RACKS and Mooby

Despicable Me Minion Party

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 00:06:00 +0000

Boogie just turned six. Seriously?? Where does the time go?? For this party, she wanted to go the Despicable Me route. We love those movies - so fun! And the minions? How cute are they?

Despicable Me Minion Party

As usual, I tried to fit the theme while keeping costs low. Here are some photos of the food and decorations for your viewing pleasure. I designed the food labels myself in PowerPoint and then printed them on photo paper. Always a cute and fun touch, I think.

Despicable Me Party - El Macho's Salsa

Despicable Me Party - Agnes' Caterpillars (Cheese Puffs and Carrots)

Despicable Me Party - Shrunken Moons (Powdered Donut Holes)

Despicable Me Party - Fluffy Unicorn Fur (cotton candy)

Despicable Me Party - Cookie Robots and Coco-nutties

And of course, the cake. I was inspired by a cake I found HERE and modified it slightly for my skill-level. First I cut a homemade sheet cake to form. Next I colored some vanilla frosting yellow and blue and used cherry-flavored black licorice for some fun details. The buttons and eyeball were upside-down Hershey kisses. And the large part of the eye was a frosting covered peppermint patty. Finally, I used silver sprinkles along with some black tube frosting for the goggles. I have to say, I think it came out pretty good if I do say so myself! :)

Despicable Me Party - DIY Minion Cake

I bought plain yellow and purple balloons and decorated them with some free printables I found online (can't remember where).

Despicable Me Party - Evil Minion DIY Balloon

Despicable Me Party - Minion DIY Balloon

The table was decorated as a giant minion. I used a blue and a yellow plastic table cloth layered over each other for the body and pants. Black poster board made the goggles along with a piece of aluminum foil, tissue paper and construction paper. So easy but such a fun detail!

Despicable Me Party - Minion table

Since we decided to do a viewing of Despciable Me 2 on BluRay, we only had one organized activity. A "Pin the Goggles on the Minion" game. I bought a piece of yellow poster board and free-handed a minion on it with a black marker. I added some scrapbooking paper for the overalls. And then used a free goggle printable I found HERE for... well... the goggles. :)

Despicable Me Party - Pin the Goggles on the Minion Game

There were a few other decorative details around the room such as:

THIS free printable banner which was hung in the dining room.
THESE free printable wrappers which went around Twinkies as a 'thank you' giveaway.

Overall, I think it was a big success and so much fun to pull together.

Puppy Party!!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 20:43:00 +0000

When SweetPea turned seven (what?!?) we went with a PUPPY PARTY theme. It was definitely a fun party to pull together. As usual, it was all DIY and I tried to keep costs down as much as possible. The concept was that the guests would be able to adopt a puppy and, of course, there were plenty of puppy-related snacks!

It's time for a PUPPY PARTY!

Here are the highlights...

I was able to score a dozen dog beanie babies on eBay for about $5 - bargain!! These were used for the adoption center and each guest was allowed to choose one to keep. I designed the sign in Powerpoint and printed on photo paper. The puppies were placed in cute plastic buckets that were left over from Boogey's Rainbow Party (see here).

Puppy party adoption center

I found these super cute (free!) adoption certificates over at Chickabug and we filled one out for each guest and placed in a plastic sheet protector for safe keeping.

Free Puppy Adoption kit from Chickabug

Then the kids went over to the Puppy Spa where they groomed their puppies and placed a collar on them. The "tub" and brush/comb set were from the Dollar Tree. The "collars" were actually bracelets that I found on amazon (12 for $9). They were a little big for the beanie babies, but worked ok. Some kids actually just wore them as bracelets themselves.

Puppy Grooming Station

Bracelets acted as Dog Collars

Next they went to the "vet" where they picked up a packet of Puppy vitamins. These were simply fruit snacks that I placed in small plastic containers purchased in a 10-pack from the Dollar Tree. I printed up some small tags on photo paper and taped to the top of each lid.

Puppy Party Vitamins (Fruit snacks)

I don't have any photos of the last puppy "station", but I had a bunch of white sandwich bags which the kids could decorate with markers and puppy stickers found in the dollar spot at target.

There was plenty of puppy-themed food. I made the cake myself simply cutting a sheet cake with a hand-made template. And I designed all of the food labels myself in PowerPoint and printed them on Photo Paper. The dog bowls were purchased at the Dollar Tree.

Puppy Party Milk Bone Cake

Puppy Party Dogs in Blankets

Puppy Party Go Fetch Sticks (pretzel Sticks)

Puppy Party Frisbees (Pizza Bites)

Puppy Party PUP-corn

Puppy Party Puppy Chow (Cocoa Puffs)

Puppy Party Puppy Treats (Scooby Graham Snacks)

Puppy Party Water Bowl (Blue Jello)

Puppy Party RUFF-age

All of the kids had a great time! This was a fun party to pull together and I was pleased at how low I was able to keep the costs. Another success! :)

Recipe - Garlic Lemon Shrimp with Linguine (under 400 cal!)

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 22:17:00 +0000

I made this for dinner the other day and it was so good I though I would share the recipe.

(sorry this picture is so lousy but it I hadn't planned on posting about this so it was a very quick, last minute cell phone photo)

Garlic Lemon Shrimp Linguine

Garlic Lemon Shrimp with Linguine

(Serves 2)

What you need:

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
8 oz. uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (~ 14 extra large)
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 tsp lemon juice
¼ C. white wine *
¼ C. low-sodium chicken broth
1/8 C. fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 oz. uncooked linguine

*You can substitute the wine with very dry sherry or extra dry vermouth. Or simply double the chicken broth to ½ C. total liquid.

What to do:

Boil some water in a large pot and cook linguine according to package directions. (Once done, drain and keep warm until needed).

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season shrimp with salt and pepper. Add shrimp to pan and sauté until pink, about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and about ½ the parsley and sauté, stirring constantly, about 30 seconds more. Remove shrimp to bowl and keep warm (leaving as much garlic in pan as possible).

In the pan, add wine, broth, lemon juice and remaining parsley and bring to boil. Boil, uncovered, until the sauce is reduced by about half. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add cooked linguine to pan and toss to coat. Split pasta into two bowls and top with shrimp evenly. Sprinkle with a little more parsley, if desired.

I put the recipe into myFitnessPal and it stated... per serving: Calories = 366 and total fat = 7.2g. Not bad! (This recipe serves 2). (your values may vary depending on your ingredients, brands and measurements!)

This really came out so delicious and, despite the seemingly small portion, I was fully satisfied after the meal. I served with a fresh salad on the side. I hope you enjoy it too.

(recipe adapted from Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook Shrimp Scampi Recipe)

Happy 6th Birthday SweetPea!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:03:00 +0000

{Don't forget about my $50 Tiny Prints Giveaway! Click HERE to enter}

My older daughter turns 6 today. I really can't believe how fast time has flown. She is so beautiful - inside and out - and makes us smile every day.

Ocean City, MD - July 2012

And you're doing so great in Kindergarten!! Reading on a first grade level! You make us so proud.

First day of Kindergarten - Sept 2012

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETPEA!!

Cupcake Liner Turkeys {Kid Craft}

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 11:00:00 +0000

{Don't forget about my $50 Tiny Prints Giveaway! Click HERE to enter}

How about a fun little craft to do with the kiddos in anticipation of Thanksgiving?

Simply gather some of these....

Mason Jar of Cupcake Liners

... plus some construction paper, a glue stick and some markers. Oh yeah, and the kids! :)

Step by step directions:

1 - Let the kiddos choose a cupcake liner.

2 - Have them fold the liner in half.

3 - Glue liner to the construction paper. (these are your feathers/body)

4 - Take a second cupcake liner (with a light bottom), have child cut bottom circle out and glue circle to folded liner. Draw face on glued-on circle.

4 - Decorate "feathers" with markers, if desired.

5 - Admire! :)

Of course you can get fancy and embellish with real feathers or whatever else, but we really enjoyed the simplicity of our turkeys. :)

Cupcake Liner Turkeys - easy kid craft

Above you see the masterpiece created by my 4 year old. Love those turkeys! We just hung ours on display for everyone to enjoy, but they would make really cute placemats for Thanksgiving too.

What Thanksgiving crafts do you enjoy making with your little ones?

Linking up to parties here - check 'em out!

Someday Crafts
The Thrifty Home
House of Hepworths
Somewhat Simple
A Little Kinck Knack
The Frugal GIrls
While he was napping
Kitchen Fun with my 3 Sons
Simply Designing
Truly Lovely
Keeping it Simple
NIfty Thrifty Things
Under the Table and Dreaming
Krafty Kat

Tiny Prints Holiday Cards {Giveaway}

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 21:14:00 +0000

**GIVEAWAY CLOSED*

So it's that time of year again! My annual post on Holiday Cards! :)

I love getting holiday cards. I really do! Partly because I just love receiving "snail mail" that isn't junk or bills. I mean really, who doesn't love getting a REAL letter?? Isn't it such a treat?? But I also love hearing from friends and family that I just don't get a chance to see or talk to very often. Some folks send out beautiful holiday designs with lovely messages of holiday cheer. Others send the annual newsletter which allows you to catch up on what they've been doing all year. And others go the photo card route giving you a visual glimpse into their current lives. I love them all, but admit that photo cards are my holiday greeting of choice. I just love to see those old familiar faces as well always observe how all the kids have changed and grown over the past year. SO FUN!

I've been sending photo cards for over 5 years now. Last year I tried Tiny Prints for the first time and couldn't have been more pleased. The cardstock they use is so quality! Check out this fun video...

Now that is some high-class cardstock!! And the design options are plentiful. Here's what we ended up going with for 2011... It was a square, front and back design for which I used some photos from our family vacation out west to Arizona last summer.

Front

Back

Wasn't it fun?? I loved it!

So I've decided to go with Tiny Prints again this year. They've got such an amazing selection of Holiday Photo Cards that there is definitely something to please everyone! Here are just a few that pique my fancy this year...

I think that last one may take the cake! ;) But, seriously, I don't know how I'm going to choose! I can't wait to get started!

I recommend you give them a try too. They have so many fabulous choices in a variety of price ranges that they are sure to have something that suits your tastes and your budget! And be sure to check out their Special Offers page HERE to find a good deal.

Giveaway time!!!

One lucky RACKS and Mooby reader will win $50 off their total order at Tiny Prints!!

(Note: Code expires 12/14/2012 – no extensions! Code does not include shipping and cannot be combined with any other promos)

Use the Rafflecopter form below to enter! (give it a few seconds to load!) Giveaway ends November 14, 2012. Winner will be contacted by email so be sure I can reach you!

*GIVEAWAY CLOSED - winner announced below! * I never heard back from the first winner, so a new one was selected - check your email!*

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You can also check out the Tiny Prints Social Channels here:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Pinterest
• Instagram: Tiny Prints
• Google +
• Blog

Disclosure: This post has been sponsored by Tiny Prints. However, all opinions are 100% my own.

Let there be light!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 18:20:00 +0000

A little over a month ago I won a giveaway over on the awesome blog The CSI Project. My prize? The opportunity to design my very own lamp and lampshade from Lamps Plus using their very cool "Design It" feature! Woohoo!

We really were in desperate need of a new table lamp for our living room so this win was perfect timing. I played around with the different lamp bases available to me, but the real fun was in choosing a lamp shade. Talk about options! You get to choose from TONS of patterns but the really neat thing is that you can actually customize each of the colors used in that pattern. And you can even choose the trim color you want! Talk about personalization. Seriously, it was cool! And I highly recommend checking it out.

Anyway, we ended up going with a yellow shade as it is the accent color we're already using in that room. The lamp arrived within about a week of placing the order which was great. Here are a few pics of the lamp in the room.

And one final "full room" shot.

Well, I'm no interior decorator (I'm a numbers gal, remember?!), but I think it looks pretty darn nice! :)

What do you think? YAY for giveaways!! :)

How to {frugally} Dress up a Dessert Plate

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:55:00 +0000

I know I am a little late with this post as it relates to a craft I did for the 4th of July, but you really can use this "trick" for any occassion so I figured I would share it anyway. It's fast, super easy and ~~cheap~~ frugal. Just the way I like it! {TWSS} ;)

How to dress up a simple dessert plate

We went to a BBQ for the 4th of July and were asked to bring a dessert. I raided my pantry and found a box of funfetti brownie mix that I had bought on clearance after Christmas for some ridiculous price like 50 cents. The kids helped me whip the brownies up and instead of using the green, red and white "funfettis" that came with the mix (since the colors weren't exactly patriotic), we used our own mix of sprinkles from the pantry and just sprinkled them on top. YUM!

Who doesn't love some gooey brownies??

When it came time to pack them up and head out to the BBQ, I decided not to use one of my fancy glass/metal/ceramic platters so I wouldn't have to worry about cleaning it off when we left or leaving it there or whatever. So instead, I went for my dessert plate "trick" of choice which is to dress up a simple disposable plate.

First I selected a plate. I've done this before using those nice thick paper plates but didn't have any in my "stash" that day, so instead, I used a simple white stryofoam plate. Really any type of disposable plate will work for this project as long as the plate isn't too thick. You'll see why in a minute...

Next I took a hole puncher and made holes around the outer lip of the plate - about 1" apart. I just eyeballed it. (This is why you don't want the plate to be too thick or plastic or something that would be difficult to hole punch).

Then I found a piece of ribbon in my "stash" and threaded it through the holes.

Tie it off with a bow and TA-DAAA! From drab to FAB! :)

Since it looked a little too valentine-ish with all that red and white, I colored a few simple stars in the gaps with a blue Sharpie. Much better and definitely nice and patriotic. :)

Everyone thought the plate was so cute and I had no qualms about leaving it at the BBQ to be thrown away later!

What are some of your favorite ways to dress up otherwise plain items?

Linking up to these fun parties - be sure to check them out:
Someday Crafts
The Thrifty Home
The Frugal Girls

New Pillsbury Baguette Chips Review and a GIVEAWAY!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 12:29:00 +0000

*This post is sponsored by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

*GIVEAWAY CLOSED*

Source: General Mills via MyBlogSpark

As first mentioned HERE, I am a member of the online communicaty, "MyBlogSpark" through which I have the opportunity to "connect, share, and discuss" my thoughts on various products. Recently, I was asked to try out a new treat from Pillsbury called "Baguette Chips". Since they sounded so yummy, I said "why not?!" so they sent me a gift pack that included 3 bags of Pillsbury Baguette Chips in Italian Cheese & Herb and 3 bags in Cheddar Sundried Tomato.

Source: General Mills via MyBlogSpark

They arrived last week and we've been sampling away. Now before I give you my opinion on these chips, I'll share some stock information on the product:

"Looking for ways to spice up your snacking routines? Pillsbury knows just how you feel and wants to awaken your taste buds with their new Pillsbury Baguette Chips! These hearty chips are sliced from oven baked bread and topped with savory seasonings bringing the unique and contemporary flavors of Italian Cheese & Herb and Cheddar Sun-dried Tomato to gourmet snack chips. The delicious flavors and perfect texture of these crispy chips can help you round out any recipe.

Enjoy Pillsbury Baguette Chips for a wide range of occasions: eat them alone, add a bit more flavor to your favorite dip, spice up soup, or add some crunch to your salad!

With 130 calories per serving (21 baguette chips), and 50% less fat than regular potato chips*, Pillsbury Baguette Chips are delicious snack chips that you can feel good about eating.

*Pillsbury Baguette Chips (5g fat per 29g serving); regular potato chips (11g fat per 29g serving). See nutrition information for sodium content."

As mentioned, I was sent 3 bags of each flavor for sampling. Here is a photo of the Italian Cheese & Herb variety right out of the bag...

My first impression was "Wow! They're a lot smaller than I expected!". I placed them next to a dime for these photos to give you an idea of the size.

And here is a photo of the Cheddar Sun-dried Tomato variety...

Straight out of the bag and completely plain I have to say that I really liked the taste of these chips. They were really crunchy and had good flavor. And although the small size initially surprised me, it didn't detract from the yummy taste. Personally, I preferred the Cheddar Sun-Dried Tomato. I really liked the Italian Herb ones too, but found they were not as consistent in the amount of flavor on each chip. The Heela (my husband) had a hard time choosing for the same reason I just stated and ultimately said he also preferred the Cheddar Sun-Dried Tomato. Unfortunately, my 4 and 5 year old girls refused to try either one. *sigh*.

I decided to try them with a little cream cheese to offset the "crunch" with some "smooth" and was really pleased with how nice the contrast worked.

After eating a few more, I found that I actually really liked the smaller size of these chips. It made them more appropriate in my mind for a snack as oposed to other baguette 'chips' I've seen before that are more appetizer-sized. They are thinner too which made them more enjoyable, in my opinion. I think they are a nice alternative to regular chips and would definitely recommend trying them if you're looking for something a little different.

To download a printable coupon for $0.75 off one package, visit http://bit.ly/PBCcoupon today!

Now for the fun stuff...

~GIVEAWAY TIME!~

One lucky RACKS and Mooby reader will receive (3) Bags of Pillsbury Baguette Chips in Italian Cheese & Herb and (3) Bags of Pillsbury Baguette Chips in Cheddar Sundried Tomato (you'll receive 6 bags total!). To enter this giveaway, in the comment section below, let me know which flavor you’d like to see Pillsbury Baguette Chips come out with next?

**Giveaway Closed - winner has been contacted by email (congrats Lisa!)**

~~This giveaway will end on July 2 at 5 pm EST.~~ Winners will be contacted by email so please be sure to provide it in your comment (if not already linked to your profile).

Note: Giveaway is limited to US residents only.

For more information feel free to visit:
Pillsbury Website: http://goo.gl/fL5Fa
Pillsbury Facebook Page: http://on.fb.me/pad9ru
Pillsbury Twitter Page: http://bit.ly/q8CoIm

Disclosure: As part of my participation in this Spark from MyBlogSpark, I was provided (3) Bags of Pillsbury Baguette Chips in Italian Cheese & Herb and (3) Bags of Pillsbury Baguette Chips in Cheddar Sundried Tomato. The opinions expressed herein are my own and have not been influenced by the receipt of the chips. The product, gift pack, information in quotes above, and additional sample have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

Re-Generate your Green Onions? It's true!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 11:48:00 +0000

Several months ago I saw an idea on Pinterest that claimed you could re-generate green onions simply by placing the cut off stems in a cup of water. Ummmmm. Really? I mean, REALLY??? OK, I gotta admit, I was pretty skeptical. In fact, I didn't even repin it to any of my boards as I wasn't sure I was buying it.

Well, I happened to have a bundle of green onions on hand the other day for a recipe. So, I decided to give the old idea a try. I mean, it was worth a try, right? Well... follow me this way...

First I cut off the green stems and left the white roots strapped together by a rubber band.

How to re-generate green onions

Then I dropped the bundle into a small tupperware container, added some water and placed it on the ~~pathetic~~ ~~miniscule~~ ~~just plain old sad excuse of a~~ window ledge in the kitchen.

re-grow your green onions

Then I waited.

But not long.

Because...

By Day 3, my stubs looked like this...

And by Day 5, we were here...

And just ONE day later we already had this!

On to Day 8...

And here we are at Day 15. So it took about 2 weeks to get to this point. A not-quite-so-perfect, but damn-good-enough batch of green onions! WOW!

Regenerated Green Onions

What do you know?? It actually worked! Go figure! I will never buy green onions again! OK, well, that may not be true. To be honest, my re-growth isn't quite as "hardy" as a new batch of onions from the grocery store would be. But they'll work! And I can't say if these will re-generate again after I cut off those new green stems. BUT, I defintiely plan to give it a try! :) And I'll be sure to come back and update ya!

In the meantime, I highly recommend this trick at least once!

This post has been featured! Thank you so much! Please be sure to check out these fabulous blogs and their parties!

Linking up to these fun parties:

Kitchen Fun with my 3 sons

DIY Sidewalk Chalk Paint {fun kid activity!}

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 14:48:00 +0000

The Heela typically has to work 1 weekend a month. Both days. In addition to working all week. From 7am to 7pm. And, no, he doesn't get paid anything extra for it. Raw deal, huh?

Yeah, well, not only is it hard on him, but I admit that it is often a little challenging for me too on those weekend when he works because I not only have to get all of our "normal" weekend responsibilities done {by myself} that don't get done during the week since we both work full-time, but I also have to take care of {and entertain} those 2 pesky preschoolers known as SweetPea and Boogey. WHAT??? The horror!!! ;)

Just kidding. They're not THAT pesky.Just a little annoying with having to eat 3 meals a day plus 2 snacks and drinks. Greedy little boogers! AND they want to be kept busy for 12 hours straight. Geesh! Where was THAT in the manual??!! I'm not sure I recall signing up for that part of parenthood!

OK... I kid, I kid. They're fabulous! And I do a damn good job as Mommy, thank you very much. But I dare any of you to tell me it isn't hard work! ;)

Anyway.... on weekends like this we usually spend the first half of the day running around doing errands (after a quick stop at the park. Ever been to the playground at 8am? It is pleasantly empty. I highly recommend!). It usually involves a trip to the grocery store and/or Target or some other necessary (but terribly boring for a 4 and 5 year old) task. So I like to try and do something a little more fun/creative in the afternoons. After all, these kids usually spend 10 hours a day at pre-school during the week where they are constantly being entertained or, at least, doing some sort of educational activity so they are used to being kept busy! So Momma gotta deliver! And I can only convince them that scrubbing the tile floors is fun so many times, ya know? ;)

So this past month, I decided to try out one of the activities from my "Kid's Crafts Ideas" Pinterest board. (of course I went and accidentally deleted the pin and now I can't remember where I found this idea originally, but it is all over blogland in various forms)

DIY Sidewalk Chalk Paint

The recipe for this 'paint' is so easy it is barely worth listing out, but I'll do it anyway because it gives me something more to write about. [haha]. Basically, you want to combine 1 part water to 1 part cornstarch and then add a touch of food coloring. You can make your batches of each color paint as big or small as you want, but as long as you keep that one-to-one ratio, you'll be good to go. Here is what we did...

What you need (per color):

1/4 Cup Cornstarch

1/4 Cup Water

A few drops of food coloring (I used Wilton gels)

Ingredients needed for DIY Sidewalk Chalk Paint

What to do:

The mixing and storing method is up to you, but here is what we did...

In a plastic cup, dump in 1/4 cup cornstarch.

Next, add 1/4 cup water.

Add 1 part water to 1 part corn starch

Stir well. Be sure to get all those globs out!

Stir well

Add a few drops of food coloring and stir well again.

Repeat in a new cup for each color desired.

Paint!

(See, this isn't rocket science people! ;)

[note: The cornstarch will settle a bit as time passes so just be sure to stir up the paint before you use it each time]

We transferred our paints to a muffin tin so there was less chance of a cup tipping over and then headed outside with our paint brushes in hand. Here you go...

DIY Sidewalk Chalk Paint

I have to say that the effect of the 'paint' was pretty cool and really did look like chalk once the water had evaporated. We did this activity on a warm day so the water evaporated almost instantly which gave us instant gratification. All the better! We had more success seeing the different colors on the white sidewalk than we did on the black driveway (which was no surprise) so keep that in mind when choosing your "canvas". We also noted that some colors showed up better than others for us, but that didn't detract from the fun in any way. My girls really enjoyed this activity and I will definitely do it again!

Be advised that this is a messy activity (assuming your kids are normal) so be prepared with some baby wipes/towels/a hose for clean up before going back in the house!

The carnage

And since you're already so messy, you might as well follow this activity up with some juicy watermelon. :)

Now get out there and have some ~FUN~!!!

*UPDATE* Since a few people have asked... We did not have any problems with stains on clothes (or kids!) but I will caveat that by saying my girls are 4 and 5 and managed to keep their clothes relatively clean. They really got more of the “paint” on their legs, arms and hands, but no color remained after a quick washing up. But, to be safe, I don’t let my kids do messy crafts in their “sunday best” anyway. In terms of the pavement, we actually had rain that very night and, much to the girls dismay, the “paint” was completely washed away with no evidence of the fun time the day before. But, I’ll add the disclaimer, of course, that your experience may vary so use your own judgment.

This post was featured! Thank you! Be sure to check out these awesome blogs:

I was published!! In a real printed magazine!!
Check out the August 2012 issue of Elegant Impressions Magazine!

Linking up to these parties - go check 'em out!

Be Different Act Normal

Keeping it SImple

While he was Napping

Polish the Stars
Kitchen FUn with my 3 Sons

Pin the Pot of Gold on the Rainbow

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Tue, 29 May 2012 15:31:00 +0000

So it just dawned on me that I never posted the details about how to make the "Pin the Pot 'o' Gold on the Rainbow" game from Boogey's Rainbow Party (seen HERE).

Pin the Pot of Gold on the Rainbow Game

I won't claim that this was my original idea, but as mentioned in my original post about the party, I was inspired by this post over at Chickabug and decided to do my own take on it.

First thing I did was track down the same piece of foam core that I had used for SweetPea's Rock Star Party {HERE} where we played "Pin the Guitar Pick on the Guitar". Then I simply turned that {used} baby over and prepared the nice clean back side of it for this project! {Have I mentioned I'm ~~cheap~~ frugal?? I like to re-use and re-cycle party materials as much as possible!}

Next, I used a piece of pinned-down-string tied to a pencil to draw the perfectly shaped arcs for the different colors of the rainbow. Since I was going to enlist the kiddos for help with this project, I crudely colored in each section with the appropriate color so they didn't go too crazy with their "artistic license".

Rainbow Sections Marked Off

I happened to have this big container of pre-cut paper squares from my old scrapbooking stash so I weeded through it to find a variety of representatives for each color family. I picked out 3 patterns for each color to create a nice varied look (but you could keep them identical if you prefer).

Pre-cut Paper Squares in every color of the rainbow!

Then I gave each kid a glue stick and let them go to town gluing the squares onto the appropriate row. I didn't ask them to follow any sort of pattern and just told them to put the right color in the right row. I have to say they did a really great job keeping the squares in a nice straight arc on their own! ("Straight Arc"? Is that an oxymoron?!? LOL)

Glue the paper pieces in the appropriate row.

Here is the rainbow after all the squares had been placed. I really like how the variety of colors and paper used for each row came out - really adds some nice visual interest!

Paper Squares form a Pretty Rainbow!

The final step was to add the clouds at the base of each end of the rainbow. I gave each kid a pile of cotton balls and some Craft Glue and, again, just let them go to town. It was interesting to watch them take different approaches with how they applied their cotton balls (again, no guidance from me) and I was surprised that they both took the opposite approach of what I would have expected for each of them. SweetPea just piled hers on in no particular order. Boogey applied hers in nice, neat, straight rows. I really expected them each to do it the opposite way! ~~Shows how little this Mom knows about her own childrens' personalities!~~ Shows how much your kids can always surprise you! ;)

Adding Cotton Ball Clouds to our Rainbow

Since the "pinning" area was so small, I deliberately purchased the smallest "pot of gold" stickers I could find at Michaels (using a 40% off coupon, of course). Then marked the spot with a black marker. The kids had a lot of fun making this and the guests had a lot of fun playing!

Finished Pin the Pot of Gold on the Rainbow Game for Rainbow Party

See Boogey's nice straight cotton ball lines on the left and SweetPea's big pile on the right? So funny as I totally would have expected them to do the opposite based on their normal personalities! Crazy kids! Always keep ya guessing! :)

My heart smiles.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 23 May 2012 02:33:00 +0000

You are 4 years old. It’s a Sunday in April and the weather is unexpectedly beautiful. You’re in shorts and a t-shirt and wearing your bike helmet. You run through the kitchen in a hurry not wanting to be left behind by your older sister and father. But as you open the door leading to the garage, you pause and yell to me.

I can’t see you from where I am standing, but I can picture you clearly in my mind. Your socks are uneven. Your clothes don’t match in any sense of the word “coordinated”. The 'protective' helmet on your head is terribly askew and I can just hear your cyclist grandfather saying “It’s not going to do her any good if she doesn’t wear it properly!”. And you most likely have milk or jam or some other food item smeared across your chin. And you’re desperate to hurry up and get out there on your scooter.

But... you pause at the door anyway and yell {unprompted!}…

“Good-bye, Mommy! I love you!”

Then I hear the door slam.

My heart smiles.

I love you too, Boogey. I love you too.

Cheerios Giveaway Winners!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:57:00 +0000

The 2 winners of the Cheerios Giveaway are:

Jaime and Younce Fam!

Younce Fam, I've sent you an email through Kontactr - check your mailbox!

Jaime - I can't locate an email address for you! :( Please contact me within 48 hours so I can pass your info along to the giveaway sponsor. Otherwise, I will have to select a new winner.

Thanks to everyone who entered!

Inexpensive and Easy Teacher Appreciation Gifts

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 09 May 2012 01:18:00 +0000

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. And even though SweetPea and Boogey are only in pre-school, I genuinely appreciate all of the love, guidance and education given to them by their many teachers. However, {MANY} is the optimal word here. There are so many folks who help care for my children throughout the day that it can make holidays and appreciation week a tough one to afford. Especially when I genuinely want to express our gratitude to each and every one of them.

So, this is one of those times that I try to subscribe to the notion that "it is the thought that counts" and "less is more". So while I can't spend a lot of money on gifts for the 10+ treachers, I try to make the gifts somewhat personal and always get the kids involved in pulling it all together. In the past I've made Hand Sanitizer Snowmen, "Fortunate" Cookie Packs, and 'Going Green' Gifts. They were all successful regardless of how much money we spent (or didn't spend for that matter).

This year, I added a few fun ideas to my Pinterest Board. But, in the end, decided to do my own simple little gift. I remembered that we had a TON of fun-colored chocolate Sixlets left over from SweetPea's ROCKSTAR Birthday party .

Leftover Sixlets

I figured they were probably starting to approach the end of their shelf life and that we would NEVER eat them all in the next few months, so why not try and use them somehow? So I bought some cute little bags at Michaels (using a 40% off coupon, of course!), had the kiddos help me fill them with some sixlets, tied them up with some ribbon from my 'stash' and attached a little tag that I designed in Powerpoint. For the tag, I tried to come up with a saying that played in to the round shape of the sixlets... "Thanks for helping me become so well-rounded". A little corny? Yes. Cute? Hope so! ;)

DIY Gift Tags

The girls wrote their names on the back of the tags so the teachers would remember who they were from. Although they are just a small token, I hope they get the message across.

Cheap and Easy Teacher Appreciation Gift

I also brought in homemade cookies for the teachers' appreciation luncheon today. SweetPea voted for me to make THESE cake mix cookies which are always a BIG hit! YUM!

Do you have any inexpensive but crafty Teacher Appreciation Ideas?

Cheerios Giveaway Reminder!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:59:00 +0000

Seriously? No one wants free Cheerios?? You've got 2 more days to come on over and enter the giveaway to win 4 boxes of free Cheerios!

Gotta be in it to win it! :)

ENTER HERE

Oil Bottles Re-Vamp

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:09:00 +0000

For Christmas, my dad gave me THIS Rachael Ray Oil and Vinegar Bottle Set.

I love the pop of color the bright yellow adds to the kitchen. And I really like the shape of the bottles and how they feel when you pick them up. The only problem was that I seemed to be the only one who could remember what was in each bottle (Extra Virgin Olive Oil in the large one and Balsamic Vinegar in the smaller one). So I knew some labels were in order.

I typed up some simple labels and printed them out on black vinyl using my Silhoutte cutter. (The white bottle was a clearance find at Target - score!)

Getting ready for some vinyl labels

I applied the vinyl...

Rub vinyl letters on well

And voila!

Vinyl lettering makes oil bottles easy to identify

And here they are on the lazy susan I keep on the counter with other frequently-used items. Don't you just love the pop of color?!

Oil bottles re-vamped with vinyl!

It's amazing what a little vinyl lettering will do!

Linking up to these parties:

Keeping it Simple

Polish the Stars

New Cheerios 2-Pack Review and a Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 02 May 2012 12:17:00 +0000

Are you a savings Club member (i.e., Costo, Sam's Club, BJs)? Personally, my family belongs to Costco and I love being able to purchase some of our heavily used items in bulk. With 2 pre-schoolers in my house, I recognized early on the value of buying Cheerios cereal at Costco. We go through it like wildfire - and not just the kids, the Heela and I love it too! But, it came in a large, oversized box with 2 plastic bags of Cheerios inside. While it was a great way to get a lot of cereal at once, it was not very practical from a storage perspective. I basically had to transfer the cereal from one of the bags into a tupperware-like container and then had to find somewhere to store the other bag/large box in the meantime. And the box was so tall, it didn't fit on my normal height shelf! Frustrating to say the least. Well... things have changed!

New 2 Box Cheerios Packaging

"While buying Cheerios at Club is already easy and affordable, new 2 box Cheerios packaging format makes Cheerios an even better purchase! You can cheer on the value by purchasing the new 2 box Cheerios packages in Club!"

That's right - new packaging! Instead of one oversized box with 2 bags, the new 2 box Cheerios contains two individual boxes which come attached at the time of purchase, but can be separated once you get home. This makes them so much easier to store and easier to pour!

And the added benefit? The new packaging is greener too! Who doesn't love that?! "By reducing the amount of air in each individual bag, these enhanced containers fit 10% more cereal than before and use less packaging. While each box contains more cereal, packaging material has been reduced by over 200,000 lbs, saving 1,000 trees and taking 130 Cheerios trucks off the road, decreasing CO2 emissions."

Check out this video for all the benefits of new 2 box Cheerios packaging :

If the embedded video doesn't work for you, see below:
Cheerios Video link: http://bit.ly/CheeriosNew2Box

A few days ago the generous folks at General Mills and My Blog Spark sent me a prize pack to check out the new 2-box Cheerios packaging. The first thing that impressed me was the shorter stature of the package itself. It was a more "normal" size that I knew would fit much better on my pantry shelves. On the left is the new packaging. We happened to have one of the old packages in our pantry already so I compared the two...

New boxes are a more "normal" size

Next I thought it was really neat how the packages could be separated into two individual boxes of cereal. No need to transfer anything to another container (unless I wanted to)! The boxes are connected at the top and the bottom by "stickers" which have little tabs that you pull.

Stickers connect the boxes

You just pry up the tab and tear...

Tab separates easily

The boxes are also connected to each other by those "booger adhesive dots" (yes, that is the technical name) in various spots along the body of the boxes. These also pull apart easily.

Adhesive "Booger" dots keep the boxes connected until you want to separate them

A quick pull apart and you have two separate boxes!

Two separate boxes make for easier storage!

Ta-daaa! So much easier to store! But you still get the benefit and savings of buying "in bulk"!

Now for the fun stuff...

~GIVEAWAY TIME!~

Two RACKS and Mooby readers are each going to win (2) Cheerios 2-pack Cereals (equals 4 boxes)! To enter this giveaway, in the comment section below, let me know how the new 2 box Cheerios packaging will benefit you and your family?

~~This giveaway will end on May 9th at 5 pm EST.~~ Giveaway Closed - see winners announced HERE

Note: Giveaway is limited to US residents only.

For more information feel free to visit the Cheerios website HERE.

Disclosure: As part of my participation in this Spark from MyBlogSpark, I was provided (2) Cheerios 2-packs (4 boxes of cereal). The opinions expressed herein are my own and have not been influenced by the receipt of the cereal. The Cheerios® cereal, information, and giveaway have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

"Tell me about Mommy" Q&A

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:25:00 +0000

So I have seen variations of this Q&A "game" floating around blogland and decided to pose these questions to my 5-yr old, SweetPea, yesterday.

SweetPea {Sept 2011}

I asked her the questions and she replied. Her answers are in BLUE.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What is something Mommy always says to you? I love you.

What makes Mommy happy? When I hug her.

What makes Mommy sad? When I’m bad.

How does your Mommy make you laugh? She tickles me.

What was your Mommy like as a child? Fun.

How old is Mommy? 30. {sigh, I wish!}
How tall is Mommy? Two feet tall.

What is Mommy's favorite thing to do? Relax.

What does Mommy do when you're not around? Relax. {LOL}

What is Mommy really good at? Cooking.

What is Mommy not very good at? Cleaning. {what I wouldn't do for a cleaning service!}

What does Mommy do for a job? Math.

What is Mommy's favorite food? Cabbage. {??? I have NO idea where that came from - I actually hate cooked cabbage and rarely make coleslaw. So I don't think the kids have ever even seen me buy a cabbage - a very strange response indeed!}
What do you and Mommy do together? Go to the park.

How are you and Mommy the same? We have the same hair.

How are you and Mommy different? She is taller than me.

How do you know Mommy loves you? She tells me.

Where is Mommy's favorite place to go? To the spa. {This cracked me up because it is SOOOOO true!! I wish I could do it more often!}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I think it would be fun to do this every year to see how the responses change! I'd also be curious to see what I get from the wacky 4-yr old on this one...

Do you ever do any fun Q&A games like this with your kids?

Spraypainted {Dollar Spot} Owls

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:03:00 +0000

{WHoops - don't know why this reposted - I simply made an update to this old post but it re-posted it today - sorry for the repeat!}

Last weekend I decided it was time to bring a little life and color to our front porch. Some nice flowers were certainly a must, but I wanted something more. Then I saw this post over at Jane of All Crafts. I knew I had to get me some of those cute little owls and add some color to them... and to my front stoop!

So I picked up 4 of these ceramic owls from the dollar spot at Target (one to represent each of us - me, the Heela, SweetPea and Boogey).

Cute, but kinda creepy too.

Then I bought a can of Krylon spray paint at Michaels (yes, using a 40% off coupon).

Funny how the camera is focused on the fritos... guess my mind was thinking of something besides paint!

And here they are all decked out in aqua and in their new place of honor on the front stoop.

Peek a ~~Boo~~ Hoo!

Hark! Hoo goes there?

Much Cuter Now!

I'm thinking maybe they could use a little more dimension... maybe some distressing or aging with a dark glaze or something? Doubt I'll ever get around to it though... LOL.

Linking up to these parties:

Thrifty Decor Chick's Spray Paint Party

Mini Marshmallow Flowers {and rabbits!} [re-visit]

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 17:44:00 +0000

Sorry I don't have a new post for you this week. The past few weeks have been a little crazy (yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, what else is new?) but I am actually recovering and trying to re-energize after a trip to the ER (complete with an ambulance ride and everything! woohoo! :/ Um, yeah... fun, it was not). I'm totally fine now but the "episode" inspired me to re-focus my sights and efforts on what is really important in life. And right now, household/diy projects aren't at the top of the list.

Soooooo.... I'm going to re-post about a fun foodie project I did last year for Easter.

Mini Marshmallow Flowers

I originally posted about these super cute mini marshmallow flower cupcakes HERE and still love how they turned out! They were quite easy to pull together and everyone thought they were so fun and pretty! I made them for Easter, but they'd be fun as a celebratory Spring treat or even nice for Mother's Day!

I also made some edible bunny rabbit cupcake toppers to stick with the Easter theme...

Marshmallow and chocolate bunny rabbit

So head on over to THIS POST for the full details and a step-by-step tutorial.

Linking up to these parties - check 'em out!
A Turtle's Life for Me
Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo - Spring Battle!
Centsational Girl - Spring Party
The Frugal Girls
Kitchen Fun with my 3 sons

Stuff it! {aka - How to make snacks go further}

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 13:15:00 +0000

Today I'm going to share a "Quick Tip" with you...

Have you ever found a really cute bowl in your 'stash' or in a store and wanted to use it for chips, cookies, rolls, whatever, but then realized you would need to fill it with, oh, I don't know.... about 5,000 POUNDS of said chips, cookies, rolls, whatever so that it wouldn't look pathetically empty? Yeah. Me too. Sucks, don't it?

Well, I'm here to share my little secret with you on how to get around that little dilemma...

NAPKINS!

Yes, you read that right, I use paper napkins. {and, yes, you could easily use cloth napkins if you want to be more green, I just prefer to use paper - especially if they already match my theme. sue me.}. The first time I discovered this trick was during the great popcorn fiasco. Haven't heard that one? Oh, do let me share...

Sometime last summer, I found these super cute plastic popcorn containers in the Dollar Spot at Target (it's so dangerous to wander in there, isn't it??). I got one in each of 4 different colors. So cute, right?

Plastic popcorn containers from Target

The only problem was that they were just way too deep to fill all the way up with popcorn for my pre-schoolers. There was just no way they could eat all that popcorn. Well... on second thought... maybe they could, but they didn't need to! ;) So, I usually make one of those 100 calorie packs and let them share it between themselves. But when I dumped 1/2 of the bag into each container, they only got filled up about 1/2 way full.

Well, if you have little ones, you know that THAT was NOT going to fly. Don't mind the fact that this is the SAME AMOUNT they would always get in the OTHER BOWL I used to use...

As far as they were concerned, there was PLENTY OF ROOM LEFT! They wanted the container to be filled up to the TOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Give me MOOOOORE!! Hey, and while I'm at it, I'd like to point out that... SHE has MORE than I DO!!! MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM! NO FAAAAIIIIIIRRR! {ever hear those kind of shrill cries coming from a 3-year old?? yeah, good stuff.}

So, I quickly ~~drank a shot of tequilla~~ improvised and stuffed a loosely-crushed napkin down into the lower half of the container to help take up space.

Then I poured the popcorn back in (which now went right to the top) and the rugrats couldn't have been happier. And it isn't like they didn't know the napkin was in there. I guess it was the ~visual~ of a half-empty container that just didn't sit well with them. You know, like I was trying to gyp them or something. Not that I have ever tried to do that to my children. Ahem. Moving on...

(and yes, that is how you spell "gyp" - looks weird, I know, but I checked Webster's HERE and it's right).

Sneaky, sneaky!

Ahhhh... peace and harmony had been restored to our household... at least for the next 5 mintues. :/

I also used this trick during Boogey's RAINBOW party (posted HERE). I had found some cute colored buckets at the party store and grabbed them on a whim, not really knowing for sure how I planned on using them. Ultimately I decided to use them to house some chips, pretzels and goldfish. But they were so deep that I knew I would need double the amount of chips, pretzels and goldfish than I had just to fill them up to the top. Um, yeah... not going out to buy more snacks, especially when I know they won't all get eaten anyway.

Insert... the napkin trick!

Use a paper napkin to take up space in the bowl

I ever so slightly wadded up a paper napkin and stuffed it into the bottom of the buckets. The napkin minimized the amount of open space in the buckets so I was able to use less snacks to make them look "full" and, therefore, make my snacks go FURTHER! Yay!

Make your snacks go further! It's all an ~illusion~!

Of course the napkin trick won't work as well with really heavy snacks but works great with things like chips, crackers, etc. If you have something that is heavier, you should, instead, use an inverted bowl or cup as your filler. This is a pretty common trick for vases and such and would be a great option to make heavier treats like M&M's and other candy items go further. Yes, it's all an ~ILLUSION~ folks! :)

And that's my 'quick tip' for the day! Do you have any food display "cheats" you like to use? Let me hear about 'em!

p.s. I want to say a quick "THANK YOU" to Michelle over at Macaroni Kid for featuring my Rainbow Cupcakes on the Macaroni Kid (Harlem edition) website {Click HERE to see it!}!

This project was featured! Be sure to check out these fabulous blogs!!

Linking up to these parties - check 'em out!
Someday Crafts
The Thrifty Home
A Turtles Life for Me
Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo
Polish the Stars
Keeping it Simple
The Scott's Crib

Rainbow Treats

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 03:08:00 +0000

Yes, another post about Boogey's RAINBOW Party (see full party details HERE). Are you sick of reading about rainbows yet?? Well, if you are... too bad. I'm not done yet! :P

This time I thought I would talk about the Rainbow Treats we made.

{Fruity Pebble} Rainbow Treats

Now, I have to say I was kind of surprised at what a big hit these were. Frankly, I'm not really a fruit-flavored cereal type of gal. So, to be honest, I wasn't "blown away" by these. But apparently, I'm alone in my indifference to fruit-flavored snacks because these knocked the socks off all the guests and were devoured by the kids and adults alike! (although I did notice that it seemed like the dads consumed the majority of these treats... huh, go figure! Wives, take note! LOL)

There really isn't any rocket science behind making these. Essentially, they are just like rice krispie treats but you make them with Fruity Pebbles instead. Here is the recipe I followed (from the fruity pebbles website and on the inside of the box):

Rainbow treat ingredients

What you need:

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine

1 pkg. (10-1/2 oz.) miniature marshmallows (6 cups)

1 pkg. (11 oz.) Fruity Pebbles Cereal (about 8-1/2 cups)

What to do:

Microwave butter in 4-qt. microwavable bowl on HIGH 45 seconds or until melted. Add marshmallows; toss to coat. Microwave 1-1/2 minutes or until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring after 45 seconds. Add cereal; mix well. Press firmly into greased foil-lined 13x9-inch pan. Cool. Cut into squares.

That's it! Easy peasy, lemon squeezy!

These were an absolutely perfect addition to the snack table as they were so pretty and all RAINBOW-Y!

Rainbow treats are so pretty!

We hardly had any left at the end of the day and I froze the leftovers. Yes, did you know you can freeze these kinds of treats?? Well, you can! Read on... ;)

I have done this before with a regular batch of rice krispie treats and they freeze fabulously! This is a great idea when you have leftover cereal or marshmallows (as is often the case in our house) but don't need a whole pan of tempting goodies sitting around for ~~you~~ the kids to eat. Simply whip up a batch of {your choice type of cereal} marshmallow treats. Cut into individual sized portions, then wrap in foil. I just take a large piece of foil, cut it with scissors into small squares, wrap my treats in them individually, and then store everything in a freezer bag in our deep freezer. You can take out one at a time and just leave them on the counter (or throw them into a lunchbox!) and they are defrosted in no time. I typically take a couple out of the freezer before I start making dinner and they are ready to go for dessert. The kiddos love them! I usually press some M&M's on top as they are cooling for an extra special yum-factor. ;)

Anyway... back to my rainbow treats... definitely try these sometime as a nice variation to the "usual" rice krispie treat.

{fruity pebble} marshmallow treats

These would also be a fun treat for St. Patrick's Day!

*See the rest of this RAINBOW party HERE!

Rainbow Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 02:52:00 +0000

So in my post about Boogey's RAINBOW party HERE, I gave you a glimpse of the rainbow cupcakes that I made. Aren't they fun?

Colorful Rainbow Cupcakes

They were a big hit with the guests and defintiely came out better than this cupcake "fail" HERE.

Candy rainbows on cupcakes

Now, I won't claim that these were my original idea - you can do a google or pinterest search for "rainbow cupcakes" and come up with a kajillion blog posts about them. But I will share my process with you and if you get inspired or learn a little something... great! :)

First I mixed up 2 boxes of yellow cake (maybe one of these days I'll try making cake from scratch, but for now, I'm a "from a box" fan!). Then I divided the batter into 6 plastic bags. [Tip: place your bag in a plastic cup to help keep it open and make it easier to fill].

Use a cup to keep your plastic bag open while you fill it!

Batter divided evenly and ready to be colored

Next I put a little gel color into each bag and kneaded the batter until it was well-mixed.

Batter colored like the rainbow!

Next, I cut a small corner off the edge of each bag to make it easier to pipe it into the cupcake tins.

Cut a corner off the bags makes piping the batter easier

Then I piped a layer of each color into the tins trying to make sure the individually-colored layers were the same thickness.

Pipe the batter in equal layers of each color

Bake according to the package directions then remove from oven and cool.

Rainbow cupcakes waiting for frosting

These worked out much better than my semi-fail HERE and I was really pleased with the end result of the rainbow effect. So pretty!

Rainbow Cupcakes

Next I took out my tub 'o' frosting (I used buttercream) and got ready to make my rainbow-adorned sky. {sorry no pictures of the process, but it isn't too difficult to figure out}. First, I reserved a small amount of the white frosting in a plastic bag to use later for my "clouds". Then I colored the remaining amount blue to simulate the sky and spread it on top of each cupcake. Next I applied the rainbows! For these, I bought a package of Airheads Extremes in "rainbow berry" flavor - they're sour belts and I found them at the candy store. I cut the long belts into smaller pieces (about 3" or so), formed them into an arc and stuck the ends into the frosting to look like a rainbow.

{empty} wrapper of candy used to make rainbows

Then I piped a small amount of the reserved, no-colored frosting at the base of each end of the rainbow to (1) prevent the candy from sliding in the frosting sky and (2) simulate the look of clouds. It worked great and looked fabulous! Lastly, I added cupcake toppers I made using the same freebie images (found HERE at Paper Glitter) that I had used for the goodie bags and paper cup stickers.

Side note: If you haven’t ever made your own cupcake toppers before, they’re really easy but add so much “professional” flair! As mentioned, I used some freebie images I found online. I printed them out on photo paper I bought at the dollar store (I don’t use my good photo paper for this project as it will just be tossed at the end of the day – use the inexpensive stuff! But I do find that the photo paper gives a nicer, more ‘professional’ finish/look than cardstock (but that would work OK too if it’s all you have). Then I cut the images out using a 2” circle punch. You can certainly do the cutting by hand, though, or use other shapes – so many options! Then I stuck the printed toppers to lollipop sticks using some 1” white circle stickers. (I use THESE which I found at Office Depot, but you could also just use scotch tape). And that is it! So easy, but such a big impact.

And... voila! I think they came out pretty darn cute if you ask me!

Rainbow Cupcakes with candy rainbows on top

And another view...

Candy rainbows really make these Rainbow Cupcakes special!

I think it's fair to call these a success, don't you??

Rainbow cupcakes

These would be great for St. Patrick's Day too!

What do you think??

See the rest of the RAINBOW party HERE!

This project was featured! Thank you!!

And be sure to check out these fabulous blogs!!

Linking up to these parties - check 'em out:
{If I joined your party but didn't link back here, I apologize. This post had to be rebuilt and I couldn't remember all of the places I had linked up - I'm so sorry!}
A Turtle's Life for Me
House of Hepworths
Polish the Stars
A Little Knick Knack
It's a Keeper
Somewhat Simple
The Frugal Girls
Kitchen Fun with My 3 Sons
WHile He Was Napping
Truly Lovely
Bacon Time with the hungry Hungry Hypo
Eat at Home Cooks

Party Punch

noreply@blogger.com (Kyra @ RACKS and Mooby) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 16:51:00 +0000

When I posted about Boogey's Rainbow Party HERE, I mentioned that I served some punch for the kiddos.

Rainbow Party Punch

I've never made a party punch before but did a quick search online to get some ideas in my head about the basics. I didn't follow any one recipe in particular, but kind of just "winged it" and it turned out DEE-LISH! All of the kids loved it and the parents enjoyed it too.

There is no science to this punch... I literally just dumped my ingredients into the beverage dispenser (the kids helped me), gave it a stir and done! Here is what I used:

Boogey's RAINBOW Party Punch

1 large can (12 oz.) frozen pink lemonade concentrate
1 lemonade can's worth of water
1 large bottle (64 oz.) of berry-flavored juice
1 bottle (2 liter) of Diet Sprite
2/3 of a large can (46 oz.) of pineapple juice (give or take depending on your tastes)

That's it! The kids loved this punch and there was hardly any left over at the end of the party. We mixed and served it in the awesome beverage dispenser the Heela gave me for Christmas. I don't know what it is about these things, but I honestly believe they make drinks taste even better! Plus, the kids love being able to serve themselves!

{If you want to make this punch a little more "adult friendly" just add a little vodka ;}

Do you have a favorite punch recipe?

Linking up to these parties - be sure to check them out!
While He Was Napping
A Turtle's Life for Me