Monkey Party

When our son turned 1, I thought it was very fitting to throw him a Monkey Party, because he is our little
monkey. I had my mom make him a shirt with a monkey...so cute.

The colors I chose were yellow, brown, and white. We had yellow and white balloons, plate, napkins, etc. I also decorated with yellow and brown streamers.

For food, I had the party in the morning (before nap) so we had banana muffins, blueberry muffins, vanilla wafers, mustard dip with cream cheese, chocolate covered pretzels with yellow sprinkles, pineapple, kids' trail mix (Honeycomb cereal, marshmallows, chocolate chips, and raisins), and baby quiche.

The cake I ordered from Target. It was a yellow cake with white icing. I took in a picture of a monkey I found online and they scanned it on the front. It turned out super cute.

Our son LOVED his cake. He definitely knew how to get it all over himself! It was so cute!

Everyone seemed to have a great time. There were no "games" played. The children ranged in ages from 1-3 so they all just played with our toys.

Ice Cream Party

A little side note: I've got some "catching up" to do, but my love for parties started when my son turned 1 and my daughter turned 3. So, we'll start from there and move forward. Each party I throw, I get a little more detailed and just love doing each one. So, here we go...here's Dallas' third birthday party.

Dallas turns 3!
I decided to do an ice cream party...I mean who doesn't like ice cream. My mom and her friend are really good at making their grandbabies clothes, so it just seemed fitting to get her to make Dallas' dress for the party. It was just precious.

The birthday girl in her dress!

Of course the colors we chose were pink and purple, because those are her favorite colors. So, everything was pink and purple. We had balloons, streamers, flowers, etc.
Now, like I said before, I've gotten better and better with the "details" of the parties I throw. This was one of the firsts, so it's not as detailed as others that will be posted, but all in all I thought it turned out to be a great party.




The birthday girl and her daddy

  

For food, I made Cherry Cream Cheese Cake Tarts, Pimento Cheese and Banana & Fluff party sandwiches I cut in the shape of an ice cream cone, Strawberries and grapes, Chocolate covered pretzel rods with pink and purple sprinkles, kid's party mix (Fruit Loops, marshmallows, raisins, and pretzel fish). We also had ice cream sundaes and cupcakes with pink and purple polka-dots.

 

We really didn't have any games played because the kids were between the ages of 1-3 so we just let them play with toys in the house. But, they all seemed to have fun playing with all the toys.

After having some snacks, they made ice cream sundaes and had cupcakes.

The party favors, I used ice cream cones and stuffed them with Valentine Candy.



Jackson Showing off his party favor





Mommy and the birthday girl



Banana Bread Cobbler

This is a new winner in our house. It is delicious...Thanks Southern Living!

Cobbler:

1 cup self-rising flour

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted

4 medium bananas, sliced

 

Struesel Topping:

3/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup self-rising flour

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup uncooked old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

 

 

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together flour, sugar, and milk until blended. Whisk in melted butter. Pour batter into a lightly greased 11X7 inch baking dish. Top with banana slices, and sprinkle with struesel topping.

 

Mommy's little helper

 

2. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Serve with vanilla Ice cream.

Cheese Danish

A good go to breakfast...It's quick to make, can easily be doubled, very gooey inside, and everyone loves it.

1 pkg. crescent rolls
1 (8oz) pakg cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. With a hand-held mixer, mix the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth.

2. Unroll the crescent into two big squares. Lay the first big square at the bottom of a lightly greased 8X8 baking dish. Spread the cream cheese mixture on crescent rolls. Lay the second square of crescent rolls on top of the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle with a little white sugar and chopped pecans (optional).

3. Bake for approx. 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before setting. Serve with sliced fresh strawberries.

Serves 4 (big pieces, but believe me you'll want even more.)
You can easily double this recipe to a 9x13 pan.

Tangy Pork Chops

Here's another family favorite!

4 pork chops (can be either boneless on bone-in)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (14 1/2 oz) can stewed tomatoes
1/2 cup ketchup
2 Tbsp cider vinegar
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 beef bouillon cube
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp water

1. Place chops in slow cooker. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

2. Add chopped onions and tomatoes undrained

3. Mix together ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, Worchestershire sauce, lemon juice, and bouillon. Poor over vegetables.

4. Cover, and cook Low 5-6 hours or High 3-4.

5. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth. Stir into slow cooker.

6. Cover, cook on High 30 more minutes or until thickened. Serve over rice.

You can use chunks of beef, chicken breasts or thighs instead of pork.

Ever wonder what $354.00 will get you at Wal-Mart?

A heck of a lot of groceries, two birthday presents, make-up, toiletries...need I go on?

I guess you know you don't have much food when your daughter asks you for peanut butter with her apples and you don't have it...I mean who doesn't have peanut butter??? Needless to say we were pretty much out of food, but we are all stocked up now. Next thing is to make a menu for the next few weeks, because we now have enough food that should get us there.

I'm not quite sure how to add a calendar yet, but here's a few things to look out for, and hopefully I'll get recipes (and pictures) posted as well.

Tangy Porkchops

Chili Salsa Beef

Beef Stroganoff

King Ranch Chicken

Parmesan Crusted Fish

Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes

This is a new take on an old Classic and they turned out delicious!

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 cans (8oz each pineapple tidbits, drained)
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
12 maraschino cherries, halved
1 cup boiling water
1 pkg (3 oz) Lemon Flavor Gelatin
1 pkg (2 layer size) yellow cake mix
4 eggs
2/3 cups oil
2 tsp. lemon zest

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix sugar and melted butter in a medium bowl; stir in pineapple (and pecans).  Place cherry half, cut side up, in center of each 24 paper-lined muffin cups. Cover with pineapple mixture (only put 3-4 chunks in each cup).

3. Mix together boiling water with gelatin; stir 2 minutes until completely dissolved. Cool 10 minutes.

4. Beat remaining ingredients in large bowl with mixer until well blended. Add gelatin; mix well. Spoon over pineapple mixture in muffin cups (cups will almost be completely filled)

5. Bake 15-18 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. When serving, turn cakes upside-down and then remove the liner.

Beer Butt Chicken

This is one of the best ways to make a whole chicken...you can do it on the grill, but I typically do it in the oven. Here's the recipe:
1 cup butter
2 Tablespoons garlic powder
2 Tablespoons paprika
salt/pepper to taste
1 (12 oz) can of beer
1 (4 lb) whole chicken

1. Preheat oven (or grill) for low heat - 300 degrees

2. In a small saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter (1 whole stick). Mix in 1 Tbsp garlic powder and 1 Tbsp paprika, salt, and pepper.

3. Discard 1/2 of the beer (I know, I know, party foul...but it's worth it), leaving the remainder in the can. Add the melted butter mixture to the beer in the can.

4.  Clean out the chicken guts and rinse with water. Place the can in the center of a roasting pan (or disposable baking sheet if using the grill). Set the chicken on the can, inserting the can into the cavity of the chicken.

5. Repeat step 2. Baste the chicken with the melted, seasoned butter.

6. Place roasting pan on the bottom rack of the oven (or grill). Bake (or grill) for three hours or until internal temperature of chicken reaches 180 degrees. Discard the can of beer and enjoy!

Nothin' like some Southern cookin'

I love to cook...actually I love, love, love to cook. So, when I have the opportunity to cook for people, I love it even more. We had an out of town guest come for dinner last night. He's from Delaware and doing some training in town, so we invited him for dinner.
I asked Eric what I should make, and his quick response was..."Something Southern". I love that man!
I worked on dinner for several hours, but it was so worth it. Here's the menu:
Beer Butt Chicken
Mashed Potatoes
Creamed Corn (of course with lots of butter)
Green bean (cooked down in bacon grease and onion)
Rolls
Gravy
Deviled Eggs
and for dessert - a take on an old great classic,
Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes

Check out the recipe section for some of the recipes

I'm so new to this and terrible at taking pictures, but I will get better.

Spring brings memories...and baseball

So here we are, Spring is almost sprung and what better season is there? The flowers begin to poke their heads from the cold ground and get ready to bloom, and the trees begin to bud with beautiful colors of green, white, and pink. Not only does spring bring new life to Earth with warmer temperatures, the start of longer days, and beautiful colors, but it also brings back one of the greatest sports...baseball. That's right folks it's the start of spring training.
I must admit I am a baseball lover and it all goes back to my childhood. It all started many moons ago with my grandfather. What a wonderful man he was. He was the recreation director for Martha Mills in Thomaston, GA and around town he was known as "Coach"..."Daddy Coach" to my brother and me. He was a larger than life type of guy....standing at 6'4" he towered over everyone (at least to the small child that I was). He loved kids and loved to keep them busy. He ran the Silvertown Ballpark and always had activities happening. My earliest childhood memory is going to the ballpark with my family and playing Bingo with my grandmother in the stands while my parents called out the letter/numbers in the back of the stadium.
We were also at the ballpark a lot because my older brother started playing tee-ball at the earliest age possible. Needless to say, we 'lived' at the ballpark, and with that came the smell of popcorn, hot dogs, and the ting sound of the bats hitting the balls.
As the years went by, my brother began to play more and more baseball and was quite the player. I grew up at ballparks watching him play. I have so many fond memories watching him play from the early days of tee-ball, to little league, on the traveling teams, even into high school, but my favorite memories would be playing baseball with him in our backyard.
You see, my brother was two years older than me and always wanted a brother, but he was stuck with me. So, he did what any good big brother would do...he turned me into the brother he never had. He would dress me in full uniform which included football pants without the pads, a jersey, baseball socks, and a hat. He taught me how to hit and throw - like a boy...yes there is a difference between throwing like a girl and a boy (but don't ask me to distinguish).
Now that I'm all grown up and the days of playing baseball with my big brother are over, if I close my eyes I can still hear that ting sound and smell the sweet buttery smell of the popcorn in the air. In the distance I can even see the faint lights of the Silvertown Ballpark. Hence, with the start of spring and baseball's spring training, the excitement for the season begins.
I know you must be thinking that ahh this Georgia girl must be a Braves fan. Well, I used to be (uh-oh hope my brother is not reading this part - he might just disown me). I loved the Braves growing up, especially in the early 90's when they had Tom Glavin, John Smoltz, and David Justice - ahhh David Justice. Chipper Jones came into the picture sometime around that time as well. Yes, I used to love the Braves, but like Justice, Glavin, and Smoltz all found new teams, so did I (if I must admit it). I am now a Phillies Phanatic. What can I say, I married a yankee (well a Philadephia - or Delaware - yankee). He and his family are die-hard Philadelphia sports fans and we watch every game of just about every sport especially football and baseball. In the south we say that highschool and college footballs are secret religions, well Philadelphia sports are a religion all it's own in this family. So, I married into being a Phillies fan, and what can I say I now get to watch Shane Victorino, Ryan Howard, Roy Halladay, and Chase Utley...Chase Utley, need I say more???

The Lentz Boys - Eric (my hubby) on left, Poppy, and Mike

This season brings lots of hopes to this family with the pitching staff of Roy Oswald, Cole Hammels, Roy Halladay, Joe Blanton, and Cliff Lee - they better not let us down. This team is stacked and they better win the World Series. None-the-less, this baseball season will be filled with lots of games on tv and hopefully at least one game at the Citizen's Bank Stadium (hint-hint Poppy), but no matter if I'm actually in the stadium or watching it on tv I will always be taken back to the early days in the backyard and to Silvertown Ballpark with the smell of popcorn lingering in the air and the faint, bright lights shining in my eyes.

It all started with a shower curtain....

So what happens when my husband travels for two weeks and leaves me home with the kids????
I decide to take on a project with two days left of his trip.

Yep, that's me. I wait until the last two days of his trip to take on a project, (although not meaning too) and as usual one thing leads to another and this small project turns into a big one - in the blink of an eye or the purchase of a shower curtain.

It all started a few weeks ago when I realized that my kids were outgrowing their cute homemade rubber duck shower curtain that was in their bathroom.

So, one day while shopping at Target (one of my favorite places on Earth) I found a shower curtain that I loved. Well, actually I found two and couldn't decide which one I liked better, so I bought both....yes I'm that crazy. But, my mom took the striped one and made a valance - an adorable valance at that.

I have to admit that I had no intention of painting the bathroom. It was a light blue and would have looked great with the new curtain. But, this past Thursday the kids and I were shopping at Wal-mart and I found a light fixture on sale. A what??? Yes, a light fixture. You see, the one that was in there was the brass kind of deal that was big and brassy with lots of lights, and I thought "How hard can it be to change a light fixture?"

So, I bought it and home we went. After turning off the electricity to all the bathrooms in the house I took off the old fixture and realized two things:

1)That was pretty darn easy
2)Hmmm, now I need to paint!
So, off to Lowe's we go for paint. Got the paint - yes a new color: green - organic garden as a matter of fact.
My nice neighbor came over that night to help hang the light and we realized there was nothing but a hole in the wall with wires coming out - so there was no electrical box. Hence, there would be no hanging of the light that night.

Friday comes and I now have a little more than 24 hours to hang a light, paint the room, and put it back together. Oh yes and the kids have school, field trips, and playdates - at this point "ahhhh" is going through my brain.
After our fun day, I made my way back to Lowe's and asked for guidance on how to install an electrical box. I built up my confidence, came home, and did it. I put the light up! I then finished painting the room. At this point the kids were exhausted, and so was I. We all went to bed.

Saturday morning after breakfast it was time to finish the project! My sweet daughter came in and helped me get the room cleaned up and put back together. We stepped back and wha-la it looked awesome!
We gave each other a high-five and walked away from another project finished.

And to think it all started with a shower curtain!!!!