An Idea for Staying In Tune with Your Child's School Life

As the school year starts up, we begin to get back into the routine of homework, school events, uniforms, fundraisers, etc. In some schools, they provide a class roster with contact information for the parents of the children in the classroom. What I started doing with both my children is using Shutterfly's Free Create a Site using their Classroom template. When I received the roster for both my children's classrooms, I set up 2 sites, one for my first grader's teacher's class and the other for my 2nd grader's teacher's class. You can use the online wizard during the creation process, and it makes the process really easy and seamless. The shutterfly sites are great for having a one stop shop for looking at classroom pics, homework assignments, classroom events and announcements, parent volunteer sign-up information, etc. There is also a message board section where you can email all the members. I don't know about you all, but my email is a mess so this will help me to keep track of the assignments, announcements, contact info, school events, and volunteer opportunities. Anywho, I thought I'd share this for those of you with a school aged child or children. It's just a nice way of staying in tune with what is going on, keeping those communication lines open.

How to Loosen those Darn Nail Polish Caps

So my daughters and their friends were having a manicure party and a few of the caps were so tight. Instead of giving myself a blister from trying to twist it open, I was able to just turn it upside down and run warm water over the bottom of the cap. Then, I took a Q-tip, dipped it in some acetone, and just outlined the area under the cap where the grooves are. That was it. I then was able to twist the cap open. So don't hurt yourself trying to open that stubborn nail polish cap. Instead, use that energy for giving yourself a beautiful manicure/pedicure :).

How to Get Tree Sap off your Car Easily

My next door neighbor went camping over the weekend and parked his new car in a shady spot under a tree. Well, he came home Sunday and immediately started washing his new car. He had a lot of tree sap spots that he was trying to get rid of without scratching the paint on his new SUV. I brought over some bug off spray thinking that might work, but it didn't. So I did some googling and discovered that you can use anti-bacterial gel to get rid of sap on the car. Indeed, what ended up working is using anti-bacterial hand gel and make-up remover pads...the cotton-like ones. So with a squirt of the gel onto the affected areas, he washed the spots away with the round cotton-like make-up remover pads. Easy, right? Haha. Anyways, I thought I'd share that on my blog for those of you who find yourself in a similar predicament. So the next time you are given a free sample of anti-bacterial gel, don't throw it away. It has proven to be very useful outside of just what it is meant to be used for.

Finally!!! Something that works to pack hot lunches.

I have been on the hunt for something, other than a thermos, to keep my daughters' lunches warm. My younger one is in 1st and older daugher is in 2nd. I had been using thermoses to keep their food warm, but it wasn't so kid friendly when it comes to opening the lids at lunch. Also, certain foods just don't work right in a thermos. Anyways, I came across the warmables kids' lunch kit online at http://www.warmables.com and loved the concept of using cherry pits. I have been using the lunch kits for my kids, and they definitely work. Both my girls are so happy, especially my younger one because she can open the velcro warmables pouch all by herself, and the tupperwear that came with the kids is also easy to open. You can use your own tupper wear as well. I even toasted some pita bread, and wrapped it in foil, and threw it in the warmables pouch. Also, the colors of the kid's lunch kit warmables pouches are very nice. I got the pink and the aqua one. The pouches are a perfect size for the typical kids lunch bags. I bought the lunch bags for my girls from target. I put the pouch in and have enough room for snack and then a drink in the side pouch pocket. This is a must have for kids and/or adults who pack lunch.

Our Experience on the Disney Cruise aboard the Disney Dream August 2013

Hello Everyone. The girls and I just returned from our first Disney Cruise out of Port Canaveral. It was truly a vacation that we will always remember and most likely, repeat :). It was 4 days and 3 nights. The flight from Dulles was perfect. We left first thing in the morning. At the baggage claim, our chauffeur, Steve, was waiting for us. He was extremely nice and treated all three of us like princesses. The girls and I road in our own private car, and Steve dropped us at the Disney Cruise Line terminal point. Everything was very organized and went quite smoothly. We used a company called InterPlex. I thought the price was reasonable after doing some online searches. I just wanted us to have a really special experience down to the transportation to and from the port terminal, and it was :). Right before stepping on to the boat, there was a Disney crew there to announce our arrival. It was and felt awesome!!! I will tell you that I have cruised before on Carnival and Royal Carribean, which were very nice. However, Disney really knows how to bring service and cleanliness to that next level and then some. The girls and I were so impressed. I didn't have to lift a finger. I won't go into every detail, but I'll just name some of the highlights.
* At dinner, our server and assistant server cut any of the food that needed to be cut for the girls, while looking at me saying, "Mama, you eat your food and enjoy. We will take care of the girls." On the first night after the assistant server finished cutting up the chicken for Jess, Jess looked over at me saying, "Mama, he cut up my food. Do you think he thinks he's my baba????" hahahaha....she had me laughing and smiling all at the same time.
* I was a little worried at how Jess's soy sensitivity would be handled, but it was not an issue AT ALL. Our server, Anthony from Phillipines, planned out what the meals would be for Jess the night prior. All meals were prepared for her and ready for the next day....down to the outside barbecue on Day 3. I'm totally serious. I would just give whichever server our cabin number, and he/she would know immediately and get the food. Also, at the pizza places and snack shops, they personally made a soy/onion free pizza for us in 4 minutes...no problem. It was really something. When we booked the tickets, the agent told me that Disney will make the proper arrangements for allergies, but I had no idea. I'm serious. I had no idea it would be this amazing and stress free.

* The Disney Castaway Cay Island is absolutely marvelous. It is Disney's own private island, and it is so clean, relaxing, and just beautiful. The three of us really enjoyed it!!!
* The shows were so magical. I recommend getting there about 15 minutes early to get the good seats up in front section in the middle. The girls had never experienced shows like this, and it was just as magical for me.
* Deck 11 is where all the pool/slide/Nemo's Reef/hot tub, etc are located. There is also a huge slide called the Aquiduct. We will probably do that next time.
* It is so nice to be able to take pictures with all the characters and not wait in lines where it's 90+ degrees outside :).
* It's so nice to be able to do all the activities and eating on the Disney Dream and be able to get some chill time in your cabin when you need to. We would take breaks here and there so it was so peaceful and convenient to just walk up to our deck and just hang for a bit, and then go back out to party :).
* When you are on the ship, you don't see all these electronic devices and people messing around with their smart phones, ipads, laptops, etc. People are just enjoying themselves and relaxing. I loved that.


Some things that we will do next time are:

* Instead of spending too much time in Nassau, we will go to the movie theater to see one of the movies.
* Going to the Fireworks show.
* We will take some time to go to the Spa Salon on the ship.
All in all, it was an awesome vacation for all of us. It's worth every cent!!!

Soy Free Donuts .... YES INDEED!!!!!

Last week, I decided to look into making soy free donuts since Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Donuts are not good soy free options for us.  I then found a babycakes donut maker on Amazon for 19.99 with free shipping using my Prime Membership.  It came with a cooling rack and fork tool.  It also came with some Recipes.  So far, I have only tried the Sour Cream Donuts recipe, which turned out really well.  My girls are hooked.  We haven't tried making chocolate covered donuts or powdered, but that is next :).  The girls really really love the donuts.  It made me so happy to see my younger soy sensitive daughter eating donuts with such an enjoyable smile.  We ended up making two batches. 

I mentioned in an earlier post that I have found it easier and more delicious to take regular recipes and just make the substitutions ad hoc.  So for the Sour Cream Donuts, it calls for:

Ingredients:

Makes about 2 dozen donuts

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp double action baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup applesauce and 1/2 tsp double action baking powder (substitute for 1 egg)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
1. Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
2. In separate bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients.  Using a mixer on medium speed, blend until smooth.
3. Fill each cooking reservoir in the baby cakes donut maker with about 2 Tbsp of batter.
4.  Bake abou 4 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the donut comes out clean.

Use the fork to transfer the donuts from the donut maker to the cooling rack.

NOTE:  If you want to make powdered donuts, then you need to fill a brown paper lunch bag with powdered sugar.  While the donuts are hot off the press, go ahead and put the donuts in the bag and shake to coat them with the powdered sugar.

I will blog again when I have done this along with melting chocolate to make chocolate covered donuts. 

Soy Free Crescent Rolls

Hello All.  Sorry it has been so long since I've posted.  Life has gotten ahead of me, but I have many neat things to blog about in my quest for soy free goodness with cooking.  So, you can find many recipes online for soy free crescent rolls.  I have been searching for something comparable to the pillsbury brand that we used to eat.  Of course it has soy so there will be no buying it from the store.  Anyways, I have learned that in most cases when looking for a recipe, I don't necessarily include soy free in my online search.  I have actually just started looking for general recipes and then making the substitutions where needed for things like egg, onion, and vegetable oil.  I don't use any vegetable(soybean) oil in my cooking.  I only use canola or olive oil, depending on the recipe.  Anywho, I found the following recipe:

http://healthfulmama.com/2011/12/homemade-crescent-rolls-dairy-free-too/

which calls for the following ingredients:

Makes approx. 32 rolls

3 1/2 cups bread flour
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/3 cup water, warm
3/4 cup soy milk, room temperature
1 1/2 tbsp honey
2 eggs
1 tsp sea salt
4 tbsp butter or Earth Balance, softened

For the inside:4 or 5 tbsp butter or Earth Balance, softened

Here are the ingredients I used:
Makes approx. 32 rolls

3 1/2 cups bread flour (Make sure you use bread flour, NOT all-purpose flour)
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/3 cup water, warm
3/4 cup soy milk, room temperature (I just used regular 1% milk)
1 1/2 tbsp honey
2 eggs (I used 1/2 cup of buttermilk and a teaspoon of double action baking powder)
1 tsp sea salt
4 tbsp butter or Earth Balance, softened ( I used Land of Lakes unsalted butter.)

For the inside:4 or 5 tbsp butter or Earth Balance, softened  (I used Land of Lakes unsalted butter)

From there, I followed the instructions.  I will say that you need to make sure you use softened butter.  Otherwise, the dough just doesn't come out right.

1. Mix bread flour with salt. Dissolve the fresh yeast in the warm water with the honey and add to the flour mixture. I added a little more honey since I wanted a little extra sweetness.  Add buttermilk/baking powder and milk, mix everything together. Add the butter and knead the dough until the dough is smooth and soft. Cover with a dampened dish towel and let it rise for about 1 hour in a warm area, until doubled in size.
2.Punch down the dough and divide into two equal parts. Roll them into balls. On a floured surface flatten each part into a large circle (about 16″), using a rolling pin. With the back of a spoon (or your fingers), spread about 2 tbsp of very soft butter onto the dough. Using a pastry wheel or pizza cutter, cut the circle into 16 triangles.
3.Start rolling each triangle into crescents, starting from the wide edge of the triangle. Once rolled, tuck the tip under the roll and place on a greased baking tray. Repeat with the rest of the triangles. Let them rise for about 20 minutes. Melt additional 1 1/2 tbsp butter and brush the tops of the rolls with melted butter, if desired.
4.Preheat the oven to 375°F. Bake for 15-18 minutes until puffed and golden brown. Let them cool on a wire rack few minutes before serving.  If you want to save some for later, you can store them in a freezer zip lock bag to keep in the fridge or freezer.  I took a quick snapshot of what the cresecent rolls looked like coming out of the oven.  These were truly delicious and light.  If you keep them in the freezer, then you can defrost them for about 10 seconds in the microwave.  Then use the toast setting on your toaster oven to cook them up.  If you have them in the fridge, then just toast them in the toaster oven...no need to defrost.