We are officially finishing up week two of kindergarten around here, and it’s been the best two weeks. Abbie comes home excited about her day, tells us funny stories (like the time she had three breakfasts one morning), and beings home all kinds of papers and projects. Ella, on the other hand, is just excited to see her sister at the end of the day, and they are really developing more of a sisterly relationship every day.
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I cook dinner for my family 5-6 nights a week, and so often, people are amazed by that. Why? Time. Cooking can be incredibly time-consuming, especially the preparation ahead of time – gathering the ingredients, cutting them up, and more. The prep work is no doubt the hardest part of cooking. I love the fresh flavor of sauteed onions, fresh ginger, and more. But have you ever minced fresh ginger? It’s a pain in the butt. No wonder no ones uses fresh herbs – and no wonder all the TV chefs have everything prepped for them. If people saw…
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We may have just finished the holiday season, but the next one is just around the corner! Valentine’s Day will be here before we know it, and I wanted to find a way to make it fun for Abbie now that she’s getting older and more interested in holidays. Valentine’s Day is so fun for kids – especially my 5-year-old who loves candy… and all things pink. One of my favorite easy treats to make is bark – of all kinds. It requires a microwave, chocolate, and toppings – my kind of recipe. I put together the chocolate part and…
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It’s so hard to believe that football season is just about over and the biggest games of the year are here! We are huge football fans in our house – the TV has football on all day long every fall, despite Abbie and Ella’s protest to watch kids shows. Sorry kids, but it’s football season. With football season comes hosting Game Day get-togethers. Now let’s be real here – I’m a full-time working mom and I want to enjoy my weekends. That means the food for all of these get-togethers needs to be two things – tasty and…
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I am always looking for easy, filling breakfasts. I’m a big proponent of fueling up at the start of your day… and if you know me, you know I adore breakfast food. In fact, I could eat breakfast food any time of day and never get tired of it. Even though I enjoy the classics, it’s nice to come up with new ideas too. We’re always trying to get more whole foods into our diet – that allows us to indulge just a little bit while still keeping with a healthy lifestyle. I’ll be honest – the motivation for…
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One of the things I struggle with most as a working mom is finding the best foods to feed my family. I’m always looking for products with simple wholesome ingredients to use in all our family recipes – even when it’s a treat! These ice cream cookie cups are just that – an easy treat that uses real ingredients. I used ice cream made with real California milk for these, and I know I can trust the quality. Not only can I trust the quality of real California Milk, I love the initiatives they support, including their new…
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We’re now a few months into introducing Ella to solids, and I have to say – it has been so much fun to watch her eat new foods and learn about textures. It’s also fun because unlike her big sister, this kid just loves to eat – she will eat anything and everything. I have yet to find a food she won’t eat. She’ll eat purees, but she definitely prefers to do it all herself.
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If you know me, you know I’m an obsessive meal planner, and you know I’m always looking for new dinner recipes for my family. We really need easy, flavorful, healthy options, and if they come together quickly, we’ve hit the jackpot. One of my husband’s favorite meals in the world is meatloaf. In fact, he asks for meatloaf almost every time we visit my parents. (I don’t mind because my mom usually makes baked potatoes with it.) While my mom’s recipe is very traditional, I prefer to try new spins on things, and that’s just what this recipe is. This…
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I’m always looking for ways to involve Abbie in holidays, even the small ones. With St. Patrick’s Day coming up, there’s green and gold everywhere. You always think of green with St. Patrick’s Day, but I also think of rainbows – after all, isn’t the end of it where the pot of gold is? I had the idea to do an easy treat to celebrate – rainbow treats. Truthfully, I had this box of Fruity Pebbles in the pantry thanks to a late pregnancy craving, and I’m so glad I did. These were easy to mix up and done in…
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When the holiday season comes around, so do all my favorite flavor combinations. I love them all, but chocolate and peppermint has always been my favorite. Add in some pretzels, and it’s the perfect sweet and salty holiday snack. I love to make treats to give away to family and friends, so I whipped up these Chocolate Peppermint Pretzel Sticks as a fun snack to gift. They’re super easy to make, so they’re great for kids to help with too. Just be careful not to eat them all – you’ll want to! Enjoy – and I dare you not to eat…
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