The Big Pink Pig

Homemade Cinnamon and Sprinkled Donuts!

2013-04-30T05:20:00.001-07:00

We got invited to brunch the other day and it was so exciting because our Saturday mornings usually consist of laying around in our pajamas, the kids running wild, and the husband and I procrastinating the day's work of laundry, yard work, and cleaning. A fun and fancy time called for fun and fancy donuts--although these are really just fun, not too fancy. My number 2 helped to dip and dunk the donuts while the other two got baths, so kids can help out a little with these.

Equipment:

Donut Pan (My mom got mine on Amazon and they are relatively cheap at places like Home Goods too.)
Mixer or beaters
Plastic bag
Cup

Ingredients:

2 cups of flour
1 cup of milk
2 eggs
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 Tablespoon Butter melted
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cinnamon Sugar for dipping
1 tablespoon of honey
sprinkles

1. Preheat oven to 400 and grease donut pans.
2. Add all dry ingredients together in a mixer or with beaters and then slowly add eggs, milk, vanilla, and butter.
3. Grab a cup and plastic bag. Line the cup with the bag and fill the bag with donut batter.

4. Cut a hole in the bottom corner of the bag to create a piping bag. Pipe the batter into the donut pan about half way up (if you over fill it you will end up with a muffin looking creation).

5. Bake for 10 minutes and then pop donuts out of pan. I usually use a butter knife to ease them out.

6. While the muffins are still hot take the amount that you would like to be cinnamon sugar flavored and toss with the mixture in a bowl.

7. Dip the remaining muffins in honey (just the tops) and then immediately in sprinkles.

Enjoy!

Free Music'

2013-04-18T18:42:00.000-07:00

In the mood for a freebie? I always am, and one of the blogs I like to visit www.motherhoodonadime.com recently featured an $0.89 MP3 of kids Sunday School songs on Amazon. I downloaded the collection, but it got me looking...looking for more deals...of the FREE kind. This is what I found.

Sleep Like A Princess

Sweet lullabies for your little princess.

Veggie Tales: 5 Super Silly Songs

The girls LOVE these! They are cute songs like, I Love My Lips and The Hairbrush Song. Silly and short, and I don't mind listening to them since the girls giggle so much.

150 Songs Just For Kids

Songs like London Bridge is Falling Down and Baby Bumblebee...good solid basics.

Ok not free but almost....

May's Favorite Silly Songs for Kids

$1.99, cute songs like Big Rock Candy Mountain and Five Little Monkeys

Classical Music For Baby's Bedtime

$0.99 This is over an hour of classical music for baby, played on a loop so you can turn it on and not worry about it stooping periodically.

The 20 Minute Bib

2013-04-18T12:54:00.000-07:00

The 20 minute Bib

Like my bib model? She's a natural :) Today we are making bibs--fast, easy, and cute! These bibs are great to give as shower gifts or as baby's first meeting gifts (the day I bring over meals to my new mom friends :)

They can be made with scraps and fat quarters. You can get creative and use old towels for the backing too, since terry cloth is excellent as sucking up spittage. For the bib shown, I used a scrap from two scraps of different Riley Blake fat quarter and about a foot of minky (Minky and Chenille are traditionally used in baby clothing but they can be expensive. Get on the Joann Fabric email list and you will get tons of 40% coupons.) Here is the list of all materials:

about a foot of terry cloth, minky, or chenille

about a foot of one fabric (again I used scraps, so just print out the pattern and see what you have laying around first)

half a foot of a coordinating fabric

one velcro set (you can buy a pack of 4 for $1.59 at Joann)

thread

Cardboard/Tag Board/Cardstock (Optional)

1. Print out the pattern here. I glued it to the back of an old cereal box for durability. If you think you may only be using this pattern once, just go ahead and skip this step. The cardboard is used just for durability.

2. Use the pattern to cut out the large pieces in both your backing and main bib material. Then "half" the bottom portion of the pattern to trace the pocket in your coordinating fabric.

3. You should have three pieces. Then take the pocket and make a fold of about 1/4 of an inch down. Crease it by ironing the fold down and either zig-zag stitch or serge the fold down. This will help to reduce fraying.

4. Line your main bib fabric and pocket up so that the pocket is laying on top of the main bib and both "right" sides are looking at you. Sew pocket onto main bib material.

5. Take your backing and newly sewn bib front and place the two pieces "right" sides together. Pin together to make sure that it stays in place. Sew entire length of the bib STOPPING with about 2 inches left. You will need this open in order to flip the bib inside out.

6. Flip bib inside out and you should have what appears to be the entire bib completed. Where you have created the opening, fold the fabric in slightly and sew the opening closed.

7. Take your velcro set and at the top of the bib, sew fuzzy side up onto the FRONT top of the bib and the sticky side to the opposite BACK top of the bib.

Lentil-Carrot Meatball Grinders

2013-04-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

Meatball Grinders are sooooo yummy! These babies came about during lent. Funny this is that I didn't make them on a Friday...hmmm...interesting Eileen. These are a great way to sneak veggies into the kids. Plus, when added to pasta or sandwiches like this they won't even know the difference (unless your Caroline Frances and you don't eat anything anyways, but that is a project for another day. :)

Ok here we go!

Lentil-Carrot Meatball Grinders

1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce

2 cups of cooked lentils (follow directions on bag)

1 cup of shredded carrots

2 eggs slightly beaten

2/3 cup of bread crumbs

2 garlic cloves minced

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup low fat ricotta cheese

1/4 cup fresh Parmesan

Mozzarella Cheese to sprinkle on top

(Note: These recipe will make about 20 meatballs so depending on your family size and hunger size, you can freeze half and use them later. These subs above were actually prepared using frozen meatballs from a previous recipe. They freeze nicely and defrost in a pot or slow cooker, but if cooked in a slow cooker set on low for no more than 3 hours--these babies will fall apart otherwise.)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Add all ingredients except for spaghetti sauce together in a large bowl. You can use a spoon, mixer, or be like me and use your hands.

2. Form balls to be about 1 inch in diameter. A little larger is fine, but the lentils won't support large sizes. They will fall apart once cooked. Also, beware--this is a sticky mixture so have your cookie sheet ready.

3. Once your have formed your meatballs and placed them on the sheet, bake for about 18 minutes. Once they are done, pull them out and let them rest for a couple of minutes. When vegetarian meatballs are warm they tend to fall apart. They need that extra 2 minutes to stand up haha.

4. Heat up your sauce and add your meatballs. Build your sandwich and sprinkle with mozzerella cheese and your are ready for dinner!

I love these because they are packed with vegetables! I served mine with sweet potato fries, but steam broccoli would be good too.

55 Minute Homemade Bread

2013-04-03T19:20:00.002-07:00

Oh Pig, it has been too long! As you can see in the picture above, we have added a little lady to our family! Gracie has been so much fun, and next week she will be 6 months old! I cannot believe it really...ahh sigh..

Anyways, we have been busy! Busy baking bread! Today I had to swing by the store to get some last minute items for dinner that I forgot earlier this week (I wonder how long I can use baby brain as an excuse.) I only had to get a few things, and I really shouldn't be allowed in Target unless it is absolutely essential, so I tried to get resourceful and avoid the trip all together-for the time being that is.

Last week I made lentil-carrot meatballs and a pesto dressing. I made extra meatballs and froze them for future use. Today was a lazy day so I decided to use up those frozen goodies. (I will share that recipe tomorrow.) I already did pasta once this week so I had to utilize the meatballs another way, so subs it was!

I had no sub rolls and not a lot of time. Thank goodness for Pinterest! I found a great quick baguette recipe and tweaked it a bit. When it was all said and done, we had fresh bread for dinner.

55 Minute Fresh Bread (Whole Wheat)

2 1/4 tsp of Active Yeast (or 1 packet)

2 cups Very Warm Water

2 tbsp Sugar

1 tsp salt

3 Cups Whole Wheat Flour

2 1/2 Cups AP Flour

1. Preheat oven to 425. Whisk water, yeast, and sugar together and place on preheating oven for 10 minutes.

2. Gradually add in flour and salt. Use a dough hook on your mixer or a strong wooden spoon. Mix until the dough appears elastic.

3. Separate dough into two balls and sprinkle extra flour on top so it won't stick to the board. Separate each ball into two more balls (four total).

4. Roll out small balls into long strands. Braid the two strands together and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat with two remaining strands. ( You will have 2 loaves.) Let it rise on the hot oven for 30 minutes.
5. Now that the dough has risen, take a casserole dish and fill it with ice (about 3 cups, but I just filled it so it lined the dish).
6. Place the baking dish with the bread on the top oven rack and the dish with the ice, directly below it. The steam will accelerate the baking process. Set your timer for 15 minutes (may take a few extra minutes 15-18, every oven is a little different). DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN BEFORE THE 15 MINUTES IS UP. Nothing terrible will happen, you will just ruin the steam mojo. :)

Fresh baked bread in no time! Plus you could add flax seed or oats, really anything you wanted.

We sliced it long ways and used it as sub rolls, but it would be great garlic bread, bread with soup, or even a hearty sandwich bread. No artificial anything which also makes this appealing!

The Miracle Stain Remover You Have In Your Cabinets!

2012-09-12T03:00:00.000-07:00

I found this cool little trick on Tip Nut. They have some very cool little tricks and tips on there you should check it out! Anyways, this is a miracle cleaner because it is non-toxic and you probably have it in your pantry or cabinets!

Ok so you can see the DISGUSTING stain on my carpet...not sure how it got there which is probably more scary. Oh well it won't be there for much longer!

All you need is an old rag, a sponge or spray bottle, 1/3 cup vinegar, 2/3 cups warm water, and an iron!

Dab/spray the area with the vinegar/water solution until damp. Place the rag on top of the stain and set the iron to the "cotton" setting or about medium. Hold the iron on the stain for about 10 seconds alternating spots until you have covered the entire stain. You may need to add a little more of the solution if the stain doesn't come up immediately. You are basically just steam cleaning your rug with a harmless cleaner.

This is the area where the stain was. Pretty amazing for a few minutes of work, plus I didn't douse my carpet with smelly chemicals or anything like that. I have seen alternative methods using ammonia, while it may do the trick a little quicker, I liked the idea of vinegar better. The stain wasn't in a room that I could "tape off" from the girls and I just didn't feel like doing it at night when they were sleeping--lazy! :)

Have fun cleaning!

Vintage Pattern for the First Day!

2012-09-11T03:30:00.000-07:00

I had been browsing Etsy for the perfect vintage dress pattern for Laura's school dress. I found this one from 1965. I LOVE how innocent and sweet the dress is and besides the buttons, it was pretty easy to make. Her favorite feature are the "treasure pockets."

My little one LOVED her dress and frankly was a slave driver while I was sewing it. She'd ask everyday where I was in the process and if I was going to work on it that day. When I started the buttons, she would come and sit next to me and say, "Wow Momma, those buttons sure do take you a long time. Do you need help?" haha This is why I am so glad that her smile expresses how happy she was to be dressed and ready for her first day of school.

I love this girl, she is one of my two favorite models ever--without a doubt!

12 buttons............(sigh)

Ours isn't quite as short as the pattern called for, but I thought that it would get me a little more wear out of it. Well, at least a few extra months maybe.....My sleeves were also a little too large and the sewing is definitely amateurish but it made me so proud when her teacher commented on her pretty dress and she beamed and said, "My mommy made it!!" :)

The fabric is Michael Miller's Children at Play in Meadow Pink.

Hello Fall and Bread Making!

2012-09-10T04:00:00.000-07:00

Ahh goodbye summer, picnics, and pools but we're ok with that because it gives way to FALL and fun fall activities like pumpkin carving, planting mums, crock pot recipes, and bread making!

I had been pretty obsessed with Danielle of Blissful and Domestic and her family's plan to live on $14,000 a year. While her suggestions are great, they don't all fit the needs of our family, HOWEVER I was intrigued that she makes her own bread all the time.

After trying a couple of recipes, this one is by far the best and easiest! I actually fell asleep (thanks Baby 3) during the rising stage and overshot it by 40 minutes--did not make a difference in the least!

Try baking your own sandwich bread this fall, it's a lot of work, no lie, but it really makes your PB&J sandwich special. Plus you can devote a Sunday when you are at home watching football to make a few loaves and kids can help too! Caroline helped me with these two loaves!

Easy Homemade Bread (Adapted from The Wannabe Country Girl)

1 packet of yeast

7 cups of flour (bread or all purpose)

4 cups of warm water

1/4 Olive Oil

2 Tsp Salt

1 Tbsp of Sugar

1. Dissolve yeast according to package add sugar and let sit till foamy.

2. In a separate bowl, add flour, salt, oil, and water.

3. Stir that mixture ( or if you have a Kitchen Aid, attach the dough hook and give it a whirl!)

4. Add yeast mixture and continue to stir until completely incorporated. If you aren't using a dough hook you will have to take the dough out and knead it until it forms a ball.

5. Once the ball is formed, plop it onto a sheet of parchment paper or saran wrap and spray the bowl you just used with cooking spray and then plop it back into the bowl.

6. Cover with a towel and find a nice warm and dark place for your bowl. Some people choose their stove top, but I go with the top of the the dryer. It also forces me to do a load of wash, so I kill two birds with one stone haha. ( You should have seen the hubby's face when I asked him to get the bread dough from the laundry room in the basement haha)

7. Let it sit for about 45 minutes until it is nice and fluffy.

8. Take it out and sprinkle flour on top. Cut in half and store the half that you don't want to use right away in the fridge or freezer.

9. Take the other half and roll it out into a rectangle shape. Roll it up like a fruit roll up and tuck the ends inward.

10. Spray a loaf pan and pop it into the oven at 350 for 25 minutes!

Cleaning MAGIC

2012-09-04T11:19:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure if I am nesting or just in the cleaning mood for these past few weeks! I have been scouring the internet trying to find ways to fix little things in our house that have been driving me crazy. For instance the mildew and rust stains in the bath tub. Now I clean my bathroom probably twice a week--it's one of the things I am crazy about, that and the kitchen. I will allow myself to step on the same toy for a week, but I don't miss my twice a week bathroom cleanings. Anyways, I clean my bathroom a lot, but I could NOT get those stubborn mildew and rust stains out of the grout. GRR!

So...after some digging I found a home remedy that was cheap and easy and made my bath tub look BRAND NEW.

1. Ok, so go to Sally Beauty Supply and get Cellu Cotton. It's basically a long cotton ball that can easily be torn apart.

2. Break the cotton coil into strip to fit your tub.

3. Put gloves on and open your windows (it's best to do this when you will be out of the house or at night when you can shut the bathroom door so fumes don't escape and leave the bathroom window open and fan on to ventilate).

4. In a pot/pan/bucket, pour a little bit of bleach and soak your cotton strips. Place the strips on your mildew infected areas. It should stick up there like caulking.

5. Let it sit for at least 3 hours (the longer the better)

6. Remove and rinse the area with hot water from the shower head.

7. Go back to the rust stains and use a magic eraser to get rid of those and then you are DONE!

Magic Eraser Trial Size: $1.76

Cellu Cotton: $1.99

Bleach: Had it already

Total for a shiny new tub: $3.75

Back to School Faves!

2012-08-30T10:57:00.000-07:00

Our favorite things for Back to School!

http://www.theminisocial.com/Event.aspx?l=00010606036700000000

We are channeling Oprah today! I spent a ridiculous amount of time on Pinterest the other day and found some seriously cool things to start the year off right!

The item featured above is called Knot Genie and they are on sale right now on the Mini Social for 8.99! The makers claim to gets knots out of hair of varying lengths. The bristles bend so damage of the cuticle. The hair is supposed to remain shinier than normal! With the amount of curls in our house, this one may be worth it for us especially when school starts and baths and hair washing are a daily occurrence.

http://www.ecomom.com/eco-friendly-gear/school/lunch-boxes/to-go-ware-repeat-utensil-set-cnf.html

These are also very cool! To Go Ware, RePEat Utensils. This would be great for older kids who may not accidently throw them away. For 11.99, you can provide utensils for the kiddies and be eco-friendly while doing it!

http://downeastbasics.com/girls.aspx

The adorable skirt featured above is from Down East Basics. If you haven't checked out their site, you have to soon! They only carry women's, girls', and home decor. Their aesthetic is close to JCrew but at a fraction of the price! Plus, their sale right now is discounted an additional 30%!

http://www.wegivebooks.org/

We Give Books is a GREAT resource for parents of preschoolers. It's totally free and you can read books to your kiddos online, so that mean if you are out and about in a doctor's office or car ride you can read pictures books instantly. It's a philanthropic organization, so every time you login and read a book, they will donate a book to an organization of your choice. Great for you, great for the cause!

https://www.capribluecandles.com/product_details.php?pid=1&cid=191&sub_cid=18

Finally this last one is for the mamas out there preparing the little ones for preschool and school. Capri Blue Candles are HEAVEN! They come with a hefty price tag ($30 for the largest candle) but they are oh so worth it! My favorite scents are Aloha Orchid and Volcano. They also sell them in Anthropologie stores. So brew yourself a cup of tea, put your feet up, turn on one of House Hunters International and enjoy! The smell will transplant you to all of those fun locations!

(The above reflects my own opinion about the products featured. I was not paid nor compensated for any of the reviews. All referencing information is shown below each item.)

Bath Tub Fun

2012-08-29T08:09:00.001-07:00

We made bath paints today! Super easy and provided fun in the bath tub! All you need is 1 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch, some baby shampoo (clear/yellow clear in color) and food coloring. Mix together and you are done!

The girls LOVED adding the color. By the way, baby wipes can get almost anything out of skin, counter tops, and flooring haha. The purple food coloring was splotched right between Laura's eyes.

I did a massive bleach cleaning of the mildew in our tub the night before--lovely right?!? Anyways, we were in need of new bath toys, so I headed to Walmart the day before and grabbed anti-microbial and anti-odor sponges.

We cut that them in shapes and letters. It was the cheapest bath toy ever, which is great because Pete and I frequently have to throw out bath toys....

Oh and the best part was that they used the sponges to clean up their mess in the tub when they were done! We just used these paints for one bath, but you could buy the tiny Gladware containers and store them for a couple of days for extended bath fun!

Smoked Salmon and Pea Pasta

2012-08-28T04:00:00.000-07:00

I should call this the "empty the fridge" pasta dish :) I had friends over earlier in the week and picked up some smoked salmon from Trader Joe's, along with some fat free cream cheese and capers to make mini salmon and caper sandwiches. Anyways, I had extras so I threw everything together and thankfully the family enjoyed it!

Ingredients:

8 oz of fat free cream cheese
1 box of fettuccine
1 1/2 cups of frozen peas
6 oz (about half a package of smoked salmon)
1 cup of chicken broth
1 cup of milk
2 teaspoons of French Thyme
1 clove of garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste

1. Boil water for pasta and cook pasta till al dente.
2. In a large sauce pan over medium heat, pour chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add garlic and stir.
3. After the garlic has been incorporated, add the cream cheese and allow it to melt.
4. Once the cream cheese has melted, add the milk and stir with a whisk. Slowly add the thyme and salt and pepper.
5. Finally add the peas and salmon and cook until the salmon is light pink in color and the peas have completely thawed and are warm.
6. Drain the pasta and add the sauce to the pasta and wa-lah! :)

The girls nibbled it right up! :) It was quick and looked way fancier than it actually was to create. Enjoy!

Quick Meal: Chicken Parm Sandwiches

2012-08-22T06:09:00.000-07:00

This recipe was born out of necessity! I had to throw dinner together without that many ingredients and used up a lot of odds and ends in the fridge, so overall this recipe was pretty darn cheap and resourceful!

Ingredients:

3 pieces of whole wheat bread for bread crumbs

2 tablespoons of Italian Seasoning

1 Teaspoon of Garlic powder

1 Egg White with a splash of water

1 cup of flour

2 Chicken Breasts Split (I actually split my two breasts into five pieces, two for the little mouths in the house)

Left over Spaghetti Sauce

1/2 cup of shredded Mozzarella

Toast for serving

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Combine the first 3 ingredients into a food processor/magic bullet and pulse until breadcrumbs are made and pour into a shallow dish.

3. Pour egg wash into a shallow dish and then the flour into another shallow dish.

4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium.

5. Dredge the chicken pieces through the flour, egg, then breadcrumbs and brown each side-about 2-3 minutes each side.

6. Once each piece is done, put them on a baking sheet and add about a tablespoon or two of spaghetti sauce and then add about a tablespoon or so of cheese.

7. Bake for 16 minutes. While you are baking toast your bread.

8. Once the chicken has cooked and the cheese is nice and melty, put it into between your pieces of toast and serve!

This was a favorite of my husband! I don't normally do sub-like sandwiches for dinner so he liked this surprise, plus it had the homemade element to it which made it a little special!

A Little Bit of Sparkle!

2012-08-21T05:00:00.000-07:00

We had paper mache letters up in Laura's room that were painted a basic pink and green, but after our recent trip to Chicago's Land of Nod, I was instantly inspired by all the creativity that hung from their walls! For those of you who haven't heard of Land of Nod, it's Crate and Barrel's kids' line. They have adorable furniture, decor, and toys. They only have a few stores throughout the country so I love visiting the Oak Brook store when we go to visit Pete's family in Chicago.

One of the coolest ideas that we saw was the yarn wrapped letters. It was easy and it added neat texture to her walls. I had the yarn lying around the house, so that part of the project was free. As for the glittered letters, I repainted them teal (just one light brushed on coat) and then covered them with glue. I used an old box to contain all the glitter. It was an incredibly easy project and one that she really appreciated. She says her room looks like Hollywood! Haha! If only I didn't figure out earlier that it would be this easy to impress my little one! I had some helpers....well...they tried....oh and yes, they got into the glitter box when Mommy and Daddy weren't paying attention-MESS!

"I sooo good at painting Momma, I pom-iss!"- Caroline

Caroline has asked when her name will be going up on the wall...very soon, Caro, very soon!

Quick Meal: Roasted Corn and Chicken Carbonara Lightener Up!

2012-08-20T05:00:00.000-07:00

Yummy and quite the crowd pleaser! I got this idea from Pinterest, but changed it to fit my time constraints and lightened it up a bit for a healthy dinner.

Roasted Corn and Chicken Carbonara

1 Chicken breast ( I threw mine in a mini crockpot with some chicken stock earlier in the afternoon, made this easy because the chicken just fell apart!)
1 package of Linguini
Half a pack (about 6 oz) of Fat Free Cream Cheese or Neufchetal Cheese
1 Cup Chicken Stock/Veggie Stock
6 strips of Turkey Bacon
1 1/2 cups of Trader Joes' Roasted Corn (AMAZING and should be a freezer staple!)
1 cup of frozen peas
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 garlic clove minced
Parmesan Cheese for sprinkling

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook pasta, about 10 minutes.
2. In a medium pot or sauce pan over medium heat, add the oil and turkey bacon. Brown bacon will crispy.
3. Add the chicken to the bacon and break up into chunks. Stir and immediately add corn and peas.
4. Lower the heat to medium/low.
5. In a small pot, add cream cheese and chicken or veggie stock. Stir until cheese cheese has melted and a cream sauce has been created. Add garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper. (You now have a healthy version of an Alfredo!)
6. Once the pasta is cooked, drain, reserving about a 1/4 cup of the pasta water. Add the pasta to the bacon/veggie/chicken mixture and pour the cream sauce on top!
7. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve!

I have some seriously picky eaters in my house, but they cleaned their plates! :) Plus, the hubby liked the addition of bacon to my usual pasta and pea dishes. He would have preferred the real deal bacon, but he said that it was tasty all the same. I save some fat and calories too. This meal took about 35 minutes from opening the cabinet to get the pot to serving my last hungry mouth!

Quick Dinner: Roasted Tomato Polenta and Oven Roasted Chicken Breast

2012-08-18T07:32:00.000-07:00

Oven Roasted Tomato Polenta and Chicken

This is a quick and easy "gourmet" dish. From beginning to end it took about 30 minutes! Plus it's economically since I only used two chicken breasts and half of the bunch of organic tomatoes! I can use the rest tonight for dinner--Mexican this time I think.

Ingredients:

1 cup Instant Polenta (I used Ferraro)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

2 Chicken breasts halfed (this is where you can save money, half them so everyone gets an adequate portion without going overboard

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

a handful of fresh basil chopped

3 garlic cloves still in skin

4 organic (or not) Compari tomatoes

dash of Italian season and salt and pepper to season chicken

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Grease baking dish with olive oil. Half chicken breasts (so now you have 4 pieces of chicken) and put them in the dish (move them around a little). Season one side of the chicken with Italian seasonings and salt and pepper and then repeat with the other side.

3. Cut tomatoes into three parts and place them on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with a little pepper. Sprinkle your basil on top!

4. Place both the chicken and the tomatoes in the oven. The chicken will cook for 15 minutes and then you will flip the pieces and cook for another 15 minutes. At the halfway point you can take out the tomatoes and place them to the side.

5. During the first 15 minutes of cooking, pour yourself a glass of wine or tea and hang out. Once the first 15 minutes are up and the tomatoes are out, start the polenta.

6. Follow the directions on the box, but I warn you polenta cooks VERY fast and you need to whisk or stir to get rid of lumps.

7. Once your polenta has finished cooking, add your butter and cheese. Stir until the butter melts and then add your tomatoes. Smash your garlic to get the skins off. (Don't worry the garlic won't be as strong as it is in raw form) I added a basil leaf to pretty it up, but it's not necessary!

8. Your chicken should be done, just check to make sure it isn't pink.

9. Serve!

Easy Peasy Choco Chocolate Chip Cookies!

2012-08-17T11:28:00.002-07:00

Easy Peasy Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies!

I snatched this recipe from Milk and Cookies! It is the quickest, easiest chocolate cookie recipe that you can throw together with ingredients you may already have in your cupboards! The baby has been begging for cookies and milk, so this was an afternoon snack that hit the spot! You can find the recipe here, but I cut it a little short on the butter, about a stick and a half instead of two and lightened up on the flour! It also freezes beautifully!

This is their dramatic cookie face! Nothing is more serious than enjoying chocolate..oh and Daddy, I may have allowed them to lick the spoons....don't hate me :)

I tried it, take 2! Sticky Paint

2012-02-29T11:57:00.000-08:00

This idea is genius and delicious! What is there not to like about sweetened condensed milk??? This paint is made in a muffin tin with the sweet stuff and food coloring! I had to slap my own hand from trying to eat the paint--what am I back in kindergarten???

They had so much fun painting! When it dries, it has a wet look to it. I originally saw this idea on Pinterest and the pinner said that this was mess-free....uh not so much. At least not when you do it with toddlers. Come to think of it, what is mess free when toddlers are involved? There was actually a good deal of mess but since the paint is think it pretty much stuck to that drop cloth. I would be careful doling it in a carpeted area. ( Our carpet is on its way out the door, so I didn't care. :) )

Sorry for the dizzy picture but picture manager didn't allow me to alter this for some reason, but I did want to show how cool it was that they mixed colors in the extra muffin wells.

Overall it was a great idea and I am glad that I tried this pin. Super cheap, since a can of the milk costs about $1.99 and the kids love the feel (and taste-I let them try it prior to coloring it) of it!

UPDATE: I said I would try it and I did!

2012-02-20T04:51:00.000-08:00

** My original post did not include my inspiration picture from The Happy Housewife. It is included now below.
Ok so in the new year I vowed that some of my pinning would not be done in vain....I wanted my thousands (and I mean thousands) of pins to mean something. :) I vowed that I would do at least one pin a week! Last week I did two--but today we'll just get into the first!

I found these DIY tile coasters on Pinterest some time ago and have been wanting to try them. Last week, my MOPS group met to have a crafty little play date and our crafty chairlady decided to do these coasters! It was perfect--one pin down!

The original coasters are came from The Happy Housewife, a blog that I love to check for cool DIY ideas! You should check her blog out--very good stuff!

I made mine with:

Porcelain Tiles (Home Depot--about 0.40 each)
Mod Podge
Scrapbooking Paper
Polyurethane Spray for finishing

First cut your scrapbooking paper to fit the size of your tile (TIP: If the scrapbooking paper is of thicker quality then cut it slightly smaller than your square. The Mod Podge is great, but it won't mold the paper or be sticky enough to stick the paper down completely and then you will have corners that pop up!)
Apply Mod Podge to both the backside of the paper, as well as the tile and fix the paper to the tile.
Let dry for a few minutes and then apply 2-3 coats of Mod Podge on top of the whole coaster.
Let the coaster dry for at least 20 minutes.
Once the coaster has dried and there isn't that tacky feeling, go to a well ventilated room (outside is best) and spray a coat of the Polyurethane spray on top. Let it dry and then you are done!

My friend Chrissy made monogrammed DIY coasters for her friends and family and they turned out GREAT! Very cute gifts, especially for teachers!

Spinach Salad with Low Fat Horseradish Ranch

2012-02-14T09:58:00.000-08:00

I have never been one to whip up salads for meals, but for the birthday party this past weekend, I figured that I should provide a healthy side dish for my guests. :) The girls helped me with this one! Making the dressing may sound silly when you can just buy some at the store, but keeping foods whole is better for you. I figure that if it can sit on a shelf, unrefrigerated for any number of days, it must have some kind of preservatives in it. And if it can sit on that shelf for that long, how long can it sit in your stomach?

They even ate the leftovers the next day with dinner--well everything but the tomatoes!

Spinach Salad
bag of baby spinach
2 hard boiled eggs diced
cherry tomatoes
garlic croutons
half of a white onion, sliced
bacon chopped ( looking back I will use turkey bacon)
1/2 package of baby bella mushrooms

Horseradish Ranch Dressing
3 TBS Low fat milk
1 TBS Horseradish
Half a packet of ranch seasoning
1/2 cup of low fat or fat free sour cream

Whisk with a small whisk or fork, until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Add more sour cream if it is too thin or more milk if it is too thick.

Enjoy!
Mix it up and

Caroline's Birthday: Fairy Wands!

2012-02-13T05:05:00.000-08:00

In going with the Abby Cadabby theme, fairy wands were a must for party favors! We made these pretty cheaply and they took about and hour to make 9. They even turned out to be a hit with the boys!

They take just a few supplies:

a roll of tulle (get the kind in the bridal department at Michael's or Joann's-it's already 6 or 7 inches in width)
string
dowels (Home Depot will cut the 3 foot dowels for you into 12 inch wands--only $0.80 a dowel and you get 3 wands from 1 dowel!)
various notions, I used the $1 bin ric rac and ribbon
Hot Glue Gun
glitter and mod podge for decorating the dowel (optional)

I started by decoupaging the dowels, although this is totally optional. They would look cute without this step.

Once the dowels are dry, cut the tulle into 7 four inch strips. Fold the strips accordion style and tie string the in the middle and fluff your layers out. ( Remember those tissue paper flowers we used to make in elementary school?? Same technique!)

Take your hot glue gun and glue random strips of ribbon, ric rac, or anything else that you want to hang from the wand. I thought about taking some of their broken play necklaces and using those but we unfortunately were attached to them.... ( Really???) Glue the notions to the tip top of the dowel.

Once the notions are secure, hot glue the tulle puff to the top! Ok now that I am typing out the instructions, they sounds like a lot of work--but trust me they are totally worth it! The kids played with the all evening!

Now you have awesome fairy wands, wizard wands, whatever you want to call them! They are great for dress up or a good game of chase. :)

Yes they are in their jammies. Yes that is a lollipop hanging from her mouth........No, they didn't have lollipops for breakfast that day, but they got one when they finished--hey sometimes it's not worth the fight.

Furniture Re-do

2012-02-12T15:31:00.000-08:00

I had this coffee table that my mom gave me when they got some new family room furniture. I liked it because it was pretty sturdy but our family room/play room was pretty dark so I had to paint it brown.....

pretty depressing huh??

Ok that is better :) Stick a cutie on it and it's fine right?? Well almost..... I took Laura with me to Home Depot and let her pick out a paint sample. It was super cheap and we got a little more than the traditional size all for around $4! Now it's...............

PINK!! It matches the pink play kitchen, pink motorcycle, and pink bunny chair in the room! I mean we could have gone traditional but this is just so much more fun! :) Cheap, easy, and took about one afternoon to prime and paint!

Caroline's 2nd Birthday: The Making of a Shin Dig!

2012-02-09T04:37:00.000-08:00

My youngest daughter turned two yesterday so we are having a party for her on Saturday. I was racking my brain about what to do for party favors. I remembered how much fun the girls had making play dough last week so I figured we'd whip some of that up! We needed it to be special....what could we add..........GLITTER! My husband has a bad relationship with glitter. He says it gets stuck in his beard-that is why I made it when he wasn't home hehe :)

Many of your ingredients you will find in your own kitchen cabinets....

2 cups Flour
1/2 cup salt
2 cups water
4 tsp cream of tartar
2 TBSP veggie oil

These are the extra supplies that I picked up:

white glitter for glistening dough
silver glitter for sparkly dough
Wilton Brand concentrated food coloring

You make the dough pretty much the same way that you made the dough from last week with a few tweaks.

1. Dump all ingredients in a pot and stir until smooth.

2. BEFORE heating divide mixture into as many bowls as you would like colors (I used three)

3. Heating one of the batches over medium, add food coloring until it is the shade of your choice. Mix.

4. Add lots of glitter! I went through two containers of glitter!

5. Stir and once its a dough ball, let it sit cool either on the counter or in the fridge before storing it.

6. Rinse out your pot and repeat with other colors.

I also picked up these cute little Glad Ware containers to keep the dough in when I stuff their goodie bags!

There you have it! A cheap and easy party favor that all kids love! Who doesn't love glitter play dough!?!

Cold weather activities....

2012-02-08T11:32:00.000-08:00

When the weather is cold and we can't play outside, we look to the shoe store for entertainment. My girls would spend hours in the shoe department at Nordstrom Rack! Haha hey at least its a free activity that makes them happy!

Oh yeah we tried it!

2012-02-06T05:00:00.000-08:00

I am an avid fan of Joy the Baker's blog. I've baked her cakes for birthdays and the crowd goes wild. :) Oh and her mocha coffee cake is to DIE for!! Anyways, she did not disappoint with this pretzel dog recipe. Soft pretzels are delicious and so are hot dogs.....although I used Trader Joe's Organic Turkey Dogs for this one-needless to say, they came out amazing! I Thank you Joy. My husband really thanks you Joy. BUT Laura thanks you the most! Imagine smiling like that over a hot dog!

Recipe: c/o Joy The Baker