Family Night: Asian Inspired

From our garden -- eggplant!

Eggplant  over rice -- add in some gyozas -- dipping sauce -- and Kung Fu Panda movie!

The girls even welcomed their dolls in for evening activities..... 

Cooking With The Kiddos: Oriental Fish Packets

It was a night for cooking with the Daisies.  They really do love helping out in the kitchen.  They want to help almost all the time.  I usually try to come up with a task that they can do - because not all tasks are appropriate AND to be honest, sometimes I just want to quickly get it done and on the table - it is easier just to do it myself.

But, because I desire to teach my children some good cookin' skills (Dear future husbands, you will thank me for this!),  I try to let them help whenever possible.

And, when my girls help -  they play the part!!  They have a drawer that contains hats, aprons, small cooking utensils (whisk, spoon, kid knife) mits, etc.  They dive into the drawer and find a suitable outfit for the evening.

Tonight we are having "Oriental Fish Packets"

Ingredients: Tilapia Fish, EVOO, Yoshidas sauce, Rosemary Sprigs, Assorted Cut Veggies ( We had carrots, zuccchini, yellow squash, mushrooms ).

 Utensils:  Foil,  Non-stick spray, baking sheet,  and the best God given utensil: hands!!

 Tear off piece of foil and spray with non-stick spray.

 In the center of your foil sheet, place assorted veggies

 Atop the veggies:  Sprig of Rosemary and drizzle of EVOO. (salt & pepper if desired)

Place the Tiliapia fish on the top of the pile & carefully pour Yoshida's sauce over the entire thing. (Not too much).

 

 Pull up sides of foil and fold together, crease, and roll down.  Fold up both ends the same way to create a sealed packet. 

Write initials on each packet -- that way each kid eats their own created packet! They like to eat what they made!

Bake fish packets on 400 degree oven for at least 25-30 minutes.  Open up a packet and check for flaky fish...

Serve just as is or over some brown rice or quinoa!  Delish.

A Play Dough Party

  

Let's all admit -- Play Dough is FUN!  I think it can be therapeutic as well.  Soft squishy dough squeezed through your fingers....creative & imaginative play..... laughter, creativity, joy....

It can be messy, but really EVERY child really does love to play with the dough!! 

My girls decided that they would have a play dough party today.

They donned themselves with chef/artist hats & aprons! You must dress the part!

Out came the homemade play dough (recipe & links below)....and then came the creativity.

Honestly, they spent hours creating with play dough.  

My dear Sophia wanted to preserve the memory of their creations with pictures.  (The play dough lasted only a week on the countertops before it dried up and was shamely put to rest in the garabage)

She plans to make a photo journal book of her "creations" -- what a great idea!  So, that is our next step in the creative process for my Daisy....to get a photo album and create the Play Dough Creations Journal!

Home Made Playdough

2 cups flour 1 cup salt 2 tablespoons cream of tarter 2 cups of water 1 tablespoons mineral oil food coloring Mix all ingredients in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring until stiff. Allow to cool, then knead.

THIS SITE was a great place to find all sorts of recipes for play dough! 

Play dough Party was super fun!! 

Family Fun Friday: Let's Make A Date!

One of the things that we try to do with our daughters is have special one-on-one times with each of them. We go on dates! Papa will take one of the girls out with him and they ride in his MR2 (It is a toyota mr2 - that we call Mister Two). They LOVE to ride with their prince charming in MR2 - the wind blowing in their hair and having all the attention of their Papa to themselves is VERY special for them.They also enjoy having dates with their Mama too. It is not very often that they get to have my sole attention and do things together.

Recently, Lydia got to go on a date with her Papa and they went to a local beauty school and had their hair cut (Lydia got bangs!) and then went out for ice-cream.

Sophia and I went on our date that evening. We went to a mexican restaurant - she brought a long with her a monkey friend named "Bobo" (a class 'pet' that the kids are able to take home with them- Sophia's turn was the weekend of our date)

After dinner we went to Michaels to "window" shop for ideas for her birthday! This was so fun and she LOVES that store. So much crafty things......


What are some fun things that you do with your kids? And, do you have dates with her children? Girls especially need this fun experience with their Daddies & Mommies

FAMILY FUN FRIDAY - Play Doh Creations

I think most people have a love-hate relationship with play doh. You either love it or hate it. My hubby - hates it, because it is messy and he seems to find it ground into everything after my girls are done playing with it -- and usually finds it for weeks there after.

I am actually okay with it. It has actually grown on me a little bit - especially since my girls are getting older and are able to "handle" it all better and not mix all the colors together to make one color of pukey gray.

We were given some play doh from a party and the girls just wanted to get in with it and create. So, we spent some time playing with the doh!

And it is also fun to make our own play dough! ( See below for recipes)





We had fun
Choosing colors!

...creating!

The girls decided to have a Play-doh art gallery. They made their own labels that mentioned the artist name, the type of creature, where the creature lives, the name of the creature, what the creature eats, and if the creature is nice or mean!

This was so funny and so clever of them. They really had fun with this one.

Meet "Snowball" the horse!
The Art Teacher (as she calls herself) is Sophia

Snowball eats Apples!




Artist: Lydia
Kind of Creature: Master One Eye Gleam (trying to translate here...not quite sure??)
Lives At: Rainbow Mountain
Name of Creature: "Scary Eye"
What Creature Eats: Garbage and sometimes people food
Mean or Nice?: Nice

MAKE YOUR OWN!!

Recipes:

Uncooked Playdough

Materials

• Bowl
• 1 cup cold water
• 1 cup salt
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• Tempera paint or food coloring
• 3 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions

1. In bowl, mix water, salt, oil, and enough tempera paint or food coloring to make a bright color.
2. Gradually add flour and cornstarch until the mixture reaches the consistency of bread dough.
3. Store covered.

Colored Playdough

Materials

• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup salt
• 1 tablespoon cream of tartar
• Food coloring
• Saucepan
• 1 cup flour

Directions

1. Combine water, oil, salt, cream of tartar, and food coloring in a saucepan and heat until warm.
2. Remove from heat and add flour.
3. Stir, then knead until smooth. The cream of tartar makes this dough last 6 months or longer, so resist the temptation to omit this ingredient if you don't have it on hand.
4. Store this dough in an airtight container or a Ziploc freezer bag.

Salt Playdough

Materials

• 1 cup salt
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup flour plus additional flour
• Saucepan

Directions

1. Mix salt, water, and flour in saucepan and cook over medium heat.
2. Remove from heat when mixture is thick and rubbery.
3. As the mixture cools, knead in enough flour to make the dough workable.

Oatmeal Playdough

Materials

• 1 part flour
• 1 part water
• 2 parts oatmeal
• Bowl

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl; mix well and knead until smooth.
2. This playdough is not intended to be eaten, but it will not hurt a child who decides to taste it.
3. Store covered in refrigerator.
4. Your child can make this playdough without help; however, it doesn't last as long as cooked playdough.

Peanut Butter Playdough

Materials

• 2 cups peanut butter
• 6 tablespoons honey
• Nonfat dry milk or milk plus flour
• Cocoa or carob for chocolate flavor (optional)
• Edible treats for decoration

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix, adding enough dry milk or milk plus flour to reach the consistency of bread dough.
2. Add cocoa or carob, if desired.
3. Shape, decorate with edible treats, and eat!

Kool-Aid Playdough

Materials

• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 cups water
• Saucepan
• Food coloring, tempera powder, or Kool-Aid powder for color
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cups sifted flour
• 2 tablespoons alum

Directions

1. Combine salt and water in saucepan and boil until salt dissolves.
2. Remove from heat and tint with food coloring, tempera powder, or Kool-Aid.
3. Add oil, flour, and alum.
4. Knead until smooth.
5. This dough will last 2 months or longer.