The Donut of Misery and Cake In a Jar

I have alluded to this donut in another blog but I figured I would share its meaning in more detail. Somewhere down the line a military spouse or family created an Excel Spreadsheet that graphs and charts the time down to the second until your loved one comes home!

You can Google Donut of Misery to find the link. Simply put in the beginning and ending date of any countdown and it will work its magic. We use Max’s birthday as our end date because we do not have a coming home timeframe at this point.

So far we are 62% DONE with this deployment. We have already finished 7.38 Months, 31.63 Weeks, 221.44 Days, 5314.48 Hours, and a WHOLE LOT of minutes and seconds.

It’s a fun way to countdown what we have accomplished and what we have left to do.

Cake In a Jar
Here is a really cool recipe idea for sending mini cakes inside canning jars to a loved one or friend who is far away from you. You can use any cake mix just be sure to cook thoroughly so the inside is cooked completely. I plan on bubble wrapping and including some pre made frosting in my next care package for Rob and his pod mates. Chocolate cake and Spice Cake all the way to Iraq!

INGREDIENTS
1 (18.25 ounce) package cake mix
8 straight-sided wide-mouth pint canning jars with lids and rings
DIRECTIONS
Prepare the cake according to package instructions, or use any cake recipe.
In pint size, straight-sided wide-mouth jars, put 1 cup of batter in each greased jar. Make sure to keep the rims of the jars clean. Put in preheated oven 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place jars on a cookie sheet to keep from tipping over while baking.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.
While they are baking, have your jar lids boiling in a pan of water. When the cake is done, take one jar out at a time and add the hot lid and screw on your jar ring and let set and cool.
It will seal as it cools. Place the jars on the counter and listen for them to 'ping' as they seal. If you miss the 'ping', wait until they are completely cool and press on the top of the lid. If it doesn't move at all, it's sealed.
After it cools it will pull away from the jar and when you are ready to eat, open and pop out the cake and enjoy.
Unsealed jars should be stored in the refrigerator and eaten within 2 weeks. Sealed jars may be stored in a freezer.

Much Love
Jess and Max