Thursday, May 31, 2018

Beat Summer Boredom!

Here is a list of ideas to beat summer boredom and most of them will help you to beat the heat too!  It's so true that time flies when you are having fun.  So try some of these things and get out there and enjoy summer before it's over!!!


Go to the park with with friends
Go out to lunch with friends
Go on a staycation - stay overnight at a local hotel and swim
Bring earplugs and go to some outdoor concerts
Check out local art festivals
Decorate your driveway or back patio with chalk
Set up some playdates with friends
Go get some slushy and enjoy at a park
Go roller skating
Go to the bowling alley
Visit your local museums
Try a new shave ice shack
Make home made ice cream
Do a puzzle together
Download and print out some coloring pages
Build Legos
Go to a waterpark or swimming
Clear out the clutter and have a yard sale - spend the money you make on a family activity
Think of a person who might need cheering up and bring them flowers
Make smoothies, come up with fun recipes of your own
Hit a splash pad
Do a YouTube workout (for kids) with your kids
Run through the sprinklers
Pull out the squirt guns
Check out some books from the library
Visit the aquarium
Make cookies or homemade popsicles
Make some slime!!!
Download some math pages and do one at least once a week
Play a memory game
Print out your favorite pictures and scrapbook them (my kids LOVE to do this)
Write in a journal
Get hand-held white boards and give your kids words to spell
Learn to play an instrument
Go indoor rock climbing
Take a walk
Sign up for kids cooking classes
Check out what programs your local recreation center has to offer
Take funny pictures / dress up
Invite friends over for dessert - strawberry shortcake anyone?
Have everyone choose a song, learn the lyrics, and perform for each other
Go on a picnic
Draw pictures together
Take a hike in the mountains
Go for a bike ride
Jump at a trampoline park
Choose a book together and have everyone take turns reading a page
Enroll in swimming lessons
Hit the zoo
Plan a BBQ and invite friends or family
Go to an arcade
Play some laser tag
Go miniature golfing
Go to an amusement park or a county fair
See dinosaur fossils at a dinosaur museum
Gather some rocks from a walk and paint them
Brainstorm things you want to learn about and YouTube it
Learn origami
Sign up for a fun summer camp
Go to a field or park and play frisbee
Visit a farm
Play kick the ball outside
Go see a local play
Introduce your kids to some of your old favorite classic movies on DVD or Netflix
Take a road trip
Chase your kids around the house and tickle them
Play some hide & seek
Pull out the board games
Play tennis
Sing karaoke at a family-friendly karaoke place
YouTube your favorite songs to see the music videos
Experience Disneyland rides on your couch by watching your favorite rides on YouTube
Put on some music and have a dance party with your kids
Take summer gymnastics
Play some badminton (we bought a set at Costco this year - so fun!)

Do you have any ideas to add to this list?  If so, please comment below.  I'd love to hear what you do to make summer fun.


Friday, March 23, 2018

Need a yummy chicken recipe? Well here it is . . .

I found this Bang Bang Chicken recipe a while ago and have been making it regularly ever since.  My husband is a picky eater and so are my kids, and they rarely has seconds, except for when I make this recipe.  I don't put the sauce on my kids' chicken, because like I said, they are picky, and we just call them chicken nuggets and they love it.

I serve with rice and broccoli and it is always a hit around here.  When I mentally can't handle coercing my kids to eat, I make this meal because they eat it with no complaints.  I hope you and your family enjoy this recipe as well.  I always find that I have to double the 'breading' ingredients.  This recipe feeds my family of four just great, with some leftovers (sometimes), which I use on my salad the next day.

Enjoy!

Bang Bang Chicken


Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Some tips for avoiding getting sick


To make a long story short, my son was admitted to the hospital last weekend.  I had the flu a couple of weeks ago, then my daughter got it, then my son.  His lingered and ended up turning into a very serious sinus infection and periorbital cellulitis around his left eye.  Thankfully and luckily he is on the road to recovery now, but he had to be monitored closely, have IV antibiotics, nasal sprays, etc. 

His doctor told me that we usually don’t get sick by breathing something in, we get sick from being out in public and touching things and then touching our eyes, nose, or mouth.  It’s so important to wash hands often, especially before eating.  He also said that germs tend to stick more to our shirts, and said that it's a good idea to have kids change into a new shirt when they get home from being at school all day. 

I am already a bit of a germaphobe, and its hard not to become extra paranoid about germs after your child becomes hospitalized because of sickness, but my son's doctor also stressed that we can't stop living life.  When we have challenges in life, it makes life more precious.  It's true, it's part of life.  Our trials make us stronger and that's why we are on this planet.  So be cautions but don't be so paranoid about germs that it keeps you and your family from living life. Create some good habits that will keep you and your family free of a few more germs.




My kids are already in the habit of washing their hands when they walk into the house, but now they will be implementing the new rule of also changing their shirts, during the flu season.  The flu and bugs out there this year are extra harsh, so it doesn't hurt to play it safe and do all we can to keep ourselves and our little ones healthy. 

Also keeping hand sanitizer in the car and having them use that when they hop into the car (and still washing hands when they get home) is another good rule-of-thumb.  I keep a small bottle in my purse too, and use that when we can't get to a sink for some reason.

With all the laundry we Moms do, it can also be really easy to forget to wash our kids' coats on a regular basis. Coats are hung in the mud room all the time and they are just not as visible when we are doing laundry, simply because they are not in the hamper with everything else we have to wash.

Make a little sticky note or set a reminder on your phone to wash them at least once a week because they can be a real magnet for germs.  Think about it.... the playground at recess, runny noses being wiped on the arms of their coats, and they wear them everywhere and every day during the winter.   Let's live life to the fullest and let's fight these germs at the same time!!!!!!!!!!!

XO

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Slow Cooker Taco Soup Recipe

During the colder months, I love making this taco soup.  It is really easy to make and delicious too.  If you have left overs you can freeze them to use on a cold day where you don't feel like cooking.

This one is a favorite to make on Halloween.  Let's face it, Halloween is a busy day full of class parties, costume parades, and trick or treating.  By dinner time kids will be anxious to go out trick or treating and you won't have to rush yourself to get dinner on the table.  Start this soup in the afternoon and it will be ready to go before your goblins head out to go trick or treating.

Enjoy!



Slow Cooker Taco Soup Recipe

Ingredients:
  • 1 lb. cooked/browned lean ground beef or ground turkey, speason with salt and pepper while cooking on stove
  • 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
  • 2 cups frozen corn (or 1 15 ounce can)
  • 2 cups black beans (or 1 15 ounce can)
  • 2 cups red kidney beans (or 1, 15 ounce can)
  • 1 package of Ranch seasoning mix (Or use homemade ranch recipe below)
  • 2 TBL Taco seasoning
  • 1 small onion, chopped
Optional Ingredients:
  • Green onion
  • Cheddar or colby jack cheese
  • Tortilla chips or Fritos
  • Sour cream
Directions:
Place all ingredients (*except for the optional ingredients*) into a slow cooker (crock pot), and cook on low for 4-6 hours.  Don’t drain the canned corn or beans, the juice from them are the juice for the soup.

To give a nice finish to the soup, sprinkle with the optional ingredients; shredded cheese, a sprinkle of green onion, and a dallop of sour cream.  You may also sprinkle crushed tortilla chips on top when serving, or just serve tortilla chips or Frito chips on the side.


Homemade ranch seasoning:

  • 1 teaspoon dried chives
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1 teaspoon dried dill weed
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Monday, May 29, 2017

The best sunscreens

I love a GOOD, SAFE, sunscreen.  Here is a site where a research team has spent months working to find the best sunscreens out there on the market.  They focus on making sure there is enough SPF and no harmful ingredients such as oxybenzone, retinyl palmitate, and octinoxate. The sunscreens they recommend are good smelling, easy to apply, they stay on, and truly protect skin from harmful UV rays.  

Check out their recommendations by clicking here.

Also, I'm always a fan of the EWG (environmental working group), and they always have good recommendations as well.  I wouldn't buy sunscreen without checking the EWG site, as once I bought some baby safe Banana Boat before I knew about EWG...  Later, when I discovered EWG, I found that the baby sunscreen I had used on my baby was one of the dangerous sunscreens.  So always check!  Here is that link.  Enjoy and stay safe in the sun!  


Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Ditching plastics and . . . the water bottle of all water bottles!

There have been many reports about the dangers of plastics and how its best to reduce exposure to them as much as possible.  Plastics are dangerous because they leach chemicals into our food and water, even plastic products which are labeled 'BPA' free (bisphenol A) are not as safe as first thought.  

BPA, which mimics the hormone estrogen, has been linked to a long list of serious health problems (cancer, diabetes, obesity, infertility, heart disease, developmental problems, ADHD, and the list goes on).  The latest research reflects that many of the chemicals used in BPA free plastics are just as (if not more) dangerous as BPA and contain synthetic estrogens as well.   

I wanted to created a safer, healthier home in regards to plastics. Water bottles always came to mind first when I’d think about cutting out plastics, but I could never find one that was 100% plastic free that I liked.

In the past, I used plastic water bottles but then I switched to glass ones, however, they still had some type of plastic on them - like a 'BPA free' lid or spout.  I had two of them and they both broke and I wanted something more durable and completely plastic free.  I have been on the hunt for the perfect water bottle for a long time for both myself and my kids.  

Here is the really embarrassing part.... my kids were WAY overdue (blush, blush) on graduating from sippy cups - ages 5 and 7 (cringe).  They love going to bed with a sippy when they get thirsty during the night, and they love bringing their water on the go.  I love that that sippys don’t leak or spill, but I don't love that they are plastic or have plastic parts.  So . . . I have done my research and found the bottle of all bottles!  

Introducing Pura! They are 100% plastic free and the cool thing is that they convert (with interchangeable tops) from bottle, to sippy, to straw, to a sport top (for kids and adults) to seamlessly transition with your children through the different stages of life.  They even have silicone sealing discs that are used as a lid to change the bottle into a snack carrier.  Their motto is ‘One Life . . . One Bottle’.   They are made of food-grade stainless steel and the spouts are made of silicone- which are really convenient to drink from and are considered safe. 



I found these online and I first ordered one for myself (I bought the 22 oz insulated bottle) to make sure that I liked it and that the stainless steel didn't give off a weird taste - and it didn't whatsoever.  


I loved it so much that I then got the 11 oz. straw bottles for my kids.  These bottles are easy to carry and grip because they have silicone sleeves on them (some of them come with the sleeve and others don't- but you can order the sleeve if the style you want doesn't come with one).   My kids and I are totally loving these and you can too - check the Pura bottles out here

When I first started reading about the dangers of plastics, I got thinking.... its not just about water bottles..... my kids are eating off of plastic dishes and using plastic utensils too.  So, I tossed them, later realizing I should have recycled them (oops, cringe, blush), and thats when my kids began using the adult ceramic plates and normal utensils.  My kids felt proud to be “so big” to be able to use the Mommy and Daddy plates and I felt so much better because I knew they were no longer eating with un-safe products.

Finally, I replaced our plastic food storage containers with glass ones (Pyrex).  The lids are still plastic, but I feel that’s ok because it not containing the food, it’s just creating the seal.  Also, I try not to run the plastic lids through the dishwasher because the high temperatures in dishwashers cause plastics to leach more - so I usually just hand wash them.

So, please learn from me:  Don't let your kids use sippy cups past the toddler stage (like I did), ditch the plastics in your home, recycle your old plastics (like I should have - cringe), and do your research too so that you are aware of just how dangerous using plastics can be - it's great motivation for ditching plastic.  Oh, and order some Pura bottles soon.

XO