This will all make sense in a moment... bare with me here.

If you've been reading for a while you will remember that I mentioned a recent weight gain... I had been pondering "What am I doing different?" and the only thing I could come up with is sweet tea. I am an original northerner... we don't drink sweet tea. You can verify that by walking into any restaurant and asking for sweet tea, they will bring you unsweet and packets of sugar.

When I got sick and was in the hospital for my kidney stone, I was told to lay off the soda... so since my husband is a sweet tea lover and I didn't want to make 2 separate pots I started drinking his sweet tea... Big giant 32 oz tumblers several times a day...

So I was watching something on TV and is said that there are about 200-250 calories per 16 oz of sweet tea....

So I start thinking... the average calorie requirement per day is 2000 calories (roughly) and if I drink 3 of my giant tumblers of sweet tea that puts me at 1500 calories and I have maybe 500 calories to spare... Hmmm....

So yesterday while my husband was making coffee at 4:15 am he, for whatever reason, put the coffee filter and grinds in the sink... yes, the sink. I called him after work cuz, well, it ticked me off! He swears he has no recollection of the event and that he was still asleep. When he got home from work, he had a candy bar and a note that said "Sorry :-)" So while I was indulging in my treat I looked to see how much damage I had done my enjoying such a delightful chocolate bar and I realized that that candy bar had 230 calories. 230 calories? So my 3 giant glasses of sweet tea would be the same as eating 6 candy bars a day. That is absurd! No one would be so self destructive as to eat 6 candy bars a day.

So, I have retired the sweet tea, I have one diet soda a day and once it's gone, it's water for the rest of the day...

belly ache mystery

There once was a little girl named little P, oddly the day her momma made a giant batch of cupcake cake balls, she started getting a belly ache.

I took preteen A to shop for her 5th grade camping trip, and little P stayed home with daddy who was napping and not feeling well. The cake ball population took a HUGE hit. So many cupcake cake balls were consumed that little P's belly hurt SO bad she didn't even eat dinner.

Then this morning when I woke her it was aching again... Can I stay home from school, she says. No says mean mommy it's my first day at my new job. Can I have a cake ball, she says. No says mean mommy, you have a belly ache, remember?

Fifteen minutes later we pull up to the school, turn turn to give little P a kiss, and what do I see? Cake ball crumbs around her lips.

I better NOT get a call from the school today.

My favorite kind of balls...

CAKE BALLS!

What kind of ball were you thinking of?

If you've ever heard of The pioneer woman or bakerella you will know that recently they combined forces into total sugar - chocolate awesomeness and taught us all how to make........

Cake Balls. I mean, seriously, what could possibly be better than the icing mixed right into the cake? There would NEVER be an icing-less bite...

Being that I have the patience of a two year old (I WANT TO MAKE CAKE BALLS NOW NOW NOW) I ran (seriously I ran, I was too impatient to even consider opening the car door and starting it) so.. where was I? Oh yea, I ran to wally world and bought a cake mix, jar of icing and a hunka hunka chocolate love... (almond chocolate bark)

And I made these...

They are NO where near as pretty as PW or bakerella, but oh are they ever yummy!

A day of mourning...

About 4 weeks ago, little tiny seeds were planted in a little tiny green house.

We watched in amazement as the little thing began to sprout.

It was time to take the clear lid off the green house and slowing "toughen" them up and take them out side.

They started out here, in the kitchen below the window.

Then we took them here, to sit on the railing.

Then they were gone...

NO NO NO !!!! Two more weeks and you were each gonna get your very own square foot of space right here!

So today we mourn the loss of 40 seedling, cause of death has been determined to be wind.

10 seedlings are currently in ICU and we are hoping for a recovery.

40 new seeds were planted. Not to replace the originals, but to remember them by.

my cajun meatloaf

Pioneer woman has an amazing recipe for cajun meatloaf, you really should click here to read the original ingredients and great how to step by step instructions and pictures.

Using this as a guide I wanted to try and make the meatloaf as well, espeically since cajun meatloaf was also mentioned on desperate housewives last night. The only problem was that I didn't exactally have everything on hand nor did I need to feed 8 hungry cowboys, so here is what I did instead...


1 green pepper - diced
1 med onion - diced
2-3 cloves of garlic

saute these 3 items in 4 tbsp of butter

Now she then calls for a few items that I didn't have on hand sooo I added a packet of chili seasoning and a little black pepper.


add in about a half a cup of milk and a couple good hearty squirts of ketchup. Let this simmer for a minutes and then take it off the heat to add in bread crumbs... it should have a paste consistancy.


I scrambeled 2 eggs, added 1 lb of ground beef and then the veggie mixture. Mix well then add bread crumbs until you get the normal thickness that you like... or about 1 1/2 cups of bread crumbs... ( I think I really should measure)


Form a meat loaf and bake at 350 for 40 min...


Lastly and the MOST important, mix ketchup and honey and spread over the top for the last 10 minutes in the oven... and you get this.









as a side I made this:





Hubby and kids LOVED it and well... they don't like ANYTHING different...