Category: Meal Planning

A Year in Review: Top Posts from 2022

Published on by Susie @ Pollywog's Place BlogLeave a comment

We hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and we pray that you have a Happy New Year! Our house is full as we’ve had some older kiddos visiting but that makes our hearts full as well so we have a good balance going on.

It’s hard to believe that this year is almost finished and a new year is about to begin. It’s definitely been an interesting year in many ways… the past couple of years have been interesting and have brought lots of hardships and trials but they have also brought us lots of unexpected blessings.

I read something earlier about letting out tears from 2022 be the seeds for 2023 and that sounds like a good idea to me. I know that 2022 has been a year of major adjustments here in our household. After spending most of 2021 in the hospital with Shyanne and away from our family, it has been quite an adjustment for everyone. I’ve also been dealing with some health issues but hopefully, I am on the way to getting better. It’s been a tough year for sure and it’s definitely been a struggle to get this far but we survived and I have faith that next year will be even better!

Continue reading “A Year in Review: Top Posts from 2022” →

Oh, Baby! It’s Cold Outside!

Published on by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog1 Comment

It’s been a little chilly here in Florida but I’m sure that it’s even chillier in other parts of the country right now. We have been told that this may be the coldest Christmas since the early 80s! Will we see any snow? That is the question on all the kiddos’ minds right now.

When it’s chilly outside we love to keep warm with some hot soups and such. Here are a few of our family favorites!

You can also check out some of our no-fuss crockpot meals for an easy dinner on cold days when you don’t feel like doing much.

What are your family’s go-to soups for this chilly season?

Made From Scratch Gifts

Published on by Susie @ Pollywog's Place BlogLeave a comment

Are you tired of wasting your money on gifts that just aren’t appreciated? Or maybe you’ve noticed that your dollar just doesn’t stretch as far as it used to?

Well, here are a few gifts that are sure to be well-loved and appreciated!

These are always a hit around our home and everyone who gets any as gifts always ask for more!

Apple Butter

Apple Pie Filling For Canning

Canned Pumpkin

Crockpot Applesauce

Crockpot Pumpkin Butter

Easy Crockpot Apple Butter

Fudge — Always a Winner!

Continue reading “Made From Scratch Gifts” →

It’s Just About Fudgin’ Time!

Published on by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog3 Comments

It’s just about that time of year when I need to get started on my Christmas Fudge. I definitely need to get it made before the Polar Express Party so we can share it with our family and friends who may come to visit.

Here are the recipe links for the fudge flavors that we have made in the past:

The Milk Chocolate Fudge has several flavor variations to try.

Butter Pecan Fudge

Easy Peanut Butter Fudge

Milk Chocolate Fudge (Christmas Fudge) — several flavor variations!

Peanut Butter Fudge

Peppermint Bark

Red Velvet Fudge

I am hoping to try a couple of new flavors this year… maybe even an egg nog flavor! It’s always fun trying out new flavors and sometimes we have great success while others are total flops but we have fun trying!

Here are some of the other candies that we make around this time of year as well:

Caramel Pecan Candies

Chocolate Covered Eggs (updated with more flavors!) (shape into balls for Christmas Candy)

Chocolate-Dipped Goodies

Crockpot Chocolate Peanut Clusters aka Reindeer Poop

Haystacks aka Noodle Cookies (2 versions here) 

We hope you find these recipes easy to use and we pray that you have a blessed holiday season!

Let us know in the comments what your favorite Christmas Candy is!

Hot Cocoa for the win!

Published on by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog3 Comments

There’s nothing like snuggling up with a cup of hot cocoa after coming in from the cold… ok, ok, I know… it doesn’t really get that COLD here in Florida but I sure can remember some cold days from my

time further north and I still enjoy a nice cup of hot cocoa every now and then.

I can remember my mom making us a pot of cocoa on the old wood cookstove. We would sip as much as we could before we had to head out the door to catch the school bus… at one time we had to walk 1/2 mile uphill to get to the bus and in another place we lived it was an even further walk downhill… not much easier if the driveway was iced over.

Here are some of our All-Time Favorite cocoa recipes:

Cocoa In A Crockpot

Hot Cocoa (Powdered)

Single-Serve Hot Cocoa

The Best Hot Cocoa

Of course, you can always use the ready-made kind at the store too but there is just something a little extra special about whipping up some cocoa from scratch and the memories you make will be cherished for a lifetime!

You can also whip up some fresh cookies to go along with your cocoa for an extra special snack!