The Best Pecan Tart Recipe

The original recipe was for Butter Tarts but I changed it as I am not a big fan of raisins.

• 2 tbls. Butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg well beaten
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 cup corn syrup (optional)
• 1 cup pecan halves or peices

I place pecan peices in tart shells so that each shell has the same amount of pecans. Mix the other ingredients together. The optional corn syrup makes them more on the runny side, so it is really your personal preference. I always use the corn syrup. Tablespoon filling into each tart. Enough to make a dozen. Bake at 425 degree oven for 10 - 12 minutes.
*Another alternative would be to use 1/2 cup chopped walnuts with 1 cup raisins instead of pecans*

Best Pecan Tarts Ever!

I made these pecan tarts yesterday. I started out by making my own crust which I have had enough experience with that it is perfect every time. It really is easy, you just have to follow the recipe exactly. I am really surprised now adays that younger people don't have a clue about short forms for Tablespoon (Tbls) and Teaspoon (tsp). They know all the lingo with the shortforms for texting which is great for their social media, but what about something that is useful when cooking in the kitchen? Oh right, these younger folks really don't do cooking in the kitchen. It has to be prepackaged and heat it up in a microwave!

I got my recipe from my mother who always had perfect crust. I thought it had secret ingredients that made it so perfect but low and behold, I bought a no name brand pound of lard and there printed right on the box, the exact same recipe!

I tried several times to make these tarts and repeated was frustrated with the results. It wasn't that they didn't taste good, it was that I could never get them out of the pan. Visually they were a mess! I finally figured out what the problem was and the fix was rather easy.

Knowledge is everything, isn't it?!

I was putting too much filling in the tarts. The shells shrink when they cook and the filling expands, hence my problem with filling overflowing and sticking to the pan. I tend to want to overdo things and always think more is better when cooking but it really isn't.

If you want one, just ask :-)

Now to go and enjoy one of these with my tea. :-)

Wonder if your content is being copied and pasted from your Blog?

I have recently come across a website http://www.tynt.com/ that keeps track of your copy and paste from your blog. There is a bit of controversy over copy writing other people which is bad, but if they keep the original post that links back to your site then its good. Tynt does this for you. When someone copies your content from your blog and pastes it into theirs it adds a link "if you want to know more or read more" which brings the reader back to your blog. A neat little trick. You have to add a bit of HTML coding into your template but trust me, I am not very knowledgeable about such things and I did it without a problem. Tynt walks you through the process. Check it out, its free. Please leave a comment if you have used it as I have only just started using it today.

My Most Quotable Movie Is....

I absolutely love quoting from movies! My oldest daughter and I quote all the time to each other. It brings back memories and times that we have shared together and also brings relevance to some situations that we find ourselves in, usually with great hilarity. I think from our last visit together we started watching our favourite movie and it is so bad now that we know every line in the movie. I won't bore you with what movie it is, unless you figured it out from the photo, or you could ask me ;-)

My Jenna is 6, she is a princess and I love her!

I love my Jenna girl and when she kept bugging me to try out her new beauty kit last night I said ok ok. Keep in mind it was a long day of prep work even with the wonderful help from my mom and daughter Alicia. The house was finally quiet and just the two of us sat at the table and went through her beauty kit one item at a time. Lip gloss, nail polish, fake nails, pony tails and clips, princess toe separator, earings, bracelet, body stickers and body glitter spray. It sounds like a lot but it probably only took about 30 minutes. I was tired but did this for my Jenna, cause that's what a mom does. It really surprised me how just 30 minutes with my daughter made her soooooo happy! She felt and looked like a princess. She was so proud of how she looked. I am very fortunate to be able to be with my children as a stay at home mom but even if I was working the one on one time, even a small amount like 30 minutes can really make a difference in your child's life. I read somewhere that children are raised on love and praise. I think we tend to forget that sometimes. 
I do feel that making time for those special moments is something that I learned from my mother. By the time I went to kindergarten I could knit, sew and crochet. All because I wanted to do what my mom did and she loved me enough to spent the time to show me how. I learned many things from my mom and I try to pass that on to my kids. 
I hope that the tradition passes to the next generation. I can see, when my daughter Alicia has the patience that she too can spend that quality time with her little sisters. Maybe when she is a mom one day that quality will really shine through. 
So getting back to today - My Jenna is 6, she is a princess and I love her!

Jenna is 6 today!

Picture collage customized with Smilebox

IPOD vs PSP NGP

The new PSP Next Generation Portable (NGP) was introduced in January and has some specs of
5-inch OLED display with four times the resolution of current-generation PSPs. It has touch pads on both the front and the rear and dual micro analog joysticks. It also has both front- and rear-facing cameras and will use a Flash-based memory card. It will also offer 3G, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi connectivity. Sony has not stated what the price will be as of yet. Some speculate around $400. 
I have been toying with the idea of buying some kind of handheld entertainment unit that could be shared by my 6 year old daughter and myself. Items we would be wanting would relate to age appropriate games for the 6 year old, ability to watch movies, have the battery life last long enough to be able to watch movies, camera, music and networking capabilities.
The Ipod touch has been marketed as more of a music device but does offer many features - 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display, 960-by-640-pixel resolution at 326 pixels per inch,  camera, photos, video in HD (720p), rechargeable battery life of 40 hours for music and video playback up to 7 hours both when charged fully. It offers wireless wifi and bluetooth. 350,000 games and applications offered from the App store.
The Ipod touch comes in 3 memory sizes, 8GB - $249, 32GB - $319 or 64GB flash drive - $429.
All that being said. Don't have the details for all the specs of the PSP NGP just yet and it may not be available to the public until next holiday season!? Ya, that is crazy! But anyway, getting back to my point is I would love feedback as to what everyone's opinion is on these two items and if you have any personal experience with Ipod touch or a PSP (obviously not the newest one yet). I prefer to make decisions not just based on specs but also on people's opinions of the products.
Please post a comment!
Thanks so much!

Julia Makes Me Laugh!

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Have fun with your photos using  Picnik. Fix photo's, crop, resize, special effects - just to name a few.  You can upload photos from your computer or from Picasa Web Albums, Flikr, Facebook, MySpace or Photobucket. 

Sunrise vs. Sunset

The sunset is by far the winner compared to sunrise. Especially at the beach when you see it falling closer and closer to the water with warm colors in the sky. The sound of the water washing up on the sand, the feel of it running over your feet with toes stuck in the sand. Watching your children write their names in the sand and taking that opportunity to take a picture. Josh and Brandon a few years ago enjoying the beach at sunset. A moment in time that I will cherish forever.

My Favourite Place to Drive

My favourite place to drive is pretty much anywhere where there is scenic open spaces. The windows and sunroof open with good tunes and sunshine. It could be the beach at sunset, a winding road through tree covered hills, the countryside, colored trees in the fall, even the cityscape at waters edge.

On Superheroes

Oh without a doubt if a superhero was going to rescue me it would have to be SuperMan! I love that he has two sides, the normal everyday guy and when needed the super hero that saves the day. I think every man that is king of his domain does this without a doubt on a daily basis. I know my husband Jim is our SuperMan in this household. When we need a superhero he has come through everytime!

Video of the View from my back door

Do you enjoy the view from your back door?

What is your idea of home when it comes to the view from your back door? I have always enjoyed the open spaces with rolling hills and lots of trees. Maybe you like your quant little peice of the pie measuring 40' x 40' in the city, if you are lucky to have that much. I on the other hand lived with my 50' x 50' back yard with nothing behind it that soon filled with a sub division over the course of 10 years. It was a sea of houses and back yards all outlined with neat and tidy wooden fences. It suited the purpose and I had my small peice of the pie. I did however long to be perched on a hill that had a view of those rolling hills with trees. Never did I ever think that would be in the cards for me because such places are generally quite expensive. 5 years ago we moved and although I can't say that the house gives me great pleasure, yet, but the view from all sides blows me away on a constant basis. No matter the season I really do enjoy the view from my back door as well as the front door and all the windows inbetween. I have a video of Jenna toboganning in the yard and as I was taking the video I obviously enjoyed watching her but the background image struck me as so beautiful. It made me feel very lucky to be able to say, that is the view from my back yard. Wow, I love it!

Did you watch the featured videos above?

Joshua has been writing and playing songs and uploading them to YouTube. Joshua is my second oldest and he is very artistic. I will post some of his artwork with his permission. Still waiting for a peice of his artwork to put on my wall...

Gorgeous

Julia is a beautiful girl!

Ready for the Weather

Brandon is way too cool!

Just being Jenna

Jenna is awesome!