to-die-for cherry cheesecake

This recipe has been passed down three generations now in my family. First my grandma, then my mom, and onto me. Now I will break the "family secret recipe code" and pass it to you....because its just THAT good!

It only takes about 5 minutes to prepare and a couple hours in the refrigerator and voila! Cheesecake that will knock the socks off all your guests! With Thanksgiving rapidly approaching I thought now might be a good time to add this to your pie repertoire and give you the opportunity to wow your family.

So here it is....

1 8oz. block of cream cheese...don't use the light or fat free stuff. just don't.
1 8oz. container of cool whip. again, no fat free.
1 can of sweetened condensed milk...not sure what size that is but...the small one!
1/4 Cup of lemon juice
1 can Cherry pie filling...not the sugar free kind. come on people, its supposed to make you fat! that's why it tastes so good!
1 large prepared graham cracker crust. (I use the one with 10 servings).

*make sure your cream cheese is room temperature when you use it. this is important. it takes about 2 hours on the counter.

*also, go ahead and stick that cool whip in the fridge, not freezer when you take the cream cheese out.

Once the cream cheese is soft and room temperature, combine it with the cool whip and sweetened condensed milk. Using a hand beater, whip until nice and creamy...about 2 minutes.

THEN add the lemon juice. don't do it before! It will almost instantly change the texture of your mixture! mix until fluffy. again..about 2 minutes is plenty.

Pour that fatty deliciousness into your crust. Throw it in the fridge along with your UNOPENED can of pie filling.

It will set enough in an hour to eat it, but if you have a few hours or overnight, that's when it really tastes best! Once its set, pour the cooled fruit filling on top.

Now invite some people over or your may be danger of eating the whole thing in a day ;) Hope you enjoy it!

*Note, my mom always made it without the cool whip and added a teaspoon of vanilla. both are equally as good! I think I love how thick and fluffy the cool whip makes it, but feel free to try it the other way...its also slightly less fattening :)

No way, I said.

I was recently approached by a woman in the store. She was complimenting my children on their cuteness and good behavior. She proceeded to hand me her card. She told me about her daycare center and how wonderful it was. She asked me if I had a job and that if I sent my kids to her I would get that time away from the kids that she just KNEW I was wanting. I accepted her card politely and wanted to just do what I normally do in situations like this and just pretend to agree, hoping that would get me out of the conversation quicker. But I decided to say something this time. Not anything offensive. Nothing to put her down. Nothing to turn her away from Jesus or from homeschooling/stay at home moms.

I simply said, in response to her saying I should get a "real" job..."no way! I wouldn't miss this for any amount of money or so-called "me"-time. The best job I could ever have is staying home and taking care of and teaching these babies." She smiled smugly and said if I changed my mind to give her a call.

I wanted to say so much more! I wanted to tell her that even if I had a REAL job, I wouldn't send my kids to her in a million years! I wanted to ask if her daycare children were so well-behaved in the grocery store? I wanted to say that my children weren't screaming in the store, had nice clothes on and their hair combed because I taught them better! Because I, their mother, brushed their hair and dressed them this morning! And I will be the one to feed them breakfast, lunch and dinner! I will there to witness their successes and be there to comfort them when they are hurt. And they behave because they love me and want to be obedient. Because they know me! Because I know them!

Why is full-time motherhood not considered a real job?? I get so tired of hearing that. Dakota does too. So many of his co-workers have asked him, "so you're wife just says home all day?? what does she do all day? why don't you make her get a job?" He replies with the obvious of, "well...she takes care of my children for one! she cleans the house, she does the shopping, she prepares meals for me every day! I don't want her to get a job! I am proud to say I am the provider for my family and have the amazing privilege of a wife who loves and cares for her family." They are left dumbfounded.

I do need to clarify one thing.....I know there are circumstances when a mother NEEDS to work outside of the home! I've been there! And I have the utmost respect for those single mothers and struggling families. I am not speaking to you here! I am speaking to the women who CHOOSE to be away from their children. Those who choose a career over their family. Those who willingly let someone else raise their children. Those who don't serve their husbands like they should. Those who "have" to work to make sure they have a new wardrobe every season, get that long family vacation they just can't live without, or to support some sort of bad habit.

Wow...this turned into quite a speech! Its my soapbox today. So if you stuck with me, thanks for listening. I am so, so, so thankful I have the privilege of staying home with my children. And I am sooooo blessed to have a godly husband who provides for our family and entrusts me with our children every day.

Thank you, Jesus for the strength you give me every day to be what You have called me to be. Even in my weakness, my stupidity, and my shortcomings, You are strong, You give me wisdom, and Your grace is enough.

I love these babies and wouldn't miss this for anything this world has to offer.

or this...

 

or this...

 

 

or this...

 

or this...





My favorite brother

September is another family birthday month for us!

Last Saturday, my brother Adam celebrated his 15th!

 

 

Isn't he handsome??

 

Adam is our only brother. Yes. One boy. Seven girls. And he has definitely had his fair share of torture from all of his sisters. BUT being the only boy, he also gets the attention of all his sisters :)

 

He is our favorite brother.

 

He is a man's man.

 

He is very athletic. I've never seen him try a sport and NOT be good at it!

 

 





 He is hilarious! Always has the ability to make me laugh.

He is great with kids!

He plays the drums...whaaat?!

He is a great testimony of Christ. Whether he's hanging out with a bunch of church-goers or on a baseball team full of potty-mouths, he does not waver. He does not comform to this world.

 

Thank you for being a man. This world needs more guys like you, Adam. 

Thank you also for your laughter and fun! You are such an encouragement to me.

 

Love you kid!! Happy Birthday! Wish were there to celebrate with you.

 



Julia, Juls, Julsie, Ann, Annie....

A few days ago, a birthday was celebrated. A sweet little girl turned 8! EIGHT!

Her name is Julia and she is my baby sister.

People say she looks like me when I was her age. I have to agree. We joke about our similarities and I call her my "mini-me."

She is spunky. Stubborn. Creative. Beautiful. Loving.

She loves Jesus and her family so much.

And boy do I love this little girl! Wish we could have been there to celebrate her birthday with her.

 

For some crazy reason, I have very few pics of her :( a problem which will soon be fixed!

 

 

She loves anything and everything girly!

 

She knows how to put on makeup better than I do!

 

She was born into a family of 4 older sisters and an older brother. She has always acted older than her age and I have to say its one of the things I love about her. She fits in with all her siblings friends and has always enjoyed being a "teenager."

 

From guitar playing at frontlines, and walking around Africa like she owned the place, to helping in nursery at her Dad's church and taking care of her younger sisters...this girl is a hoot and a servant.

 

 

 



We love you Julsie!! Happy Birthday sweet girl :)

 

 



yummy salsa

I hope you are all enjoying your Labor Day weekend! We certainly are. A relaxing day at home today, loving the company of my favorite peeps. A little weekend catchup and some Fall cleaning!

I have a great recipe for you today!

I love me some chips and salsa! And this recipe is soo different than any I've made before.

Ingredients:
10 fully ripened Roma tomatoes
8 Serrano peppers
2 medium onions
5 garlic cloves
1/2 bunch of cilantro (about 1 cup, chopped)
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 375.
Quarter tomatoes and onions and place on baking sheet, along with peeled garlic cloves. Cut caps off peppers (make sure to wear gloves!). I got scared and removed the seeds from the peppers, afraid it would just be too spicy! It ended up not being spicy enough....in fact, you could hardly taste the peppers. SO, I would leave at least half of the peppers alone and seed the rest.

 

Place in oven and cook until onions are translucent, tomatoes soft, and peppers beginning to char. Took about 45 minutes. Cool.

Now pull out your food processor and combine cilantro, salt and cooled ingredients. (I had to do mine in two batches)Pulse until it reaches a texture you like! I made mine restaurant style.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight is best! And serve with chips, on tacos, enchiladas, omelets...you get the idea!

Happy Labor Day, Friends!!!!

chocolate covered sweetness

I've really missed doing my "weekly highlights" with you all! Hoping to get back to it this week.

But for now....

Here are the photo's of the week:

 

ClaireBell left her hot chocolate in reach of this little munchkin. As you can see, he enjoyed it :) 

lastest tasties

I've tried a few new recipes this month and have been anxious to share them with you!! Nothing super special about them, not gourmet, and not exactly healthy...but they are easy! and cheap! who doesn't want that, right?

First off...Tex-Mex Crocpot Chicken

Ingredients:
3lbs. raw chicken, thawed
1 block cream cheese
1 can original Rotel
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed thoroughly
1 can sweet corn, drained
1 red onion sliced or diced, whichever you prefer

Ingredients for later:
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Throw it all in the crockpot on Low for 6 hours. After 2 hrs., use ladle to spoon out 1c. of the liquids, then add the remaining ingredients and stir.

Stir every two hours.

Once the 6 hours are up, turn off and shred chicken. It should be tender enough to just use two forks and pull it apart while still in the crocpot! how easy is that?!

It should look like this:

I served it in tortillas with all the normal taco fixings, with chips and Spanish rice on the side. Delish! give it a try!

Next on the menu we have....Garlic Baked Fries

These homemade fries turned out great!

Ingredients:
6 garlic cloves, minced
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 russet potatoes cut into wedges or strips
3 tbsp cornstarch/cornflour
1 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 450.F

Combine the garlic and oil in a large bowl, warming it until the garlic is fragrant. I used the microwave for about 1 minute.

Spoon 5 tablespoons of the oil (leaving the garlic in the bowl) to the baking sheet coating it well.

Add the potatoes to the bowl with the garlic mixture and toss to coat. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and microwave on high power until the potatoes are translucent around the edges, 3 to 6 minutes, shaking the bowl to redistribute the potatoes halfway through cooking.

Combine the cornstarch, salt, pepper, onion powder, and cayenne in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the hot potatoes and toss well to coat.

Arrange the potatoes in a single layer, very important if you want them to get crispy, on the prepared baking sheet and bake, turning once, until deep golden brown and crisp, 30 to 40 minutes.

Serve with ketchup, mayo or sour cream.

 

And last, but certainly not least.....Crockpot Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

 

 

 

Ingredients:

3lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 pack Ranch seasoning

1 bottle Buffalo sauce, I used Texas Pete but next time I'd use Red Hot- Wings

 

The beauty of crockpot cooking..throw it all in the pot and cook 6 hrs on low.

 

*note, I only used about a quarter of the bottle of sauce, the recipe called for the whole thing! I think about half would have been perfect! Unless you're just a glutton for punishment and like your mouth to be on fire! haha.*

 

Serve on hearty buns with your favorite veggies and mayo.

 

I hope you give these a try! Or maybe it will inspire you to pull out the cookbook (a.k.a. pinterest board) and try those new recipes you've been drooling over!

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

hurricane Isaac

While many are out buying canned goods and batteries, boarding up windows, and strapping down patio furniture......

Here's what we are doing

 

All the icky foam gathered on the shore; the results of large waves and rough seas.

The lifeguards were all on high alert

After the rain started, the wind picked up, and the water was simply freezing and scary, we decided it was time to go.

 

Please pray for all of those who will be effected by Isaac. We are so thankful God has decided to spare us from too much of this bad weather. And He has even given us time to enjoy the view :)