Monday 30 December 2013

Make the best of it, New Years Nails!

My digital camera is about 6 years old :o So I can't take outdoor pics with all the snow around because it just looks like a huge flash of light and nothing more. I also cannot take a photo without moving and changing the light and settings about 50 times. So what do I do? I make the best of it. I did my nails really cute for the New Year and struggled for about 20 mins to get this picture for you. They are gold and say 2014 in charcoal then covered in sparkles. I used a toothpick to write 2014 and they look super cute. Hope everyone has a wonderful New Year!

Sunday 29 December 2013

Leftover Cereal Pancakes and Snowless Snowman Contest!


Leftover Cereal Pancakes:

1/2 cup flour
1 cup leftover cereal
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
3 tbsp melted butter

I have a hard time getting my kids to eat as healthy as I would like them to, by making my pancakes with the addition of whole wheat cereal I have kicking around I can sneak in some additional nutrients and use up those pesky leftover bits of cereal that aren't quite enough for a full bowl. 


Directions

  1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar then add ground up leftover cereal. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg, vanilla and melted butter; mix until smooth.
  2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.
  3. You can add fruit to these as an added 

Brooke really liked her pancakes this morning.





 I found a super cool contest on OwlKids.com and thought I would share it with you. I am pretty sure it is Canada only but this is also a very neat thing for people to do that don't get any snow. Here is our entry for the contest:

I got this really cute snowman shaped cake pan for Christmas so I just froze some water with a couple drops of blue food coloring in it.

 It is hard to see from the pics but the facial features came out and so did all the details from the cake pan. It is pretty neat. What kind of snowless snowman can you make? Canadians can enter HERE.

Thursday 26 December 2013

12 Days of Christmas Swap Reveal!

 







I had an amazing time with this super fun swap! I looooove Christmas! My partner Steph is one fantastic person and has two simply amazing blogs for you to check out. One is A Time for Seasons and the other is The Consignment Sale Queen! Both containing such amazing articles and helpful information! Steph really took the time to make my swap a special one and she did such an awesome job! Each gift came with its own label which was in the context of the classic 12 Days of Christmas Story. Here is what I received in no particular order:

 1. A 10.00 Mcdonalds gift Card
2. Wooden Instruments 
3. Chocolate Peppermint cookie mix
4. Tree Decoration craft kit
5. Thomas and Friends Christmas movie
6. Peppermint Tea
7. Christmas Window Clings
8. Notepad, Pencils, and a cute pen and sticky note set
 
 9. Hot Chocolate
10. Milano cookies, Goldfish crackers, and Pirouline Cookies
11. Cute framed Santa photo tree decoration
12. Wooden "HO HO HO" decoration
 Everything was perfect and made me so happy! I thank you Steph for all the hard work you put into my package and hope you know how happy you made me and my family! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!

Sunday 22 December 2013

Last Minute Christmas Gift/Craft!


I love those Christmas crackers you can buy in the stores but every time I buy them I am sadly disappointed in what is inside. A paper hat, a piece of paper with a joke on it, and usually a tattoo or small toy that is just useless. So I thought it would be sweet if they came filled with everyone's favorite candy and small toys they would actually appreciate like erasers, silly bands, and small accessories for Littlest Pet Shops and Furreal Friends. 


So I made my own using toilet paper rolls and wrapping paper. I filled them all with caramels, gum, tootsie rolls, and those small toys I mentioned. They look just as nice as the ones from the store but I know they will be enjoyed a lot more. It cost me absolutely nothing and it is going to make some seriously happy faces!


I also tried my hand at making neat little place markers for our cutlery at the dinner table and they turned out really cute. Once again I used some toilet paper rolls and just covered them in plain white paper (only because I have no construction paper) and colored it to look like a Santa suit. You can also let the kids decorate their own any way they like. It is a blank white canvas so they really enjoyed it. They look really nice and once again there will be many smiling faces and it cost me nothing. I hope you find some amazing ways to make gifts for your family instead of buying a bunch of stuff.


Thursday 19 December 2013

The Best Brownies in the World!

This recipe is for chocoholics around the world. It is absolutely hands down the best and most chocolatey brownie recipe I have ever tasted. I found a simple recipe online and completely changed it to create my very own "Funky Fudgey Brownies". Enjoy!

You will need:

1 cup margarine

2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup cocoa powder
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips
2 cups of mini marshmallows
chocolate frosting prepared or this recipe:

Frosting:
2 tbsp margarine melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
around 1/4 cup milk, the frosting needs to be thin enough to drizzle over top but thick enough to set.  Add more icing sugar or cocoa if its too thin and more milk if its too thick.

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour an 8 inch square pan or use parchment paper.
  2. Add margarine to a large mixing bowl and stir in sugar, eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla and chocolate chips. Stir in 1 cup cocoa, 1 cup flour, salt, and baking powder. Spread batter into prepared pan.
  3. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Do not overcook.
  4. Take the brownies out and cover the top with marshmallows. Place back in the oven for 5 to 8 mins or until marshmallows begin to melt. Another great way to do this is to turn your oven on to broil and let the marshmallows roast for 3-4 mins.They get nice and brown and come out with a delicious flavor.
  5. Take the brownies out and let cool for about 5 to 10 mins until covering with frosting!

These are so good it is ridiculous! Please let me know how you enjoy my Funky Fudgey Brownies!

Sunday 15 December 2013

Our Favorite Christmas Movies!

I love watching Christmas movies. I wait all year to sit with my kids, drink hot chocolate, and watch movies. Here are a few of my favorites that you may have seen and I bet there is one or two you haven't. They are all amazing!


This is one of my fave grown up Christmas shows for sure.It is about a couple who struggles to visit all four of their divorced parents on Christmas Day. There is some vulgar language and scenes you deff do not want lil ones to see. But really a hilarious movie.


Charlie Brown's Christmas is a classic and it is lovely. My kids are still a little young to get the message within the movie but it is a very nice holiday feature for all ages. Repelled by the commercialism he sees around him, Charlie Brown tries to find the true meaning of Christmas.


Elf is hilarious! It is perfect for all ages as well and has a great story line. There is just enough mild adult content to keep the grown ups wanting more and just childish enough that it is safe for all eyes and ears. After inadvertently wreaking havoc on the elf community due to his ungainly size, a man raised as an elf at the North Pole is sent to the U.S. in search of his true identity.


I loved this one growing up, its all about going out to the farm to spend Christmas with John's family. Garfield is up to his usual eating and complaining. It is a great movie for the family. Garfield, Jon, and Odie go to Jon's grandmother's house for Christmas, where Garfield finds a present for Grandma.


This is a cheesy but amazing movie. A father decides to dream the impossible; to get a Turbo Man action figure for his son just before Christmas. Tons of fun action filled scenes. My 5 year old loves this one!


 With their daughter away, her parents decide to skip Christmas altogether until she decides to come home, causing an uproar when they have to celebrate the holidays at the last minute. I have watched this movie 4 times already this year. It's very cute!


I don't know very many people who have seen this movie. It is a great Christmas movie for the whole family. Ivy, an orphan wants a grandmother and a doll for Christmas. She mistakes a sign greeting her into a town, she jumps off a bus and shouts, "It's me, Ivy!". In the cold she looks for a grandma unsucessfully. She finally finds a woman who always wanted children and a doll, Holly. Based on the book The Story of Holly and Ivy. 


The new one and the old one are equally as wonderful! Big budget remake of the classic cartoon about a creature intent on stealing Christmas. 



For all those Disney and Mickey Mouse fans these are the best ones A Christmas themed, three-part anthology-style video. The first part, "Donald Duck: Stuck on Christmas", is essentially a retelling of Groundhog Day (1993), with Huey, Dewey, and Louie reliving Christmas ad infinitum. Next is "A Very Goofy Christmas", in which Goofy tries to overcome his son's skepticism about Santa Claus. Finally, "Mickey & Minnie's Gift Of The Magi" recreate the classic tale of ironic Christmas selflessness.


Mickey and the gang team up for a new holiday adventure and for the first time ever they are all computer animated. There will be five mini films that include: Belles on Ice, Christmas:Impossible, Christmas Maximus, Donald's Gift, Mickey's Dog-Gone Christmas. 


"A Disney Christmas Gift" was a 47-minute Christmas television special which aired on December 4, 1982 on CBS' Walt Disney television program.


 Mickey and all his friends hold their own Christmas party at the House of Mouse, after being snowed in.

All opinions and statements are my own, this is not a paid post. I am simply sharing some of my favorite movies of the holiday season! Enjoy!

Sunday 8 December 2013

Copy-Kids DVD Review + Giveaway!

I got a chance to review this neat DVD called Copy-Kids. It is all about kids eating fruits and vegetables and of course we all know how kids tend to copy other kids or do the monkey see monkey do thing. Well this is no different. My kids watched the DVD and they really enjoyed it, they love watching other kids their age and to see them eat the veggies actually made my super picky eater want to try them.

What is Copy-Kids?

A joy-filled video and an innovative tool for parents who want to get children to enjoy eating fruits and vegetables.
Copy-Kids is a media company producing video that encourages positive habits in young children, by watching and copying other kids. Copy-Kids unique content — DVD, online and TV — helps parents get their children hooked on healthy and positive habits.
Produced for children aged 6 months to 5 years, Copy-Kids innovative video is fun and compelling for both children and parents.
Copy-Kids launched in January 2012 with our first DVD — Copy-Kids Eat Fruits and Vegetables. The DVD features 12 x 7 minute chapters, one for each of twelve fruits & veggies:

dvd1_chapters

Each chapter features several adorable and entertaining children aged 9 months to 4 years, eating with joy and delight. It’s a simple but revolutionary tool for parents who want their kids to develop a life-long habit of healthy eating. The DVD includes an on-camera discussion about healthy eating with renowned pediatrician Dr. Jay Gordon, plus a section of delightful outtakes.

 Copy-Kids would like to give one of my readers a copy of the DVD so I invite you to give it a try and enter the rafflecopter form below! Or order your copy today check them out at http://copy-kids.com/!

Friday 6 December 2013

Mock Gingerbread House!

Brrrrrrr! It is cold and snowy here. We are in the minus teens and it is not outside weather. So instead I need to find a way to keep the kids from climbing up the walls. I really like putting those gingerbread houses together that you get from the grocery store, but after they sit for a while they don't taste good so its just a decoration that costs around 15-20 dollars. Hmmm isn't the fun part decorating it? Well then why not build a little cardboard gingerbread house? So that's what I did I took a box and my hot glue gun and got to work. I built the structure and then let my kids decorate it. 


It cost me absolutely nothing because I had a ton of candy stashed from Halloween and I gotta say it looks pretty similar to what a regular gingerbread house would have looked like.