Superb Streusel topped Pumpkin Apple muffins

Yes this recipe is a hit... absolutely superb if I do say so myself! It is sooo moist because of the chunks of apples and a little healthier than the average muffin recipe. Sometimes I play around with the oil and flour mixing applesauce and whole wheat in to add a little extra nutrition... but this time I just left as is. Want a fabulous fall breakfast? MAKE THESE!

Superb Streusel Topped Pumpkin Apple muffins

2.5 cups flour
1.5 cups sugar
1 heaping TBLS pumpkin pie spice (making your own is super easy if you have non on hand like me!)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup oil
2 cups peeled, chopped apples  (Granny smith are my favorite in these!)

Streusel Topping:
2 TBLS flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 TBL butter

Mix all dry ingredients together in medium sized bowl. In another bowl add eggs and beat lightly. Add pumpkin and oil, mix well. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix just until moistened... don't go crazy and over mix or you will end up with rock hard muffins! Fold in apples. Mix steusel ingredients with a fork (or pastry blender if you are fancy... I don't have one so I use a fork) until mixtures resembles coarse crumbs.

Pour batter into paper muffin cups until 2/3 full, top with steusel mixture and bake for 20 mins in 350 degree oven. Enjoy!

Little Miss Gabbie

Is 5 weeks old and continues to amaze me everyday! She started rolling over before she even turned 2 weeks old! Shes just recently started smiling and just last night started "talking"... it was so cute! Time is going by way too quickly!!! Heres a few of the pictures I've taken over the past couple weeks...

One week old!

One month old!

5 weeks! Up close and personal

 Little Princess in her tutu onesie... from Aunt Stacey and Uncle Joe :)

Big yawn...

DONE taking pictures! LOL!

Gabrielle Marie

I know I know! It's been literally forever! I will just go ahead and say I am never going to be some AMAZING blogger! Especially now that our baby girl is here! Yay! :D

Gabrielle Marie was born on August 22nd... she weighed in at 8 lbs 2 oz and 20.5 inches long... such a peanut compared to her big brothers! She is the most bald, and obviously the least chunky... but her cheeks have a nice amount of pudge to them! We are working on it :) And as you can see, she enjoys being pampered! She laid back and relaxed during her first bath! I see many Mother/ daughter pedi's in our future ;)

Room for a girl :)

So, my task over the next couple of weeks is going to be decluttering my house! In Japan, we lived in a small 850 sq ft home, so needless to say, we didn't keep much! I loved the simplicity of not having a house full of clutter! Now that we have 1800 sq ft, we have somehow managed to fill every closet and garage with things that never get used. Somehow we have gone from few things more than the essentials, to complete overload! (Well, in my opinion anyway!).

Anyway... once I get rid of all the stuff holding me back I want to decorate for the baby. Now, being a first time mom of a girl :D :D :D I want some opinions on which direction to take this in :) So let me know which one ya'll like the most...

black and white
tulip crib set
pink medallion
princess

Have a great night! :)

Black Bean Burgers :D

 Mmmm... just looking at the picture makes my mouth water :) When Mike and I lived in Japan we went through about a month of being "vegetarian". It was fun... well, most of the time! haha. This is one of our most favorite vegetarian recipes that we still continue to make often... it is VERY budget friendly, heart healthy, and easy on the waistline as well! The boys both thoroughly enjoy these and eat them up just as they would any other burger :)

 The cast of characters....

So heres the recipe....
Spicy (but not TOO spicy) black bean burgers
1/2 green pepper (a little more or less depending on how much you like the taste of peppers)
1/2 medium onion
1 16 oz can of black beans
3-4 cloves of garlic
1 egg
1 TBL. chili powder
1 TBL. cumin
1 tsp hot sauce (I like Cholula Chili Garlic, but we have made them with no hot sauce and they are just as good!)
1/2 c. oatmeal (or breadcrumbs, but breadcrumbs have absolutely no nutritive value)

Preheat griddle to about 350-375. Rinse beans and mash with a fork. Use a food chopper or processor to finely chop onion, garlic, and green pepper. Be sure to drain some of the juice from the pepper, or else you may need to add more oatmeal to your burgers. Beat egg and add. Stir in spices, hot sauce and oatmeal and mix thoroughly. Place on griddle by spoonful and shape into a good patty size. Allow to cook for about 5-8 minutes per side depending on thickness. We like ours pretty thin :)

Place on a nice multigrain bun and top with cheese and claussen pickles mmmmm. Really, it has to be claussen pickles. There is no substitute. The boys really like these with ketchup. Mike and I prefer them with A-1 but from this point you can do your own thing ;D  
Enjoy!

So.... Its... A..... BABY....

GIRL

Yup thats right... I was trying to get some pictures up from my cell phone, but it wasn't cooperating! Little baby girl has some LONG legs though! She must be built just like Mamma :)

I have to admit... I CRIED when I found out! I mean I have been praying for a girl since Jackson was born... but the Lord has truly answered! I feel blessed beyond belief and I just still can't believe that the Lord would allow me to have a little girl! Thank you Lord for answered prayers!

Hashbrown Casserole

I tried a new recipe this weekend for our SS class, hashbrown casserole. I've tried quite a few different recipes, but never really found one that I liked very much... until now! A couple people asked for the recipe, so I decided to put it up :) Enjoy!

Hash Brown Casserole:

1 32 oz bag of hash brown potatoes ( I used cubed, but I think shredded would be great!)
1 16 oz container sour cream
8 oz diced ham
2 cans condensed cream of potato soup (Yes, it HAS to be cream of potato!)
2 cups medium cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp or so black pepper
dash of onion powder (or chopped onion)
about a cup of Parmesan cheese

Throw the potatoes, sour cream, ham, soups, cheddar cheese, spices in a bowl and mix together. Spread into a lightly greased 9x 13 pan and bake at 375 for about an hour, or until bubbly. Easy peasy and OH so cheesy. :) haha, yes I know... I'm such a nerd!

Menu Plan Monday :)

Ok, so I know I have totally missed like 2 weeks... or maybe 3, but now I'm back! It seems this spring weather is giving me some much MUCH needed new energy! So... I can stay awake for longer periods of time to do things like, oh, I dunno... add to my blog! :) Here's what this weeks menu looks like... a little more boring than normal, but we are trying to get rid of things around here and buy less this week :)

Monday

breakfast: cereal, leftover cinnamon buns

lunch: sandwiches and fruit

dinner: grilled deer steak, pasta, salad, french vanilla cupcakes :)

Tuesday

breakfast: cereal

lunch: salad w/ cheese, fruit

dinner: breakfast for dinner :)

Wednesday

breakfast: cereal

lunch: pb&j, carrots

dinner: mac & cheese w/ brocolli, mixed veggies

Thursday

breakfast: cereal, smoothies

lunch: sandwiches, carrots

dinner: leftovers night

Friday

breakfast: oatmeal w/ apples

lunch: sandwiches, salad

dinner: roasted chicken, fresh broccoli, mashed tators

Saturday

breakfast: waffles with strawberries

lunch: OUT

dinner: chicken and gravy, french fries, broccoli

Sunday

breakfast: leftover waffles

lunch: chicken noodle soup in the crockpot

dinner: smoothies... after church is usually too late for a big meal for us, but smoothies and popcorn are a perfect before bed combination!

The "Must Read" Book.

Those who know me know that I am a lot of things.... but an avid reader isn't one of them! I can't say that I've sat down and read many books in the past couple months... or couple years for that matter! Sure, I read my Bible everyday, and things like "The Pokey Little Puppy" with the boys... but an actual adult book just never really intrigued me. UNTIL we bought "Twenty- First Century REVIVAL" by John Goetsch. Wow. It is AWESOME (And awesomely convicting!). He gives so much information on the early churches and revivals throughout history. He also talks about the church history here in America, and the changes America has gone through in the past couple of decades. It is just a really great book, seriously... yall have to read it!!!! I could go on and on all afternoon about it, but I think he honestly says things the best! If ya want to borrow it you can, but I definitely recommend buying it!  :)

Menu Plan Monday :)

Monday's are most often the day I sit down and actually compile the meals I'm planning to make for the upcoming week. I try to only go grocery shopping ONCE a week. If I am out of something, I either make something else, or find an appropriate substitute... instead of running back to the store. I have this problem with getting WAY more than what I went to the store for! Anyway... this weeks menu is as follows :)

 Monday:
B: oatmeal with apples and raisins
L: chicken, rice and carrots
D: chili and homemade cornbread

Tuesday:
B: pancakes
L: cream cheese and apple butter sandwiches, pears
D: broc and cheese calzone (one of my favorite things!)

Wednesday:
B: oatmeal w/ apples and raisins
L: chili baked potatoes
D: spaghetti carbonara, brocolli

Thursday:
B: pancakes
L: breakfast for lunch
D: Zuppa Toscana, breadsticks

Friday:
B: baked apple pie oatmeal :)
L: chili, cheese and rice wraps
D: Italian Drip Beef Sandwiches, I am SUPER excited to try these! From http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/

Saturday:
B: Breakfast sandwiches
L: Sandwiches and left over soup
D: Leftovers

Sunday:
B: pancakes
L: Bean and rice wraps with cheese, carrots
D: For dinner we always have homemade popcorn (not that super processed, cancer causing, microwave stuff!), fresh fruit and choc milk. Most of the time we are all ready for bed by the time we get home on sundays and this always seems to be just the right combination :)

Weekly Snacks:
popcorn, carrots and celery with ranch, apples with peanut butter, and pumpkin apple struedel muffins

Looking forward to a great week, with lots of yummy food :)

"Git R Done"

Ok so I just had to laugh today as Thomas and I were working on school. We were going over letter sounds and blends. Among the blends we went over were the "G" blends. As we work through sounding the letters out, he always comes up with a word that has the blend in it, for example ga- gap. Well, we came down to "gi" and this is what I hear.... "G says guh and I says ih... guh, ih, guh, ih.... GIH.... like I go 'git' toys." I started cracking up... just a little :) And kindly corrected him that git is actually get. 

He makes me laugh. ALL THE TIME! We have so much fun doing school together, I wouldn't trade teaching my own child to read for the world, no matter what people want to say about "socialization". Thank you Lord for allowing me this opportunity!

cinnamon, spice, and everything nice cookies...

Mmmm... these cookies are pretty great! They taste like a cross between a snickerdoodle and a ginger cookie... or if you made a gingerbread cinnamon bun... they are delish! I didn't get a chance to take any pictures because my boys (all three of them!) really enjoyed these so much they are gone! I only made a half recipe... guess I should have made a whole! :) Anyway... here it is...

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butter flavored shortening
• 2 cups light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 cups cinnamon chips
• 1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter flavored shortening, light brown sugar and dark brown sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the milk and vanilla, blending until the mixture is light and fluffy. Combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda and salt; stir into the batter until well blended. Mix in cinnamon chips and if using, pecans. Drop rounded spoonfuls of dough onto the prepared cookie sheets about 2 inches apart.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, just until the cookies lose their gloss. Remove from the cookie sheets to wire racks to cool.

This recipe was taken from www.allrecipes.com... and for once I actually followed the entire recipe with no add ins of my own! Try em... they're delish!

Baby its COLD outside :D

So can you guess how excited I am right now?!?!? IT IS SNOWING!!!!! They are only calling for 1-2 inches... but its still snow, and I will take it any way I can get it! Ahh... I love the look of white streets and housetops :D :D :D

So what better way to welcome snow then by hot cocoa?! These mugs I got last year after CHRISTmas from Target... for .25 cents each! Aren't they adorable?! And the dinosaur robes? My awesome sister picked them out for the boys for CHRISTmas... they LOVE them and wear them whenever they get the chance.

Well thats it for now, but Sarah you should be so proud of me for posting 2 days in a row! Tomorrow I am going to post these cookies I made the other night... they were amazing :)

Ok, its been a WHILE! Like a long while! So much for trying harder at blogging right? I've gotten really bad at taking pictures lately... mainly because my camera never seems to work the way I want it to haha.

So since I'm such a slacker at taking pictures, here's some of the boys I took in the fall. Ahh... I love fall :) But I love winter too... and good thing, there is snow headed this direction!

I'm hoping to get some pictures up on a more regular basis, and hopefully get some pictures of my little men in the snow! I know they are as excited as I am for the white stuff!