Everyone loves a small town parade!

Yesterday was Pioneer Day in our little town. Everyone goes to the parade in the morning to see the marching band, cheerleaders and all of the different groups that march in it. Hunter recently joined the Cub Scouts and got to march in the parade with his pack. He was so excited. I told Jim that the talk the Cub Scouts did this year at the elementary school was a good one because Hunter is so pumped to shoot bb guns, use a knife, camp out and all the good Cub Scout stuff.

Hunt looked adorable in his little uniform. Sadly, I had to ask my cousin Vicki to sew the patches on his shirt because I have no idea how to sew. I really need to work on that.

You have to look closely at one of the pics of Jim and Hunter walking along - I was watching them walk by me and noticed they were holding hands. That's a sweet little boy-he doesn't care if he's walking with all of his friends.....he stills holds our hands. So cute!

Meal In Honor of My Family In the South & Hurricane Gustav

I thought I would make a southern meal that my family typically eats.........just to honor Hurricane Gustav, which is heading right for the coast of Alabama, which is my favorite place in the world. I have family all over the South and I'm really worried that the hurricane will affect them. My Mom is in Birmingham, Alabama right now with her sisters (T calls them "Them Nanas"). She said the wind is gusting but other than that they haven't seen much from Hurricane Gustav.

I keep 3 big jars of pinto beans, split peas and mixed bean soup on my counter in the kitchen. It's a great go-to meal when I don't want to be bothered with cooking something for dinner. I just throw the beans in a pot with water and some ham or ham bone and dinner will be ready in about 3 or 4 hours. Pure heaven. Make a little cornbread and you've got a meal fit for a special family like mine.

Black Bean Brownies????

Found this recipe on the blog Dietingiswishfulshrinking.blogspot.com. They are only 3 points and apparently the black beans keep it super moist and healthy with tons of fiber. They sound horrible but I'll have to try 'em.

Black Bean Brownies
1 box Betty Crocker Low Fat Fudge Brownie mix
1-15oz can unseasoned black beans in water, drained and rinsed, pureed in
¼ cup water
I pureed the black beans and the water in my Magic Bullet food processor then mixed it with the brownie mix then dumped the mix in a greased 12 muffin tin. You basically follow the baking directions on the package. I just so happened to use the muffin tin as it’s more accurate as far as a serving size. Sure, it turned out my muffins were 3 points each (I found out that the gentleman in my meetings makes these one point by cutting the brownies into very small servings- my cavities are bigger than what he is dishing up so I went with the muffin tin).
162 calories
2 grams of fat
5 grams of fiber = 3 points
So not only were they brownie/muffins DE-LISH (there is not even a hint of bean taste) but they are packed with fiber and super low in fat making them great even for people not on Weight Watchers. And one of the very, very best parts of these brownies? You can lick the bowl clean without fear of salmonella from the raw eggs typically used in other brownie recipes.