Tip Tuesday: Surefire Cure for Hiccups!

Okay, so the other day I was trying to think of something that would be a good tip to share. Something that has been useful for me to know that others would possibly appreciate and I remembered how to cure hiccups! Okay okay, I can't take ALL the credit....actually, one of my best friends shared this tip with me a couple years ago and honestly, it has NEVER failed.

SOOO...do you wanna know? It's so simple and may sound a little ridiculous but trust me. It works!

Here's what you do:

Take a glass and fill it with water.

Now, drink from the opposite side of the glass.

That's it. Really.

I know what you're thinking..."Yeah right, like that's gonna work." I'm right there with ya. When my friend  told me, I thought it was a joke too...because he is always finding some way to tease me like I'm his little sister. SO I was waiting for the "catch". But really, there is none :) I promise, every single time I have used this it has worked! I even shared the tip with a friend of mine and she said it worked for her too. Sooo...if you try it and it works PLEASE let me know. If it doesn't then share that too. Love to hear from ya!

Sweet Potato Casserole

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Okay, so here's a recipe that is a Thanksgiving staple in my home. It's a MUST-MAKE no matter what for my DH. He loves this recipe. Most sweet potato casseroles have a marshmallow topping and while I do like those, I really love this brown sugary crust much better.

Ingredients

4 1/2 cups mashed sweet potatoes

1/2 cup butter softened

1/3 cup milk

1 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2eggs, beaten

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup butter

1 cup chopped pecans (optional....I don't ever put them in. I did once and it was delicious but DH didn't like it)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. So first thing is first peel your sweet potatoes. I used these two huge sweet potatoes and they were plenty. If you see my cutting board it's about 15 inches wide and the one was almost that long. Then cut the potatoes up small. The smaller they are the quicker they'll cook. Don't boil the water first. Rinse the potatoes and put them in the pot. Fill with water till just covered. Add salt and cover with a lid. This will help to quicken the boiling process. Cook over med-high heat. When the water begins to boil, take off the lid so that it doesn't overflow. The water is pretty starchy so just like with pastas, water will boil over if a lid is on the pot.

Next drain the potatoes and put back in the hot pot. This will help dry them out so that there is not too much excess moisture. Mash potatoes but don't over mash unless you like it to be pretty smooth. I like my sweet potatoes to have lumps (but not my mashed potatoes). Add the milk, butter, sugar and vanilla. Stir gently.

Next we want to temper the eggs. Since the potatoes are hot, if we add eggs now then we'll have scrambled eggs mixed in our potatoes. Gross. SO first put your eggs in a bowl and beat with a fork or whisk. Next add a tablespoon of the sweet potato mixture and mix. Do this a couple more times to bring the temperature of the eggs up slowly. Now add the eggs to the sweet potatoes. Mix together gently.

Place in a casserole dish.

In a small mixing bowl mix the flour and brown sugar. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or two knives until resembling coarse crumbs.

Pour brown sugar evenly over the potatoes. Bake in a preheated oven for 30-40 minutes until the brown sugar forms a crust.

 Hope you enjoy this as much as my family does!

Click HERE to print the RECIPE ONLY

Tips Tuesday: Reading to Your Kids

Okay, so it's time for your tip of the week! Aren't you excited? Well, a friend shared this article with me and I thought I'd pass it along. It's from the New York Times and talks about how reading to your kids can improve their scores in school. DH and I try to do this already . However, sometimes life is so hectic and can be hard to find a minute to just sit down period let alone sit down and read a book. When it was just Princess8 in the house we had all the time in the world (or now it seems), but now with 3 princesses in the house it's a juggling act to get to each of them equally. We don't read every night, but try at least a couple times a week. Actually, I am able to read chapter books with my Princess8 which I LOVE since I myself am a bit of a bookworm. We read Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew series and now are reading The Indian in the Cupboard. Princess5 loves anything pink and girly so she is on a Pinkalicious/Purplicious kick. She also loves Princess Sparkle and Fancy Nancy. Princess2 loves Elmo and Blues Clues but really, she loves anything we make interesting. So, maybe this will give you a little motivation to read to your kids. We aren't perfect by any means but I am glad to know that this really helps.

Read How About Better Parents by Thomas L. Friedman