The BEST Pumpkin Bread ... Bless your neighbors!

 

Happy Columbus Day to my American family and friends and Happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian family and friends!!

 

Ahhhh ... fall, pumpkins, cool breezes, bright orange colors ... I love it ALL! And I love how these beauties can so simply be made into a yummy and lovely treat to enjoy and share with others.

 

Here are the ingredients you'll need:

 

 

A 15 or 16 oz can of pumpkin {I bought the big can because I made a double recipe}

3 cups of sugar

1 cup oil

2/3 cup water

4 eggs

3 & 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 & 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ginger

 

*Optional* add in chocolate chips or nuts if you choose

 

This makes 2 large loaves {9x5} or 5 Mini loaves. I have also made it in a bundt pan {plus 2 mini loaves as it doesn't all fit in the bundt pan}.

 

Grease and flour the pans, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl blend the first 5 ingredients. Beat 1 min at medium speed.

Add remaining ingredients, blend at a low speed until moistened. Beat 1 min at medium speed. Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake at 350 deg for 60-75 min or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes, remove from pans. Mini loaves may take a little less time so be sure to check it around 55 minutes.

 

 In this picture it was served with homemade pumpkin caramel butter ... I do believe there is no such thing as pumpkin overload! LOL

 

And, usually when I bake, I like to bake for a reason ... not just for our family, but also as a way to bless others. So many times I'll make the mini loaves so we can enjoy some and then we'll share some loaves with our neighbors too.

 

 

ENJOY!!

 

 

Melt in your mouth Pot Roast

Hey all! We are having a fantastic Columbus day weekend around here. We've done a whole bunch of 'fallish' things already and still have all day tomorrow to enjoy! I sure love a 3-day weekend!

Tonight we wanted to have a meal that just says fall and comfort food to me. So I'd like to introduce you to Melt in your mouth pot roast ... and I promise this is literally a no fail recipe!

 

{image credit: wegmans.com}

Buy a Chuck Roast ... MAKE SURE you get one that says Chuck Roast! For years I bought other, more expensive cuts of meat but they always came out so dry. This cut of meat is CRUCIAL in the taste!

I bought a 3 lb roast and there are 4 people in my family. We had enough for dinner with a little leftover for later. You can use a larger roast if you need to.
Put your chuck roast in a crock pot {I even put mine in totally frozen this morning because I forget to take it out of the freezer and it still turned out perfect.}
Add 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup,
1 Package of dry onion soup mix,
And 1 and 1/4 cups of water.
Cook on low for 8 hours.

The meat comes out SO tender you don't even need a knife.

We serve this with a side of roasted potatoes and carrots and some fresh, hot biscuits. There was PLENTY of yummy 'gravy' left in the crock pot to use over your potatoes and biscuits if you like. Sorry I didn't get a picture, we all ate it up so fast I forget to take one!

And there you have it! Simple and delicious! Hope you enjoy this, be sure to let me know if you decide to give it a try.

{Many thanks to my sis in law who introduced me to this recipe last year.}

Missin' My Daddy

My Dad died almost 9 years ago. This week is the week that he was diagnosed with Leukemia. I'm not sure if it was a subconscious thing or what but I had the most vivid dream the other night.

I dreamt we were walking somewhere in a very crowded place and I saw him. I was so shocked to see him and just stood there for a few seconds staring at him. Then when I realized it was really him I just ran to him and clung to him just bawling. He asked me what was wrong and I said 'I just miss you SO much!'

I woke up bawling. It felt so real. I got out of bed, went into the dark living room and just sat there crying for about a half hour. Sometimes it's so good for me to let myself have a good long cleansing cry.

Later that day I thought about it ... maybe it was a little glimpse of the day we will be reunited in heaven ... except there won't be ANY tears then! So thankful for the HOPE I have through Christ that assures me I will see my Daddy again some day.

Revelation 21:4
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

Friday Faves

It’s time to get back to counting One Thousand Gifts and I also think it’s time to start noticing the ‘little things’ … so with that said, this week I’m linking up to Friday Favorite Things with Rachel from Finding Joy.

1. My cozy, comfy reading corner…

2. The leaves are so pretty right now, I love the crunchiness of hearing them underfoot and the pretty mix of colors everywhere … {this is just outside my kitchen window}

3. A new kitchen rug and finally finding the perfect place to hang my little sign … 

4. The coolest little trick I found on Pinterest, my Pumpkin Spice candle burning, and making Pumpkin bread for the first time this season …

5. My cute ‘eh?’ apron given to me by my Canadian cousins. Yes I do have Canadian roots for those of you who didn’t know … ;)

6. Jamie Grace radio on Pandora …. LOVE her!

7. My coffee order is on it’s way! And it has 2 cases of Pumpkin Spice in it!!!!! WOOOOOHOOOOO!!

8. Enjoying a little splurge until my coffee order arrives …

9. These wrinkles … yep, they remind me of all the smiles, laughter and good times that have put them there!

10. Our chalkboard wall … my kids were like ‘ya’ll …really?!’ … I just don’t think they got it. And yes, I added some Southern to my Canadian roots when I lived in Florida for about 5 years.

11. When my girlies get home from school … YAY! We enjoyed a snack of hot, fresh pumpkin bread today while we chatted at the kitchen counter. I love when they get home!

12. We have had a lot of these little visitors lately … and since my screen needs to be fixed many times they end up IN my kitchen! I might just scream and jump a little, tiny bit!

13. Blessing our neighbors … just because!

14. Homemade Chicken Pot Pies … mmmmmm

 

So there ya go …

Happy Fall Y’all!

{is it y’all or ya’ll or something completely different?!}

Simple Fall Wreath

Now that we’re home from our vacation I am SO ready for fall! I went on a field trip with my daughter’s class today and we took a school bus for about a 45 minute ride. The colors of the trees all around the state were simply GORGEOUS! I LOVE fall!!!

Anyway, this year we are on a tight budget and I wanted to do some fall decor on the cheap, if ya know what I mean! So I pulled out the stuff I already had and came up with a few things.

Today, I’m sharing one of my simple {cheap!} wreaths. Take a basic wreath {mine was a grapevine wreath that I got at a yard sale for 25 cents!} … wrap strips of burlap around it using hot glue to secure it in several spots. Then add some silk florals and leaves with the hot glue gun.

 

{please excuse my dirty kitchen door that needs to be repainted!}

Total cost: Hard to say. The wreath was a quarter, I’ve had the floral stems for a while but let’s just say they were a buck or two when they were new. And the burlap I bought for $2.99 a yard and used probably less than a quarter of a yard on this.

Coming soon … pictures of the rest of my simple, cheap fall decorating. =)

How do I .... simplify?

So my last post was about our trip to Bermuda and I wanted to share a bit more about what always impresses me when we're there. I mentioned in the last post that things are EXTREMELY expensive over there and many locals have a tough time making ends meet. You might think it's only millionaires living in such paradise, but that sure isn't the case.

Many of the people there were born and raised there and are far from millionaires. You might think 'why don't they just move if it's too expensive' but we all know it's not as simple as that.

What impressed me is how simple things are there. Simple, small roads - no big highways. And everyone drives with such courtesy for others. There were several times our driver would stop in the middle of the road to let another car make a turn. And they honk at each other constantly - but not in an angry way, they do it to wave and say hello to all the people they know.

We spent quite a bit of time talking to the different cab drivers {as they would drive us where we wanted to go}. We found out from them how expensive things are and how the economy is tough for them, just as it is for us. But the one thing every single cab driver said was 'we are blessed.'

Wow, that really struck me! I mean it's easy to see they're blessed to live in such a beautiful place -- but would I say I was blessed if I was living in such tough economical times?! Most of them work 2 or more jobs - and this would be both the husband and the wife of the house. And many of them cannot afford to buy even a modest home.

Now I realize Bermuda is not a third world country, and there are MANY places in the world where people are far worse off. So I'm not trying to get you to pity the Bermudians ... I just kept thinking how they were so happy to live a simple life, to work hard and just be kind to everyone they meet.

We were also told there is very little crime. It just seems like they have this happy little community who all genuinely care for one another.

One thing a lady cab driver told us was that when times get tough people just have to get creative ... she said many people plant a garden to grow their own food. Or you bake your own bread {because a loaf in the store costs $5.00!!}. I didn't get to see the inside of the grocery store, but the outside was very simple and I could tell the store was very small. I bet they don't have a hundred different varieties of Chocolate Chip Cookies and 10 different brands of milk. I think the Bermudians sort of have things in a better balance than we do ... they just keep life simple. They eat real food. They are kind and courteous to others. They look out for one another. It really was a beautiful thing to see!

Now, my point in all this is that I want to live more simply. I have a closet full of clothes and plenty of necklaces hanging in my room - yet when I planned for this trip I felt like I needed to go out and buy, buy, buy more things.

I think we're spoiled here in America ... I know I am! When my swiffer mop broke a couple weeks ago I was going to throw it out and buy a new one ... when hubby came home he said I can fix that and he duct taped it together - and guess what, it works fine! When we get a little hole in a piece of clothing we almost always toss it out ... what did the generations before us do? They sewed it! They fixed it! They couldn't afford to buy new things every time that happened so they learned to fix things.

We live in a country where the stores are everywhere! You can shop for anything you want without driving very far at all - or if you want you can even do it online! Anytime I want a book - I look it up on Amazon and almost always buy it. Books are good but this is silly. I could borrow from a friend, go to the library, or simply just WAIT until I have given it some more thought. Impulse shopping is not a good thing!

Here are a few things I want to learn to do:

*be content with what I have
*use what I have wisely and care for things I have well so they won't get damaged or need to be replaced
*get rid of clutter and stop holding on to things I don't need or use
*get back to a simple life of playing with my husband and kids - going outdoors to play ball, playing board games, talking around the table, etc.
*focus time and attention on my family and friends
*learn how to make more things from scratch - food items as well as cleaning products
*not go out to eat as much - we can make things just as yummy at home!
*learn to budget better and eliminate debt

I'm sure there are more but that's just a few things to get me started. So here's my question ... how do you simplify your life?

Any advice for getting started on this Simple Life journey?

I AM blessed! Now I just need to start living my life so that it reflects that fact!

Bermuda 2012

Last week my family and I went on an amazing trip. We took a cruise from NJ to Bermuda. This was the 3rd time for Bob and I to go to Bermuda and it was the 2nd time for our girls to go. It’s most definitely one of our FAVORITE Islands to go to and absolutely heaven on earth!

I took about 550 pictures but picked a few of my faves to share with you.

We left from Cape Bayonne, NJ which is just across the Hudson from NYC … it was neat to see the Statue of Liberty and the new Freedom Tower.

I am a Mom who wears jeans and t-shirts pretty much every day. The only days I get dressed up are basically Sundays for church and MAYBE an occasional time when I go out to dinner with my family or friends. Being on the cruise was so much fun because we dressed up for dinner EVERY night! Even on the nights that are deemed ‘casual’ you are expected to dress nice for the dining room {like no shorts, tanks, swimwear, etc}. I had fun in the month leading up to the cruise trying to find dresses and outfits to bring with me. This dress I got from a friend who was getting rid of it – thankfully it was stretchy material cause I BARELY squeezed into it! hahaha

Our ship was HUGE and even had an ice skating rink onboard! The girls went skating one night and thought it was so cool!

The 2nd day we were onboard was our daughter Hope’s 11th birthday! We ordered room service breakfast so she could start the day with breakfast in bed! We also brought her bday gifts with us and let her open them right after breakfast. She had a super fun day onboard the ship and I think it’s a birthday she won’t soon forget! =) {side note … I can hardly believe she’s ELEVEN!}

The ship also had a rock wall onboard … Bob and Joy climbed it one day and Hope and I had planned to do it but then we never got around to doing it …

Another night before dinner … this was one of the ‘formal’ nights …. this is a dress I bought on a resale group on FB for FIVE dollars! I love it and it fits me so nicely, I can’t believe what a good deal it was!

That night at dinner they came over and sang Happy Birthday to Hope … it was so sweet!

There were 3 days when we were ‘at sea’ and there are about a hundred different things you can do to keep busy on the ship … but our fave is just to lounge by the pools, swim, soak up the sunshine and people watch! There are SO many interesting people on the ship! They always have neat things going on too like this day there was a Belly Flop contest {which is why everyone is watching the pool area} or they usually also have a Caribbean band playing live music. Sometimes people are dancing, sometimes they do fun games, one day they did an ice carving demonstration by the pool, it just seems like there is always something going on in that area.

Once we reached Bermuda we had 3 full days there … we went to a beach called Horseshoe Bay which is absolutely, stunningly gorgeous!

We brought snorkels and masks with us on the ship and we did a bunch of snorkeling. We got to see all kinds of neat tropical fish, coral, sea urchins, tropical reefs, and even some small squid. My hubby and girls also saw an eel and a sand shark {I wasn’t around to see those!}.

Bermuda is known for it’s pink sand beaches. The sand looks pink from shells that have been ground up by the sea …. if you hold some in your hand you can most definitely see the pink granules and it’s SO cool. The sand is also so fine it feels like baby powder, it’s SO soft to walk on both in and out of water and the weird thing is that it actually feels cool and not hot to walk on.

We explored little coves, snorkeled, played in the waves/water for hours and lounged in the sun while the girls played in the sand. We ended up going to this beach 2 of our 3 days because we loved it so much!

Our ship was docked in the Royal Naval Dockyard in Kings Wharf, Bermuda … we did a little shopping {looking around} in the dockyard mall one day. Everything is SUPER expensive in Bermuda! The cab drivers all told us that an average house {not big, just average!} sells for about $800,000 and that gas is almost $10 per gallon!! OK, I will stop complaining about the high cost of living in CT! =)

We loved these old payphones {which still work!} … the girls and I kept singing ‘I’m at a payphone tryin’ to call home, all of my change I spent on you …’ 

One of the days we took a ferry to the opposite side of the island to a place called St. Georges …. we took a quick taxi ride over to a beach called Tobacco Bay. We had been to Tobacco Bay on our last trip to Bermuda and we had loved it … but this time it was kinda murky in some of the water and the beach was WAY overcrowded … so we only stayed a couple hours and then took the ferry back to the dockyard …

Back at the dockyard there is a little place called Snorkel Park … we went snorkeling there, swam a little and just relaxed … it was getting to be around dinner time so we eventually made our way back to our ship to go grab some dinner.

This was dinner on another night … this dress is one of my FAVES! I got it at Kohl’s this summer with a coupon and discount making it pretty cheap … it’s SUPER comfortable and I love the colors. {at this point my nose was sunburned just about every day even when I would put 50 sunblock on several times per day!}

All 4 of us stayed in a little tiny room … it sure made me appreciate my ‘small’ house when I came home! The bunks would be folded up during the day, but this is what it would look like at night … and that’s a mirror, not a window, so it was sort of like sleeping in cave with no daylight!

Ever since we booked this trip back in the spring I have been trying get in shape for it … I know I’m not ‘fat’ but definitely have some areas that need some work {that you can’t see because clothes hide a lot}. Anyway, I tried hard and did pretty well with losing a few pounds and exercising more and had sort of made it my goal to be able to wear a bikini when we went on our trip. Well the week before the trip I was trying all my clothes on and just didn’t feel comfortable with how I looked in the 2 bikini tops I had … I told Bob I was just going to bring the 3 suits that were tankinis and would just feel best in those. And I just have to say I’m glad I did.

The funny thing is there were women of ALL shapes and sizes wearing ALL sorts of swimsuits {some who should NOT have been wearing skimpy bikinis} and I know I could have gotten away with mine and nobody would have even cared … but there really is something to be said for feeling very confident and comfortable in your own skin. For not worrying about your love handles and cellulite showing … but just feeling totally comfortable. And that’s how I felt. I’m also a Mom who loves to get in the water, jump around, dive into waves, etc … I don’t sit on the beach sunbathing very often and it’s nice to wear a swimsuit that allows you to move around comfortably without always having to worry about the suit shifting too much. And when I looked back at these pictures, fully expecting to feel frumpy and not satisfied, I was actually happy and confident and pleased with how they turned out. =) Fitting in and looking good in a bikini are NOT what make a person beautiful … something I learned on this trip.

The girls snorkeled almost constantly! They were addicted to seeing all the cool fish!

As I held this up and looked all around me I literally thought to myself ‘Just Another Day in Paradise!’

OK, so it’s really not all about the drinks … but this was one of my faves … it’s called a Mango Tango and was SO yummy ….

This was the 2nd formal dinner night … this is a dress I have had for YEARS and worn on several cruises.

The girls on the ship deck, waiting for dinner one night …

And a gorgeous sunset on our last night onboard …. this was truly a trip to remember with so many special moments and memories made with our daughters. I know the day will come when they’d rather hang with friends than hang with us, so for this time we really soaked in every moment.