Happy Easter! Chocolate Covered "Carrot" Strawberries

Happy Easter, everyone! I am so thankful that Jesus died for my sins way before I was even born. Oh, how much He loves us! Today is extra special, because it's also James's birthday! :) 

Last night I made some Chocolate Covered Strawberries that look like carrots! 

Here's what I did:

Ingredients: Washed strawberries with tops still on, white baker's chocolate, and red and yellow food coloring

Place all 6 chocolate squares into a microwave safe bowl. (note: using a smaller bowl would have been helpful, for easier dipping) Microwave for about 2 minutes, or until almost melted. Stir until completely melted.

Add food coloring until achieving desired orange color. I used 3 drops of yellow for every 2 drops of red. I would add the 5 drops, mix, then repeat until I was satisfied with the results. Next time, I will add a bit more-- once the strawberries set, the orange color had faded a bit.

Dip the strawberries into the chocolate, careful not to get any on the tops. I was holding them by the tops to dip them, and a few of the tops tried to come off, so be careful.

Place the covered strawberries on a wax paper-covered cookie sheet and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes. I got busy with some other things, so I let mine sit in there for 30-45 minutes. Then, I arranged them in a dish, covered it with plastic wrap, and stored in the fridge.

If I slowed down a bit and took my time, I probably could have made these look better. I still thought they looked pretty cute. What do you think?

♥ Amber

Meal Plan March 31 - April 6th, 2013

Hey y'all! I'll make this a quick one. I've been busy in the kitchen this evening and am ready to call it a night. Here's what I have on the menu for this coming week. Remember, if you see anything listed that you'd like the recipe for, comment below & I'll be sure to post it.



Meal Plan for March 31 - April 6

Sunday- Dinner at James's parents. Turkey, creamed corn, green beans, potato salad, key lime pie, cookie cake.. oh my! My mother in law is doing the cooking, but James and I are going to bring "diablo shrimp," which are bacon wrapped jalapenos stuffed with shrimp and cream cheese. James & the guys at his work had these the other night and (knowing how much I love jalapenos) James brought me home a few to try. Delicious!! I think they'd make a good appetizer. 

Monday- Meatball subs & a veggie (or goldfish, cheez-its, or sweet potato fries. We'll see what sounds good when that day rolls around)

Tuesday- Homemade lasagna

Wednesday- Smoked sausage, slow-cooked lima beans, homemade cornbread

Thursday- Chicken pot pie We ended up having so many left overs this past week, we bumped this from our menu over to this week so the food didn't go to waste. I still ended up freezing some of the leftovers! It's hard cooking for 2 people sometimes. :-P

Friday- Leftovers

Saturday- Leftovers or chili (in freezer) or grilled cheese & tomato soup

I have never made homemade lasagna, so I will be sure to put up the recipe I am using if it turns out worth sharing. (Update: Lasagna Recipe added here) I also tried to find a ham hock to put in the lima beans, but couldn't find one at the grocery store today. Going to go research some alternatives. Any suggestions?

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter weekend!

♥ Amber

Crockpot Sausage, Potatoes, & Green Beans

Happy Good Friday, everyone! Today I wanted to share a super easy recipe that I tried out yesterday for crockpot sausage, potatoes, and green beans. I actually made this for lunch, since James was on night shift and wouldn't be home for dinner. I like to prep crockpot meals the night before, when possible, to make my mornings even smoother. So, as I was cooking dinner the night before, I peeled and cut the potatoes and cut up the sausage. I stored them in the fridge overnight (in 2 separate gallon ziplock bags) so I could just dump them in the crockpot in the morning. The kitchen was smelling so good and when lunchtime rolled around, I was ready to dig in! James and I both liked it, so I thought I'd share with y'all. 

1 package smoked sausage (we used deer)
5 potatoes
2 cans of green beans
1 package Lipton "Recipe Secrets" onion soup mix
1 to 2 cups chicken broth (optional)

Peel and cut the potatoes, cut up the sausage into bite size chunks, drain the green beans, and put all ingredients in crockpot. Pour onion soup mix on top.  Add a cup or two of chicken broth if desired, then add water until veggies and meat are covered. Give a quick stir, and cook on high for about 4-5 hours, or low for 6-8 (or until potatoes are tender).

This made quite a bit, so we have plenty of leftovers. We will eat on it the next couple of days and if there is still enough left, I will freeze it to have another night for an even quicker and easier meal. If you try it, please make sure to comment below and tell me how you liked it! 

I hope everyone has a great Friday!

♥ Amber

Unexpected Gifts & Grace Adele

Good morning! I hope everyone's day is off to a great start. It's the middle of the week and I know a lot of people are off/out of school for Good Friday. We are almost there! :D

I just wanted to write a quick post about my unexpected gift last night. Remember that adorable warmer I showed y'all last week.. my early Easter gift? Turns out, that was just part of my gift. James came home (after working late, poor guy) with a Grace Adele purse! He bought it from the same lady he bought the warmer from. She gave him a good deal, too. It's funny.. his birthday is on Easter this year, and I am the one being showered with gifts! He said he wanted to wait until Sunday morning to give me the purse, but he didn't want to ride around with it in his truck all week or chance me finding it. I've never had a Grace Adele product before, but absolutely love it and am very impressed with the quality! Being entrepreneurial-minded, I was also thrilled to be supporting a home-based business (If I am not mistaken, Scentsy reps have the option of also representing Grace Adele).

Here's a pic:

Isn't it lovely?! It has tons of pockets, which is a great way to keep me organized! Grace Adele has many colors and styles to choose from. I love this little clutch that came with it, too! The purse also came with a matching wallet, but silly me forgot to get that in the pic. Perfect timing, because I was really needing a new wallet, too!

Alrighty, I better get going; plenty to get done today! Just wanted to brag on how wonderful my husband is for getting me such a pretty purse! :D

I hope everyone has a blessed day!

♥ Amber

Meal plan March 24-30, 2013

Hey there! I have been meaning to write for the past couple of days, but keep getting distracted. For example, I planned on coming home and writing this post yesterday, but instead walked straight into the kitchen and baked 4 dozen chocolate chip cookies. Yes, 4 dozen. I probably should have noted how many cookies the recipe yielded before I started mixing the ingredients. ;) I hope everyone had a great weekend and that your week is off to a great start! James and I enjoyed a 2 hour couple's massage, as part of our monthly "day date" we started last year. It was amazing! He is rarely off on the weekends, so we took full advantage.

This marks the beginning of my weekly meal plan posts. Of course, in the future I plan on doing this every Saturday for the week following, but I am running a little behind schedule. :) So, I'll go ahead and jump right in. Here is what we are having/had this week!

March 24th - 30th, 2013

Sunday - Had dinner with friends
Monday- Smoked pork chops, steamed cabbage, mixed veggies
Tuesday- Fried fish, rice, field peas
Wednesday-Tacos with ground deer meat
Thursday - Crockpot sausage, green beans, and potatoes
Friday - Homemade chicken pot pie
Saturday- Leftovers OR potato soup

Speaking of dinner.. I better go get started! Happy eating, everyone!

♥ Amber

Homemade Pumpkin Peanut Butter Dog Treats

Homemade dog treats? Yes, our dogs tend to be a bit spoiled. We talk about them like they are our children-- and in a sense, they are! When we first got Brandy, she itched constantly. Turns out she is sensitive to wheat and corn.. which is in most store bought dog food and treats. After switching her to a food free of these two ingredients, her symptoms cleared up and it was like she was a brand new dog! I then went on a recipe search for homemade dog treats and found one for Pumpkin Peanut Butter "cookies" on Jenny's Recipes. And boy do our kids dogs love them! Want to spoil your pooch, too? Here is the recipe!

1 & 1/4 cup flour  (I used rice flour, because of the allergies)

1/2 cup pumpkin puree (you can use canned)

1 egg

1 TBSP honey

2 TBSP Peanut Butter

Dash of cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients together thoroughly in a large bowl. Drop by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 12 minutes. Makes about 24 "cookie" treats. Let cool and your dogs can enjoy (not all at once, of course!).

What are some other ways you've spoiled your pets?

♥ Amber

Homemade Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bread & a Trick

This past weekend, I tried a new recipe that I got from Danielle's blog for homemade Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bread. Oh my word, it was delicious! I love making things from scratch. Homemade food tends to be healthier, allows you to know exactly what you are putting in your body (substituting ingredients, if desired), and is less expensive. I was excited to learn I had everything I needed to make this delicious bread, minus the buttermilk and chocolate chips. No biggy, I needed to head to the grocery store, anyway. I am big on meal planning (which I will discuss in another post), so I always have a list. Silly me forgot to add the buttermilk to the list! I never, ever buy buttermilk. I quickly learned, thanks to the ever-faithful Google, that you can easily substitute buttermilk with two ingredients I always have on hand-- regular milk and vinegar! Sounds disgusting, right? I certainly wouldn't drink it alone, but it worked wonderfully in this recipe! Put one tablespoon vinegar into a measuring cup, then add milk (I used whole milk, because that is what we drink) until the mixture reaches the 1 cup mark (if using a recipe that calls for more than 1 cup of buttermilk, adjust accordingly). Then, let sit for 5 minutes and you have the perfect solution without having to run back out to the store! I am sure to use this trick over and over, as to avoid buying buttermilk for a recipe, only to end up throwing the unused portion away once it spoils from sitting untouched in the fridge.

Want to try your hand at this heavenly bread? Here is the recipe:

1 & 1/3 cup all purpose flour

2/3 cup oats, either rolled or old fashion

1/3 cup white sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/3 cup chocolate chips

1 egg

3 TBS melted butter

1 cup buttermilk (or substitute, discussed above)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients (flour, oats, sugars, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, chocolate chips) together. In a seperate bowl, mix all wet ingredients (egg, butter, buttermilk/substitute). Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients, and pour mixture into a greased & floured 9x5 loaf pan. Bake 40-45 minutes, or until inserted knife comes out clean. Let cool and enjoy!

Now, it only took mine 30 minutes to be done. I have a finicky oven, and always have to adjust baking times. I cannot wait to move into our house with a new oven! :D

If you try this recipe, please leave a comment to let me know how it turned out! Have a great day everyone!

♥ Amber

Happy First Day of Spring!

Spring has sprung! The temperature has been so unbelievably nice here lately. I normally want winter weather to stick around for a bit, but this year I was itching for sunshine, spring flowers, and tank tops! Now, I know that I will soon be complaining that it's too hot (and humid!), but right now I am in love with this weather.

In perfect timing with the arrival of Spring, James brought me home my newest Scentsy warmer this morning! (Yes, I am spoiled. It is my early Easter gift!) It is called "Green Thumb" and when I saw it, I fell in love! He conveniently works with a rep. ;) How adorable is this?!

If you are interested in this or other adorable Spring warmers and/or scents, and don't currently have a rep, I highly recommend my dear friend Tonya. She is absolutely fantastic, and you can order straight from her online shop!

I am itching to get some fresh Spring flowers to add some bright color to our home, but I have already started packing to move next month-- wouldn't buying more stuff to put out be counterproductive? :D

What is your favorite thing about Spring?

God can Overcome!

"Our limitations do not speak of our capabilities-- they only whisper of what God can overcome!" So thankful this morning for a God that can overcome what the world labels as "hopeless." No matter what your circumstance, be it your health, finances, relationship, business, whatever.. GOD has the final say so! I pray this encourages you this morning ♥

The Desires of Your Heart

“Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:3-4)

Many people read this believing that whatever they want, God will give it to them. However, I believe that our desires have to match up with His desires. Do the things you desire glorify God? Will they bring you into a closer relationship with Him? Or are they (truly) just selfish things? Of course we have our selfish desires (who wouldn’t like a brand new car?!), but I think this verse means more than God acting as a Santa Claus who gives us everything on our wish list. The next verse (5) says to commit your ways to the Lord. I believe when we do this, our desires will line up with His.

What is it that your heart is desiring today?

Mindset is a Powerful Thing!

“For as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7) Mindset is a powerful thing. What have you spent your time meditating on lately? Do you believe you are SUCCESSFUL even when you are struggling? Do you believe you are an OVERCOMER when obstacles get thrown in your way? Do you believe that you will REAP A HARVEST from the seeds you’ve been planting, even though you have not yet seen the first sign of fruit? It’s so easy to get down and discouraged when we don’t see immediate results. Whether it’s in business, weight-loss, family matters, ministry, or just life in general, remember that GOD IS FAITHFUL! He wants to talk to you ♥ ♥