Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Happy Ground Hog Day!!

I am hoping for an early spring!
(and since we are finally moving to Southern California in a few weeks I am counting on getting it.) 

Here are some fun ideas to make the day special for your family!

1.  Decorate! If you need to get some Ground Hog Day supplies, check out http://www.groundhogstuff.com/ for next year.(thanks, Jen)
 
 Jen puts her ground hog on her cake platter and wraps brown fabric around him so he is coming out of the dirt.


 2.  Read your books and watch the movie!






















3.   Have a Ground Hog Breakfast.  Jen always has donuts and uses her ground hog cookie cutter on the toast so it looks like the Ground Hog is coming out to look for his shadow.
4.  Eat on the GROUND!  My kids think this is so much fun!  We either have green (for an early spring) or white (for more winter) dishes and decorations for dinner.  Last year was white...I think most years are.  I should just start cutting out the snowflakes now.
5.  Make a Ground Hog treat.
We made these cute cookies last year.                               And these cupcakes 2 years ago.








6.  Don't forget to watch Punxsutawney Phil with the kiddos! I am going to guess that if you miss it bright and early in the morning (7:25am EST), you can catch it later on youtube!  Check out groundhog.org to send a free e-card and get more fun details!












Have a Fun Day and Make a Memory, Super Mommies! 

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Valentine's Day is coming soon!

Happy February 1st, Super Mommies!

I hope you Super Mommy's are counting down with me. If you arent doing the LOVE scriptures tree or the Silly Socks Valentine Advent, here is another adorable countdown to try.  My SIL, Jen, made this for me last year.

Box of Chocolates Valentines Day Countdown

1.First, find a candy box with the amount of chocolate spaces in it that you want.  Then, eat the chocolates! Yum!

2.Tint the glass cubes with Alcohol Ink. She used the color "latte."

3. Punch out brown cardstock and modge podge to glass cube, (with the brown facing in) so that you can see the brown through the glass cube.

4.  Print out list of countdown ideas and punch out, same size as brown, and modge podge on the bottom of cube so that you can read the idea when you turn over the cube (there is a good list at the link on the bottom of this post).

5. Decorate cubes with scribbles 3D paint to look like the tops of Valentine chocolates.

6. Put fake chocolates in candy box flip one over each day until Valentine's Day

Jen says "I found the original idea for this here: http://www.somewhatsimple.com/2010/01/countdown-to-valentines-day.html I just tweaked it a little bit."

Have a Happy Valentines Day with your families, Everyone!

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Super Mommy Secret~Books to Explain OUR Traditions!



My family has been celebrating Ground Hog Day and Chinese New Year for many years now, however, teaching the meaning and origin of the holidays and celebrations we enjoy can be a struggle.  It can also be quite boring for little ones. 

This year I was excited to find some cute books in our scholastic book order (they are on Amazon, as well)! 
 And, For only $3-4 each, I got the following:
 (My hope is that they will help my children understand more about these fun holidays and even give fun facts, while keeping the "mom is giving us a lecture" boredom out of it!)


 Ten Grouchy Groundhogs


Groundhog Weather School
Groundhog Weather School

Bringing in the New Year
My First Chinese New Year

Now I can save myself from trying to explain these holidays myself!  ([sigh of relief], I just like planning the HOLIDAY decorations and fun, not teaching the Jeopardy knowledge!)

And I can store these little paper back books in with our holiday decor, so I dont lose them, and we can reuse them every year.  

Let me know if you have a favorite book for a Holiday!  I love to add them to our collection.
 

Monday, January 17, 2011

Super Mommy Secret~ Plan NOW, Ground Hog Day, Chinese New Year, Valentine's Day...oh my!

There are lots of fun Celebrations to be had in the next month! 
Now is the time to be planning your family fun.

For Ground Hog Day, Feb 2nd, check out some fun ideas, HERE scroll to day #2.

For Chinese New Year, Feb 3-18, check out what I have done in years past, HERE.

For Valentine's Day (one of my VERY favorites!), Feb 14th, check out some fun ideas, HERE
(I posted these last year when I started this blog but I didnt email the link to friends for the first time until February 25th.)

I hope you can get Crafting and Planning NOW, so you can enjoy the holiday with the family (and not be stressed out just trying to make it meaningful and fun for everyone else)!

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Super Mommy Secret~Trekaroo

Trekaroo.com
is a website for Super Mommies, like us, to find and review fun family places to visit!  I love the name.  It made me want to check it out.  Head over and check out whats in your area, too. 

Right now they have a welcome rewards program going on to help build up their community. 
When you sign up and leave 10 reviews within 2 weeks you get a $10 gift card; 25 reviews, a $25 gift card to Amazon, Starbucks, or REI. 

Bruneau Sand Dunes 2010
It was fun to look back at the places that we have gone in this area.  I know this photo is gross but it made me laugh when I came across it while looking for a picture to post from the Bruneau Sand Dunes.  He took a tumble down the hill.  I found sand in his ears (and nose) for months!

It wasn't hard for me to come up with 25 places we have visited in our area.  I just left 25 reviews, you should too!  Even if you don't want to review, bookmark the page and check out some new places to visit this year!

(thanks for the tip, freebies2deals.com)

Monday, January 10, 2011

The Quote

For the Super Mommies who are interested, here is the quote from
"Words That Build Up", in my previous post. 

(I know, it isn't the one I digiscrapped because I can't post that one. 
I used a free kit in the Seasonal Sampler, from shabbyprincess.com and I am not sure that I am allowed to share.  But head over and grab one for yourself, if you would like.  It is free.  All of her kits are AMAZING, free or not!!)

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Words that Build Up!

If there is anyone who is having a problem remembering to 
use nice words in your family, this might be a fun idea for you!


One of our Family New Years Resolutions is to use
more "Words that Build Up!" 


A Story
 Here is a story from the Friend Magazine, called Words That Build Up, that we read as a family on Monday night.  It helped the kiddos understand that words are powerful, and we have to be mindful of what we say to each other. 


A Quiz
The next page on that link, or right here, is a fun quiz called Choose the RIGHT words.  The real life scenarios can be tweaked a little to match your family.  This was really funny for my kids.  They enjoyed answering and also listening to each other answer (it was entertaining for me too!).


An Activity
After the quiz came the best part of the night.  We did this SuPeR object lesson from my sister in law, Jodi.  You will need to give each kid a tube of toothpaste (medium to large sized) and a clear cup. 


I told them we were going to play a game and on the count of 3 they had to squeeze all of their toothpaste into their cup. 


When they were all done squeezing, I then told them that whomever could get their toothpaste back into the tube was the winner!  Of course that can't happen (but my 10 year old wanted to try). 


The object is that we need to use nice words, because once we say mean words, we cant get them back.  No matter what we do, they cant get back into our mouths and be unsaid.  We were sure to talk about making mistakes and saying sorry when we say mean things, as well.  


A Quote
 "I am asking that we look a little deeper for the good, that we still our voices of insult and sarcasm, that we more generously compliment virtue and effort."    Gordon B Hinckley

This quote is taken from the inset in the story.  I loved it so much I digiscrapped it into a 5x7 page and put it in the frame for the family to see all year! 
Sometimes, when we try to teach our kids something, they really, really get it.  This was one of those lessons in our home! They were talking to me about it all week.  I even overheard them telling friends about it after school several days later.  I hope it works for some of you, too!

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Happy 2011, Super Mommies!


It has been such a crazy fall that I just gave up posting for a while but I wanted to share some of our favorite New Years Traditions for any Super Mommies out there looking for some fun things to do with the kiddos in January!  Dont fret that New Years Day is passed, these can be fun all month!

10 Super New Years Activities and Traditions!
1.  New Year Pancakes!  I found this idea in family fun a few years ago and we love it!  We didnt get ours made on Saturday because we were traveling.  Since my hubby wont be around to protest, I think we will have them for dinner tomorrow!  (Last year we didnt have pancakes but we still made our 2010...)

2.  Make Resolutions as a family and as individuals.  I decorated a can a few years ago , similar to the boredom busters can, and we put our slips in there until next year when we can pull them out and see how we did.  I also put a list out on display so we remember what we are working on!

3.  Make a Fortune Tree with your Christmas tree.  This is a fun idea I found online, and by far, one of our favorites! 
I take a trip to the dollar store and find some funny things to fit into a small bag that will hang on the tree.  I make up a little New Year fortune to go with the items in the bag.  Let everyone choose a bag and then read their fortunes.  I got things like bubble gum, umbrellas, hawaiian punch mix, etc.  Then I wrote up a fortune like:  "In the coming year you will be bubbling over with great ideas and wisdom, you will find that there might be some storms you will have to wade through but over all you will be able to punch through and come out shining!"  I make each one different depending on what I can find at the store.  Most of us have probably taken down our trees by now but its not too late to do some 2011 mysterious fortune bags!


4.  Have everyone make a scrapbook page with their top memories from last year.  This is a fun time to reflect back on all of the things that happened over the year.  We go month by month and help our kids remember all the things that we did.  Then we let them use photos ( I am terrible at having these printed out) or drawings, ticket stubs,  art, mementos, etc to make an individual page.  They are saved  in a New Years binder book so you can reflect on them every year.  Ours are usually just simple drawings but they are still so fun to look back at!  And you will probably be surprised at the things your kids remember as the "Big Ones" of the year.


5.  Cookie and Confetti your neighbors.  When I was a teenager, we would shred newspaper by hand and throw handfuls of it into our neighbors homes as soon as they opened the door.  Now I am a little bit nicer.  We keep the confetti outside and bring some treats with it!














6.  Fondue and Finger Food!  This is a tradition from my sister in law, Jen.  We love it too!   Watch garage sales for the plug in fondue pots.  This is a yummy, cheap, and easy tradition!


7.  Midnight Snacks.  I found this tag idea over at tipjunkie.com last year and I thought it was so cute!  I just put some cookies an licorice into the bag and the kids got to eat them while we watched the ball drop in New York (10pm our time!) We used these with our kids but it would be fun at a grown up party too.  Dont forget the Bubbly Cider to toast with too!












8.  Also inspired by Family Fun, ask your kiddos some funny questions on video and ask them the same ones every year...here is our list but you can change them as they fit to your family.
~ I am lucky because....
~ If I had three wishes, they would be....
~ I'm a little afraid of....
~ I hope next year I get to…
~ I love it when Dad…
~ I love it when Mom…
~ It is so fun when we get to go…
~ I am a big helper when I…
~ I am really good at…
~ I hope…comes to visit us because…
~What is your favorite game, color, food, etc...

9.  Have a "Special Meal" associated with New Years.  Ours isn't at home, it is going out to a buffet.  We joke that it our last chance to stuff ourselves with all we want before our big "diet" begins.  Be sure to incorporate black eyed peas in whatever meal plans you make, as each one eaten is said to represent fortune for the coming year!














10.  Go Somewhere NEW!  Last year we went to the NEW In and Out burger, in Draper, UT, with Grandma and Grandpa.  It was new to the area and new to us! 















I hope these ideas inspire you to make some memories this month!! 
I love thinking that someday my kids will say:  "Oh I love (fill in the holiday) we always had so much fun!  We always (fill in the tradition)!"



Dont forget about the 15 day celebration of Chinese New Year Starting on February 3 in 2011...start shopping for your red underwear now!!

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Super Mommy Secret~Chinese Moon Festival

Dont Miss the Harvst Moon, Wednesday September 22 this year!

This is a fun tradition that we started several years ago in our family. 
It is very quick and easy to celebrate too, which always a bonus for us busy Super Moms!

1.  I start by making some super easy "mooncakes. " (If you want to add some extra Chinese Tradition, serve a "Red" dinner for good luck...apples, strawberries, lobster, red potatoes...)
There are a million recipes for REAL moon cakes online but I just use 2 regular cookies (super mommy secret:  use store bought cookies, or frozen cookie dough!) and then sandwich them together filling the middle with icecream.  This mooncake is made with 2 Keebler grasshopper cookies and some Oreo icecream.

2.  Then I make a paper cup "lantern" and put a regular birthday type candle inside for each person.  To make it stand up just drop a dot of the wax onto the bottom of the cup and hold the candle there for a few moments.  Then I make a "lake" by filling a 9x13 pan with water and setting the lanterns afloat!  When the time is right each person can blow out a candle and make a wish to the moon.

3.  Then, we lay a blanket outside under the full or rising Harvest Moon.  We sit there while we read the childrens book, Goodnight Moon, blow out our candles, and enjoy our moon cakes! 
(Here is our photo from 2 years ago)

The Festival in China is similar to our Thanksgiving time; a time to celebrate family and the abundance of the harvest.  When my parents-in-law were living in China, they were given so many moon pies in beautiful boxes that they couldnt even eat them all!

Happy Chinese Moon Festival to YOU!

Friday, August 20, 2010

Celebrating~The Return to School

My sister in law, Jen, did this for her son's Spelling Bee....
but I was thinking it would be a great idea for our Meet and Greet school night next week! 

It could also work for the Night before the first day of school, the First Day of school, an Aced Spelling Test, or whatever fun School Themed Celebration that comes up!

Alphabet Soup

Alphabet Breadsticks

Alphabet Jello

Alphabet Cookies

And Dont forget to make a Place Mat Note so the table looks festive too!

I bet some of you Super Mommies out there are like me and you are thinking
"Where did she get those cookie cutters?!" 

 I found several sets at Amazon.com , my favorite was the "Wilton 50 piece ABC and 123 Cookie Cutter Set."  They werent teeny-tiny and they got good reviews. 
I found the set in the Wilton cake area at our local Jo-Ann Fabrics for 9.99 and used a 40% coupon, then I didnt have to pay shipping either. 
They are nice and big and they will work perfectly for all of these fun foods.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Celebrating~Swimming Lessons and Summer!

My sister in law, Jen, made this cute treat to celebrate the End of Swimming Lessons
(I thought it would be cute to make to celebrate the End of Summer too.)

She made a 9x13 of Blue Jello, then put cool whip on the sides, the diving board is a laffy taffy, the beach ball is a gum ball, the ladder wrungs are gummy lifesavers, the floaty-ring is a gummy worm, and the divider is a candy bracelet.  Isnt she clever!  I am glad my kids were at her house that night to celebrate with them!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Pioneer Day Wrap Up!

Finally....I am back! 

I know I promised more Pioneer Day stuff so Here are some of the things that we did to Celebrate this Pioneer Day!   I just didnt get a chance to post them earlier but I thought I would post the ideas for future Pioneer reference, Cowboy Days, Rodeo Ideas or just Fun.
We are definitely scaling back our party-ing due to the need to sell our house...and keep it clean! 
Ahhh....Super Mommy activities sure are messy! 
1Pioneer Flapjacks.  My son made these Flap Jacks at school when they were learning about Cowboys last year, so I tucked the little recipe away with our Pioneer Day supplies.  They are so easy and yummy!  And the kids can feel like Pioneers or Cowboys as they make their "starter" the night before.  I typed the recipe up for you super mommies below.  These would be fun on Cowboy or Rodeo days too!


Pioneer Flapjacks
In a large non metallic bowl, mix 2 C warm water with 1 T yeast. Let sit for a few minutes until dissolved. Add 2 C flour and stir. Cover. Let sit overnight in a warm place. (The kitchen counter will be fine.) The starter will raise and fall. In the morning you can make your Sour Dough Pancakes or as we call them Pioneer Flap Jacks.

Pioneer Flapjacks (Sour Dough Pancakes)

1 C Sour Dough Starter
2 T Cooking Oil
1 Egg
2 T Sugar
¾ C Flour
1 t Baking Soda
¼ t Salt

Add the oil to the starter. Mix. Beat the egg and mix it into the starter. Add the sugar and flour. Stir. Mix the soda and salt together in a small amount of milk. Quickly stir into the starter. Let it sit for a few minutes, then cook and enjoy.

(They were a big hit at our house!  And we ate them outside like real Pioneers.)


2Gunny Sack and Three Legged races.  These games are so old fashioned but I really dont think my kids have ever even heard of them.  My little guy is in one of our old pillowcases since I didnt find time to get some real bags from an animal feed store but I will get some one of these days...they are just so old fashioned looking that I can't resist adding them to the Pioneer Day box!























3.  Pioneer Stories.  This site has 3 interesteing stories about Pioneer Children if you are looking for some to read.  And then you can make some Covered Wagons like these to eat .  I used lifesavers, skewer sticks, large marshmallows, and graham crackers.  Just slip your skewer sticks into the lifesavers, add a 1/4 of a graham cracker, and set the marshamallows on.  So Easy!  And we had this little toy ox that we added too!

4Whittling...we let the kids do some whittling this year. (the older guy got  real pocket knife but little guys can use plastic butter knives and a bar of soap.)  I thought it would be fun to do by the fire (if you have a backyard fire pit).  We have a little chiminea in the back and the kiddos have been begging to have a fire in it.  I would recommend doing the whittling before it gets dark though! 


















5Make Floats in Mason Jars! 

Red, White, and Blueberry Float...I let the kiddos make a fun and patriotic treat I saw on our house hunting trip to California last week (it is a variation from the one I saw at Dennys).  It isnt really Pioneer-ish but I figured we could put it in a Mason Jar and that will make it look old fashioned!  Pioneers and Patriotic go together perfectly!

Rootbeer FloatsHere  is a fun recipe for easy homemade rootbeer (using seltzer water) and they were served in a jar! If you are really feeling like a Super Mommy, you could even make your own icecream!  We know the Pioneers had to do that!  My sister in law, Jen, has balls similar to these that they like to make homemade icecream with.  Or we have made it in a bag with this fun and easy recipe...just be careful not to get salt water into your icecream when you open it!  That totally ruins it!

I hope everyone had a great Pioneer Day!!

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

5 of our Favorite Pioneer Day Traditions

1.  Cook in a Dutch Oven:  Believe it or not the Pioneers did bring their Dutch Ovens across the plains!  You could do a main dish, side dish and/or a dessert in the Dutch Oven!  We grilled chicken on the BBQ and made peach cobbler in our Dutch Oven.  Here is my SUPER EASY recipe from my camp cooking class in college (I know).
Dutch Oven Peach Cobbler:
INGREDIENTS:
1 quart peaches (I use my home canned ones)
1 yellow cake mix
1 can Sprite

Pour in all ingredients in the order listed and do not stir.  Then cook with 10-14 coals on both top and bottom until golden brown on top.  Top with icecream or whipped cream.

*note:  if you want the cobbler to be firmly set up (like a cake), you may want to drain 1/2 of the liquid from your quart of peaches.  We like ours more juicy (like a warm pie) so we dont drain any juice.










2.  Have a Taffy Pull:  Last year, we did our Pioneer Day Taffy Pull out on the back patio using the gas burner on our BBQ grill.  The weather was perfect and it saved my house from the mess!  I found this recipe online and it is the recipe we used. 
Salt Water Taffy

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
2/3 cup water
3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vegetable glycerine (sold at most party or natural food stores)
2 tbsp. butter
4 drops each of red and blue food coloring
2 tsp. lemon juice

In a large saucepan, stir together the sugar, corn syrup, water, salt and glycerine with a wooden spoon. Cook over medium heat, stirring now and then until a candy thermometer reads 255 degrees. Stir in the butter. Divide the mixture into three equal portions. Mix red food coloring into one batch, blue into another and leave one plain. Pour each batch onto a greased flat pan and fold over the edges with a spatula to keep them from hardening.
When the candy is cool enough to handle, brush with lemon juice. Then, with well-buttered hands, each child can stretch one of the batches into a long rope until elastic (about five minutes). Finally, twist together the ropes, cut into pieces and wrap individually in waxed paper.



3.  Have a Corn on the Cob Eating Contest:  Anyone who dared, could enter this contest, at last years Pioneer Day Party!  The rules were the contestant had to eat all of the corn from the cob, swallow and show an empty mouth, then run to the back fence and toss the cob over and run back to the finish line.  It was pretty fun...and funny to watch!
4.  Dress up!  And Decorate a Wagon:  We dug out our old bonnets, hats, and anything else we could use as Pioneer clothing. Then we made our stroller into a covered wagon. Just cover the open canopy using a white sheet and safety pins. Then attach brown strip of cardboard to the bottom with some brown or clear packing tape...it looked pretty good! (I wish I had a better photo but this is the best I had! The oldest cousins got elected to be the oxen...)



































5.  Play Pioneer Night Games:  Last year the kids (I had my 3 and 5 cousins sleeping over) were outside until dark and they all started playing hide and seek, sardines, and capture the flag.  I am not sure Pioneers played those exact games, but I remember thinking that I could certainly imagine the Pioneer kids playing in the warm dusky evenings before bed. I realized that my kids do not get a chance to play those simple games very often.  I practically had to drag them all inside and it was after 11pm!

Those are some of the things that we did last year...5 more fun ideas that we are trying this year will be posted next week....
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