Near Record Snow

I read on the Fairbanks Daily Newsminer web-site that our most recent snow storm produced near record snow fall for the Fairbanks area...18" of snow. I'm not sure we got quite that much at my house, but quite possibly. I know we had at least a foot. This was the view when I opened my door Monday morning.

The view from my garage...

Our street before it was plowed...

Our driveway...thankfully it's not very big...

Pure cuteness...

Nothing to See Here

I found a a couple of new recipes I want to try, as well as one I've been looking for. To hopefully prevent me from losing them or forgetting about them, I'm posting the links here.

Orange Chicken This looks YUMMY! Not healthy, but yummy none-the-less.

These really ARE the best dinner rolls EVAH! I had tried another recipe a week or so ago that claimed to be the best rolls ever, but alas, they were NOT. Try these rolls. I promise, you will not be disappointed!

Homemade Marshmallows. Must try. First, I have to acquire a candy thermometer!

Chicken Taquitos. My family is a lover of all things Mexican.

We're getting ready to attempt to cover a cake with Fondant. Most fondant I've had taste like...well, nasty. Except for the fondant at the Sandals resort in the Bahamas. That was yummy! I'm hoping this Fondant recipe will taste just as yummy!

Marshmallow fondant

Ingredients

* 1/4 cup or less of crisco
16 oz mini marshmallows (Kraft)
1 tsp clear vanilla
1 tsp butter flavor (extract) (I never put this in)
2 tbsp water
2lb bag of powdered sugar (sifted)

Instructions

1. Grease inside of microwaveable safe bowl with Crisco

2. Put marshmallows, flavorings, and water into bowl.

3. Microwave on high for 60 seconds. If not completely melted, stir and microwave at 30 sec intervals.

4. Put powdered sugar into large mixer bowl. (Fit stand mixer with dough hook) I use a wooden spoon. I don’t like how my kitchen aide mixer does.

5. Mix until well incorporated.

6. Prepare work surface with sifted powdered sugar.

7. Turn fondant out onto work surface. Knead fondant into loaf. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap for at least 1 hour before using.

8. To store fondant: Wrap in plastic wrap, and then put into resealable plastic bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible. Fondant will keep very well in fridge for weeks.

Here's another recipe I found on the WTM forums. Sounds yummy, but who can tell? I wanna try it...

Sweet Potato Tortilla Pie
(original recipe is from Vegetarian Planet)

Cube 2-3 sweet potatoes. Toss in olive oil and minced garlic and cumin. Bake for ~20 min at 425 until potatoes are just tender. Let cool. I often have more cubed potato than I need for the pie, but I love sweet potatoes, so I eat them for lunch the next day.

Mix:
1-1/2 cups milk
3 eggs
Salt & pepper

Butter a pie plate. Layer 4-5 corn tortillas in the pie plate, overlapping, to form the "crust". Put the cubed cooked sweet potatoes on top of the tortillas. Sprinkle ~3/4-1 cup cheese over the potatoes. (I use a combo--jack or pepper jack and cheddar.) Pour the milk/egg mixture over the top. It's ok if it runs under the tortilla. Bake at 375 for 40-50 minutes, until the custard is set. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

You can make this basic recipe with just about anything you'd put into a quiche. We like yellow potatoes and diced bacon with cheddar, swiss or goat cheese and no cumin (maybe add a touch of nutmeg). Sometimes I make one of each--A spicy sweet potato version with pepper jack cheese and a milder yellow potato and cheddar version--then we have the leftovers for leftover night or breakfast.

That's it! Soon, I'll share pictures of the rockin' snow storm we had this weekend! All I can say is, snow is a lot more fun when you don't have to shovel it!

Finished!!!

I told you I would have some finished objects for you soon! I finally went to the post office and mailed a package to our friends in KY. Their baby just turned a month old, so I wasn't too late. I made the Baby Boy Vest from Sock Yarn One Skein Wonders. I loved this pattern. I used Dream In Color Classy, which is my most favorite yarn ever. I wish I could afford to knit every project with this yarn. Sadly, I'm too poor. :-) I do have a few more skeins of this yarn in my stash though, so for that I am grateful. I do realize this isn't the best picture, but it's all I've got on this camera card. I think I took pictures on my other camera, but that one isn't as easy to upload pictures from.



I also made this adorable 6x6 photo album. I printed all papers and images on my Cricut Imagine using the Nursery Tails Cartridge. The months of the year were stamped with a set of Close To My Heart stamps.





My intent is for the recipient to put a picture of the baby taken each month of the first year of his life on the intended pages. I included enough journaling boxes for her to journal if she chooses, or she can place another photo on that page. Hopefully she likes it. It was fun to make! I also made invitations for Mikayla's birthday party. I do realize her birthday was last month, but we had just moved into this house. So, I told her she would have to wait until February to actually have her birthday. We don't have parties every year for each child. They usually take turns. Last year Liberty had a big party, so this year will be low-key for her. Mikayla hasn't had a party for friends in a couple of years, hence the party at the skating rink. She is looking forward to it!

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is pretty low key around here. We do something to make it fun for the kids, occasionally do something together, but not always. More often than not, the Army has taken Mike somewhere, which would be the case this year. And next, but we won't discuss that right now. I got some flowers from my BFF! Aren't they purdy?



We usually get heart shaped pizzas from Papa Murphys. Wouldn't you know it, they don't make heart shaped pizzas up here in he frozen tundra. So, we're improvised. We made our own!!!



The kids also got a token gift as well as some candy.



Notice those cute little Ladybug boxes? They were one of the projects I worked on last week. They were so fun to make! I'll share a completed knitting project in my next blog post. Stay tuned...

Blogging to Myself

Sometimes I think I'm just blogging to myself. I probably am. I'm OK with that. My husband wanted me to start blogging again so he could keep up with our goings on when he's gone, which he is right now, but just for a short time. So, don't come stalking me or anything. I have two dogs...they're very scary. Maybe not as scary as the five kids I have though. :p Anyway, I have some new recipes I want to try out. I'm going to post the links here so I don't forget. Raspberry Breakfast Bars. Peanut Butter Crispy Bars. Homemade Pop Tarts That's it. For now. I'm currently lusting after a nice big Kitchen Aid Food Processor. Maybe I'll ask for it as a Mother's Day/Birthday gift in May?
I do have a Graduation Present coming on Saturday. Betcha didn't know I'm a college graduate now, did ya? I worked hard for this accomplishment. I'm pretty proud of myself. Of course, I couldn't have done it if it weren't for the Lord giving me strength, and my awesome family being so understanding. However, my husband did ask me to take a little break before I continue after my Bachelors degree. HA! Anyway, my parents got me a Nook Color!!!!! I can't WAIT to get it! Let's not mention the fact that they got me a regular Nook for Christmas. I might kind of be just a little bit spoiled? Just a lil' bit. I'm trying to convince Mike to take my Nook to the Stan with him. I'm not sure if I'm doing a good convincing job or not. Time will tell.
We've had quite a bit of sibling strife going on lately. I knew I needed to do something about it, and fast. So, last night we drew names out of a hat. I added my name in there as well, 'cause I wanted in on the fun!!! Everyday between now and Monday, we're to do something nice for the person whose name we picked. So far, I've seen someone pouring a bowl of cereal for someone else and leaving it on the counter as a surprise (minus the milk), someone else made a lunch for someone and put it in the fridge for them to take to school tomorrow, someone's bed was miraculously made, etc. It's been fun to watch! I'm trying not to get my hopes up, as I knew my teenagers wouldn't be as excited about this as my littles are. But, I'm hoping they at least put forth a bit of an effort. Monday night during our Valentine's Day dinner, we'll reveal who we chose. Fun times!!!!
I really will be sharing photos of finished object. For real.

No Completed Projects

I feel like I don't complete anything lately. I've come so close to finishing so many things, I just don't actually complete them. This is actually a recurring problem in my life, but that's a post for a different day. So, no pictures today. :sad face:
There was some paper crafting this weekend, along with knitting, and cooking/baking. I feel like all I did all weekend was cook! I made homemade pizza Friday night, like always. Yesterday, I didn't make anything special, just regular meals. Actually, I didn't even cook dinner last night. It was Yo-Yo night. You know what Yo-Yo night is, right? "Your On Your Own" buddie!!! Many of us had cereal. No harm in that, eh? At least it was Life cereal!!!! Today, I made a batch of Blueberry/Walnut granola bars, baked macaroni and cheese, Banana Pudding, Oatmeal Jam Bars (thanks Melissa!), Best Dinner Rolls Ever and Buffalo Chicken Dip. Now, I don't know if these rolls really ARE the best dinner rolls ever. My regular recipe for the best rolls evah is missing. Sniff, sniff. So, I'm trying these. They're currently in the oven. I had planned to make a batch of Baked Oatmeal but I'm out of steam. Maybe tomorrow night.
What's for dinner tomorrow night? I sometimes grow weary of figuring out what we're going to eat. Menus help me, but my husband is gone. I'm not always motivated to cook when he's gone. However, I do know what we're having tomorrow night. These. In fact, that's why I made the Best Dinner Rolls Ever! Our local Walmart didn't have the Hawaiian Rolls, and I didn't want to go to another store to look. So, we'll see how they turn out.
I started a new knitting project this weekend. It's with my FAVORITE yarn ever! Dream in Color Classy! I wish I could afford to knit every worsted, super wash project with DIC. Tomorrow starts a busy next few months of ice-skating lessons, but hopefully I'll have pictures of finished projects and newly started projects to share with you!
Just in case you're wondering, I have two new loves in my life. This and slushy Pepsi. Our entry way is cold enough that it turns my Pepsi into the perfect slushy every time!

Blog Headers

Thanks to my good friend Melissa, I know how hot to create Blog headers! Woohoo! Go me! I need a little more practice, but I'm getting there. I'm posting a link so I don't forget where the tutorial is located at. Clover Lane has a very easy tutorial posted. If you don't already have Picasa, you must get it. It's very lovely!!! :-)
I sent my man off for a month long vacation to the Mojave desert today. It's been a long time since he's left me for more than a night or two. I guess it's my turn, eh? Anyway, I have many projects planned for the next month. I may have a few finished projects to show you either today or tomorrow. I have several that just need a couple of little things done to them, then they'll move to the finished pile!!!
Before I sign off to do some school with some kids, I must share a lovely thing my three younger kids did for me this morning. Breakfast in bed, complete with COFFEE made with the Keurig! The nicest part though, was the "I love you just because" handmade card they gave me. I love my kids!