Friday, August 5, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Me, oh my! Sweet Cherry Pie
Last week, we were very excited to see that the neighborhood cherry trees were ready to be picked. So, we got to go berry picking in our front yard.
And it was such a gorgeous day.
The cherries were perfectly juicy. T couldn't get enough.
Daddy went and got the ladder because a lot of the cherries were pretty high up.
The following day, I decided to make a cherry pie. So, I got busy pitting all the cherries. (Did you know you can use a chopstick to pit cherries if you don't have a pitter? Well, you can and it works great!)
Of course, T helped me in the kitchen. She LOVED playing with the extra dough and practiced rolling it out and feeling it between her fingers. She spent most of her time in the kitchen playing with the dough.
She couldn't wait for it to cool down so we could eat some. She was very proud to have helped make it.
And it was so yummy too! The crust was flaky and moist and the cherries were just the right sweetness.
Perfect.
For the pie, I used this recipe here and this crust here.
And it was such a gorgeous day.
The cherries were perfectly juicy. T couldn't get enough.
Daddy went and got the ladder because a lot of the cherries were pretty high up.
The following day, I decided to make a cherry pie. So, I got busy pitting all the cherries. (Did you know you can use a chopstick to pit cherries if you don't have a pitter? Well, you can and it works great!)
Of course, T helped me in the kitchen. She LOVED playing with the extra dough and practiced rolling it out and feeling it between her fingers. She spent most of her time in the kitchen playing with the dough.
She couldn't wait for it to cool down so we could eat some. She was very proud to have helped make it.
And it was so yummy too! The crust was flaky and moist and the cherries were just the right sweetness.
Perfect.
For the pie, I used this recipe here and this crust here.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Painting with Colored Ice
This art activity allows for kids to experiment with mixing colors. I set out yellow, blue, red, and green food coloring along with an ice cube tray filled with water. I let T put in whatever color mixtures she wanted to experiment with. She really enjoyed watching the water turn different colors and seeing what color she could come up with. I gave her toothpicks to stir it with and then had her leave them in the hole to use later as a handle for painting.
After she was finished mixing the colors, we put the ice cube tray into the freezer.
Later that day, we took it out and I let T begin to paint with the colors she made.
I let her use both regular and watercolor paper. They both worked equally well.
We used food coloring for this activity but liquid watercolors would also work.
This was another fabulous art idea found in First Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos by MaryAnn F. Kohl.
After she was finished mixing the colors, we put the ice cube tray into the freezer.
Later that day, we took it out and I let T begin to paint with the colors she made.
I let her use both regular and watercolor paper. They both worked equally well.
We used food coloring for this activity but liquid watercolors would also work.
This was another fabulous art idea found in First Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos by MaryAnn F. Kohl.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Paper Quilt Painting
I finally got around to using one of the art ideas from my First Art book. I've had a bunch of pages dog-earred since Christmas (when I received the book). It is a wonderful resource for ideas and inspiration. I HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone who wants to bring creativity and art into their home or classroom.
What I did was I taped together different kinds of papers. I used construction, parchment, foil, and bubble wrap (not really paper, but still works).
I set out T's paints and just let her paint as she wished. The purpose of this activity was for the child to explore the different textures of paper and see how the papers react; attracting or resisting the paint.
Other paper ideas to use include:
butcher
construction
foil
grocery bag
newspaper
old poster
paper towel
parchment
wallpaper
wax paper
wrapping paper
wrinkled newsprint
Source:
First Art: Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos by MaryAnn F. Kohl
What I did was I taped together different kinds of papers. I used construction, parchment, foil, and bubble wrap (not really paper, but still works).
I set out T's paints and just let her paint as she wished. The purpose of this activity was for the child to explore the different textures of paper and see how the papers react; attracting or resisting the paint.
Other paper ideas to use include:
butcher
construction
foil
grocery bag
newspaper
old poster
paper towel
parchment
wallpaper
wax paper
wrapping paper
wrinkled newsprint
Source:
First Art: Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos by MaryAnn F. Kohl
Monday, July 25, 2011
Late Night Baking
Of course, while we were camping we made our new favorite dessert; banana surprise. We bought a lot of bananas and ended up not using all of them. They began to turn brown and we all know what that means; banana bread!
I found a new recipe for a banana coconut loaf that I was very anxious to try. (Go Dairy-free and Smitten Kitchen are my go-to recipe sites.)
I didn't get any time to actually make the bread until after L was asleep that day. And instead of putting T to bed too, I let her stay up past her bedtime to help me in the kitchen. Just me and her. It was very special.
She loves to bake and has been quite adament about doing everything her big girl self these days.
I didn't end up taking a photo of our actual result but trust me when I say that this recipe is a keeper. It was quite tasty and I plan to be using this recipe for banana bread again.
I found a new recipe for a banana coconut loaf that I was very anxious to try. (Go Dairy-free and Smitten Kitchen are my go-to recipe sites.)
I didn't get any time to actually make the bread until after L was asleep that day. And instead of putting T to bed too, I let her stay up past her bedtime to help me in the kitchen. Just me and her. It was very special.
She loves to bake and has been quite adament about doing everything her big girl self these days.
I didn't end up taking a photo of our actual result but trust me when I say that this recipe is a keeper. It was quite tasty and I plan to be using this recipe for banana bread again.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wonderfully Generous Giveaway for Elsa Beskow fans!
For your chance to win 19 books written by Elsa Beskow (yes, that's right, 19!) click here!
We are huge Elsa Beskow fans and so, of course, I entered us in this awesome giveaway. And if you haven't discovered the magic of her books yet, this would be a great way to introduce you to them. T seems to love her books because of their wonderfully imaginative stories and for their fun and beautiful illustrations.
We are huge Elsa Beskow fans and so, of course, I entered us in this awesome giveaway. And if you haven't discovered the magic of her books yet, this would be a great way to introduce you to them. T seems to love her books because of their wonderfully imaginative stories and for their fun and beautiful illustrations.
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