Hot Chocolate Therapy

So, I really love living here in the Midwest. I like the seasonal changes. For a few months, I even like the snow that seems to fall incessantly. I don't mind shoveling the driveway, wearing 5 layers IN THE HOUSE just to stay warm, and I like building a snowman with the kids as much as the next mom, but unfortunately my winter tolerance ends before the winter season does!

This is where the hot chocolate therapy comes in. My best friend gave me this recipe years ago and it has served me well through many a winter season. I used to make it in a respectable quantity (which is the quantity I'm sharing with you), but I now quadruple the it so I can share the chocolatey goodness with everyone else I know who needs a break from winter!

1 1/2 c. powdered milk
1 1/2 c. flavored powdered creamer
3/4 c. white sugar
3/4 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. salt

Add 1/4 c. per mug and stir in 6-8 oz. hot water.

This is a recipe that allows for a lot of flexibility; I like to try a different flavor of creamer each time. Hope this warms you up too!

The Botched Escape

On Thursday Parker hurt his foot and hasn’t been able to walk since. Parker, Madelyn, and Evan (the little boy I babysit) were down in the basement. As the story was told to us, Evan was the monster and Parker and Madelyn were trying to escape from him. In an attempt to outwit the monster (who must be afraid of heights) Madelyn convinced Parker to climb to the “safety” of the window ledge and then jump down. When they jumped, Parker landed wrong on his foot and that was the end of the game. He was able to hobble to the hallway and then Adam had to carry him upstairs. X-rays revealed that there was no break, but the foot was quite swollen. On Saturday Adam put a splint on the foot in hopes of stabilizing it, and getting the swelling down. Parker has remained remarkably sedentary, for a four-year-old, and has been crawling to get where he needs to go if we’re not there to carry him. It didn’t take Meredith too long to figure out that she can now out run Parker, and she has been using that bit of information to full advantage; she steals a crayon or car that he is using and takes off running while squealing with pure delight at finally being able to get the upper hand in life!

Maybe next time they'll try a different escape route!

Visitors, Bows, and Paint

It's been a while since I posted, but I have some good things in the works!

This past weekend we enjoyed a visit from Pops, Granna, and Beka. We know they love us because they are willing to visit from AZ even when the daytime high here is 10 degrees! We drank lots of hot chocolate, played games, and generally tried to stay warm. Within minutes of their leaving the kids were already asking when we would see them again. We had a lot of fun--thanks again for coming!

A couple of nights ago I hosted a bow-making party. I love making hair bows, but it was so much more fun to do it while sitting around with a bunch of friends! This picture does double duty--it shows off Meredith's new bows, and also the new shade of yellow on the walls. I love how the paint color looks in the kids' rooms--it's bright and sunny, which is a wonderful contrast to the eternally gray skies that make January so dull here. I'll show more of their rooms as I complete them.

Ode to the Humble Homemade Playdough

I don't have pictures to go with this entry as we are in the process of setting up our new camera to be friends with our computer, but I wanted to pass along my favorite playdough recipe.
I needed something to keep the kids entertained yesterday while I prepped the kids' rooms for painting and I remembered a new box of neon-colored food dye I purchased a couple of weeks ago just for playdough. I quadrupled the batch (I needed them to be REALLY entertained!) and with four new colors for them to squish, mold, and cut, I was able to finish the prep work! And as an added bonus for me, they didn't even get any playdough in their hair!

Here's the recipe:
1 c. water
1/2 c. salt
1 c. salt
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 T. cooking oil
food coloring

Mix all the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat and cook until it pulls away from the sides. Knead in for a minute once it cools then store in some sort of plastic.

(Note: If you're making a large batch and want to make the playdough into different colors, just add the dye when you're kneading instead of adding it to all the other ingredients in the saucepan.)