Oreo Truffles...YUM!

I found this recipe on one of my favorite blogs to stop by and check out design ideas. The Nesting Place is a fabulous place to go when your motto is "It doesn't have to perfect to be Beautiful!". So, this is what you'll need to make Oreo Truffles.

1 pkg. (1 lb. 2 oz.) OREO Cookies, finely crushed, divided 1 pkg.
(8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
2 pkg. (8 squares each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted
Make It
MIX 3 cups of the cookie crumbs and the cream cheese until well blended. Shape into 42 (1-inch) balls.

DIP balls in melted chocolate; place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet. (Any leftover melted chocolate can be stored in tightly covered container at room temperature and saved for another use.) Sprinkle with remaining cookie crumbs.

REFRIGERATE 1 hour or until firm. Store any leftover truffles in tightly covered container in refrigerator.
Kitchens Tips
How to Easily Dip Truffles
To easily coat truffles with the melted chocolate, add truffles, in batches, to bowl of melted chocolate. Then use two forks to roll truffles in chocolate until evenly coated. Remove the truffles with forks and allow excess chocolate to drip back into bowl before placing truffles on prepared baking sheet.
Special Extra
Sprinkle truffles with colored sugar or sprinkles in addition to or in place of the cookie crumbs.
How to Soften Cream Cheese
Place completely unwrapped package of cream cheese in microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH 10 sec. or just until softened. Add 15 sec. for each additional package of cream cheese

Go Indians!

Presenting...the final product

My first attempt at pottery painting! I was pretty pleased with the end result and my boys were very impressed. Really all that matters to me is that my kids liked it and that I had a complete blast painting it.

Not Me Monday

No way did I wake up this morning and carefully cut a Breakfast Cake into beautiful slices, place it on a beautiful plate as to disquise the fact that it was store bought and not homeade for MOPS this morning! A Pampered Chef lady would never cut corners like that!

I would never skip preparing a home cooked meal at breakfast time for my children before they run off to their bus at the crack of dawn. I did not throw apples at them and tell them to hurry and eat that and be sure to throw your core into the ditch before the bus comes. We never run late on Monday mornings!!!

Mascoutah Football

Matt ventured out with the big boys to the Mascoutah Football game on Saturday afternoon. It was pretty cold and from the sound of things there was a lot of complaining going on!!! I got them all dressed in there purple spirit wear and painted their cute little faces and everything. Matt agreed that it was very cold, so he didn't really blame them for being uncomfortable. They left at the end of the 3rd quarter and the Mascoutah Indians ended up losing 42 to 14.

I was busy up in the boys bedroom the entire time they were gone, cleaning, sorting, throwing away, and just plain going to town on that room! Our landlords are putting in new windows in the upstairs the Monday before Thanksgiving so it was necessary to get up there and organize. The room is coming along and with just a little more work tomorrow after church I think it will be complete. The trick now is to keep it that way for a whole week. We'll see how that goes.

Pottery

I found a new favorite past time! Painting pottery on Monday night with my MOPS group (Mother's of Preschoolers) was so much fun!!! We arrived at our local pottery painting studio at around 6:30pm and were overwhelmed with the selection of pieces to choose from. I settled on a scalloped plate that I thought would be perfect for what I envisioned. By the time we had all decided on our piece and loaded up our paintbrushes it was more like 7pm and the place closed at 8pm. Boy, did that hour fly! The clock struck 8pm and my project was not complete. If you know me at all, you will know that it was all I could do to not beg the lady to stay open just one more hour!!! :) So, I left with an unfinished pottery piece. Wednesday night I couldn't stand it any longer and went back to finish the plate. It was so relaxing to sit and create a masterpiece. In about 2 weeks and after my plate survives the fiery kiln I will have the finished project. You can be sure that I will share my first attempt at painting pottery. I made sure Matt knew that I DO plan on going back. (just imagine the eye rolling that took place)

Pumpkin Pie Recipe

I am making my very first pumpkin pie ever today! I got this delicious recipe from my dear friend Melissa. She also gave me some fresh pumpkin to use!!! Thank you Melissa.

1¼ hours | 15 min prep
SERVES 8
• 1 round unbaked 9-inch deep dish pie pastry (9-10-inch)
• 2 cups freshly cooked pumpkin, seeded, peeled, mashed
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 3 large eggs, beaten lightly
• 1 (12 ounce) can evaporated skim milk
• 1/2 cup skim milk
1. (To make your own freshly cooked pumpkin, quarter 1-2 small pie pumpkins, de-stem, seed and de-string them. Then steam them in a steamer over boiling water until very tender--the skin will peel right off. Then mash them using a stick blender or a food processor).
2. Preheat oven to 400°F and have ready a pie shield and a large rimmed cookie sheet.
3. Line a deep dish pie glass pie plate with the pie pastry rounds, fluting the edges decoratively as desired.
4. Combine in order the pumpkin, sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.
5. Lightly beat eggs together with both milks, then add to the pumpkin mixture, stirring well to combine--it will be rather thin.
6. Pour as much filling as you can into unbaked pie pastry and bake at 400°F for 50 minutes (or until knife inserted halfway between center and edge comes out without any goo on it). If there is any extra filling use to fill a smaller mini pie plate or discard.
7. NOTE: Set cookie sheet on the rack below the rack you are setting your pie plate on in order to catch any drips.
8. If the pie edges start overbrowning, place a pie shield or a ring of foil over the edges--this will be needed or not depending on the type of pastry you use.

A question from Jaden

Jaden: Is Barack Ooobama going to steal our money and give it to the poor?
Mommy: Why would you ask that?
Jaden: Because that's what Logan's mom thinks!!!

Ha Ha! I had to laugh. My 6 year old is asking tons of questions about politics and this is just one of the many. I love how he says "Oobama" too.

Raking Leaves

Raking leaves at our house is so much fun! The boys love doing it and they even fight over who gets the rake. Too bad the end result looks the same as when we started. Oh well, fun was had by all and I like the leaves on the ground anyway.