New Years Resolutions: Send a Card Because Sometimes Texts or Social Media Is Not Enough #newyearsresolution

~Post by Patricia~

One of my favorite things to do is to send and receive cards from family and friends.

I love looking back through old cards that I have received and reading sweet birthday messages, or loving words from my kids on Mother's Day cards.

Do people still send cards like they did back before Texting, Instagram or Facebook let you wish someone a happy birthday? I really think that a happy birthday wish on Social Media lets people think they have met their obligation, and they needn't do anything else, not even a phone call, and especially not bothering to sending a card.

But sending or receiving a card lets you hold physical evidence of those loving thoughts or words that can become even more precious as time goes by.

By the time I was born, my parents had been married a long time, had a lot of struggles, three other kids, and not a whole lot of love existed between them, or so I thought.

But when I was about ten, I discovered a scrap book they had kept of cards they had sent each other during the first years of their marriage. There were birthday cards, anniversary cards, and just cards that expressed how much they loved each other.

The declarations of love, the sweet words written, especially by my father, helped me to change my view of their marriage. Their marriage was far from perfect, but now I saw there was a real love that still existed between them, and it would last for many decades, and until my father died.

So I will continue to send cards, birthday cards, Christmas cards, thank you cards, and more. I encourage my adult children to give cards, and they are pretty good about it.

How about you?
Do you send cards, do you love receiving them?

I would love to know!!

Fall Outdoor Play Hiking to Hidden Falls #YearRoundPlay

*Disclosure: This post is sponsored by the Voice of Play.

Growing up in Southern California for most of my childhood I was lucky enough to have many warm to cool Fall days that would allow for us to play outside all of the Fall season. I have fond memories of jumping in leaf piles, walks up and down bumpy sidewalks of Pasadena and trips to the park. My Mom was always making sure we spent plenty of time outside having fun.

For my own son growing up in Northern California we deal with more rainy to cold days than I did as a kid but we always find time to get in outdoor play even on cloudy days. We enjoy going on hikes as a family to get in our outdoor fun and exercise. We are a busy family like most people so we try to sneak in having dinner or lunch at the end of our hike to be able to enjoy sitting together with no distractions out in nature. 

Living in Placer County California I am surrounded by mountains, trees, rivers, steams and many other amazing natural features. I consider myself blessed to have a beautiful area to go on hikes, visit local parks and even go camping in. We often search the internet and ask friends for new places to discover. Many people and reviews mentioned Hidden Falls Regional Park in Auburn as a great place to hike. We packed our dinner into a back pack, grabbed our coats and drove up to Auburn for a few hours of outdoor fun.

We explore our surroundings by looking at plants, rocks and other clues to what is around us. My son loves running around and exploring new things outside. I like that he can be free to jump, run, be loud and just be a boy when we are outside. 

I feel it is very important to allow for outside time for our children and for ourselves. We spend so much time inside and on our devices we sometimes can neglect getting outside together as a family. A local trip to a park or open space area can always be fun to explore with your kids and keep them playing all year long.

How do you enjoy Fall Outdoor Play? 

You can go to IPEMA's Voice of Play website to learn more ways to encourage Outdoor Play with your family.

The post is brought to you by Activate by Bloglovin and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.

Powered By:

Fall Snack Mix For Kids Made With Goldfish® Crackers

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MixMatchMunch #CollectiveBias

My grandchildren started their new school last week and I'm thrilled to say that they love it! They had never moved before, so we weren't sure how they would feel about attending a much bigger school and having to make new friends. But it all went well, and I couldn't be more relieved.

They came home with lots to tell us, and of course after a long day, hungry for a great afterschool snack. Since they love Goldfish® crackers so much, I thought I would put together a snack mix that included them with a bit of a fall theme.

My grandkids love hearing about when their mom was a little girl and that she loved eating Goldfish crackers just like they do. I always get lots of smiles when they're eating them and listening to stories about her.

It's really so easy to put together a great tasting snack mix with your favorite ingredients. I like to make a big batch of it and store it in a covered container so that it's ready right when they get home from school.

This fall snack mix includes Goldfish crackers colored variety, dried cranberries, golden raisins, sunflower seeds, stick pretzels, and white chocolate chips. The kids really love it, and I get cool Grandma points!

I'm so proud of these three, how brave they have been with the move and adapting to our new hometown. I love being able to offer them an afterschool snack that they love and I know they won't waste. Goldfish crackers are always the perfect solution for my grandchildren's snacking needs.





I find the 30 count packs really convenient, and it includes three of our favorite flavors. Sometimes I'll pick up the bulk boxes too, just so I know we have plenty of crackers on hand.

You can find the bulk boxes on the rollback price of $5.98 at Walmart. It's a great time to stock up and make sure there are plenty of Goldfish snacks on hand for your little ones.

Ingredients:

2 cups Goldfish crackers

2 cups stick pretzels

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:

In a big bowl, put in all ingredients and give it a big stir. So easy!

You can change up the kind of chips you add to your snack mix, too. We really like the white chocolate kind, but semi-sweet chocolate, or butterscotch would also taste great.

You can find Goldfish crackers in different sizes and varieties at your local Walmart. I found the 30 count packs in the aisle of other multi-packaged products.

Look for this in-store offer that may be available at your local Walmart: Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) Bolthouse Farms® 10 oz. Baby Carrots or Bolthouse Farms® 11 oz. juice when you buy any ONE (1) Pepperidge Farms® Goldfish® crackers 30 oz. or larger.

With school back in full swing for the kids, I know we'll be making more after school snack mixes with our favorite kinds of Goldfish crackers.

Have you ever made a snack mix for your kids before? What ingredients would you use to make a delicious snack mix that you know your kids would love? Leave me a comment and let me know.

Birthday Celebration and Recipe For Birthday Cake

It was my birthday at the end of June, and I had a great day celebrating with my family. We had a delicious barbeque dinner out on the deck, and then enjoyed this three-layer yellow cake with classic buttercream frosting.

My granddaughter Ashley and I made my birthday cake. Maybe it's odd to make your own cake, but since I love baking, it was the perfect opportunity to try out a recipe I've been wanting to make for awhile now.

The recipe comes from the cookbook Homemade Decadence, by blogger Joy The Baker. It's perfect for a birthday cake, and I've never baked a cake that got more compliments.

It's just so moist and delicious, and has a tender, buttery flavor. And the buttercream frosting, which I tinted pink, is pure heaven.

It's hard to get a picture with these little monkeys where everyone is smiling, and looking at the camera at the same time. They were being silly, and I loved it, of course.

One of the things I am more and more grateful for as each birthday passes is my children and grandchildren. I love being a mom and grandmother, and my family is at the center of my world.



I almost didn't put the sprinkles on the cake but it was a unanimous vote by the grandkids that they go on, and that they put them on themselves!!

They did a great job, and I love how the cake turned out. Since it was three layers, the cake was big enough that we had some leftover, and I ate a big piece for breakfast the next morning. It's my birthday so I had fun indulging myself, yum!!

This cake really is the perfect birthday cake, and whoever is lucky enough to have one baked for them will be extremely happy.

Recipe for Basic Three-Layer Yellow Cake from Homemade Decadence

Ingredients:

For cake:

4 cups cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

2 cups buttermilk

For buttercream frosting:

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

5 to 6 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

About 1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. Put oven racks in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour three 9-inch round baking pans.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 minute between each addition.

Beat in the vanilla extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low, add half of the flour mixture, and beat well. Add the buttermilk in a slow stream and beat well. Add the remaining flour mixture and beat until just combined. Finish stirring with a spatula. Divide the batter among the 3 prepared pans.

4. Bake until golden brown on top and a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pans for 20 minutes before inverting onto wire racks to cool completely before frosting.

5. If you're not using right away, double-wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap, and freeze for up to 7 days. When ready to frost, remove from the freezer, unwrap, and frost frozen.

To make the frosting, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until soft, about 1 minute. Add 2 cups of the confectioners' sugar, the salt, and the vanilla. Beat on low speed until the sugar is well incorporated. Add another 2 cups sugar and the cream. Add remaining 2 cups of sugar as needed to thicken the frosting. Beat on medium speed until the frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes.

Frost and put together layers of cake, sprinkle with colored sprinkles if desired.

Makes one 3-layer 9-inch cake.

-Post written by Patricia 

Chewy S'mores Bars Recipe

I don't know anyone who doesn't love the gooey, yummy chocolaty and marshmallow taste of s'mores. They have always been a delicious treat that we make when my family and I go camping every year at Lake Cushman in Washington State.

I'm not really a big camper, I love the comforts of home for sure, but it's a lot of fun to get together with my kids and grandkids for a few days at the lake. I have a lot of great memories from these times, and I hope it's times that my family will always remember with warmth and happiness.

As much as I love s'mores, I sure don't want to wait just once a year to eat them. So when I found this recipe, I was eager to give it a try. I'm so glad I did because they are so delicious!!

Loaded with chocolate chips and marshmallows, they are all the yumminess of regular s'mores but you can have them whenever you want, and not just around the campfire. My family loved them, and this is a recipe that's a keeper for sure.

Recipes for Chewy S'mores Bars

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 cup finally crushed graham crackers
2 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan. Lightly grease foil with baking spray.
In a large bowl, beat butter with a mixer on medium for 30 seconds. Beat in brown sugar until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in flour. Stir in oats and graham cracker crumbs.
Reserve 1 cup of the oat mixture. Spread the remaining oat mixture into prepared pan. Bake 15 minutes. Take out of oven and sprinkle warm crust with marshmallows. Top with chocolate chips. Dot with the remaining oat mixture. Bake 20 minutes more or until top is lightly browned. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Use foil to lift uncut bars out of pan. But into bars.

Makes 12 large bars.

Enjoy!!

Pear Upside-Down Cake Recipe

Yesterday when I was in the grocery store, I couldn't help noticing all the gorgeous looking fruit available. Everything just looked so ripe and luscious, especially the pears.

Since I love desserts made with fruit, like my Apple Cake, and my Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, I decided to make this Pear Upside-Down Cake with the pears I had bought.

It turned out delicious, and my family had a great dessert on a busy weeknight, which they really appreciated. I didn't have a lot of time to make these kinds of cakes when my five kids were growing up. So much of motherhood is just getting through the day with everyone clean and fed.

So it's nice to be able to spend the time making a cake like this now. It's not really that food is love, or maybe it is, but taking the time to make something for the people you love.

 

Of course everything tastes better with a scoop of ice cream on it, right? This cake is well worth the effort, and holds together really well, perfect for taking it to a friend's house to share it, or even on a picnic.

Just make sure your pears are nice and ripe, and try to use Bosc or Anjou variety. And when you flip it over onto the cake plate when it's done, I let it rest for a couple of minutes like that so the cake comes out in one piece.

Recipe for Pear Upside-Down Cake

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 firm but ripe pears (like Bosc or Anjou) peeled, cored, and sliced
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 9-or-10 inch round, metal cake pan, over medium heat, melt 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter with the brown sugar. Stir until butter melts and mixture is slightly caramelized, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Arrange pears slices, slightly overlapping, in a neat circular pattern on top of the caramel.

In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat remaining 1/2 cup butter with flour, baking powder, salt, granulated sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla for 1 minute on low speed. Increase speed to high and beat 3 minutes longer. Pour batter over pears in the pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center. Run a thin spatula around the edges of the cake and then invert onto a heat-proof cake plate. Let rest for 2 minutes and then remove pan.

Serve cake warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream if desired.
Serves 6-8.

Spicy Beef and Potato Soup

September has always been the start of the new year for me. Going back to school is a very big deal, I think. It was for me when I was a child, it was for my own children, and now it is the same for my grandchildren.

I'm so happy to tell you that my grandson Jayden, who started second grade on Wednesday, loves his teacher and new classroom. I know I'm not responsible for him the way his parents are, but believe me when I say I was pretty anxious to know how that first day went.

September is also the time I start thinking about cooler weather, and the hearty soups and stews that my family enjoys. I love making soup in my big pot, and there are so many easy soups that can be made with very simple ingredients.

This Spicy Beef and Potato Soup is made with ground beef, potatoes, and corn, items that many of us already have on hand. This recipe makes a nice big pot of soup, with a delicious tomato flavor, and even the kids will love it.

Recipe for Spicy Beef and Potato Soup

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
4 cups peeled and cubed potatoes
1 small onion, chopped
1-1/2 cups frozen corn
4 cans (8 ounce each) tomato sauce
2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons black pepper
1 tablespoon hot sauce

Directions:

In a large heavy bottomed pot or Dutch oven, over medium heat, cook beef until browned, drain off fat.
Add potatoes, onion, corn, and tomato sauce. Stir in 4 cups water, salt, pepper, and hot sauce.
Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, 1 hour or until potatoes are tender and soup has thickened.

Makes 6 generous servings.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

There are some desserts that make me nostalgic for my childhood. Like most women in her generation, my mother didn't work outside the home.

I was lucky enough to have good home cooked meals every night, two parents that, though they weren't perfect, made sure our home was secure, and a place I never had to worry about losing. They both worked hard, and of course, I took it all for granted as most kids do.

Both my parents have passed on, and the older I get, the more I wish I could have recognized all they did for me, and said thank you.

Family life is complicated. We all know that, and it's hard sometimes to get the words out that we want to say. Or we say the words that we wish we could take back, and sometimes they can alter the course of our lives.

So today I made my mother's Pineapple Upside Down Cake. Or at least a version of it, because I don't have her original recipe.

But this recipe is pretty fabulous, and I think she would have approved. Whenever I make this, I think of her in the kitchen, in her apron, and I'm so glad she was my Mom.

Recipe for Pineapple Upside Down Cake


Ingredients:

 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
grated rind from 1 lemon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
1/2 cup dark or light brown sugar
1 20-ounce can pineapple slices
1 small jar Maraschino cherries

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the oil and milk to the bowl and beat with an electric mixer for 1 minute. Add the vanilla, egg, lemon rind, and lemon juice, mixing just until well combined.

In a 9-10 inch round cake pan, on the stove, melt the butter over low heat. Remove from the heat and sprinkle the brown sugar around the pan. Arrange the pineapple slices and cherries on top.
Pour the batter evenly over the top, and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove cake from the oven and cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn cake out onto a circular platter.

 Serves 6.

Cousin Love

Moments in the Mornings with Coffee-mate Pumpkin Spice Coffee #loveyourcup #shop

The way to know that the Fall is here in California is not the weather or fashion trends it is the arrival of Pumpkin Spice flavored items in the store. Pumpkin Spice Coffee-mate coffee creamer is one of the first items I buy as soon as I see it in the store. There is no better way to start the day in the Fall than with a cup of coffee flavored with Pumpkin Spice.

Missing My Pup

We were at the mall looking around at clothing for the Fall and Summer clearance when my son spotted this display of Boo Dogs. He told me "Mom I miss my puppy Kosha". It made me so sad that he misses our dog. She was not a puppy but to him she was. The two of them were the sweetest pair of boy and dog. As soon as we get a home of our own the first thing I am getting him is a black lab puppy. I can buy him a million dog stuffed animals, and I do lol, but nothing is like having a real dog. I miss that sweet pup too.

We were updated by the people who opened their hearts and homes to our dog and she has found a permanent home with a woman who loves her. They said the woman was feeling lonely and not much made her want to go out and live life but having a dog as sweet as she is made this woman feel loved and a purpose. When I read the email update I was at work and tears started streaming down my face. I am happy someone loves Kosha as much as we did and she is living a good life.

The first weekend of the summer...

Fresh Lemon Chiffon Cake

The beginning of summer in our family means the summer birthdays are upon us! Patricia, Laura and I all celebrate our birthday's during these summer months.

We are starting the first weekend of the summer with our mom Patricia's birthday. It will be small, intimate and lovely gathering with food and family.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend too!

Weekend In Pictures - Annual Father's Day Hike

View of our 2nd Annual Father's Day walk!

My husband talking to Liam about something while carrying Ashley in the pack, what a man!!

 I was there too, and I even carried Ashley around for a bit to lighten his load :)

This kid!! So thankful for his wonderful Dad.

Father's Day was a great day around here. We started a family hike on a trail by our house last year and it has officially become an annual Father's Day event. I love it when traditions come about in such a natural way. My husband is an amazing father and my children and I are so very lucky to have him. He is works so hard for our family and always has time for a little fun, he is simply the best!

Happy Friday!

 A few things I LOVE about this picture from our outing this morning:

1. Ashley's face!! She is so happy her brother is "sort of" holding her hand, she sure does love him.

2. Liam's face and body language. He is willing to help her walk but could really take or leave it!

3. Seeing my little ones together and happy, seriously aren't these the moments we live for?

Have a great weekend filled with sunshine (I hope) and lots of laughter!

~ Sam

Memorial Weekend Ideas: Family Fun at the Sacramento County Fair

Wow what a day!!! My family and I went to the opening day of the Sacramento County Fair held at Cal Expo. We had so much fun. We rode the rides, we had all sorts of fair food, saw some really fun shows, danced to cowboy music, my son went on a pony ride and he even was in a show as a kid cowboy. We had a day filled with fun and made many great memories.

This show was fun! This husband and wife team had a great act that finished with juggling fire while riding unicycles. 

My son rode every kid kid at least 10 times lol He kept saying Wow Cool this is Awesome! 

The kids tractor area had little tractors to ride, a mock cow to milk wooden cows to rope and even a kid tractor pull contest.

We always have to get Tri-Tip at a fair! We had a big dinner at the Big Bear BBQ stand. So good! 

We met the nicest couple while riding the FREE Train ride! She was a sweet lady who told us about the cool stuff at the fair, her family and gave high fives to people as we rode around on the train. The Western Express train was so fun my son did not want to get off. They were nice enough to let us ride for a while so we could rest our legs, get some shade from the warm day and my son could drink his Slurpee. Thanks to Sleep Train and the Sacramento County fair for inviting the Western Express to come to the fair and give out free train rides.

This was so funny! A Cowboy Clown on stilts lifted my little guy up.

One of my husbands favorite parts of the fair! The gardening and the animals. We were able to pet the cute little farm animals, learn facts about them and my son was even able to sit on a cow. The junior handlers for the livestock were such great kids. They were nice to us and helped my son learn more about the animals they were showing.

This goat had the cutest big floppy ears!

My son wanted to see the Wild West show with Cowboys and Horses we had walked pass but missed the first showing of so I set my phone to remind me of when the next show started. Oh my am I glad I did that. This was the cutest show ever! It is even called the Cutest Show on Earth! The show has a story line that the host carries out but includes kids from the audience. Such a cool idea! My son was the coolest little rootin tootin cowboy of the show. He got on stage and was the star of the show for about 10 minutes. She asked him questions, showed him how to use his "five" shooters and he was able to be a cowboy on stage. He said some silly things, was a little confused but it made it even cuter. My husband and I were giggling so much and he had the biggest smile on his face. I definitely recommend attending the Cutest Show on Earth if you bring your kids to the fair.

Riding the Merry Go Round for the 20th time lol

We had a ton of fun! We did so many things there is not enough room in my post to include all the great pictures. I also recommend the ride wristband. It was a big savings to be able to ride any of the rides we wanted and not have to worry about how many tickets we had left. My son rode his first big roller coaster this year with his Dad. He had a look of oh my on his face but was yelling this is so cool and told me he wanted to do it again as soon as he got off. There is also an indoor play area that is air conditioned if you need a cool down filled with interactive areas like giant bubbles, building blocks, giant chess and checker board and more.

We had a wonderful time filled with memories that we will have forever. Its an affordable fair since kids 12 and under are free and everyone else is only $5 with $10 parking.

If you are looking for something FUN to do this Memorial Day Weekend I suggest the Sacramento County Fair.


*This is not a paid post. We were guest of the Sacramento County Fair.