Indian Corn Cake

About 15 years ago, I saw an Indian Corn Cake in Country Woman Magazine (I think). I made it that year for Thanksgiving and then forgot about it. Not sure why, but I thought about it the other day and I thought that the boys might enjoy decorating it, so I got the stuff to do it (trying to go on memory - it's a pretty simple cake, but it has been 15 years).

I got a butter cake mix, I made Wilton's butter cream frosting myself (recipe here) and some Reece's Pieces (I got 4 boxes: 4 boys = 4 boxes, besides I knew that if I got too many they would get eaten anyway and it is better for me if they each have a box so there is no fighting).


I made the cake according to package directions and baked the cake in a 9" round cake pan and let it cool. After I got the cake out of the pan I cut it into a corn shape (not sure where the pics are - sorry), similar to the parentheses ( ). I then iced the cake. (For some reason, I had the hardest time getting the icing to stick to the cake. I got crumbs all in the icing, but it didn't matter because we were covering it up with Reece's pieces.)





Here are some pics of the boys putting the candy on the cake. (I gave each of them a bowl and poured their candies into the bowl to make it easier on them.)



Here are some pics of the cake with all the candy on it.





Here is the completed cake. I used some twisted paper ribbon (that I untwisted and shaped into a corn husk shape). Does it look like Indian Corn? Well, whether it does or not, it was our Thanksgiving Day dessert.


Out of curiosity, I did a search on the Country Woman website and found a picture of the cakes that I saw 15 years ago, you can check it out here.

Turkey Hair Barrett Tutorial

"A turkey is a funny bird, his head goes wobble, wobble.
All he knows is just one word and that is gobble, gobble."
(That's what Anthony's pre-K class said before their Thanksgiving dinner.)



Well, I've finished my tutorial (that I mentioned here) on making the Turkey Hair Bow/Barrett and I even did it before next Thanksgiving. But I guess it's not in time for you to make one for this Thanksgiving (sorry) - unless of course you already have the supplies on hand (it just takes a few minutes).


You will need 3/8 inch grosgrain ribbon in the following colors: green, yellow, red, brown and orange...


...googly eyes, hair clips...


...hot glue gun and glue sticks...


...and optional (not necessary, but really makes things easier) metal cookie sheet, wooden ruler with a metal edge, and a wood burning tool with the chisel tip.


Measure your hair clip either with the green ribbon itself or with a measuring tape and cut ribbon to that length. (Depends on the size of your clip as to how long your green ribbon will be.) I cut my ribbon with the wood burning tool (chisel tip), this heat seals the ribbon and keeps it from fraying. (You can use scissors and fray check if you want.)


Hot glue the green ribbon around the outside of the hair clip (making sure you don't glue the clip together where it won't open).


Cut 3 inches each of brown, yellow, orange and red ribbon.


Cut a piece of orange ribbon slightly smaller than 1/2 inch.


Cut 2 pieces of brown ribbon, one 6 1/2 inches and another 2 1/2 inches.


Fold the small orange piece in half (to form a triangle - this will be the beak) and glue. Fold each of the 3 inch pieces (these will be the tail feathers) and the brown 2 1/2 inch piece of ribbon to form a loop (see picture) and glue.


Take the long brown piece of ribbon (6 1/2 inches) and make a large loop on one end and glue on the back side. (This will be the body of the turkey.)


Make a smaller loop on the top part of the ribbon and glue on the back side. (This will be the head of the turkey.)


Take the 2 1/2 inch piece (that is now a loop) and glue to the underside of the turkey body (see picture).


Glue the orange triangle and the googly eyes onto the brown piece (see picture for placement).




Glue the colored loops (tail feathers) onto the green ribbon covered hair clip in a fan shape (see picture for placement).


Glue the turkey body onto the tail feathers and green covered hair clip. There's your turkey hair bow.

I hope each and everyone of you has a very safe and happy Thanksgiving. Count your blessings.

Easy Shorts

For next summer, if you want an easy way to make shorts for your child, here it is!!!

Bandana Pants!!!!

They are quick and easy, but if you have ever worked with bandanas before, you know that they are not a perfect square or rectangle (so that means your shorts won't be perfect). I figured my boys were so active that they couldn't be still long enough for anyone to notice. These are cute play shorts. They are inexpensive and if they get extremely dirty or ripped (I have 4 very tuff and tumble boys), it won't be the end of the world.

You can find the directions here. There are so many different bandanas out there that your possibilities are endless.

Let's Talk Turkey!

O.K. Sorry that I have been MIA. Still not sure how to get everything done since school has started and I am also still having issues with my camera (it actually basically died or as good as dead). I am using my son's camera and I have to get used to it.

Well, here is one thing that I've been up to. I made a Turkey hair bow. A little girl at church had the cutest bow and I just had to try to make it, so I went home (before I forgot what it looked like) and this is what I came up with.



When I asked my DH about it, he said "If you used your imagination it might look like a turkey". Is it me or is it him? (Does it look like a turkey or not?)



I will try to do a tutorial on it later (don't hold your breath, I have no idea how long it will take me - maybe I will get it done before next Thanksgiving). ;o)

UPDATE: 11-25-09, I have finished the tutorial and you can view that here.

Color Coded Bread Ties

I have seen this in several e-mails and I just checked snopes (they said it was true) about buying fresh bread.

Bread is delivered fresh to the store 5 days a week (Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri., & Sat.) and each day has a different colored twist tie (or plastic closure).

Mon. - Blue
Tues. - Green
Thurs. - Red
Fri. - White
Sat. - Yellow

So, if today was Thur. I would want a Red Twist Tie (not White - which is Friday, almost a week old). The colors go in alphabetical order and Mon. - Sat. It should be easy to remember, but if you can't you can print it off and carry it in your purse/wallet for a shopping reminder.

Gooey Gunk

Do you have young scientists in your family, do your kids like making concoctions, do you have boys that just like to make a mess (like I do)? If so, you need to check out Kid Concoctions.

I first saw the Thomas' several years ago on the Carol Duvall Show and instantly liked them and thier ideas. I got online and ordered 2 of their books. While I was at the MOPS Convention a couple of weeks ago, I took a workshop that the Thomas' were giving about their Kid Concoctions (I bought another book). Great workshop.

They have 'recipes' for all sorts of things that cost a lot of money at the store, but you can make it at home a whole lot cheaper with ingredients around the house (mostly from your kitchen).

Last night we made GooeyGunk. I used neon green food coloring (thinking that would be cool - instead the boys said it looked like snot - they are right, hint: if you make this use blue or purple or something other than green). *See pictures below.* [If you buy GooeyGunk in the store, it would be called 'Slime.']

See what my boys are doing with it. (That's o.k. I'm not sure either, but they are having fun doing it.)

Love & Respect

I just finished the book 'Love & Respect' by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs (Thomas Nelson Publishers).

This book centered around the scripture Ephesians 5:33, "Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband." I have often wondered why a man is told to love his wife, but a wife is told to respect her husband. That is one scripture that I never fully understood. I think that Dr. Eggerichs did a good job on explaining the importance of that scripture to a marriage.

He talks about the 'Crazy Cycle' in his book. Without Love -> she reacts -> Without Respect -> he reacts -> Without Love -> (do you see where this is going?). He has a great diagram in his book to explain it better. He also talks about an 'Energizing Cycle' and a 'Rewarded Cycle.' (Why and how you should still try to use his principles on your marriage even if your spouse is not cooperative.)

I really enjoyed the book. It made me look at the way I treat my husband and the way he perceives that he is being treated and vice versa (they are not always the same). On occasion, when Dr. Eggerichs address wives, he asks a very thought provoking question..."Are you treating your husband the way you would want your son to be treated by his wife?" Wow, what an eye opener and since I am the mother of 4 boys, this really hit home with me.

When I was around other couples, I became aware of how they were treating each other and how they perceived they were being treated by their spouse. After reading this book, I am very aware of how people come across (which very often is not the way they think they are coming across) to others. Communication (in all forms - body language, tone of voice, facial expressions, etc.) is extremely important in a marriage.

So if you are struggling in your marriage, or if you have a good marriage, but would like to make it better or if you just want to please Christ with your marriage and your role as a spouse - this is a good read. I highly recommend it.

http://brb.thomasnelson.com/