Cake Batter Fudge

Funfetti Cake Batter Fudge
  
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
3 1/2 cups white chocolate chips (about 1 3/4 bags)
3 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 tsp Almond Extract
Sprinkles (I used rainbow sprinkles, but you can use any kind!)

Pour milk and white chocolate into a microwave-safe bowl. Heat for 2-3 minutes, or until white chocolate is almost completely melted. DO NOT OVERHEAT. Stir until completely blended, melted, and smooth.
Immediately add vanilla and almond extract and combine thoroughly. Add a handful or so of rainbow sprinkles and fold in quickly because they will melt (and if they are stirred for too long they’ll turn the fudge an ugly gray color).
Transfer to an aluminum-foil lined or well-greased 8×8 inch baking pan for very thick fudge, or a 11X7 inch pan (this is the size I used and it worked perfectly). Let set at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Once set, cut into cubes (peel off the foil if you used it!). Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

Shoe Rack Storeage

This also works for sports bottles that don't easily fit into your cabinets.

Enjoy!

Grandmother says... Carrots, Eggs, or Coffee...

Grandmother says... Carrots, Eggs, or Coffee...

"Which are you?"

A young woman went to her grandmother and told her about her life and how things were so 

hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was 

tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved a new one arose.


Her grandmother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first, she placed 

carrots, in the second she placed eggs and the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let 

them sit and boil without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them 

in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out 

and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her granddaughter, she asked, "Tell me what do you see?"

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they got 

soft.She then asked her to take an egg and break it.

After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The granddaughter smiled, as she tasted its rich 

aroma. The granddaughter then asked. "What's the point,grandmother?"

Her grandmother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity--boiling

water--but each reacted differently.

The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting. However after being subjected to the boiling 

water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had 

protected its liquid interior. But, after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became 

hardened.

The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water they had

changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her granddaughter.

"When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a

 coffee bean?"

Think of this: Which am I?

Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, do I wilt and become soft and

lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid

spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become

hardened and stiff?

Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a

hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance

that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like

the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.

When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level?

~AUTHOR UNKNOWN~

Thank you, Lord.

True Friendship

Every Mom's Test

To my beautiful daughter... You are my everything!

Every Mom's Test

© Nandita Shailesh Shanbhag

You are special; you mean the world to me
You are my daughter, a reflection of my entity

Every year, as I watch you grow by my side
No matter what you do, you are my source of pride

The umbilical cord may have been cut but you should know
You are still bound to my soul, wherever you go

Sometimes I am firm and you may think I am wrong
Remember it is easy to give in, but tough to be strong

Sometimes I am strict and you may think it is unfair
But I correct you only because I love and care

I harden my heart and nag, scold and fight
To teach you the difference between the wrong and the right

For soon, the days will pass swiftly all in a whirl
And into a woman will grow my baby girl

Tomorrow when you need inner strength above all
I hope my values will give you the courage to stand tall

I hope that in my teaching you will find tips few
Soon when you strive to make your dreams come true

At a later date, when the real world you have to face
Today’s lessons will help you go ahead in the race

Some day in the future when a mother you will be
From my point of view, the world you will see

For your baby then you will do what is best
To blend discipline with kindness is every mom’s test.

Falling Apart From Within

Sometimes actions speak so loudly that you can't hear a word people are saying.

Sometimes I feel just like the woman in this photograph.  It all starts with a comment or look, or a memory that takes me back to another time.  Sometimes it's a family member that's inconsiderate or just out right rude, and without a thought of how those words or actions affect you.  Each blow takes its toll, and before you know it the cracked face is what you see looking back at you in the mirror- not the beautiful smile that you continue to show the world.

How would our lives change, if we allowed the people who hurt us to see the damage they cause?  Would they care?  Would it somehow change their behavior?  Would I even have the courage to show my pain to the world?  I don't know, I doubt it.  So I continue to face each new day.  I try to look beyond the cracks and focus on making the smile I present to the world be the most beautiful smile I can create.

God, please give me the strength to wake each day and face more cracks and please don't let me fall apart.

That is all.