Smashburger, the nation’s fastest growing “better burger” restaurant, opened up its tenth Minnesota location in Apple Valley on Wednesday, January 29, 2014. Known for localizing its menu in every market with regionally inspired burgers, side items and local craft beers, Apple Valley Smashburger patrons can enjoy the Twin Cities Smashburger topped with layers of melted cheddar cheese, aged Swiss cheese and garlic grilled onions with lettuce, tomato and mayo on an onion bun. My family and I had the privilege of attending a media preview the night before the restaurant opened to the public. I'm not much of a food expert but I appreciate a good burger and this Smashburger has them! The secret is in the smash. It starts with 100-percent—fresh, never frozen, Angus Beef and is smashed on a 400 degree flat grill to sear in the juicy flavor. To further the “better burger” experience, the burgers are served on toasted artisan buns and topped with a selection of the freshest produce, … [Read more...]
Walkie Talkies–Cell Phones For Kids!
Nutty went to a friend's house on Sunday and came home with a walkie talkie. Her friend lives 6 houses away so we knew the signal would reach. The girls talked for at least an hour before bed. Her mom and I joked that the walkie talkies were like cell phones for our kids. School was closed on Monday due to bitterly cold wind chills. I thought it was really funny to see this post from one of my friends on my Facebook wall after Nutty and her friend were playing with walkie talkies just the day before. I told Nutty about it and she decided to see if she could find some other kids stuck at home...Sure enough, she found a girl! It was a bit broken in their conversation, I'm assuming due to distance, but they did talk for a minute or two! I just had to share it with my friend who posted earlier, so I tagged her in this Facebook post. After that post, my friend and I coordinated our kids on the same channel and they chatted for most of the afternoon! Then Nutty's … [Read more...]
5 Cold Weather Day Activities
It's been cold in Minnesota lately. Don't get me wrong, we're used to cold, but not THIS cold! Air temps in the -20ºF range with wind chills in the -40ºF range?! School has been canceled for the 4th time this month and we're going stir crazy! I decided to look back through our archives to come up with 5 cold weather day activities we can do during this crazy, stuck indoor time. Click on the large words to bring you to the post with directions. 1) Make and indoor obstacle course The perfect way to burn off energy while sparking imagination! Arrange and re-arrange to come up with endless obstacles. Spread it all over the house for more exercise! 2) Corn Starch and Water Need a quieter activity that will keep your kids busy for at least an hour? Try the corn starch and water science experiment. You just might end up playing with it yourself! 3) Paper Beads Bring out the crafty side in your kids by making beads out of paper. You should have all the supplies just lying … [Read more...]
8 Valentine Crafts for Kids of All Ages
It's been bitter cold again this week and we've been stuck inside. What better time for crafts! The girls and I scoured the internet high and low and found some of our favorite Valentine crafts for kids of all ages. Valentine Wreath for the Birds A craft that all ages can appreciate and one that birds will love even more! Hand Print Hearts Garden For the littler ones, the perfect thing to make for Grandma and Grandpa! Love Bomb I admit, I was a bit confused by this one at first. Once I figured out what they were doing, I thought it looked fun! Love Bugs Kids of any age will love making these cute little friends! Paper Flower Who knew making a paper flower would be so easy and look so good! The girls and I definitely tried this one! Picket Fence Valentine One of ours from last year but still a favorite! Valentine Owl Too cute not to share! Valentine Necklace Older kids will love making these adorable necklaces! … [Read more...]
Loom Bracelet Valentines–FREE PRINTABLE!
Loom bracelets are all the rage this year. My girls couldn't wait to get theirs for Christmas (they were pretty sure that Santa was bringing them one. In fact, it was my sister who gave the looms to them). Since then, I've got more bracelets than I can wear, and I'm constantly picking up little rubber bands all over the house! Despite being able to make their own, my girls love getting and giving loom bracelets to their friends. Thus, I thought loom bracelet Valentines would be fun to make! Both girls are getting to work cranking out as many bracelets as they can make and I'm still frustrated with the rubber bands all over the place! If you look closely, you'll see that the Valentine that says "Your Friendship Is IlLOOMinating" is made out of glow in the dark bands :) If your kids want to make loom bracelet Valentines, click on the printable below. Make sure to click on this download button and THIS BUTTON ONLY! It is small and just under the photo. Are your … [Read more...]
Invisible Ink Valentine Failure
I've been on a free Valentine printable kick lately. I've done scratch off Valentines, Kool Aid Valentines, and my next one was suppose to be these invisible ink Valentines. Well, if you can't tell from the photo above, I failed. I didn't fail at the printable I made. In fact, I think it was turning out pretty cute until I quit. I failed at the invisible ink part. I did invisible ink all the time when I was little. My sister and I, or my friends and I, would write with "invisible ink" then hold the paper up to a light bulb and watch the message appear. I'm not sure what my mom used as ink when we were younger but when I looked it up online, people said anything from vinegar to lemon juice to milk. I tried vinegar and milk out on a piece of paper to see which one to recommend to my readers (we didn't have any lemon juice). I wrote the word "test" out on paper, let it dry then held it up to a light bulb. Nothing happened. I figured it was just because our … [Read more...]
