Busy Busy This Week!

Not a lot of posting this week because I am so busy. We are moving so I am packing everything and at the same time preparing for a big cake competition. I also made a cake for the general judged cake show. Crazy is what I am! My team and I are creating a 5 foot cake, LIVE! I might be a little nervous but our team and our design is awesome! Next week after this is done and the move is done I might be able to post some updates and let you know how we did. :)

Muddy Buddies- Winner!

Katrina you are the winner of the Muddy Buddies Giveaway! Congrats! Please email me at Bonnie.l.adams at gmail dot com.
Thanks!

Muddy Buddies- Giveaway!

MyBlogSpark and Chex sent me a sample of the new Muddy Buddies snack. You might know it as puppy chow or reindeer poo. ;) We make this sometimes as you may have seen on my blog, and always at Christmas time. Well now if you don't feel like making it but you feel like eating it... you can just go get some at the store!
Our fun little package included a cool bowl, a magnetic logo clip, an air tight container to store it and of course the snack!

My kids love this stuff! Look at the yumminess!

And because of these three there was nothing left to test out the storage container. :D

Kaden says "Puppy Chow is my fadorite!"

Now for your chance to win! If you would like to win this cool little gift pack and try out the New Muddy Buddies post a comment. Let me know if you have made this before and for what occasions. (Have you maybe tried Chex Muddy Buddies before? I didn't know but it has been out during the holiday.)

If you would like an extra entry post about this giveaway on your own blog or Facebook page. Leave another comment for that entry please!

I will draw a winner (via random.org) next Wednesday, the 22nd. Good luck!!

Winner of The Whole Family Cookbook!!!!

The winner of this amazing cookbook is ..... LISA!

Please send me your address and contact information please. (bonnie.l.adams at gmail dot com)

Thank you all for entering. I will have a new giveaway soon!

Mission of the Month- June 2011

Oh man a month is over already! I am sure from my response you can tell I didn't finish all of my goals. :)


-I did organize my scrap area.

-I did decide on the next school years curriculum. I have some of it already and have to get the rest, hopefully at some used curriculum sales coming up.

-I believe that we have decided on activities and groups for Meghan and maybe something for the little ones too.

Now for what I didn't get done....



- I didn't get to do a craft with the kids each week. This I really have to get better at! They love to do crafts and things. I did let them paint, draw and color a lot, so that is something but I want to be putting together an actual craft. Meghan did get to do one at Girl Scouts, (we just found a home school girl scout troop, finally!)

- I didn't practice any of my cake things. I also have not finished any cakes for the competition. :) That stuff will get done this month either way since the show is this month.



So my goals for June....

I am going to work on that craft thing again! That is all I am going to try to do. We have a very busy month, this month. We are moving, so lots of packing and organizing and the cake show will be at the end of the month too. I am in the live competition, supposed to enter cakes in the regular show and I will be doing a demo and anything else they need. Plus my regular orders and homeschooling the kids. :) Yea... we'll work on the crafts!

I am also going to make a summer bucket list with the kids. I think it will be fun to write out some things we'd like to do and mark them off as we do.


If you want to join in this Mission of the Month check it out here!

Muffin Tin Monday! 6-6-11

I am sharing a breakfast muffin tin today. I don't think we have done it for breakfast before but I could be wrong. :)

Cinnamon roll pieces, pancake squares, sliced banana

maple syrup, more pancake squares and applesauce

They really enjoyed having it for breakfast this time. Kaden my picky guy likes to eat with fun tools so he even ate his banana slices since we used a pick. :)

Now go and check out the rest of today's participants. I love MTM's post today. My kids would love to do that one!

Cooking With Kids (Book Review and Giveaway!)

I was recently asked to review a cookbook just for kids and families that love to cook together. Right up my alley, of course I will! The book came and I have been reading it like a well... book. LOL There are so many tips, hints and just great information. So while it's a great cookbook full of yummy looking recipes it also has lots of great information. This is a perfect book for us right now because Meghan has asked me to do a unit study of healthy foods. We will be using it as one of our resources.


The Whole Family Cookbook.
As a working mom, I can relate to the challenges of feeding a busy family.  The Whole Family Cookbook offers time-saving strategies for shopping and cooking, along with the resources you need to cook healthy, local food in any season.  Our delicious recipes will please discriminating adults and will tickle the taste buds of your children, getting them excited to eat healthy meals – for their bodies and for the benefit of the planet.


We decided to start by making the Apple Puff.

Meghan and Kaden made it with me and they had a blast! My kids all like to help in the kitchen so I was not surprised.

The instructions for the recipes are very easy for kids to understand and they are simple things to make. Meghan can understand the instructions by herself.

                                             Here the kids are taking turns mixing the batter.

(You have cooked in a bathing suit before right?)

Meghan peeled the apples and they both helped to brown them on the stove.

I didn't have an oven safe skillet, well I wasn't sure if it was or not, so we poured the apples into this corningware bowl/pan? and finished the recipe.

I think I let it bake a little too long so it's a little browner than I think it's probably supposed to be. They both loved it though! Both of them asked for more. Kaden didn't eat his apples and Meghan wanted more apples so that worked out. Even Nathan liked it. He got home later from work and there was some left so he tried it when I wasn't in the room. When I came back he asked me what it was and told me it was good. :) Score! The kidlets are excited to make that one again and try some more recipes from the book. I have found that Kaden, my little Mr. Picky Picky will try things that he helps to make and he loves to help.
All in all this is a great book! I love how simple it is to understand. The recipes are things kids will like and try. I am very blessed to have gotten to try it out and share with you all! If you want more information please check out Michelle's website at What's Cooking with Kids.

Now if you'd like to win one.... YAY!
Leave a comment telling me about your favorite thing to make with your kids.
For another entry go to What's Cooking on Facebook and "like" Michelle's page.
Please leave a seperate comment for each entry. I will choose a winner on June 13.
Good Luck!

Even if you don't win, you should check this book out! You won't be sorry!

Planner Giveaway on Aussie Pumpkin Patch

My friend Kendra from Aussie Pumpkin Patch is having a giveaway. She makes an awesome homeschool planner and is going to give the winner a choice of her combined planner or homeschool journal. If you don't win or are too impatient to wait :) she is having a sale too. You can get either one for 25% off! Go and enter and let her know I sent ya!

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

I have been thinking a lot lately about respect. Why is it that people will show respect to an adult, at least to a point... in front of them, but not to a child? What makes an adult someone so special that they get treated better than a child? Children deserve at least the same amount of respect that an adult does. Children are little people, they are learning from us and we are here to care for them and show them how to behave. Plus if we don't respect them are we also teaching them how to be disrespectful and uncaring toward others?

Last week at the gym where I work out we had an issue. I didn't know about it until we were on the way home from my class. Meghan told me that the 17 year old girl that has been watching them took a toy from Kaden to get him to go to the area she wanted him in.

I have to give a little background. We've been going there about 2 months and there is no child care person, just an area where the kids have toys to play with. They assured me that it was fine to bring the kids. However, the kids do run around instead of staying in that little area, sometimes they come and watch through the glass doors. Sometimes they have had issues, usually Kaden, when one of the other women working out brings her boys. I have had to go in and out to check on them and don't really get a good workout that way. So they asked this girl if she would like to watch them. I'd be paying extra but not have to come out and check on them or stop issues etc. Sounds good to me, she's been watching them 2 weeks now.

So back to last week. Kaden fell asleep in the car on the way to the gym. He is trying to cut out his naps but really he still needs them. He woke up when we got there and we went in. He got right in the door and laid his head on one of the chairs. The girls went to the toy area and I went into the class to wait for it to start. I could see him laying his head on the chair and thought he would be fine. He would either lay there the whole hour or he would wake up more and go play in a bit. Well the babysitter decided he should be with the others in the toy area. She went twice over to him to tell him to come. (I am watching from inside class not really sure whats going on, I assume she is just checking on him.) I see her go back to the toy area and then a few seconds later he goes running in there. For the rest of class they are in the toy area so I think everything is fine, no reason to think otherwise. When I ask her how they are doing she says "Oh they are fine, Kaden was kinda fussy at first." So we leave and Meghan tells me in the car that she took away his penguin he had taken to play with. She took it from him when he was laying his head on the chair and that's why he ran after her. He tried to take it back and she wouldn't give it back until he said please. He of course didn't want to say it and I am sure was pretty unhappy. Meghan asked her for it and then gave it back to Kaden. (I bet that went over well! ha) That really made me upset! How mean is that? I am wondering how she would feel if I took her cell phone or ipod and made her beg to get it back. There was no reason for her to do it and no reason for her to make him go to the play area. She also likes to roll her eyes constantly, mostly at the kids of course. She clearly doesn't like nor want to babysit.

So fun for me, I get to have a talk with her. I hate confrontation! She'll think I am one of "those parents" that thinks their kids are perfect. I don't of course, I know they do things they aren't supposed to, but I do believe they deserve respect too. This girl doesn't have to watch the kids if she doesn't want to and I honestly don't have to let her watch them. I know she is a teenager and needs understanding too but if she doesn't change her attitude I won't have her watch them anymore.

What's funny is that not too long ago I probably wouldn't have said anything. My mindset was probably about the same as everyone else in thinking kids should just listen to those over them and not cause problems. Not that I would have agreed with it but I would have thought "this is just how it is".

Not now, I know better, God has been teaching me so many things lately and this is just one. I will speak with the girl and try to get her to understand why it was not the correct way to handle it. We'll see how it goes. Hopefully, she will understand and maybe she just did not realize what she was doing.
Wish me luck! I am praying I say it the right way.