Homemade Fruit Snacks

These little goodies have been on my list of things that I've been dying to try to make for some time now.  Since L is obsessed with gummies, I figured they would be right up his alley and a healthier version than the store bought ones.  Unfortunately, they did not quite live up to my expectations, as I was hoping they would be a little more flavorful.  Maybe I just didn't use enough fruit.  Maybe blueberries were not the best choice.  Anyway....they were really easy to make and I'll probably try strawberry next time around.

I started off by putting my frozen blueberries in a small sauce pan with orange juice (alternatively, I could have used lemon juice).

They were heated up until the blueberries became soft.  Then I added the honey and stirred it up.

Next, I took my immersion blender and pureed the mixture until it was smooth.  If you don't have an immersion blender, you could use a regular blender, but be very careful as warm things have a tendency to splatter when mixed.

Let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes and then whisk in unflavored gelatin.  After I had it whisked pretty well, I put the mixture into my blender and pureed it to make sure there were no lumps.

Since I made a double batch, I poured the mixture into a 9x13 pan and then let it hang out in the refrigerator for a few hours.

Once they were set, I cut them up into small pieces and placed them in an air tight container.  You can keep them in the fridge or at room temperature.  I think they are a good snack.  L really isn't a fan and I'm chalking that up to the blandness of these. 

If you make them and they turn out great, let me know what fruit you used and if it was frozen or fresh.

My Special Valentine

I had so much fun making L's Valentine's for his preschool pals this year.  As usual, I saw the idea on Pinterest and made it happen.  One of these days I will be creative enough to come up with an original idea :-)

I started off cutting brown cardstock 3"x4" and punched a small hole in the top corner.  With my Cricut, I cut out 1" red and pink hearts.

I used glue dots to attach the hearts to the card stock...

...and a silver Sharpie to write the message on each card.

Then, we filled mini snack bags with Valentine's M&Ms and Teddy Grahams and attached the cards to the bags with ribbon.  So easy!

We also gave goodies to L's teachers and preschool mommy friends.  For this, I used two bags of Valentine Hershey Hugs, a bag of Snyder's Pretzel Snaps, and a bag of Valentine M&Ms.

First, the tedious chore of unwrapping all those Hugs.

Then, placing pretzels in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Place a hug on each pretzel and bake at 200 degrees for about 4 minutes (the Hugs will become shiny but should still look like their original shape).

Take them out of the oven immediately and press an M&M into the center of each hug.

When done, pop them in the fridge until they set.  I had to get creative on how to fit the two baking sheets in my fridge :-)

Then, put them in cute Valentine's Day bags (found at Dollar Tree) and attach this adorable printable with ribbon.  We also put conversation hearts and Hershey Kisses in the bags.  These were so easy to make and can be customized to match just about any holiday.  And, they are the perfect blend of sweet and salty...which in my world usually leads to danger.

And with that, I was also Snack Mom at school this week.  SO, after Tuesday's sugary delicious Strawberry Cookies, I opted for a semi-healthier snack today...Valentine's Trail Mix.

Pretzels, Cheerios, Chocolate Teddy Grahams, M&Ms, Yogurt Covered Raisins, Dried Cranberries, and Dried Cherries make up this sweet and salty snack.  The recipe makes a lot.  We still have half a Ziploc bag (the gallon size!) leftover, and that was after making 7- 1 cup serving bags yesterday, along with L and I both snacking on it.

 

Hope you are all enjoying this Valentine's Day!!  Instead of chocolate, here is what I am indulging in...



Strawberry Oreo Valentine Cookies

First, a disclaimer to all the parents in L's preschool class...I apologize in advance if your kiddo comes home on a sugar high tomorrow. I couldn't resist. I did it. And boy are they yummy (you didn't think I didn't have to check and make sure they were edible, did you?!?). From the minute I saw these on Pinterest, I've been craving them. And, despite not feeling 100% today, they were so easy to make and required minimal thinking.

 

First, I gathered my ingredients (missing is vanilla)

Then mixed the strawberry cake mix, shortening, and eggs in a bowl until it made a stiff dough.

Then I took little bits of dough and rolled them into semi-equal sized balls.

After 10 minutes at 350 degrees, this is what they looked like.  I transferred them to a cooling rack for an hour or so to cool.

Then, I mixed the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla to make a yummy frosting/filling.

I spread the frosting on the bottom of one cookie...

And then put another cookie on top to make a sandwich.  Note- these do not taste like Oreos in any way, shape, or form.  The cookie part is actually soft, unlike the oreo who has a more stiff exterior.  But they are good.  Go make them.  NOW :-)

 

Valentine's Day Mantel Banner

This mantel was my inspiration for Valentine's Day. Honestly, I wish I could just somehow magically get all those things to appear on mine.  But, I know that's not possible so I am trying my darndest to recreate them.  My next attempt was the cute banner across the front of the mantel.  I love the chevron and lace.  So...I headed out shopping and didn't think to reference the photo before picking up supplies.  I mean, I have to make this project my own, right?!?!

Basic supplies included fabric (found on etsy), scrapbook paper, cardstock, yarn, glue dots, and dollar store doilies.

Using my Cricut, I found this fun font that had dots all through it.  So, I cut out my letters and stitched white yarn through the holes.

And then took a second pass through the holes because I didn't like the gaps.  I also took grey yarn and stitched it though the pink cardstock to create a framed border.

Then, I glue dotted a doilie to the fabric to serve as a background...

...and layered my cardstock and letter on top.

To make sure everything lined up, I placed the next piece of fabric on top and lined up the edges.

I hole punched holes in each end of the fabric at the top and ran twine through the holes to make the banner.  In the end, I decided I didn't like the doilies, so I took them off.  I also wish I would have done more of a contrast, so the BE MINE popped out.  But, it's done and it looks good (in my opinion).  Ah, another project down.  I still have to start that second topiary.  That might be done in time for Valentine's Day 2014 :-)

Valentine's Day Wreath

I tried to make this wreath.  And while it was not a complete failure, it only looks somewhat like the picture. 

I started out with a heart shaped foam wreath form and wrapped it with some grey yarn.  To get around some of the trickier curves, I just used some sewing pins to keep the yarn in place.  So far, super easy.

Then, I took some sheets of felt and heart shaped cookie cutters, traced the shapes onto the felt, and cut them out.  So far, so good.

Then, I did the same thing with some poly-fill batting to make the hearts poofy.  Still good.

I quickly realized the hearts weren't going to be as poofy as I liked, so I trimmed a little bit off the edges so the batting fit inside the felt and then just curled up the excess to make a little poof.  And this is where I start to improvise!

Things start to take a turn for the worse here.  First, sewing yard through felt is a challenge in and of itself because of the thickness of the yarn.  But I got it through somehow and felt like it needed something at the end.  So I started to tint the white yarn pink with a marker.  Big mistake.  This just made the hearts look awful.  I only did this because I used that same pink marker to trace the heart shapes on the felt and I think the sweat from my hands trying to get the white yarn through the felt caused the pink to bleed onto the yarn a bit.

I then pinned some pink ribbon to the back of the wreath form to act as a hanger.

And here's the finished version.  G was not a fan of the dangly hearts (which are suspended from the wreath form by a piece of yarn and a sewing pin.

So, I just took off the dangly hearts and now this wreath lives on my laundry room door :-)

Where have you been all my life?

So I am just going to come right out and say that it's going to be extremely rare that I ever write about cleaning.  In fact, I'm kind of shocked I'm even going there.  But, I recently discovered two products that have turned my world upside down and I no longer dread cleaning my kitchen.  Before, I had like 6 different products that I used on my quartz counters, stainless, glass, sink, whatever material microwave and oven doors are made of, and cabinets.  Well, aside from my dusting spray, I am pleased to say I am down to two products!!

The first is this little guy (and I have to admit, he's my favorite)

This stuff works WONDERS on my stainless cooktop, because, let's face it, I love to cook and neatness does not count in the kitchen.  It also leaves my quartz and sink sparkling, and my appliances smudgeless (until L wakes up or comes home from school).  I just use a soft cloth and a little water.  It truly lives up to its name....Fantastik :-)

And, whoever decided to combine the Magic Eraser with a Swiffer Wet Jet should win an award.  Seriously.  Spaghetti sauce stains on my tile be gone.  Muddy puppy paw prints- bye bye.  I still hate cleaning my tile, but, at least my exertion level is minimized a little bit.

 

So, if you hate cleaning as much as I do, you should give these two products a whirl.  Hopefully you won't dread surface cleaning days as much anymore!

 

*Disclaimer:  Neither manufacturer of these products asked me to write about them.  These reviews are truly my own opinion.

 



Topiary Trees

I saw this tutorial on Pinterest and immediately fell in love (as usual).  And (as usual) it was a project that took waaaaayyyyy longer than I ever expected.  Who knew that I'd be rolling up streamers for a good eight hours?!?!  Thank goodness I have the awesomest kiddo in the world who did not require a whole lot of attention (I can roll and play choo-choos like the best of them!) and took an awesome nap.

So first I took my terra cotta flower pots and painted them white.

This was after coat #2....another coat was required.  Depending on the paint you get, you may be able to get away with two coats.  And don't you just love the pinkness in the background?  That's going to be the center of my Valentine's Day mantle.  I took a foam board, cut it down into a 17" square, took a half yard of pink chevron fabric and thumb tacked it to the board on the backside.  Then I took the cute, heart, hangy thing (I want to call it a wreath but that is clearly not correct) and thumb tacked it too.  So stinkin easy and adorably cute.  Ok back to the trees...

Then I started constructing the topiaries.  I took 6" styrofoam balls and inserted a wooden dowel into them.  I painted the dowel a brownish color so it sort of resembled a tree trunk.  I stuffed floral foam in the bottom of the pots to hold the dowels in place.

Then it was time to start cutting the streamers.  I went through about 200 yards of streamers for just one topiary.  Ugh.  I still have to make the second topiary because I ran out of streamers and glue gun sticks.  Hopefully I get it done by Valentine's Day!  I cut each streamer to one yard in length.

Then, you fold the streamer in half longways and start rolling, glue the end, then glue it to the styrofoam ball...and repeat like a bagillion times. 

It looks really cute when it's full!

Adding some pearls just screams Valentine's Day and the Spanish Moss works so well in the bottom.  Had I had a little more patience, I would have put a pearl on each bud because the sporadicness is driving me nuts since they are not perfectly spaced!!

But, I'm glad I got one down and now it's on to the second one.  I'm on a mission to have it done in the next 15 days :-)