Halloween Chex Mix

8 oz white chocolate baking bars, coarsely chopped (I used white chocolate chips)
4 cups corn chex or rice chex cereal (I used a mixture of both)
2 cups bite size pretzel twists
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup candy corn
1/4 cup orange and black candy decors

In large microwaveable bowl, microwave chopped baking bars uncovered on High for 1-2 minutes stirring often until melted and smooth.

Gently stir in cereal, pretzels, and raisins until evenly coated. Stir in candy and decors.

Spread on wax paper or foil until cooled and chocolate is set. Break into chunks. Store loosely covered.

Layered Crock Pot Dinner

I found this recipe here. We use our crock pot a lot because it is so hot here. We make this all the time and it is really good.

--1 1/1 lbs rib eye steak
--1 T of your favorite seasoning rub
--1 T dried onion flakes (You may also use a small onion)
--2 T Worcestershire sauce
--1/4 cup broth, apple juice, etc.)

--2-4 potatoes
--2-4 ears of fresh corn
--aluminum foil


The Directions.

Put meat in the bottom of the crockpot. Rub with seasoning and onion, and flip over to get the other side. Add liquid and Worcestershire sauce. Wrap corn and potatoes in tin foil and place on top of the meat. Cook on high for 5-7 hours or on low low for 8 hours in your crock pot.

Cute Crayons

I saw this idea here. I thought they would make great favors to put in little bags for Lindsay's birthday party. I also thought it was a great way to get rid of all the little broken pieces of crayon we have all over. I would rather make them into cute little crayons then fish them out of my daughter's nose again. So with my coupon from JoAnn's I bought some silicone mini muffin tins and went to town unwrapping broken crayons. I didn't end up putting them in candy molds like the website did, but I still think they turned out pretty cute. Can't beat, cheap and cute party favors.

Ghost Feet

Today we added some feet ghosts to our hand ghosts. They loved this!

Ghost Hands

The kids and I made little ghosts out of their hands the other day. They turned out pretty cute. I was going to use black paint on their thumbs to make eyes and a mouth, but my black paint was to watery for some reason. So we used a sharpie instead.

We may try again using their feet. I think they may look more like ghosts.

Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

I found this recipe here. We had them for dinner tonight and the kids gobbled them up. I think these would be great for Christmas Breakfast.

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

heaping 1/2 cup old fashioned oats

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

healthy pinch of freshly ground nutmeg (I didn't have nutmeg so I used allspice)

2 cups buttermilk (I used regular milk)

1 tablespoon pure maple syrup (I used corn syrup)

4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup raisins

oil or cooking spray (for cooking)

Step 1: In a large bowl beat eggs. Add buttermilk, butter , maple syrup and vanilla and mix well. Add flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Mix well until mostly smooth. Fold in raisins and let batter set for a few minutes.

Step 2: Heat griddle or pan over medium heat. Add a teaspoon of oil to the pan or spray with cooking spray. You can test to see if the pan is hot enough by adding a few drops of water, when the drops start to dance its hot enough.

Step 3: Pour 2 Tablespoons of batter onto the griddle. Cook on the first side until bubbles that form start to pop. You can also gently lift up the pancake to make sure the bottom is not overcooking, if it is the pan may be too hot and you will need to adjust the heat. Flip the pancake over with a spatula and cook until golden brown. Repeat until all the batter is gone. Let cooked pancakes rest on a heat proof plate in a 200 degree F oven until ready to serve.

Low Fat Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 box Spice Cake Mix
1 15 oz can unsweetened pumpkin
1 C. Mini Semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Spray cookie sheet with Pam. Ina a large bowl, stir cake mix and pumpkin together until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Use a cookie scoop or spoon to drop tablespoons of dough on cookie sheet. Bake for 12 -14 minutes. Remove to cooling rack after 1 min on sheet.