Candy Corn Popsicles

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I am always looking for ways to recreate holiday favorites. Here is our version of the token Halloween candy – the candy corn! I never hesitate to say ‘yes’ when they ask for one of these popsicles. And it’s not a happy place when we run out. 😛

4 oz vanilla dairy-free yogurt (We like coconut or cashew yogurt)
  4 oz plain dairy-free yogurt
  8 oz mango, puréed
  8 oz pineapple, puréed

Mix yogurts together. Fill popsicle molds one-third full. Place in freezer for at least 30 minutes. Next, fill molds another third of the way with mango purée. Place in freezer again for 30 minutes. Pull molds out of freezer and top with pineapple purée. Place Popsicle sticks into molds and freeze for at least two hours. Makes about 6 popsicles.

 

Dear Summer,

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Dear Summer,

Your warm and carefree days rolled in at the end of May, and have all too soon disappeared. But I want to thank you for allowing me the precious time with my children. We may not have traveled far, enrolled in a countless camps, or spent extra time practicing math facts. However, the kids stayed in their jammies until lunch on some days, they created some (ok- a lot of!) pretty cool Lego structures, and battled one another with Star Wars figures and ships.  We played countless games of Uno and Skip Bo, took many trips to the library, and spent time with family and friends. We are not promised tomorrow, so I am grateful that we took advantage of the yesterdays! I have no regrets from the past three months- just wonderful and treasured memories!

“Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” James 4:14

Homemade and Healthy PB&J Uncrustables

This is the ingredient list for Smucker’s Uncrustables Peanut Butter and Grape Jelly Sandwiches:

Ingredients:

BREAD: ENRICHED UNBLEACHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), WATER, UNBLEACHED WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN OIL, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: SALT, WHEAT GLUTEN, DOUGH CONDITIONERS (DISTILLED MONOGLYCERIDES, SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, DATEM, ENZYMES [WITH AMYLASE, LIPASE, ASCORBIC ACID, CALCIUM PEROXIDE, AZODICARBONAMIDE, WHEAT STARCH]), YEAST. PEANUT BUTTER: PEANUTS, DEXTROSE, SUGAR, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES (PALM AND/OR SOYBEAN OIL), CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: FULLY HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OILS (SOYBEAN AND/OR COTTONSEED AND/OR RAPESEED), SALT, MOLASSES. GRAPE JELLY: GRAPE JUICE, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, CORN SYRUP, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: PECTIN, CITRIC ACID, POTASSIUM SORBATE (PRESERVATIVE).

YUCK and NO THANK YOU! Trans Fat (Hydrogenated oils), corn syrups, sugars, white flour, and preservatives. Quick and easy for a busy family? Yes. Nutritious? No. What’s an alternative? Make a bunch yourself for those rushed mornings and feel good about sending these ‘Uncrustables” to school in your child’s lunchbox.20130808-201343.jpg

What you need:

  • Whole grain bread (I love our local Busy Bee’s Organic Stone Ground Whole Wheat Bread)

  • Peanut Butter – no trans fat, little to no added sugar

  • Jelly – fruit juice- sweetened, no added sugar

  • 3″-4″ round cookie cutter (or any fun shape!)

  • A slice of banana, peel still on but slightly pulled back

  • Wax paper

  • Freezer bag/container

Use your cookie cutter to cut out 2 circles from the bread slices. Rub around the outside of one of the circles with the banana holding the tip as a handle (I learned this “glue” trick from Bobby Deen on The Cooking Channel!). Place a dollop of peanut butter in the middle of that circle. On the other circle, place a scoop of jelly in the center of the bread. Turn the peanut butter slice onto the jelly slice. Pinch the edges together to form a tight seam. Place the sandwich onto wax paper and fold the wax paper over to completely cover the sandwich. Place into a freezer bag or container. Pull out as needed.

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My Daughters Need Your ‘Like’ for a $50 Gift Card!

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I’m shamelessly asking for you to take 30 seconds and click ‘like’ under the photos of my girls’ decorated toe shoes for a contest at our local dancewear store. Click on the two links below and hit the ‘like’ button under each photo. My girls have a chance of winning a $50 gift card for all their ballet needs. And now that I have downsized my hummus business, this could really help out! Voting ends Sunday! Thanks and share!!

Click here for Anna’s shoe

AND THEN click here for Aleyah’s shoe

iFollow

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On Tuesday, Aleyah turned 8. While she believes she is actually 18, her father and I have the job of guiding her back to reality. But because she is growing up, we decided to give her an iPod as her birthday gift. Thankfully we had an extra one that was no longer being used, so she opened it Tuesday morning and was super excited to see that she had this “toy”. She didn’t have much time to fiddle with it since she had to get ready for school, so when we arrived home from dismissal that afternoon, she made a bee line for her iPod. She raced upstairs, changed into workout clothes, put in her earbud (yes, singular- so she always has an ear to hear!), and began running up and down our street like she has seen her dad and mom do so many times.
When I told Scott what she had done, he told me that through his reading for his children’s ministry class this semester, he learned that research has shown that children begin to mimic their parents around age 7-8. An awesome and scary responsibility this is!
I am a daily example to my children whether my actions are positive or negative. My prayer is that my children will live for Jesus, be loving, be bold, be strong, and be a light in a dark world. Which means this:

iLead with dependence on God, so they can trust in saying, “iFollow”.

Princess Leia Pizza Buns

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Our family loves Star Wars! Tonight, to go along with The Return of the Jedi, we made homemade pizza and turned some of our dough into Leia’s side buns. The kids rolled and stretched out some dough into about an 8″ strip, topped it with sauce and cheese, and rolled it up like a cinnamon roll. We baked them at 400 for about 20 minutes and served them with extra pizza sauce for dipping. As Yoda would say, “Enjoy the pizza, you will.”

A Birthday Wish

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This week I turn 34. I’m not much of a birthday person- never have been. My mom says I cried when they sang “Happy Birthday” to me on my very first birthday. I think its because I’m a “behind the scenes” kind of girl and being center stage is far from my favorite place to be. I can take or leave presents. They’re nice to get but it’s not my love language. I’m simply content with the well-wishes extended to me and a nice dinner with my family.

But this year, I am asking for something. I would love for my readers to devote 34 minutes of their time this week to being fit and healthy.

You can take that 34 minutes and  work up a good sweat, or use that time to make a clean and whole meal with or for your family. Or divide those moments up and do both. Knowing that others are doing what they can to take care of their bodies would be a wonderful gift to me! If you choose to “gift” me (and yourself!) 34 minutes of your time, please leave a comment below and share what you did!

A Break from the Busyness

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20121215-145157.jpg Between my article on the front of last Sunday’s newspaper and the Christmas season, I’ve been busy making hummus, networking, bookkeeping, figuring out the wisest ways to grow my business, as well as going on a field trip and participating in the kids’ Christmas activities at school. So today we are breaking away from the rush and spending some time with Pop Pop and Mimi as we enjoy the last use of our Sea World passes. Tomorrow, after church, I will be in the kitchen again as I prepare the next batch of sweet hummus for another Downtown Produce delivery. Catch me there on Friday and Saturday (11 AM – 3 PM) as I am handing out samples for those of you who are anxious to try it!

Our 2nd Annual Nutcracker Performance

 

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Saturday marks the second time my girls and I will appear together in Space Coast Ballet’s production of The Nutcracker. Practice for this performance begins in September for the dancers and continues right up to the day prior to the curtain rising.
We have left church hurriedly every Sunday since rehearsals began. The girls would eat lunch in the car, transform into ballerinas at the dance studio, and practice for an hour or so. I will miss those drives and the times with my girls. But it all culminates in a spectacular display of talent and fantasy as a team of 100+ dancers and volunteers make this classic Christmas story come to life. I am thankful for the opportunity to dance alongside my daughters- the memories will last a lifetime!

Our Thanksgiving Day Oatmeal “Parade”

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Like many households, we have a Thanksgiving Day tradition of watching the Macy’s Parade. This morning, in honor of that tradition, we created an oatmeal “parade”. Yesterday the kids colored a turkey and Santa on his sleigh so we could start our parade with Tom the Turkey and finish it with Santa just like the Macy’s parade. Our “parade” line up included raisins, cranberries, honey, cinnamon, vanilla, bananas, and peanut butter. We were able to start turkey day off on a healthy note so we can enjoy the treats later today.  Enjoy your day with family and friends!

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