Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie

This recipe is super easy and perfect for family gatherings, holiday dinners or just because. This particular recipe is based on a single 15 ounce can of pumpkin, but should you have a large can on hand (30 oz), it is easy to double. I chose to make this in a ready made 10" graham cracker crust, but should you find yourself with extra time and more ambition than I currently possess, you can make your own crust from scratch. To pull some calories out of this switch to low fat cream cheese and use Splenda in place of sugar - just be sure to calculate the Splenda substitution carefully (per the Splenda directions) or you could end up with a pie too sweet to eat.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie

2 packages cream cheese, softened

2/3 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 eggs

1 can pumpkin (15 oz)

1 10" ready made graham cracker crust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Soften cream cheese in microwave, then beat on medium speed using an electric mixer until fluffy.

Add sugar and spices.  Beat until thuroughly combined.

Add eggs one at a time, mixing between each addition.

Add pumpkin and stir till blended.

Pour mixture into pie crust and bake for 40 minutes (until center is almost set).

Cool pie on baking rack for one hour.

Refigerate for at least three hours to adequately chill.

Garnish and serve!

It's the little things...

It's been a while since I posted (ok - a very long while - I know).  What you must understand is that I have been in a bit of a funk as of late. Money has been tight, my heat pump was completely unusable and summer had swooped upon us with scalding temperatures that have made everyone in the house exceptionally cranky.  I love to write, but the temperature in my house was nearing triple digits along with my temper.  My view of life and the world around me was beginning to warp and sag like a Salvador Dali painting - literally!  At some point during the height of our recent heat wave even the most innocent of thoughts were tainted with the pessimistic view I had adopted and I really didn't want to impart that to my readers. Like Mom always said, "If you can't say anything nice, do the world and favor and keep your mouth shut!"  And so I did.

Mostly...

I did whine a bit about it on my Facebook page recently and as expected got many empathetic responses from my friends.  What I didn't expect and what has changed my mood and outlook in general, was not only the very nice invites to wait out the heat in the temperate climates of our friends' houses, but in particular, a response from a friend to help rectify the situation.  Though I have known this friend since my teen years and we were good friends then, we've barely talked since 2001.  In fact other than a few words in 2004 I don't think we've exchanged so much as a hello on Facebook.  Yet despite the lack of ongoing communication, he and his wife devoted an entire day in triple digit heat to help us out.  He wasn't sure he could help, but had the skill set was willing to try and expected nothing in return.  It wasn't quite fixed when he left on Sunday, but he came back today after working a full day at his real job and finished it. I must say it was worth the wait.  As of the time I write this, there is a smile on my face, a tear of joy on my cheek and the atmosphere in the house is sitting at a comfortable 76 degrees.

My faith in humanity has been restored all due to the generosity of a friend and a slight cooling of the air.  It really is the little things in life that make the biggest difference.

To Pay or Not to Pay...

While researching college costs for my son, I stumbled across a blog (Deadbeat Parents Who Won't Help Pay for College) that appears to criticize parents for not paying for their children’s college education. In particular, the author references an email from a father who flat out refused to pay for any part of his children’s secondary education. He has seven children and was forcing them to take the route of the “independent student” so they would be able to apply for their own financial aid and be responsible for 100% of their college costs. Though the author herself comes back in several comments to readers admitting her title may have been a little too harsh, her overall sentiment did not change and many of the comments seemed to agree that it is the parent’s responsibility to pay for college. According to her blog that outlines the red tape you have to clear to be declared an independent student, our government and the financial aid systems seem to back the author's viewpoint.

Being the mother of four potentially college bound children, I find this view a bit disturbing. First of all, for the average household, this is not financially feasible. I understand that there are all sorts of nifty ways to put away money for college to minimize taxes and stabilize tuition. Nearly every state has a 529 plan of some kind and large insurance and investment companies have multiple options for college savings as well. Unfortunately, for those of us living in the real world paying $4/gallon for gas and barely making our house payments, saving for even the most minimal of things is nearly impossible and putting away four years of tuition for our fast growing children is little more than a dream especially when you consider the average cost of college for one year is over $21,000.*

Secondly, in a society that values raising children that understand it takes hard work to get anywhere in this world, why, after 18 years of preaching these lessons, would we hand them four years of college on a silver platter?  While living on a university campus with my ex-husband (he financed almost his entire education himself and is actually still paying on those loans) I saw many students doing the bare minimum to get by, partying their nights away and majoring in fields that couldn’t possibly turn into a real career. “Who cares?” they’d say, “It’s not my money…”  I don’t care how intelligent and deserving your child may be, most kids if not paying for at least some of their college expenses themselves will take it for granted and the end result could be disastrous.  My own son seemed shocked when I told him recently that he was going to have to work while he went to college and pay for as much tuition and living expenses as he could with cash out of his own pocket. His open mouth horror aside, I firmly believe it is good for a young adult to invest heavily in their own education to give them a better appreciation for the gift it really is.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am not against helping with college. I have always done everything I could financially for my kids and don't intend to stop now, but where is it written the grand rule book of life that I am obligated to save up/take loans/liquidate my retirement to give my children a fully paid for education? College is a privilege and one that should be earned. It is not an investment as many will tell you. An investment is money that grows and comes back to you; the checks you write for Junior’s tuition represents real money that you will never see again. Though I may not be the dead beat parent the blog was referring too, given the rate of return, I see nothing wrong with making a child responsible for most if not all of their college expenses.

*SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2011). Digest of Education Statistics, 2010 (NCES 2011-015), Chapter 3 .

Some Days are just like that...

Some days you wake up and all you want to do is go back to sleep.  I've had more than my fair share of those mornings recently, but I must report that today was different.  Though I was tired and it was challenging for me mentally (because, let's face it - I was meant to be a princess, not a working mommy of four), in the end it turned out ok.  I was thankful for many things today and I must say, that for the most part, I love my life and wouldn't trade it for anything.

What are the primary contributors to this odd phenomena?  I'm not positive, but my educated guesses are:

1)  Work didn't totally suck.
2)  I got to talk to my Mom.
3)  The scale showed 1.5 lbs lost.
4)  Talis' baseball team won their game in grand style.
5)  Justen was in a great mood.  (He's assistant coach for Talis' team.)
6)  Forrest mowed the front yard and it looks good.
7)  Lily didn't scream "I hate you!" to anyone in the house.
8)  Justen didn't get pissy when I didn't want to go to bed with him at a reasonable hour (so I could spend a few minutes to myself working online.)
9)  I'm sure Jade did something great to contribute too, but she's at her Dad's this week so I didn't get to witness it.  :)
10)  Oh, and the two glasses of my favorite drink tonight probably helped my attitude just a little...(vodka/diet in case anyone wants to buy me one in celebration.)

So if I can impart any wisdom to you at all tonight, it is this:  Be thankful for what you have.  Do not waste time or energy on regrets and wishing for what you could have or should have.  If you do, you may miss out on the most important things life has to offer.

:)

Hypersmash.com

MWF: Seeks sanity and peace...

For those of you who don't know me and haven't bothered to read my bio, I am a married mommy of four children - two natural born and two that I've known since 2002 that came to live with me in 2008.   I have a full time high pressure job as a purchasing agent for a large food manufacturer.  My four children range in age from 11 to 17.  They all have outside sports activities (for school and more) that keep me in my car after work until around 8.  On the weekends after attending Little League games/Track Meets/Cheer Leading competitions, I also help out at my daughters' cheer leading gym every week to help off set the cost of tuition.  On top of all this, I also grocery shop, do 80% of the cooking, 40% of the cleaning, manage everyone's schedule and even pay the bills when I have the money.  I update this blog on occasion too.

I'd like to say that this makes me super woman.  I would like to say that this is something special, but the honest to God truth is that there are millions of women out there just like me, who do the same thing day in and day out - hell, they might even do more than me!  (Not that it happens often, but it could.)

"Oh now, just wait a minute," all you guys say at this point.  "Don't I treat you good?  Don't I work hard and still take out the garbage?  I even pick up my socks!"

Look, I'm not downing you guys in this blog.  Yes, you do a fabulous job taking out the garbage/drinking a beer/mowing the lawn/drinking a beer/starting the BBQ/drinking a beer/fixing the pipe that's been leaking for years... and on and on.  Good job.  I am, (as I'm sure all of your significant others are) very, very proud of you!

(Pat on the head here.)

All I'm trying to say is that we, as women, do just as much if not more and rarely get the credit we should.  I mean, there should be a hall of fame just for us!  Real true to life super heroes cast in wax with giant plaques below stating how after the mortgage crash of 2008 we not only kept our jobs (and our migraines) but managed to use coupons and the internet to save us $400 per month in groceries, all the while finding time to keep our appearance up for our husband/boyfriend/significant other.  Now that's true heroism in my book.

With that, I will step down off of my soap box.  My youngest just came down the stairs and can't sleep (it is storming outside) and I need to make sure his fears are quelled.

Just another day in my crazy, insane life.

Just another hole in the wall...

I must have watched Pink Floyd's "The Wall" a few hundred times in the course of my life, but until today, I don't think I've ever truly understood it.  For the longest time I thought it was the plight of a boy raised in a war torn country and the fight to hold onto sanity even as the last bricks of insanity were caging him in... WRONG!

Turns out "The Wall" refers to exactly what it says - in my case, the tiled bathroom wall of my upstairs shower in what we refer to as the "kids bathroom".  It was once whole and held waves of water (or at least large splashes) at bay from more important parts of the structure like drywall, insulation and wall beams.  It's carefully sealed tiles kept it's occupants warm and safe from spiders and ants that are constantly looking for a way in. I do live in an older home, but I'm sure that wall could have stood for another ten years if I didn't have children.

(Now don't get me wrong, I love all four of my brats, but when they are home alone after school it seems that all of them are capable of some ultimate stupidities.)

So after a long day of work, kids, grocery store, and dinner making, I find out that a giant hole has magically appeared in the wall of the shower.  Now this is not a small "oops" hole, but a large "holy-crap-that-hurt" hole.  Not only did someone break through six tiles, but the drywall behind it as well.  A cocker spaniel would easily fit through this new shower entrance, should one happen to be hanging out nearby.  According to all of my children (ages nine thru seventeen), nobody saw or heard a thing.  One admitted chasing another into the bathroom, one admitted to being in the bathroom, one said he was yelling at the other two to shut up and one admitted he was totally oblivious with his headphones on playing WOW.  Out of four reasonably intelligent children, not one knows what happened!  I even had one child suggest that "Maybe nobody did it.  Things just happen sometimes, you know..."

(Yes, and pigs fly and I'm going to win the lotto and my son is going to MIT - are you kidding me?!!)

I can now see parallels in what Pink Floyd was trying to convey and the insanity I felt cursing through every brain receptor.  I know in my head that yes, someone did it and I'm even fairly certain of who, but can I punish without proof?!  There was nobody to witness, there was no hard evidence!  There wasn't a child hinting at blame to another.  I watch Law and Order - had I gone to trial, I would have lost!  The insanity of it all makes me dizzy as I realize that my beautiful, loving children are slowly breaking me - they are turning the lessons of logit I taught them to their own advantage - they are poking holes in my mommy bubble!!

It is at this point, just before the blackness closes in, that I take a deep breath and pour myself a glass of wine.  I am determined to rebuild my mommy bubble, but until such time my finances can stretch to re-tile the shower, it will be with Visqueen and duct tape.  Not the prettiest fix, but that is their problem.  It is after all, just another hole in the wall.  :)

Time goes by so fast... Vancouver in Whirlwind-Vision

Certain things make you feel old.  Not just the general feeling of waking up a little bit more achy than you did yesterday, but things that put the exclamation point in your ailing knee, or the extra "slight gray" in your hair-  there are things that drive home that not only are you older than you were yesterday, but you are infinitely older than you ever pictured yourself in your teen years.  Viewing the pictures of all my kids in this Blog made me feel that old, but looking at the time progression of Jade and Forrest between the two pictures in front of the same fountain five years apart I think effected me deeply.  My children have gone from small, cute and slightly niave, to tall, confident and slightly sexy.  This really drives home the fact that I have aged just as much as they, in what seems such a short amount of time.

I must say, though I am taking it in stride, I can definitively say that I am not one to go "quietly into the night."  I will, in most certainty, fight the aging process with every tool I have.  It started in Canada during my daughters' cheer trip with a trip to Capilano Bridge.  I am incredibly afraid of heights in my "old age" and though I may have skipped across this bridge as a ten year old, I now faced it with fear and loathing.  I did walk across it (though in a very hurried fashion with no stops to take pictures) along with several other smaller suspended walkways and I am feeling younger for it already.  Just the first step of many... I hope.

Anyway - I hope you enjoy the pictures of our trip to Jade and Lily's cheer competition and the one adventure we had time for.  AND, if you have any tips for turning back the clock, please let me know.  :)

Love,

Shannon

Yep - we were definitely not in Kansas anymore...

Beautiful day in Vancouver BC.

Time Travel:  Jade and Forrest at the International Sea To Sky cheer competition 2007. 

Jade and Forrest, again in front of the same fountain, at the S2S Competition in 2012.  Not so little anymore...

All of my children in front of the fountain of lost youth...

I got it... I think... Talis - help me out man...

I'm just along for the ride - this cheer stuff is really boooorrring...

Oh!  I got it!  I got it!  Take the picture now!

Talis as a fountain...

Talis-Forrest Fountain

Forrest as a Fountain

I almost deleted this from the  blog, but Jade reminds me of that girl from The Ring here...

Success!!!

Sisterly love...

Talis:  What the h#ll are they doing??

I don't remember what the girls called this pose, but I call it "Dork by Design"

"Ok, I posed for some pictures, can we go home NOW?"

Jadey's team.  Third place finish - GoForce!

First time in Canada - TOURIST!!!

Justen thought the gas station in the middle of the bay was way cool...

Giant pile of sulfur.  Though I don't understand the significance I posted the pic for my honey.

City view from the Convention Center

KathyAnn, Jadey and Taylor - I love these girls!!!

Last Day in Vancouver:

Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver, BC.  Beautiful  area, but heights are just not my thing...

Yep - this one is definitely going in the Christmas picture book...

Waiting on the boys...

My eldest children

The Girls

My youngest - He's so cute...

Have I told you that I'm deathly afraid of heights???

The kids and Hubby had no problem "sauntering" across the bridge.

Entrance to the tree linked suspension bridges - these weren't as high and I  managed to cross all without a pill or shot of whiskey...

Such cutie pies - now if only they didn't talk...

Entrance to the Cliff Walk - This picture was taken right as my children were telling me that if I didn't follow they would come back and push me across.

Yep - I crossed that!!  Yay me!

Jade and Forrest posing on the glass bottom view point...

I must say it took some coaxing to get me to do it, but I did walk out and pose for a picture.  I received applause from no less than 12 tourists after this pic was taken as I ran to the safety of the wooden walkway...

Pictures just don't do it justice...

Finally on our way home...

Lil and Jadey working off some pent up energy in the middle of the freeway while we were stuck on the pass for an hour... (no children were harmed in the taking of this picture - we all made it home safe and sound)