Healthy Treats to Indulge In

With the end of the year coming to an end and Christmas right around the corner indulging in a million and one sweets and gaining the extra 10lbs that you have to crunch and work off before summer try these. They are sweet and super easy to make! 

Healthy Treats:

Well I thought it’d be best to start with the healthy treats first so here are some that I’ve found and done and have been great!

Chocolate Crunch:

I got this recipe from www.eatingwell.com

Ingredients:

3 cup Wheat Chex cereal, (2 ounces)

3 cup pretzel sticks broken in half, (2 ounces)

3/4 cup salted roasted almonds, (2 1/2 ounces)

9 tablespoons bittersweet chocolate chips, melted

Preperation:

Combine Chex, pretzels and almonds in a medium bowl. Drizzle with melted chocolate; stir to combine. Spread the mixture on a wax paper-lined baking sheet and refrigerate until the chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

-Makes 12 servings of 3/4 cups each

Baked Cinnamon Apples:

I got this recipe from TLC and I absolutely love it!
Ingredients:

4 Sheets (18x12in) heavy-duty foil, lightly sprayed with nonstick cooking spray4 Large Granny Smith or Rome Beauty Apples

1/3 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cut dried cranberries (i use raisins)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter cut into 4 pieces

(and if you want some extra sweet flavoring add some vanilla ice cream)

PREPARATION:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Core apples. Using paring knife, trim off 1/2-inch strip around top of each apple. Place each apple in center of foil sheet.

2. Mix brown sugar, cranberries and cinnamon in small bowl. Fill apples with sugar mixture, sprinkling any excess around pared rim. Place 1 piece butter on sugar mixture; press gently.

3. Double fold sides and ends of foil to seal packets, leaving head space for heat circulation. Place packets on baking sheet.

4. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Carefully open foil packets; shape foil around apples. Bake 10 minutes more or until apples are tender. Remove from oven. Transfer apples to bowls; spoon remaining liquid over apples. Serve warm apples with ice cream.

PTSD

So as the month of December rolls around I realized I've neglected writing on our blog. So here's an update. We moved from Texas to Tennessee. I just celebrated my 22nd birthday end of October. We've become amazing at money management and I am so happy that my husband is so amazing in everything he puts his mind to. We are so excited to be getting things done and ready to start the new year and hopefully buying our first house together.


Ok so now that the little recap is over let us get down to brass tacs. I'm struggling with my husbands PTSD. He is a veteran and served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and is currently stationed at Fort Campbell. He's suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder since 2010. Now in my personal opinion his ncos and higher ups should be helping him with getting help. In the past 5 months he has slept walked countless times, woke up in his parents sand volleyball court, woke up in the truck with his pistol loaded and truck running (he sold his pistol after that), woke his entire parents house up yelling about finding weapons to kill haji, pulled a knife out on me in his sleep and even punched me in the face when he was dead asleep. He flinches in his sleep throws things around and screams in his sleep as well. any movies or video games that come on that resemble a war zone make his PTSD act up. So as anyone can see he needs help. Yet why don't they want to help him? He asks for help and they look at him as weak yet I think anyone who is actually capable of asking for help deserves it. He doesn't want to hurt his family but the military should be helping him right? Everyone he talks to about what could they have him do all say he has to do something drastic like say he is going to commit suicide but why would he want that on his record? And honestly if he became so depressed he actually considered it I wouldn't think it was because he wanted attention. How many times can one person ask for help and be turned down especially when they served our country? And what can I do to try and help besides just being supportive? It worries me as well and the stress is extremely difficult. Any advice would truly help.

Do It Yourself Everything!

So any of you that read mine or Casey's status' I'm on a huge do it yourself kick. From home decor to cleaning supplies. Thanks a bunch to my friend Ashley and her husband Willy (with their precious newborn) for always doing so many cool do it yourself projects I've gotten really into it myself.

For those of you who are on a tight budget or even those of you who aren't and are frugal with your money here are some good money savers. First food. A family of 4 that eats out at fast food every night will spend an average of  $140 a week or more. Thats approximately $20 a night. Making meals every night (though tedious) saves bundles of money. Simple meals that are many favorites, such as spaghetti, cost about $5 for a family. thats $1.25 per person! Most meals for a family with meats, breads, and veggies cost a max of $10 per night saving $70 a week! I don't know anyone who doesn't think that having an extra $70 a week is awesome.

DIY Cleaning Supplies: Anywhere on the internet you can find recipes for cleaning supplies that you can make yourself...and they really work!

1) Laundry soap: some people have a big issue with changing laundry soap because of skin sensitivity or they're just used to their favorite brand but trying to make it once is definitely worth it.

Recipe:
-Get 2 bars of your favorite bar soap any kind is fine but most preferred is Ivory, ZOTE, or Fels-Naptha
-2 cups of borax
-2 cups of washing soda (NOT BAKING SODA)
(All should be found at local grocery stores)

-Shave soap bars with fine grater into a bowl
-add 2cups of Borax and 2 cups of Washing Soda
-Mix for about 5min and enjoy!
(this makes up 64-128 loads depending on how many Tbsp used per load and is about $0.05 per load)

2) Surface cleaner

Recipe:
-Empty Milk Jug
-2Tbsp ammonia
-1Tbsp dish detergent
-2cups rubbing alcohol
-Few drops of of your favorite essential oils (I personally like orange or lemon)
- and a couple drops of food coloring (optional)
-Fill the rest of the jug with Hot water and pour into spray container to use as needed

3) Window Cleaner

Recipe:
-This one can be made right in your spray bottle. 

-½ tsp mild dish detergent

-3Tbsp vinegar

-2 cups water  

-Put all these ingredients into a spray bottle.  Shake this up some and use it just like the commercial variety

4) Floor Cleaners

Recipe for regular floors:

-1 cup vinegar 

-1 gal warm water

mix in bucket and use

Recipe for hard wood floors:

-1/2 cup vinegar

-1 gal warm water

mix in bucket and remember to not soak wood floors with water.