Procrastination is a bad thing

Ok since I started my new job, I have come to discover the joy of procrastination. Between the kids, my job and school it seems that there are not enough hours in the day to cover everything. School to be honest is getting the short end of the stick in this instance, I am four classes from my Masters burnt out and seriously sick of not having a life on the weekends. It was so bad that last weekend I decided to flat out play hookie and go out of town. So now I get to play catch up to be sure the last two weeks goes smoothly, so my hats are off to all those moms and dads out there who try and balance everything and life without losing their minds.

Well its almost Halloween time and that means the rush for presents, our youngest will turn five on Halloween and the inevitable Christmas shopping raises its ugly head. Went shopping today you would not believe the insane stuff they market to kids, parents get to wade through zillions of toys that seem to only have one use. The babies favorite is a dog that swims to you in the bathtub, that its total claim to fame it walks and swims and is eletronic so that means the price tag is outrageous of course. I remember when toys were more simple and would keep a childs imagination active for more then five minutes.

As that wonderful pumpkin time approaches my children are asking everyday when the pumpkins can be bought, not only for the joy of ripping the guts our of pumpkins and making scarey faces but for a yummy treat as well.

Ingredients:

• Pumpkin seeds
• Cooking spray, olive oil, or butter
• Optional: Salt, garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt, or other seasoning of choice

Preparation:

Rinse pumpkin seeds. Use your fingers to remove all the pulp. Drain pumpkin seeds and discard pulp. Spread out on paper towels on a cookie sheet to dry overnight.

Preheat oven to 250 F. Line a baking sheet with non-stick foil.

Toss pumpkin seeds in olive oil, butter, or spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt, garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt, cayenne pepper, or your choice of seasonings. Toss to coat.

Bake about 1 hour, tossing every 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown.

Cool pumpkin seeds before eating. Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 months or refrigerate up to 1 year.

If you like your toasted pumpkin seeds extra-salty, soak overnight in a solution of 1/4 cup salt to 2 cups of water. Dry an additional day, then proceed as above.

For more pumpkin yummies see them at
http://homecooking.about.com/od/vegetablerecipes/r/blv310.htm