Finding Roots

I cannot even count the number of times I have heard someone from my town say "I can't wait to get out of this town!" Mostly growing up, but sometimes even now, I hear that same sentiment. So I started wondering...is it odd that I LOVE the town I live in?! I am so happy that I still live in the same town that I was born and raised in. I love that it only takes 5 minutes to get from my house to my moms. I love passing by the high school I graduated from. I love running into a childhood friend at wal-mart. I love going to football games when my old highschool is having an undefeated season. I love knowing that I graduated from the same high school that my dad did. I love the idea of my children growing up in the same surroundings that I did. I know that living here isn't for everyone, but I for one have loved every minute of it. I'm so glad that I have "roots" here.

Carrot Cake Cookies

A while back, I found a recipe for Carrot Cake Cookies that I knew my dad would love. He always has carrot cake for his birthday, so I knew these would be right up his alley. So I was looking for an occasion to make them, and I figured Easter was the perfect time. I'm not very good at baking, so I was a little nervous, but they turned out really well. They were a huge hit at Easter!! I found this recipe here, and only modified it slightly.

1 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg½ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup coarsely grated carrots (2 medium)
1/3 cup raisins

FILLING1 cup cream cheese
1 tbsp honey

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 180°C. Butter 2 baking sheets.Whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.Beat together butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla in another bowl until pale and fluffy. Mix in carrots, and raisins; then add flour mixture to this and beat until just combined.Drop 1 1/2 tablespoons batter per cookie 2 inches apart on baking sheets and bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are lightly browned and springy to the touch, 12 to 16 minutes total.Cool cookies on sheets for 1 minute, then transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.While cookies are baking, blend cream cheese and honey in a food processor until smooth.Sandwich flat sides of cookies together with a generous tablespoon of cream cheese filling in between.

If you like carrot cake, you will love these!!

A Whole Lot of Nothing!

That is what has been going on in my life lately!! I realized that I hadn't blogged in almost a month, so I started thinking of what I needed to catch everyone up on, and thats when I realized it. We haven't done much of anything lately!! I haven't been cooking as much lately, however I have managed to have a few flops!! We've just been having a lot of simple dinners, and trying to get our house organized. My husband has really been stepping up and helping around the house lately, which is awesome!!

I need to blog soon about my latest obsession...COUPONS!! Until recently, I was never big on coupons, but I have totally become obsessed. If you use coupons a lot, let me know what works for you. I'm still trying to figure it all out, but I'm getting there.

Well, I guess thats it. I just wanted to make a quick appearance!

What am I grateful for?

Over the last few months, I've been in a funk. There is no other way to describe it. It seems like we have had a run of "bad luck", for lack of a better word. I've noticed that I've been spending a lot of time focusing on what has been going wrong, which is probably what is contributing to my funk, and not enough time focusing on what is really important. So in an attempt to get myself out of this funk, I've decided to make a list of what I am grateful for. So here goes...I feel incredibly blessed to have:

- God. My relationship has come to a new place lately, and I really needed that.
-An incredible husband. He is my very best friend, and life is never boring with him
around.
- My cats. I know that makes me sound like a crazy cat lady, but they really do make
my day. Until we have children, they are my kids, and thats pretty much how I treat
them!
- My parents. I have such great relationships with both of them, and I am so thankful
for that. Its comforting to know that they are always there, no matter what.
- My sister. She is one of my best friends, and I am so lucky to have that. A
relationship between sisters cannot be matched.
- My job. In a time where a lot of people are struggling to find and keep work, I know
how lucky I am for my job. The people are wonderful, and the environment is almost
always positive.
- My extended family & friends. Some of those are one in the same. I have such an
incredible group of people that I get to call family. Growing up, I thought everyone's
family was as close as ours, but as I've gotten older, I realize that isn't true, so I know
how lucky I am to have that.

Well, I'm sure there is a lot more, but that is a start. My life is really pretty fantastic!! :)

Ugh.

This past weekend was not the greatest. We received a nice note from our apt manager that they have been made aware that we have cats in our apt, and that we have to find them a new home. Well, anyone that knows me knows that I am not going to be parting with my cats. They are like children to me. After a discussion with my landlord today, there is a small possibility that we may be able to keep them, but we won't know til Friday, when the main manager gets back. Anyway, we have been wanting to find a house to rent for a while now, until Dave Ramsey tells us that we are ready to buy a house, at least! We have just completely outgrown our apartment, and are ready for more space and privacy that the apt provides. So today, I started the rental house search, and I am quickly finding out that I don't enjoy it AT ALL!! There doesn't seem to be a lot out there. I have found 1 that I think I may fall in love with, but it is about $100 more than we want to spend in rent, and about 10 miles farther out than we want to live. So who knows. I just hope that it all works out.

Blog Awards!!

I received the "Lemonade Stand" and the "Your Blog is Fabulous" awards from Melissa at Mrs. Sac's Purple Kitchen! Thanks so much Melissa!! I didn't even realize anyone ever read my blog! Make sure to check out Melissa's blog for lots of yummy recipes, and check out the blogs I nominated below!

Erin ~ Erin's Food Files

Lindsay ~ Love Deliciousness

Molly ~ My Happy Meals

Mandy ~ Home with Mandy

Mini twice baked potatoes

I love potatoes. I don't care how you fix them, they are one of my all time favorite foods. I usually use whatever I have on hand to make twice baked potatoes. I've seen on several different blogs where people have used red potatoes, so I decided to create my own version of those this time. They turned out great!

Mini Twice Baked Potatoes
10-12 small red potatoes
2 tblsp sour cream
4 tblsp butter
a couple splashes of milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
4 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 green onions, chopped

Poke holes in potatoes with a fork and bake them in the oven at 4oo degrees for 45 min - 1 hour (or until soft). Let cool 10-15 minutes. Cut in half and scoop out center. Mix potato, sour cream, butter, milk, cheese bacon and onions until well mixed. Scoop filling back into potato shells. Bake at 400 for approximately 15 -20 min. These were great at room temp as well.