Summer...

What a crazy summer it's been so far! I can't believe how time is just flying away from me. There is obviously way too much going on. I've been trying to keep the kids busy and tire them out, yet it seems like I'm tiring me out. By bedtime I'm a zombie already. Well, school starts up next month - which is bittersweet. It was only a couple weeks ago that my son graduated from kindergarten. And next month I'll be packing lunch and he'll be at school for a full day (kindergarten here is only half day).  *sniffle*  But I did make my son and his friends a cute graduation cake for our block party we had. I put the school mascot (...if you'd call it that, it's a rocket ship) on the cake to show school spirit.

And the most notable of the summer (so far) was my son's beach birthday party. I think I'll be putting the invites under the templates on my website. And I'm planning on doing a post about Beach Birthday Parties- it'll include invite templates, cake and cupcake ideas (see pictures below) and party favor ideas.

Taking the long road...

There has been so much going on recently. It's been the type of stuff that takes lots of time too. Not just the easy sweep it under the rug type of stuff. Oh no! This is the vacuum it, re-vacuum, steam clean it and scrub it too type of stuff.... like my cleaning analogy? It just seems like every little task ends up taking hours. Do you ever have days like that??

                                  (picture of my beheaded cable, this is before head fell completely off)

Recently my laptop charger was beheaded. It was a very sad day when I realized that my cable was no longer charging the laptop. My laptop's battery is totally dead too. Gosh, my technology is so morbid! So anyway, my laptop will only work if plugged in... and if my cable isn't working, my laptop is useless! So I had to wait, and wait..... and wait until my wonderful mail person dropped off a wonderful package today. Now I'm back online! And today is really looking up! I really hope today is a "looking up" kind of Monday for all of you too!

With love, Becca

A morning in Paris...

I'm sorry I haven't been blogging for a while. I've been battling a horrible coughing cold for the past week. My head has been pounding and the coughing attacks just put me over the edge...Thank goodness for DayQuil!

Well, this past weekend it all started to look up! I know I'm starting to feel better when I want to bake and cook. To celebrate Memorial Day I decided to make strawberry crepes. I LOVE crepes! And I wanted to surprise my hubby...he loves crepes too :) It worked out perfectly too because I feed the kids before and then put them in front of the electronic babysitter (aka T.V) and got to work on making them. The kids even let us eat them in peace. I felt like I was in Paris while I sipped on my steam milk with espresso and munched on strawberry crepes with my husband. It was wonderful! Ready to know how you can make these at your home?

Becca's Strawberry Crepes:
1 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
2 Tablespoons of melted butter (you'll need more for cooking)
1 1/2 cups milk
2 large eggs

Combine all of the above ingredients in the order listed. Whisk together until smooth and let stand for 10 minutes. Put 1- 2 Tablespoons of butter in the bottom of your skillet. Cover the bottom and a little up the side of the pan with butter. Add about 1/3 a cup of batter and swirl it around in your pan so it forms a smooth, even circle. When bubbles start forming or your butter underneath the crepe starts bubbling it's time to flip (usually about 1-3 minutes). Use a thin butter knife to lift the edge of the crepe and slide a spatula underneath. Next tip your pan and flip your crepe. Once your crepes are cooked you can work on your filling.

Filling options:
Nutella spread on the bottom of the crepe for a decadent hazelnut, chocolate flavor. I slice up strawberries, sprinkle with sugar, add a tablespoon of butter to a pan and cook over medium low heat. Then I spoon the strawberry mixture into the crepe and roll it up.

Lastly I dust with powdered sugar and place some of the fruit filling ontop. I also recommend steamed milk with espresso ;) I hope you enjoy them as much as we did, with love, Becca

My Husband's Birthday Extravaganza

Today, I'm taking it easy. This weekend it seems like I celebrated non-stop. Seriously. Friday night was an adult night out with friends for my husband's birthday. Saturday night we went to a hullabaloo concert with the kids. Sunday we celebrated Mother's Day with a nice walk along the lake....and then a nice dinner with the rest of the family. And last, but not least we hosted a neighborhood party for our friends with kids to celebrate my husband's birthday. OH MY!!! It's been a whirlwind, but I wouldn't change any of it for a second ;) It was lots of fun. I made my husband's favorite Bananas Foster Cupcakes to celebrate. Oh, were they yummy! There's always a reason to celebrate and a yummy little cupcake makes it so much sweeter. Who knows, maybe I'll keep the celebration going and celebrate Wednesday tomorrow.....hmmmm.....I wonder what Wednesday cupcakes would taste like!

New Projects

This week has been a busy one for me. It seems like this year has just been getting busier and busier. I can't wait till summer....although I have a feeling that once summer is here it will be over before I know it. I'm not sure how you all handle stress but I love to paint. I haven't painted for a very long time. Between carpools, play dates, food to make, appointments to keep, kids to pick up after, who has time?! This week I made time...and I'm very happy I did. I put a movie on and I took a couple hours to paint.

My little brother in law is moving into a new apartment and asked me to paint him a modern/abstract painting to go in the living room. I don't usually paint modern but I was very excited to paint for him. He bought me three canvases to paint on- it was a lot of fun. Art doesn't have to be perfection. It doesn't HAVE to be anything. Art is what you make it. To be completely honest with you I had no idea what i was painting when I started. It just kinda flowed out of my soul as I went along. If you've never painted - try painting an abstract painting.... it's never wrong, it's just yours. Hopefully this will inspire someone out there. Here's my painting.

....I hope he likes it!

Spring is here!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter. Ours was filled with lots of activities and even more goodies :)
And for all of you who are curious my bunny rolls turned out pretty cute. I ran into a problem though! I could not find the refrigerated bread stick dough at my grocery store!!! AAahhhhh!!! So I improvised (never be afraid to do that). I used croissants. The kids didn't notice the difference. What do you think about the bunny rolls?

Here is a picture of some sugar snap peas that my son helped grow. I think this picture encompasses the freshness of spring, I just love it.

If you are looking for a great activity for kids to do- here it is. Making a recycled egg carton garden.

Recycled Egg Carton Garden

Gather up some egg cartons. Let your kids decorate the outside.

Then open up the egg carton and fill the egg indents with dirt. The kids can do this with a small spoon. Then have them place a couple seeds in each little dirt pile.

You can also have them glue little pictures of what seeds they planted on the inside of the lid. That way they will know what the plants are as they grow. It's also a great way to introduce little ones to recycling :)

Easter Preparations

My kids are very excited because Easter is almost here. Today I got around to hard boiling some eggs for us to dye....I know, I know I kinda waited till the last minute on that. Very unlike me...but this week I've been getting up at 4:45am to go workout. It's been a bit of an adjustment in my routine. But back to the point, I've heard so many different ways to boil eggs. I'm sure at least half of you out there have your own special way. Here's how I do it.

1. I place my eggs in the bottom of a large pot.

2. I fill the pot with cold water about an inch and a half above the eggs

3. I salt the water

4. I place on the stove and heat on high

5. When it comes to a boil I let it boil for 2-4 minutes. 

6. After boiling for just a few minutes I cover with a lid and remove from heat.

7. Let stand for 12 minutes and then shock them in cold water.

8. Store in the fridge and enjoy! :)

I'm thinking I'll have the kids color the eggs tomorrow and maybe we'll make the Easter cookie package I picked up at the store. On Easter morning I'm planning on making bunny rolls out of refrigerated bread stick dough. My mom made them when I was young and it's a family tradition now.... guess I need to go to the store to pick up the refrigerated bread stick dough! I take a stick and roll it into a cinnamon roll type bun. I then roll a smaller one for the head and take little pieces for the tail and ears. Super simple, cute and kids love them. Hope you all have a wonderful Easter! 

Family Traditions: Ebelskivers

Do you know what an Ebelskiver is?? It's a puffy Danish pancake. And it's a ball shape. It can be filled too! It can be a very yummy breakfast or a delicious desert. Our whole family loves them and I think yours will too!

My husband's grandmother made Ebelskivers when he was a young boy. He had wonderful memories of them and insisted I buy a pan when we got married. I eventually inherited his grandmother's Ebelskiver pan which we were both very happy about. There's something special about using his grandmother's pan to pass on a family tradition to our kids. Here's a picture of my kid's breakfast this morning:

yum....

To make Ebelskivers you need an Ebelskiver pan. They sell them at Williams-Sonoma. This is a picture of my cast iron pan. I haven't seen any of these on the market. The one I purchased from Williams-Sonoma was a non-stick pan and much lighter. It worked great though! The pan is what makes the shape and it looks like this:

And here's a scrumptious recipe from Williams-Sonoma:

CINNAMON-BUN FILLED PANCAKES:

INGREDIENTS:

For the cinnamon filling:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 Tbs. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes,
  at room temperature
  

For the cream cheese frosting:

• 3 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 to 4 Tbs. milk
  

For the pancakes:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbs. granulated sugar
• 4 eggs, separated
• 2 cups milk
• 4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for cooking

DIRECTIONS:

To make the cinnamon filling, in a bowl, still together the granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Add the butter and, using the back of a spoon, mash the butter into the flour mixture until all of it is absorbed into the butter, forming a paste. Set the cinnamon filling aside.

To make the cream cheese frosting, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat together the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the confectioners' sugar, reduce the speed to low and beat until combined, 1 to 2 minutes, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add 3 Tbs. of the milk and beat until combined, about 1 minute. The frosting should be thick but still pourable; add more milk if needed to thin it. Transfer the frosting to a small bowl; set aside.

To make the pancakes, in a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and granulated sugar. In another bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolks, then whisk in the milk and the 4 Tbs. melted butter. Whisk the egg yolk mixture into the flour mixture until well combined; the batter will be lumpy. Using an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until stiff but not dry peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the whites into the batter in two additions.

Put 1/8 tsp. melted butter in each well of a filled-pancake pan. Set over medium heat and heat until the butter begins to bubble. Pour 1 Tbs. batter into each well. Spoon 1/2 tsp. of the cinnamon filling into the center of each pancake and top with 1 Tbs. batter. Cook until the bottoms are golden brown and crispy, about 3 minutes. Using 2 skewers, flip the pancakes over and cook until golden and crispy, about 3 minutes more. Transfer the pancakes to a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter and filling.

Drizzle the pancakes with the frosting and serve immediately. Makes 35 to 40.

An Amazing Escape

We are back! And we had a blast :) I have to say that if you have young children at home and are considering a cruise, Disney is the way to go. It is by far the best cruise I've EVER been on for kids....and I've been on a lot. Disney is magical! And they have thought of literally everything when it comes to your kids. When we went to pick our kids up from the kid area, they didn't want to leave! 

For those of you who've never been on a cruise, the views from the ship are gorgeous....especially at sunset!

We encountered a very active group of humpback whales. At one point they were 30 feet from the ship. And they were breaching over and over! It was so amazing seeing it in person.

While the kids were playing with Mickey in the kid area, my husband and I got to spend some quality time together. That alone was worth it!

My kids would look forward to the towel animals left in the room every night....Mommy looked forward to the little chocolates!

Like I said, the views are breathtaking. This is Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

And a cruise just isn't a  cruise without a game of shuffle board while on deck :)

Disney knew how to entertain! From Broadway worthy musicals to pirates falling from the sky we were always amazed! The fireworks are worth keeping the kids up for. It was special and memories we will cherish forever.

It was very difficult to pull my 5 year old son away from this...he LOVED the water slide!

If you think you have to wait in lines everytime to see characters, think again! You are bombarded by them! They're on stage, on deck....we even chased Captain Hook down a hallway! Within 5 minutes of being on board the ship my daughter bumped into Cinderella (who is her favorite Princess) and got to take pictures with her.

The view from the "Adult Only" pool....my hubby and I spent a lot of time there. Pure bliss!

I feel very blessed that we were able to take our kids on this vacation. Disney is a bit more pricey than other cruises but I feel like the memories we made were worth it. It was so special for everyone! My kids had as much fun as I did and I don't think it would have been that way on another cruise line.... I'll just have to go on another...ya know...just to compare ;) haha! This undoubtedly was the best family vacation we've had.

Bon Voyage!!!

I am officially packing! On Sunday we are sailing away on a Disney cruise to Mexico. We've been saving and planning for over a year now. They kids are beyond excited although I'm kinda thinking that my husband and I might be more excited. We are excited for the kids to be enjoying their activities while my husband and I are sipping margaritas by the pool....oh yes, I can imagine it now...

I will let you all know how it went when I get back. Bon Voyage to you all! I promise I will come back with more of a tan than I have now!

With Love,

Becca

A hidden paradise...

Today I took the kids to a hidden paradise where old historic buildings are and peacocks roam free. For those of you who live in San Diego you might recognize it as Leo Carrillo Ranch in Carlsbad. It is a unique little place. It's full of beautiful views. One of my favorite places was the stairs that led to nowhere...

What was surprising about this place was that it used to be a personal home. I kept thinking to myself it must have been gorgeous in it's day. It had so many buildings I'm not really sure what they all were. But they were old which was really neat for the kids to see. There aren't a lot of old buildings where we live so it was nice to be able to take the kids a few steps back in time.

One of the coolest things about Leo Carrillo Ranch Park is the peacocks. They are everywhere!! And a lot of them! The kids were able to get really close to them....when they walked slow....which didn't happen very often.

We even watched one munch on a flower...

It was lovely to be able to escape for a few hours. I hope you all can take a little escape in your week too. 

With love,

Becca

Relief for Japan

Sometimes it can be overwhelming trying to decide who to donate to. My husband and I have picked out a few groups that we donate to every year. But when a natural disaster hits, especially one like what happened to Japan, my heart aches to help the people. One organization that was brought to my attention was Soles 4 Souls. Last year a moms group that I'm a part of did a shoe drive for the Haiti earthquake victims and were able to donate over 70 pairs of shoes.

                Join the relief effort in Japan by donating your gently worn shoes at Sport Chalet now through April 10, 2011.

You can go onto Soles 4 Souls website and get to know this great organization that helps so many people. This is a really great way to teach even the littlest ones about giving and sharing with those in need.  They can personally put their used shoes into the boxes at their local Sport Chalet store. The organization also welcomes new shoes which you can often find for a few dollars on Walmart clearance racks. They want any size, male or female....and lets face it, who doesn't love shopping for shoes ;)

Happy Shoe Donating!

With Love,

Becca

My Week...Written Down

As a mom of two young children I am constantly on the go. My days tend to get very busy, very fast and I don't carry my calendar around with me. So I created a weekly to-do list that I've been keeping in my purse. I named it "My Week...Written Down." It's come in really handy these past few weeks. I find that as I am making plans I can pull it out and jot down a note for myself. Anything that makes my life easier and keeps it better organized is something I love. So I wanted to share it all with you! I hope you enjoy! Click here to download and print your own.

With Love,
Becca

Under Construction

Please excuse the mess. I'm trying to find the right look for my blog and it might go through a few changes over the next few days. Thank you all for sticking with me during the remodel!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I hope you all are having a wonderful St. Patrick's Day. Did a leprechaun visit your house last night?? A leprechaun sneaked into our house and caused some havoc. He placed our shoes high up above our fireplace, placed jackets over our piano, brought bikes inside our house from the garage (he must have been having a grand old time), turned our milk green, and he left the evidence of a midnight snack on our dining room table. The kids thought it was so funny. But their favorite part was finding the gold covered chocolate coins in the leprechaun trap.

If a leprechaun didn't visit your house don't despair! There are still lots of ways to enjoy the day. If you are looking for a St. Patrick's Day word search, crossword puzzle or coloring page for kids click here. 

Tonight I'm making corned beef and cabbage. I'm also doing some roasted potatoes on the side. Corned beef and cabbage is such a simple meal to make. Click here to view one of my favorite corned beef recipes. As a side dish I'm roasting some red potatoes. I cut them into wedges, leaving the skin on, and coat them in oil. I find that vegetable oil works just fine, but you could substitute olive oil if you prefer. I season them with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper. Then I place in a 350 degree oven for about 30-45 minutes or until tender. You could also add some fresh herbs to this recipe, it's so versatile and yummy! 

(I like to add carrots about 10 min. before cooking the cabbage)

And to finish up your evening, Gwyneth Paltrow has rounded up some cocktail recipes. To view the Gwyneth Paltrow "GOOP" Newsletter featuring St. Patrick's Day cocktail recipes click here. Whatever you do this St. Patrick's Day I hope you enjoy!

Leprechauns...The real story

What is the real story of the leprechaun? Many of us have forgotten...but I know the story very well.

 For the real leprechaun story, click on this link

After reading the story about the leprechaun, you will understand why it is fun for kids to make a trap. My son made his trap this year all by himself. I recommend if you are trying to find a way to make this St. Patrick's Day special you can print out the story and make a trap. We started our trap with a cat litter box and lots of construction paper and glue.

  

We cut open one side of the box and added weights (aka...bubble bottles) so that it would shut when triggered.

We placed the "gold" inside to attract the leprechaun. We even put footprints to help guide the leprechaun to the gold. We used a campbell's soup can to help add weight to the back of the trap so that it wouldn't tip over when the door was open. 

Notice how the string is attached to the gold?? That string is also attached to a skewer that holds the door open. When the gold is touched the door closes.

It really is amazing what can be done with a little glue and masking tape and string...  Go ahead and give it a try!

The Wedding Cake

The cake was finished last weekend :) Yes, it did take me a full week to recover - lol! The cake was a lemon cake with fresh cut strawberries and a whipped cream cheese filling. It was covered with vanilla buttercream and then covered in fondant. The bride loved her cake and so I'm a very happy baker....who now needs to figure out her next big adventure :) Here's some pictures of the cake: