This winter in Minnesota has been brutal. If it's not frigidly cold out, it's dumping snow. Today is no exception. We're under yet another winter storm. Needless to say, hot chocolate has been our favorite way to warm up during this long winter. Homemade hot chocolate mix makes it cheap and easy to drink. This is one of the best recipes we have found. Warning, this recipe makes a ton for multiple uses. Cut it in half if you don't drink hot chocolate often. 3 Cups nonfat dry milk powder (powdered milk) 2 Cups powdered sugar (confectioners sugar) 1 1/2 Cups Cocoa powder (we use Hershey’s cocoa) 1/2 tsp salt Stir in 3 Tablespoons of mix with 1 Cup hot milk. Top with whipped cream or mini marshmallows. There you have it...the best homemade hot chocolate mix ever! … [Read more...]
Magic Leprechaun Flower
Rumor has it that if you leave a white flower out over night during the week before St. Patrick's Day, a Leprechaun will visit your house and turn it green! At least that's the rumor I'm starting at my house this year. It's the magic Leprechaun flower! I can't wait to see the looks on my girls' faces when we do this! For the sake of this post, I had to try a flower to make sure it would turn green overnight. Thank goodness for school and a large closet bedroom so I could hide my experiment! I remember doing this experiment in school but I couldn't remember how long it took. I started with a white carnation which was just over $1.00 at my local flower shop. Then I added a bunch of green food coloring to the water and waited... After just 4 hours the flower started turning green so I knew that overnight would be just fine. Sure enough, the next morning... A green flower! I've got plenty more Leprechaun tricks up my sleeve this year. This magic Leprechaun flower is … [Read more...]
A Fill-In-The-Blank Leprechaun Story FREE Printable
Valentine's Day is just days away so that means, in my world, it's time to start thinking about St. Patrick's Day! I've got a lot of Irish blood in me so I take St. Patrick's Day very seriously. This year I'm starting off my girls' celebration with a fun fill-in-the-blank leprechaun story. I wrote the story then had my girls fill in the blanks. Both did it, and both thought their story was pretty funny. They thought it was neat how each girl had a different story even though it was the same. If a child does this story by themselves, first give them the fill-in-the-blank sheet, then have them transfer their answers into the story. If you are doing this for a party or the classroom, read the fill-in-the-blank sheet out loud and have the children write their answers in the story. This printable is great for St. Patrick's Day parties as well as school classrooms! To download the printable for yourself just click on the photos below. Make sure to click on THIS BUTTON and … [Read more...]
6 Signs A Child’s Parent Is A Blogger
Here are a few signs to let you know a child's parent might be a blogger... 6) The child says their parent "has imaginary friends too." 5) The child is no longer excited about getting new toys in the mail. 4) You get out the camera and the child automatically stops to pose. 3) You ask the child what their parent does all day and they respond, "sits on the computer." 2) At the park, the child does a new trick on the monkey bars and yells, "hey mom, you should post that!" And the #1 sign a child's parent is a blogger... Their school work looks like this: What would you add to these signs? … [Read more...]
Brandcation 2014 #SeasTheDay With Me!
This past August Hubby, I, and our two friends went on a Royal Caribbean cruise. It was Hubby and my first cruise, our friends' too many to count cruise. We had so much fun that we signed up for Royal Caribbean's Crown and Anchor Society (loyalty club) and vowed that we would be cruising with them again. Next time we'll bring the kids. As luck would have it, I will be sailing again with Royal Caribbean sooner than expected! MomDot and Brandfluential present a 5 day, 4 night cruise to Cozumel, Mexico aboard the Liberty Of The Seas. That's right, I am one of 40 bloggers invited on a Royal Caribbean sponsored cruise! Ok, now you're all going, "huh? MomDot? Brandfluential? Brandcation? I've never heard those words. At least I've heard of Royal Caribbean but how are you getting to go on a sponsored cruise? That's not fair!" Let's start off with some definitions... MomDot is a blog and a blogging community. Through their forum and facebook page I have learned more than I ever … [Read more...]
Family Bonding With Puzzles
For as long as I can remember my dad has gotten a puzzle for his birthday. My dad's birthday is Christmas Eve so my family would put together his birthday puzzle over Christmas break. We would spend days bonding as a family while putting these puzzles together. My girls have loved and gotten puzzles for presents since they were old enough to put them together. Tottie puts one together at least once every couple of weeks. They keep her busy while Nutty is at school. A couple of years ago, Hubby had carpel tunnel surgery. He bought himself a 2000 piece puzzle to keep occupied while off of work. Little did he know, his puzzle would be the start of a new family tradition. The girls and I loved helping him put together that large puzzle. Since then, once a year we get a large puzzle to put together as a family. This puzzle takes up 3/4 of our dinning room table but Hubby and I think it's worth it. He cut boards so that they can be moved if need be (i.e. for … [Read more...]
