Duck Dynasty Box 

(come on we are in Lousiana!)

Mustache Box (great for Mo-vember!)

Good for July 4th and Veteran’s Day too!

For Thanksgiving (I like to add the Sunday Comics in my boxes too!)

(we’re big fans of Walking Dead!)

 Christmas Box 

12 Gifts of Christmas Theme filled with wrapped presents and a stocking.

We even made his favorite Peanut Brittle! 

 

 

 

 

I sent him a card with pictures of his (breakable/large) gifts that I kept at home for him.

Including chocolate and sparkling cider with plastic champagne glasses. 

 With hand painted Valentine’s hearts and a box of chocolates.

My friend Bailey created these cute boxes for her love. How creative is she?

 Banner hung outside: CHECK!

Awesome quality and design and FREE for military from Build A Sign

The sign outside the EOD shop where the ceremony was held.

Ava and I patiently waiting for the bus to arrive.

 Our guys were escorted home by these motorcyclists and they stayed for the whole ceremony.

There’s Ashton getting off the bus and getting in formation!!

Welcome Home 705th EOD!

Thanks to Clearly Precious Photography and Christal Gavin Photography for the group shots.

Finally in each other’s arms!

Daddy brought Ava a toy and after a minute of being unsure….

she ran right into his arms too!

 

The Hood Family: together again!

Pictures from Sara Clance Photography

I chose to use a boxed angel food cake mix, which only requires the addition of water. 

Bake in a 9X13 pan and place a baking sheet underneath in case of overflow. Bake according to box instructions which should be around 30-35 minutes. 

Cool in the pan, then flip over onto a baking sheet. 

Slice in half width wise with a serrated knife, forming two layers.

I use room temp strawberry cream cheese spread so it is smooth and easy to spread. 

Spread strawberry cream cheese all over the bottom inside layer.

Add the top layer back on. Now time to frost the cake.

These few ingredients make a fluffy whipped frosting that is perfect for this angel food cake!

Cube up softened cream cheese. 

Using a cold bowl and beaters (I put mine in the freezer for 30 minutes) mix 

together cream cheese and sugar until smooth. 

Add heavy cream slowly to the bowl.

Fresh and delicious Driscoll’s strawberries are beautiful on this cake. 

Using about 1 cup or 15 strawberries, stem and thinly slice each berry. 

Add about 1/2 of whipped frosting to the top of the cake and spread over the top and sides.

Smooth frosting over the entire cake and then decorate with fruit. 

Now add sliced strawberries in four rows slightly overlapping each other. 

These are the stripes.

A beautiful American Flag Cake to serve my military man!

Pretty and delicious too! 

Ava had a piece too and loved it just as much as her Daddy.

Our family is complete again. 

 My husband Ashton is gone on his first deployment and I am always trying to think of fun and creative things to send in his care packages. After searching on Pinterest for care package ideas I came across numerous cake in jar recipes. I loved the clever idea of baking a cake in a jar and then sealing it so it stays moist and fresh for a month plus. So I decided for this month’s care package for Ashton I would make his favorite cake, Red Velvet, and bake and send it in a jar!
Don’t be intimidated. This recipe is super simple. However, you can also use any box mix and bake in a jar too! Or think “out of the box” and bake brownies, pie, or bread in a jar!

View my how to video here!

My grocery store was out of large bottles of red food coloring so I bought the assorted pack with a smaller bottle. One of these small bottles is only 1 tbsp so if you want a bright red cake you will need 2 bottles.

Combine softened butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and mix on medium until creamed.

Add eggs and vanilla.

In a separate bowl mix flour, cocoa powder, and salt.

Sift together and combine back in a bowl.

In a small cup mix buttermilk and red food coloring

 (1-2 tbsp depending on how bright of red you want).

Finally, in a small bowl mix white vinegar and baking soda. It will fizz up. 

Add it immediately to the batter. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mix the batter together and now you are ready to bake!

I pour my batter into a measuring cup so it is easier to pour into the jars.

Spray jars with non stick spray 

Fill each jar halfway with batter.

Place jars on a baking sheet, about 6 on each sheet. 

Bake at 400 degrees for 20-30 min (I baked mine for closer to 30 min).

While the cakes bake, place lids (tops only) in a small saucepan

 filled with water and bring to a boil. After the water boils, turn off heat, and let the lids sit in the hot water the entire time the cakes bake.

I used the leftover batter to make mini cupcakes!

Cakes in jars fresh out of the oven! Don’t worry about them baking higher than the rim of the jars. When you seal the lids on, the cakes will go down.

As soon as the jars come out of the oven, remove the hot lids out of the hot water with tongs and dry off with a towel. Place on top of jar and screw on ring tightly.

Let jars cool, and in about 30 minutes, they will seal and the lids will pop. 

Your cakes will stay fresh and moist!

Ava helped me wrap up the jars in bubble wrap and

 pack the care package up for her Daddy.

I decorated the jars with ribbon, patriotic gift tags and included a jar of cream cheese frosting!