tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30158402335280959862024-02-20T03:46:30.850-06:00Clair's CreationsClairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-63338407889996022262012-11-12T21:48:00.000-06:002012-11-12T22:06:37.122-06:00Soft Pretzels<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My youngest, Ella, is a terribly picky eater. Packing her school lunch is a challenge. One day she loves hard boiled eggs, the next she doesn't eat it. So, I usually pack her a lot of little things, and it's anyone's guess what she will choose to eat that day. One things she will eat every single time though is a soft pretzel. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I usually buy a humongo box of the frozen ones from Sam's Club and then just pop one into the microwave in the morning and wrap it in some foil. Sunday evening I just had this wild idea to just try and make some homemade ones and they were really quite easy to make. And, you probably have everything you need in your pantry already!</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1U1ehawXd6x0N-iRb0SqWLZgELxRdFoa7drbppfzXwoOWXfCimzoUdJKqTY9lL3kgfjTHHl8X5wL5CZW7gIxsuRRJfryy1t3c1aesr9XfeKYzWNMchLHGMmDuLRkrmcpe-cKvCJdy3w/s1600/pretzels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1U1ehawXd6x0N-iRb0SqWLZgELxRdFoa7drbppfzXwoOWXfCimzoUdJKqTY9lL3kgfjTHHl8X5wL5CZW7gIxsuRRJfryy1t3c1aesr9XfeKYzWNMchLHGMmDuLRkrmcpe-cKvCJdy3w/s320/pretzels.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Ingredients</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">4 teaspoons active dry yeast</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 teaspoon white sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 1/4 cups warm water (about 110 degrees F)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">4-5 cups all purpose flour<span style="color: red;">*</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup white sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 1/2 teaspoons salt</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 tablespoon vegetable oil</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">4 cups hot water</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup baking soda</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Toppings of your choice</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Cinnamon Sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Kosher Salt</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Butter</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In a small bowl, mix the yeast, sugar and hot water. Let sit till the yeast and sugar dissolve and has a creamy consistency. About 5 to 10 minutes.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In a large bowl (I use my KitchenAid mixer) mix together the flour, sugar and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the yeast mixture and the oil. Mix well until all the ingredients are incorporated. I mix it for about 3 minutes in the KitchenAid - and no kneading it required!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Your dough should be nice and smooth. If it is too sticky, add some flour. If it's too dry and water a teaspoon at a time. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise till it doubles in size. Approximately one hour. (I have a proof function in my oven. You can also just turn on your oven light and place the dough in there. This serves as a nice warm, draft free place for your dough to rise.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. (425 for a convection oven)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, or spray the baking sheets with cooking spray. Dissolve the baking soda in hot water.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Roll the dough out into a thin rope and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwy9c0foFTc" target="_blank">shape into a pretzel shape</a>. I did not need to use any flour when rolling these out. If your dough is sticky you may need to flour your surface. Dip each pretzel into the baking soda solution<span style="color: red;">**</span> and place on the cookie sheet.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Bake for about 8 minutes until browned.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">When the come out of the oven I brush them with melted butter. At this point you can sprinkle them with kosher salt or cinnamon sugar. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My first batch of pretzels was completely consumed by breakfast the next morning. I made a second batch and I just buttered them and didn't add salt or anything. I figured we can add whatever topping we want when we heat the pretzels back up.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><span style="color: red;">*</span>Here in hot and humid Florida I use 4 1/2 cups of flour. I start out with four and then add more in to get the consistency I want. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><span style="color: red;">**</span>Dipping the pretzels into the baking soda solution gives the pretzels the dark chewy exterior we like in a pretzel. Apparently the baking soda causes some sort of scientificy chemical reaction once you pop them in the oven.</i></span>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-70397368899433905522012-10-29T09:26:00.001-05:002013-04-01T12:51:51.319-05:00Homemade Laundry Detergent<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Since moving to Florida, our grocery bill has gone up significantly, so I have been looking for ways to save a few pennies where we can. One of my neighbors in Missouri made her own detergent and gave me some to try and I thought it worked very well. Another friend of mine made the liquid kind and is also happy with the results.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Homemade laundry detergent is all over blogs and Pinterest at the moment. I read quite a few "recipes" and lots of comments and decided on this powder version. I decided against liquid, because the powder seemed easier to store. Everything I needed was all in one spot in the laundry aisle at my local Walmart.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 - 4 lb 12 oz box of <b>Borax</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 - 4 lb box of Pure <b>Baking Soda</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 - 3 lb 7 oz box of <b>Washing Soda</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 - 3 lb box of <b>Oxi Clean</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">3 - 5.5 oz bars of <b>Fels Naptha Soap</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 - 13.2 oz container Downy Unstoppables</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXbz7-lH9MQjaKVXHC6eLXd2IAEfC6Rt81xEBy_clduhCSDmQ1z3pTCXSL0SgI_kzy69To6-gvDCTOT0Qhxb2EltAxDehayaVRC_T-glLOcgU3sHiPuJj8CVj5pJKKA-wS_LB_LvXdm2o/s1600/homemade+detergent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXbz7-lH9MQjaKVXHC6eLXd2IAEfC6Rt81xEBy_clduhCSDmQ1z3pTCXSL0SgI_kzy69To6-gvDCTOT0Qhxb2EltAxDehayaVRC_T-glLOcgU3sHiPuJj8CVj5pJKKA-wS_LB_LvXdm2o/s320/homemade+detergent.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I used one of my empty storage tubs to mix everything in. It was way bigger than I needed but worked out just fine. First I threw everything except the Fels Naptha soap in. My six year old had fun mixing it with a wooden spoon.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXXgIWpri-5NtSg-q9nH03M1kyFz5DyMG2JQtjR1DDPVSCURjnNsYNvGtvmtEIBQ-ApXXeOUSH7QzoK5KfnSjfojb-iKoZF6eHaCy5Qbwuc2x_DrdpVdvi4KJi__dnYCWzxz3pum3LB9Q/s1600/laundry+detergent+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXXgIWpri-5NtSg-q9nH03M1kyFz5DyMG2JQtjR1DDPVSCURjnNsYNvGtvmtEIBQ-ApXXeOUSH7QzoK5KfnSjfojb-iKoZF6eHaCy5Qbwuc2x_DrdpVdvi4KJi__dnYCWzxz3pum3LB9Q/s320/laundry+detergent+4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Then I grated the Fels Naptha Soap, Cause I'm lazy, I threw it into the food processor. (Then I cautioned my six year old that this was NOT grated cheese and she couldn't eat it!)</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTHCZIhcgEbLg-b-q0A-Kg_xII17HoCwZcOOOMNU-tUYlf66cdKZxF674WkpZYcyZvpS3oxTShPNO-JrRQ781Mk5cV-KQZaIZ9ttimQXUHSvCX-72Nx8kajDBC7rBuaxPU5CN4d4pdTr0/s1600/homemade+detergent2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTHCZIhcgEbLg-b-q0A-Kg_xII17HoCwZcOOOMNU-tUYlf66cdKZxF674WkpZYcyZvpS3oxTShPNO-JrRQ781Mk5cV-KQZaIZ9ttimQXUHSvCX-72Nx8kajDBC7rBuaxPU5CN4d4pdTr0/s320/homemade+detergent2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Add this to your mix and give it a stir. And that's it! Place it in the container of your choice and place in your laundry room. You'll need 1-2 tablespoons per load.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The oxy clean that I bought had a little scooper in it, so I marked it with a sharpie (I am using two tablespoons in my High Efficiancy washing machine) </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5i08K_dguf2gSWd0fPAXPnyMtmw4Gm3RcDqNjTV-wCymUd4cRS1kgTOdgZBAtENlgik0ytg3VwgwxmZibAATEHtr2X9ae8bV7gkK8pbpn4KsiwSv6NvzXy1UcaZ0jvrraa1m84iKyIDM/s1600/laundry+detergent+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5i08K_dguf2gSWd0fPAXPnyMtmw4Gm3RcDqNjTV-wCymUd4cRS1kgTOdgZBAtENlgik0ytg3VwgwxmZibAATEHtr2X9ae8bV7gkK8pbpn4KsiwSv6NvzXy1UcaZ0jvrraa1m84iKyIDM/s320/laundry+detergent+3.jpg" width="236" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">All the "ingredients" cost about $25. If you wanted to cut your cost even further, you could leave out the Unstoppables.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So far it is working out just great. I have a top loader High Efficiency washing machine. I wash most everything on the "Tap Cold" setting. <span style="color: #cc0000;">UPDATE: I am almost out of my laundry detergent. I have enough left for a few loads. And I have to say, we do a LOT of laundry around here - I do at least one load a day and on many days, more than one. And I'm kinda sloppy with the measuring. So, it lasted us about five months! </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This detergent has a nice fresh, clean scent but it is not very strong. As far as scent goes, you will not get that strong fragrance like you do with traditional detergents like Tide or Gain. I use traditional dryer sheets so I am still getting plenty of that fresh laundry scent. (I have heard that some people add essential oils to their mixture which would seem easier if you are making the liquid kind.)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This is not a "sudsy" detergent. If you need to see lots of bubbles to get a warm fuzzy that your clothes are clean, than this detergent is probably not for you. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If you let one of your kiddos help you with this, make sure they do not stir the mixture too vigorously. You don't want them to stir up all that fine powder and inhale it down into their lungs.</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Happy Laundering!</span><br />
<br />
If you would like to try the liquid variety, this is the recipe that my friend used:<br />
http://www.duggarfamily.com/content/duggar_recipes/30455/homemade_liquid_laundry_soap_front_or_top_load_machine_best_value<br />
<br />
They also have a few ideas for inexpensive Fabric Softener.Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-44295374382053556982012-09-14T14:01:00.000-05:002012-09-14T14:01:12.699-05:00The "Homework Station"<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Our old house was a one story. The kids kept their backpacks and school supplies that they weren't using in their rooms. Supplies, like paper, pencils etc were kept in plastic drawers on top of the fridge.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Our new home is a two story, and since we usually do homework at the kitchen table, where I can <strike>keep a crack the whip</strike> keep an eye on everyone , I thought we needed a different way to organize our homework stuff. Cause you know if you have to send them upstairs to find something they are bound to get distracted and who knows when they will come back down again. So what I wanted was, one central place to keep everything. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love these Closetmaid Cube storage thingies. I picked this one that is three cubes wide by three cubes high. It works out perfectly since I have three kids.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZuDFUqjBYPn66oggFHkafXhCwxAFL8IMoQAh2BCfKYlWb-RU7yjTTA8V7AJPq9jasybNqO5hebWRkE6NGQVcIPhbX6xkp9_e1YxpdTrKPcc5Av6th0Uqt2497dIl8BEGb3ATR0L6e2uQ/s1600/homework+station+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZuDFUqjBYPn66oggFHkafXhCwxAFL8IMoQAh2BCfKYlWb-RU7yjTTA8V7AJPq9jasybNqO5hebWRkE6NGQVcIPhbX6xkp9_e1YxpdTrKPcc5Av6th0Uqt2497dIl8BEGb3ATR0L6e2uQ/s320/homework+station+1.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Above it, I hung three white boards. Here we write little reminders about things that are important for the upcoming week.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyt4d7h1O5-mXyosyShvpjQWFyGop1hgCLSienkhMX_mKOzKcoa6Q1sgdUmM17t5erwpS_MdhZBcyyFYRB6ykGd6GII8r9SlC3VQUYPvofNfP-7Ra9gTE5L7YRHLXz-nbml-xz_eScGrw/s1600/White+boards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyt4d7h1O5-mXyosyShvpjQWFyGop1hgCLSienkhMX_mKOzKcoa6Q1sgdUmM17t5erwpS_MdhZBcyyFYRB6ykGd6GII8r9SlC3VQUYPvofNfP-7Ra9gTE5L7YRHLXz-nbml-xz_eScGrw/s320/White+boards.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>On the top shelves</i>:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We have plastic drawers with lined paper for homework, blank paper for drawing, markers, pencils, scissors, glue sticks, erasers, calculators etc. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>On the bottom shelves:</i></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">On the left we have some misc stuff (right now it's the kids fundraisers from school) </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In the middle we have our dry erase boards that we use instead of scratch paper and that Ella also uses to practice her spelling. We also have our three hole punch and other misc stuff that doesn't fit in the plastic drawers.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">On the right side are some of our teaching tools that we use at home, like flash cards, stickers and workbooks.</span></li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiDgL9FgewWzHd6oyciLRx_v3MOBD2C915NxWsR1STPP2Q3HpGkrr01qUCrDU3GqGuHMtSfcATkoPwLk6ktiYzzm2o2jJQJm1cmdOZzxmxVMm1shhT0hg7UzPjAZJIO9K4qP5QdxV6rXs/s1600/homework+center+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiDgL9FgewWzHd6oyciLRx_v3MOBD2C915NxWsR1STPP2Q3HpGkrr01qUCrDU3GqGuHMtSfcATkoPwLk6ktiYzzm2o2jJQJm1cmdOZzxmxVMm1shhT0hg7UzPjAZJIO9K4qP5QdxV6rXs/s320/homework+center+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The middle row of shelves:</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I gave each kid their own cubby in the middle row. Here they can put their own personal school stuff. Riley has the kind of schedule where he has half of his classes one day, and the other half the next day, so he can leave the books he doesn't need here. This is also a good place for them to leave long term projects, so we know exactly were everything is. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtrSl2QKLCtNM5wA5ADv1wn-5J_lDeZkQaXjwJOz-ykrbJZ9iZzaOvQqAQkZkPUOehHV2bLgdVpin9_dymrAvZUL0IfN1KqAY6gVoGw-8-BUD9vGWAsSUuJC8vgvxglouiTiXvmsuF7eY/s1600/homework+center+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtrSl2QKLCtNM5wA5ADv1wn-5J_lDeZkQaXjwJOz-ykrbJZ9iZzaOvQqAQkZkPUOehHV2bLgdVpin9_dymrAvZUL0IfN1KqAY6gVoGw-8-BUD9vGWAsSUuJC8vgvxglouiTiXvmsuF7eY/s320/homework+center+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">On the very top of the whole thing, we have dry erase markers, magnets that we can also use for our dry erase boards and our electric pencil sharpener. The basket holds our keys and sunglasses (This just happens to be a convenient place for them) The binder is labeled "Our School Day" Inside is all the information for each of the kids schools. I have a quick cheat sheet in the front that just says what time each kid gets on and off the bus, who their teacher is and what classroom number. (You know, in case I got hit by a bus or something and someone else had to get them off to school.) I also have their individual class schedules, lunch menu's etc. A lot of this stuff is on my laptop but I like having it all in one place where we can just glance at it. (And you know, that whole hit by a bus thing again)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Anyway, this has worked out really great for us. If Ella wants to draw, she can just grab some paper and just grab the markers drawer and bring them to the table. And the kids don't have to go far for any supplies that they need when doing their homework. We know exactly where everything is! </span><br />
Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-12278434348710106692012-07-02T13:14:00.001-05:002012-07-02T13:14:56.214-05:00Meal PlanningWow - I haven't posted here for a while. Things were crazy around here. In a nutshell - a trip to Florida to buy a new house, an immediate family member diagnosed with cancer, the end of the school year, and packing two houses for moves to two different states!<br />
<br />
Anyway, here we are in sunny Florida. We are still getting used to the Southern way of life, but one thing I have quickly learned, is that groceries are very expensive here. There are only two major grocery store chains here. They don't double coupons or have loyalty cards and such, like much of the rest of the country.<br />
<br />
And the local grocery store is not that close - it"s a 15 minute drive one way. Sam's Club is 30 minutes away. (No more running over there for a cheap rotisserie chicken!) So I guess my old system of running to the store and picking up whatever looks good is probably not going to work out real well anymore.<br />
<br />
So I'm going to try meal planning. I heard about this website called <a href="http://emeals.com/">emeals.com</a> For a small subscription fee, they provide you with a meal plan, that is planned around the sales at your local grocery store. I have some pretty picky eaters in my household, so I don't expect all the suggested meals to work for us, although they are pretty family friendly. But even the meals that won't necessarily work for us, prompted a meal idea or could be modified to work for us. And there is usually one crock pot meal included for the week.<br />
<br />
<b style="color: #20124d;">So here is our meal plan for this week July 2nd thru July 8th</b><br />
<br />
Monday: Sweet and Sour Pork with steamed Rice<br />
Tuesday: Sausage Simmer with Pasta<br />
Wednesday: Rosemary Chicken & Veggies (Crock Pot meal!)<br />
Thursday: Breakfast Frittata w/Crispy Bacon<br />
Friday: Hamburgers w/Steak Fries<br />
Saturday: Chicken Alfredo with Salad and Texas Toast<br />
Sunday: Crock Pot Roast, Mashed Potatoes, Corn and Rolls<br />
<br />
What's for dinner at your house?<br />
<br />
<br />Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-41163165398073798922012-02-12T23:11:00.000-06:002012-02-12T23:11:30.090-06:00Turtle Cake<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I usually don't post my cakes and cookies over here because I don't do tutorials for them or anything. All that stuff is posted on my other blog <a href="http://www.sweetshoppeblog.com/">www.sweetshoppeblog.com</a> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My friend Lynette asked me if I could make a turtle shaped cake for a baby shower that she was co hosting for her sister. "Sure" I said. I'd never made a turtle cake before.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This is what I came up with:</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6OcP0CGUm5ABCUsJQVBpTp_BLHpJ4FrLiERD5N-ZIVbetFzgVZLl_qbEMEHrl89tKvGNxW8siWbI85Llf8JVo-nCClHZXCv951VlBWqwfK7ZxZCYN3gjzNLGbJrKzkZkR9ikB4upxkUs/s1600/turtle+cake+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6OcP0CGUm5ABCUsJQVBpTp_BLHpJ4FrLiERD5N-ZIVbetFzgVZLl_qbEMEHrl89tKvGNxW8siWbI85Llf8JVo-nCClHZXCv951VlBWqwfK7ZxZCYN3gjzNLGbJrKzkZkR9ikB4upxkUs/s320/turtle+cake+copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxVVg0AxaQaZLqgmtE0UbTKV1WuJ2vF7JgHhFo-REhW2ONULLTaMrUF778xGC9WEkAphySnxnk6N3bHZs4t7U9_DSW8sCLA1rlEkbZLPoQO1CFdVzPN_MYEiS_Asp84m_Wcd3wsjNz9Ao/s1600/turtle+cake+2+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxVVg0AxaQaZLqgmtE0UbTKV1WuJ2vF7JgHhFo-REhW2ONULLTaMrUF778xGC9WEkAphySnxnk6N3bHZs4t7U9_DSW8sCLA1rlEkbZLPoQO1CFdVzPN_MYEiS_Asp84m_Wcd3wsjNz9Ao/s320/turtle+cake+2+copy.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I made the turtle's body by using a sports ball cake pan. The head and legs were made with some cake that I just pressed together with a small amount of frosting (almost like making a cake pop) The hat is a fondant covered ice cream cone. I put the little guy on top of a buttercream frosted cake.</span>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-51448043235627109122012-02-12T21:43:00.000-06:002012-02-12T21:43:36.282-06:00Crochet Hat<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Due to several sickies in our house today, we didn't go to church so I had a few unexpected free hours on my hands. I have been working on home improvement projects none stop, so I decided to do something creative with my time. I have been seeing all these cute hats online and also on real peoples heads.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Ciara had a bunch of yarn laying around so I just <strike>stole</strike> borrowed some from her.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSPoDRCyK-1FEgmNg99XqRjYee1UZijshTWKYqSvgObqxyHbNkWdZv_FC6PV_zX0LG37sX0F1SOgqtvDY7DUuVpw5HNRg2dLySpsW9y38pWCytY0BMYz5fqjxtRnIIhLPUuYsKpnUKatw/s1600/hat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSPoDRCyK-1FEgmNg99XqRjYee1UZijshTWKYqSvgObqxyHbNkWdZv_FC6PV_zX0LG37sX0F1SOgqtvDY7DUuVpw5HNRg2dLySpsW9y38pWCytY0BMYz5fqjxtRnIIhLPUuYsKpnUKatw/s320/hat.jpg" width="291" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Not to bad for my first attempt. I'm excited to try some different colors and patterns. You know ....... in all my free time ;)</span>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-23096073985896946572011-12-30T22:32:00.000-06:002011-12-30T22:32:12.970-06:00Best Waffles Ever!!I purchased this on Black Friday. It's not super heavy duty or anything, but it was one of those screaming deals that I just couldn't turn down:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtiBSB3zYDxYaamJyUGWK4UwXVa4rrgfykfaFzwCjySQUvcKynDcnD8MDY5_a-74xaeoUSMg534IQmdr2ubDqhtv3kKL_BQuYfbfQQd95IUc2RRju1X2sDUh0v2ymoF8kHeTeu31QKPxg/s1600/waffle+maker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtiBSB3zYDxYaamJyUGWK4UwXVa4rrgfykfaFzwCjySQUvcKynDcnD8MDY5_a-74xaeoUSMg534IQmdr2ubDqhtv3kKL_BQuYfbfQQd95IUc2RRju1X2sDUh0v2ymoF8kHeTeu31QKPxg/s1600/waffle+maker.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<br />
I immediately made a batch of waffles just using some Krusteaz Mix which is my go to mix for pancakes. Love how the pancakes turn out, but wasn't really happy with the waffles. They were okay.....but just okay. I wanted something a little better. So then I tried the Bisquick mix. Love it for making chicken pot pie. Waffles.....not so much. So I headed to the internet to find a recipe.<br />
<br />
<br />
This is the recipe that resulted after experimenting with a couple of batches. This batter is much runnier than the box mix batter, but the waffles came out light, fluffy and crispy.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1s8182yhgvqbUHW6GK3jqZSAhT5zYAF-fxWHxhReLoxxZ6IR2-E90riortf7JhjSzDIfy8zJNmftYvNUZcnSwovndLoHsQA8Zv8zjKJD40AogW9LXoTKN6QIHVvN55cfS50Re1xOZIpw/s1600/waffles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1s8182yhgvqbUHW6GK3jqZSAhT5zYAF-fxWHxhReLoxxZ6IR2-E90riortf7JhjSzDIfy8zJNmftYvNUZcnSwovndLoHsQA8Zv8zjKJD40AogW9LXoTKN6QIHVvN55cfS50Re1xOZIpw/s320/waffles.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Waffle Batter Recipe</b><br />
1 1/3 cups flour<br />
4 tsp baking powder<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar<br />
2 eggs separated<br />
1/2 cup melted butter<br />
1 1/2 cup milk<br />
1 tsp vanilla<br />
<br />
Mix together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Add in melted butter, milk, vanilla and egg yokes and mix well.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwsvfvnSsm1Gx-_O3Gr1JmHVE08zyhHnS-N9xMwgPHIgd-3vaUHAR-l5YqTCLRJI9461TIHHyNdh22v-djKdwOACIMVBry_wyfIa5oAKhdMMlwCZwwIIz4E8H2-6V60o-vbCSlChXMl1I/s1600/batter+in+bowl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwsvfvnSsm1Gx-_O3Gr1JmHVE08zyhHnS-N9xMwgPHIgd-3vaUHAR-l5YqTCLRJI9461TIHHyNdh22v-djKdwOACIMVBry_wyfIa5oAKhdMMlwCZwwIIz4E8H2-6V60o-vbCSlChXMl1I/s320/batter+in+bowl.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Doesn't look very tasty yet!)</span></i></div><br />
Place egg whites into mixer and beat until they start to get stiff (almost like you are making merengue) <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHn5cMMpf87GENovX54CQb0ypRlH6DjrSc05kpramoU-bwAUktud2U1xh4azIBI0Mn5THxC9xtS6LE688UDq5D9rE6fuNMdGbw30YqB9wMSl_MdCWznD4Q22FYI2SBf25stx5SLuVmkGs/s1600/egg+whites.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHn5cMMpf87GENovX54CQb0ypRlH6DjrSc05kpramoU-bwAUktud2U1xh4azIBI0Mn5THxC9xtS6LE688UDq5D9rE6fuNMdGbw30YqB9wMSl_MdCWznD4Q22FYI2SBf25stx5SLuVmkGs/s320/egg+whites.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Gently fold in the egg white mixture into your batter, just until you can't see them anymore.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRrTujfqbC9h_cuTHU6YbP18oGjTPKF89AasGViB032b7fUKqSHTKzgzGjeHc3m1uv7XnTRFbtZy9rThbN8jWj1sbNmoE7lWmkm7WdzARfmz7n6fdVCaZbGY1XIpZ1bS_B2aFhTH3y6Y0/s1600/waffle+batter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRrTujfqbC9h_cuTHU6YbP18oGjTPKF89AasGViB032b7fUKqSHTKzgzGjeHc3m1uv7XnTRFbtZy9rThbN8jWj1sbNmoE7lWmkm7WdzARfmz7n6fdVCaZbGY1XIpZ1bS_B2aFhTH3y6Y0/s320/waffle+batter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrlD6vZDqHqmV1PS3A3SwLB7epuV2V86QBAppDF9wE9Z4T5V8wD12T9kMz92uUtNoggMIjnnJGv3Zl-r_sofk5gBubNQT-cw-eWmOJGlmNvBkP80w1EXOsl1MGxu6O8jme64oUpApxtL4/s1600/waffle+batter+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrlD6vZDqHqmV1PS3A3SwLB7epuV2V86QBAppDF9wE9Z4T5V8wD12T9kMz92uUtNoggMIjnnJGv3Zl-r_sofk5gBubNQT-cw-eWmOJGlmNvBkP80w1EXOsl1MGxu6O8jme64oUpApxtL4/s320/waffle+batter+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Cook according to the directions of your waffle maker.<br />
<br />
This makes more batter than I need for our family of five, but I usually just cook all of it and then put the cooked waffles in the fridge or freezer. Then I can just take them out and pop them in the toaster - they crisp right back.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-66236674273026641332011-12-05T23:15:00.000-06:002011-12-30T23:29:04.036-06:00Advent CalendarsRiley wanted this Lego Advent calendar this year. He has actually wanted one for several years and this year I was actually able to find one. (Note to self - look for advent calendars in September next time!)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk0A36fktOj23d4PE9BhgViHUwUeLpQ00KuR146CRu3WL_09yqMqjBrlWnhFunPiJVFiFNOVwOswdNNe1TDlPcSyAKq0UupqgfJWIK-CrbHrf-OO7MzSlSdYYAUBnXIz1MxTXH2XKi7Lo/s1600/lego+advent+calendar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk0A36fktOj23d4PE9BhgViHUwUeLpQ00KuR146CRu3WL_09yqMqjBrlWnhFunPiJVFiFNOVwOswdNNe1TDlPcSyAKq0UupqgfJWIK-CrbHrf-OO7MzSlSdYYAUBnXIz1MxTXH2XKi7Lo/s320/lego+advent+calendar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
The nice ones the girls were interested in were either sold out, or the sellers were over inflating the prices because they were so hard to find. So I ended up making my own.<br />
<br />
I literally made these the morning of December 1st, so that they would be ready when the girls came home from school. Thank goodness for Amy of <a href="http://www.livinglocurto.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">Living Locurto</span></a>. She had some advent calendars available as a download on her amazing website. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA7yd31cEzGYXW7POcj20tGm_2m66H3R6x5q1cKpg_7WtXCbhGM0WzRDA0adD3mOmt33pLq1bvw-tNoJvl-_VlDsUdey9q9EQyrl0mSohEExz9-gUGyXaEVi7uErfznFhiAJY8mERSATQ/s1600/advent+calendars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA7yd31cEzGYXW7POcj20tGm_2m66H3R6x5q1cKpg_7WtXCbhGM0WzRDA0adD3mOmt33pLq1bvw-tNoJvl-_VlDsUdey9q9EQyrl0mSohEExz9-gUGyXaEVi7uErfznFhiAJY8mERSATQ/s320/advent+calendars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I didn't quite make these quite like Amy did. I actually just stuck the punched out numbers to the background with double stick tape. Every day the girls pulled a number off and got to pick a prize out of a bag. Ella's prizes were Squinkies and Littlest Pet Shop toys. Ciara's prize was a jewelry kit that I broke down into little baggies. By Christmas she will have the entire kit. The girls loved these and couldn't wait to get their prize everyday.<br />
<br />
Be sure to head over to <a href="http://www.livinglocurto.com/" target="_blank">Amy's site</a> if you are ever in search of some really great ideas and printables.Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-59101724428999870322011-11-01T17:43:00.000-05:002011-11-01T17:43:51.547-05:00Diabetic Friendly Chocolate Chip Cookies<b><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Ingredients:</span></b><br />
<b><b style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-weight: normal;">2 1/4 cups flour</b></b><br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 teaspoon salt</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 teaspoon baking soda</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup butter</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup Crisco Shortening</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/4 cup Splenda - Granulated</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2 eggs</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 cup milk chocolate chips</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
<br />
<b>Directions:</b><br />
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Mix together flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In medium size mixing bowl. Mix Splenda Granular Sugar, Splenda Brown Sugar Blend, Butter and Shortening till nice and fluffy. Add in vanilla. Add in eggs one at a time beating after each addition.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
Add in flour gradually, and beat just until flour is incorporated. Mix in Chocolate chips.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Drop by rounded teaspoon onto an ungreased non stick cooking sheet. Flatten the cookies slightly and bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.<br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><b> </b></b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><b style="font-weight: normal;">I like to use a small ice cream scoop when baking cookies. I flattened the cookies with the back of the scoop. I baked them on parchment lined cookie sheets. I got a total of 33 cookies.</b></b><br />
<br />
<b><b style="font-weight: normal;">Here's the nutritional info courtesy of <a href="http://www.livestrong.com/" target="_blank">LiveStrong</a></b></b><br />
<b><b style="font-weight: normal;"> </b></b><b><b><br />
</b></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiN_TPwKADKeIC6znUOJv8d-_QkKW03icPxiXz_DOjwZxRJS2Bc4GeR_b4P2fJ74mdUMdNUYTZNNaS3MMQrj1AybK2VgXk56Z1-xJMaJ1coHsjMzWV44JmrcpCsJTFHoUqgPWvnW5YaAQ/s1600/diabetic+choc+chip+cookies.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiN_TPwKADKeIC6znUOJv8d-_QkKW03icPxiXz_DOjwZxRJS2Bc4GeR_b4P2fJ74mdUMdNUYTZNNaS3MMQrj1AybK2VgXk56Z1-xJMaJ1coHsjMzWV44JmrcpCsJTFHoUqgPWvnW5YaAQ/s320/diabetic+choc+chip+cookies.JPG" width="255" /></a></div><b><b style="font-weight: normal;"> </b></b><b><b><br />
</b></b></div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-21758069878959643672011-10-12T10:34:00.001-05:002011-10-14T11:23:20.913-05:00First Aid & CPR Training<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>August 11th, 2011 - First Aid and CPR Training</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">Mark off in Faith in God: Developing Talents</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Next Activity: October 18th - Plan for Fall Festival</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Bring your ideas for decorating a room at Fall Festival</div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Since we recently had a lesson about babysitting, I thought it would be a great idea for the girls to learn about basic first aid and CPR. We are fortunate to have a former nurse in our ward, who was more than willing to come and teach the girls. The girls just love having guests come and teach the class.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Sister M. brought a CPR training doll with her that the girls were absolutely fascinated with. Her name is Annie. They each got a chance to perform chest compressions on CPR Annie. We also asked them to bring a baby doll to practice infant CPR.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWRHKIVCLPMCGJaaMbwbHhMUSmxCmW-YXM9t7qqX0T1WGe83AlUPcXQ535RpIDxnVX848VaFVDHHUEmz1-AyZ1tkYQjxlSIuOHW4hY7VrGXdNJXqa-wRoEOCm1T3nYgzRYaqjKnPS0IiA/s1600/girls+cpr+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWRHKIVCLPMCGJaaMbwbHhMUSmxCmW-YXM9t7qqX0T1WGe83AlUPcXQ535RpIDxnVX848VaFVDHHUEmz1-AyZ1tkYQjxlSIuOHW4hY7VrGXdNJXqa-wRoEOCm1T3nYgzRYaqjKnPS0IiA/s320/girls+cpr+1.png" width="233" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBqS0NjJSiFOxfmHvWPe6pwntmdSlO_XH4xdbNsTiZA6FrwPnnBMQBYR1bU2decfRIOLFKAsxwbNAMKNvPthC_zPrODm2RurYWo3t56FtNIt-kV-GdpslPIIFzxHNzVCEMAld7TuwW31g/s1600/girls+cpr+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBqS0NjJSiFOxfmHvWPe6pwntmdSlO_XH4xdbNsTiZA6FrwPnnBMQBYR1bU2decfRIOLFKAsxwbNAMKNvPthC_zPrODm2RurYWo3t56FtNIt-kV-GdpslPIIFzxHNzVCEMAld7TuwW31g/s320/girls+cpr+2.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinh4e_LPAn-S8MYBpvths-nVbaXo6UXdb6PwjjOqF8NxdlgBBxqURinLZQEfzJCDtBemnoQGDlIuiRGORi3twgmfAn0kifOqjrl4yFzG8sbc3waD3XUSTKA17FDm7J8RRvJ7E0G2FGg28/s1600/girls+CPR+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinh4e_LPAn-S8MYBpvths-nVbaXo6UXdb6PwjjOqF8NxdlgBBxqURinLZQEfzJCDtBemnoQGDlIuiRGORi3twgmfAn0kifOqjrl4yFzG8sbc3waD3XUSTKA17FDm7J8RRvJ7E0G2FGg28/s320/girls+CPR+4.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJFrslPfV4qkVHaE1BNdMhj4pf-T2zjI7HYzqaNm1VKwnugrHeemCEeDVzFCL-H_dbBu3YjYWHCmDCSnnTLEDyTYtvbUR6yEgGXU9sQgCtLwGQx12SmDQO6LBbLVDUUeDrlEyEpYx_3A/s1600/girls+cpr+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJFrslPfV4qkVHaE1BNdMhj4pf-T2zjI7HYzqaNm1VKwnugrHeemCEeDVzFCL-H_dbBu3YjYWHCmDCSnnTLEDyTYtvbUR6yEgGXU9sQgCtLwGQx12SmDQO6LBbLVDUUeDrlEyEpYx_3A/s320/girls+cpr+3.png" width="320" /></a></div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-65768367804658538262011-08-12T21:30:00.000-05:002011-09-11T22:22:37.672-05:00Impromtu Trip to the Fabric Store<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>August 9th, 2011 Activity</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Shopping Trip to the Fabric Store<br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Mark off in Faith in God: Developing Talents</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Next Activity: August 23rd - Sewing our Scripture Tote Bags</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><i>Bring Scissors and any other sewing notions you can use.</i><b></b></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It's been a crazy couple of weeks when it comes to Activity Girls. We've had to cancel, re-schedule and come up with a new plan. Different things came into play: girls out of town, conflicts with other organizations, and an almost identical event as we had planned held by the Relief Society. Sigh!</span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Monday rolled around and I was still trying to figure out what we were going to do. Something my daughter said to me inspired me.</span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So on Tuesday night, when the girls showed up at the Stake Center, I told them we were going on a field trip<b>. </b>Of course they all wanted to know where we were going but I wouldn't tell them.</span><b> </b><i><span style="color: black;"> </span></i></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: black;">I'm such a meanie!</span></i><b></b></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">So as we were driving along, the girls started speculating. When we were on the freeway, they thought we were going back<b> </b>to my house. Then they thought maybe we were going out for a food treat. Then when we were driving through a residential neighborhood, they thought maybe we were going to one of the absent girls house. Or maybe to a member's house. So I said "Yep, you guessed it. We are going to a member's house and we are going carolling. Have you ever heard of Christmas in August?" "Nooooo" they all reply. </span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"> </span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">Finally I pulled into a parking lot. The fabric store was right there but they still didn't get it. So, with a completely straight face, I told them I brought them out here cause I was going to teach them how to drive. They actually looked at me for a few seconds with that confused look on their face. You know the one where they are actually trying to figure out if you are serious or not. "Um......Really sister Jordan?" </span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">"Oh yeah! And if you are really good, next week I'll teach you how to hotwire cars!" "Awesome!!!" yelled Miss M! The other girls are now understandably skeptical.</span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"> </span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">So I finally point out the fabric store and tell them we are going shopping for fabric to sew our own Scripture Tote Bags.</span></div><div style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"> </div><div style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">I gave them the following instructions:</div><div style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"> <b> </b><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">(To be on their best behavior, and remember who we were representing)</span></div><div style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">To pick out two complementary fabrics of their choice.</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Both fabrics had to be on sale and I limited them to one section of the store.</span><b></b></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">I was really proud of the girls. They helped each other choose and were on their best behavior. When we went to the cutting table, we asked for half a yard of each fabric. The girls were very polite and thanked the associate that helped us. The cashier was nice enough to bag their fabric choices individually so each girls could hang on to their own.</span></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgDl6Zu7Yf78kvY5w_x9wRS8jdI9Y7fdkzG3SKHQhqCGQmHzCgpZcI6vnzoj6pqaSpCDtgwLTkke_RUHxHaVH5a5kP-MsGXc5SOnY52JQvvJLzk7JNOPe9tLVRp8U5dhmurUmhptHTbXE/s400/AC+Girls+at+fabric+store.jpg" width="400" /></div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"> </span>See Toyota dealer guy.....this is why I need an eight seater van!</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">I had such a blast shopping with these girls. Their enthusiasm is so contagious.</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">It was also fun to see the different fabrics that each girl picked out.</span> <span style="color: black;">I felt like I could match the fabric to the girls based on their personalities.</span></div><div style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Can't wait for us to sew up some cute tote bags. </div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">Hopefully this will encourage the girls to bring their scriptures every Sunday!</span></div></div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-26409863416350776612011-08-06T16:31:00.000-05:002011-08-06T16:31:08.929-05:00Slow Roasted St Louis Style Ribs<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I like Ribs but I don't love them slathered in BBQ sauce like most people do. I found this great recipe for a dry rub. The great thing is, you can slow cook them in this rub and then finish them off on the grill. Then if you are a sauce lover, you can slather it on and they still taste great. And the best part......the meat just falls right off the bone!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Dry Rub for Ribs</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup sugar</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/8 cup salt</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 1/2 tablespoon black pepper</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 tablespoon paprika</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 tablespoon garlic powder</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Mix all the dry ingredients together. Trim excess fat of the ribs. My favorite to use lately has been St Louis Style. Generously pat the rub onto the ribs. I usually use half of the above rub on two racks of ribs and just save the rest in a Ziplock bag.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If I happen to plan ahead, (Hey it does happen once in a while!) I'll put the rub on the ribs the night before and just leave them overnight in the fridge. Or you can do it first thing in the morning if you don't plan on eating until later in the day. I like to use those disposable foil pans. I cut the ribs into sections of about 3-4 bones each and usually place about one rack in each pan. <i>(I will admit however, that I have made these without any "marinating" time. Just put the rub on, and popped in the oven. They were still delicious!)</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">About three hours before our planned dinner time, I place them into a 250 degree oven and just leave them in there for about two and a half hours till nice and tender.</span><br />
<br />
Then I hand them off to the hubby and he pops them onto a nice hot grill. Half of them get slathered in BBQ sauce. Around here, it's just something out of a bottle, but you could whip up your favorite award winning recipe if you like. Half of them stay plain jane! They don't have to stay on the grill long, just long enough to get a nice crust!<br />
<br />
Get out some napkins and enjoy!Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-36601970087402407992011-08-06T14:09:00.000-05:002011-08-06T14:09:13.944-05:00Itty bitty QuichesWith the first day of school right around the corner, I was digging around looking for some quick options for breakfast for my picky little eater as well as some lunch options.<br />
<br />
My little one loves quiche so I thought we would give this recipe a try. Unlike a previous recipe that we tried that was disgusting that one came out quite yummy. And it's fun for the kiddo's to help out with too.<br />
<br />
I adapted this from a recipe I found on <a href="http://www.eatingwell.com/">Eating Well </a><br />
<br />
5 eggs<br />
3 egg whites<br />
1/2 cup milk<br />
1/2 cup shredded cheese<br />
8oz cubed ham and turkey<br />
1/8 tsp seasoned salt<br />
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper<br />
<br />
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Because I am lazy and don't like to scrub pots and pans I lined a regular muffin pan with paper liners and then sprayed them with pan. I really don't want these quiches to stick!<br />
<br />
In a large measuring cup, beat the eggs and milk together along with your seasonings. I used 2% milk cause that's what was in my fridge. You could even use egg beaters if that's what floats your boat.<br />
<br />
In the lined muffin cups, evenly distribute the cheese and the ham and turkey. I used some chopped fresh deli meat. You can use anything you love in quiche here. (Or that your picky eater kid will eat!) Sausage, mushrooms, spinach, asparagus, bacon, green onions etc. Use any kind of cheese that you like too. I used a shredded cheese blend. Next pour in your egg mixture. I had enough for 11 mini quiches.<br />
<br />
Pop them in the oven and bake for 25 mins until nice and golden brown. Allow to cool in pan for about 5 minutes and then remove them to a wire rack. Refrigerate any leftovers for up to 3 days.<br />
<br />
<i>If these are a big hit in your household, make a big batch of them and you can freeze them for up to a month. <strong style="font-weight: normal;">Once fully cooled,</strong> wrap in plastic and place in freezer. To reheat, remove plastic, wrap in a paper towel and microwave on High for 30 to 60 seconds.</i>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-80257096814790432162011-07-23T22:41:00.002-05:002011-07-23T22:55:01.266-05:00Happy Birthday Girls!<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Although I had the best of intentions to plan ahead this year, my daughter's birthday party still managed to sneak up on me. At least I managed to get the invites out thanks to this cool website called <a href="http://www.paperlesspost.com/">Paperless Post</a>. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY-9Itg6_wVoedr52pZDbXwBnSsHGDGb_B2YSTDFP0mS1RaQKBIVSzijHQNfHHyPZjCMy830HUpdHdE_XKGobfeoZ7qd6j5BbzNoWXPrH930UGLweF2KwO2smLOzkpu5kB9AevVhOwREQ/s1600/ella%2527s+party+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY-9Itg6_wVoedr52pZDbXwBnSsHGDGb_B2YSTDFP0mS1RaQKBIVSzijHQNfHHyPZjCMy830HUpdHdE_XKGobfeoZ7qd6j5BbzNoWXPrH930UGLweF2KwO2smLOzkpu5kB9AevVhOwREQ/s320/ella%2527s+party+9.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">It's like a fancier version of evite. Your card even includes an envelope</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3XjTHvIWb7dAgjBQYR4mvApN6XObuyLHMiPQ4A9xfLP28GSYQV_b2xbTAy2tsuw9PjfBPy5smenVtIg6hfi8PlnJOnP1huTBvLcc621trEmWHgVh9sCPQ37PKaGKAw7h8Y6U5RGVAZ8/s1600/ellas+party+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3XjTHvIWb7dAgjBQYR4mvApN6XObuyLHMiPQ4A9xfLP28GSYQV_b2xbTAy2tsuw9PjfBPy5smenVtIg6hfi8PlnJOnP1huTBvLcc621trEmWHgVh9sCPQ37PKaGKAw7h8Y6U5RGVAZ8/s320/ellas+party+10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The website allows you to track who has opened the invites, who has replied and send reminders to your guests.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My sweet baby girl turned 5. We also <i>STILL</i> needed to celebrate my other daughter's birthday. She turned 9 back in May. Her birthday always coincides with the end of the school year which makes picking a party date really difficult.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Due to a minor surgery the hubs had to have, I decided to have the party at <a href="http://www.pumpitupparty.com/">Pump It Up</a>. And let me tell you it was money well spent! No mess in my house and the kids LOVED it.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqtlLcHgpuckE2q21houiRwDDdy06_HopHvZyXjccmg2DIGuuweukeH-ipi6kImDfRXZM6TPRYEAlVNV5V0b5o9aIlwsh-mepGI8K5-zNptfcvdReoJOkJp8uHJWHjb2fU9af6GS6p1tM/s1600/Ella%2527s+party+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqtlLcHgpuckE2q21houiRwDDdy06_HopHvZyXjccmg2DIGuuweukeH-ipi6kImDfRXZM6TPRYEAlVNV5V0b5o9aIlwsh-mepGI8K5-zNptfcvdReoJOkJp8uHJWHjb2fU9af6GS6p1tM/s320/Ella%2527s+party+6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> I took the little one over to a party supply store and she picked out some favors for goody bags. I think she did a pretty good job.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdNwQm6WEP4Rst4CnXJWiW0fLWxT188rVFraQPuViruPKFt9B-w9tzTwcc1odz_8NGEZj8IVmGKcVC58uuJJGorlTnusVLSqIg5TUD4z0aOrhfN0ats33KdZcYZnXlpl1Skcq-J5FVYzQ/s1600/Ella%2527s+party+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdNwQm6WEP4Rst4CnXJWiW0fLWxT188rVFraQPuViruPKFt9B-w9tzTwcc1odz_8NGEZj8IVmGKcVC58uuJJGorlTnusVLSqIg5TUD4z0aOrhfN0ats33KdZcYZnXlpl1Skcq-J5FVYzQ/s320/Ella%2527s+party+5.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #e06666;">For the girls: Journal, mini paint set, mini rubix cube, mini frisbee, pencil top eraser, a package of candy, some tattoo's and some of our favorite jello flavored popcorn.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiHjesNihcwxUW9AqjPhtytYeFt09oQB2PQ7b1OCfkc2EfAc_xndtW-Hzv5jneT59M4p78CwyWB2OIMmVhiMGL4eZo75oxkKzMEC-liBSmss4R2Narms2gfGGVbcNHmwIRzyzxUGse6Kc/s1600/Ella%2527s+party+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiHjesNihcwxUW9AqjPhtytYeFt09oQB2PQ7b1OCfkc2EfAc_xndtW-Hzv5jneT59M4p78CwyWB2OIMmVhiMGL4eZo75oxkKzMEC-liBSmss4R2Narms2gfGGVbcNHmwIRzyzxUGse6Kc/s320/Ella%2527s+party+4.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">For the boys: Same as above but instead of the journal, </span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">they got some cute cards with animals on them.</span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;">We made some <a href="http://clairscreations.blogspot.com/2011/05/red-white-and-blue-popcorn.html">jello flavored popcorn</a> for the gift bags with a little tag that said "Thanks for poppin' in." The popcorn was supposed to be pink and purple to match our color scheme. It ended up being red and I'm not sure what you would call the second color. We didn't have time to re-do it and it still tasted yummy.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7irD-SDuCmGmAEtqlcg4Ubi9NAC2_UAdZxMgTE7mFtQOTCnp9zCG11xoldRZutmfxx0K5B_CwD41l00scNxFElu_W9uwTTah8deybTLji2tmuA8JolNqTILOW9kxtKAf0Wu7qUO1hPY/s1600/Ella+party+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7irD-SDuCmGmAEtqlcg4Ubi9NAC2_UAdZxMgTE7mFtQOTCnp9zCG11xoldRZutmfxx0K5B_CwD41l00scNxFElu_W9uwTTah8deybTLji2tmuA8JolNqTILOW9kxtKAf0Wu7qUO1hPY/s320/Ella+party+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"> <span style="font-size: x-small;">Free printable Bag Tag found <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/60757634/Thanks-for-Poppin-In">here</a></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">We also planned to include these in the goody bags. However due to the fact that we made them last minute, and that it's hotter than Haides here and we didn't have any room in the fridge, they didn't dry in time for us to bag them up. </span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlg-y8POA_G3eNfx-bPadY0vj9Rxk3ykWbsD49VpG7kzpS3beBIEqkkQX2_X0TtkOSKNv8jZhst-4KgXD3wWfD5THpTj5vAfCSgbZ-ZUA7IwPN9UQp5ifISikhYVk7dK-4IiOrYL-DrnA/s1600/ella%2527s+party+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlg-y8POA_G3eNfx-bPadY0vj9Rxk3ykWbsD49VpG7kzpS3beBIEqkkQX2_X0TtkOSKNv8jZhst-4KgXD3wWfD5THpTj5vAfCSgbZ-ZUA7IwPN9UQp5ifISikhYVk7dK-4IiOrYL-DrnA/s320/ella%2527s+party+9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Giant marshmallows dipped in chocolate and covered in sprinkles. </span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Can you say Sugar Rush?</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">And of course we had to have cupcakes. My bad photography makes these look they have chocolate frosting on them but the cupcakes themselves were half chocolate, half vanilla and topped with a light pink or deep purple Buttercream frosting. Both sets of cupcake liners came from Michaels. </span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31LeqixEK4ToN1_gd-esvrzDnU2BSDDmf61FYBY9fTesqwkUlC7OkJ3GDurD5o2ObT_Vc4PGJcSJ9RLMeZCeD2y28dq6wnyZNZNSXd93JqFrN1S3SmrC6ghzRJyo6tyeZScEzAsumq-E/s1600/Ella%2527s+party+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31LeqixEK4ToN1_gd-esvrzDnU2BSDDmf61FYBY9fTesqwkUlC7OkJ3GDurD5o2ObT_Vc4PGJcSJ9RLMeZCeD2y28dq6wnyZNZNSXd93JqFrN1S3SmrC6ghzRJyo6tyeZScEzAsumq-E/s320/Ella%2527s+party+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Even though I had very little to do for this party, and not all of it came out perfect, the kids had a great time. And in the end, I guess that's all that matters!</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Dc6zWQY3Co8hMITmkmzNFLyT9x9ro89kF8sA5RjxfhcI94UM1dt0Uei-9C-_YXRB96otr_fH5t-BEBPHJVOSVd4dMFUES3J6foEXhyiR-DcoS6RpGDoRxiiDe1HcaAV-vdiBF0KzFRE/s320/Ella%2527s+party+7.jpg" width="240" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVFox-4vJvWTYUKxVLCXamI0C9Ukr-gBFTPO2LID_l9GcxSwF1KitRGTsnGGcnnu37eKRE45vYujGiKIo6YVRub3-o_IVSbqUEDxLRyiC1tzbRMlHF_wTOQtLQYA_Raxr8O5FSBZw_ikk/s320/Ella%2527s+party+8.jpg" width="320" /></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-24151233533361204512011-07-20T17:37:00.000-05:002011-07-20T17:37:01.733-05:007up Biscuits<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This biscuit recipe is my new favorite. It's quick and easy and you probably already have everything in your fridge and pantry. It makes really light and fluffy biscuits in mere minutes.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I would call this recipe semi-homemade cause it starts off with Bisquick. I stumbled across this recipe on a blog called <a href="http://plainchicken.com/">Plainchicken.com</a><a href="http://www.plainchicken.com/"></a> Such a cute name. Her food looks yummy and her photography skills are much better than mine. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So here's what you need:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1oQp_xZprUNCmvNiP928hDFaL5qHZ4JddnH77gzx8_DeA7fPoHzp1PgIXM9arVu2B2120HW2t6H0lXyvv7QDRqDOjHwII_cTWeI6EtRk3gzR5Z3Owa-6rB0MNLNOlHEH6f8ucChSOiT8/s1600/7up+biscuits+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1oQp_xZprUNCmvNiP928hDFaL5qHZ4JddnH77gzx8_DeA7fPoHzp1PgIXM9arVu2B2120HW2t6H0lXyvv7QDRqDOjHwII_cTWeI6EtRk3gzR5Z3Owa-6rB0MNLNOlHEH6f8ucChSOiT8/s320/7up+biscuits+1.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Yep, that's all. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">2 cups of Bisquick mix </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup of sour cream </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup of 7Up. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You will also need some butter for the bottom of your pan.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In a medium size bowl, cut the sour cream into the Bisquick using a fork. Add in the 7Up and mix until just combined. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I use a large cutting board for the next part. Generously sprinkle your board (or counter top etc) with some Bisquick mix. (If you barely had two cups of Bisquick mix, like I did, just use some flour) The mixture will be pretty sticky. I also dusted my hands with flour. Pat the mixture flat (<i>I don't recommend using a rolling pin</i>) and cut biscuits. I didn't even bust out a cutter here - I just used a glass cause it was handy.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Melt about 1/4 cup of butter in the bottom of the pan. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Recipe says to place in a 9 x 9 inch square pan, but I didn't have one handy, so I just placed my cut biscuits into a pie pan.</span> <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM_md75pFVGkl5np76gSGKeeMqWeIuGWHjeHXMKEk6r-M2mz1ctrE8WQY6bF2Xg4Ttj-rveLbV-WkTy-ecbFzZ1M62Kz8SFZN1KcpGQgLqPMqz2P0Id-DmNzo9Gwky42LQdBXr6Nh6Zpg/s1600/7up+biscuits+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM_md75pFVGkl5np76gSGKeeMqWeIuGWHjeHXMKEk6r-M2mz1ctrE8WQY6bF2Xg4Ttj-rveLbV-WkTy-ecbFzZ1M62Kz8SFZN1KcpGQgLqPMqz2P0Id-DmNzo9Gwky42LQdBXr6Nh6Zpg/s320/7up+biscuits+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If you place the biscuits close together, they will stay nice and soft on the side. I used a pastry brush and took a little butter out of the bottom and brushed the tops.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Bake for about 15 minutes and...........</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWGL8S0KIS14-UeWsaHS2PjGXg1z2Yi2EIz02xBooaYWrVp0vlX6tP6u_hFNpkp1-uFNAgknUBNiVXGV2kwT198l3Q5TR_t2FJiWwll3K-W7sYTrx6wdRebPXLHP63bVG1UmNPfKCk-c/s1600/7up+biscuits+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWGL8S0KIS14-UeWsaHS2PjGXg1z2Yi2EIz02xBooaYWrVp0vlX6tP6u_hFNpkp1-uFNAgknUBNiVXGV2kwT198l3Q5TR_t2FJiWwll3K-W7sYTrx6wdRebPXLHP63bVG1UmNPfKCk-c/s320/7up+biscuits+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Load them up with butter, honey, jam or whatever you like in your biscuit. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Easy, quick and yummy! </span>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-78359670868084659532011-07-12T15:19:00.000-05:002011-07-12T15:19:43.456-05:00Nutella Stuffed French Toast<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVIO38tFcACi881cDv3NSVIj_gh_9yTuI41MT1QyAu4SgPwBTLmW3t1mbvzJcCABAOxEAuQnIvDZ8kchaPc_7Cwj7oNsWOsKmWVWoErQqzicRIIE0TO2ygAO7Ulzk3rkltIZcx35s3BYw/s1600/french+toast+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVIO38tFcACi881cDv3NSVIj_gh_9yTuI41MT1QyAu4SgPwBTLmW3t1mbvzJcCABAOxEAuQnIvDZ8kchaPc_7Cwj7oNsWOsKmWVWoErQqzicRIIE0TO2ygAO7Ulzk3rkltIZcx35s3BYw/s320/french+toast+4.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My dad was here visiting from England for five weeks but had to return home today. My four year old was a little sad when we got home from the airport and declared that we needed to have french toast for lunch. Since the men folk are at scout camp this week, and it's just us girls now, I figured why not! And since it's bathing suit season, lets see how we can make this a little more fattening shall we? Since chocolate makes everything better - we added some Nutella.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I started out with my standard <b><span style="color: #274e13;">French Toast</span></b> recipe:</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">3 eggs</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup heavy cream<span style="color: red;">*</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/2 cup milk</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1/4 tsp salt</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 tsp vanilla</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">1 tsp cinnamon</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In a bowl big enough to fit the bread you will be using, lightly beat the eggs, add in the milk, cream, salt, vanilla and cinnamon and whisk lightly until everything is just blended together.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuuaLZrvjuEgM-e4mca7ORsVIez-D3HR5kytgVUkXByzudfOILJxAOOvbxHcCxfFzyTMTq7y_MDj8k_dIJdSz2mC9DPRCn3VhzRz4Fpd8n0GH6eMVOe86StIrmsfRYNccGQaGoqpe4bI/s1600/french+toast+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuuaLZrvjuEgM-e4mca7ORsVIez-D3HR5kytgVUkXByzudfOILJxAOOvbxHcCxfFzyTMTq7y_MDj8k_dIJdSz2mC9DPRCn3VhzRz4Fpd8n0GH6eMVOe86StIrmsfRYNccGQaGoqpe4bI/s320/french+toast+1.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Today, because we are making french toast on demand, we are using whatever happens to be in the breadbox, which is plain old white Wonder Bread.<span style="color: red;">**</span> Take two slices of the bread of your choice and glue them together with some Nutella. (Remind your four year old not to stick the knife back in the jar after you she licks it clean!)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSuFbPpw7-ytOAA5WqszY9e3wCXByHYvAc5IPMMx5_F2akEzhKyLa9e2h33gU1Wn_W1R2nvk-OvNGCFQzjDpTxXsiQYFH640CJYYGap4c0dHYgD4yCOebOd8jqpVaF-M5Ck_ta1EdWPCA/s1600/french+toast+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSuFbPpw7-ytOAA5WqszY9e3wCXByHYvAc5IPMMx5_F2akEzhKyLa9e2h33gU1Wn_W1R2nvk-OvNGCFQzjDpTxXsiQYFH640CJYYGap4c0dHYgD4yCOebOd8jqpVaF-M5Ck_ta1EdWPCA/s320/french+toast+2.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Heat a skillet over medium high heat. If you are like my husband or Paula Deen, or feel like this recipe does not already have enough calories for you, melt a teaspoon of butter in the bottom of the pan. I personally just like to spray it with some non stick cooking spray. Because the Wonder Bread is pretty thin, I pretty much just dipped each side of the Nutella sandwich in the egg/milk mixture and let the excess drip off. If your bread is thicker, you can let it sit in the mixture for about 30 seconds.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCyRZFpntZh2hQGgnvhTZI4icdMtCU38Jb-T2hfdlj4w_ujx1CUCsEFhswmWwBuZmeL8ph_b8qUczMh4tqcIKDDr1sKj2WdNKGnx1DVoQJeSP-N1ctxHJInH9nEQomewJy9fKxkFENDpE/s1600/french+toast+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCyRZFpntZh2hQGgnvhTZI4icdMtCU38Jb-T2hfdlj4w_ujx1CUCsEFhswmWwBuZmeL8ph_b8qUczMh4tqcIKDDr1sKj2WdNKGnx1DVoQJeSP-N1ctxHJInH9nEQomewJy9fKxkFENDpE/s320/french+toast+3.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You know the drill here right? Fry it on each side until nice and toasty and golden brown. If you'd like a little extra sweetness or maybe you are just trying to blow your calorie counting completely out of the water, dust it lightly with some powdered sugar.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Or, if you are a purist, (or maybe your stomach hurts a little like my nine year old today) you omit Nutella and go with Powdered Sugar and Syrup. Whatever floats your boat - it all good!</span><br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiezLhOIwO2QwSSPuXMXVvT7XAsyB36q05dUZ95OdPJfldSYtOlSlqO3UP1PWryreCCW5-6n4WR5U-xSmuhx2eLq_dygoj8MSsvUYCVgeKiWJGDMTS9oFWOVCz2TVR1cJgJFdlBI8odjZ4/s1600/french+toast+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiezLhOIwO2QwSSPuXMXVvT7XAsyB36q05dUZ95OdPJfldSYtOlSlqO3UP1PWryreCCW5-6n4WR5U-xSmuhx2eLq_dygoj8MSsvUYCVgeKiWJGDMTS9oFWOVCz2TVR1cJgJFdlBI8odjZ4/s320/french+toast+5.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: red;">*</span>You can use a whole cup of milk, or a whole cup of half and half or any combination of milk and cream or half and half that you would like here. I always have heavy cream in my fridge and I like the richness it adds.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="color: red;">**</span>My favorite bread to use for French Toast is Wonder Bread Texas Toast. It's the perfect thickness while still being nice and soft. Day old bread tends to work better because really fresh bread can get a little soggy. You can make French Bread with any kind of bread that you love. Try making it with Cinnamon Bread or Raisin Bread. Yum!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-60084511791245867342011-07-07T23:24:00.001-05:002011-07-20T18:02:16.086-05:00Pen Pals<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>July 5th, 2011 Activity</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Writing to our PenPals &</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Practicing to sing in Sacrament Meeting</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Mark off in Faith in God: Developing Talents</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">Next Activity: July 19th - Cancelled :(</div><div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">See you August 2nd for the Mommy and Me Tea!</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The current author of <a href="http://ldsactivitydayideas.blogspot.com/">this blog</a> that I like to visit to get ideas for our Activity Girls broached the idea of matching girls up from different wards to be Pen Pals. It immediately reminded me of my childhood. Remember back in the day when all correspondence was via snail mail? I lived in England at the time and had a Pen Pal in France. I loved sending and receiving letters and learning something about this girl in a different part of the world then me.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love this idea for many reasons. </div><ul style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><li>I think it will be so much fun for the girls to get to know other girls their age in a different ward.</li>
<li>Writing an old fashioned letter is a great skill for them to learn. I encouraged them to use proper punctuation and spelling. (No LOL, BFF etc)</li>
<li>It passes off a requirement for Faith in God - Developing Talents </li>
</ul><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Our girls were matched up with some girls from a ward in Cedar Hills Utah. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivhUIfrQPKLo6ZKqfEqKOn1CY1URnoEYQVNmEEhjuRhVRY5Ao7MRWTPvsfZUQbrgJ2DRZgT8HtA8zh_f32uhDmgAR51CAaNmoosQYUH44o-Ou9yQmKDEisOF5CnEx4J-LoTVBxefzOMWg/s320/Pen+pals+1.jpg" width="320" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq4ntSI1w61BQ_KtlrEpq_ANJeQYgc_cpxfeihA3LUzSFtq3Z3H77OV04xD9HhwG4vItWs_D8nkP3m37mPoMX9FCgwFeQSxfq9JSggMW32CbJOM51Eou56Dlr24nYmHr44pmPav_vKO4w/s320/penpals+2.jpg" width="320" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWqXbh14o0JHXAgZplPYdQtltMnYfAKCE3_iztmFluw-_7QSKkwkFMAkb_puW-pqMnrMzf9fP4JmDTbQCholnab5b25vRN8Jj-erdMNk5fQtRRpRYfzn090hXgPEgL5SNKIyEi26TLrF0/s320/penpals+3.jpg" width="320" /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Each girls wrote a letter on some pretty stationary. We decorated the envelopes. Before we sealed the envelopes, I (or a parent) checked each letter to make sure it didn't include too much personal info. (no last names, phone numbers, email addresses etc) Once we add in some little gifts and photos, it will be sent of to the girls leader in Utah.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We can't wait to hear back from them!</span>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-59084990508588905352011-07-07T23:17:00.001-05:002011-07-07T23:19:27.372-05:00Pool Party!<div style="text-align: center;"><b>June 30th, 2011 Activity</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Pool Party </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Mark off in Faith in God: Just For Fun! </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><b>Next Activity: July 5th - Practice to sing in Sacrament Meeting</b></div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><b>& Writing Letters to our Pen Pals.</b></div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><b>Meet at 7 p.m. at the Stake Center.</b></div><br />
<br />
This week we had to move the date of our regularly scheduled Tuesday night meeting because the Youth were attending the Temple on the same night. For the sake of parents sanity, and also because of the terrible gas prices, we try to avoid having parents running kids to all kinds of different locations.<br />
<br />
Also, I was on vacation visiting my sister and my Co-Leader wanted to wait to have this party till I was back and boy was I glad she did!!!<br />
<br />
This activity didn't really satisfy a requirement in the Faith in God program - It was just for fun! My Co-Leader hosted a swim party for the girls and their families at her home. We had such a blast swimming followed by a yummy dinner of BBQ'ed hamburgers and hotdogs, fresh fruit, chips and dip and the most delicious homemade macaroni and cheese. And did I mention the brownies? Chocolate doesn't really agree with me but they looked soo good, I just couldn't resist trying one! <span style="color: red;">Sister Canaday was most definitely the Hostess with the Mostess!!! Thank you for opening your home to us - everyone had a great time!</span><br />
<br />
<img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL9zFFQNthmaAugkkA1lJgBZXXnsk3l45i5HCPbPQsAPQIp69bV9p0fda1DgEJZg8CD6esdwcUyFGOCKZcVY2FzW8ISLoSRVYC-sPyOEsizzzUbVzOpwVqKX-lNYQbm038v8JFuR0v41Q/s320/girls+eating.JPG" width="320" /><br />
<br />
<img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZGDnCL9EjWeMBy9JTf9QGKRBB_S9NptAJ6qUJ0XNe_kQRDkqywa51ba5KOHVuneiggTlGCey659kR5VYrjz2mQL6JT7Xqz3qxYGHKHJiNIPe9g9hGcdq3Iw7sJaGz8yi54vxoks-ZVLc/s320/eating.JPG" width="320" />Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-19550097211563839942011-06-11T22:31:00.002-05:002011-06-11T22:44:46.510-05:00Father's Day - Folded Shirt Card<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Oa73gOxAbV2yICAf8jO1_0VT_SzNLiyjv6oxQ1CpH-PAR51Xx_iOMb3wdGArEMFRgVXfWq4IMYUP44_m8Jc28ARpGwk2Xf6yIOYZ38HDgqsEIarUBCHpGR8mmsjFeIYegXbBP3klADA/s1600/fathers+day+cards+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Oa73gOxAbV2yICAf8jO1_0VT_SzNLiyjv6oxQ1CpH-PAR51Xx_iOMb3wdGArEMFRgVXfWq4IMYUP44_m8Jc28ARpGwk2Xf6yIOYZ38HDgqsEIarUBCHpGR8mmsjFeIYegXbBP3klADA/s320/fathers+day+cards+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I came across this <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/fathers-day-crafts-for-kids">cute card</a> for Father's Day on Martha Stewart's Website. I wanted to make these with the <a href="http://lds.org/?lang=eng">Activity Girls</a> to go along with a Father's Day Gift we were making. Problem was, the instructions on the website didn't seem to make a lot of sense.<br />
<br />
With a little bit of trial and error, I got it figured out. I started with a 12"x12" piece of scrapbook paper that I cut down to 7 1/2" x 12". Basically you can use any size that is skinny rectangle.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OmiBjmCJii1snG0iT5z9muJN4gYKlH_P2MBJh161ikkEpAOY8l5deXn9g22yE85fO6ZGWZBpwZtdnCialnI0biyzdA8_KsSQf4RrIdgXAEiMiO_9VDENWcBFrklUU2RuocSsp3AIlJw/s1600/Step+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OmiBjmCJii1snG0iT5z9muJN4gYKlH_P2MBJh161ikkEpAOY8l5deXn9g22yE85fO6ZGWZBpwZtdnCialnI0biyzdA8_KsSQf4RrIdgXAEiMiO_9VDENWcBFrklUU2RuocSsp3AIlJw/s320/Step+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHQqMuq6wfkzevnKwKneAstJGnom_oOp0Kn_4ruDClsOGGQwv2vZgkt73aPkYR4asbaUbOnQMAZlJGGD4OWX9_jv2h1KiFBswyFWJMJeiz-8wR9KkY49rc-5j_c_-wxRPMgwcdLHhcEq0/s1600/Step+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHQqMuq6wfkzevnKwKneAstJGnom_oOp0Kn_4ruDClsOGGQwv2vZgkt73aPkYR4asbaUbOnQMAZlJGGD4OWX9_jv2h1KiFBswyFWJMJeiz-8wR9KkY49rc-5j_c_-wxRPMgwcdLHhcEq0/s320/Step+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMdqWqqG4hSymPTcEuI0zFPtZs78qVhPXWGI0c-HW-7NVBQYHSDEo-w8cdssB_TPJTVq2NtlF9GIB0sdh3x9YFS0d0308ZHKFoFRF6iDIHN_2q7L_IunJ5U8paLSzYEi0N0M-SjwP5oAU/s1600/Step+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMdqWqqG4hSymPTcEuI0zFPtZs78qVhPXWGI0c-HW-7NVBQYHSDEo-w8cdssB_TPJTVq2NtlF9GIB0sdh3x9YFS0d0308ZHKFoFRF6iDIHN_2q7L_IunJ5U8paLSzYEi0N0M-SjwP5oAU/s320/Step+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhq5KozOSPYAsgVGtk82b6mq1RT0c6a1ZB7JonsibQgGpi8EpllDlZ13spWPdmRHWMi-_YkJzhmTDVqjRrx5WP2-NITz-3bsF2rcqXJBg5gMdEWv-iG-gSvyzKJTbyIvqwBhpoF_VIZfs/s1600/Step+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhq5KozOSPYAsgVGtk82b6mq1RT0c6a1ZB7JonsibQgGpi8EpllDlZ13spWPdmRHWMi-_YkJzhmTDVqjRrx5WP2-NITz-3bsF2rcqXJBg5gMdEWv-iG-gSvyzKJTbyIvqwBhpoF_VIZfs/s320/Step+4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkld8XAcy3djg5qe1SaLIq_ZanFLpltTNiLmPoQC7xSOkJZkd67Fpl_CL7nr55Xs31_VlONjfYPQibHgp2yNqvMhYNvVSlAmdADQfpFQzLdFC3BVDNe075LORjU_deOnklVCGGkdkj9Oc/s1600/Step+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkld8XAcy3djg5qe1SaLIq_ZanFLpltTNiLmPoQC7xSOkJZkd67Fpl_CL7nr55Xs31_VlONjfYPQibHgp2yNqvMhYNvVSlAmdADQfpFQzLdFC3BVDNe075LORjU_deOnklVCGGkdkj9Oc/s320/Step+5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26ILHq8lAM6WCihw6zDPNzTtM_56ACYygTReAHoDxeMzCQm0XXQPA5o12nFMp3Tf8QEqPRgcLmVPhPqgqDgVSkxeeyilM4twsDs6jl7MyZJLwSfRITBbzrtiM6NrlvURZSSPDr0HORpw/s1600/Step+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26ILHq8lAM6WCihw6zDPNzTtM_56ACYygTReAHoDxeMzCQm0XXQPA5o12nFMp3Tf8QEqPRgcLmVPhPqgqDgVSkxeeyilM4twsDs6jl7MyZJLwSfRITBbzrtiM6NrlvURZSSPDr0HORpw/s320/Step+6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0s4p6bAubyxBIKl1iPPlm0YK3oxBm3M1cIP3ERY9yu_NRGZN6QB6Ex2IcD4GSSxjUPW4xgdvwP5CCEycBe1XiBkx15u_qgNtL0hyphenhyphenfbBdBkpLNY3M9vRPBOSpI7a-rZ66YDZFX9Q3XHDU/s1600/Step+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0s4p6bAubyxBIKl1iPPlm0YK3oxBm3M1cIP3ERY9yu_NRGZN6QB6Ex2IcD4GSSxjUPW4xgdvwP5CCEycBe1XiBkx15u_qgNtL0hyphenhyphenfbBdBkpLNY3M9vRPBOSpI7a-rZ66YDZFX9Q3XHDU/s320/Step+7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMQSybdGY1Tn07mDXq7pP0bZJUZAUo4t_QYNw6WotfbuafeI1jmcLPw0K2XcNVAvyuGmMBuo8Z_PnnlsPc7B1EtP5UsuvCZ6ytXsze8h7G_jb6sznCpSsQTHo1SNLWH5OJ4JY7eDHOoNI/s1600/Step+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMQSybdGY1Tn07mDXq7pP0bZJUZAUo4t_QYNw6WotfbuafeI1jmcLPw0K2XcNVAvyuGmMBuo8Z_PnnlsPc7B1EtP5UsuvCZ6ytXsze8h7G_jb6sznCpSsQTHo1SNLWH5OJ4JY7eDHOoNI/s320/Step+8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibjl5qXDvrubaLk1bY7GzvEC5NMWoyVCHdagDr_AOr9tGfEb5swESoiWdecY_Yeeb9JislEhJ8D_2bnC6vVcjWQZ_BgMOfKlW7jOFSMMMrw5rxO1xWM3H-5vGRNnQ-7e5j2QbXMADfUyI/s1600/Step+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibjl5qXDvrubaLk1bY7GzvEC5NMWoyVCHdagDr_AOr9tGfEb5swESoiWdecY_Yeeb9JislEhJ8D_2bnC6vVcjWQZ_BgMOfKlW7jOFSMMMrw5rxO1xWM3H-5vGRNnQ-7e5j2QbXMADfUyI/s320/Step+9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXDG8YPxQATDVTe9fh8oywiOSZpDC9yCrnsKodz3IEGojbMVr-7dAuSOI1u0JgTQtg88aRdXkU_xGEznJwOAU9gunx-yCo6zS-8iO33RzfkbQTZNxyva3zmg5ZimoFGzcyyAwmClki94/s1600/Step+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXDG8YPxQATDVTe9fh8oywiOSZpDC9yCrnsKodz3IEGojbMVr-7dAuSOI1u0JgTQtg88aRdXkU_xGEznJwOAU9gunx-yCo6zS-8iO33RzfkbQTZNxyva3zmg5ZimoFGzcyyAwmClki94/s320/Step+10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkUjAaDI6lFhO6HDsRa9VKXJFLibKi6hTW_XqCrfRirb88eINEM_Qll4Pvho1NY_sdqu_BXyEvWNAQXXnE6mSkBOkR2lxfTkYUdbTMqa7GvwLqsSeaZ_8sR9AZDvx75G4miWYWHn5alA/s1600/Step+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkUjAaDI6lFhO6HDsRa9VKXJFLibKi6hTW_XqCrfRirb88eINEM_Qll4Pvho1NY_sdqu_BXyEvWNAQXXnE6mSkBOkR2lxfTkYUdbTMqa7GvwLqsSeaZ_8sR9AZDvx75G4miWYWHn5alA/s320/Step+11.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMzB9ISOa78u5arzdTsS7qDVsR7w9hrzgIoG4pwmtgW-iyRnL3bfbhuY31QJXKpyfx-lrYEIuK6iX_SB1r5o3u3rzWHS3FCE9XHJs8s5wkuXiantawFrqhzwWAdsgQcE6ig4Nlw8AUWe0/s1600/Step+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMzB9ISOa78u5arzdTsS7qDVsR7w9hrzgIoG4pwmtgW-iyRnL3bfbhuY31QJXKpyfx-lrYEIuK6iX_SB1r5o3u3rzWHS3FCE9XHJs8s5wkuXiantawFrqhzwWAdsgQcE6ig4Nlw8AUWe0/s320/Step+12.jpg" width="291" /></a></div>Have fun embellishing with a tie, bow tie, pocket or buttons!Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-34633127889409214192011-06-11T20:35:00.003-05:002011-06-12T09:56:19.161-05:00Father's Day Gift - Candles<div style="color: red; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><div style="color: black; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>June 7th, 2011 Activity</b></div><div style="color: black; text-align: center;"><b>Mark off in Faith in God: Serving Others </b><br />
<b>and Developing Talents</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<div style="color: red;"><i><b>Next Activity: June 30th - Pool Party!</b></i></div></div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i><b>(Hosted by Sister Canaday) </b></i></div><br />
<br />
<b>Dads: Don't read until after Father's Day!!</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This past week, we helped the girls make candles and cards for gifts for their dad's. We started by making these cute little cards. Each girl picked their own pattern of paper and then I showed them step by step<a href="http://clairscreations.blogspot.com/2011/06/fathers-day-folded-shirt-card.html"> how to fold it</a>. Each one of them added their own unique touch: a bow tie, buttons, a tie or a nametag. Look at the green shirt below - the girlie who made it added a piece of real tissue in the pocket! I love how creative these girls are!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Oa73gOxAbV2yICAf8jO1_0VT_SzNLiyjv6oxQ1CpH-PAR51Xx_iOMb3wdGArEMFRgVXfWq4IMYUP44_m8Jc28ARpGwk2Xf6yIOYZ38HDgqsEIarUBCHpGR8mmsjFeIYegXbBP3klADA/s1600/fathers+day+cards+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Oa73gOxAbV2yICAf8jO1_0VT_SzNLiyjv6oxQ1CpH-PAR51Xx_iOMb3wdGArEMFRgVXfWq4IMYUP44_m8Jc28ARpGwk2Xf6yIOYZ38HDgqsEIarUBCHpGR8mmsjFeIYegXbBP3klADA/s400/fathers+day+cards+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Since we have a few days to spare till Father's Day, we also decorated bags for them to keep their gift in.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgswW806xbrX1-8z_82sGPwPc3A5OY6ZSlfMK11ceBosNtMt8FDZ829rcSYKtKTVSpeOlGQa1tsV4qNjzSC4JwfIYbTlthvjQ_nhvZP69CYZ07jHUWlTzdjQsmVN2a8ceFHPRW5toOGbGY/s1600/candles+in+bags.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgswW806xbrX1-8z_82sGPwPc3A5OY6ZSlfMK11ceBosNtMt8FDZ829rcSYKtKTVSpeOlGQa1tsV4qNjzSC4JwfIYbTlthvjQ_nhvZP69CYZ07jHUWlTzdjQsmVN2a8ceFHPRW5toOGbGY/s400/candles+in+bags.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We made our own candles from scratch. Not only did we make a handmade gift for the dads but we got to learn a new craft too. Each girls picked out what color candle she wanted as well as the scent. I found a scent which was a knockoff of the cologne "Cool Water." Very manly smelling. Some girls opted to go with more girlie scents like cinnamon bun or caramel apple.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFN5ZdyW_hblaXQhRxt8MC7QdqPhpfUBFMBQE7a7h5aYAmPdYKAaJrw1sA8ejvXcv45zLpW0hcaSqkfRhpWZpcGP4pnRyrPPzUuHhNTbCvrsqb5wMIgPMzoyZQ7h-1JeWf8Tka_WPQcTw/s1600/candles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFN5ZdyW_hblaXQhRxt8MC7QdqPhpfUBFMBQE7a7h5aYAmPdYKAaJrw1sA8ejvXcv45zLpW0hcaSqkfRhpWZpcGP4pnRyrPPzUuHhNTbCvrsqb5wMIgPMzoyZQ7h-1JeWf8Tka_WPQcTw/s400/candles.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">We attached a cute label that said "A <b>Scent</b>imental gift, for a very special Dad"</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Happy Father's Day to all the Special Dad's out there.</div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-17897882819916511152011-06-03T07:35:00.001-05:002011-06-03T07:38:41.835-05:00Decorating Journals<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>May 17th, 2011 Activity</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Mark off in Faith in God: Serving Others </b><br />
<b>and Living and Learning the Gospel</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<div style="color: red;"><i><b>Next Activity: June 7th - Father's Day Gifts.</b></i></div></div><div style="color: red; text-align: center;"><i><b>(Meet at Sister Jordan's House) </b></i></div><br />
</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHxKLf5MBmUhBzPYwypjqEIijNYgFObL6VDmvbNMYgfHuG9mvZrtQtxgZ39RHttwBdBNRw4hb3ZGlH2k2EGXB5wqkwpd-Y5RtOvdGMSFe0AgTJRMhATNE_j3u2AbFMAtILrbVDSbdRLVY/s1600/journals+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHxKLf5MBmUhBzPYwypjqEIijNYgFObL6VDmvbNMYgfHuG9mvZrtQtxgZ39RHttwBdBNRw4hb3ZGlH2k2EGXB5wqkwpd-Y5RtOvdGMSFe0AgTJRMhATNE_j3u2AbFMAtILrbVDSbdRLVY/s320/journals+5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">One of the goals of the Activity Girls Program is to help the girls complete Faith In God. The Faith in God program encourages the girls to journal so this week I thought it would be fun for them to decorate their own journals. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We started out with plain wirebound notebooks. Just the simple one subject ones that kids take to school. I printed out their names in different colors and fonts and I supplied scrapbook paper,stickers, ,embellishements, decorative scissors and lots of glue. (I think I need to invest in a few more glue guns!)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I was really impressed with the girls creativity! They had a lot of fun decorating the journals to suit their own personal style. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhah1XAyVOtogAPP3tyxJ4_yk55UzPT8-XnWlxVvHFiMMD7-oygl0hscu6ygrLVljUcmLQBWGFVuCxifd0Z9Dk03VgdhEdypCYagXxOUOeEPjeE25wka-MEwMps_C9LjYbzELUB1V5VGMU/s320/journals+1.jpg" width="250" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnjUqqvhyphenhyphenw48oYVKbjdlFa6xO1fWpVHMdaRxiAFaGoSuUIhfSXHMxfZO8LaiWI2KppYDUASMO1_ciDLMZP47iSouqvMlnvF_8ItoMPIY3k9bQ6o9PdVZRg9x7TPe3Pmp3VzHe-tNVyWRc/s320/journals+2.jpg" width="320" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQsI1gF5WlK5XmkgYmoRTwdj_zZw5t3PZbaYRb-EBuJw7l4SPRC2OLWwo4EOQ6-uiluvi8GZYxW2vf9iXkO97cA-6oDx1XOw-ApV-PjgRRmuX5JV0yDCF5tE9nT1uzXZ2Ky4BB9n3r53M/s320/journals+3.jpg" width="228" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFANlzKDaEevK8x4v9Ewl273fPYJQjQ7DUghuZkkh1rCSeXY6oMyS1ntH1B0YqABPhKZVXxd60y8R2flMYWU0VDipST6PLiVz4Nwyu_KTS9MvFInS8FpYfKizKoye94qSIublFuRDHT6E/s320/journals+4.jpg" width="320" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJEQHiZ2a4AEGSRhg3k-6jlGEWV5NeBIQbiAKol9zA1WKcZqLJnyShIxJv7G6C0w6oYpuT2zpjgnZSZQ7g6dErTLIOOsaxCetB2HFvTFwhuJukxfsdziBhmKvpkIDpFgB0oLsopLHnzzw/s320/journals+7.jpg" width="253" /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You know the activity is a success when our time is up for the night and the girls ask if we can stay "Just five more minutes?"</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf5I0vOXWl_a5HUVLnMmnK6R686KiqQlrIN3Mi91K9hqM4r7J1Nh5LBYExHbrlwrGYxS28XX0emznj-bOuzt5FsmbQjnrzJT-YHPjZD73hgDONIRFc2FCXNHBHavE8xoWJFUrZCZcQJss/s1600/Journals+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf5I0vOXWl_a5HUVLnMmnK6R686KiqQlrIN3Mi91K9hqM4r7J1Nh5LBYExHbrlwrGYxS28XX0emznj-bOuzt5FsmbQjnrzJT-YHPjZD73hgDONIRFc2FCXNHBHavE8xoWJFUrZCZcQJss/s320/Journals+6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-80995600890052460892011-05-29T18:34:00.000-05:002011-05-29T18:34:41.736-05:00Red, White and Blue PopcornMy girls fell in love with this "Jello Popcorn" recipe that we tried out last week. This week we decided to make some red, white and blue popcorn in honor of Memorial Day. It's super easy to make and odds are, you have everything in your pantry already.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi880QP3VmVZO49yKOxKogwHXVQHz20rm1AOkFdzlWNC47gos1up_2_yBUuODkUxQ2dEsi3-Qjb8EWBteQUhu5LjWwDTBXgeiEsHBZS7vZ522ZpdajqWD26k10uyTXdJIaleJdKk4ji1Yw/s1600/red%252C+white+blue+popcorn.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi880QP3VmVZO49yKOxKogwHXVQHz20rm1AOkFdzlWNC47gos1up_2_yBUuODkUxQ2dEsi3-Qjb8EWBteQUhu5LjWwDTBXgeiEsHBZS7vZ522ZpdajqWD26k10uyTXdJIaleJdKk4ji1Yw/s320/red%252C+white+blue+popcorn.png" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267"> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style> <![endif]--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Preheat oven to 250 degrees</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Spray a medium size saucepan, wooden spoon. large mixing bowl and a baking sheet really well with Pam. (I actually lined my baking sheet with parchment paper before spraying with Pam to make it easier to clean up) </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I popped two bags of popcorn in the microwave and placed it in the large bowl. (Try to get rid of the unpopped kernels)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">In the medium size saucepan, mix all the following well, and over medium-high heat bring to a boil. Continue to let it boil while stirring it, for about 3 or 4 minutes, till it is nice and thick.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">1/2 cup margerine</div><div class="MsoNormal">1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar</div><div class="MsoNormal">1 tablespoon corn syrup</div><div class="MsoNormal">3 tablespoons water</div><div class="MsoNormal">Jello mix (3oz box)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Pour the Jello mixture onto the popcorn and stir it until the all the popcorn is well coated. Pour the popcorn onto the Pam coated baking sheet. Bake it for 20 mins, stirring once halfway through.<br />
<br />
Remove from oven and place cookie sheet on a wire cooling rack, or transfer popcorn to another baking sheet lined with foil. When cool break apart into small pieces.<br />
<br />
<br />
For the red popcorn, I used strawberry flavored jello, for the blue popcorn I used berry blue. For the white, I just left the popcorn plain. If you wanted to go all sweet you could use microwave kettle corn instead. The Berry Blue Jello was a little bit lighter blue than I had envisioned so I dropped in two drops of food color to darken it a little.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My girls had fun measuring out the ingredients and then bagging it up to give away to their friends! Think of all the fun colors you can mix up for different holidays!</div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com38tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-84682107162515320632011-05-29T17:17:00.005-05:002011-05-29T18:03:10.041-05:00Mother's Day "Sundaes"<div style="text-align: center;"><b>May 3rd, 2011 Activity</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Mark off in Faith in God: Service to Others </b></div><br />
Tonight was Activity Girls and it was actually my Co-Leaders turn to plan the activity but she called me this morning and said she had Pneumonia. To top it off, my day was already busy baking treats for some of my kids teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week. Eek! <br />
<br />
Thankfully I had seen <a href="http://angbrimwil.blogspot.com/2010/05/activity-days-mothers-day-bath-sundaes.html">this</a> cute idea for a Mother's Day gift a couple of weeks ago. <br />
<br />
I found the bath salts and the scrubby sponges at the dollar store. The bath salts were a dollar a jar, and each jar made two sundaes. The scrubby's were two for a dollar and came in white and purple. While at the dollar store I also found some razor's that had cute twirly round handles that kind of looked like straws or maybe the handle of a spoon, and they were five for a dollar.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynjocpB0LFM33xb8nprOcPr25pUPyqYwyshD2i-1hnI_bFLq2Ee0WmIFAJ4rt3b8V8AyV3zz-XjNJyiSoB6OtVrriY0vRPftdH56Jmcowu4aqT8OOUhANROKAH3csbWkklW5RmFdU_PE/s320/Mothers+Day+Sundae+1.png" width="320" /></div><br />
<br />
Next door to the dollar store is a Baskin Robbins and little Ella insisted we stop in for some Cotton Candy ice cream. While we were in there, I asked if I could buy some of their sundae cups. They were only 25 cents apiece and saved me having to hunt for them elsewhere. (I might have indulged in a scoop of ice cream while I was there. It might have come in a waffle cone.)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlKS5zwYBXLeQ35focbpUI-M_bF9GkKHrdCmuRMQ_jQ5s5yC6EmJdVnpavHaj_BVDyehaK_EQFLlOahL5yJ4rn5yClwnsJdifn68vFhP-EjYkm_8TV-1k197iW_0Y61VVHcz6yq5OE54c/s320/Mothers+Day+Sundaes+2.png" width="210" /></div><br />
<br />
The only thing I still needed was something for the "cherry on top." I thought about using tiny little red tea light candles but they were kind of expensive. I looked for some red candy but couldn't find anything appealing. While standing in line at the checkout stand at my grocery store, I saw some Ferrero Roche Chocolates and thought that would make a cute topper. <br />
<br />
The rest of the stuff, paper to make the little <a href="http://s624.photobucket.com/albums/tt321/5jrdns/Clairs%20Creations%20Public/">sundae cards</a>, glue sticks, etc I already had in my scrapbooking stash.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPX8HMi1fIcP2O1sMe4wjCU9RkN10Si3BRIYDgRcZaX6XG91tyY6IoE94M2F7zMAqZ0x0eu3k-bQJ8WfE5tQs4bUYUIMmBizCI5j-8HGXm9_7Nx021vH6OXUw-gb96eGRQqu6t3la7FyI/s320/Mothers+Day+Sundaes+3.png" width="214" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_lOjfcD3ZpNnf3gKymdV9VKcG4tbkOqs5CTTZqFMz9NjvpaRIa3hMpNZW_TEb2UgYeBp1jF34lsYUdICCZ1k9ApRu7lSSA9FtgUtb1cM408dT94RfAREuzU5vyTziagcIXHLficOky3c/s320/Mother%2527s+Day+Sundaes+4.png" width="238" /></div><br />
The girls and I had a great time making these cute little gifts. Because it's Teacher Appreciation Week some of the girls opted to make them for their teachers instead which I thought was a great idea. We put them in brown paper lunch sacks and tied on the handmade sundae card with some colorful ribbon. They almost looked good enough to eat!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN79kLEPfxS0L9-FKjTIUoOx_Of1J8oVk4K3qLw_zodlMWMAO2wAL2pIA5DaAVmXt58FkFVlm2YSLv3CqTDDVQmbV1BIX98-PxMvakgrgihrGExGmbpY1V9Rx_y0i8vbKrSKDxw4PLgvA/s400/Activity+Girls.png" width="400" /></div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-23640468369568768522011-05-29T17:00:00.004-05:002011-07-07T22:34:27.988-05:00Easter Baskets and AOF Egg Hunt<div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>April 19th, 2011 </b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><b>Mark off in Faith in God: Articles of Faith</b> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The weather was not very cooperative tonight. I was sure activities would be cancelled for the night, but they were not. We had really severe weather warnings and I tried to call the girls and cancel last minute, but could not get a hold of everyone, so we set off for the church. It hailed almost all the way there.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I was quite surprised how many girls eventually showed up to the church, so even though we started a little late, we went ahead with a lesson.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">To start off, we prepared these baskets:</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjedRS8BJai5elib2cEhTrwrXJtUqm9jWA0OAUzFnWdGgSIa-kTZef0i5thv36h1iA3AqGXor3HmhXnGWUX20igHE0ZowYO5M44AAQmYKHAjF8KGqyLV6U5zHZFjVAvTU_nkqnwbrA2Bbs/s1600/Easter+Baskets.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjedRS8BJai5elib2cEhTrwrXJtUqm9jWA0OAUzFnWdGgSIa-kTZef0i5thv36h1iA3AqGXor3HmhXnGWUX20igHE0ZowYO5M44AAQmYKHAjF8KGqyLV6U5zHZFjVAvTU_nkqnwbrA2Bbs/s320/Easter+Baskets.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">For our next part of the activity, I had two sets of 26 plastic eggs. I cut up the 13 articles of faith and stuffed them into the eggs along with a piece of candy. My original plan was to have an Egg Hunt, but the tornado sirens kept going off. We ended up just dividing into two teams in the hallway. </span><br />
<br />
<img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD-GS3MEfUzYMGQHOiNlTSGhEnE7sCD8qNfFRHST_RbvY1aVKSn4cpkgzqINLDQTLPwgVBK7eWdOcx7s4gOnBa2L0HXKpSztiGTuOffQGM3Fct-sQtDbAZX1RkUkoipTdTZb67Qm-MGIU/s320/AOF+Activity.jpg" width="320" /><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Each team took a set of eggs, they split the candy between their team and then had to put the Articles of Faith back together.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> When we had about 10 mins left, I gave them a printed list of the Articles of Faith to help them along a little. Once we had them all put together, each team took turns reciting them in order.</span>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3015840233528095986.post-69598573535144530522011-05-20T18:30:00.006-05:002011-06-03T06:52:36.880-05:00A New Calling - Activity GirlsBack in October, I was released from my big calling as Primary President. Primary is the Children's Organization in our church for children ages 18 mos to 11 years old. Since then my hubby and I had quietly been serving as Ward Missionaries. (Assisting the missionaries serving full time missions) Then Chris, got a new calling as President of the Young Men's Organization which meant I couldn't really serve as a ward missionary anymore. We don't have any full time female missionaries serving in our ward, and the women aren't allowed to go out with the full time male missionaries unless accompanied by another male. I don't know if any of that made any sense, but basically it's a lot easier for a female serving as a ward missionary to do so with her husband as her companion.<br />
<br />
So anyway. I was released from my calling as ward missionary. And extended a new calling. As Co Activity Days Leader. Activity Days is a program for the 8-11 year old girls in our church. I was pretty excited because my daughter is currently participating in the program.<br />
<br />
My first week with the girls, my co leader prepared the lesson. Since it was close to Easter she brought some cute Easter crafts for them to make. Cute door hangers and picture frames.<br />
<br />
><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho_wGfQrJED6Ub8ltSOATdeuUrJ2hR_nEmbh8uW565kSnpZYVrcr7UT44rakT-4h6UvwxlNBwSBkgp60gaOM7I-w-eHqkFEQLRobsLs8KXUdwnsknKy24E_B7w5mQCQErvF3WLEq2xL2I/s320/Activity+Girls+1.png" width="240" /><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaMjkYFS0rCB9XqxR6sN5GJ1Jba5khA3lah1UHqrkPWIElNhy4scoEFacixAo59R9aRRzBHSq6nTCCXdMHl6KQvmTVPybuZNk1LF5JDkzE4EXeVgRZpOqh6C7oTnWOdeBPWie7e5TF7Xw/s320/Activity+Girls+2.png" width="273" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRBiD1O8tj2PPw85q0G2Gq0QtQH112DL936aDfC2HpOjPiT8J3EJjJMROsN9vOCaqVZuLgZChIHWWVxgRccLl1lzbVOdSx6hB3grtHLMKYFyW9Dmr05fQbTKehtoZ1AJJn7nYWHQDVqHA/s320/Activity+Girls+3.png" width="320" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3-cvNDbS5_aFNy1EeslfQybafICxFfOJxbh1P2ic2AGLk8UP1ulKsrvNEaubqoawBYccm0WxoLMQcFEaWde-u1f_O_XFEg11EYyreW1xFkZWhxQ_ZiN7S9-yh_kimCEndCuDD3wsNfno/s320/Activity+Girls+4.png" width="255" /></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD6IQHWGEjZfh22dB8i08vQfYa_IqQ0VSeztrp-UnyATeyqsgtrZGXgFQSM74pCX3MeOuBvufP9bWBnfBF5o1ONZVasjj1w29yJlvu6DnnUSdRKV21dF2YxtUcrpHLLxZ_7MYpEgDsCNc/s320/Activity+Girls+5.png" width="242" /> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">I look forward to working with these sweet girls, they are so much fun!</div>Clairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16645550682762710435noreply@blogger.com0