Muffin Tin Monday- Yellow

Today's muffin tin theme is "yellow." While everything isn't exactly bright yellow, I think it's close enough. ;)

The kids had egg salad sandwiches, bananas, applesauce, popcorn and peach/apple smoothies.

I hope you'll check out upcoming MTM themes and more ideas at http://michellesjournalcorner.blogspot.com/

Have a great Monday!

Another new sketch!

Happy Friday!  I fell asleep early last night so I woke up with plenty of energy to create a new layout this morning....hope you like the sketch and layout samples.  I hope they inspire you to create something new this weekend. I also have a wonderful example from my friend, Stacey Curry who was on the design team with me at Feeling Scrappy. Thanks so much for creating a sample for us!!

Here's my layout example (I turned the sketch.  The background is really a rich brown but it's really cloudy so the colors are a little off.):


















Here's the sample Stacey Curry created for us...I love those little flowers!



















Thanks for stopping by!  I would love to see your layout if you use one of my sketches.  Please leave a link so we can check it out and leave some love. :)
(Anyone else having problems getting the spacing right with this new blog editing??  It's driving me crazy!)

Happy scrapping!
Stacey

Chore Chart

I made a chore chart for Abby today.  Joshua has had one for awhile and it was time to start keeping little miss Abby accountable.  At the end of the day, if they have completed all of their chores, they get a ticket to the "Mommy Store." The Mommy Store is a little box filled with $1 or less items. I need to buy some girly things to add to it but right now, it has Hot Wheels, coloring books, crayons, etc. They need two tickets to buy one item. The last "chore" isn't really a chore, more of a daily reminder to be as good of helpers as they can.  I will put a new chore over it when I need to add another one.

Anyhow, this is super easy.  I used a 10x10 piece of thin cardboard and glued some paper to it.  I cut 1 1/2 inch squares out of the same material. I used my OLD sewing machine to slowly and carefully sew the velcro on to the squares and the chart. (Trust me, go slowly or you will break a needle. Oh, don't use the same needle on fabric after you use it on paper.) You can also stitch them on by hand like I did with Joshua's last year.  But this was easier and faster for me.  (I was obviously too lazy to stop between velcro pieces which is why you can see all the zig zags.  Oh well.  If I wanted it perfect, I would have had to wait to do it until late at night instead of with a 2 year old or 6 month old on my lap.) Then I think the rest is pretty self explanatory...glue more paper, add some letters and a ribbon to hang it...ta-da!

Sooo....can 2 1/2 year olds really do these things? YES!!! They might (ok, WILL) need daily reminders, but in the long run, it will be worth it to teach them independence and responsibility. :)

~ Have your kids use plastic dishes so they don't break anything (mine also get their own forks and plates, etc. from a drawer I have low enough for them to reach.) Then they can set their dishes near the sink (or toss them in like mine usually do.)

~They pull up their comforters and straighten their beds to the best of their ability (obviously it won't be as nice as if an adult did it!!)

~They can pick out their clothes and *try* to put them on.  My daughter has mastered taking off clothes but can just partially put them back on. LOL She's practicing and getting better though.

~We have boxes for most of their toys so they toss each different type of toy into the correct box.  Sometimes they get all mixed up.  But as long as they get picked up, I am happy. :) I used to have just one box on Joshua's chart for picking up toys but I found I need it on there twice so we don't have such a big mess at the end of the day.

Happy crafting!!

Roasted Cauliflower

Here's a super simple side dish that is healthy and very tasty. Not the prettiest to photograph...but tasty!!!

Roasted Cauliflower

Makes 4 servings @ 1 WW point a serving

4 cups cauliflower, chopped into bite sized pieces

1-4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped (depending on how much your family likes garlic. I used 4 cloves and it was really garlicky but we love garlic.)

1 TBS olive oil

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Toss ingredients together in a big bowl. Spread out on a baking sheet and bake for about 20-30 minutes. Keep an eye on it. You want it to brown some but not burn. I would toss the cauliflower around a bit about half way through cooking. Some of the garlic might turn really dark..but most of it should be lightly browned and yummy. :)

Happy cooking!

Stacey

New sewing project-Camera Strap Cover

Who needs sleep?  I mean really.  Sleep is overrated when you can stay up crafting!!!! LOL No, I really do need my sleep most nights...but I was so anxious to try this fun little project last night that I didn't get nearly enough of it.

I came across this tutorial on how to make a cover for your camera strap -http://funtocraft.blogspot.com/2010/02/camera-strap-cover-tutorial_15.html and thought it was such a great idea.  I've had my eye on cute camera straps sold online but couldn't justify spending 20-30 on one so this was perfect! I used mostly materials/scraps I already had (and I am realizing almost all of my fabrics are kiddy...I need to start stocking up on more grown up prints! LOL) but I did have to buy 1/8 of a yard of the soft cream fabric.  (I only spent $2 and have enough left to make another strap in different colors!).  Anyhow, the pink is a little bright, but it's fun and the cream fabric that goes around my neck is oooh sooo soft!!! So much nicer than the itchy and boring old strap!

Also, does anyone know how to create a "stamp" (or ?? I really don't know what it would be called) to easily stamp my name on my photos in Photoshop Elements?  Seems like a pain to have to use the text tool everytime. I am sure one of you knows!!!! Help! :)

Happy sewing!!

Stacey

Garlic Chicken and Broccoli

Here's a yummy and easy new recipe for you to try. :) This was the first time we made it and everyone liked it.  Joshua and Abby both had seconds and practically licked their bowls clean. LOL 

Garlic chicken and broccoli

Makes 4 servings @ 4 WW points each (about 1 cup each serving)

2 tsp olive oil
2 chicken breasts (skinless, boneless)
Dried thyme (about 1 tsp), salt and pepper to taste
6 garlic cloves, chopped up
4 cups of chopped fresh broccoli
1 can (or about 2 cups) fat free chicken broth (I used low sodium)
1 ½ TBS cornstarch

Directions:
1. Season chicken with thyme, salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken to skillet and brown on both sides.
2. Add garlic to skillet and cook for about 1 minute. Pour half of the broth into the pan. Cover, reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
3. Remove chicken and set aside. Add broccoli to the pan, cover and cook for about 5 -8 minutes or until it is cooked how you like it (we like it on the firmer side.) While the broccoli cooks, chop up the chicken then add it back into the pan.
4. Mix the cornstarch with the rest of the broth and add it to the skillet. Simmer until the sauce is thickened (should only take a couple of minutes.) 

Serve over rice (extra points).
Enjoy!!!

Muffin Tin (Cup) Monday

 stumbled across this fun idea last night while browsing the internet (instead of getting to bed at a reasonable hour!!) and thought it sounded like fun.  http://michellesjournalcorner.blogspot.com/2010/03/muffin-tin-monday.html Muffin Tin Mom posts themes for these fun little lunches (this week was a free theme week) and lots of other moms share what they serve the kids. I don't have any small muffin tin pans so I just used cupcake liners instead. :) I think this is a neat idea because it makes lunch a little different and fun, it helps teach portion control, and can encourage them to try new foods depending on the theme and my creativity. :) Anyhow, not sure I will do it every week...but I think we'll give it a shot! I didn't have much time to plan so I just used what was easy today. We have hummus, baby carrots, goldfish, pb banana sandwiches and hame rolled up with some cream cheese.

I am hoping to get to another sketch this week to share with you.  I should've scrapped during naptime today but I started reorganizing the pantry and time got away from me. Oh well.  Maybe another day. :)

Stacey