My journey to making life...Pinteresting!

$4 Homemade Wall Art

2011-10-19T13:22:00.000-04:00

     So when you first walk into my house there is a wall straight ahead that has an electrical panel on it. Why they couldn't move it a few feet into the closet...I will never understand. Anyway, I wanted some kind of art to hang there to cover it...without spending a lot of money. The problem was that in order to cover the panel and have the art centered on the space, it would need to be at least 24x36 and fit into our style and color theme!

     I saw a really cute Holiday idea for a mantle that used wooden blocks and thought it would be great if I could alter the idea to make wall art instead of tabletop decor. So I went to the dollar store for inspiration and thats when I found everything I needed.

Paper plates (I used black square plates) - $1
Red decorative filling - $1
Ribbon - $1
Bows (they were actually christmas ornaments) - $1

Total cost = $4

It turned out really cute and fits the space and our decor perfectly. The best part was the overall price of only $4 and how easy it was to make. The kids loved watching me make it that they wanted to make one of their own. So I went today to pick up different colored plates plates, colored beads and different colored ribbon ofr my daughter and son to make one of their own for each of their bedrooms. I'll update later to let you know how that goes!

Stop and Smell the Roses

2011-10-18T15:08:00.000-04:00

Everyday on our walks we pass this same spot...Anjali always has to stop to pick a flower...this was the first day I stopped and realized that the leaves look like hearts...I think it was Gods way of telling me to slow down and enjoy ♥

Apple picking

2011-10-13T10:23:00.001-04:00

As I’ve said many times before fall is my favorite time of year. This is our first fall in North Carolina, and boy are things different down here! First of all the weather is nothing like NJ fall weather. Its been upper 70’s without fail everyday. They have many different pumpkin places and farms with fun family activities but one major thing is missing…Apple picking. I searches all over and found 1 orchard for self picking apples off the tree…it was an hour drive but worth it.

We drove to Millstone Creek Orchard in Ramseur, NC. Of course we got a late start into the season so many of the trees no longer had apples on them but they had a few left for us to pick…and many that had fallen off the tree but were in perfect condition. The kids had fun finding apples and playing on the farm. They had great tire swings set up and sand boxes made out of tractor wheels. My favorite part was the apple cider slushies, and they had great wine cake also. Overall we had a good time and came home with 6lbs of apples.

Then we had to decide what to do with all of those apples! So I created mini apple pies…kind of like the ones at McDonalds…maybe not as pretty…but good!

Pulled pork hotpockets

2011-10-11T17:58:00.000-04:00

Pulled Pork Hot pockets

Ingredients:

1 can (16.3 oz) Flaky canned biscuits (1 can makes 8 pockets)

Pulled or roasted pork, chopped

1 Egg white

1 tsp Water

Your favorite BBQ seasoning/rub

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350º.

2. Wisk the egg white and water together in a small bowl and set aside.

3. On a floured work surface, roll each biscuit into a six-inch round.

4. Place a few tablespoons of the pork on one half of each round.

5. Fold the exposed half of each round over the filling and pinch and roll to seal the edge

6. Arrange the pockets on a sheet pan leaving about an inch between each

7. Cut a one-inch slash in the top of each pocket

8. Brush the top and seams of each pocket with the egg wash and sprinkle with a little seasoning/rub. (we use salt for the kids)

9. Bake until golden brown (about 20 minutes)

Morning Glory Muffins...yummy treat with fruits & Veggies!

2011-09-26T12:29:00.004-04:00

This is a great muffin recipe that has fruits and vegetables! A great way to start a day or a good snack in the middle of the day. There are many different ways to make this recipe but this is one is the way I love it. Another great way to get your kids to eat fruits and veggies!

Ingredients

1 egg
2 egg whites
1 ¼ cup cinnamon applesauce **
2 Tbsps vegetable oil
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup white sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups carrots peeled *
1 apple - peeled, cored
1 cup dried unsweetened cranberries
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly oil 18 muffin cups, or coat with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, egg whites, applesauce, oil and vanilla.
3. In a large bowl, stir together flours, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
4. Put carrots and apple into food processor for a few pulses (I don’t like chunks but its your preference)
5. Stir applesauce mixture into dry ingredients just until moistened.
6. Add carrots, apples, cranberries and walnuts into batter and mix until evenly distributed.
7. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them about 3/4 full.
8. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden and spring back when lightly pressed.

* If you are feeling very brave you can cut the carrots down to 1 cup and add in 1 cup of zucchini or sweet potato J

** I have also recently discovered Fruitastics Mixed Berry sauce. Each cup contains 1 fruit and vegetable serving with no added sugar. Tastes like regular flavored applesauce.

Baked Chicken Ziti

2011-09-24T16:56:00.002-04:00

Dinner last night was a yummy crock pot whole chicken. Of course even with the 4 of us we always seem to have chicken left over. Just enough to not want to throw it away but never enough to make a full meal out of it! So today I decied to make a Baked Chicken Ziti. Simple easy meal that everyone loves, and a good way to use the leftover chicken. I basically just replaced the ground beef in my normal ziti recipe with the left over shredded chicken. Yummy :)

Ingredients:

1-2 cups of leftover chicken (shredded)
1 jar meatless sauce
½ cupchicken broth
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1 (16 ounce) package ziti pasta, cooked and drained
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I use double the amount of cheese)
1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2 . Stir together spaghetti sauce, chicken broth, oregano, and chicken pieces. Cook until chicken is hot and tender again. Remove from heat and add in grated parmesan cheese.
3. Stir 1 cup of the sauce into the cooked ziti noodles.
4. The layer into 13x9x2 in baking dish as directed:

½ of the ziti noodles
½ of the mozzarella cheese
½ of the sauce
Remaining ziti mixture
Remaining sauce.

7. Cover and bake 20 minutes.
8. Remove and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.
9. Return to oven and bake uncovered for 10 minutes or until heated through.

Served with a nice fresh salad and some yummy garlic bread, makes a great meal. Enjoy :)

I'm Back....for good :)

2011-09-16T10:27:00.000-04:00

I don't even know where to start! My husband and I just relocated 2 weeks ago to Cary NC from New Jersey. What a busy month it has been. I not only packed an entire house by myself (my husband moved down almost 2 weeks before us) but I also drove the 7hrs with 2 kids and a cat at midnight! But we made it in one piece, Thank the Lord. We lived in a guest suite for a week before our place was ready...a horrible feeling...never able t make yourself at home! Now we are finally in our home and it is coming along. I hate boxes and clutter so of course I've already almost finished unpacking and decorating. My son is on his second week of school and Anjali is still home with me...for now. And as if we didn't have enough on our plate we went and got a puppy! She is a 5 month old black lab mix and really a good dog...unless you my cat... then she is devil! At least she sleeps through the night and is 99% house trained....or I may have lost my mind by now...lol!

North Carolina has been great. Our neighborhood has an indoor and outdoor pool, so my children think that this is heaven. We have stores within walking distance and if you do need to venture out in a car then I swear the number of stores here out number the amount of residents! It has been in the upper 80's since we got here, which was nice because we have been able to go swimming out side everyday after school. But I woke up this morning to a very brisk 60 degrees...it finally felt like September. This is truly my favorite time of year...I love the Fall & Holiday season.

So I'm back into my normal school year routine. Back to my blog....maybe not daily but hopefully a few times a week. Thanks for reading

Frosted Watermelon Treats

2011-07-06T21:07:00.001-04:00

Frosted Watermelon

Watermelon cut into slices (not thicker than your cookie cutter)
Yogurt
Granola or sprinkles

1. Using your favorite cookie cutters cut shapes out of the slices of watermelon.

2. Frost with vanilla or other flavor yogurt.

3. Sprinkle with granola or sprinkles

Although I don't have any problems getting my children to eat fruits or vegetables it is nice to give them a change every once in awhile. This is a new fun way to eat watermelon. My kids had a blast making them and eating them.

Frozen Yogurt Popsicle

2011-07-06T21:00:00.000-04:00

Frozen Yogurt Berry Popsicles
2 cups plain yogurt
2 cups berries (blueberry, strawberry, cherries, raspberry)
½ cup confectioners sugar

Combine yogurt, fruit (I only use 1 fruit for each batch so I’m not sure how it tastes all together, but I’m sure it would be fine) and sugar in a blender and process until smooth. Place into ice pop molds and freeze. Then enjoy!

This is a wonderful recipe from Deceptively Delicious. Each popsicle only has 100 calories and less than 1 gram of fat! Not to mention the calcium and vitamin C…a great healthy snack.

Making Homemade Chalk

2011-07-06T20:57:00.001-04:00

Homemade Chalk

Toilet tissue tube or ice cube tray
Aluminum foil if you are using a toilet paper tube
Petroleum jelly if you're using an ice cube tray
Disposable plastic container
Plaster of Paris
Duct tape
Liquid tempera paint
Water
Spoon

1. Cover one end of the toilet paper tube with duct tape. Loosely roll an 8- by-41/2-inch piece of aluminum foil and slip it into the tube so that it lines the inside, fitting snugly. (Or coat the inside of the ice cube tray with petroleum jelly.)

2. Set tube upright (duct tape side down) on protected surface.

3. In a disposable plastic container, help your child mix 1 cup plaster of Paris with 1/2 cup water. Stir slowly and thoroughly until plaster is dissolved, about 1 minute.

4. Immediately add 2 tablespoons paint (or more for brighter chalk color, but be careful it can stain). Mix thoroughly.

5. Spoon into the tube (or ice cube tray). Tap gently so mixture settles to the bottom.

Let dry overnight before using.

St Patrick's Day crafts & Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes

2011-03-07T12:26:00.003-05:00

So its been a very busy few months here. I have been slacking with my blog and I hope to catch up soon. Right now in our home we are focusing on St Patrick’s Day. Of course we always have our corned beef and cabbage with soda bread. I usually make some kind of yummy green treat and maybe some mint chocolate chip ice cream. This year I have decided to try something new for dessert Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes…to go along with our ice cream.

Anjali has been working on a few crafts to decorate our home. The first one we made was a rainbow, made out of Froot Loops. The clouds are her hand prints in white paint. She had a blast making this one…not to mention ruining her lunch by eating half the Froot Loops! I suggest doing this at snack time…with a separate bowl for “eating” ones…just to be safe when using glue.

The second project was a shamrock. We had yellow and blue paint and discovered what happens when you mix the two together. Nothing really special here but a good color learning project. We cut it out and hung it on the front door.

The third project we completed so far is Goodluck Bear from the Care Bears. I had her spread glue over the entire picture then she covered the whole things with pieces of crepe paper (or you can use green tissue paper). She had fun tearing the pieces before hand and then sticking them on the glue. It turned out cute, we cut it out and put it onto pink construction paper. We will be doing this same process with shamrocks later this week. For the shamrocks I don’t use construction paper, just plain computer paper so when we hang them in the window they become kind of translucent. Very pretty window decorations.

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes Recipe

Cupcake Ingredients:

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1/2 cup plain yogurt, at room temperature

6 oz. dark stout (like Guinness), at room temperature (*measure after the foam has settled)

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 cup sugar

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

6 Tbsp. butter, melted

Frosting Ingredients:

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

4 Tbsp. butter, at room temperature

4 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with cupcake papers; spray the whole thing including the cupcake papers, with nonstick spray. Set aside.

2. Melt butter in microwave or on stovetop, then set aside.

3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and yogurt. Add beer and vanilla whisk until well combined.

4. Sift all the dry ingredients together (cocoa powder, sugar, flour, baking soda, and cinnamon) into a separate bowl.

5. Add about a third of the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and blend well using a mixer on low speed, or a hand mixer. Add the rest of the flour mixture, a third at a time, mixing well after each addition. When all ingredients are blended, add the melted butter then continue mixing until very well combined.

6. Pour batter into the 12 cups, filling each only about 3/4 full. Bake on center rack of the preheated 350 degree oven and for approximately 25 minutes. When cupcakes are done (toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake will come out clean), let cool for ten minutes then remove cupcakes from pan and let them cool completely on wire rack.

To make the Frosting:

1. In a medium bowl, blend together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla.

2. Gradually add powdered sugar, mixing well until it’s all incorporated. * Use immediately

Free purse book, Valentines Day & Raspberry Oatmeal Bars!

2011-01-21T15:36:00.002-05:00

I love free or close to free stuff…who doesn’t! Today I ordered a purse photo book from Walgreens for free. It’s a great gift that I plan on giving my mother and grandmother, neither of them being iphone “compatible“, for Mothers Day. The code can be used multiple times, all I paid was $3.20 for tax and shipping…which means I don’t even have to travel to Walgreens for my photo book!

(1) 4.5” x 6” Purse book = $6.99
Coupon code: Purse = -$6.99
Standard S&H = $2.99
Sales Tax = $0.21
-------------------------------------------
Total Price = $3.20 　

For the next month I will be in “Love” mode. I will be planning Valentines Day crafts for the kids to do. I have a fun song that I sing with Anjali, along with cut out hearts that we use as visual. This teaches her color, shape, and numbers. The picture and song below are for red but I cut out every color of the rainbow to use for this song.

Hearts! (Tune: 1 little 2 little 3 little Indians)

One red, two red, three red hearts,

Four red, Five red, Six red hearts,

Seven red, eight red, nine red hearts

Ten red hearts for you!

~ Repeat with all different colors.

This weeks homemade treat is Raspberry Oatmeal Bars. They are very yummy with the original recipe but I will be altering them this weekend to include ½ cup of pureed beets. I’m a little nervous about this one so I will be posting the taste results after I do it… Stay tuned! Until then enjoy the original recipe below.

Raspberry Oatmeal Bars

2 cups Old Fashioned oats
1 ¼ cup flour
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
¾ cup spread able margarine
1 cup raspberry preserves
1 cup dried cranberries (optional)1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat baking pan with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl combine oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and vanilla. Stir well.
3. Add the margarine in quickly until the ingredients are not powdery any more. Do not over mix, some of the margarine may still be visible.
4. Take about ½ of the oat mixture and press it into the bottom of the pan firmly. Bake about 13 minutes. The edges will be lightly brown but not fully baked.
5. Spread the raspberry preserves over the baked oat layer. Then sprinkle the remaining oat mixture over the preserves. (I like to add dried cranberries to the remaining oat mixture before sprinkling over the preserves) Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
6. Let pan cool completely before cutting into bars. Serve and enjoy J

Brazilian Carrot Cake = yummy!

2011-01-13T15:32:00.001-05:00

So I’ve been trying to find easy ways to add extra vegetable and fruit servings into our daily routine. Those who know me know that my husband’s mother is from Brazil. During our visits his grandmother always makes Bolo de Cenoura or Carrot Cake. Their version is very different than the carrot cake we are used to here in America. So here is the recipe for Brazilian Carrot Cake that is easy and has about 3 servings of carrots in it.

Ingredients
3 eggs
3 medium/large carrots grated
1 & ½ cup sugar
¾ cup oil
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
½ Tsp cinnamon (they don’t use this in Brazil but I like it)

1. Mix all ingredients together in blender (except the flour and baking powder.)
2. Pour mixture into a bowl, sift 2 cups flour and the baking powder into the mixture, mix well for about 2 minutes.
3. Grease a pan and sprinkle with flour. Pour batter into pan
4. Bake 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, until cake is golden brown. If a toothpick comes out clean and it is good.

Icing (easy way!)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 cup white sugar
1 cup instant hot cocoa mix
3/4 cup milk

Make the icing by placing the butter, 1 cup sugar, instant hot chocolate drink mix, and milk in a pan. While stirring, heat to almost boiling over medium-high heat until mixture thickens. When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and spread the icing evenly over the top immediately.

New for 2011

2011-01-07T19:30:00.000-05:00

     The Holidays have ended and we are now back to “normal” everyday life. My resolution this year is to be more Aware. I know that sounds very vague but that was intentional. I want to be more aware of the ingredients I use to feed my family, keeping us healthy. I want to be more aware of the people in our communities that I can help, whether it be with money, time, or donations. I want to be more aware of the money I’m spending, deciding more carefully if it’s truly necessary spending. I want to be more aware of my stress and personal health, learning how to balance my life. I want to be more aware of my expectations of others, making my expectations reasonable and clear. I want to be more aware of my personal relationships, making more effort to keep my loved ones updated and in touch. I could go on forever… So now you may understand why I made it so vague!

     So as a small start we have started making Smoothies each day, each one containing 1 serving of vegetables and 3 servings of fruit…in just 1 drink! We are once again donating our gently used books to the local children’s clinic, our used toys and clothes to the shelter, and again sponsoring a child’s birthday. I have been doing great with our budget, saving is like a game to me. My goal in the next month or two is to plan our summer vacations and outings…this way I can determine the budget needed for our family time. I think I may even give in this year and try a camping weekend…I’m trying to be brave!

     I wish I could say that I have started a work out routine but I’d be lying. So my goal is to make a schedule of “mommy time” that will include my work-outs and a little bit of quite alone time for just me. A happy mommy is a happy family, right? I will have that done and started by February 1^st.

     I recently created a daily expectations list that I post up on the refrigerator. It has each of our names on it and underneath each name is my expectations for that person that day. Some days may have nothing and other days have a few things written down. I was tired of coming home from the pharmacy at 10pm and being angry that the clothes were still sitting in the dryer…but I realized if I never asked for it to be done then I shouldn’t have automatically expected it to be done. This list seems to be a great way to prevent silly arguments and stress building up inside.

     As for personal relationships…that one is harder. With family spread out all over the country it is hard to find time to keep everyone updated. So beside face book, my blog, and email I have set up a Family website. It allows me to upload all of our pictures, videos, and keep a journal. Invited guests can go on when ever they wish and see what is new and even order pictures from the site. Then once a week they receive a McAllister Family update in their email. While I’d prefer to see or talk in person this seems to make it feel a little more personal.

Yummy 6 layer Dip

1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
1 (16 ounce) jar salsa
1 (16oz) Guacamole
2 cups of Shredded Cheese (Your favorite)
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions
Layer 1: blend ½ taco seasoning mix and refried beans.
Layer 2: Mix the sour cream, cream cheese and ½ packet seasoning together
Layer 3: Shredded Cheese (I like Pepper Jack here)
Layer 4: Guacamole
Layer 5: Salsa
Layer 6: Shredded Cheddar cheese

Bake @350 until cheese is melted (about 20 minutes for me)

How I tricked my kids into liking spinach!

2010-12-31T21:14:00.000-05:00

I’m lucky to have children who love fruits and vegetables. My son will order an adult size salad over chicken fingers and fries at a restaurant. The problem is during a busy day its hard to make sure they are eating the right amount of fruit and vegetables. So I started to research smoothies after watching an episode of Dr. Oz. I looked up many different recipes and read lots of reviews and tips. Once I decided on my ingredients it was time for the true test…getting my kids to drink it.

Smoothies

1 banana sliced (no peel)
1 apple sliced (cored & peeled)
1 orange sliced (no skin or seeds)
1 cup blueberries
1 cup apple juice (or other fruit juice)
1 handful of fresh spinach (no stems)

~ Blend until completely smooth and no “chunks” remain.

So I blended the ingredients in my blender and poured it into the cups. We all sat down and tried it together. I liked…a bit tart from the blueberries I think but I like that. Anjali drank about half of her cup and Conner completely drank his. It was a success! Just to be sure that it wasn’t a one time thing I made them again today and this time my children fought over whose cup was who’s. I consider that a complete success and this smoothie will be a daily drink our home from now on!

What if Santa doesn't come?

2010-12-20T18:49:00.000-05:00

During the year we sponsor a child’s birthday. We buy a gift, decorations, and a small birthday cake. We bundle it all up and make a “Birthday Box” to give to the Childs parents…and that night the child gets a small birthday celebration. It breaks my heart to think that there are children that don’t know the wonder of blowing out candles on a birthday cake, and making a wish.

Of course when the Holidays came around it was only natural for me to also sponsor a child for Christmas. Each child has a small “about me” with their gift request. It allows you to understand their like and personalities. This year a little girl was asked what she wanted and this was her response.

“I’d like a baby doll for Christmas. I really hope that Santa doesn’t run out this year”

When her teacher asked her if that is what she asked for last year her response was.

“Yeah but Santa didn’t come last year. Mommy said that he ran out of toys and that he had to make sure the sick children at the hospitals got toys first. But this year my mommy says that he should have enough to give to everyone.”

Well that story did it for me! I was tearing like a little baby. To know that a child might wake up on Christmas to nothing…that Santa never came…is just a heart breaking thought! But that little girl was able to accept that maybe their were children who needed a gift more than her and even more amazing is that she kept hope and joy in her heart, not giving up on the magic of Christmas. So this year for every gift I bought we donated a gift in return. This is something that my children have been taught to do from the very beginning, for every toy that comes into the house one gets donated to charity.

As for the little girl that I sponsored this year…not only did Santa not run out of baby dolls but he is adding extra gifts for those children who didn’t get them last year.

Merry Christmas to everyone reading and don’t forget ~ the real magic is the smile and joy on a child’s face when they realize that someone out there was really listening to their wish.

My grocery bill was $300...but I payed under $140!

2010-12-18T23:23:00.000-05:00

I love food shopping! I think this is something that you either hate or love… and I love it. I usually go alone while my husband is home with the kids so I can take my time and really get a good deal. This week my husband was on call all weekend so my daughter had to come with me while my son was at school. Thankfully Shoprite has a service to watch your children and my daughter is finally enough to spend time in there…and she loves it. What 4 year old girl wouldn’t love 2 teenage girls painting her nails and giving her their complete attention!

So besides the food shopping I also needed some household items like toilet paper, dishwasher detergent, cat litter, cat food, dish soap and sponges. So I already knew that my $130 goal (for 2 weeks of groceries) was going to be a little higher this week.

Well I have to say that my trip was a great success! My Bill of $299.86 came down to $138.27 after my savings card was scanned and my coupons came off. So this trip I saved $161.59...Hooray! Over $40 of that was in coupons…oh how I love printable coupons! So for my family of 4 our total grocery bill (with a few household items included) came to $138.27 for 2 weeks…less than $10 a day!

Children who Inspire

2010-12-14T13:30:00.001-05:00

I hear stories all the time about the powerful Philanthropists making a difference in the world. People like Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Oprah donating their time, money and resources to make a difference. But when you hear stories about children who dedicate their lives to do amazing things and make a difference in the world…that is something I find inspiring, magical and life changing. Below are four “Philanthropists” that stole my heart and respect.

Alexandra Scott - Alex’s Lemonade Stand
Alexandra “Alex” Scott (1996-2004) is the inspiration behind Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. Alex was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma, a rare form of childhood cancer, before her first birthday. In 2000 four-year-old Alex Scott held her first lemonade stand to raise money to find a cure for kids with cancer--while bravely battling her own. Alex raised an astonishing $2,000 at her first stand. In August of 2004, Alex passed away at the age of 8, knowing that, with the help of others, she had raised over $1 million to help find a cure for the disease that took her life. Her family continued her legacy and to date, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation has raised more than $35 million toward fulfilling Alex’s dream of finding a cure, with more than $12 million of those dollars coming from lemonade stands.

Phoebe Russel - Phoebes Foodbank
Phoebe’s teacher preschool always asks each student to perform a public service project before graduation. Past graduates operated lemonade stands and donated their proceeds to the food bank, but Phoebe was the first to come up with the idea of recycling cans for her project. So she started collecting empty cans and other donations to support the San Francisco Food Bank, her goal was to raise $1,000. Word spread about Phoebe’s efforts and caring people dropped off bags of cans on the school’s steps and left envelopes of cash in the school’s mailbox. In just a few weeks, Phoebe collected 4,497 cans and raised a total of $3,736.30 (about 17,971 meals)! When Tyson Foods heard about what Phoebe was doing and the company donated more than 30,000 pounds of chicken to the San Francisco Food Bank. It works out to almost 120,000 donated meals for the hungry in San Francisco.

Zachary Bonner - Little Red Wagon Foundation
Zachary "Zach" Bonner, at just seven years old, founded Little Red Wagon Foundation to aid the 1.3 million homeless children in the United States. In 2004, when Hurricane Charley hit neighborhoods, he collected 27 pickup trucks of water in his little red wagon. Bonner teamed up with the Standup for Kids and collected 400 backpacks of supplies, nicknamed "Zachpacks", for homeless children, filled with donated snacks, toys and toiletries. His "My House to the White House" project took place in three stages covering 1,225 miles to raise awareness and funds for homeless children. Then in 2010, he walked from Tampa to Los Angeles, calling the trip "March Across America". He began the 2,478-mile walk on March 23, 2010. Bonner walked an average of 17–22 miles every day. During his walk, he gave gift cards to people in need. On September 14, 2010, Bonner completed the nearly 2,500-mile-walk to Los Angeles.

Talia Leman’s - Randomkid.org
Talia Leman’s mission is simple: To help kids help others. It began in 2005 at age 10, she saw the story of the victims of Hurricane Katrina and wanted to help. She rallied 4,000 school districts to do fundraisers, raising more than $10 million. She then founded RandomKid.org, with the tag line, “The Power of ANYone,”. It’s a nonprofit to educate, unify and empower young people of all backgrounds and abilities to make a measurable difference in their efforts to help solve real world problems. At age 11 she set up a mini-United Nations to work with 70 delegates who raised $26,000 to build a school in rural Cambodia for 300 children. Today, RandomKid works to provide crutches and artificial limbs to victims of the Haiti earthquake; planting vegetables at local homeless shelters; and unifying schools to sell their own labeled water to raise funds for water pumps in Africa.

Kid Friendly Gingerbread Cookies

2010-12-03T17:59:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is baking cookies. I love making all kinds of treats, but it just wouldn’t be Christmas with out Gingerbread Cookies. The only problem is my children are not big fans of the taste for Gingerbread. After we make them a few weeks will pass and they always end up hard as a rock and then into the trash they go! So this year I tried a new recipe that looked like it was “kid friendly” and it was a success. My children ate half the batch before getting a chance to decorate them.

Kid Friendly Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients

1 (3.5 ounce) package instant butterscotch pudding mix
1/2 cup butter (softened to room temp)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the dry butterscotch pudding mix, butter, and brown sugar until smooth.
2. Stir in the egg. Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, and cinnamon; stir into the pudding mixture. Cover, and chill dough until firm, at least 1 hour (I leave mine over night).
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease baking sheets. On a * floured surface, roll dough out and cut into shapes using cookie cutters. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets (they spread alot).
4. Bake for 7-8 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are golden at the edges. Cool on wire racks.
5. Decorate as desired.

* make sure your suface is floured at all times...everytime you roll it out re-flour your surface or it will stick!

Birthday around the Holidays!

2010-11-30T12:00:00.002-05:00

Each year we have a small family “party” in November where we celebrate my daughters birthday. We do this because I want to make sure that my daughter, who’s birthday is on December 13^th, never feels that her birthday is overshadowed by the holiday season. Then on her actual birthday we have a cake and open her present from mommy, Daddy, and Big brother. But I still worried that as she gets older she will feel like her birthday isn’t as important since Christmas is celebrated all months long. This prompted me to alter our Christmas traditions for now on.

We decided that Our Christmas tree and stockings will not go up until after her birthday. It actually works better this way since we get a real tree and this will make it last longer without pine needles all over the floor (my vacuum will thank me this year!). Our Book advent calendar is being shortened to 12 days, and will go up on her birthday. The first book will always be a non-Christmas book, and part of her birthday gift.

We will still have our two other Christmas countdowns that will start on December 1^st like normal. The first one is your typical Santa Beard Count down, with cotton balls. The second one is our Christmas banner countdown, that spells out We Wish You A Merry Christmas by the time Christmas eve arrives! This way each day the children can each get to do one of the calendars, alternating between the two.

For Anjali’s Birthday this year we will start her birthday off with yummy ice cream cone cupcakes and then open our first Book of our advent calendar. This year it will be “Happy Birthday Biscuit”, perfect for a child who thinks she is a puppy! I’m hoping by making these small changes she will never think her birthday is less important. I believe that everyone deserves to feel special on and around their birthday, especially children.

Thanksgiving Day Parade float = major fail

2010-11-25T23:04:00.000-05:00

During the Thanksgiving day Parade I noticed a float called Castle of Dreams created by My Princess Academy. Along with their cute float they had Keri Hilson perform a song called “Pretty Girl Rock”. After hearing just a few sentences from her song…that seemed completely inappropriate for the float I had to look up the website. On their website they encourage the following beliefs: In order to be a My Princess Academy princess you must learn the 4 pillars of "Real Princesses" - Generosity, Intelligence, Beauty and Confidence.

This is quoted directly from their website for the parents: “Girls have always dreamed of becoming Princesses...In the past, that meant they were shown a beautiful, idealized version of a Princess and told to go imitate her. But something was missing. Girls were never shown how to be their own kind of Princess their best selves, defined not only by physical beauty but by inner beauty.”

So back to the song that was performed on the float. It was called “Pretty Girl Rock” by Keri Hilson and I’m going to highlight some of the lines that stood out to me.

My name is Keri, I’m so very
Fly, oh my, it’s a li’l bit scary
Boys wanna marry, looking at my derri-ere, you can stare but if you touch it ima bury

Pretty as a picture
Sweeter than a swisher
Mad cause I’m cuter than the girl that is with ya

I ain’t gotta talk about it baby you can see it
But if you want ill be happy to repeat it

All eyes on me when I walk in,
No question that this girl’s a 10 Don’t hate me cause I’m beautiful. Don’t hate me cause I’m beautiful. My walk my talk the way I dress It’s not my fault so please don’t trip
Don’t hate me cause I’m beautiful Don’t hate me cause I’m beautiful

Now were you at, If your looking for me you can catch me
Cameras flashing, daddies turned his head as soon as I passed him Girls think I’m conceded cause I think I’m attraction
Don’t worry about what I think why don’t you ask him

Get yourself together don’t hate(don't do it), jealous is the ugliest trait(ohh, don't do it)
I can talk about it cause I know that I’m pretty
If you know it too then ladies sing it with me

Now I have to admit the song was catchy and I would probably dance to it in the car if I heard it but as a mother I have to say that this was the wrong performance for this particular float…that was meant to encouraging “inner strength” in young girls.

You can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vMY1UO8P48&feature=player_embedded

Growing older & Apple Pie

2010-11-22T10:57:00.001-05:00

I recently read an article written by a 90 year old women, giving her lessons that she has learned over the years. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Life isn’t tied with a bow but it is still a gift

2. No matter how you feel…get up, get dressed, and show up.

3. The best is yet to come

4. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back
.
5. Your children only get one childhood.

6. Growing old beats the alternative ~ dying young.

7. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.

8. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

9. Don’t compare your life to others, you have no idea what their journey is all about.

10. Your job won’t take care of you when your sick, your friends and family will. Stay in touch.

11. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

12. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

During the Holiday season its easy to forget the things that matter most. This is the time I like to stop and enjoy. I get my shopping done before Thanksgiving, schedule my bills to be paid through the New year, and complete my check lists. This way I can really just enjoy this time with the people that matter the most to me, my friends and family. I try to remember that I only have a certain number of years with my kids…as kids. These are times that you can not go back and repeat, so I want to make the most of it now.

I Wish all of you a Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year, and Most of all a Joyous and Memorable Holiday season. Here is one of my favorite holidays desserts...yummy!

Easy as Apple Pie

1 Pillsbury ready made pie crust (or homemade recipe of your choice)

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup water

1 tsp cinnamon (optional)

8 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and sliced

¼ cup milk (for top crust)

Sugar ( for top crust)

Directions

1. Melt butter in a sauce pan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add white sugar, brown sugar and water; bring to a boil. Reduce temperature, and simmer 5 minutes.

2. Take peeled, cored, sliced apples and mix 1tsp of cinnamon into them. (optional) then mix the sugar mixture into apples.

3. Place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Make slits into top crust (any design you choose) and put onto the top of your pie. Brush milk onto the top crust and then sprinkle with sugar.

4. Bake 15 minutes at 425 degrees F. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes.

Homemade Ornaments & Chewy Molasses Cookies

2010-11-20T23:10:00.000-05:00

Every year while my son is at school and my husband is working I go out and pick a Christmas tree. I like taking my time to find the “one”, getting it home, letting the branches drop, making sure that it is all ready when everyone comes home that day. In fact in the 7 years that I’ve had my own family I only missed this tradition once…while on bed rest with my daughter. Growing up we usually went out together as a family and cut a tree down at a local tree farm. A tradition I will probably start with my family when my children get a bit older, but for now Mommy gets to surprise the family with a tree each year.

My mothers tree is full of ornaments, old and new, many of them made by us as children and full of memories. It the one thing that I miss the most about the family Christmas tree. Our tree has the typical “Baby’s 1^st Christmas” ornaments and many store bought ones as well. It is very festive and beautiful but just isn’t the same. So I have started a new tradition with my children, each year they each make a Homemade ornament. So one day our Christmas tree will be filled with homemade ornaments and lots of memories.

Salt Dough Ornaments

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup table salt

1/2 cup warm water

cookie cutters

straw

paints/glitter/glue/beads/food coloring (to decorate)

ribbon (to hang)

Directions:

Mix ingredients in a bowl then knead on a floured surface, incorporating more flour as needed until the dough is pliable and not sticky. Roll out as you would do for cookies, about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out with cutters and place on baking tray. Make a hole at the top of the cookie with the straw. Bake in a 200 degree oven for 2 hours or until hard. When cool, paint & decorate, let dry. Hang ornaments with ribbon.

* I suggest painting a coat of clear polyurethane finish (you can get it at any Michaels or Wal-Mart) to your completed ornaments. It makes it extra shiny and will keep for years. You can make multiple batches and add food coloring to each for extra fun.

Chewy Molasses Cookies

3/4 cup butter, melted

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/4 cup molasses

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 cup white sugar (for rolling)

Directions

In a medium bowl, mix together the melted margarine, 1 cup brown sugar, and egg until smooth. Stir in the molasses. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger; blend into the molasses mixture. Cover, and chill dough for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Roll dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the white sugar. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until tops are cracked. Cool on wire racks.

My Busy Books & Peanut Butter Cookies

2010-11-13T23:48:00.001-05:00

So we recently discovered My Busy Books made by Phidal publishing. We first purchased a My Little Pony - My Busy Book at Borders. My daughter was and still is in love with this book even after months of use. It came with 12 figurines and a play mat that fit nicely into the back of the book. Recently during another trip to Borders she found a Disney Pretty Princess - My Busy Book. It came with all of her favorite princesses and again the play mat. I am not kidding you when I say that she has not gone a day without these toys!

Knowing how much she loves them I picked up a Dora the Explorer one for Christmas and I plan on finding the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and My Friends Tigger and Pooh books also. At Borders and Barnes and Noble I paid under $10 for each one. They have many other choices like Toy Story, Cars, Thomas the Train, etc...that little boys can even enjoy. I would not recommend them for younger children because the figurines are small and could be a choking hazard. But if your little girl loves these characters like my daughter does, and has left the putting toys in my mouth stage then these books are perfect!

World’s Easiest Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients
2 cups peanut butter
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
Combine ingredients and drop by teaspoonfuls on cookie sheet. I like to use my fork to make “plaid” pattern before baking. Bake for 8 minutes or until golden brown. Obviously the recipe is equal parts, 1-1-1 so its easy to make double or triple batches.

A Few of My Favorite Things...

2010-11-13T23:16:00.003-05:00

So with the Holidays approaching fast I wanted to take a minute to share some of the things that put a smile on my face. I guess you could say that this is a list of My Favorite Things.

~ Play-doh
~ Hot cup of tea
~ Catching the Ice Cream Truck
~ Hearing your babies heartbeat
~ When a baby falls asleep on you
~ Comfortable jeans
~ Warm fuzzy socks on a cold night
~ Getting the perfect picture
~ Taking my ponytail out
~ When you open a book to the exact page you were looking for
~ Finally peeing after holding it forever
~ When the phone rings and it’s someone you were just thinking about
~ Pouring a drink where the bubbles go right to the top but not over
~ When there’s still time left in the parking meter when you pull up
~ When the public bathroom has paper towels instead of hand dryers
~ Getting in a line just before it gets really long
~ The perfect cup of coffee
~ Taking your bra off after wearing it for hours
~ Hot soup on a cold night
~ Snow falling on Christmas eve
~ The Perfect Egg Crack
~ Finding money in your pocket from last year
~ Real-bearded Santa’s
~ Perfect parallel-parking on the first try
~ Christmas music
~ Finding a great deal
~ Smell of Hot Apple cider
~ Homemade apple pie
~ Your child’s face on Christmas morning
~ Miracle on 34^th street
~ Fresh Banana but bread
~ Getting a good parking spot in the rain
~ Warm fireplace on a cold winter night
~ The perfect haircut
~ Baby toes

What are some of your favorite things…the things that can put a smile on your face even on a gloomy day?