PEANUT BETTER & CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE.

CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE:

• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
• 1 1/2 cups brewed coffee
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
• 3/4 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.  Grease, line with parchment paper and flour 2 9-inch cake pans.

In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter.  Add the coffee, cocoa powder, and vanilla and whisk until combined.  Then set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, sift together the sugar, flour, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the sour cream and the eggs.  SLOWLY add a few tablespoons of the chocolate mixture to the sour cream and eggs.  Whisk to combine.  In a slow stream, whisk in the remaining chocolate mixture until combined completely.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in wet.  Using a whisk, stir until no more lumps remain.

Divide the batter evenly into 2 prepared pans.  Each pan should get 3 cups of batter.

I like to listen to a good podcast while I cook or bake.

Bake 26-28 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing from the pans to cool on a wire rack.

FROSTING RECIPE:

• 1/2 cup room temperature butter
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 3-6 Tbsp milk (i needed to add more until it was the consistency I wanted)

Cream together the butter and peanut butter.  Then add in powdered sugar slowly and add mild a little at a time until frosting is the consistency that you prefer.

I added chopped Reese's Mini Peanut Butter Cups to the top.  I like the minis because they come already unwrapped!

Before you chop the minis, place the bag of Reese's in the freezer.  Trust me, this is the best way to accomplish this without them getting all mushy.  When they're good and frozen, throw a few in a zip lock bag and crush with either a hammer or a rolling pin

Now you're ready to frost the cake.  I think you probably know how to do this without explanation.

  

Once cake is frosted, add your desired amount of crushed Reese's to the top of the cake.

I'm pretty sure this recipe will be a winner in your book.

 

PROJECT LIFE 2015 | WEEK OF 4/27-5/3.

My youngest daughter turned 10 on May 1st.  Wow!!  Insert happy tears of joy here.  I wanted to dedicate this week to her and design my pages according to her celebration.  Turning 10 is a big milestone for a parent.  Or at least, I feel it is.  She has mild autism coupled with A.D.H.D.  Every day is a gift.  Every day is a challenge.  Every day has its up and downs.  I am so very blessed to be able to call this girl my daughter.

I had 10 random things I wanted to remember about my daughter.  I wrote this out on the 3x4 cards.

 click on images to view larger.

This is the week of:  4/27-5/3.

Here's a look at the left side:  That "10" is from some random number stickers I had on hand.  I used some craft glue to adhere it to the 4x6 card.    

I added text to labels I had on hand and stapled them directly onto the photo.  This is a great way to add more text when you run out of room.

Here's a look at the right side.

Again, more text added to labels and stapled onto the photo.

So here's what I really think is the cool part.  I wanted to save the dinner receipt from the restaurant where she wanted to have her birthday dinner.  I cut out a white piece of card stock to 5x7, placed the receipt on top and used washi tape to adhere it in place.  I then placed it in a 5x7 sheet protector.  Clever huh?

On the back side, I printed another photo to 5x7 and slipped it into place on the reverse side.

She got a birthday card from my mom and dad.  I wanted to save it, so I punched two holes in the appropriate place and added it to the album.  Another clever idea huh?

I had a lot of white space on this photo, so I added text and then adhered some puffy number stickers to give it some dimension.  I have lots of little tricks I've been using over the years as I document my family.  I've started Project Life in March of 2011 and I haven't looked back.  I love, love, love these albums.

If you have any questions, I'll do my best to give you an answer.

Thanks for stopping by.

Tools Used:  Studio Calico Printable Journal Cards.  Seafoam edition (no longer available).  Midnight Edition Core Kit.  Sunshine Edition Core Kit.  Fiskars Corner Rounder Punch.  Badge Buttons found here.

Project Life is a memory-keeping system created by Becky Higgins.   I use photos, text and stuff to document our life weekly. 

PROJECT LIFE 2015 | WEEK OF 4/20-4/26.

This has got to be by far a craft project I look forward to working on every week.  It's definitely a way for me to decompress.  I have learned that in order to be a better mother, I need this time.  I need to just put aside the laundry that needs to be done.  The dishes in the sink that need washing.  The floors that need mopped. 

  

 This is the week of:  4/20-4/26.

Here's a look at the complete spread.

Here's a closer look at the left side of the album.

This week, I focused on one day.  That was April 22nd.  This was the day we started planting in our garden.  So all these photos were taken on 4/22 and I loved how it turned out.  I love the simplicity.  7 photos with journaling on 3/4 cards tucked into pockets.

 Here's a closer look at the right side of the album.

Tools Used:  Studio Calico Printable Journal Cards.  Seafoam edition (no longer available).  Midnight Edition Core Kit.  Sunshine Edition Core Kit.  Fiskars Corner Rounder Punch.

Project Life is a memory-keeping system created by Becky Higgins.   I use photos, text and stuff to document our life weekly. 

I LOVE THIS.

"The way I see it,
Isn't necessarily
The way you see it."
- Unknown

AROUND HERE.

A temporary green house is in the works.

Little sprouts are making there appearance.

Birthday cakes were made.

A much needed haircut was accomplished.

A girl with an every growing appetite.  She cleaned that plate.

Chips & salsa & coloring to keep someone occupied while waiting for dinner.

A special birthday treat was served.  She still had room in that belly to finish this.

Fun murals to be photographed with a pretty girl and her favorite stuffed animal (she takes him everywhere) as my model.

Presents to be wrapped.

And wishes to be made by a 10 year old girl.

AN INTERVIEW WITH A GIRL WHO TURNS "10" TODAY.

And just like that, she turned 10!

Every year around their birthday, I like to give my girl's an interview.  It's always fun to look back each year and see how their answers have changed.  These are the 16 random questions I ask them:  

     

1.  My favorite food:  Ice Cream

2.  The best show on television:  Saturday Night Live & The Walking Dead.

3.  The coolest person on Earth:  Valen Henderson.

4.  My favorite color is:  Purple.

5.  When I grow up, I want to become a:  Musician.

6.  My current favorite band is:  Charli XCX.

7.  My favorite subject in school:  Recess.

8.  The thing I do most awesomely is:  Play video games.

9.  If I could go anywhere in the world, I would go to:  China.

10.  My best friend is:  Taylor Hamers.

11.  My least favorite food is:  Lasagne.

12.  The thing my parents are to strict about is:  Doing my homework.

13.  The last book I read was:  Felicity the Friday Fairy.

14.  Three words that best describe me are:  1. Beautiful  2. Peaceful  3. Passionate

15.  The snack I could live on is:  Gluten free chocolate chip cookies.

16.  If I had one wish, it would be for:  One Million Gazillion Dollars.

Happy Birthday my sweet girl.

PROJECT LIFE 2015 | WEEK OF 4/13-4/19.

 Still loving this weekly documentation.  Keeping it super simple is what's most important in getting these pages completed.  I spend approximately 2 hours a week on this project.  That includes printing my photos from home, rounding the corners with a Fiskars Corner Squeeze Punch.  

This is the week of:  4/13-4/19.

Remember, I keep my album super simple.  Just photos and words.  Not a lot of extra embellishments because I love a clean look and it cuts out a lot of time I don't have.  I'd rather spend that extra time blogging my process and sharing my layouts so hopefully I can inspire others to do this simple form of weekly documentation.

 Left side of the album.

Right side of the album.

My daughter participates in track at her high school.  I'm blessed that her coach takes photos and shares them on the internet when I can't be there.  Her teams scores are posted on a website, where I can cut and paste them into Photoshop and then print them to 4x6 and slip it into a pocket.

 I'm a huge fan of adding journaling directly on top of the photo when I feel it's necessary.

 Tools used:  Studio Calico printable journal cards.  Badge buttons found here. 

Project Life is a memory-keeping system created by Becky Higgins.   I use photos, text and stuff to document our life weekly.