Zucchini Pancakes

I'm all about feeding my kids vegetables.  But, I'm not really into hiding them in their food to trick them into eating them.  While that will help them to get some much needed nutrition, hiding the healthy food fails to teach children good eating habits. So, when I "hide" something in the food in an effort to increase nutrition or use something up, I tell my kids.  I might peel something to make it more visually appealing, but I don't lie to them about what is in the food.

This is important part about the magic muffins ( see my muffin post) at our house.  I can put just about ANYTHING in these muffins, and my kids will eat them.  They LIKE finding out what is in them.  AND THEY EAT THEM!

That's because they taste good.

Vegetables taste good.  They really taste good when you mix them with sugar, eggs, flour, etc. . .

So, after such amazing success at getting my kids to eat all kinds of fruits and vegetables in muffin form, I decided to go really brave with pancakes.  I have put zucchini in pancakes before, but this time, I went wild.

I replaced all of the milk with pureed zucchini.

Yes, I really did.  I took photos to prove it.

My kids loved them!

That's because they were delicious.  I don't mean to brag or anything, but I just know that somebody reading this needs a little push over to the dark green and leafy side.  Make something with "hidden" veggies in it, but tell your kids.  It's fun and it teaches them two important lessons.

1. They can trust Mom cause she tells them what's in the food and doesn't try to trick them into eating things.
2. Vegetables taste good in sweets.

Okay, well that's the blog for this week.  Have a fantastic day and make sure to load yourself up on veggies today!

How to Clean the Family Room

I am tempted to say there is something wrong with my children. But, I know it isn't true.

It's genetics.

I'm not sure exactly who or what to blame for all of our children inheriting messy genes, but the proof is in the pudding.  Judd and I are naturally messy.  He won't admit it, and I'm not going to elaborate in any way that would get me in trouble, other than to say he's messy.  And I'm messy too.  I've never enjoyed cleaning.


Allow me to clarify.

I enjoy clean.

I wish someone else would do it for me.

Now, my children have all inherited the same disease.  I imagine they have thoughts along these lines:

Why should I put my shoes away when I can just leave them on the floor in whatever random spot I decided to remove them? Then I have created a game for myself of hide and go seek when I need to find them.

And socks?  Well, they should probably get shoved in the couch cushions, or some other dark place where Mom won't find them until they have grown enough mold so that she can no longer identify their owner.

Popsicle sticks, candy wrappers, tissues, food particles. . . all of these clearly belong on the floor.  Right?
I think I remember learning something in school about taking the path of least resistance.

And toys, oh glorious toys. They hold my attention for at least 5 minutes, so I make sure to spread the parts all over the family room, and maybe also throw a few pieces downstairs, in the next room, behind the toilet, and of course shove a few in the couch cushions. It's just so convenient.

I know DVD's have cases, but it makes more sense to leave them out so that I can look at them.  And I can see them the best on the floor.

Stuffed animals get lonely and they can't breathe in the toy box.  They also need to be on the floor where I can see them and talk to them, you know, make sure they aren't lonely.

There's no point putting a game away if we might play it again in a month or two.

And even though Mom says to  put the cushions and pillows on the couch, well, I know better.  Mom is so silly.  Pillows are for building forts.  So are blankets, towels, sheets, tablecloths, brooms, chairs, ironing boards. Really, I will work with any material that I can find in the house.  I am sure Mom doesn't need it.

END CHILD THOUGHTS

Yep.  I think that about covers what they are thinking.  As I sit in this disgusting room, I am trying to muster the energy to gather them all together and make them clean up all of this toy/garbarge/movies/pillows/blankets MADNESS!  And I realize that I have a fantastic chart for cleaning your room, but I don't have one for the family room.  The need for such a chart is staring me in the face and squished under my feet as I type these very words.

So, here it is. I present to you. . .  How to clean the family room, a simple step by step guide for short people and even tall people that get claimed on my taxes.

1. As foreign as this idea seems, the floor of a common room, such as a family room, is meant to be bare of belongings.  Acceptable items are rugs and furniture. Everything else must go.  Please take a moment to mentally realign your thinking with this new concept.

2. Make the couches look like couches again, complete with cushions and pillows, and devoid of any and all belongings or garbage hiding in, on, or under the cushions.

3. Bookshelves.  These are so cool. They are for holding books.  I know, that's weird, isn't it?  Well, anyway, gather up the books on the floor and stand them upright on one of the 5 bookshelves in this room.

4. Now, let's move on. DVD's. They are round and shiny. They are pretty.  They belong in their special cases with little plastic sleeves.  This makes it so easy to find a movie when you want to watch them.  It makes the DVD's feel so nice and secure. Please put all of the stray DVD's in cases.

5. Don't be discouraged, but we need to talk about garbarge. Mom has placed these really cool plastic cans in the room. One is a garbage can. The other is a recycle can.  Put the garbage in the garbage can. This means things that cannot be recycled, like food that you weren't supposed to eat in here. It's also a good place for used tissues, carpet coated candy, and the lint from the vacuum.   Just about anything that is cardboard, plastic, or paper can be put in the recycle can.

6. Now, this next topic is embarrassing, but it must be addressed.  Clothes.  I know. This is silly, right? Who would take their clothes off in the family room?  Um.  We won't point fingers.  Just get them to the proper dirty clothes basket and we'll pretend it never happened.  This includes socks.

http://boogersonthewall.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/laundry-pile.jpg

7.  We're almost done. You can do this! You get to talk to the stuffed animals now. Give them some love while you pick them up and put them to bed in their nice spacious stuff animal condo, A.K.A. Great Big Rubbermaid Tote. They really will thank you.

http://www.aliexpress.com/popular/goat-stuffed-animal-toy.html

8. Dress up.  If you dressed up, you can dress down.  Even dress up clothes need a nap. They really prefer to be in the dress up boxes.  It's nice in there.


9. Quick! Gather up all the dishes that you used for your secret snacks and get them downstairs in the sink

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http://www.staceyreid.com/news/?p=8751

10. And finally, let's talk about toys and games.  Ugh.  I know. This is kind of overwhelming. There are a lot of them.  But, never fear. They all have a container. The pony container has a pretty pony drawn on the side. The duplo container says "Duplo".  The potato head container says, well, you get the picture. You can clean these up any way you like.  Honestly, you never should have let it get this bad. You never should have taken out a new tub of toys without cleaning up the first one. But, since you did, I'm going to help you out.  Shove all of the toys in a big pile. Gather all of the bins and game boxes that are empty.  Now pick something up and put it in the right bin or box.  If there are 100 things on the floor, do this 100 times. If there are 500, do it 500 times.

http://abingtonfreelibrary.org/events/185

Now, whatever is left over either belongs in someone's room, or another room in the house, or it is junk. Put it away or throw it out. Vacuum.

Relax.

You did it.

Way to go short people and dependents!

Penicillipet- a Punny Post

My last few posts have been rather serious.  Well, two of them were. So, to even things out, I'm adding a bit of levity back to the blog and the entire Universe- or at least to the 45 people who will read this.

I invented a new word!  I love it! Well, I think it's a new word. I'd better go check.

Zero results on Google! Yes! It's mine. Mu haha!

Allow me to define my new word for you:

Penicillipet- an extremely low maintenance pet derived from very very very moldy food. It's alive!

How is it that nobody thought of this before?  I don't know, but I'll tell you how I thought of it.  This morning my husband mentioned to me that he removed a plastic bag from my car which contained a pepper slice that had turned moldy and had some nice milky colored juice swimming around in the bag.


"It's a Penicillipet!" I declared.

"What?" He turned to me with undisguised disgust.

" A Pencillipet! We could make millions.  The investment would be minimal.  Toss some old food scraps into a plastic bag, that costs like a penny, add moisture, seal it up, and let it grow!"

(More looks of disgust)

"We couldn't sell them online.  I think it's illegal to mail mold. But, how about Farmer's Markets.  We could even get the starter rotten food there. One penny investment. Sell it for 25 cents. That's a 2,400% profit! Oh man, we are going to be rich!  Who wouldn't pay a quarter for a pet that you never have to feed.  It grows all by itself. It never needs to be tended when you go on vacation. In fact, if you step on a rusty nail, you might be able to save your life with juice from your Penicillipet!"

" This is genius!"

Judd replied"Becky, are you feeling okay?"

"Yes, I'm feeling okay.  I just INVENTED a word! I'm going to blog about this. Maybe now I will finally go viral and break free of my all time high post reading of 298 hits."

With patience, Judd replied,"Becky, it's unlikely that this bacterial post is going to go viral."

Dang it! But, I still think I'm on to something.

Clara -Episode 1

Since the world's cutest baby who napped for 10 entire minutes in the car today and then never again is showing no signs of retiring, despite the fact that Mommy is about to expire, I think I'll take this unplanned time to jot down some of the funny and cute things Clara has done or said lately.

DANCE
Clara has been taking dance class this last year for the first time.  I always knew she had the moves and her dance class proved it. She loved dance and was so serious about being good at it.  Every Tuesday morning, when I would tell her the day, she would cheer because it was dance day.  At the recital last week, the dance instructor,Marlene Blackburn, addressed the audience and shared a story from the competition the studio had attended in April.  As the girls were about to go on, one little girl looked up at her and said, "I've been dreaming of this my whole life!"  Right after Marlene said that I looked over at my husband and said,"That had to have been Clara who said that!" But then I told myself that there are so many little girls that it could have been anyone.  Then on the last day of class, Marlene's daughter, Kristen, wanted to tell me a cute story about Clara, about the competition, before they went on, when she declared, "I've been dreaming of this my whole life!" I knew it was her! Clara then went on to tell us how she plans to be a MOTHER, but also teach dance in her basement studio, while her husband watches the children upstairs. And he will not have a beard, but he will have a mustache, because that is so handsome, just like Principle Cooper, who is 50 something with gray hair, and SOOOOOO handsome to Clara.

SOCCER
My boys have been playing soccer for years now and Clara loves to tag along and be part of the excitement.  Last week, she accompanied Daddy while I stayed home with the baby and the family car with the blown tire( long story, also involving Clara). Anyway, Clara loves the Snack Shack, but I NEVER buy her anything because it goes against everything I believe in to overpay for candy and drinks in that way when I can just bring my own. Well, not having my sense of economics, but one all her own, Clara set out by herself while Daddy was distracted with coaching, visiting strangers lining the field and offering her services for money. Apparently she gave people shoulder rubs, performed the chicken dance, and traded with someone, and ended up earning several dollars and what she considered to be a well deserved trip to the Snack Shack.  I think this is funny, but also worrisome. 

MEN
This kid is going to give us full heads of gray hair by 40.  She loves men. She loves all men, but she especially loves men with facial hair. She once begged Daddy not to shave.  When she sees strangers walking outside she runs out and  says hi to them from the front porch.  If she knows them, she runs up and gives them a hug and has a nice little visit. She has invited the man next door, our home teacher, two teenage boys, and the neighbor's cat to her birthday party.  She is reconsidering these invites since I told her she can't have a princess party unless she only invites little girls.  Clara is in love with two different boys at school and once spent a good hour writing them a note, "Which one of you likes baseball better?" Why? Because the bigger fan would win her hand in marriage someday.  This is an improvement from the beginning of the year when she gave her heart up for the boy with the blue scissors. 

MATH
This one isn't very funny, but it's cute.  Clara has been demonstrating a propensity for math lately. She is in Kindergarten and will be 6 in mid August, but she can add and subtract in her head already. I once told her about a family that had 12 kids and lost 3 in a car accident. She looked sad and said, "Oh Mommy! Then they only had 9 kids left!"  Yesterday my mom treated us to lunch at Applebees. To pass the time, Clara decided to do some addition on a napkin. She wrote 5+5=10.  Then she wrote 9+1=10. Then I asked her to write it another way and she wrote 2+3+5 =10. Then 4+6=10. Then Grandma led her through all the ways to make 11. Every time she had to add she would scrunch up her face and make sure we knew she wasn't using her fingers, and when she got the right answer you would have thought the kid had just been given her favorite treat.  Her face lit up in absolute delight! We definitely have a math lover on our hands!

Clara is a rascal, but a delight. She is the friendliest person I have ever met. She talks to EVERYONE.  She has a standing deal with a member of the bishopric to get 5 breath mints every Sunday.  She says Hi to every single person that we ever meet, no matter who they are, what their age, or how scary or intimidating they look.  And I marvel as I watch people respond to her, smiling and laughing. She is spreading so much joy and she has no idea.  I hope that part of her never changes.