Its funny how one day you become a parent and the next day your baby is a “little person” whom you adore and would give the sun and the stars to if you could.  I never knew how my becoming a Mother would change me and you know what?  I kinda like the changes!

One example is how I have no fear of trying something if at the end of the day it will better my children, put a smile on their face or help them in some way.  Case in point.  Last year for my son’s birthday…knowing that he is not a big fan of cake, I made him some very special cookies instead.  It was my first attempt at outlining and flooding cookies to make decorative ones.  I enlisted the help of my husband and we created cookies from our sons favorite video game…we were up until 2am doing it but you know what?  He went bananas!  So it was worth it!

This year my son turned 10 (I know, I know…sniff) and I decided to surprise him with a HUGE XBOX cake made to look like a controller.  I contacted a friend of mine who happens to make cakes and asked her if she thought she could make on like that – she said yes.  However as it turned out she was already making a Thomas the Train cake for the same day – so it was a no go.  So then I thought…I am not artistic but you know what…I am going to try it!

And I did…I once again enlisted the help of my husband and as a team we did it again!

My son and his 22 friends went nuts!  You see, we had the cake covered, only my 7 year old daughter know what it was.  We looked silly walking into the lazer tag facility we had his party at carrying a huge box covered with a towel…but so what!  It was a great moment.  Once again my being a mother pushed me…and my son now has a moment I do not think he will ever forget.

So my message is “go for it”!!  They are only young for awhile and the little things we do to surprise them are exciting for us and memorable for them!  I had never even touched fondant before let alone worked with it and we pulled it off…wonder what’s next?

Posted November 15th, 2011 by Colleen in Desserts, Family time, Parent's Corner | No Comments »

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One of our favorite things to do together as a family is garden.  It began when my kids were small…tiny hands were helping here and there,  sparkeling eyes filled with the wonder of natures beautiful bounty blossoming into a love of gardening!  Today my kids are 13 and 15 and they have become competent gardeners.   The process of planning out the annual garden, preparing the soil, planting seeds and watching what we plant grow each year has always amazed my children and I am confident they will enjoy the same ritual with their families one day.

My son however, does not place vegetables at the top of his list when it comes to eating them.  To encourage him to eat what we grow, we decided to plant a pizza garden: we plant what we know  each member of the family enjoys on their pizza plus the plants we use to make to make our homemade pizza sauce. 

The plants can be arranged in a small space in a corner of the garden.  If space is an issue, the plants can be grown in a pot.  Just place the tomato plant in the center then arrange the herbs around the edge: pizza in a pot!

Pizza in a Pot or in your Garden

What you will need:

Roma tomato plant (not a lot of seeds, grows fast, has great flavor when cooked)

Parsley, Oregano, Basil plants (one of each is enough for an entire season)

Optional:

Onions (easy to grow but can’t be harvested until fall)

Garlic (actually keeps some animals away from the other plants)

Peppers (which my husband loves on his pizza)

For the Pizza Sauce:

To make your own sauce, start by mincing the garlic and chopping the onion into small pieces.  Saute the onion over medium heat with a teaspoon of olive oil for about 5 minutes, add in the garlic and sauté 1 minute more (careful not to burn the garlic).  Add in a few leaves of each of the herbs.  Add in the tomato sauce and 1 teaspoon of each of the fresh herbs.  We like a little kick, so we add ½ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes to the sauce.  Cook for about 30 minutes, then taste.  When the sauce is done, spread it over pizza crust, layer with fresh tomato slices and fresh chopped basil, then cover with shredded mozzarella cheese.  Bake for 15 minutes in a 350 degree oven or until the cheese starts to brown slightly and the crust looks brown on the edges.

Not only will your children will love helping in the garden, but the will learn a thing or two during the whole process, have a responsibility of tending to their piece of the garden and will wait with eager anticipation as they wait to eat what they grew!!  Plus planning out Pizza Night is a great family activity…whose turn is it and what kind of pizza will they dream up – the possibilities are endless!

Have fun planting, tending, cooking and eating!

Posted June 6th, 2011 by Colleen in Amanda, Dinner, Entrees, Family Dinners, Family time, Kid Fun, Lunch, Parent's Corner, Veggies | 1 Comment »

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Snow Painting!!

When my kids were younger, we always waited with great anticipation for the first snowfall. 

We would build a fort, which at first looked more like a pile of snow that was dug out on one side.  When we were done, I would break out the spray bottles filled with “Snow Paint”, and we would decorate our fort, snowman, snow angels,castle or whatever my kids had dreamed up.  If  it snowed more, the rebuilding and repainting would begin. 

As my kids  got older, the snow paint would be spread across the entire front yard.  They would make designs, draw pictures, or write notes treating the snow paint almost like sidewalk chalk.  One year, my in-laws went out of town and it snowed….big.   While my husband and I were clearing their driveway before they  returned to town, the kids made their grandparents a picture and left a note across the front lawn of smooth snow.  Needless to say their grandparents were thrilled!! 

Most people had snowmen in their yards, we had art!  UInleash your childrens imagination and creativity with this Winter!

What you need:

3-4 spray bottles (from the dollar store)

Food coloring, buy an entire box.  It comes with three or more colors

Water

Salt

Mixing and storing

Mix about half of one of the food coloring containers into a large spray bottle.  I add a teaspoon of salt and then water.  The salt will lower the freezing point of the water (called a Colligative property, it’s a chemistry thing) so the snow paint doesn’t freeze up in the bottle and clog the sprayer.  I make one color per bottle so they can have options.  If you have more than 4 children painting, you may want to get extra bottles. 

When we are finished, I store the bottles in the garage.  They can also be stored inside, just don’t leave them outside.  The salt will only help to a certain point, then the nozzle will freeze and the bottle might crack.  I rinse the nozzle off with warm water to remove any excess residue so it does not clog before the next use.  At the end of the snow season, I dump the excess down the drain, rinse the bottles with water, and store them away for next year.

The best part about the food coloring is that it won’t harm the grass, poison the animals, or make the snow look “odd”.  For less than $10, you can entertain kids for a longer time outside, then when they come in they can admire their work!

Happy Painting!

Posted January 31st, 2011 by Colleen in Amanda, Family time, Kid Fun | 3 Comments »

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The Holidays are upon us with Thanksgiving just around the corner.

For many of us in addition to taking a moment to be thankful for many things, Thanksgiving  is about food, family, friends, food, football , food and so much more, oh and did I say food?  Hanukkah, Christmas, Diwali, Kwanzaa and numerous additional holidays for many families are steeped with tradition…the old tradition’s and maybe some new ones too.

How about putting all the kids  in charge of the desserts this year at your holiday dinners? 

 Think about it, you may have have 2 kids or 12 kids attending, how cool would it be if they each made (or helped make) a dessert, then told the crowd, what they made and how they made it…from 2-17…imagine all the variations, imagine all the pride and smiling face!!.  I think this could be a welcome tradition in a bunch of homes!

Here is a Thanksgiving family favorite of mine as well as a new one we are tinkering with.

Cranberry Pie
2 cups of halved fresh cranberries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease a 9 or 10 inch spring form pan

In a medium bowl combine cranberries, walnuts and 1/2 cup of sugar.
Mix well. Pour mixture directly into your well greased spring form pan.
Spread evenly.

In a medium bowl, combine butter and sugar. Mix well. Add in the eggs and the four. Mix well.

Spread batter gently over the cranberry/walnut mixture until all areas are covered.

Bake on top of a baking sheet (to catch drips) for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake portion comes out clean.

Once removed from the oven let it sit for a minute. Then ever so gently go around the perimeter of the pan with a butter knife gently breaking the connection of the pie and the pan. Slowly, release the side of the pan and remove.
Let the pie sit for another minute. Then gently invert onto a plate. As you slowly begin to remove the bottom of the pan from the top of the pie use a butter to guide the topping away from the pan. If you want more of a cake feel you can always double the batter, but this is how I like it best.
Cool and serve.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Parfait
4oz cream cheese, softened
8 oz sour cream
1 cup pumpkin
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

You can use Pumpkin Pie Filling as well if you do only add a 1/4 cup sugar.

You can crush some graham crackers ans place them at the bottom of the glass or in layers like my daughter did.

You can add some whipped cream to the top or layers as well.

Optional: Make these as shooters!!  Use 2 1/2 ounce shooter cups with lids usually found at party stores or wholesale clubs.  These travel well!!

In your mixing bowl combine the cream cheese, sour cream and pumpkin until blended. Pour in the pudding mix, sugar and vanilla and mix on medium for 3 minutes more.  Layer as you wish with the whipped cream an/or graham crackers.

Get the kids in your life cooking this holiday season!

Happy Holidays!

Posted November 21st, 2010 by Colleen in Colleen, Desserts, Family Dinners, Family time, Thanksgiving | No Comments »

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What a great feeling it is when your son or daughter asks you to spend time with them- just them!

Those are treasured words for me a mom of 3!

Having just had an infant 4 months ago, I am sleep deprived and adjusting to the many challenges I now face.
A baby…enough said…, a house that needs to be run, my career – which these days is balancing a few businesses I run as well as my two older kids…they need attention too, right?

Thank goodness I have a wonderful, supportive, hands on husband!

Well in a quest to give everyone mommy time, my son (7) rode with me today to pick up my older daughter from a friend’s house.

He said, “Mom, tomorrow after school can we make a recipe from the cookbook?” “Just you and me,” he said. Of course, I melted and immediately said YES!

He said, “let’s make a list, go shopping, get the stuff (he means ingredients) and let’s make food for the family!”
Wow- he really does listen when I have been explaining the importance of the family meal!

So, tomorrow we will go shopping, make our meal and have fun taking the pictures that go with it. Those moments will forever be captured in my head, heart and now in our Picture Me Cooking Cookbook!

Get cooking kids- your moms and dads will gladly join in!

Posted May 17th, 2010 by Rebecca in Becky, Family time | 1 Comment »

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