School Lunch

Happy Monday! We have had lots of rain over the weekend, and plenty more today too. Lots and lots of rain=melting snow. Wahoo.  Spring is officially here, but Winter s still hanging around. This rain his helping kick winter out. Thank goodness. 

In this lunch:
Kabobs with nitrate free peperoni, olives, cheese, tomato and cucumber
Cucumbers
Carrots with ranch dressing
Strawberries
Owl face pretzels
chocolate chips

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

Homemade Play Dough

My kids love play dough. You can pretty much guarantee an afternoon of play dough on a rainy day at our house. My little guy and I have been playing a lot this winter, and are beginning to run out of our supply. He tends to get more on the floor than in the container during pick up. Rather than making a Target trip I figured we could make a batch and have fun doing it.

Most play dough recipes call for cream of tarter which of course I did not have on hand. It also contains aluminum so skipping it was fine by me. This recipe contains only ingredients that you are sure to already have in your pantry. I used lavender essential oil to make it smell nice. I also divided my dough into four pieces and used food coloring to make different colors. I used regular food coloring for this. My organic non dye food coloring I save for baking. We are a dye free family when it comes to the foods we eat. :)

You will need:
2 c. flour
1/2 c. salt
2 c. water
1 tbs. vinegar
2tbs. oil
food coloring
essential oil

Mix all ingredients together in a sauce pan. Stir constantly over medium heat until dough forms. Remove from heat, and cool. Kneed in essential oil, and food coloring.  Happy playing.

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

School Lunch

Happy Monday!  I am determined to have a great week this week. We have been, and still are so sick at my house. Today is actually the first day I have felt even a little bit better. My son R is just plain miserable. We really need some warm spring air so I can open some windows and get the stale germy air out. I hope you and your family are healthy today.

In this lunch:
Pasta salad
Chicken Salad sandwich
Veggie Straws
Organic Strawberries
Organic Raspberries
Pistachios

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

Strawberry Butter

The smell of homemade bread is amazing, am I right? Too bad it is full of gluten and I can't enjoy a piece.  My family devours it, so it's worth it. I decided to whip up some strawberry butter as a fun spread. The kids and my husband loved it. On another note, sickness as struck again. 3 out of 4 of us are down with a nasty cold. I just got over a three week sickness, here we go again. I am so ready for this winter to end. Have I said that yet? I think so.

You will need:
1/2 c softened butter
1/4 c strawberry jam

Method:
Just whip the butter and jam together and spread on bread, toast, or biscuits. Enjoy!

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

School Lunch

This past weekend was filled with birthday celebrations for my mother in law, father in law and myself. I turned 31 on Friday. Birthday's are pretty reflective for me. I tend to stop and think about life, and turning another year older. Am I where I want to be? Am I doing what I thought I would be doing at 31? What's in store for the upcoming year? I am still working out the answers to these questions. Do you ever take time on your birthday to reflect on your life and accomplishments?

In this lunch:
Turkey and Salami roll ups
Organic Cheese crackers
Fruit salad, strawberries, blueberries, pineapple
pickle
ketchup for dipping

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting, Gluten Free

I made these cupcakes for my father's birthday. The big one in the middle is actually a small cake made in a spring form pan. The peanut butter frosting on my gluten free chocolate cupcakes was delicious.

 

Recipe for gluten free chocolate cupcakes:

1c.gluten free oat flour

1/2 c. gluten free honey buckwheat flour

1 c, sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1/3 c. cocoa powder

1/2 c. veg oil

1 c. water

1 tsp. vinegar

Bake at 350 for 25 min.

 

 Peanut Butter Frosting

1/2 c. butter, softened

1 c. organic creamy peanut butter

2-3 tbs. milk

2 c. powdered sugar

 

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

 

Reusable Food Pouch

This past Saturday my husband and I had a date day. It was pretty exciting since it almost never happens. My mother in law offered to take the boys for the day, so we decided to go to the flower show. The smell of spring soil when we walked through the door was total therapy for my mind. Bliss. :)

There were several tables set up with different vendors. I came upon a vendor who sells reusable containers and other green products. This reusable food pouch caught my eye. It is BPA free and Phthalate free. It cost me $6 which isn't too bad considering the use I plan to get out of it. My 3 year old loves the fruit pouches you can buy at the store. At almost $2 each they are hardly worth the price tag. This pouch opens from the bottom for easy loading, and cleaning. We have already tried it out, and couldn't be happier. I filled a  1/2 cup measuring cup with cooked carrots, applesauce, blackberries, and mango. Pureed the mixture in the food processor and spooned into the pouch. For more info visit www.squooshi.com

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

School Lunch

How was your weekend? We are back to another Monday starting a new week. Another day closer to Spring. :) I am so excited to plan out my gardens this year. We plan to expand and make a couple new garden boxes to plant even more than we did last year. So far on the list, potatoes, carrots, cukes, tomatoes, wax beans, red pepper, arugula, spinach, watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, and pumpkin. I am looking into more.

In this lunch:
Ham and Cheese sandwich with spinach
Mango
Strawberries
Annie's Bunny Snack Mix
Yogurt covered raisins

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

Snow, Snow Snow

Here are some snowy pictures of what we are dealing with in Maine. I thought it would be fun for some of you who live in a warm climate to see. This was from a storm a couple weeks ago. It was a family effort to dig all the way out. The boys had a blast.

Spring, where are you?

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

 

 

Ham and Cheese Muffins, Gluten Free, Egg Free

Look at these little gems? Ha. I had so much fun creating this recipe. They are delicious. I am a pretty big muffin fan, and I now have a new favorite. I made these last night and ended up eating three before bed. :) I had a small burst of energy after being sick for the past what seems like forever. It felt good to get into the kitchen and work on a new recipe.  Give these a try, you will be pleased.

You will need:
3/4 c. milk
1/4 c. veg oil
2 tbs. ground flax mixed with 6 tbs warm water. Let sit to form a clump
1 1/2 c. gluten free oat flour
1/2 c. gluten free honey buckwheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 c. cheddar cheese
1 c. ham, cubed
1/2 c. fire roasted red pepper
1/4c. chives

Method:
Mix milk, veg oil, and fax mixture together in medium sized bowl. Add dry ingredients, cheese, ham and chives. Stir completely spoon into muffin cups. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

School Lunch

Happy Monday!  In honor of Dr. Seuss's Birthday, B's kindergarten class is allowed to wear their jammies to school and bring in a favorite book to share. There will be lot's of reading going on today. I love it. Since my little guy is not in school yet I thought we would celebrate at home by reading throughout the day. This will make for a fun tradition.

In this lunch:
Turkey, cheese, lettuce on a spinach wrap
Clementine
Cucumbers
Veggie straws
Yogurt Tube
Fruit Leather
Yogurt covered raisins

Thanks for visiting, Kayla

St. Patrick's Day Craft

 

 

I do not get too crafty for St. Patrick's Day. It seems like we just take down all the hearts from Valentine's, then put up the shamrocks, only to take them down for Easter. Easter is more of a favorite for us, so St. Patrick's day is more downplayed. I went to h dollar store and found these foam shamrocks. For a fun simple craft, the kids ripped small pieces of green tissue paper and glued it onto the shamrock to create a textured look. They had fun.

 

Thanks for visiting, Kayla