ballet bun win

Ballet at 4pm means perfectly timing picking up E from the bus stop, having her eat snack in the car, dressing her in a small bathroom while trying to keep W out of the way, and if there is time doing reading homework in the 5 minutes we might have before class begins.
I have never done ballet so I know very little about it...only what my dancer friends have told me. But the ballet bun is apparently a big deal.
Last week I had everything planned out and packed including all the supplies for the ballet bun...and I forgot everything at home. I felt like the biggest moron. Thankfully, she is in a beginner class and they said it was okay for her to dance this time in her leggings. NANNY FAIL.
But this week, I made up for it. There wasn't any traffic or construction to hold us up and we arrived 15 minutes early. After dressing E, I attempted my first ever ballet bun. One of the head ballerina's showed me how to do it the first week and somehow I remembered.
Considering how much certain little girls (ahem, E) complains when their hair is being brushed or how much they might have fidgeted and twisted and turned, I was pleasantly surprised with the results.

Ballet bun success formula
One high tight ponytail+a little twist around with the hair+another ponytail+cute hair net thing+ tons of bobby pins = a happy teacher, an impressed momma, a proud nanny, and an oblivious little ballerina

cavity free candy corn

Keep it simple.

It's almost the first official day of fall. Already, the PSL (pumpkin spice latte) is being served, leaves are changing colors, temperatures are dropping, and everyone is stocking up on candy.

Yes. I did just use candy as a segue.

Check out those glue sticks

This year, I decided to make my own healthy, cavity free version of a traditional fall favorite-- candy corn. I found this on pinterst and made a few tweaks to make it work for me.

Cavity Free Candy Corn 

• Orange, yellow, white, and black construction paper
• 3 plastic bowls
• Glue sticks
• A white crayon

Such straight lines!

 First, tear up the yellow, orange, and white construction paper into small pieces. Size and shape do not matter. Place them into the plastic bowls. (While it is easier to tear several pieces of paper at a time, take the time to tear each piece separately. It will be difficult to separate them later and will make it more difficult when the kids are trying to glue the pieces onto paper).  
Next, draw a rounded triangle on the black construction paper using the white crayon. (It is easier for kids to see than pencil).
Then, divide the rounded triangle into three horizontal sections. (Reading ready kids might enjoy writing where each color goes to practice spelling and reading).
Finally, Place glue on one section at a time and glue the corresponding construction paper pieces. It's easier for kids to work on one color at a time. (We started at the bottom and worked our way up). The object is to cover as much of the dark paper as possible.

Aren't they cute?!

E is almost 6 and thought it was like a super cool jigsaw puzzle trying to get the crazy torn pieces to fit together and cover up space without leaving gaps. W is 3 and had fun grabbing little handfuls of paper and slapping them on the paper. Both were occupied for quite a while and their parents were thrilled!

Left to Right- E age 6, W age 3, Me age unknown.

 TADA! 
A healthy candy corn "recipe!"

apples and spice and everything nice

Confession- I'm not much of a morning person and I'm even less of an oatmeal gal. But occasionally, I like to do something nice for my family. Like make breakfast for mom on Mother's day. (Yeah, I make it to family breakfast on Mother's day and Christmas.) I found something on pinterest that lets me do something nice for my family and not have to get up early! Apple cinnamon crockpot oatmeal! I really dislike oatmeal, but this is good stuff and super easy!
 

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal 

You will need:

• 2-3 sliced and diced apples (you don't have to peel them)
• 1/3 cup brown sugar (I use less)
• 1 heaping tsp cinnamon (seriously, HEAPING)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 heaping cups oatmeal (yes, heaping again)
• 4 cups water
• a crockpot

Prince keeping me company during my random late night cooking escapades

While the original recipe says to just throw in the apples, they don't get cooked enough for some members of my family...AHEM. So first, place all the apples in a skillet with 1/2 cup water and cook on med-hi heat until soft. Then, place the cooked apples (and what's left of the water) in the bottom of the crockpot. Next, pour in the brown sugar and cinnamon. Place the 2 cups of oatmeal on top of this. Finally, pour in 4 cups of water. Do NOT stir. For some reason this step is important. Cook on low overnight for 8-9 hours. Don't forget to plug in the crockpot! Stir well before serving.


I usually make this around 10:30 or 11 pm and it is ready in time for the early risers by 7 AM. If you are not getting up with the birds, leave a note out with direction on when the oatmeal will be ready and a reminder to stir before serving. And the great thing is, you can keep it on warm for a while and so it's still hot when everyone else wakes up (whenever that may be).

not your mama's lasagna

I don't get to cook much at home, but when I do, I want it to be amazing! So I usually go all out and buy the EXACT ingredients the recipe calls for, no matter how extreme, obscure, or expensive. It's one of my quirks.

Well, last fall I found this amazing recipe for lasagna and I followed the directions. It was a huge hit in my house. Considering it had spinach, mushrooms, and ground turkey in it, I was surprised. My dad is more of a beef and potatoes kind of guy, and even he raved about it!
 

 Since then, I have made little tweaks and changes, making the recipe my own. And now it is my signature dish. Oh and it tastes even better the next day! (if there is any left!)

Well, apparently it is so great, my dad asked me to make a dish of it for him to take to his company's state meeting. Oh, and my family requested I make another dish just for them!

So, I doubled the recipe and made two lasagna's before heading to work.
Here's my ADHD friendly recipe with a few pictures.

NOT YOUR MOM’S LASAGNA

• 1 box lasagna noodles
• 1 jar Classico sweet basil sauce
• 1 lb. ground turkey
• 3 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
• 6 cups fresh baby spinach, washed
• 1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
• 15 oz part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 1 Tbsp fresh basil chopped*
• 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning*
• 1 tsp garlic powder*
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes*
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper*
• 1-2 cups finely grated reduced-fat mozzarella 

In a large sauté pan brown the ground turkey over medium heat until almost cooked through.  Add the mushrooms and let cook for about 5 minutes.  Add the crushed tomatoes, Classico sauce, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, crushed red pepper flakes, salt and pepper; stir to combine.  Let simmer for at least 5 minutes.  Whisk together the ricotta, milk, Parmesan, egg, and fresh basil.  Remove the tomato sauce from the heat and layer:

• Just a little bit (about 1/3 cup) of the tomato sauce on the bottom;
• 1/3 of the lasagna sheets;
• 1/3 of the ricotta mixture;
• 2 cups of the fresh spinach;
• 1/3 of the tomato mixture;
• NEXT LAYER
• 1/3 of the lasagna sheets;
• 1/3 of the ricotta mixture;
• 2 cups of the fresh spinach;
• 1/3 of the tomato mixture;
• NEXT LAYER
• 1/3 of the lasagna sheets;
• 1/3 of the ricotta mixture;
• 2 cups of the fresh spinach;
• 1/3 of the tomato mixture;
• Cover the top with mozzarella cheese!

Cover pan with foil and stick it in the fridge until dinnertime.  To bake, preheat oven to 375.  Tent foil (so the melted cheese doesn’t stick to it), bake at 375 for about 1 hour, then remove foil and let it bake another 10 minutes or so until the top is bubbly and brown.  Let it sit for about 10 minutes before serving.  Enjoy!

*Add more or less to taste.

NOTE: If using oven-ready lasagna noodles, omit Classico sauce.

NOTE 2: Wheat lasagna noodles can be used to make it even healthier. However, the taste and texture will change slightly.

Because I was working I wasn't home when the Lasagna came out of the oven for an amazing after picture. But believe me, if I can make this lower fat, healthier lasagna, and my family loves it, then it must be tasty!

"People who love to eat are always the best people." -Julia Child

I have to agree with you, Ms. Child. They most certainly are!

campfire trail mix

In the midst of finishing lunch, pre dinner prep, potty trips, packing a toy/activity bag and ballet bag, and trying to arrive at the bus stop on time, somehow I remembered snack.

After a full day of school and swim practice last night, I knew E would need a decent snack. Because we were out of bread and bagels, my usual fallback, a pb or a strawberry cream cheese sandwich, were not options.

The say necessity is the mother of invention. Today, campfire trail mix was born, so I would have to agree.

Pretzel sticks, mini marshmallows, teddy grahams, and a few peanuts (gotta have protein!) were thrown together in a snack bag.

"Sooo....what's for snack?" E wanted to know as soon as she hopped and flopped her way into the car. Instead of saying "we had a little bit of a lot of things and I threw them together along with the kitchen sink," I told her we were having campfire trail mix.

You know it's a successful snack when both W and E stick marshmallows onto pretzel sticks and decide they are roasting marshmallows for s'mores!

Somehow, both kids finished their snack during the car ride to ballet and I managed to get Ella dressed and ready for class on time.  

WHEW! Today was Ella's first day at a new ballet school and it was my very first day of ballet ever. Only thing I messed up was hair. Now to Google a YouTube how-to video on the ballet bun, complete with hairnet and bobby pins.