2017

It's Ya Birthday! Party on a Budget

11:52 PM



I have four kids. I am a single mama, divorced since 2007. 

Trying to come up with birthday ideas for my kids that are budget friendly that I can do on my own is tough. 



When my youngest turned thirteen this summer, I knew I had to make it special. At the time (and still to this day) I was obsessed with candy cakes....over the top cakes topped with anything you can find. I am no baker but I loved making her cake.




I opted for a simple taco bar. Easy enough, right? You cook your meats and everything else is pretty much prep. Yes, this was so easy.



This is a fabulous idea because, well, who doesn't love tacos? What kid hates candy? A win-win, right?

Right.



My kids and our guests loved it. Even though the cake fell on the back side, nothing was left. All food was eaten and we didn't know whether to pass out from food overload or be super hype from our sugar high.



This was one of my favorite parties to put together. Outside of the taco bar, we had an ice cream mini bar and the best part???? The best part was that it all cost me less than $100. I'm taking all the food, the Dollar Tree decorations and errthang....less than $100.



Tips for buying on a budget for a birthday party:

  • Check out your local dollar store. 
  • Dollar Stores have tons of candy for goody bags, candy bars, chips, drinks, and decorations. 
  • Clearance!
  • Tons of grocery stores and stores in general have clearance sections or baskets. Look at those clearance bins for candy or decorations for some awesome deals. I got all the toppings for the ice cream bar for 90 cents a bag.
  • Plan a simple menu but display it in a high end fashion.
  • Burgers, hotdogs, tacos, etc....display your food items on coordinating serving platters. It really makes a difference.
  • Be Creative!
  • Make decorations for inexpensive items.




I had hard taco shells, flour tortillas, and bags of doritoes that they could use to make their own Taco-in-a-Bag. Seriously, dudes, this was so good.






day

My Ma's Southern Potato Salad

12:29 AM



Just in time for the 4th of July, this simple southern classic is a sure win at your bbq!


I must admit...I am not a fan of potato salad. In fact, I have never tasted it until today. It is one of those things that makes me question if I am really Southern. I mean, who in their right Southern mind does NOT like potato salad? You only see it at every single potluck, party, office shindig, family reunion and gathering here! At any event, someone is sure to have a casserole dish full of this potato-ey tradition.

But here I am, posting a Southern Potato Salad recipe for a dear and awesome reader who requested it. I can't take the honors of making this because I sought the help of my number one cooking idol...my mom. I will say this, I tried it today and I liked it! Why oh why did I wait so long!?


You will need:

6 large potatoes (peeled)
5 boiled eggs (diced/chopped)
1 stick of butter (room temperature)
1 tsp of garlic powder
1 whole sweet onion (diced)
1 tbsp sugar
1 small jar of Sweet Pickle Relish
2 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 jar of mayo (less if you want it less creamy)
Paprika to sprinkle as a garnish

Boil your potatoes, drain and let cool. Then cut into bite size pieces.  I made the mistake (having never made this myself and thinking I would save my mom some prep time) of cutting the potatoes before boiling. My mom threw a fit and said that it would bring about a mashed potato type consistency....which it did. But hey, it was still tasty as heck.

In a large bowl, add your ingredients. There is no rhyme or reason...no method to the madness...just add everything into a large bowl and mix.








Place the mixture into your serving dish. Top with a sprinkle of paprika and some sliced eggs if you like. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap or cover. If not covered, it will get that crusty mashed potato layer that although is perfectly fine, looks like the server was too busy to mix it to keep it fresh.

Refrigerate.

Make sure you keep this dish cool until ready to serve.




Everyone here in the South swears by potato salad. They love it. I am kinda liking it too.

Thanks, mama for making this for me!

beans

Mother's Day: Southern Style

11:51 PM



Being  a single and divorced mom of four means Mother's Day is usually spent with me doing all the cooking. Of course, I don't mind at all since cooking is something I love to do. I like to feed my family, plan something for them and the smiles on their faces knowing I made just a little extra effort is all the Mother's Day gift I need. That and of course the handmade cards from my kids...priceless.

Each Mother's Day at my place is spent with my mom. I am so thankful to her and even though I may not be able to send her on a trip around the world, what I can do is show her that I love her. I decided today to take everything back. My mom is a traditional Southern cook. She is old school. She is the master at fried chicken, comfort foods and even has mastered cooking pigtails and makes the best cornbread dressing this side of the Mississippi (no lie...her dressing is the BOMB!) When my best fried surprised me with a set of country dishes I thought, hmmmm, let me make my mama proud and cook a Southern meal. 

I did just that. Got up in the wee hours of the morning (8am, yep) and started peeling potatoes, snapping beans and making biscuits from scratch. Heck, if you are going to try and make your traditional Southern mama proud you have to go back to basics. So here is what was on the menu...

Fresh cut green beans
Sour Cream mashed potatoes
Fresh cheesey yellow squash
Cabbage
Fried chicken
Biscuits
Sun tea
Cake









I made everything from scratch...except for the cake...I have yet to master baking so I used a box cake mix...dousing each layer after baking with a lemon simple syrup, topping with blackberry jam, cream cheese frosting and topping with berries and flowers.


My mom loved it and she was so impressed. That made me happy and satisfied. Everyone enjoyed it all and the cake was demolished in minutes. Even though the cake had mishaps (top layer started cracking when I was placing it....the jam ran into the icing) it all worked. I thought my mom would be a bit upset because I snagged a few flowers from her Mother's Day bouquet but she raved about the cake.

I am one happy camper. I love making a little extra effort for those I love. I may not have it all but I have my love. Today. was. a. good. day.





alex

Happy Mother's Day!

12:04 AM

To all the mothers out there, Happy Mother's Day!

We are strong. We are fierce.


butter

Samoa Popcorn, Yes, please!

9:02 AM


Valentine's Day will be here before we know it and if you are like me, I love coming up with special treats for my little ones. In my house, we think it, we do it and we try it.  This popcorn recipe I made is now available at Living Locurto (Check out her awesome printables!) and is easy to make. Buttered toffee, chocolate, cookies...ummm yeah! 


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