Rainy Day Playdate

We had a really great time at our moms&tots group this past week. Originally, we were supposed to meet at the park and have a picnic...but of course it was raining!!! :-) But that didn't dampen our fun! Man, am I feeling cheesy tonight! haha!

Anyway, we met at the church instead, and the youth room was transformed into a super cozy play area for our babies--complete with a huge blow-up bounce house, thanks to Katie! (Thank you again, Katie!!!) It was a great atmosphere for the moms to just hang out, relax & chat, and an even greater atmosphere for the kids to let out some energy. I think I could go for that setup about...hmmm....would every other day be too often??? heeheehee!

Thank you, Mrs. Ann, for putting this together. And thanks to you too, Rachel! It really is a blessing for us SAHM's...and I hope you both know how much you are appreciated.

Now on to the most important part of this post--the recipe for that delicious fudge Mrs. Ann brought! ;-)

Two Tone Fudge

First Layer:
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup peanut butter chips
3 tablespoons butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Put all ingredients in a bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Take out and stir. Microwave for another 2 minutes, then take out and stir again 'til smooth. Pour into greased 9x14 pan.

Second Layer:
3 cups milk chocolate chips
3 tablespoons butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts if desired

Put all ingredients, except nuts, in a bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Take out and stir. Microwave for another 2 minutes, then take out and stir again 'til smooth. Add nuts to the mixture, then pour mixture evenly over the first layer. Chill in fridge until set. Enjoy!! (And believe me, you WILL enjoy it!!)

ScrapAttack

We had such a nice time at our monthly moms&tots group this past week! With over 10 moms and 15 children, it was our most successful one yet!

What a fun and creative morning we had as we learned how to assemble folding scrapbooks. Thank you so much to Susan Kesler for coming to teach us this really neat craft! I'm already getting mine ready to send to my grandma for Mother's Day. They are such great gift ideas!

Afterwards we had a great time just hanging out, talking about mommy things, while we enjoyed a yummy lunch together. Speaking of...I really need that baked macaroni recipe! :-)

Here's a pic of some of the moms (and a few tots!!) from this past weeks' moms&tots group. And I know you can't tell very good from the picture, but we're holding the cupcakes that we decorated...and they were super cute AND yummy!

Hope to see more of you moms come out next month--Monday, April 19th. There's no telling what we'll get into!

Decorating Fun!

We had an awesome time today at the moms&tots group! We had the pleasure of having Kris Chinalski, owner of Grandma Tillie's Bakery, come and teach us moms some basic cake decorating skills. (Well...for us, it was cupcake skills!) haha! And it was so much fun! We got to experiment with filling, frosting and fondant. By the time we were finished, I think all of our hands were dyed a different color...and I know I wasn't the ONLY one with corn starch all over my face! It was so neat to see our creative sides come alive as we decorated our cupcakes. :-) Each one was so different and colorful. Kinda makes me think of just how amazing and creative our God really is. He has made each of us so different, so unique, so beautiful! Like Psalm 139:14 says, "I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well." Check out Psalm 139 in its entirety for a more in depth view of God's creativity and goodness.

More to come soon...Hope to see ya there next month!
BTW, thank you so much, Kris! We really enjoyed having you there with us!

Here is the recipe for the cake I made for the moms&tots group. Since this has oatmeal it should be considered a breakfast food.
TIME SAVING TIP: When making oatmeal for breakfast make enough extra for this recipe.

Chocolate - Oatmeal Cake
1 cup oatmeal
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sifted flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
Mix oatmeal with boiling water. Let stand until cool. Cream shortening with sugar and eggs. Add oatmeal mixture with flour, cocoa, soda, salt and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Pour into 8x12 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
TOPPING:
1 cup (firmly packed) brown sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk or plain milk
1 stick butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups coconut
Dissolve sugar in milk. Add butter, cook, stirring constantly, until mixture boils and becomes thick. Remove from heat. Add vanilla, pecans and coconut, pour on cake while hot.

moms&tots a success!!!

With 6 moms and 11 children, our first moms&tots group went really well. It was like a big play date for the kids and a time to relax for moms. A little demonstration on making flour tortillas was great and provided a yummy cheese quesadilla lunch for everyone.

Since everything went so well, we have set the dates for the next 3 gatherings. Mark your calendars for February 16th, March 15th and April 19th.

FLOUR TORTILLAS

4 cups flour

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

1 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups hot water

Mix flour, vegetable shortening and salt. Gradually stir flour and knead. Divide dough into small balls and let stand for 30 minutes. Roll them flat and cook on flat griddle. Enjoy!