Lifetime Mothers
Read! Write! Tell us what you think!
Saturday, November 29, 2008
So.... Did you shop?
All the news reports are in, and yesterday was a big shopping day after all!
Did you go out? Did you stay at home and shop on line? What kinds of things did you find for your kids?
And finally: isn't "Black Friday" an awful name? We don't know anyone who actually uses it. Note to media: sometimes no one really wants to pretend they are participating "behind the scenes."
What do you call the day after Thanksgiving?
Last-Minute Recipe: Turkey and Vernor's!
We have a super-special last-minute turkey recipe!
Lifetime Mothers customer Nancy has sent us a most unusual turkey recipe, made with whole apples, cinnamon applesauce and Vernor's ginger ale!
Vernor's was invented in Michigan, and for a long time you could only get it in the midwest. However, lately we have seen it all over the country. If you can't find Vernor's, use a strongly-flavored ginger ale, something stronger than Canada Dry. If your family doesn't use processed foods, try Blue Sky Organic Ginger Ale, which has just water, cane juice, natural ginger and citric acid.
Now, we haven't tried this ourselves, but we have eaten Vernor's ham before, so we have high hopes for this recipe! If you make it, please tell us how it came out, and remember to include a photo!
Vernor's Turkey
1 turkey, clean and dry
dehydrated onion chips
paprika
garlic powder
pepper
salt
cinnamon applesauce
2 apples, halved. No need to core.
16oz Vernors
32oz water
Place turkey in its baking pan.
In this order, sprinkle entire surface of turkey with:
dehydrated onion chips
paprika
garlic powder
pepper
salt
Now pour the applesauce all over the turkey, letting it run down the sides.
Put apple halves in the turkey cavity.
Pour Vernors and water in the baking pan.
Cover with aluminum foil and roast at 350 for 15 - 17 minutes per pound.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Inspiration Tuesday!
During the month of November, Inspiration Tuesday will have a theme of gratitude.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Thanksgiving Ethnic Specialty Dishes
The famous research organization The NPD Group says that 90% of households hosting Thanksgiving meals will serve turkey. The most popular dishes supporting the turkey are pumpkin pie, potatoes of some kind, stuffing of some kind, vegetables of some kind, rolls of some kind, bread of some kind and salads of some kind.
"Of some kind" makes us think about the ways people incorporate their ethnic heritage into their Thanksgiving meals. According to surveys, most people prepare traditional Thanksgiving food items, like yams, in a way that's typical for their own family, and lots of others serve dishes that aren't traditionally associated with Thanksgiving.
Friends are Lifetime Mothers are reporting Thanksgiving dishes like beans and sopapilla (pinto beans with puffy savory pastries that serve as "bean holders" for messy little kids,) lasagna, fattoush (a Middle-Eastern salad,) and potato kugel (a Jewish potato dish.)
Our friends seem to especially love to serve breads that are special to their cultures, like tortilla, challah and julkage (a Nordic bread that is associated in Europe with Christmas.)
Please share your family's specialty dishes with us! What will appear on your table this year that you won't find on standard list of Thanksgiving foods?
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Thanksgiving-Weekend Reunions
Thanksgiving is a favorite time for family and school reunions. Are you heading for one next weekend? Have you already been in touch with family or friends whom you haven't seen in years? If you're headed for a school reunion, does it include activities for your whole family?
Are you looking forward enthusiastically to the reunion, or are you kind of nervous about it?
Have you chosen your outfit???
Please share your reunion plans with us!
Saturday, November 22, 2008
The birthday party food dilemma
Do you have a birthday party food dilemma? If you normally avoid processed foods and a lot of fats and sweets, you might. Not only are your kids gorging on these things week after week at various parties, but you wonder what to serve at your kids' own parties.
Believe it or not, you are not alone! And if your kids get invited to a lot of birthday parties, you can be the trend-setter that other parents might be hoping to find. All you have to do is a.) follow these suggestions, or create similar ones of your own, and b.) point out your strategy to any parent who seems interested.
A birthday party isn't the time to think about maximum nutrition, but it definitely can be a time to avoid undesirable things.
First decide: What is the most enjoyable and satisfying way to consume sugar? Cake, cookies and ice cream, of course! Kids would definitely miss those if they weren't at a party. What won't they miss? Soda pop, punch, sports drinks and "juice drinks." Kids won't really notice that their beverage choices are milk, juice and water.
The most wholesome cake and cookies are the ones you make from scratch, because they aren't full of chemicals to color, flavor and preserve them. Cookies and cupcakes aren't a problem, but cakes can pose a dilemma if you're not good at decorating them. We realize that it's less expensive to buy a decorated cake at the supermarket than from a bakery that uses fresh ingredients. Our opinion: the bakery cakes will taste soooooo much better!
What if you are serving lunch or dinner at the party? After attending a dozen or so parties, you may wonder how on earth you will be able to get away from pizza, hot dogs and chicken nuggets. Well, it sounds radical, but you can serve real food! How can you get away with this? Simple! Ever notice how much typical party guests eat of the typical pizza slice? Two bites! Then they're up running around and playing. Sometime they barely eat cake!
We've seen some websites recommending things like veggies and dip, hummous and pita bread and fruit kabobs. Now, while most kids happily eat these things a home, at a party they will probably go over like a lead balloon. If a kid only eats two bites of a pizza, how much hummous is he going to eat?
Here are some things you can make fresh and chemical-free that won't seem different from the standard fare. Only you will know that, for example, the bread doesn't have artificial flavor, the jelly is fruit spread, the cheese is real, and there aren't any nitrates or artificial colors.
- Little PB&Js
- Little wedges of cheese on toast
- Baby bagels or bagel sections with homemade flavored spread
- Mini burgers
- Mac n' cheese
- Noodles and spaghetti sauce (if you're brave)
Now that we've started the ball rolling, we want to hear from you! Share your birthday party food ideas and recipes, as well as your experiences!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Recipe contest was a bust!
We are sad to report that no one entered the from-scratch stuffing recipe contest! If you have any feedback about this contest, please post it, so we will know what kind of contests you would like to see in the future.
Here is a simple from-scratch dressing recipe made with challah -- Jewish egg bread. I'm calling it "dressing" because it's meant to be cooked in a casserole dish rather than in a bird. (That's the difference between "dressing" and "stuffing.") The reason it doesn't go into a bird is that it contains eggs, and you shouldn't put stuffings containing raw eggs into turkeys (according to the official food-safety people.)
Unfortunately I don't have a photo of it, so I'm posting a photo of challah instead. If your store doesn't have challah, you can usually find sliced packaged "egg bread."
2 loaves challah or egg bread, sliced
1 large sweet onion, diced
4 stalks celery, diced
mushrooms (optional)
kosher salt
black pepper
2 eggs, beaten
hot chicken broth. One can or box is more than enough!
First, toast your challah. The easiest way to do this is to lay challah slices on cookie or jelly-roll sheets and toast them in a warm oven (250 - 300 degrees.) As the challah slices come out of the oven, tear them up with your fingers and put them in a large mixing bowl.
While the toasting is going on, sautee the onion. I like to carmelize it. In any case, your goal is to get it nice and brown. A longer time over a lower heat is best for that.
When the onion is about halfway through, add the celery. Same with the mushrooms, if you are using them. Once the celery and mushrooms join the pan, hit them with salt and pepper.
Mix the veggies well with the torn-up toast. Taste and see if you want to add more pepper or salt.
Then mix in the eggs and enough broth to make everything moist but not soggy, gloppy or sticky.
Bake in a lightly oiled casserole at 350 for 30 - 40 minutes, until top is crusty.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Active Indoor Games: Obstacle Course
In many parts of the country, the cold and wet November weather is keeping kids indoors. It's time to start thinking about active indoor games!
Today's active indoor game is: The Indoor Obstacle Course.
Your kids probably already climb on chairs and crawl under tables -- even when you don't want them to. They may already be skilled at building blanket forts. It's time to put this experience to good use!
The "course" can include chairs, tables, couches, step-stools and stairs, augmented by pillows, blankets and any toys you have for crawling (like play tents or tubes,) active things that occur in one place (like jump ropes and hula hoops) and odds and ends like balloons and party noisemakers (the kind you blow into.) Too keep things under control, the course should be in one area, rather than spread throughout several rooms.
The course doesn't have to be run. Hopping, skipping, crab-walking and crawling are all ways to get around, and keep things from getting too wild. The course can be interrupted by stations with stationary activities like blowing up a balloon or party noisemaker, jumping rope, singing a silly song, doing a dance and placing a hand on a chair and running around it three times without letting go. Your kids will think of lots of ideas!
Shoes or bare feet are best; socks can be very slippery.
We will be giving suggestions for active indoor games all winter. Please share your ideas with us!
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Thanksgiving Car Trips and Wish Wednesday
Thanksgiving is always the busiest travel time of the year. Is your family going to be part of the travel crowd?
Here at Lifetime Mothers, we make a lot of car trips to visit relatives for holidays. We like to pack our own meals rather than eat on the road. When we stop, it's for fun things like trading posts, farmers' markets and miniature golf!
To pack food for the road, we put half-sandwiches into individual sandwich bags. The sandwich bags become "holders" for the sandwiches while they're being eaten.
We never let an original bag of crunchy snacks into the car. All crunchy snacks must go into a zip-top bag or plastic container!
Does your family do something unique during car trips? Please share with all of us!
-----------------------------
It's Wish Wednesday again! Time to tell us about any new jewelry styles that you would like to see at Lifetime Mothers. Leave a comment, or write to us at lifetimemothers@mindspring.com.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
During the month of November, Inspiration Tuesday will have a theme of gratitude.
I AM
by Empress Mar
by Empress Mar
Monday, November 17, 2008
Team with your Kids!
The Oaks Inline Speed Skating Team from Portland, Oregon
Speed-skating teams have members of all ages
Do you share a sport with one or more of your children?
We're not talking about coaching your kids' teams, or cheering on your kids while they play a sport you used to play, or even about your kids cheering YOU on while you compete. We're talking about you and your kids on the same team, or at least in the same league.
Inline speed skating, martial arts and equestrian events are three examples of team sports that can include people of all ages on the same team. The members of different generations practice together at least part of the time, travel together, and either compete head-to-head or pool their points and ribbons towards a team total.
We'd love to hear about more sports that involve people of all ages, and about families who train and compete together!
---------------
DON'T FORGET! Enter your from-scratch Thanksgiving stuffing recipes into our contest!
Friday, November 14, 2008
Thanksgiving Recipe Challenge: Win a $100 gift certificate!
Okay, all you Lifetime Mothers cooks! Here is a Thanksgiving recipe challenge for you. Post your no box, no bag, no can, totally-from-scratch stuffing recipe. Post before next Thursday, November 20.
Permitted ingredients:
* plain chicken, beef, veal or vegetable broth in cans or boxes (salt okay)
* bread from a bakery or store
* UNSEASONED pre-made croutons
* unseasoned (except for salt) frozen vegetables
Forbidden ingredients:
* ready-made soups or soup mixes
* pre-seasoned broths (except for salt)
* boullion cubes or granules
* pre-seasoned croutons or breadcrumbs
* pre-seasoned vegetables
The winner will get a $100 Lifetime Mothers personalized jewelry gift certificate!
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Children's Theatre
Does your family like to attend children's theatre or puppet shows?
If you haven't been to a play or puppet show staged especially for children, you really should go! We're not talking about arena-sized mega-productions featuring television or movie characters. The sort of shows we're talking about have small audiences. The actors are speaking from the stage, not from loudspeakers (and they are much easier to understand!) The shows are usually very interactive, and they engage your children a way that mega-productions never can.
We wish we could point you to a website with a national database of children's theatres, but there doesn't appear to be one. Fortunately, they are not hard to find; most cities and towns, no matter how small, have children's theatre through the city parks and rec departments, city arts programs or community theatres. Your childrens' school will have information about them.
Please share your experiences with children's theatre!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Wish Wednesday
Today we're unveiling a new blog feature: Wish Wednesday. Wish Wednesday is all about suggestions to Lifetime Mothers from our Friends and Fans.
Is there a type of jewelry you would like Lifetime Mothers to carry? Is there a design you would like to see?
Is there are subject you would like to see discussed in our blog? Is there a feature you would like to see on our MySpace profile or our Facebook page?
You can make suggestions by posting comments, or you can contact us directly. For product suggestions, write to questions@lifetimemothers.com. For blog, MySpace and Facebook suggestions, write to lifetimemothers@mindspring.com.
And if there's a Lifetime Mothers item that you're hoping to receive this holiday season, you can share that, too!
We may talk about other things on Wednesdays as well, but Wednesdays will always be for wishes!
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Inspiration Tuesday
During the month of November, Inspiration Tuesday will have a theme of gratitutde.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Sweet Tomato Crockpot Pot Roast
Here at Lifetime Mothers, we love our crockpots! Are you a fan of crockpots? Do you prefer to have them cook all day, or overnight? We've been starting them in the evening and waking up to a delicious-smelling kitchen. (We do acknowledge that some people might not be ready to enjoy the aroma of dinner at 6am!)
Here is a recipe for pot roast that we made yesterday. It has a slightly sweet tomato sauce.
Hint: We like lots and lots of vegetables with our roasts, so we usually have the butcher cut the roast in half and cook it in TWO crockpots, thereby leaving plenty of room for vegetables. The recipe below is written for one crockpot.
1 bottle of strained tomatoes or two cans tomato sauce
brown sugar (we use dark brown)
1 chuck roast
1/2 large onion. Cut some slivers or small pieces off while you're at it.
1 - 2 cloves garlic, peeled and cut into chunks
kosher salt
black pepper, coarser grain is better
dark red jewel yams, peeled and cut into chunks
optional: replace some of the yams with carrot chunks
1. Combine tomato puree with brown sugar to taste.
2. Pour a little of this at the bottom of the crock pot.
3. Cut "pockets" in several places in the roast, and randomly insert onion and garlic pieces.
4. Message lots of kosher salt into the top and sides of your roast, and sprinkle with pepper.
5. Put roast in the crockpot with the unsalted side up, and then finish massaging salt into it. Don't forget the pepper!
6. Put in the veggies and the 1/2 onion.
7. Pour the tomato sauce over it all.
8. Cook on low for 10 - 12 hours.
Please share your favorite recipes with us! And let us know if you make any of the recipes we post here.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Thanksgiving Decorating?
The original subject of this post was going to be, "Have you decorated for Thanksgiving?" However, after searching for a photo to accompany the post, I realized that a more appropriate question is, "Are you decorating for Thanksgiving?" I was surprised by the lack of Thanksgiving decor images on the web!
Perhaps many people feel like "decorated out" post-Halloween and pre-Christmas. Or perhaps they don't decorate if they are going to spend Thanksgiving at someone else's home, which so many of us do.
Are you decorating your home, door or table for Thanksgiving? Please share! If you feel "decorated out," share that, too!
Friday, November 7, 2008
"I Want That!"
"I want that!" "And that!" "Mommy! Mommy! Look at the TV! I want THAT!"
Does this sounds like your kid? The holiday toy commercials are starting to hit the TV, and a lot of moms are starting to hit the "mute" buttons -- and wishing there were "mute" buttons on their kids!
What do you do when your sweet little babies start demanding everything they see on TV?
Here is an idea we like: turn the requests into responsibilities -- your kids' responsibilities!
You start with a basic wish list, which will have details appropriate to your children's ages and abilities. The youngest children can do things like draw pictures of the toys, tear out pictures from ads and paste them to the paper, and write down the numbers of the channels on which the ads appear.
Slightly older children can cut out ads for the toys from several newspaper ads or catalogues, including the prices, store logos and addresses, or they can write out this information.
Upper-elementary-grade children can give you complete information about the manufacturer, retailers and comparative pricing. They can use the internet to assemble images of the toys and design a document with graphics. You know that they would grumble if their teacher made them learn how to create a table in a Word document or use an Excel spreadsheet, but they will happily do it if they know it means you will take their toy requests seriously!
You won't get too much useful infomation from your tiny ones, but your older kids' efforts will help you when it comes time to decide which toys they are really getting and where to buy them.
Do you have any creative ideas for handling "I want that!"? Please share!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Reading to the Family
The photo above shows parents reading to a little girl. There are thousands of photos of moms and dads reading to small children.
The photo we wanted to find is of a mom or dad reading to an entire family: older children, younger children, the other spouse, maybe some grandparents. A few centuries ago, story time was for everyone, and the stories read weren't written for the youngest children; they were written for the older ones and the adults.
Live story-reading and story-telling is a great family activity. Younger children who cannot necessarily read the stories can still understand and enjoy them. Adults become familiar with and enjoy literature popular with their older kids that they would not ordinarly read.
(Not to mention any names, but here at Lifetime Mothers there is a certain dad who insisted on reading time for years so that he could hear all the Harry Potter books!)
Do you have a family reading time? Are there family members who really enjoy reading aloud, or have a special talent for it? Are there older kids in your family who have not "outgrown" storytime? Share you experiences -- and your favorite books!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Unplug Your Kids!
A few weeks ago we wrote about the importance of sunshine to your children's health. We know that sometimes it's hard to find Sunshine Time. Then, just yesterday, a program sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation caught our eye.
It's called Green Hour, and they advertise it with the slogan, "Unplug Your Kids." They describe it this way: "Unplugged isn't just about going outside for baseball or soccer practice or recess at school. Unplugged is about giving your child a Green Hour every day -- unstructured time in green spaces to explore, imagine, and discover. It's healthy, and it's FUN."
This got us thinking: How many parents are able to make this happen? What obstacles do they face, and how do they overcome them?
How many parents who were "plugged-in" and "indoor" kids themselves have gained an appreciation for outdoor recreation and exploring through their kids?
What do you do when you live in Minnesota -- and it's January?
We hope some of our parents will comment with their own thoughts and experiences!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Inspiration Tuesday
For the month of November, our Inspiration Tuesday quotes will have the theme of gratitude. Please comment with your own thoughts and quotes!
Monday, November 3, 2008
You, yes YOU, can make strudel!
Making homemade strudel sounds complicated, and if you're making the dough from scratch, it really does take practice. You may even think that using frozen pastry dough sounds hard. But guess what? It doesn't have to be! Here is a super-easy apple strudel recipe that doesn't even require a rolling pin!
We're not just repeating something we've heard; the photo above is the actual strudel made in the Lifetime Mothers test kitchen!
APPLE STRUDEL
1 sheet of frozen puff pastry
(we used a famous name that starts with a "P")
1 Tb white sugar
1 Tb brown sugar
1 Tb flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 large apples, peeled and thinly sliced
(We used Granny Smiths, but you can use sweeter apples, too,
if they're the baking kind)
2 Tb raisins
1 large egg, beaten
PLAN AHEAD: It will take about forty minutes for the frozen dough to thaw
WHAT TO DO IF YOU DON'T HAVE A SMOOTH 16X20 SURFACE FOR ROLLING OR PRESSING THE DOUGH: Clean and flour the back of a large cookie sheet. That's what we did!
1. In a medium bowl, combine the sugars, flour and cinnamon.
2. Add the apples and raisins a make sure that they are all evenly coated with the dry ingredients. This is important, because the flour thickens that apple juices.
3. On a lightly floured surface, unfold the pastry sheet. Officially you're supposed to roll out the dough with a rolling pin. However, we couldn't find ours, so we gently pressed and stretched it out to size. It turned out fine! Size you're looking for: approximately 16x20.
4. With the short side facing you, spoon the apples onto the bottom half of the pastry, leaving 1" margins.
5. Starting with the side facing you, roll up the pastry. Tuck the ends under to seal. Please seam-side down on a lightly-greased baking sheet.
6. Brush strudel with the beaten egg.
7. Cut several 2"-long slits in the top, about 2" apart.
8. Bake at 375 for 35 minutes, or until the pastry is golden. Cool for at least thirty minutes on a wire rack. Or just on the sheet. (We didn't have wire rack, either.)
Variations: Sprinkle the top with confectioners' sugar; add sliced almonds
This recipe is by Chef Amy Barnes. If you try it, let us know how it goes!
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Did you dress up your pet? You did, didn't you! Or maybe the kids tried, but couldn't successfully decorate the cat, who is still offended.
If you have Halloween pet photos, please share! Above is the Lifetime Mothers pony, who deserves a medal for wearing that hat. (She got an apple instead.)
Saturday, November 1, 2008
The best ideas for using Halloween candy
The web is full of ideas for using leftover Halloween candy -- and all of those ideas suggest eating it. (Freezing it, baking with it or putting it away in an orange box until Thanksgiving is still eating it! You're just eating it later.)
At Lifetime Mothers, we have a favorite way to use leftover Halloween candy: create with it!
Unless you have a reaaaaaaaly big family, you won't have enough candy to create the mosaic above -- made from 250,000 smarties -- but even one kid has probably collected enough to make something cool. Here are some ideas:
* Use hard candies for mosaics. The base for your mosaic plaque can be wood or sturdy cardboard. Cover that with aluminum foil. You can use regular glue or a stiff icing. The stiff icing can also be used as "grout."
* Use soft candy for sculptures. Soft candy can be carved and molded. You can use toothpicks to keep them together. The addition of marshmallows can be helpful.
* Save the candy for gingerbread houses in December.
Please comment with your favorite ideas!
Friends
Personalized Jewelry
