Toddler/Kid Art

Remember when I made this piece of crayon art? It was so fun and easy to do, but I bought the canvas in a 3-pack, so I've had 2 pieces sitting around staring me in the face for a long time now. I knew what I wanted to do with them, but hadn't gotten around to doing it . . . Partly because I was a little intimidated and nervous. It involves painting. With kids. Enough said.

I wanted to tape the boys' names on the canvas, then have them finger-paint all over it. Once it dried, I could remove the tape and their names would show up white against the colored finger-painting! Such a cute idea. And, I saw a recipe for homemade finger=paints on Pinterest which made the idea even more appealing.

I had the idea in my head that I would make four colors, and the boys would each get to use 2 colors: red/yellow or green/blue. Well, it didn't work quite as planned because Aiden's basically ended up orange, and Asher's is kind of teal-ish. Both cute, but I mistakenly thought there would be some separation of colors. Silly me. :) As my husband said, it just makes it look more like kids did it - which was the point, right? Right.

So when Dusty was at work this week I stripped the boys down to their diapers (actually Asher was naked because we're working on potty training hard core . . . more on that later) and let them have at it. Needless to say, it was a mess; but it was also really fun for all of us. Another great part was that even when some of the paint (inevitably) got on the table, it wiped up really easily. And the boys were plopped straight into the bathtub when they were done! Asher and Aiden (and Mommy!) were pretty excited to show Daddy what they did that day, and now we have some more fun art to put in their room or play area!

Supplies
canvas
tape
finger paints
1. Tape onto the canvas the word or name you'd like to use. Make sure to press out any bubbles and stick it on tight.
2. Finger paint all over canvas.
3. Allow to dry completely and delicately peel off tape.
4. Ta-da!
*You could also outline the letters with black marker before peeling them off, but I chose not to.

Homemade Finger Paints (original can be found here)
3 Tbls. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. cornstarch
2 c. cold water
food coloring of your choice
1. Place all ingredients except food coloring in a saucepan and warm over med.-low heat until mixture thickens. Whisk while you're doing this to avoid lumps. (Mine took 5-7 minutes.)
2. Allow to cool and color as desired. (I ended up using about 20 drops for each color, but next time I might use even more to make the colors more vibrant.)

Pausing for a pic - Aiden is all over that canvas!

Look at that concentration!

Total mess!

Me: "Okay, that's enough-time for baths!"

Aiden's finished product

Asher's finished product

Caramel Puffcorn

Remember when I told you about our family tradition of watching a movie with the boys every Friday night? The boys and I love, love, love popcorn, so I decided to change things up from our usual butter and salt and make something that reminds me of my own childhood.

This wasn't a tradition at my family's house (actually I don't think I ever had it there), but I remember having it at friends' houses (I can't even remember whose anymore . . . I think I was in elementary or middle school) and I absolutely loved it. I couldn't get enough. And when I made it recently, it was just as good as I remembered.

I love using the puffcorn in place of popcorn just because it adds a different texture and flavor. Don't get me wrong, I love me some caramel corn too, and think this recipe would be smashing if you subbed regular popcorn, but the puffcorn is a nice touch. You can find it in the chip aisle of your grocery store, and I just get the butter flavored bag of it. I think the butter flavor is part of what makes this a tad different than regular caramel corn, so if I use this recipe with popcorn, I might use buttered popcorn . . . A little extra indulgence never hurt anyone, right?

I should note that the boys weren't as big of fans of this as plain popcorn, but I think that's because it's a little harder for them to eat - the pieces are bigger, and the caramel is tougher to bite through than plain popcorn. That being said, I'm sure they'll love it when they're a little older, and in the meantime I guess I'll just be packin' on the pounds devouring it by myself! :)

Caramel Puffcorn (original recipe can be found here)
1 pkg. puffcorn - I think it comes in 8 oz bags
1 c. butter
1 1/4 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. light corn syrup
1 tsp. baking soda
1. Grease a roasting pan and preheat oven to 250 degrees. Pour puffcorn into greased pan.
2. In a medium saucepan, bring butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup to a boil and boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda (this will cause your mixture to foam up, so don't panic!)
4. Pour caramel over puffcorn and stir thoroughly.
5. Bake 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to make sure it's evenly coated and doesn't burn.
6. Remove from oven and spread on waxed paper to cool. Break into pieces once it's cool and store in an airtight container.
*I stupidly made this when it was 100 degrees outside . . . I don't recommend that unless you have super AC in your house/apartment because it's hot.

Hugs and cookies,

Amanda

Crowd-Pleasing Pulled Pork

I love crockpot meals - especially ones that require few ingredients and are simple to put together. Enter this pulled pork recipe. Every time I've made this it has gotten rave reviews.

The best part is that it's really versatile . . . Or maybe the best part is that it's so easy . . . Or maybe that it freezes well . . . Or maybe that Asher ate almost his whole sandwich without complaining once . . . Or maybe I can't decide what the best part is!

It's just a great recipe. I've even used frozen chicken breast in place of the pork and it was just as delicious.

Crockpot Pulled Pork (original recipe can be found here)
2 1/2-3 1/2 lb. boneless pork shoulder or pork butt
1 1/2 Tbls. paprika
1/2 Tbls. garlic powder
1/2 Tbls. ground mustard
1 Tbls. kosher salt
2 Tbls. brown sugar

1. Mix together all ingredients except for pork.
2. Place pork in crockpot and rub seasoning all over it. Sprinkle on any remaining seasoning.
3. Cook on high 4-6 hours, or on low 8-10 hours.
4. Shred before eating. Serve on buns.

 It's so easy to shred - it almost falls apart on its own

Barbecue sauce and shredded cheddar cheese

Wow, look how much I love it! ;)

Here are some serving ideas:
*Sprinkle on some cheese
*Drizzle with barbecue sauce
*Top with coleslaw (totally yummy)
*Serve on top of baked potatoes instead of buns with sour cream, shredded cheese, and barbecue sauce.

Honestly, this is such an easy meal - I've made it for birthday parties, moving days, weeknights, etc. As I said, it even freezes well! And, you can adjust the seasonings to your liking. Sometimes after I've shredded it I decide it needs more brown sugar, so I just add it in at the end. Hope you give it a try and enjoy it as much as we do!

Happy Cooking!

Amanda