Hi there and welcome to the special Mother's Day Edition of the Hillbilly Housewife Newsletter. Not only will you find plenty of tips, ideas and recipes, perfect for Mother's Day, there's also a new look and a new format to the newsletter. Of course there's also a matching new look for the HBHW website. I can't tell you how excited I am to share this with you. It has been in the works for the past few months and wouldn't have been possible without my wonderful graphic designer Sharon and my friend Tracy who has been instrumental in this design and newsletter overhaul. I hope you'll like it as well. 

I love the idea of having all the newsletter content directly within the email to you, without having to download a pdf. I hope you agree. Let me know what you think. 

In addition to all the great mother's day info in this newsletter, I'd also like to share a little free mother's day report with you that my friend Christine from http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/mpc has put together. Just click on the link below, print it and hand it off to hubby and the kids.

Mother's Day Recipes and Crafts Report

That's it from me this week. I'm getting ready to curl up on the couch for a bit to read and then tackle the rest of my day. I hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day and a great overall weekend.

Until next week, 

Susanne - The Hillbilly Housewife
www.HillbillyHousewife.com 

• 1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

• 2 Tablespoon powdered sugar

• 4 Tablespoon butter, optional 

• 2 Tablespoon milk 

• 3 eggs, beaten 

• 3 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced 

• 8 slices bread, white or whole wheat 

• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 

• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract 

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar 

Mix the cream cheese, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon until you have a smooth mixture. Spread some of this on one side of the bread. Top with sliced strawberries, covering the spread completely. 

Spread more of the mixture on another piece of bread and place on top. Press sandwich together gently to enclose strawberries inside. Repeat for all remaining slices of bread. 

Mix eggs and milk together and set aside. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with  cooking spray and place in oven. Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter in a skillet. 

Take sandwiches and place in egg and milk mixture covering both sides. Lay sandwich in the skillet and cook until the first side is lightly brown. Flip sandwich and cook the other side. 

Once both sides have browned, place it on the baking sheet in warm oven. Before serving, top French toast with remaining strawberries and powdered sugar. Drizzle with maple syrup or this Strawberry topping. 

• Pancake Recipe
• Banana Pancakes
• Buttermilk Fennel Facial Cleanse (makes a great gift) 
• 4 Ingredient Cookies (easy for the kids to make) 

35 Simple and Tasty Chicken Crockpot Recipes

I love my crockpot. There are quite a few days when I couldn't put a home-cooked meal together without it. It's so easy and convenient to dump everything in the pot in the morning, turn it on and then go about my day. When dinner time rolls around, the food is ready to eat and after dinner there's only one pot to clean up. 

Chicken is perfect for crockpot cooking. Buy it on sale and throw it in your freezer. You can change out different cuts of chicken. For example, if a recipe calls for chicken breast, but thighs are on sale at your grocery store that particular week, feel free to use them instead. 

Many kids are not sure what to do for Mother's Day.  They may think planning for Mother's Day is going to be too hard, so they just let the grownups take charge.  However, with a little help, kids can easily give their mother a gift of their choosing and a day that they will be proud of.  From a kid's viewpoint, they want something they can plan easily and accomplish all by themselves (or at least almost all by themselves.)

Of course, most plans require the help of a grownup, but kids really like the idea of choosing their own surprise. So, kids, take a look at the easy ideas below, choose one or two, and make this Mother's Day unforgettable.  When you've chosen something special to do for your mother, show a grownup and make your plan.  Here are some ideas: