English Toffee Dip

I'm not exactly sure what to call this dip. The name that first comes to my mind is "bowl of total awesomeness that makes me want to actually eat fruit". But that's pretty long. So I guess I'll stick with English Toffee Dip.

A co-worker brought this into work a little while back and said "try it." I looked into the bowl and thought "are you kidding me?!" I wasn't sure what it was. Raisins or nuts maybe? A little scary for me. Plus he had apples to dip into it. Apples! I'm not saying I won't eat fruit. I'll eat apples (with a yummy layer of caramel covering it!) And I'll eat melon. But most fruit doesn't appeal to me at all (no pun intended.) But I sucked it up and tried it - for my co-workers sake. After all, I didn't want to be rude.

OH MY HECK!!! Can I just say that in the last two weeks I have eaten over a dozen apples! Serious! (Let's leave out the fact that I've also eaten 4 bricks of cream cheese!) =o)

It's really easy to make and so worth every single calorie!

Here's what you'll need:
* Cream cheese
* Heath candy bars (I used 3)
* apples

Yep, that's it!


Leave the cream cheese on the counter for about an hour or so (to soften it.) Meanwhile, crunch up the Heath candy bars. Smash them up really good! Now mix the two together. And there you have it. The best darn apple dip you will ever eat!


Enjoy!!!

I linked up with:
Skip to My Lou
It's So Very Cheri
Sumo's Sweet Stuff
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
Tuesday Tastes at Crazy Daisy
Mommy's Kitchen
A Southern Fairy Tale
Tuesdays at the Table
Tot Tuesdays
Anything Related
New Nostalgia
Sunday Showcase
Look What I Made
Pony Tails and Fish Scales
Simply Designing

Homemade Puffy Paint

I saw this idea on one of my favorite blogs, The Pumpkin Patch, and had to try it out with my kids. Oh my gosh! It really works!!!

It's really easy to make and so much fun.

Here's what you'll need:

** 1 Tablespoon self rising flour
** 1 Tablespoon salt
** 4 teaspoons water
** food coloring
** Q tips (or brushes)
** small containers

In a small container mix the flour, salt and water together until smooth. Do this same process in as many containers as you want colors. Add a few drops of food coloring to each and stir.

You can use Q tips to paint with or brushes. I think brushes would be easier to use because they would be smaller, but we used Q tips. You can paint on plain paper or print out free coloring pages on the internet. There are a ton of sites to do this. A couple of them are here, here and here. Make sure you don't paint it on so thick it soaks through the paper but definitely thick enough to puff up.

When you are done painting, lay it flat in the microwave and cook for 10 seconds. Pull it out and watch the expression on your kid's faces! It's puffy! (And it seriously looks cool!)

My daughter painted on a page from her coloring book. The type of paper that's pretty thin and see though. This isn't ideal paper to use but she had fun.

"It's like magic" I told my kids. And they thought I was pretty clever! Now THAT'S worth everything!!!

Free Summer Bowling For Kids

I love it when a friend emails me and asks if I've seen a certain activity or recipe that I can do/make with my kids. And I LOVE when the activity is free! I mean seriously... free rocks! So when a friend emailed me this site I did the "whoo hoo, free stuff" shout out and decided it was so good I had to pass it along to all of you.

Free bowling! Yep, free. And I'm not just talking about in Oregon. This program is all around the country. So all of you who live far away can also enjoy this FREE thing. (Because don't you hate when you find something really cool only to find out it's too far away?!?!)

This program provides kids with 2 FREE games of bowling each day for the entire summer! Here’s how it works…

* Select a bowling center near you: click here to view a list of participating centers (note: more centers are constantly being added so check back if you cannot find one near you at this time)

*Register directly on the bowling center page (The registration is valid only at the bowling center where you register and cannot be used at any other bowling center unless otherwise noted.)

*Once you register, you will have the opportunity to purchase the family pass (You do NOT have to buy the Family Pass; however, if you have adults that would like to bowl throughout the summer, then the Family Pass is a great deal. It starts at $24.95, covers up to 4 adult family members and includes 2 GAMES PER PERSON PER DAY.)

*Once you complete the registration, you will receive 2 emails: (1) The first email is a welcome email and contains your account information (2) The second email is very important…it does not contain coupons, but you will need to click the link confirming your subscription to the service. If you do not click the link, the system will not send your weekly coupons to you.

*The “program start” and “program end” dates are listed on the bowling center page that you register with. You can sign up for the program before the start date, but the coupons and family passes will not be loaded into your account until the start date has occurred.

*Once the program has begun, you will receive an email every Sunday morning that contains a link to your coupons and family passes for that week. (It is not required that you view this email to print your coupons; you can simply login to your account at anytime once the program has started to print your coupons and family passes.)

It's that easy! Oh yeah... and did I mention it's FREE!

Magic Marshmallow Cresent Puffs

A while back my Mom brought over a plate of these delicious puffs. She said "try these and tell me what you guys think." Well, my kids never got to try them because once I took one bite of them I scarfed down the entire plate. (I'm secure enough in myself to be able to admit that.) =o)

So I checked her blog and left a comment on her post about how wonderful they were and how I couldn't believe she didn't make enough for my kids. (Okay, so there were about 6 on the plate... but sheesh!) I've been meaning to make them for months but for some reason haven't gotten around to it. Until this past weekend. They sounded good and I wanted something good to nibble on.

I was amazed at how simple they were to make!

You will need:

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 cans (8 oz. each) Refrigerated Quick Crescent Dinner Rolls

16 large marshmallows

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2-3 teaspoons milk

You can use the Pillsbury rolls but I bought the generic store ones and they were fine (and cheaper.) But if you need the Pillsbury ones don't forget to print out a coupon here.

* Mix the cinnamon and sugar together in a bowl.
* Melt the butter.
* Unroll the cresent rolls.
* Dip one marshmallow in butter and then roll in the cinnamon and sugar mixture.




* Place in the center of the triangle and wrap it up. Make sure there are no holes! (It doesn't have to look pretty. It'll smooth out while baking.
* Dip the roll in butter and place in a cupcake pan.


* Repeat

Bake at 375 for about 11 minutes (until golden brown). You might want to place a baking sheet under the muffin pan to catch any spill overs.

For the glaze:
Combine the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk and mix well.

When the puffs are done remove them from the oven and let them sit for a minute or two. Then drizzle the glaze over the top. You can sprinkle with nuts if you would like. (I chose not to.)

If you let them cool too long in the muffin pan they are more difficult to remove but they retain their shape better. Just run a knife around the edges if needed. The more marshmallow that escapes, the gooier they are on the outside.

They end up being shaped like a ball but hollow on the inside. It's weird! But the inside is coated with a cinnamon and sugar and marshmallow goo!


My son LOVED these! He ate four of them before I realized he had gobbled up that many!

Enjoy!

Linky parties I've linked up with:
Skip to my Lou
Keeping It Simple
Making the World Cuter
The Girl Creative
It's So Very Cheri
Sumo's Sweet Stuff
The Pumpkin Patch
The Persimmon Perch
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
Tuesday Tastes at Crazy Daisy
These Creative Juices
Somewhat Simple
Pony Tails and Fish Scales
Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails
Finding Fabulous
Fingerprints on the Fridge
Simply Designing
I'm Lovin' It Fridays
Tatortots and Jello
It's Fun to Craft

Rediscovering Mother Nature

A couple of years ago I was looking for some place to take my kids that didn't cost very much money. The beach is our favorite destination but it's so expensive to stay there. I searched hotel prices and googled family destinations but didn't come up with anything that was within my budget. Then a friend said "why don't you take your kids camping?" Camping??? Me??? Alone with two kids???

The first thought that went through my head was that I didn't have the right gear to go camping. I don't own a tent and the thought of sleeping on the ground didn't seem very reasonable (or comfortable) with two small children. I dismissed the idea and continued searching for some where for us to go. You know... in a hotel.

After a couple of weeks of searching (and finding nothing!) I decided to google campgrounds around the Portland area. I quickly came across L.L. Stub Stewart State Park near Vernonia, Oregon. I was instantly impressed with the park and the amazing cabins that they have. Yes, cabins! I didn't have to buy a tent and we didn't have to sleep on the ground.

Look how cool the cabins are!


A memory that will stay in my head forever is the look on my son's face when we went inside our cabin. He looked around and then looked at me with a horrified look on his face and said "Mom, where's the TV?!?!" It was priceless.

There are tons of things to do there for kids. They had classes each morning at the ranger station. We took a class on Salamanders and one on bugs and another on wildlife. It still cracks me up when my daughter says "Mom, I gotta go scat." Because she learned that scat was another name for animal poop. That's my girl!


Here's Ellie with her Junior Ranger Badge that the kids earned. It was fun and easy and they loved it!!!


They have a large movie screen outside where they show movies at night. How cool is that?!?!

And don't forget about all the nature walks. And bring your magnifying glass to look at all the bugs!


In Vernonia (the city limits) there's a great water hole for kids to play in. It's shallow, maybe 2 feet at the deepest part. Deep enough to play and get cooled down in but not too deep that I have to jump in after them if they need me.



There's just something about being outside that's invigorating. Cooking outside and eating outside, taking walks or just sitting watching my kids discover new things. We've been back every summer and my son doesn't even care that there's no TV or no video games. We roast hot dogs and marshmallows on the campfire, go on nature walks and collect bugs and sit around the campfire and talk about how cool it is to be camping.

Now that's the way to eat breakfast!!!

Edible Fish Bowl

I remember making this years and years ago for a friend's children. It was pretty cool (I thought) so my kids and I thought we would make it again for some friends. It's super easy and it's fun to do!


What you will need:
* any kind of clear bowl. We used a fish bowl (clean, of course!)
* blue jello
* gummy fish
* candy rocks

Put a layer of candy rocks in the bottom of the bowl.

Make the Jello according to the package for Jello jigglers.

Cut the Jello into squares and layer the Jello and gummy fish. You can put as many layers as you would like depending on how much you would like.


It's that simple!

Another way to do it...

Pour the candy rocks into the bowl. Make the Jello according to the package (regular Jello this time, not jigglers.) Pour half of the Jello over the rocks and place in the refrigerator to let the Jello set. Cut a small slice in the Jello and place a gummy fish in the Jello. Repeat as much as you would like. Pour more Jello over the top and put back into the refrigerator to set. Repeat until it's as full as you would like.

Just a hint... I used chocolate rocks. I was going to make it by pouring the Jello over the rocks but the Jello dissolved the chocolate and it was a big, gross mess. So candy rocks are definitely best.

Eat and enjoy!

Today I am linking up with the following blogs: Come check out the other creations!
Sumo's Sweet Stuff Market Yourself Monday
The Pumpkin Messy Monday
Miss Crafty Pants You're So Crafty Monday
Making the World Cuter Monday
Keeping it Simple Motivate me Monday
It's so Very Cheri
Spotlight Yourself Wednesday at Santa's Gift Shoppe and Ideas
Letting Your Creative Juices Flow @ These Creative Juices
I Heart Naptime
Fingerprints on the Fridge

FREE Movies at Regal Cinemas

Once again Regal Cinemas is hosting their Free Family Film Festival this summer. This event has been going on since 1991 but it wasn't until a couple of years ago that I even heard of it. And did I mention it's FREE?!?!

Click on this link to find a movie theater near you that is participating.

Theaters will be playing selected G and PG movies each week on Tuesdays and Wednesdays starting the week of June 21st. The movies will start at 10am. It is free to children and parents. Yep, absolutely free! So if it's a scorching hot day and you need a break from the heat, go to the movies. If you're tired and don't want to run around that day, go to the movies. If you're low on cash and want to do something that's free, go to the movies. Heck, just go to the movies! It's fun and free and how can you have a better combination than that?!?!

Some of the movies being shown this summer are:

Kitchen Tools Made Just for Kids

I love kitchen gadgets. No, wait. Let me try that again ... I LOVE KITCHEN GADGETS! I love everything about them. I probably need to go to a 12 step program for it but I don't care. I love going into kitchen shops and finding new gizmos or gadgets and then trying them out. I have all the usual things, a blender and Kitchen Aid mixer (which I love), ice cream maker and pasta roller (everyone has a pasta roller, right???) I have a bazillion cookie cutters and different shaped cake pans. You never know when you're going to need a ravioli press, right? And is it strange that I have 8 different waffle makers? Hey, maybe I won't feel like a Mickey Mouse waffle one morning and want a Snoopy one or Tigger and Pooh or Scooby Doo. Right? A girls gotta have her options.

But when I was in a kitchen store last weekend and came across Head Chefs, Cool Tools for Kids, I about freaked. How cool are these?!?!

The arms and legs are bendable so the kids can move them around to help with their grip (or just play with them.) And the feet have suction cups on them so they stand up on the counter.


They have a bunch of different tools for kids to help out in the kitchen with. We bought the purple stirring spoon and the blue turner. But of course I want them all =o) My kids already love to help me in the kitchen but with these, what child wouldn't want to become a chef for a day?!

And if you're reading this and thinking "what in the world am I going to do with these things?" Just check out their website. They have recipes and games and coloring pages to print out.

And look at this cute silverware...


So is it just me or are these great?

Double the Flavor Double the Yum

If you haven't guessed by now I'm have somewhat of a sweet tooth. (Well, I think in an earlier post I claimed it was a fat tooth.) So when I saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Chocolate and Toast, I just had to make it. I mean seriously, how can you go wrong with cookies AND chocolate together?!?! It's a marriage made in heaven.

I made two different versions of this cookie. It was Teacher Appreciation Week and I work in a school, so I wanted to take in lots of treats for the staff. Plus I was curious about the different no bake cookie recipes (the one I had and the one posted) and wanted to see how different they were.

The cookie layer is made with:
* 1/2 cups butter
* 2 cups all purpose flour
* 1/4 cup sugar
* pinch of salt

Preheat the over to 350 degrees.
Line a 9 x 9 pan with aluminum foil and spray with a baking spray.
Combine all the ingredients in a food processor (I used my Kitchen Aid mixer) and mix until dough just begins to come together.
Press into an even layer in the pan and bake for 20 minutes.
Cool.


For no bake layer in batch #1:
* 1/2 cup butter
* 1/2 cup cocoa powder
* 2 cups sugar
* 1/2 cup buttermilk
* 1/2 cup peanut butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 3 cups rolled oats

In a medium saucepan combine butter, cocoa powder, sugar adn buttermilk.
Bring to a boil fro 1 minute.
Remove from heat and mix in peanut butter, rolled oats and vanilla.
Mix well and then spread on top of cookie layer.
Allow to set completely.


For batch #2 I used the following ingredients. They are pretty close to the above but the taste was definitely different.

Batch #2 - no bake layer:
* 2 cups sugar
* 1/2 cup butter
* 1/2 cup milk
* 4 Tablespoons cocoa powder
* 3 cups rolled oats
* 1/2 cup peanut butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla

Follow the same directions as in batch #1.

The difference between the two -
batch #1 was more like dark chocolate. It had a little bitter taste to it and I was told it was a nice contrast with the cookie.

batch #2 was sweeter. It was more of a milk chocolate taste.

I made extra of the no bake "batter" to make plain no bake cookies. (Hey, there's a lot of us at school. I wanted to make sure we all had enough cookies to give us stomach aches). =o)

I just scooped out the batter with an ice cream scoop and let it set. My son looked at them and asked me "Mom, why are we making dirt balls?" So, that's our new name for them... dirt balls. They may look weird but they taste delicious!


If you or your children can not (or will not) eat peanut butter, here's a no bake cookie recipe for you:
* 1/2 cup butter
* 1/2 cup milk
* 2 cups sugar
* 1/3 cup cocoa powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 4 cups rolled oats

Enjoy!

I've linked up to the following blogs. Come visit to see all of the wonderful creations!
The Pumpkin Patch
Sumo's Sweet Stuff
Making the World Cuter
Keeping it Simple
Miss Crafty Pants
Between Naps on the Porch
Skip to my Lou
It's so very Cheri
Tuesday tastes at Crazy Daisy
Tempt my Tummy Tuesday
A Silly Little Sparrow
Lucky Star Lane
Spotlight Yourself Wednesday
Strut Your Stuff Thursday
Favorite Things Friday
Tator Tots and Jello