Potato what!??!

Potato Candy


This is what Chris said when I told him he was tasting "Potato Candy". My aunt introduced me to this sweet treat this weekend. It was a popular type of candy during the Depression. It is quick, easy, and yummy. You must try it! But be warned...a little piece goes a LONG way. These babies are sweeeet!

Potato Candy
½ of a small-medium size baking potato, peeled and mashed (about 2 Tablespoons; make sure it is cooled)
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon milk
2- 2 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup peanut butter

Mix together potato, butter or margarine, and milk. Add enough confectioners' sugar to make a stiff dough.
Roll out on a flat surface sprinkled with powdered sugar. Spread on a layer of peanut butter and roll up. Chill and slice.

Our 1st Anniversary!

I can't believe it has been an entire year since we said our "I do's"! It has been a whirlwind year to say the least! We had the wedding....moving in to our first home together...Chris' graduation....a couple of trips....2 new jobs....and a move to a new city to name a few major happenings. I am very much enjoying married life and my life with Chris. I can't wait to see what the future years will bring!

Our first anniversary was spent exchanging small gifts and spending a romantic evening together. We both exchanged cards. Chris also gave me a special photo album which contained just one photo. It was the first "photo record" of us together. It was taken 1 week after our first date. Chris said we would take a picture each anniversary and also write down what we did to celebrate our love. He is so amazing!
Next, we shared the top of our wedding cake...which was still very yummy. (My grandma makes the best wedding cakes..I had to include a picture from the wedding :))




We sat together on a blanket spread out on our tiny patio lined with candles. We roasted marshmallows to make Smores and listened to love songs. It was perfect. We took the 1st Anniversary picture for our album (not yet downloaded)and logged our first memory. This was truly a special evening.

A game called Tag....

This sounds like fun! I was “tagged” by The Cooking Friend. Thanks for the invite! I hope everyone else who is tagged will enjoy this game too!

Here are the rules since I'm tagging you now! :) Each player starts with seven random facts or habits about himself or herself. A tagged player then writes a blog entry with the seven things, as well as these rules. Then the player tags seven others and lists their names on his or her blog. Remember to leave a comment for your newly tagged players, letting them know they have been tagged and to read your blog!

7 random facts about me:

1. I have one green eye and one brown eye.
2. I once had lunch with Senator/former Astronaut John Glenn after I completed a year long internship with the John Glenn Institute at Ohio State University.
3. I wear a size 12 women’s shoe. What is worse…my husband and I wear the same size shoe! Actually….this is kind of nice because if I am running outside to get the mail or something I can slip on his shoes with no problem! :)
4. I am the oldest child. I have one younger sister (age 22) and one younger brother (age 16).
5. If I could live anywhere in the world I would live in Hawaii.
6. I typically require about 5.5 hours of sleep a night- I usually go to bed at 11-11:30pm and wake up at 5am. My husband thinks I am crazy!
7. One day I hope to have my own private counseling practice and work VERY part time while I devote most of my life to taking care of my family (husband and future children ::) )


OK, tag! I am now tagging you – Kayte and Joelen

Easy Supper! BBQ Beef Cups

I am still a little tired from our return travel day and my first full day back to work so I was looking for an easy dinner. I found a recipe on allrecipes.com that inspired me to adopt my own! Chris was intrigued by these little beef cups, but after one taste...they met his approval. I knew these would be something he would like...simple and meaty!


BBQ Beef Cups
1 pound lean ground beef
2 tablespoons McCormick Grill Mates “Hamburger” seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic, roast red bell pepper, and sugar)
1/4 cup barbeque sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons mustard
1 (12 ounce) package refrigerated biscuit dough
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the cups of a muffin pan (I used a larger, 8 muffin cup pan because there were 8 biscuits in the package).
In a large heavy skillet over medium heat, season beef with seasonings and cook beef until evenly brown. Drain excess fat. Stir in bbq sauce, ketchup, and mustard. Simmer for a few minutes over low heat. Add 1/4 cup cheese and heat until melted. Stir and set aside.
Meanwhile, flatten each biscuit, and press into cups of the prepared muffin pan. Make sure the dough comes to the top of the pan. Bake for 2-3 minutes in oven. Remove muffins and spoon a portion of the meat mixture into each dough cup. Bake in preheated oven for 13 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese, and bake for 3-4 more minutes.

Our Carnival Cruise!

Chris and I just returned from a week long cruise with Carnival. Our ship was called the Celebration. Chris has never cruised before; however, this was my third (second with Carnival). We had so much fun relaxing together, touring the ports of call, participating in shore excursions, dining, and watching the nightly shows on the ship. The Celebration is an older ship....we both decided we would like to try a newer ship next cruise.

Dining:
We had the most entertaining dining staff! Our Maitre 'd, Joseph, was quite a character. He made our dining experience so much fun. The service was excellent; however, the food was nothing to write home about. Chris and I DID fall in love with the Chocolate Melting Cake....we ordered one every night at dinner!

Ports of call:
Key West
We LOVE Key West. Both of us have been before, but never together. We went Snuba diving in the morning. This was so much fun! Like snorkeling, but you don't have to come up for air and you can dive up to 25 feet underwater! We also walked around and visited the shops. We also visited the southernmost point in Key West....it is just 90 miles from Cuba!

Nassau
This was an adventure. The Straw Market and downtown Nassau are full of character to say the least.(You will never have to hunt for someone to braid your hair or try and locate a taxi...TRUST me.)
We also went snorkeling here. The water was VERY rough and COLD, but Chris did get some great pictures with the underwater camera!
Our favorite part of Nassau was Atlantas. This is a BEAUTIFUL resort with a the largest salt water aquarium in the World. We had so much fun walking around and looking at the marine life and beautiful architecture. took tons of pictures!


Overall
We had a great time together. Our favorite parts of the cruise were definitely seeing Atlantas and Snuba! We also really liked Joseph and the Chocolate Melting cake :) We agree that we probably will not go on another Carnival cruise; however, we would LOVE to try another cruise line...maybe to Hawaii! :)

Chris' Surprise Graduation Party

I can’t believe how long it has been since my last post! Things have been very busy and time is flying by so fast! Plans for my husband’s surprise graduation party kept me very busy….but I am happy to report the party was 100% a success!

About the party
The theme was "A Prescription To Party" (I thought it appropriate since he is graduating from Medical School :).)

There were 50 guests...mostly family (due to it being Mother's Day), but some friends made it :) Everyone dressed in scrubs or white coats. At the door, they were given name tags with famous doctor's names on them. (Examples: Dr. Pepper, Dr. Doolittle, Dr. Evil, Dr. Frankenstein, etc.)

The decorations were apothecary jars filled with candies (jelly beans, hot tamales, mike and ikes, etc.) to look like medicine, old fashion medical bags with flowers BLOOMING from them :) , and green/yellow table clothes, plates, cups, napkins, etc. in honor of Chris’ school colors.

As the guests waited for Chris and I to arrive, the kids were given anatomy diagrams to color and played a "GUESS HOW MANY PILLS ARE IN THE BOTTLE" game that I put together. The “pills” were Jelly Belly Jelly Beans and Hot Tamales.

When we arrived…Chris saw a special sign in the drive-way...Chris laughed about it, but still did not suspect. When we walked inside, everyone jumped out and yelled "SURPRISE". Chris was so shocked.

Food
We grilled hot dogs, hamburgers, bbq and italian chicken, and veggies. We also had fruit trays/veggie trays, mac and cheese, baked beans, potato salad, and various chips/dips.

For dessert...I made sugar cookie-cut outs decorated like scrubs, white coats, and nurse uniforms. We had brownies and whoopie pies (Chris’ favorite). My grandma made a cake and topped it with a stethoscope and surenge needles..it was TOO CUTE!:)

To top it off....I revealed my surprise gift to Chris….he is SUPER excited about the cruise we will be taking 4 days after he graduates :) I am excited too!

I will cherish the memories for a long time...It was a great time and I am SOOOO proud of Chris! :)

I hope you enjoy the few photos I have (more to come).

Oreo Cheesecake

My husband loves Oreos! So I made him an Easter treat :)

OREO Cheesecake

1 cup crushed OREO cookies (about 12 cookies)
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
4 pkgs (8-oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
4 eggs
20 OREO cookies, quartered

**NOTE: Regular OREO cookies are recommended, the cheesecake will not set as well with Double Stuffed.

1. PREHEAT oven to 325 degrees if using silver springform pan (or 300 degrees if using a dark non-stick springform pan). Mix crushed cookies and butter; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake 10 minutes.

2. BEAT cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Gently stir in quartered cookies. Pour over crust.

3. BAKE 1 hour or until center is almost set. Run knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Garnish with additional cookies, if desired.

Source: Nestie Lalabee0425