Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives Inspired "Italian Stew"

A few weeks ago my fridge went. I mean, just up and stopped working. My 9 year old, full-of-food fridge and freezer. I monitored the temperature with my thermometer my mother bought for all of us sisters, since the same thing happened to her "still under warranty" fridge. It didn't pay for us to invest almost $600 in repairs to our almost decade-old model, so I got a great deal on a new one. (Paid for in cash!) But by the time it would be delivered, it would be day three of no power to my fridge. So I had to act fast and save what I could. Who wouldn't get creative and use up all that food?!
I made a run to my sisters and stocked what I could fit in her extra fridge in her garage, and stored what I could in my deep freezer. I had to use-or-lose the rest.
So looking at my options, I vaguely remembered a dish I saw prepared on Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives. Not sure if it was close, but this is what I came up with. And boy, was it delicious:

Chicken Pisano
Sausage, Potatoes, Chicken, and Brown Gravy
(like an Italian stew)

3 Sweet Italian Sausage Links cut in thick slices
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in bite-sized pieces
red and green pepper strips
4 T. Butter
Flour
Oregano
Pepper
Can of whole potatoes or cut-up chunks of raw potatoes
AuJus or Beef Stock

Melt some butter in a pan. Pop in some thick cut slices of sausage (sweet italian). Add in cut up pieces of chicken breast and let grill up. Add in some oregano and pepper. There will be some oil in the pan from the butter and the sausage, so add some flour to make a roux. Add in some AuJus or Beef stock (what I used) to make a gravy. Add in some chunks of potatoes, or cut can of whole white potatoes in quarters and add in. Turn down heat and let simmer and cook. Brown gravy will become thick. Cook until potatoes are tender and meat is cooked through.

Getting creative in a pinch Works for Me!!

As an added note: I have since found the actual recipe and episode. The dish is called Chicken Pisano. My memory didn't fail me much...my rendition was close!!

Works for Me Wednesday: Lower Your Bills

Coach has three players that now play for the NFL, so he needs to watch them each week. He also has players that play all around the country, so he needs to watch them, too. Direct TV is the only place we can tune in to Minnesota, Miami, Chicago, California, Texas, Michigan, and so on, to watch his boys. For us, satellite is a necessity. But our Direct TV bill just kept creeping up and up... and on a measly coaching salary, it's getting harder and harder to write that check.

We recently got an invitation in the mail for the DISH satellite network, which was much cheaper than what we are paying for DirectTV. I called the DISH, and got the scoop. They had 90% of what we were already getting, minus the NFL Sunday ticket, but they had something like it, so we could still see most of the games. Since I was a DirecTV customer for 6 years already, I thought I'd give them a call and give them a chance to keep us as customers.

When I called, the representative already knew of the DISH package I was thinking about and the prices. They matched the DISH's current promotion, drastically lowering our bill for the next 12 months, then $17 a month after that ($17 off what we currently pay now). On top of that, we received a credit of a rather large amount! (covering our bill for the next three months!) Guess they didn't want to lose a customer!!

Call your current providers...cell phone, cable/satellite, or other negotiable utilities... See if there's any wiggle room in your current package. Companies would rather lower your payments than lose your business altogether!

Worked for Me!!

Works For Me Wednesday: Streamlined Bill Paying

Every day runs a little smoother here thanks to our Daily System. Our household runs a little smoother with my home binder, housing all of our home warranties, maintenance/repair sheets, paint color chips, and booklets for baby gear, toys, electronics, etc.



And our bill paying runs a little smoother, thanks to my Bill Binder. I have a monthly calendar with each bills due date. I have files for bills to be paid, paid bills, and receipts. And since I have moved most of my bill paying online, I have a sheet with each website address and our login information, right at my fingertips. It makes it so much easier...when I need to pay a certain bill, I just look up the info on the sheet. No more searching for last month's online receipt where I scratched the password, etc. My Bill Binder works for me!!

Works for Me Wednesday: Bringing Your Child for Labwork

Ugh...bloodwork. I don't even like having bloodwork done, let alone having my children have their blood drawn!! The anxiety...the anticipation!! My daughter went for labwork this morning and it has been the talk of the classroom and dinner table since Monday. She was so brave!!

Before the big event, one does their research on how to make this a "more pleasant experience"...

All of the experts note the same recommendations:

Reassure her while she gets a needle.

Explain that it won't be more painful than a pinch and will be over quickly. (hopefully!!)

Encourage her to be strong and brave. While a needle looks frightening, they're not dangerous.
Talk to her calmly.

Take deep, slow breaths. (Child and Mom!!)

That's all well and good folks. But, what Works for Me?? Going out for breakfast after, going to school late, and good 'ol fashioned bribery...

Silly Bands...they're all the rage!

Works every time!!

Thriving as a Family

In our home we strive to make the following our motto. It Works for Us! We always knew it made our family thrive, but Focus On the Family (love this website!!) just made it their focus in their daily email, striving to help others grow as a family. Guess we were already doing something right!!

A Thriving Family Makes Time to ...

1.
Eat Together
2.
Play Together
3.
Attend Church & Pray Together
4.
Invest in Your Kids
5.
Know Where Your Kids Are & Know Their Friends

(Might I just say how embarassing this last one was growing up (#5)...my mother always went to the door when dropping me off at someones home to speak to the parents and to make sure they were home, or called them on the phone before I was allowed to go (even, and especially, when I was in High School). It's just the way it was...I wasn't going to ever get her to stop. Well my friends, I am now my mother. I do the same thing...and my sister with her teens and pre-teens. It works!! Lord help my children when they are teens!!)

Celebrate your family!!

Hear ye! Hear ye! I'm "The Biggest Loser"

Okay...all bets are off people. I am a "Pantry Eating Challenge" loser. A dropout. I could not do it. Truth be told, I never started. I just could not get my act together after the holidays to sit down and focus on a month's challenge of meals...with the little we had in the house/pantry/freezer and no good deals on the horizon. (Unless, of course, we were going to eat from cans for the month since every store is now having "Can-Can Sales"). Chef Boyardee anyone?? No thanks. So, I've been restocking for the month, and I think I'm now ready to start the challenge...just about a month late.

Here are some of the great deals I've found this month to help stock up. Needless to say I stocked my fridge, freezer, and pantry to the max with these sales! I'm able to feed our family, and frequent dinner guests since it's that time of year and my husband is having his Seniors over every now and then for College planning.

Ground beef: $1.68/lb.
Boneless chicken breast: $1.99/lb.
Frozen organic veggies: 12 bags free with coupons
5lb. organic potatoes: $.78
Organic tomato sauce/pasta sauces: $.65
Whole grain pastas: $.78 box
2lbs. white and brown rice: $.77
bacon: $1.88/lb.

Another great and frugal find (don't know why I didn't look for these sooner...since I'm a loyal shopper there!!) at Sam's Club: Can't beat these deals with a stick!!
Bulk Yeast: 2 lbs: $4.16!!
25lbs All-Purpose Unbleached Flour: $7.83
So...I'll be baking up all of our rolls, breads, and pizza dough (when I make sicilian...we still have shells from Sam's which are still our fave for regular pizza!!)

I have all of the ingredients on hand to prepare the following meals. Here's what will be on my menu plan this month (and longer):
Many of these meals are Under $5!
Meatloaf
Bowties alfredo with grilled chicken
Penne Vodka w/ grilled chicken
Cheeseburger Pie
Shepherds Pie
Burgers on the grill (homemade rolls)
Lasagna
Stuffed Shells
Chicken Potato Pancakes
Chicken & Wild Rice Pancakes
Ziti
Stuffed French Toast
Penne/Cavatelli & Broccoli
Creamy Chicken
Potroast
Quiche
London Broil
Chicken, rice, gravy
Porcupine Balls/Mashed Potatoes
Teryaki Chicken, Vegetables & Rice
Spaghetti & Meatballs
Chicken Fried Chicken
Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Soup
Potato Soup w/ bacon & cheese
Beefaroni
Sloppy Joes (homemade rolls)
Grilled chicken, bacon & Cheese
Popcorn Chicken
Crispy beef & Broccoli (recipe to come)
Crispy beef & fried rice (recipe to come)
Chicken fried rice (recipe to come)
"No Es Mexicana" "Enchilada"
Ravioli
Chicken Alfredo Pizza
Pizza
Sicilian Pizza (recipe coming soon!!)

Side dishes of: veggies, rice, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, roasted potatoes.

I figure my weekly shopping lists will consist of: (Budgeting for $20 wk.)
cheese
milk
yogurt
fruit
veggies

An "Eating from the Pantry" challenge is a great idea...any month of the year! And doing it when I'm prepared, stocked, and ready Works for Me!!
Linked to: Works for Me Wednesday

Need to Make Some Extra Cash??

Then go to bed with my husband.

No, really...last night I made $2.73 (and a fine tipped pen). This morning I went to make our bed and I found, under the sheets, what appeared to be my tip for the night. The further I dug into the sheets, the more bills I found. Apparently my husband fell asleep in his sweatpants he wore to practice that day (I know...yes, it grosses me out, too, which is why when I found dried out grass pieces, instead of making our bed, I was changing it!!) while watching the Steelers into the night, and his belongings in his pockets were "deposited" into the bed.

So the chambermaid took herself out for a cup of coffee...
Hey... finders-keepers, right??!!

I hope you got a little giggle...now visit here for more Works For Me Wednesday...

Works for Me Wednesday...Save Your Receipts!!

I'm not necessarily a "name-brand" girl. I do, however, like good quality things. My motto is pay more now, pay less in the long run. Most of my children's clothes come from Gymboree and Hanna Andersson (since they wash so well...you can literally have them forever!) and if they're damaged in some way from normal wash and wear, you can return them for store credit as long as you have your receipts. (Did you know LLBean guarantees every piece of clothing...for life??!! And that's why most of my and my husbands digs are from there!!!) My philosophy goes for furniture and bedding as well. I made a rather large purchase at Bed Bath and Beyond back in early spring. I bought a Liz Claiborne bedding set. We're talking the whole sha-bang...throw pillows to match, extra shams, etc. (We had gift cards to use...that's the only reason I went "all out"!!!) So, this fall when I was changing out our spring-summer bedding for our Down Comforter, I followed the manufacturers instructions to wash it. I have a large capacity washer, so it wasn't necessary to go to the laundry mat. Lo and behold, I took out the comforter to hang to dry and the whole corner was shredded. The fabric just gave way and stuffing was all over the place. I was devastated.

I still had the receipt and the packaging (the big plastic zippered bag it came in), so I packaged it up and headed back to the store. (Hey...at $400 for the set, it shouldn't have fallen apart!!) I showed the manager and she agreed but said they no longer carried it...it was clearanced at the end of the summer. Good thing I had my receipt!!! We got full credit for the bedding set. (I couldn't keep all the throw pillows and shams without the comforter they matched!) So these nights I'm enjoying new micro fleece sheets, and awaiting a new mattress memory foam topper (hoping to avoid having to purchase a new mattress...oh, our aching backs!!).

Moral of the story??: Be organized. Keep receipts in one place (and remember where), and categorize them by store. I had absolutely no intention of returning my beautiful Liz Claiborne bedding. At that price, I was sleeping in it forever! But under the circumstances, saving my receipts Worked for Me! Had I not had it...the store credit I would have received? $89 bucks! A big difference compared to $400!

Pumpkin Pie Spice

Ever find yourself needing Pumpkin Pie Spice for a recipe, being absolutely sure you have some, only to find out that, in fact, you don't?? Don't fret...you can make your own!

Pumpkin Pie Spice:

1T. Ground Cinnamon
2t. Ground Ginger
1/2t. Ground Nutmeg

Mix together well. Store in tight container.

For a sweetened version...add 2T. Sugar (great for sweetened homemade whipped cream or on buttered toast....MMMMmmmmm!)

Linked to: Life as Mom URS

'Tis the Season!!

With two doctor visits in 10 days, a phone call from the school nurse to pick up my daughter early, two sick children at home...one with a sinus infection, the other with a cold, I'd like to share with you what's Workin' for Me this Wednesday: (I just KNOW y'all can relate!!)

#1. DRIVE-THRU CVS!!! Need I say more??!! 20 mins away, five minutes from the pediatricians office. (This could be one of the most important and most valuable one yet!!)

#2. Boogie Wipes...yes, they do just what they say they do! Go here for more info and a coupon.

#3. Lil' Critters Gummy Vites Calcium and Vitamin D chews (for a picky eater like my three year old, it comforting to know that even though his diet these days consists of waffles, pancakes, mac and cheese and yogurt, he's still getting his calcium!!)

#4. Lil' Critters Gummy Vites Immune C with Zinc. We need all the help we can get these days. An extra boost of C and Zinc to help speed things along...and they taste great! I even take 2 a day!!

Linked to : Works for Me Wednesday

Works for Me Wednesday... "Green" Tile Cleaner!

I've got a few things working for me these past few weeks (and a few not...) but here's one I'm very excited to share with you, because it not only works great, it's eco-friendly!!

We have a farmhouse table in our kitchen with a white tiletop. Not my first choice, but it was a hand-me-down, so we welcomed it with open arms. The table has two leaves which we always have in, and we have a farmhouse bench to go alongside for the kids. I love the fact that it's made of sturdy oak, but the tile...I'm not a fan. It's very difficult to clean and keep clean. I'm an advocate of white vinegar and baking soda, but that would always leave a streaky film and wouldn't get everything out of the crevices of the grout. (I know y'all are thinking "use a tablecloth!!" but we've gone that route and with constant spills, stains, and our entire meals ending up on the floor courtesy of a certain three year old that thought of each tablecloth as his superhero cape...it just wasn't "working for us"!!)

So for the longest time I was a fan of SoftScrub. It was the only cleanser that got it sparkling white, and wiped clean. I hated the smell and the fact that it was so toxic to our indoor air. While I grew tired of the thought of another day of baking soda and vinegar, I had an epiphany of sorts... Dishwasher detergent gets my dishes all sparkly, the "graininess" of the powder acts like a scouring powder...why wouldn't it work? And, the best thing....I use Seventh Generation all-natural, chlorine-free dishwasher detergent...so it's green!

I've found my new solution, folks! The table came out brand, spankin' new. With a damp dishrag or paper towel, sprinkle about a tablespoon of detergent on your tile surface, and scrub away! I know some even have tiletop counters in their kitchen. This would work great! I haven't tried it in a bathroom yet, but seeing the results I had on my tiletop table, I don't see why it wouldn't work as beautifully. I'm sure it would even make a great scourer for the toilet, too! If you have any experience with this, let me know!!

Check out other Cleaning Tips at Works For Me Wednesday!

The Town and Country Cafe...

Enjoy the scenery.
Have sports. Will travel.
This year as if we didn't already have enough on our dinner plate, I have become my daughters cheerleading coach for the midget football program. Which means, Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights, as well as some Saturday afternoons, we'll be running from one game to the other, cheering in our own and trying to see Daddy's games, sometimes being in the same town, but sometimes not (as our league was just restructured and some fields are an hour-and-a-half away!) Many families are on the go during this back-to-school, back-to-sports time of year, along with their dining rituals. Did you know that the flat front of a backpack makes a wonderful "table"? (Just be sure the kids keep their knees and legs even...if not, supper's all over the floor!) One way we conquer avoiding the drive thru (oh, wait...no drive thru's around here) the pizza place, or the field snack bar, is fixing our own "Kid Cuisines". I cook the meal before I pick up the oldest from school, then reheat right before we're ready to leave. I use a medium tupperware container (one that a square cake pan would fit in...or smaller if needed), and fill it with supper...homemade chicken nuggets, carrot sticks, buttered bow ties with parmesan, and a packaged dessert (usually fruit snacks or a granola bar), or a square of lasagna and a nice piece of buttered Italian bread with a baggie of salad...less the dressing! (Note: best to avoid any sauces, creamed veggies, corn in particular, unless it's on the cob. These tend to be messier fares. I've learned from experience!!) Pass back a juice box and a napkin, and dinner's done! We're on the road to wherever it is we need to be!

Dinner on the road in Wildcat Country...Works For Me!

Works for Me Wednesday: Our Daily System

Football and cheerleading practice. Boys and girls basketball. Summer sports camp schedules, and vacation scheduling. Three Back to School nights, three sets of Parent-Teacher Conferences. Birthdays, anniversaries, school and sports pictures. You get the picture. Each family has so much going on! Running here and there, how do we make it on time, or even make it there at all??!!

My family and my home would not function if it weren't for our "Daily System". It was my best Pottery Barn purchase to date, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. The only thing that worries me...when the wall comes down in the kitchen to make room for my "forever wanting" island (which it'll soon be tumbling down!!), I don't yet know where I'm going to put it. Operative word: yet.

Component #1: Our calendar. Our brain as I affectionately call it, since that's all we need to look at in the morning to see where we're going, and when. Each of us...even the children. (My daughter had a playdate over yesterday, and the little girl said, "Oooohhhhh...I wish my mommy had one of those!!! She never knows what we're doing...and we're always LATE!!")

Bless her little six year old heart...but kids know. They thrive on structure!!) We have a brain on the wall for all to see, and a book brain for the entire year. No need to go out and buy one...I've done that...they just fall apart after a few months of constant use. I printed out calendars from the computer, punched holes, and popped them into a three pronged folder (one of the perks of having a teacher in the family...we always have school supplies around. Not necessarily in the fashionable colors I prefer, but free. Beggars can't be choosers!!)

This stays in the calendar mailslot so we always know where it is.

Other components: As well as the "Calendar and Notepaper" mailslot to hold our paper calendar and for messaging by the phone, we have a "Mom" mailslot, for important school papers, medical prescriptions, etc, "To be Filed" for paid bill slips, insurance papers, etc, and "Mail" mailslot...for incoming and outgoing, as well as address labels, stamps, and envelopes.

I'm always on the lookout for organizational ideas and tools. Do you have a daily system? What Works for You??!!

Linked to: Works for Me Wednesday

The Organic Lunchbox

As a 90% organic, eco-friendly Mom, I try to seek out new products that can make life a little easier for me and still be healthy and earth friendly. One tricky topic is always the school lunchbag. Plastic baggies, plastic wrap, plastic water bottles...all full of PVC and BPA toxins.

Now, more than ever before, there are new and exciting products out there that are child-friendly lunch box essentials (and I don't mean glassware!!)

This year you can find these products in my first graders lunch bag:

Kids Konserve Reusable Food Kozy to wrap sandwiches and other snacks in, Fuel reusable, BPA free, sipper juice box (I was able to find these at CVS), and a cloth napkin.

Organic, child-safe, eco-friendly, makes my LifeasMom a little easier and ...Works for Me!

Linked to: Works for Me Wednesday and LifeasMom

Quick Meat Sauce

This week we're eating from the fridge/freezer/pantry due to lack of sales, time constraints, and an overabundance of food. So, tonight when I was craving a nice plate of spaghetti with meatballs I knew I didn't have the time to fix them. So, since we took Amy's idea and "loaded up the grill" on Sunday, I had lots of already prepared burgers left over. Hmmm... a burger on spaghetti wouldn't quite work, but a burger made into meatsauce? That would work!! I tossed an already BBQ'd burger into the food processor, added a little beef stock to moisten it up, and chopped. Tossed it into some homemade tomato sauce, and Voila...Spaghetti with meat sauce. It was delicious, and quick!! The taste from the grill was brought into the sauce for even more homemade flavor!
When in a time crunch, put on your thinking caps!

Linked to: Kitchen Tip Tuesday, Works for Me Wednesday

Craigslist!

Recently, Craigslist has worked for us!! Here are pictures of some of the things we have sold...and we met some great people from all areas of our state in the process!!

A John Deere tractor...

A Lopi woodburning stove...

An up-and-down roller coaster...

As-well-as a utility cart, a jogging stroller, and some Little tikes outdoor toys. These things added up to close to $1600 extra dollars in our pocket. Not bad for reducing clutter and simplifying our belongings!!
And, on the flip side, here are some great finds we got off of Craigslist...$125 bought us this twin car bed and toy box for our little guy, when, at 16months old, he was escaping from his crib!! Not a bad investment for something that will last him until at least 7 or 8 years old (or longer, if he'll still want a car bed!!)

Twin size car bed and stacked tire toy box...so cool for my "cool dude"!!

Check out your local Craigslist...either to buy or to sell. It's a great, free way to find something you need, or sell something you don't!! If you don't have the time to have a garage sale, this is a great alternative. And, as always, sell and buy cautiously. I never arrange a sale without my husband home or go to purchase something alone. You can never be too safe!

Linked to: Frugal Friday

Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail...

..Famous words my husband uses with his high school students. And a plan we did have yesterday for our "Daycation" to Hershey Park. But, as we all know, things don't always go as planned, so plan for a Plan B....

Let me explain...

Hershey park is a little over three hours from us, so we planned on leaving at 7am, that way we'd get out there just after the park opened at 10am. Well, our little potty-trainee had a little bit of potty trouble earlier in the morning and couldn't be/didn't want to be, rushed. So, we waited...and waited...then, time was a wastin', so we left at 7:30am. We hit every source of rush hour traffic possible, on every interstate. But, that wasn't it. The kicker was that every 15-20mins we'd hear "I'm goin', I'm goin...I gotta' go...pull over, quick!!" So, we'd pull over, get out the potty seat, and we'd wait, and wait, and wait. To no avail. We risked our lives along Route 78 with 18-wheelers whizzing by pulled over on the side of the road because we'd sat at the previous rest area for a half hour, and finally left, and the next one wasn't for another 22 miles. It probably wasn't in our best interest to plan such a lengthy trip this early in the "potty going" stage, but it was a risk we took.

Well, to make a long story short...come 10:30am, we were still in our home state. There was no way we were making it to Hershey Park that day...

So, after driving another 15 minutes and another 25 minute potty break, and quietly/secretly discussing what to do amongst ourselves in the front, my husband proudly announces..."We're here!!" We look over and see a great sight for our stressed out, weary eyes...Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom (about an hour and a half closer to us than HP). We heard a great cheer from the back of the van and oohs and aahs at all of the rides. We pulled in, paid our parking and our admission (and I even had a coupon in my bag of tricks because this was a contender as one of our Daycations), and enjoyed our day.

Camp Snoopy...a section of the amusement park just for preschoolers and little riders.

Sally...one of the many Peanuts characters visiting in Camp Snoopy

Waterworks... a waterpark just for kids inside Wildwater Kingdom, which is all in one place! Two parks for one price.

It all worked out, and, thankfully, so did our potty-trainees digestive issues. We ended up having a great day.

As we were slowly sauntering out of the park from sheer exhaustion at 8pm, my little guy says, "I had a great time at Hershey Park!" He didn't even know the difference, and we didn't have the heart to tell him!

Plan Ahead for Outings

Today we're heading out to central Pennsylvania to Hershey Park, a few hours drive, for one of our planned "Daycations". We visit every December to celebrate my daughters birthday at Christmas Candylane, but it's been a few years since we've been there in the summer and we are excited! We'll hopefully get to meet up with an old friend of mine I used to teach with who moved out there. We were pregnant together with our oldest girls, and pregnant at the same time again with our second children. We try to see them each year when we're visiting.

With Hershey Park comes the "chocolate characters", the shows, and of course, the candy. We'll be surrounded by everything chocolate...hey, they don't call it "The sweetest place on earth" for nothing! But rather than paying the premiums for the chocolate right there at the factory (okay... they will be getting a free bar at the end of the tour ride, so they won't totally be denied the satisfaction of actually getting Hershey's chocolate from Chocolate World), I purchased a few packages of mini sized treats, regular sized Hershey bars, and some chocolate milk boxes before we left. They'll be packed in the cooler for dessert with our picnic lunch.

Using a $20 off coupon for the $166 admission, buying cheaper treats off premises, and packing a picnic lunch helps to keep an already expensive outing a little less expensive.

Post linked to: Works for Me Wednesday and Frugal Friday

Go here for an update on our trip...

Works for Me Wednesday- Farm Stands

Family friends of ours own a beautiful, all- natural working farm that has been in production for over 100 years (that's hard to find these days... especially around here!) They offer farm fresh eggs, all- natural ice cream, pesticide- free vegetables, all- natural pork, and all-natural, grass fed beef, free of hormones, steroids, and antibiotics. Once you've had their meats, you'll never go back to conventional again.

During the summer months (and during the fall harvest) their roadside farmstand is open for business, and in my opinion, that just adds to the charm of it all!

Buying our meats and produce directly from the farm, having a relationship with the farmer and his family, seeing where our food is grown... Works for Me! Buy fresh...Buy local!!

Works for Me Wednesday- Sheet Cakes

Thanks to fellow coaches wife Amy (I'm on the east coast...she's out in Kansas!), I was able to make a quick dessert to help out my husband for his football team's SuperStar Day (when the players compete against one another in lifting, speed, long-jump, etc.) He knew he wanted to do something special when announcing the stats/winners, but in our tiny towns, money is tight!(well, where isn't it tight right now??!!) We needed to feed 50+ players plus the coaching staff, so I made sheet cakes! How did I not know about making my own sheet cakes??!! I made a chocolate with chocolate frosting, and a yellow butter with chocolate icing, and another round with vanilla icing. I used this recipe for the chocolate, and I used two boxed mixes for the butter recipe. I used 3/4 of the mix for the sheet cake, then the rest for a round, since I didn't want the sheet cake to overflow.

I'm fixing to pick up my kindergartner and run these up to the high school now.
Not paying the premium for a storebought one (which the teams always do when one is needed- until now!!) Works for the Wildcats!!!

(PS... the picture on the round cake is supposed to be a paw print. Didn't come out so great... but do you think they'll care??!!)

Linked to Works for Me Wednesday