stick in styrofoam or a Cake Pops Stand to dry and harden!

Ok, these huge ice cream-looking Scotcharoos are too decadent! Use the same process as the circle pops, but shape into an ice cream bar shape.

Yum!

Filed Under: Blog, Desserts, Recipe Box 12 Comments
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