Dulce De YUMMY!

For reals, though, this crack in a can yummy sauce is called Dulce De Leche. I found the recipe here about a year or more ago and finally got around to making it!

You may already know what I'm talking about...Caramel Like Goodness slow-cooked right in the can. So it isn't even really a recipe. Did I mention it's GOOD? I'm drooling as I type and glancing at my fridge. And it's EASY. I could make some more. Right now. While I snack on the jar I already made. Hmmmm...spaghetti for dinner or Dulce De Leche? I'll get back to you on that...

ANYWAY!!!

The theory is: take a couple of cans of Sweetened Condensed Milk and take the labels off. Place them in your crock pot and add enough water to submerge the cans. Cover that baby up and cook it on low for 8 hours. Then wait for the water to cool in the crock before removing the cans.

That's it!

DISCLAIMER!!!

The sweetened condensed milk people (and probably the crock pot people and maybe the fire department) don't recommend you slow cook sealed cans. I think it's an explosive hazard. Pressure and stuff like that...not sure...didn't take physics. I took chemistry, but we didn't cover this, we just made peanut brittle.

HOWEVER!!!

Mine didn't explode. 

I'm not telling you to make it. But if you DO try it...it's not my fault if your kitchen explodes. That's concludes  my Public Service Announcement on Blowing Up Things in Your Kitchen.

My only remaining instructions (if you decided to ignore my PSA and make this amazing golden deliciousness) are to open the can. Insert a spoon. Immediately eat a quarter of the can with your back turned to your family. Then cut up some apples and share!

Snackin' It Old School

Halloweenie Treats don't get any more basic than this!

Nutter Butters + Melted White Chocolate + Mini Choco Chips

Enlist your 4 & 8 year old to dip the cookies and your  2year old to add the eyes.

Booooooo-tifully Delicious!

Couple Costume...

...that doesn't involve me dressing up like a pole dancer!

Really. ALL the costumes out there to buy for women are some sort of crazy male fantasy and cost a fortune. Even Strawberry Shortcake. Seriously. I'd never be able to look my daughter's doll in the eye again!

So what's a conservative & thrifty lady to do when she's invited to a costume party?

10 points if your answer was: Get Creative and DIY!

That's how the hubs and I ended up looking like this last year at our good friend's Halloween Party!

Can you guess what we are???

I'm a Tree Hugger and my DH is a TREE!

It's not the best photo (I tend to crop out my jiggly parts). But here's the idea...

On my Tree:

Brown Sweatpants (trunk)

Green Shirt (leaves that haven't turned color yet)

Three Fall Garlands wrapped and pinned around the hubs

= FREE!

On me:

Cargo Pants

Flowered Doc Martins (from college)

My Dad's oldest flannel shirt

1970's head scarf (borrowed from my mom)

Hair done up in tiny braids

Picket Sign saying "I make Oxygen! What's your superpower?" taped to a paper towel roll

= FREE

Mr. Bones

As I'm frantically throwing together...patiently and calmly making our Halloween Costumes this year, I was reviewing LAST year's photos. I realized I never shared Louie's Skeleton Costume and that's what I'm going to do now!

Creepy, right?!?

I may or may not have slept with one eye opened last Halloween!

The costume part was easy enough! I found the instructions HERE on Family Fun. Then I bought a black sweatsuit and I even found skeleton gloves for a dollar at Wal-Mart. I printed and cut out the template onto white contact paper and stuck it to the sweatsuit.

Louie tried it on and half the bones promptly fell off. Ugh.

So I re-printed out the templates and traced them onto white felt. Then I cut out all the bones (again) and hot glued them onto the sweatsuit. Worked like a charm! The template included a mask, but I'm more of a fan of face paint.

Start with an incredibly handsome and impatient boy. Paint his face (minus the eye sockets) white. Remind him 100 times to not lick his lips. When he licks his lips anyway, give him a sip of water to get that, "Super gross make up taste" out of his mouth.

Then I eye-balled a nose hole (socket?). Extended his mouth out and added some teeth. And a skull just isn't a skull without a major crack.

Color in that nose hole/socket. He's thrilled. Can you tell? 

I added black around his eyes (but not too close!) and a little cleft in his chin.

Taaa Daaaaah!

To finish off the look I put a black stocking cap on him to cover up those Pinky Alive Looking Ears.

Go Big Red!

Maybe you know...maybe you don't...but I'm a Nebraskan.

Born and Bred and Corn Fed

And I'm PROUD! 

Through my life:

I've been asked by someone from California, "Do you, like, still have trouble with Indians?" 

I've been asked by someone from Florida, "Do you have to go to a well to get water?"

I've been asked by someone from Oklahoma (ummmm...only separated from us by Kansas), "Do you have cows? Do you ride a horse to school?"

My answers have varied:

"Do you know what year it is?"

"Do you have this thing called "education" in your state?"

"Are you freaking kidding me??? You're from Oklahoma! You're in the same boat we are!!!"

Anyway...I love Nebraska. We're in the middle...that means we're not too crazy. Lots of space. Lots of clean air. Lots of blue sky! Not too far of a drive to see fields of green, orchards, berry farms. People are friendly here and helpful. It's right on the sign, "The Good Life"!

Maybe you know...maybe you don't...but Nebraska has this little football team.

They're called the Huskers!

If you follow college football, you've probably heard about them. 

I'm not a big football fan. I was in the marching band...so I know that the game is just the Half-Time pre-show! However, I can't help but get swept up by, what I like to call The Red Zone.

This week they lost (Big Time) to the Wisconsin Badgers. Maybe you heard my husband hollering? Sobbing? With all that raw emotion...I thought we needed some Husker Cheering in our house. This is what I came up with:

The inspiration came from Pinterest (pinspiration!) When I saw THIS.

Source: sheskindacrafty.blogspot.com via Amy on Pinterest

I unleashed my Knock Off Powers and grabbed some ribbon. First, I tried pinning the ribbon rolls to the wreath, but they went all crooked on me. So I got out my glue gun and made a zillion little rolls from the ribbon and then glued them into place. I used my Silhouette machine to cut out the glitter & black "N", but I couldn't get the white background right, so I hand cut it.

I'm pretty excited with how it turned out! And, win or lose, we love our Huskers!!!

Check out these FABULOUS parties we're Linking up To

Dear Granny Squares,

Dear Granny Squares,

This is the hardest letter I've had to write. I want to emphasize how much fun we've had together this past month. You've taught me new things about myself, new skills that I never would have tried without you. You are so beautiful, colorful, cuddly. But...I'm afraid we have to break up.

It's not you. It's ME. I'm just no good for you, Granny Square. I thought we could settle down. Finish off the challenge. Be happy and cozy all Winter long, watching black & white movies, sipping hot chocolate... But the commitment was such a weight on my hands (er, chest?). I started to rebel. To push back. To ignore you. I even started looking at other crafts...

Granny Square, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I have to quit you. I still love you. With all my heart! But we need some "space". Maybe it will work later. Maybe we can come back together and finish what we started. I hope so!

Love,

Amy

Or...in other words...Amy's Granny Square Challenge is officially STALLED!

I couldn't do it! Too much Granny. I'm dreaming Granny. I'm seeing Granny everywhere! Granny is stalking me!!!

God Bless those people out there that do this sort of challenge and complete it. I admire you!

At first I was in denial. No way. I can finish it. I just need to crochet 11 more and I'll be caught up.

Yeah. Not going to happen.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE a Granny Square! I was just starting to feel burdened by the whole thing, when it was supposed to be fun. Then (in the weird ticking of how my brain works) I started getting resentful about the whole thing. Not cool.

And I do hope to pick it back up. Maybe after Christmas.

This is a gleaming example of why...my sink is always full of dishes, I have a closet full of half-done projects, I have a ton of weight to lose (but I'm eating a cookie right now), and Mt. Laundry is taking over the basement.

I can admit it, though, and isn't that the first step???

So! I'm excited about blogging all the stuff I jammed in between crocheting squares!!! Tomorrow is a new day...with no mistakes in it...yet!

p.s.The cookie is totally calorie free since it is a "break up" cookie.