Sundays, My Dad & Paula Deen Desserts

It is an absolutely beautiful Sunday here...cool temps, sunshine and a slight breeze. Reminds me of my Daddy so much! And just as I was thinking about how much this weather reminds me of my Dad, I sign online to check facebook and lo and behold, there is a video that my sister made in honor of my Dad, that I have seen countless times. My mom commented on it today, so it made it show up in my newsfeed...so once again, I watched it...and O M G the tears just flowed. I miss him so so much...we all do. I know everyone says they have the best Dad in the world but I kid you not...we do! Sure he had his faults (don't we all). But he was just the best...he worked hard, played hard (ha) and loved hard. We are all products of his love and a little bit like him in each our own way. I hope he is looking down on us and is proud of the adults we have all become. I know I am so proud to be called his daughter.
This is a family picture from 1982 - a western Halloween party at my sister's house...ha, this just cracks me up!

 

Family traditions are so special and so important....make sure you don't forget the little things that one day will be looked back on as the big things!

This is a Paula Deen recipe....easy to make and sinfully delicious!

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes

Ingredients

Cake:

• 1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
• 1 egg
• 8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 8 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer.

 Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: 

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth.

 Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. 

Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. 

 Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes.  

Check on them after about 35 minutes so you make sure not to overbake them. 

The center should be a little gooey.  

 Let the pan cool completely before you cut the squares. 

 Dust them with powdered sugar to make them extra pretty before serving them.

Reconnecting and Pumpkin Crunch!

I cannot believe it's 2 weeks since I have blogged! Time does get away from us doesn't it? The weeks just seem to pass by so quickly! Last weekend, Rene' and I spent the weekend away from it all...just he and I! I know...can you believe that? We talked about it and realized that was the 1st time we have done that in over 20 years! That is just terrible! But we made a promise to each other, to spend more time together and try to reconnect. You would think after 37 years, you would be really connected...but we weren't. Life happened. We have been through so much in the last 20 years. We became 2 different people after Joshua died...it was a gradual thing, but we really became 2 different people. After the death of a child, your whole world is turned upside down and you each deal with it differently. Statistics show that the majority of parents who lose a child, end up in divorce. I won't lie, it came so close to that so many times. But we stuck it out "for the kids". THAT is also not always the right reason to stay together. I often times questioned that. I only saw that Rene' had become so distant and unhappy and never fully dealt with his grief. After really thinking about it, he probably thought the same things about me. So we just dealt with what was and pushed it aside, thinking maybe if we didn't acknowledge it, it would just go away. Well, it didn't just go away. It festered, like a horrible disease. What a disservice to both of us...to our children. You know the old saying, if I could go back....well IF I could, things would be handled so differently. Anyway, we had a wonderful weekend...just US...we talked, we laughed, we cried and we reconnected. I am not saying it was a miracle and all is wonderful...but I saw the man that I fell in love with 38 years ago resurface...and I know why we made it through those hard times. I couldn't be happier....and I am pretty sure he feels the same way. So much time wasted...but still so much time ahead of us to enjoy our lives. And that is exactly what we plan on doing!

Life is good....grab every moment you can!

Look at that good looking couple wow!

Pumpkin Crunch Cake

15 oz can pumpkin; or 2 cups fresh pumpkin puree
1-12 oz can evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 box cake mix ( spice cake,yellow, butter or white)
1 cup melted butter
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Mix the pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, eggs, and cinnamon.

Spread mixture evenly in a lightly greased 9 x 13 baking pan.

Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over pumpkin mixture. Sprinkle the nuts over the top of the cake mix. Pour the melted butter evenly over the top of everything. Do not stir.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes or until top is browned.

 Let cool before serving. 

Refrigerate leftovers.

Recipe borrowed from
 http://thecuttingedgeofordinary.blogspot.com