More tried and true snacks

The pressure is on now.  The first thing out of Colson's mouth when I pick him up is always, 'What's the after-school snack today?'  He says he hurries to finish his work at the end of the day so that he can come out and ask me that question.

First off, I have to share these cute little olive penguins that I put in his lunch one day.  Instructions at In the Nursery of the Nation.  Colson told me that his friend had a good lunch too, so he said to him, 'Aren't moms the best?'  Sweet.

And some of our latest AFTER-SCHOOL SNACKS:

S'mores Dip!!

I'll allow a really sugary after-school snack ONLY every once in awhile.  My boysies had this s'mores dip one day at a friends house.  Colson couldn't stop talking about it and I promised him I'd make some one day.  I called my friend, Kim, from the grocery store, when the chocolate aisle sparked my memory of said promise, and she gave me the recipe.

 Oh, WATCH OUT!  Numerous times, my husband and I said, 'okay, I'm done' only to find our fingers, once again, creeping over to the stack of graham crackers and giving ourselves a generous scoop of the dip.  Yum!

Banana Bread [healthy version]

I had made this one before, so we already knew we liked it.  I always feel better about a snack when I know it's on the healthier side.   This recipe uses applesauce instead of butter, whole wheat flour instead of white, and honey in place of sugar (and I substituted brown rice syrup for the honey again, since I think honey IS pure sugar : ) )

Zucchini Brownies

Another healthy one.  What parent could say no to a brownie made with veggies?   And my kids really love these, too.  They don't taste exactly like the UNhealthy version, of course, but for a replacement, I think they're great!









Crispy Sweet Potato Fries and dip

I loved these but didn't love the mess they left on my cookie sheet.  They stick SO BADLY and I was stirring them every few minutes.  My kids weren't huge fans but I think maybe if I cut them a little thinner next time, they'd like them.

After-School Snacks

Both of my boys are in school this year!  They started on Monday.  I plan to welcome them home each day, with a lovingly-prepared after-school snack and some one-on-one conversation about their day.

I'm LOVING all of this free time I suddenly have, and have used it for grocery shopping, meal planning, cleaning, and preparing yummy dinners and treats.  My home has never stayed this clean, and we've never eaten this many yummy meals, this many days in a row.

I thought I'd share some of our after-school snacks.  If I continue this routine as I intend to, I should have new ones to share each week.  So far, every one of them has been a HUGE success, and I know the boys look forward to coming home and seeing what I've made for them that day, which keeps me going.  Griff only goes to half-day Kindergarten, so he gets to come home and help me prepare our snacks, which is fun for him.  He's always been the child of mine that likes to help in the kitchen.

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I found each of these recipes via Pinterest.

*click on the name of each snack and it will take you to the source of the recipe

*Strawberry and Mango Salsa with Cinnamon Chips

   Doesn't that sound good?  It WAS.  Griff thought it was so cool that we were MAKING our chips all by ourselves, and of course he loved that there was cinnamon and sugar on top!  And I loved the fresh fruit.  Mmmm!

*Homemade no-bake granola bars

   These were the favorite for this week.  Adapted from a Rachel Ray recipe, these are beyond easy to make (3 minutes of work?  yes, please!), and oh so delicious.  I ended up making a second batch the very next day, to put in Colson's lunch.  They're that easy.  And because the loaf pans are lined with foil, I lift the bars right out and put the pans back in my drawer.  Easy clean up.  Then I reuse the foil as dividers, when I put the bars in a tupperware container.  We made the s'mores version, but replaced the honey with brown rice syrup because we never have honey in our pantry.  It tastes GREAT with that replacement!

 Note: recipe only makes about ten, so you may want to double or triple it and then use a bigger dish for letting them cool.

*Tiny Tuna Melts (when you click on it, it just takes you to a picture, so I linked to the 'pin'.  The directions are written there, under the picture)

  I thought it would be good to get some protein in the mix, every once in awhile.  I think it helps my kids stay full [and happy], longer.  I made these on the day that C had soccer practice.  I didn't think a sugary treat would have been the best idea, if I wanted to keep him from getting cranky.  The boys gobbled these up.

*Homemade fruit snacks

  Please, if you do this one, notice in the instructions for the ones made with jello, she says '2 .25 oz' envelopes of unflavored gelatin.  I realized, after I had already added the 2.25 ounces, that she was saying 2 -.25 oz envelopes (so basically .5 oz of unflavored gelatin).  Yes, I added 4 1/2 times the amount it called for and ours were a little tough, but the boys still liked them.  : )  I plan to make them again, to redeem myself.  Maybe I'll try the juice concentrate version.

  And I used the little silicone molds we have, from IKEA.  We have fishies and hearts.  Sometimes you can find these molds at the dollar store, too.

*Chips and 'Bitchin'' Sauce

  All you need is a blender.  Because I've recently been on one of my health food kicks, I happened to have ALL of these ingredients in my kitchen.  Nutritional yeast and liquid aminos are not your typical ingredients.  You can use soy sauce as a substitute for liquid aminos, but you can also find it at the health food store, along with nutritional yeast.

  I was curious to see if they'd like this, because it's a different flavor than what they're used to.  Spicier.  But they LOVED it.  The only problem with this sauce is that they kept asking what it was called and all I could say is, 'Um, it's just sauce.'  Guess I should think up a new name for it.  : )

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I like to put a little note in Colson's lunchbox.  He hadn't mentioned any of them, so the other day I asked, 'Did you read the note in your lunchbox?'  He said, 'Yeah'.  I said, 'Did you like it?'  With tears in his eyes, he said, 'Well, yeah I did, but. . . .it kinda made me miss you and wish you were there with me.'  I said, 'Oh, I'm sorry sweetie!  I was hoping it would remind you that I love you and I'm thinking of you.  Should I not put notes in your lunch anymore?'  He quickly said, 'No!  You can keep putting them in.'  

Sweet boy, that one.

Education

Remember my list of goals?

You can check number 4 right off that list. Charlotte's web. Ah! The accomplishment I feel! I wasn't sure about it at first, when C kept talking throughout, but eventually he actually started to LISTEN! I know! I was shocked, too.

And the book taught some great lessons about love, friendship, loyalty, gratitude, selflessness, and the circle of life, while also teaching him some new vocabulary words and facts about animals. I tried narration, as classical education suggests, and I had to prod a little to get an answer, but he kinda liked it. Sometimes, even when I asked specific questions, he didn't know the answer, but I let it slide. He IS only four years old, after all. But I think he started to listen a little better because he knew mommy would be stopping and asking him to summarize. Then, all on his own, he wanted to find the letters he knows in the text, he was asking me to read 'one more chapter', and before we knew it, we had read the whole book.

Right after finishing the book, we went to the farm with PETUNIA and her little Jman and A-bean. Perfect follow-up to this book. We saw our own versions of Uncle, Wilbur, Templeton, and the Geese. No Charlotte, but I can't say I minded that. Today we borrowed the movie from our neighbor and watched it together. The boys were jumping up and down, so excited to see the characters that they already knew and loved.

We've already started our second book, Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol', and it's moving along a lot quicker. The boys sit quietly (with crayons and paper) and listen to mommy read. They know the routine. When we're done reading this one, we'll go to the theater to see the new cartoon version with Jim Carey.

At this point, number 6 on my list of goals is looking like a YES. Homeschooling is a very possible option, but I'm still a little nervous about it.

I'd love to hear any of our readers thoughts on the subject. Are your kids homeschooled or do they attend public school? What are the pros and cons you see with public or homeschooling? If you homeschool, what methods do you use?

I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with all of the information I've acquired at this point. Homeschooling feels right but even still I have NO idea where to begin with a kindergartener. Any suggestions are welcome. Even if you're against homeschooling. I'd love to hear your reasons.

Dante Beatrix

I love these bags! I want a lunch box and back pack for my kids, but they aren't in school yet so I guess I'll have to wait.

Check out the other adorable styles here.

What's for lunch?

I'm in a rut lately. We eat the same recipes over and over. Lunch is especially hard for me. How do I make lunch more interesting and still get my littles to eat? Here are some ideas from ivillage...

And some from Kraft foods...

Make a list...Check

I was talking to my sister, K, about the morning rush to get the kids to school on time, and she gave me a great tip. For those of us who tend to be slow movers, why not make a morning checklist place mat? I love the idea. And its so pretty!

The directions are here at Family Fun. Its not too complicated. However, if you're anything like me or my girl K, you need things to be extra extra easy. Since K needed this place mat desperately and didn't want to wait to get all the materials together, she headed off to Walmart where she found a laminated place mat for 75cents! Then she just wrote down her checklist items, gave her speed-challenged son a dry erase marker, and off they went.

It's making a big difference in HER house. Now its time to put it to work in OURS! Race ya to Wal-Mart? Ready, GO!

Back to School

I love back to school time. No one in my house is going to school, but I love to shop school supplies and stock up. However, if you do have kids going back to school, it can get expensive. Here's some tips I've heard...

*via Ucreate

*Before you head to the stores with your supply lists, have a scavenger hunt around the house to find any left over supplies you might have.
*Personalize the less festive supplies (which are usually cheaper). Add pictures and stickers, or the child's name.
*Office Max has some items (like rulers and folders) for a penny.
*Office Depot...5 cents for a pencil pouch, 10 cents for a pencil sharpener.
*Walmart has 24 pack Crayola brand crayons for 25 cents.
*Buy in bulk. This works for school supplies, and also snacks for school lunches.

Good luck! If you have any tips, let us know!