Tell us about your proudest creation or empowering DIY moment! Here is Mine :)

I love my  frontloader washing machine with its extra large capacity loading.  My clothes not only wash quickly with less water, but are also drier when they come out, which in turn means less drying time in the dryer.  I had bought my washer only four years ago and never had any problems with it.  It not only looks amazing in my mudroom, but it works well too. 

My most empowering DIY moment was this past year when my  frontload washer had died.   I was devasted, I didn't realize how much I had relied on my washing machine until I didn't have one.  With a husband, four children, and a dog, I run my washer atleast once daily, and sometimes twice a day. After spending an entire day driving back and forth to the local laundromat lugging dirty laundry in the car and tons and tons of quarters, I knew something had to be done, and quickly. We needed to find out what was wrong with my washing machine, and could it be repaired ?

Apparently my son put a towel loaded with  a ton of wet sand in my washer and the sand clogged and burnt out the waterpump.  I actually figured this out by googling online what could be the problem.  My husband told me we needed to call and get it repaired or just go and buy a new washing machine.  I refused.  Pulled out the manual, I removed the waterpump and found the culprit (tons of sand inside)  We waited 2 days for the part to be delivered.  I needed an extra set of hands; so my husband agreed to help me.  In less than a week we had replaced the waterpump ourselves and the machine was running like new.  The part cost me a total of $52.00 ~ I am so proud of myself for sticking to my guns and insisting on trying to repair the washer ourselves !

Easy Peasy Peep Pops !!!

What you will need 1 package of bunny peeps, 8 oz of melting chocolate, lollipop sticks, lollipop bags, curling ribbon and cookie sheet.

Step One:  insert lollipop sticks into bunny peeps and place them on cookie sheet and put in freezer for approx 10-15 minutes.

Step Two:  melt chocolate, in either double boiler or in microwave ( appprox 2min at power level 5) dip frozen bunnies into chocolate and place on wax paper and place back in freezer for chocolate to harden.

Step Three:  Wrap lollipops with colorful curling ribbon, and you are done :)

                                                                                                                                            
                                                                         

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone !!!!!!!

I will show you how to make this chocolate cornacopia in the future, I will need to make a video :)

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

1 3/4 cup Graham Cracker Crumbs

1/3  cup butter melted

1 1/4 cups sugar, divided

3 pksgs (8oz each, cream cheese softened )

2 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 pkg of mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  8 or 9 inch springform pan.

Crust:

Melt 1/3 cup butter in a saucepan, add 1/4 cup sugar and 1 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs and mix with a fork until completely combined.  Press into the bottom of the springform pan.

Beat Cream cheese, 1 cup sugar and vanilla in a large bowl with electric mixer on high speed until well blended.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended.  Add sour cream and 1 cup mini chocolate chips and pour into crust.

Bake 1 hour 10 minutes or until center is almost set at 350 degrees.

About 50 minutes into baking place the remaining 1 cup of mini choc

chips ontop of cake and continue baking for the last 20 minutes.  Leaving the door slighty ajar leave cheesecake in the oven 1 hour after baking.  Remove from oven and chill in refrigerator 4 hours or overnight before removing side of the springform pan.

 

Turkey Treats

 

Gather:

.1/4 cup butter

.1 package of marshmallows mini or large

.6 cups rice crispies cereal

.1/1/2 cups melting chocolate

.bag of candy corn

.bag of oreo cookies

 

1. melt the butter in a large saucepan

2. add the bag of marshamallows and stir until the marshmallows are

    completely melted.

3. remove from heat and add the rice crispies cereal and stir

   the mixture   unti the cereal is well coated .

4. Let cool for 5 minutes, then butter your hands and shape the ceral mixture into 1/1/2 inch balls.

5.  Melt chocolate in microwave in a glass pyrex measuring cup for 1 1/2 minutes on power level 5.  Take 

     them out and stir, then place them back in the microwave for an additinal 1/1/2 minutes on power 

     level  5 Remove and stir until completely melted.

6.  You can use a spoon or a plastic bottle like pictured above ( I got in a candy making supply store) and

     place  melted chocolate ontop of oreo and then place rice cripsy ball ontop and allow  chocolate to        

     harden.  Tke another oreo and drizzle chocolate on half of the cookie and put three to four candy corns

     on to represent the turkey feathers.  Allow that to sit and harden.  Then take your ball and turkey   

    feather pieces and put them together with melted chocolate hold it for a few seconds and lean it against  

   side of the cookie sheet as it hardens.  Last step is to take a candy corn and place it on the rice  

   crispy ball to represent the turkey head.

These are so cute that I sometimes make a little cardboard nameplate for my Thanksgiving tabble setting.

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