This was just pointed out to me, and its kinda cool...

My little blog post is listed as #3 on Google when you search the real life of Norman Bates. 

Hilarious stuff from the web......

Bwahahaha.....

LOL! You can find the funniest things on Pinterest.........

Making this Sunday......

I love French Toast (but not the kind made with eggs), bananas, and oatmeal so when I found this at Running With Spoons, I can'twait to give it a try. 

• 1/2 medium-sized ripe banana, mashed (50 g or 1/4 cup)
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) unsweetened almond milk
• 1 Tbsp (16 g) nut butter (optional, but recommended)
• 1 tsp (5 ml) maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 slice of hearty bread, cubed
• 1/4 cup (20 g) quick oats
• 
  

1. Preheat oven to 375F (190C) and lightly grease an individually-sized oven-safe dish. Set aside.
2. Combine banana, almond milk, nut butter, maple syrup, cinnamon, and vanilla extract in a large shallow bowl, mixing until fully combined. Pour bread cubes into the mixture and use a fork to lightly press down so that they absorb most of the liquid. Add oats and gently stir until everything is evenly incorporated. If the mix seems too dry, add a splash of extra milk.
3. Transfer mixture to your prepared dish, adding a few slices of banana on top if desired. Bake for 20 minutes, until the bake has set and the top has turned golden brown.  

Hurry up Sunday!

You might be a deadbeat dad........

More new Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday goodies to try. Out with the old, in with the new......

We have two more Thanksgiving dinners to go, lucky us!  We had lunch with my family today, tomorrow we have our own dinner, and Saturday dinner with more of my family.  The two Hollywood boys from the Hartley side of the family were discussed a little bit today, we talked to one on the phone, and we got an offer to come out to stay with him in California for free and as long as we like.  In case you are unclear, Jeff and Justin Hartley.  Pretty cool if I say so myself.  Anyhoo, I digress.

So I am revamping the old menu and adding some new dishes to see what happens.

The green bean casserole was successfully replaced by green beans almondine, and I am going to attempt these adorable stuffing muffins with mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy to replace plain old dry stuffing and mashed potatoes swimming in full fat butter with some kind of gravy that has internal organs of a once alive chicken chopped up and thrown in (gag).

Now lets replace a dessert.

Out with the old done-to-death-can't-eat-anymore-pumpkin bread and replacing it with; drum roll....... chocolate banana bread.
love banana chocolate chip bread but I am thinking I am going to love this equally as much.

I found this fabulous recipe at Two Peas and Their Pod blog.
Here is whatcha need:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 3 large brown bananas  (1 1/2 cups mashed)
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1/4 cup canola, vegetable oil, or melted coconut oil
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg (I am going to use an 
• egg replacer b/c eggs are *****)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided
• 
  
• Here is whatcha do:

Heat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork. Add the melted butter and oil and stir until combined. Stir in the brown sugar, egg replacer and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth.

Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, don’t overmix. Stir in 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chips over the top of the bread. 

Bake for 50-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out mostly clean, you might have some melted chocolate chips on the toothpick and that is fine. You just don’t want a lot of gooey batter. Check at 50 minutes, just to be safe. Oven times vary.
Remove the pan from the oven and set on a wire cooling rack. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the bread and carefully remove from the pan. Let the bread cool on the wire cooling rack until slightly warm. Cut into slices and serve.

I will be back with an update as soon as we give these a try.  It is fun starting new traditions and trying to do things differently.  Same=boring and in this family, we do not have time for same or boring.  

Please check out my Vegan/Vegetarian Thanksgiving and Christmas board on Pinterest.  Lots of healthy choices, lots of variety. 

And Please check back for an update on the food switches to see how they worked.  So far, so good!

Happy Thanksgiving 

This is going to be good on Sunday morning......

Images belongs to Happy Healthy Mama

Thank to Pinterest, I found this lovely over at Happy Healthy Mama.  I will change up just a few of the ingredients to suit my vegan lifestyle, just minor tweaks.  Cannot wait to have a big bowl of this with a cup of coffee.

BAKED BANANA PEANUT BUTTER OATMEAL

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats (probably will use organic)
• 
  
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 
  
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 
  
• 1 cup milk (I think either almond or coconut would work well in this recipe)
• 
  
• 1 large egg (substituting with VeganEgg)
• 
  

  

  You can find this here
  at Thrive Market

• 2 medium bananas, one mashed well with a fork and one sliced

• 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
• 
  
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 
  
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Grease a medium sized casserole dish (I used a 2 qt. oval shaped dish) and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add the milk, egg, 1 mashed banana, peanut butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Mix well.
3. Pour the mixture into the greased dish. If you want to add the sliced banana before baking, it browns some but tastes delicious. Alternatively, add the sliced banana to the top after baking.
4. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until your desired consistency is reached. I cook mine the entire 30 minutes and it is almost bar-like. If you want a creamier, less-held-together texture, reduce the baking time.

I will report back the results but I have no doubt we will be hiding from the neighbors while we are eating it all up!  Sorry neighbors.

~

Run.........

Negan bats on steroids......

A while back, I posted these cute Negan bats my girls made for a Walking Dead Premiere party we were having, and they were such a hit, we decided to take another whack at them, only amplified for the season finale.  They are a little time-consuming to make but so much fun to eat.  You can find the first post here along with Carol's cookies.

The original Negan bats.

Bats on steroids.

Semi-sweet chocolate chips, organic coconut oil, and pretzel rods.
I honestly just throw in various amounts.

Melt the chocolate.  You don't have to be fancy, just throw it
in the microwave until it is melted but smooth.

Just dip the pretzel rods in the chocolate.  This glass measuring
cup made dipping the pretzel rods easy.  Put them in the
freezer for about 5 mins.

Frosting/gel.  Obviously red for the blood.  You can use just
white for the barbed-wire or tint it with black to give it
more of a barbed wire look.

Voila!  Negan bats.

I guess we went a little crazy with the bloody look.

A close up.  I wish I took better pics but I think you can get the idea!

Enjoy!

I love this English greenhouse.....

Homemade cleaners, tips, and tricks no one told you about.............

While the girls had friends over to spend the night, I replenished our cleaning supplies.  I gave up harsh chemicals years ago and opted for all natural, homemade cleaners instead.  The ingredients cost next to nothing to make these cleaners, they are easy to make, they work, and they are environmentally friendly.










First up, citrus cleaner.  This smells amazing!  A neighbor brought us back hand-picked tangerines from California so we saved the peels while we worked our way through them all.  It did not take long, they were so delicious.

Basically, whenever you peel oranges, lemons, tangerines, or whatever, just save the peels in a baggie and put them in the freezer until you have enough to fill a jar.

Put the peels in a jar and cover them with apple cider vinegar, put the top on tight, and place the jar in a dark place for about ten days.  It helps to give the jar a shake every day but not imperative.

After ten days, strain the liquid from the peels and throw the peels away.  I use a 2:1 dilution with water but 1:1 dilution is also effective.  I just like a little more because we have pets, and we cook a lot.  This cleaner is great for cleaning stove tops and kitchen counters.

My favorite all natural ingredients, and I usually always have on hand.

~Dr. Bronner's castile soap.  I am totally addicted to this!  I love this way too much!  You can use this for anything and everything.  Here are some of the amazing things you can do with this soap.  It is a little expensive but it lasts forever.  I have tried most of the scents, citrus is my favorite, however, I do love the Tea Tree scent too.

~Seventh Generation dish/hand soap.

~Apple cider vinegar and white vinegar.

*This reminds me of my grandmother.  She always smelled like vinegar and Rose Milk lotion.  I did not know you could still buy Rose Milk lotion. She was such an awesome person. Good grandparents are so important.  Look at me going off on another tangent.  Back to the topic.

 *It is insane how many things you can do with vinegar, the list is endless, literally.

*Vinegar is the French word for sour wine.

*Vinegar has been proven to kill bacteria.  Did you know that back in the day Hippocrates used vinegar to cleanse wounds, that was over 2000 years ago.  He was the father of modern medicine in case you did not know.

*Vinegar also lowers blood sugar levels and fights diabetes.  Two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar at bedtime has been shown to reduce fasting blood sugars by 4%.  It does not win any taste tests but hey the benefits are worth it.

*How about lowering your cholesterol with vinegar.  You got it!

*Vinegar is also an effective heartburn remedy.  I know this for sure.


*Vinegar is used for household cleaners, hair condition, fabric softener, migraine remedy, anti-fungal, allergy reliever, soothes irritated skin, helps remove toxins, and so many more things I cannot even list them all.

Check out my Pinterest board Au Natural here for more great uses of vinegar and everything else I have listed above and below.  Here are more Pinterest vinegar boards.

~Essential oils.....Love!  My favorites are Tea Tree, Jasmine, and Peppermint.  These go anywhere and everywhere.

~Baking soda.  Can use for so many things.

~Check this out.  Mule Team Borax.  Anything is possible.

~Hydrogen peroxide 3%.  Great for mouthwash, kills bacteria.

~Fels Naptha laundry soap.  Greatest soap for homemade laundry detergent.

~And my favorite store bought cleaner is by Method all purpose Cucumber.  Can't get enough of this!

So there you have it.  Making my own cleaners is a win/win.  Doing this saves me money (and as a single mother with two kids to provide for all the time) that is key. It is also better for us and the environment.  Since Pres. Trump has made it clear his stance on saving the planet, every little bit helps so we are doing our part to save the planet.

Zucchini bread made healthy..........

Find this recipe here at Foodie Fiasco.  I am going to add a few dark chocolate chips to this already delicious bread.

INGREDIENTS

• 1¾ cup white whole wheat flour OR 1¼ cup almond meal plus 6 Tablespoons coconut flour
• ½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons erythritol OR cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3 eggs OR 1 ½ Tablespoons of Ener-g egg replacer stirred with 6 Tablespoons of water until thick
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce or mashed banana
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon molasses
• 1½ cups grated zucchini
• 6 Tablespoons unsweetened almond milk for whole wheat version OR 4 Tablespoons unsweetened almond milk for almond meal/coconut flour version
• INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously grease or nonstick spray an 8x4 loaf pan and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar or erythritol, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add in the eggs or egg replacer, applesauce or mashed banana, vanilla extract, molasses, and grated zucchini and stir until all the ingredients are just incorporated. Slowly add in the almond milk, stopping when the batter is reasonably thick (see photo above for reference) and completely uniform. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake in the oven at 350°F for about 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool before cutting into slices. Devour.

About to give this a try..............

Dinner is on........

C17 is really into eating healthy these days, we all are actually.

She came across this recipe and tonight we are giving it a try.

Find this recipe and more at Gimme Delicious Food blog spot here.

I will report back with the verdict.

Avocado Sauce Pasta
For every 2 cup of uncooked pasta you will need 1 avocado and it will serve 2 people. Divide or double the recipe as needed.

Ingredients

• 2 cup uncooked dry pasta, any type
• 1 ripe avocado, halved, seeded and peeled
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup grated parmesan or romano cheese
• ¼ cup fresh basil leaves or/and cilantro or parsley
  (I used basil and cilantro and it was amazing!)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Cook your pasta according to the package. Drain well.
2. While the pasta is cooking, place the avocado, olive oil,
   parmesan cheese, garlic, cilantro, and lime juice in a blender or
   food processor and blend well. You can leave it chunky or process it
   until it's creamy.
3. Toss the pasta with the avocado sauce. Season with salt
   and pepper to taste and top with parmesan or romano cheese,
   if desired. Enjoy!

The American Civil War; North versus South, Yankees versus Rebels....

We have studied the Civil War a few times in the past and now The Mystery of History volume 4 has brought us back to it.  You can check out our other studies here, here, here, and here.

Lets review and learn a little more.

~The American Civil War began on April 12, 1861 and ended in 1865.  The war was fought between the North (union states) and the South (the Confederate states, wanted to leave the union).

~Confederate States included Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

~The Confederate States were the first to pull the trigger on the U.S. Union military at Fort Sumter, South Carolina.

Before the Battle of  Fredericksburg.

~The problems began when Abraham Lincoln was elected president and wanted to end slavery.  There were uncompromising differences between the North and the South.  North wanted to abolish slavery, the South did not.

~The majority of the war was fought in the southern states, and the destruction was massive!

Robert E. Lee

~Key battles within the Civil War:  The Battle of Gettysburg, Battle of Chickamouga, Battle of Chancerllorsville, Monitor and Meerrimack, Battle of Antietam, Battle of the Wilderness, Battle of Second Manassa, Battle of Stone's River, Battle of Shiloh, Battle of Fort Donelson, Fort Sumter, Bull Run, Vicksburg, Fredericksburg, Seven Days Battle.

~Over 370,000 people were badly injured and more than 620,000 were killed.
~Jefferson Davis was considered the president of the south while Robert E. Lee headed up the Confederate Army.

Ulysses S. Grant

~Abraham Lincoln was the president of the U.S. with Ulysses S. Grant leading the Union Army.

~The Gettysburg Address was delivered by Lincoln on November 19, 1863.  He said this Civil War was going to preserve a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.



~In January 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation declared all slave to be freed.  Subsequently, many of the freed slaved joined the Union.

~On April 9, 1865 after exhaustive battling, General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant.  This brought an end to the Civil War which was not at all civil.

**How about some obscure/lesser known facts about the Civil War.

For example, have you ever heard of a rectal acorn?  Apparently, the Confederate soldiers would place tiny, secret messages in an acorn fashioned out of brass and basically stick it up their butt until they reached their destination to pass along the message.  Hmmmm.

**It is said that Lincoln did not actually believe whites and blacks could live together so his plan was to relocate the blacks to Central America.

**Robert E. Lee traveled with a hen.  The hen laid one egg under his cot every morning.

**Ever heard of rose-colored glasses?  During the Civil War colored lenses were to treat medical disorders.  If you had syphilis, you would have yellow, if you were depressed, you would have pink, and if you went insane, you would have blue.

Actual Civil War glasses.  I actually
know a few people that
need these blue glasses.  Where
do I place the order?

**When a child died, their parents would take a photo of the child to hold on to the memories.  It is possible that if you see a child from the Civil War time period that looks like they are asleep, it is probably a picture of a deceased child.

**Lincoln's favorite song was Dixie.

**The expression Rule of Thumb has a dark meaning.  During the Civil War, a husband could beat his wife but only with an instrument no thicker than his thumb.

How about some Civil War Slang:

~Apple Lady=Hard apple cider.

~Arkansas toothpick=A knife.

~Copperhead=A Northerner with sympathies for Southerners.

~Fit to be tied=Angry.

~Flux=Diarrhea.

~Irish shanty=Outhouse.

~Sawbones=A surgeon.

~Shakes=Malaria.

~Wallpapered=Drunk.

~Worth a goober=Something that amounts to a lot.

~Yellow hammers=Troops from Alabama.

Civil War officially wrapped up.
 Ducksters.
Fact Monster.
The History Channel.
Civil War on Pinterest.
Great map.

This was so delicious!!!!!!!!!!

Me and my crew have been working our way through our many vegetarian cookbooks and Pinterest for new foods to try, especially light foods since the heat in Georgia is unrelenting.  Tonight we made this, and it was fabulous!!

This is a quinoa, feta, and veggie wrap with avocado/cilantro yogurt dressing.

Here is what is in it.  Cooked quinoa then let it cool down,
lettuce or spinach, black olives,
shredded carrots, avocado, tomatoes,
and the dressing.  You also need tortillas.

You could shred the lettuce if you prefer, we just liked the bigger pieces.

Fill it up! 

Roll it up, done!

This was seriously delicious and great for hot weather days.

Vampire Diaries funny............

Funny Ecards.......