Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites

Or as I like to call them...a little piece of heaven:) These little guys are so yummy! They taste like a crunchy Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. They were so fun to make! Noah did most of the work. He rolled out the peanut butter balls, sandwiched them together and ate all my chocolate. It worked out well. I keep mine in the freezer so the chocolate doesn't melt. They taste delish that way. I got the recipe off of Stephanies Kitchen. Hope you enjoy!

Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites

makes about 45 sandwiches

1 cup of peanut butter (creamy works best)
2 Tbsp softened butter or margarine
1/2 cup powdered sugar (you may need more)
3/4 cup brown sugar (you may need more)
Pretzels (the waffle shaped ones)
1 bag good quality chocolate (I like milk)

Using a mixer, combine peanut butter and softened butter and beat until smooth. Add the sugars and stir to combine. At this point if the filling will roll easily into balls without sticking to your hands you’re ready to go. If not, add more sugar ( a little bit of each) until you reach a consistency that is easy to roll. Use a teaspoon measure to scoop the filling. Roll each portion into a small ball and set on a cookie sheet. I like to roll all the balls and then sandwich them between two whole pretzels. When all the balls are rolled and successfully sandwiched, stick the whole tray in the freezer for about half an hour.

Pour the chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl and heat at 30-second intervals, stirring occasionally until completely melted. Remove the pretzel sandwiches from the freezer and quickly dip each half-way into the melted chocolate. When all are dipped, return the tray to the freezer to set up completely. Store the sandwiches in the refrigerator until serving time.

Suck-Up Gift

For the first day of school Caden gave his teacher this cute little gift. On meet the teacher night we saw that her room was decked out in Dr. Seuss things, so we went with that. We did hand sanitizer with star rub ons and I glued/modge podged the Dr. Seuss on there.
This cute little thing is a canned good filled with red and blue M&M's ...there is a great tutorial on Not So Idle Hands to see how they are made. These were so much fun to do!!

1st Grade...

I can't believe my baby is in first grade!! He looks so grown up in this picture! Today was a big day for him...he started a FULL DAY of school! Last year he had 1/2 day Kindergarten from 8-11. Now he's 8-3. It's amazing what those extra 4 hours do!
This is a close up...notice the bottom tooth missing;) This is his first tooth that he has lost with out the help of Noah (the top tooth is missing b/c Noah pushed Caden and broke his tooth and had to get it pulled). The other bottom one is loose as well...what a cute smile that will be! That happened on Friday...right before school started.
Here he is at his desk...let the learning begin!!

Pizza Pretzels

These were so yummy! I found them on the Pillsbury website and thought they would be something fun for the boys. Sorry...this is the only picture I took. It is filled with pepperoni and ooey, gooey cheese. Dip it it Ranch or Pizza Sauce. Everyone loved it!

Pizza Pretzels

1 TBS Olive Oil

1 TBS cornmeal

1 TBS flour

1 can refrigerated classic pizza crust

28 slices pepperoni

8 pieces (1 oz. each) mozzarella string cheese

4 tsp. grated Parmesan cheese

1 c. pizza sauce, heated

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Brush large cookie sheet with 1/2 TBS of the oil. Sprinkle cookie sheet with cornmeal

Sprinkle flour over work surface. On floured surface, unroll pizza crust dough; starting at center, press dough into 16x10 inch rectangle. With pizza cutter, cut dough lengthwise into 4 (2 1/2 " wide) strips.

Evenly place 7 pepperoni slices on each dough strip, leaving 1/2 inch on each end uncovered. cut each sring cheese in half lengthwise. Place 4 cheese halves on pepperoni on each dough strip, overlapping ends to fit.

Bring up sides of each dough strip over pepperoni and cheese, and tightly pinch together, stretching dough as necessary to fully enclose cheese and pepperoni; pinch ends to seal. Lightly roll and shape into 16" logs. To make pretzel shape, form each log into U-shape, then cross the ends and fold dough over so ends rest on bottom of U-shape. Place pretzels on cookie sheet. Brush pretzels with remaining 1/2 TBS oil; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake 13-17 minutes or until pretzels are golden brown. Serve warm with pizza sauce for dipping.

NASA

We went to Houston the first week in August and on Sat. the 8th my family went to NASA. We had a blast! I didn't get to take too many pic's because I had to take Noah potty and then Connor was hungry...go figure. I missed most things. Anyway. It was so much fun and now the boys are obsessed with space.

This is what you see when you first walk in...a childs dream! They played on this for a long time. Thankfully they have these TV's set up so you can see where your child is, otherwise, you would never find them!!
NASA had some exhibits like this all over...
Caden's little head is poking through...
HOUSTON!! We have a problem...

Brent and Noah just love on each other! They are too cute! They are in front of what a cockpit looks like in the space shuttle.

Coliky Connor

Connor is now 7 weeks old and for the last few weeks he has been coliky. Not so much fun around our house from 7pm-10:30pm. He is the first of the boys to have it. I feel so bad and hate not being able to help him!

Ben has found a comfortable position for the little guy...bouncing him up and down will lead to this...
ahhh....sweet bliss:)

Boring Fudge...

Noah has been begging me to make some fudge (where that came from, I have no idea...). So I finally gave in (I haven't been wanting to because I knew I would eat it all:). We went to the store and got all the ingredients plus some extra yumminess to add to it. We made the fudge, and it was amazing, it had carmelly goodness throughout the fudge. However, Noah was not happy with it. He told me that the fudge looked boring. I needed to make it better. WHAT??? I have created a monster! I guess he likes his things in fun packages like his momma;)

So, our boring fudge went from this...
To this...nothing exciting, just a fudge pop. I guess anything is better on a stick. Noah was happy and now I can put the recipe on my blog...I always forget what I need to buy for this stuff!

Fantasy Fudge

3 cups sugar

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine

1 small can (5 oz.) evaporated milk (about 2/3 cup) (Do not use sweetened condensed milk.)

1-1/2 pkg. (12 squares) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, chopped

1 jar (7 oz.) JET-PUFFED Marshmallow Creme

1 cup chopped PLANTERS Walnuts

1 tsp. vanilla

Caramel bits (the cute little ball caramel bits)

LINE 9-inch square pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan; set aside. Place sugar, butter and evaporated milk in large heavy saucepan. Bring to full rolling boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 4 min. or until candy thermometer reaches 234°F, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Remove from heat.

ADD chocolate and marshmallow creme; stir until completely melted. Add a handful of caramel bits, stir. Add walnuts, another handful of caramel bits, and vanilla; mix well.

POUR immediately into prepared pan; spread to form even layer in pan. Let stand at room temperature 4 hours or until completely cooled; cut into 1-inch squares. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.

Birthday Weekend...Take 3

So we celebrated Noah's birthday with my family now...not only Noah's, but Taylors and Mimi's (my mom) last weekend. So...Happy Birthday! I sure hope Noah doesn't think he gets 3 birthdays every year! Above is Taylor and Connor.
Aunt Katie made the boys some super cute capes as a "big brother" gift. How darling are they? It is Taylor, Caden, Noah and Brent. Super Heros to the rescue!! Don't you love Brent's pose??
The backs of the capes...Thank you Katie! The boys LOVE the capes!
Aunt Whitney with Connor.
Birthday kids blowing out the HUGE cake!
I love this picture...Taylor has these boys wrapped around her finger! She is the Queen and the boys are bowing down to her...love that!!

Hawaiian Meal...

Alright...This is probably my most favorite meal...EVER! All the recipes came from my friend Sara several years ago when we were in a Lunch group together. I have made it ever since. The Pani Popo (the bread) came from my sis-in-law, Wendy. AMAZING meal. Try it all! One thing not posted which is a MUST HAVE with this meal is the Grilled Pineapple...you can't stop eating it! Hope you enjoy the recipes!

Pani Popo (Hawaiian Coconut Bread)

(This is always the favorite...)

1 (12 oz.) pkg. frozen dinner rolls, thawed (if you can't find Rhodes Rolls, you can use frozen bread and cut it up)

1 (10 oz.) can coconut milk

3 TBS sweetened condensed milk

3/4 c. white sugar, or to taste

Coat a 9x13 " baking dish with cooking spray. Coat your hands with cooking spray or shortening, and roll the dough balls in your hands so they have a light coating. Place in the prepared dish. Set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled, up to 2 hours. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, stir together the coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk and sugar. Pour this mixture over the top of the rolls as evenly as you can. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes before separating and serving.

(This makes lots of sauce...use your judgement on how much you want to use...)

Orange Almond Green Salad

Salad:

1/2 head Romaine lettuce

1/2 head iceberg lettuce

1 (15 oz.) can mandarin oranges, drained

2 celery sticks, chopped

3 green onions, finely chopped

1/2 c. slivered sugar* almonds

*to sugar almonds mix 2 TBS sugar plus a bit of butter with almonds in a frying pan then lay on aluminum foil until cooled.

Dressing:

1/4 c. oil

2 TBS vinegar

2 TBS sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

dash of pepper

Mix the salad and toss with dressing just before serving

Coconut Rice

3 c. long-grain rice

5 1/2 c. coconut juice**

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

Wash the rice and drain. Place in a sauce pan, add coconut juice, salt and sugar. Mix, cover and bring to a boil. Let it boil for 3-5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, until done.

** For a richer flavor you can use coconut milk or a mixture of coconut milk and water.

Grilled Pineapple

1 fresh pineapple; peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 " slices (long ways, not circles)

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 TBS lime juice

1 TBS lemon juice (or use all lime or all lemon)

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Combine brown sugar, juices and cinnamon in a small bowl until smooth. Spread this mixture on each side of each pineapple slice. (or put in tupperware and coat it by turning it around). Grill pineapple 4-5 " from medium coals for 5-10 minutes, turning once, until sugar mixture melts an dpineapple is heated. OR grill pinapple for 2-5 minutes on a George Foremna two sided grill until sugar mixture melts and pineapple is heated and tender.

Chicken or Steak Kabobs

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 pineapple

1 pepper (and any other veggies you like: squash, red onion, mushrooms, etc)

1 c. teriyaki sauce or Gourmet Sauce or Soy Sauce

2 TB brown sugar

1/4 c. pinapple juice

Mix sauce, brown sugar, and pineapple juice together. Cut chicken breasts into chunks and add to marinade for 3 hours. Cut pineapples and vegetables into chunks and skewer, alternating with chicken. Grill until chicken is cooked through.

Fun at Grandma and Grandpas!!

My in-laws were so sweet and took the boys for the week! I"m so spoiled:) Here are some darling pics they took of their horseback riding trip. The boys look forward to going everytime they visit!

Caden rode with Uncle Cameron...

Noah rode with Grandpa...

Connor Rocks!!

My little boy must love me...ALOT! Here is how the last 4 nights have been...in regards to sleeping at night:

Night 1: 6 hours straight

Night 2: 7 hours straight

Night 3: 8 hours straight

Night 4: 8 hours straight...and he is still sleeping and it is 10 am!!

Thanks Connor! I will never forget this! And when your old enough to read this...I'm sure you won't let me:)

Noah's B-day Party...Take 2

There are so many B-day's in July/Aug. in the Thatcher Family that we had a group Birthday! Molly, Noah, Grandma, Logan and Chris. So, here is Noah with his cake. We went to the store together and he picked out what cake he wanted. He picked out a Basketball cake. Now...I didn't have time to do the cute stars that I usually do for a cake, he got quick squiggles...don't judge me!! I was lucky to get it this far!
The boys and Logan
Happy Birthday Molly!!! She is now 5! Crazy how time flies by sooo quickly!
Jon and my little cutie pie...notice his cute onesie I made him:)
Birthday boy and Connor.

Stay tuned for B-day Party...Take 3. We are going to Houston this weekend to celebrate all the July/Aug. birthdays! Should be fun!!

Lemon Cream Pasta with Chicken

I found this recipe on allrecipe and had to try it! It was REALLY good. Blogilicious:) (meaning blog worthy). I'll give you the recipe as it is written, but I made a few changes: I didn't bake the chicken, I sauted it in a pan and then add the cream to the pan and deglazed it to get all the yumminess off. Next time I wouold add some veggies to it. I added some fresh Parm. cheese on top. This part is up to you...the boys and I thought it was really "lemony" and Ben thought it was perfect. I might take out the lemon you add to the chicken and cut down a bit on the lemon you add to the pasta. Just a thought. Overall, Ben thought this was the best meal ever. Let me know what you think!!

Lemon Cream Pasta with Chicken

• 3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 (8 ounce) package rotelle pasta
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place chicken in a lightly greased baking dish. Squeeze lemon over both sides of the chicken breasts and season both sides using 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Bake for 40 minutes, or until juices run clear and chicken is no longer pink inside.
2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, season the chicken broth with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil and add lemon juice and pasta. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until all liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes.
3. Cut cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces and stir into cooked pasta, along with the cream and lemon zest. Cook, stirring, over low heat for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir thoroughly before serving.

Hot Little Chocolate Chip Cookie Pies

Yes...you guessed it! These came from Picky Palate. I love her recipes! I had try this one out. Its two recipes in one. Hope you enjoy! They were yummy! Now...I was in a hurry so the pictures are, well, they stink. They don't do the little guys any justice.

White and Chocolate Chunk Butterscotch Cookies

2 sticks softened butter
3/4 Cup granulated sugar
3/4 Cup light brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla
2 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Cups Chocolate Chunk pieces, I believe my bag was Hersheys
1 Cup white chocolate chips
1 Cup butterscotch chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla until well combined.

2. Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large mixing bowl; sift of stir to combine. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients along with all the chocolate/chips. Mix until just combined.

3. Using a medium cookie scoop, scoop onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet placing about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake for 9-12 minutes or until edges just barely start to turn golden. Remove and let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling racks to cool completely. Enjoy!!

About 3 dozen cookies

Hot Little Chocolate Chip Cookie Pies

1 roll Pillsbury Pie Crust, thawed and cut into 12 2 1/2 inch circles (I used a cup to press out all the circles)
1 batch of your favorite cookie dough

1 egg white plus 1 teaspoon water
3 Tablespoons Turbinado sugar or normal granulated sugar
Powdered sugar for dusting on top

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place all 12 pie crust circles onto a baking sheet. With a small cookie scoop, place a heaping teaspoon of cookie dough into the center of each pie round, pressing cookie dough down slightly without touching edges of pie crust. DO NOT overfill each pie, if too full the dough breaks through the pie.

2. Dip your finger in water and brush bottom 1/2 of the pie crust edge with water and fold top crust over to seal. Using fork tines, press to seal around edges. Continue until all crusts are sealed. Poke each little pie on top once or twice for steam holes. Lightly brush each pie with egg white whisked with a teaspoon of water then sprinkle with turbinado sugar (normal sugar is also fine). Bake for 20-22 minutes or until pie crust is just barely golden. Note that some of the cookie will escape through the pie crust, if this happens, just cut them in half and no worries. To prevent it, make sure you don't overfill your crusts.

3. Just before serving sprinkle with powdered sugar and even ice cream if desired. Make sure to enjoy these warm, shortly after out of oven!!

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When the Boys are Bored...

The boys were haveing a "boring" day and were playing in their room. I heard all sorts of laughter and strange noises so I check on them and find this...

They are putting cars in the long tube and watching as it falls in the dump truck. Enough said.