It Ain't Food Network......But They Eat It, Tuesday!

This is a recipe that a lady brought to work for a pitch-in when I worked at the bank. I thought it was so good and what is even better is it is so easy! It doesn't really have a name so I am making up one.

Not Too Spicy Shredded Roast Beef Sandwiches

Roast, pretty much any size and any cut
1 Jar of Pepperoncini peppers, sliced (as far as I know there is only one size and you find them in the pickle aisle)

Okay, here is where it gets hard. Get out your crock pot. Rinse your meat like you normally would. Put it in the crock pot. Now take the peppers and dump them in, juice and all. Turn on the crock pot on low and cook for 6-8 hours. Or on high 4-5 hours. Then take 2 forks and pull the meat apart to shred it. Serve on buns (or another favorite bread) or eat with no bread. This stuff is even better the second day. It's not too spicy but has just enough flavor. My mom ate it last night so it can't be too hot. She's a sissy.

Surprise Sale!!!

Hello Friends!

Now through Midnight (Central time) July 4Th, all items in my Etsy shop are 25% off! When you get to the checkout screen, before you click how you will pay, enter into the coupon code box "FREEDOM25". All caps! This is for items already made.

Happy Shopping!

Sara

Friday Fun

Today the boys went outside to make water balloons. They had been waiting for the masons to finish the brick work and not long after they had their trucks loaded up and gone, the boys were outside. As soon as they got a bucket full filled with water balloons, someone else came to work for awhile on the addition. He had a saw and was cutting metal pieces of trim so they didn't need to be out there. So I decided to look up online how to make homemade play dough! It was a hit! There were several different recipes to choose from so I went with what I knew I had ingredients to make. After I finished cooking it (don't worry, it doesn't take long!) I set it aside to cool. Then I went outside in the driveway and set up the folding table. I covered it with waxed paper and taped it down. Then I went to get plastic gloves for them to wear so the food coloring wouldn't stain their hands. Oops. We didn't have any so I made them wear sandwich baggies on their hands! I thought that was very creative but they had a lot of stupid comments to share. But they lived. Every time a car went by they would hide their hands.

After the play dough was cool enough to handle I took it outside and added the food coloring. The boys squished and squeezed but the color wasn't mixing to well. I showed them how to knead the play dough like you would knead bread. That worked the best! Brayden didn't play for very long but he helped color the dough. I think he just came out to see how we were going to get that blob of "mashed potatoes" turned into play dough. After Bryson finished adding his color he made a few things and then was done. Blaine played until he got sent to his room for his attitude. But all in all they had fun while it lasted. And now we can put them in a plastic container to play with later! I made green (of course), Blaine made red, Bryson made blue and so did Brayden. When I noticed Brayden was making the same as Bryson I had him add red to make purple. We didn't need two of the same but for some reason I couldn't get anyone else to understand that!



Here is some of the conversations that went on while we were playing:

Me: "Bryson! That Stegosaurus looks awesome! Is it laying down asleep?"

Bryson: "Ummmm.......that's not a Stegosaurus. It's a Mohawk."
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This was when Blaine was adding color to his. We made a divot in the middle so the color wouldn't run down the sides.

Blaine: "Look! I picked a scab!"

Me: "Blaine. Your nasty."

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Brayden: "Don't take my picture."

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Brayden: "Can I eat this?"

Me: "You sure can! But it won't taste good."

-----later-----

Brayden: "Mom, did I tell you I tasted the play dough?"

Me: "No."

Brayden: "Yeah. It was nasty."

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I hope everyone has a fun and safe long weekend!

Sara

It Ain't Food Network, But They Eat It....Tuesday!

Last week when the boys were home from their dad's house, I decided we would try to make a treat together. Notice the word try. It ended up being a "everybody get out from under my feet....I'll call you when it's done" kind of treat. But it was good! It only has 3 (maybe 4) ingredients.

Oreo Truffles

1 package oreos (I used double stuffed because that's our favorite)

1~8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened (I used regular...might try 1/3 fat next time)

2-3 cups chocolate chips (the kind you make chocolate chip cookies with)

1 tsp. Crisco (I found a few recipes on line that said to use this and some didn't....I guess it makes the chocolate chips melt smoother?)

I put a row of each of the Oreo's into Ziploc bags...one for each kid. Even Brayden got in on the action. They crunched and crunched until I stopped them because I was afraid they were going to bust the bags. Then I mixed with the mixer the cookie crumbs with the cream cheese. Once this was mixed well, I put the chocolate and Crisco into a Pyrex bowl and sat it on top of a saucepan that had a couple inches of water. I let the water simmer (not boil) and started stirring as the chocolate started to melt. This is something else I thought the little boys could help with but they started fighting over it and I was afraid they would get burned or knock it off the stove. By this point Brayden was in his room playing his guitar.

And that method of melting the chocolate is an improvised double boiler, by the way.

Now onto mistake number 3....maybe 4 now. I started rolling them into 1 inch balls. Some recipes said to freeze it before and some after this step. I was in a hurry so I started rolling and then went ahead and rushed onto the next step of dropping it and covering it with chocolate. Not sure what mistake count I am up to now, but they melted and fell apart in the chocolate, so onto plan D now, I think.

Just put the whole stupid bowl in the freezer at this point for an hour and go play games.

After the timer goes off (yes, set a timer because you will forget) turn your improvised double boiler back on to make sure the chocolate is melted well enough. Now make small balls out of the cookie and cream cheese mixture, roll in chocolate quickly, and put on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper. Pop them back in the freezer and play some more games for about 30 minutes and they will be done!

I'm sure that was all confusing so let's recap:
Mix Oreo's with cream cheese. Freeze. Roll into balls. Dip in melted chocolate. Freeze. Eat.

I didn't think to take photos of these since we were in a hurry. The boys had to be back at their dad's house for visitation and I had craft night with the girls. Maybe the next time I make them I will remember to take a picture.

But don't count on it.

Can You Believe It?

Do you see this? Yeah. That's me. I am so excited I can't stand it! I won fabric! Woo hoo! I have been wanting to make something with vintage sheets but I was waiting until my crafting area is finished to start trying to collect some. These that I won are already cut for me so all I have to do is sew them together! Can't wait!

I have nothing to post this week that I have made :( My machine needed a little time in the shop for a tune~up. They are kinda like cars in that way. I guess I have been using it too much! I do have plans to finish a few projects in the next few days so hopefully I will have some things to post later. And tonight is craft night with my friends! I think I am going to work on my solid circle quilt that I started a year or so ago. Like Roman's quilt only made with all different solids....and bigger!

This is the month that the boys go to their dad's house. You would think I would be able to get a lot done, but last night was the first night that we ate dinner at home since the last time I cooked for them when they were home! I always have big hopes of cleaning out a closet or toy box here or there when they are gone but never seem to get things done like I want. I don't get it. I have 2 less people to take care of, a lot less laundry to wash and smaller meals to make but I seem busier. I guess that is a good thing seeing how this is a really hard month for me.

It's a long story.....

I just took two loaves of banana bread out of the oven so I better get it cut and buttered before the boys eat it out of the pans! Have a great weekend!

Sara

Fabric Pennants

I keep seeing the cutest pennants everywhere. My momma taught me long ago to see something and say, "I bet I can make that!" So I decided I would try one for the 4Th of July and I love the way it turned out.

I'm not sure where I am going to use it yet, so I went ahead and made it double sided so I don't have to worry about having to cover up the back. I used a rotary cutter with a pinking edge to cut the flags. I almost didn't do that but I am glad I did. And I can use it for Memorial Day and Veterans Day, too! Now I can't wait to make one for Halloween and Christmas :)

This week I will be linking up to Made By You Monday over at Skip to My Lou, Too Cute Tuesday at the Funky Polka Dot Giraffe and Making the World Cuter. All of these have great crafts and recipes to see! Check them out!

Sara

Gift Card Holders

This past week was my MIL's birthday. She is a hard person to buy for! Me and my husband were discussing what to get her and it always ends up with a "We've already done that" or "I don't think she would like that". She is a school teacher and spends much of her summer reading. Her and the ladies she works with trade books a lot so she always has a lot of reading to do for the summer. But we got to thinking that maybe there was something she might want to read that she hasn't been able to borrow. We decided to get her a gift card to Books-A-Million. I always hate giving gift cards (although I love to get them!) because I am always afraid the receiver will think that is a cop out for getting them something. But in my opinion, they are the right size and color, and you can get exactly what you want!

So to make it a little more personable, cute and not so "all I got you was a gift card", I made a gift card holder out of my scrap stash.

I was pretty happy about the way it turned out. I love the bright colors! And it is something that she can reuse! I think I may tackle some more of my scraps and have a few on hand for last minute gifts. Wanna make one? Here is where I found it! Love that blog.

Today I am linking up to Made By You Monday over at Skip to My Lou. Go take a peek at all the fun stuff people are making and get some ideas!

Also linking up on Tuesday at Funky Polka Dot Giraffe, 20 Minute Tuesday and Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story! Lots of fun stuff!

Sara