New Blog

Alright, I gave up on this blog...I think about too many things to just have a blog about this. I have exported all posts to the new blog.

New blog: www.musinghelpmeet.blogspot.com

Aghh! Link to Chocolate Yummies Video

So, apparently I don't know how to do this. I am clicking on the link button, and it show's up on my edit page, but not on the final draft?

I ended up adding it on the sidebar with the other sites you may want to check out. So, if you scroll down you will see the Chocolate Yummies link on the right...Finally!

Cooking with the Kids -- Chocolate Yummies

After many failed attempts, we finally have a video to go with this recipe. It's been too long since I wrote on this blog, not enough time. So, I changed it to a family activity with many videos to come - hopefully! Not the best quality, but we had fun!

The link's at the bottom - the video was just barely too big to upload it directly to the blog.


Recipe for Chocolate Yummies By: Ellie, Will and Sarah Jane
2 C UNSWEETENED coconut flakes
1 C Cocoa Powder
1 C RAW honey
1/2 C (peanuts only!) peanut butter We like chunky. :)
1 pinch of sea salt

Combine in bowl.
Give it a good stir.
Dive in with clean hands and mush it together until thoroughly blended! We use disposal vinyal gloves to keep the mess at a minimum. :)
Dump the giant chocolate ball into an 8x8 pan and spread out.
Try some now and then stick it in the 'fridge to harden up. MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

This recipe yeilds a dark chocolate flavor. If that's not to your taste, decrease the amount of cocoa powder.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Balls

Mmmmm. My chocolate/sugar days arrived last week. You know, the days where you just have to have chocolate? This month I had a craving for my peanut butter balls. I made a double batch and with company staying with us, they were gone in a little over 24 hours. They are healthy, but oh, so yummy!!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Balls

2 c regular rolled oats
3/4 c natural peanut butter (no sugar/sweetener added!)
1/2 c raw honey (Trader Joe's, Sunflower Market, Whole Foods, etc.)
2 TBSP whole wheat/spelt flour
1/3 c mini chocolate chips

Mix everything together in a medium-sized bowl. I usually start out with a spoon and then just dig in with my hands! Form into balls and store in your refrigerator.
Just the right thing to satisfy a craving for sweets. Especially peanut butter cups.

Going Cash

Aaaahhh! I'm standing in the line at Walmart with my little wallet filled with cash. I haven't made my envelopes yet, but I did attempt to separate the cash in my wallet. Here's the trouble...I am purchasing things from 3 different categories! Ugh! There has to be an easier way, right? All of my categories are filled with twenties. On top of that, I am purchasing a gift and I left that money in my bank account due to the amount of money we spend online for gifts. Plus, if Duane is buying a gift, he doesn't have the cash envelopes-he doesn't want to go the cash route.
I would love some insight on how everyone manages their money with their spouse. If anyone happens to read this, please feel free to comment. :)

Wow, March madness did take over there for a while with two weeks of spring break. However, U of A didn't make it to the basketball tournament, so our house is a little less "mad" than usual for this time of year. I have placed a total of 3 orders from my green company, and have adjusted my budget to account for the $80 a month I am spending. I took $40 from food and $40 from misc. and put it in this category. This $80 is covering all my laundry, cleaning, dishwasher, "bath soap" and lotion needs.
As far as my March Missions go, I didn't eat so healthy in Tucson...no big surprise there...but, I have revamped my budget. I revisited my book, Money Matters and discovered that we can actually use the percentages Crown Financial recommends for your budget. In the past, we made too little money, and our housing percentage was way above where it should be. Now to see if we can stick to this budget. I am switching to cash, and am going to make some fun cash envelopes to keep track instead of buying them. I have all the supplies already and it really shouldn't be that difficult. I also want to sew a new purse. We'll see....Time to wake up the kids for some eggs and veggies. No fruit for us in the morning! If we don't eat veggies right away, we'll never get our 5 servings in!!

March Madness

Aaahhh! It's March Madness! Today we find out if the U of A is going to the tournament. In my family this is a big deal. They might not get invited this year which would be a tragedy. But that's Duane's tragedy...here's mine: I don't fit into my capri pants anymore!! Thank goodness I have one pair with elastic to get me through until I get that under control. We're headed to Tucson for some warm weather, and my legs are dying to get out of pants prison. So, March Madness for me = March Missions.
Mission #1 Eat healthier. I know many of you laugh at that, but apparently I can eat a little healthier or else I would not have outgrown my pants. :) No money for new clothes, and I like the ones I have besides. I am finishing off my chocolate yummies as I write. Don't want them to go to waste--or waist :) so I better take a walk today. Ha, ha.
Mission #2 Declutter! That has begun already. Out with the old and lying around! They annual Hubbard yard sale is coming up. I am always amazed at how much we collect. Really, did we actually spend money on this stuff? Which leads me to...
Mission #3 Stop spending excess money. Ha, because there isn't excess money. Do you think I can buy only what we need? God, please grant me the wisdom to see the difference between what we truly need, and what is only a desire, and the strength to say NO! Actually, I know I have all the strength I need through Jesus, so I pray that I will use it. I also know that if we ask for wisdom, you give it, and you always give a way out of temptation, so no excuses for being unsuccessful.
Anyone else on any March Missions? I'd love to hear them. Also, any tips always welcome!