Lovin' From the Oven

This weekend we had a taste of fall weather, which by the way, I am not too thrilled about. I love summer. I love the sun and the hot weather. I am not too happy about all the people trying to hurry fall along - I am clinging to summer! Fall here looks like this: gray skies 99% of the time, rain, cold, dreary weather that makes you want to stay in bed all day. Why would anyone choose that over warm sunny days?? But I digress...

My point was this: the cooler days made me want to whip up something warm and comforting with some autumn spice. So I decided to make my family some homemade cinnamon rolls. I don't think I had ever made them before and I didn't have a cherished family recipe handed down form my great grandmother, so I did what I usually do and just added to a bowl what I thought seemed right. Makes more sense than finding a recipe, right?

They turned out really yummy, so I thought I'd share the *recipe* with you!

I am telling you, not much smells better than buttery cinnamon goodness wafting through the air!

Grab a mixing bowl and toss in:

2 (ish) cups of flour

1 tsp baking powder

1tsp baking soda

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup oil

Mix them all together until a nice dough forms.

Toss some flour on your clean counter and roll out the dough into a rectangle.

Butter the dough generously with very soft butter. I think I used 1/2 cup :)

Sprinkle on a mixture of:

1/3 (ish) cup brown sugar

1/3 (ish) cup white sugar

1 Tbs (ish) cinnamon

(I like a lot of cinnamon, you may want to use less.)

Roll it up and slice into 12 (ish) rolls. Place them in a buttered pan with enough space in between for the rolls to expand.

Bake at 375 for about 25 min.

Frosting

3 Tbs soft butter

3 Tbs soft cream cheese

1 1/2 (ish) cups powdered sugar

a few splashes of milk

Mix together and pour over hot rolls.

Give these a try, I think you'll love them!

PS: If you're starting to Christmas shop, or just love getting PRACTICALLY FREE jewelry and gifts check this out!

More Than Words.... Promises!

I have mentioned before that I am participating in a challenge to read through the Bible, cover to cover, in 90 days. It's going really well. This is not the first time I have read through the Bible, however, after all I have been through I am seeing passages in a new way, and I suppose I am seeking comfort. So many verses have really spoken to me and this passage from Isaiah 43 is so wonderful I just have to share it with you.
This is not the entire chapter; I have just written down the parts that I found to be so comforting. (To read the entire chapter open your Bible to Isaiah 43, or if you don't have a Bible just google it!)


But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, he who formed you:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine. ² When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
³ For I am the LORD, your God, your Savior.
⁴ You are precious and honored in my sight,
and I love you.
⁵ Do not be afraid, for I am with you.

¹⁰ "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD,
"and my servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before me no god was formed,
nor will there be one after me.
¹¹ I, am the LORD,
and apart from me there is no savior.
¹² I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—
I, and not some foreign god among you.
You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "that I am God.
¹³ Yes, and from ancient days I am he.
No one can deliver out of my hand.
When I act, who can reverse it?"

¹⁹ See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland.
²⁰ The wild animals honor me,
because I provide water in the desert
and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
²¹ the people I formed for myself
that they may proclaim my praise.


²⁵ "I, even I, am he who blots out
your transgressions, for my own sake,
and remembers your sins no more.




I love that God promises to be with us in the hard times; He promises to not let them overtake us. I love that He makes all things new, He uses our circumstances for His glory and our good. I love how He provides even when it seems impossible - nothing is impossible for Him! And I love that if we surrender to Him, he promises to forgive us completely for all the rotten things we do. I love that His grace and forgiveness goes far beyond the depths of our sin. He says we are precious and honored in His sight, and He loves us!
I think that's pretty fantastic!



I hope these verses will be a blessing to you as they have been to me.
Please feel free to email me infinitemystery@hotmail.com if you have questions or want someone to talk to.

Friday Feature

Is anyone else happy it's Friday??

I am hoping to have a girls night tonight and if I'm really lucky, maybe I'll snag a date with my man this weekend! 

Also, I want to go shopping. For myself. I've realized that since my daughter was born I haven't really bought anything for me; it all goes to that sweet little girl.  A couple times I've gone out shopping with the intention of getting something for myself, but it's so easy to get sidetracked by all the cute little girl stuff. A few weeks ago I came home with about 15 outfits and 4 pairs of shoes for the little lady, and I got toothpaste. Hmmm.  Maybe next time I'll get 15 outfits and 4 pairs of shoes! :) 

I know a lot of you women are the same way. You're always buying something for your kids, or a friend (which is all good and noble), but never treat yourself. 

Today is the day, friends!

And I'm gonna make it fun and painless by offering you a sweet deal!

This is Fridays Feature!

From now until my next Feature is posted I am offering my anklets at a super bargain price.

Regularly $15, but as my featured items they are now only $8.95 or 2 for $15. That's like getting 2 for the price of one! 

Here are your choices:

Summer Breeze

 Pink Shimmer

 Sweet Sparkle

 Purple Shimmer

 Painted Glass

Simple email me at infinitemystery@hotmail.com or leave a comment with your email and let me know which one(s) you want!  There are also coordinating headbands and earrings for most of these that can be found here all for under $10!

Miscellany Monday

It's Monday, you know what that means!

1. Last night in a heroic effort to save my daughter from falling backwards, I bent my nail backwards. Like it came off of my finger and had to be put back on. *shiver* It seemed to reattach itself, so that's good, but WOW that hurt!!

2. Yesterday Bella and I decided to visit Daddy at work and bring him some treats to help his day go by a little faster. While hanging out in the car we caught a glimpse of what's to come.

Scary.

3. Head over to the fabulous Carissa's blog (just click the button at the top of the post) and enter her giveaway - it's a good one *ahem*.

4. Everyone who makes a purchase from

Bella Regali

It's a 10

Pearls and Petals

and mentions her giveaway will get 10% off everything you order and you'll also get a gift card!!

It's a swell deal ;)

5. I think some play time at the park is in order for today - it's gorgeous out there!

Utopia

Remember how I told you that I am the designated baker in my family?

Well,  having family visit from out of town means lots of baking for me, and I wanted to try something new and fun. But what??

Our three family favorites are: cheesecake, chocolate chip cookies, and my famous brownies.  So I came up with a fun little treat that incorporates all three!!

Isn't it cute?

I call them Utopia Bites. That about explains them. 

I tried a few varieties. Chocolate chip cookie/brownie, brownie/cheesecake, cheesecake/cookie, and a combination of all three. You know what I decided? You really can't go wrong here.  So made a whole bunch of each kind.

They tasted great, but they looked like they needed some "dressing up".
So I whipped up a batch of my peanut butter frosting and added just a dollop to each one.



Yum! Now they tasted even better, but still they seemed to be missing something.
Color.
M&M's to the rescue!

They were a big hit!

Cupcakes? Yes, Please!

This weekend my Aunt and Uncle and two of my cousins came to visit us. They are possibly the sweetest people ever, and I was so happy to see them again!

Being the designated family baker, I made more than a few sweet treats for our gatherings together, and this is one I thought I'd share with you!

Who doesn't like a good cupcake??

And who better to try out my new concoction than family, right? (They make the best guinea pigs.)

I introduce to you, my very own,

Over the Top Cupcakes

(They got their name from my sweet aunt who was still talking about them days later!)

***

They started out combining my hubby's favorite devil's food cake "recipe" with a yummy fudge cake "recipe".

(If you are wondering why I'm using quotations around words like "recipe", you must be new here. Welcome! My name is Stephanie and I have an inability to use recipes. I much prefer to invent my own - it's more fun that way!)

Then, because I wanted to do something different, I whipped up some scrumptious vanilla creme, and filled the center of each cupcake

Now, because they weren't decadent enough, I topped them with a combo of my chocolate fudge frosting and rich chocolate ganache! This right here is the reason to eat these cupcakes - yum!!!

Finish them off with some sprinkles and enjoy!

My Little Nurse

This has been my little helper the last few days while daddy's been at work.

She's been taking extra good care of me ;)

She even taught me the proper way to eat Cheerios:

 with a fork.