School Projects: Inside Your Feet Cookie Creation & Writing Assignment
A tray of “Inside Your Feet” Cookies ready to take to school
The girls recently had a writing assignment that they had to do for school. Karlie came up with an Inside Your Feet Cookie creation. For extra credit they could make their creations and share them with their classmates and teachers at school. We came up with a cookie creation using all the ingredients she mentioned in her writing assignment and they turned out fairly well. The cookies were a perfect treat to share with her classmates instead of cupcakes on Halloween. Brina also did a cookie creation and writing assignment called The Eye Ball.
A few days before the actual assignment due date we did a trial run and experimented to make sure we could make her “skin, blood, bones, and ankle joint” to reflect the Inside Your Feet cookie as accurately as possible. We tried white sparkle writing gel (bottom right) but is blended too much, we tried straight white sprinkles (bottom middle) it was a lot of work and hard to get straight, we tried round white sprinkles (bottom left) too difficult to get straight, we tried pearl balls (top left) wasn’t too bad and would have been a more do-able option, and the final attempt was our favorite and probably the easiest option too, we used white writing frosting.
We didn’t have any feet cookie cutters and the stores we checked didn’t carry any so Jake made a set we could use with his 3D printer. Once again it saves the day!
Up close of the Inside Your Feet Cookie
Inside Your Feet Items:
- Sugar Cookie Dough or Brownies(we did some of each)
- Red Frosting (or white frosting with red dye)
- White Writing Frosting
- Red and White Mint
Make your favorite sugar cookie dough or brownies (your can make from scratch or buy a mix). The sugar cookies seemed to look more like feet with toes, but the brown mix had less steps to put together. Make your sugar cookie dough, roll it out, cut out your feet, and bake. OR Make your brownies first and cut out your feet after they are baked and cooled.
Once the cookies are cooled you can decorate by putting red frosting on the cookie. We did not go to the edge of the cookie with the frosting because Karlie wanted to show the layers of the Inside Your Feet Cookie (bottom – skin, frosting – blood and muscles, white – bones, and mint – ankle joint). Next add your red and white mint. Draw your foot bones with the white writing frosting.
The cookies turned out well and were a big hit with Karlie’s class. It was a lot of fun putting together with her.
What the different parts of the cookies represent:
- Bottom Sugar Cookie or Brownies- skin
- Red Frosting – blood and muscles
- White Writing Frosting – bones
- Red & White Mint – ankle joint
Chef Brina
Brina loves helping in the kitchen. The other day she wanted to make blueberry pancakes for breakfast. She did Christmas shapes and the letters for each family member which was a lot of fun. The pancakes turned out amazing. She did an awesome job making breakfast. Love seeing my girls get excited about helping in the kitchen. They are growing up fast and learning so much. I have really been enjoying having my girls home for the Christmas Holiday.
My snowman pancake made by Brina
Jake got a candy cane – the red is blended strawberries (love using strawberries on our pancakes!)
What’s for Dinner: Our Weekly Menu Plan
Last week was pretty full of fun activities with the girls off from school for Spring Break. We got to spend some time together with our family both at home and a few days in Charleston. I was so sad that the girls had to go back to school this morning, but thankful for our fun time together. Having the menu ready in the evenings has been a big benefit for our family and makes the evenings go much smoother. Here is our menu plan for the upcoming week:
Our Weekly Menu Plan
- Monday (Beef or Seafood Entree): Spaghetti & Meatballs, French Bread
- Tuesday (Kid’s Night to Cook): Sandwiches, Fruit Salad
- Wednesday (Chicken or Vegetarian Entree): Chicken Pot Pie, Fresh Fruit
- Thursday (Pasta or Pork Entree): Pasta Casserole, Steamed Vegetables
- Friday, Saturday, & Sunday: Leftovers, Family Preference, and Hosting
I have a general pattern I try to follow for my weekly Menu Plan (for example Monday we have a beef or seafood entree and so forth). It is my goal, at least in the beginning, to have at least the main dish and one side planned. I will put together the remaining side dishes (veggies / fruits) based on the food items that need to be used up first and compliment the main entree.
Setting a weekly menu plan helps me utilize my time better, thus freeing up extra time to spend with my family. On the days that I am working longer hours I can prep the meal in advance so it will be easier to pull together once I am home. As I go through the menu planning process I will try to share some of our favorite family recipes. If there is a specific recipe you would like please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate (some recipes are a toss together meal and I do not use any set measurements).
As a family of four our life can get busy. What’s for Dinner is our weekly menu planning series and one of the ways to help keep us organized, on schedule, and within budget. Our family typically eats 6 to 7 dinner meals at home a week. We do try to go out to eat at least once a month as a special treat. Breakfasts are eaten at home before work and school, lunches are eaten at work, school, or home, so dinner is our main meal together as a family. Dinner is our time to reconnect, share, and enjoy being together after a busy day. Our weekly menu plan covers Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday only because the weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) is our time to spend with family and friends. The weekends tend to be more spontaneous and my husband (who is the better cook) likes pitching in therefore we keep the menu open for variety. We use up the leftovers throughout the week for our lunches and on the nights that we are busy or can’t cook.
Photo by Liz
What’s for Dinner: Our Weekly Menu Plan
Last week was pretty full, but thankful for some time spent with family and friends. Having the menu ready in the evenings has been a big benefit for our family and makes the evenings go much smoother. Here is our menu plan for the upcoming week:
Our Weekly Menu Plan
- Monday (Beef or Seafood Entree): Cheeseburger & Macaroni, Asparagus
- Tuesday (Kid’s Night to Cook): Tacos, Corn
- Wednesday (Chicken or Vegetarian Entree): Chicken Noodle Soup, Homemade Bread
- Thursday (Pasta or Pork Entree): Blueberry Pancakes, Fresh Fruit
- Friday, Saturday, & Sunday: Leftovers, Family Preference, and Hosting
I have a general pattern I try to follow for my weekly Menu Plan (for example Monday we have a beef or seafood entree and so forth). It is my goal, at least in the beginning, to have at least the main dish and one side planned. I will put together the remaining side dishes (veggies / fruits) based on the food items that need to be used up first and compliment the main entree.
Setting a weekly menu plan helps me utilize my time better, thus freeing up extra time to spend with my family. On the days that I am working longer hours I can prep the meal in advance so it will be easier to pull together once I am home. As I go through the menu planning process I will try to share some of our favorite family recipes. If there is a specific recipe you would like please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate (some recipes are a toss together meal and I do not use any set measurements).
As a family of four our life can get busy. What’s for Dinner is our weekly menu planning series and one of the ways to help keep us organized, on schedule, and within budget. Our family typically eats 6 to 7 dinner meals at home a week. We do try to go out to eat at least once a month as a special treat. Breakfasts are eaten at home before work and school, lunches are eaten at work, school, or home, so dinner is our main meal together as a family. Dinner is our time to reconnect, share, and enjoy being together after a busy day. Our weekly menu plan covers Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday only because the weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) is our time to spend with family and friends. The weekends tend to be more spontaneous and my husband (who is the better cook) likes pitching in therefore we keep the menu open for variety. We use up the leftovers throughout the week for our lunches and on the nights that we are busy or can’t cook.
Photo by Liz
Snowman Pizza
Snowman Pizza
Cool days, Christmas approaching quickly, and pizza just seem to go together really well. During the Holidays the girls always hope for snow. I can only remember one Christmas since my time in South Carolina where it actually snowed on Christmas day so that’s a rare treat!
The nice part about snowman pizza is you don’t actually need snow to make it! We made homemade pizza and decorated it. The girls chose black olives for his mouth, a cheese wedge for his nose, pepperoni (with black olives) for the eyes, and two slices of ham for the eyebrows.
You can use your favorite pizza recipe and make any snowman variation you want. If you are looking for a pizza recipe here is one of our favorites from Money Saving Mom. You can get really creative and make three separate pizzas and put them together to make a whole snowman (instead of just the head). 🙂
Freezer-Friendly Homemade Pizza Dough
- 2 cups warm water (105 to 115 degrees F.)
- 2 Tablespoons active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 4 Tablespoons oil (vegetable, Canola, or olive oil)
- 5 cups flour (can use all whole-wheat, half white/half whole-wheat, or all white)
Pour the warm water into a bowl and sprinkle the yeast over it. Stir to dissolve.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix.
Dump onto a floured surface and knead dough for two to five minutes until smooth and no longer sticky.
To freeze: Cut lump of dough in half and place each half in an airtight freezer bag. Freeze for up to 4-6 weeks.
To bake: Place frozen dough in a greased bowl and thaw at room temperature for at least 3-4 hours. Roll out and shape onto a greased pizza pan.
Add pizza toppings of your choice. Bake at 500 degrees for around 10 minutes (until the crust looks crispy and lightly browned).
If you don’t want to mess with freezing the dough, take the kneaded dough and roll out and shape onto a greased pizza pan. Add pizza toppings and bake as directed above.
Kids in the Kitchen: Colorful Gingerbread Cookies
Tray full of Gingerbread cookies to share!
The girls love helping out in the kitchen. At some point over the Christmas Holidays we try to make cookies. The girls really enjoy decorating the cookies. We have done a variety of different cookies from sugar to gingerbread and more.
We typically turn on some Christmas music, whip up a batch of cookies, and play a game or read a book while the first batch is cooking. Once the first batch has cooled enough and others are baking in the oven we start decorating. As you can see from the pictures we used a couple varieties of frosting and decorations. The girls decorate them however they want and as many as they want (they stick to the decorating until the very last cookie is done).
It has been really neat seeing their skills improve over the past few years. You can actually tell what the shapes of most cookies are after they are done decorating nowadays. Plus, they have learned not to “lick” the frosting or their fingers during the whole process, ha! 🙂
Starting to fill the tray with colorful Gingerbread cookies. I especially like the Betty Crocker writable frosting because their easy to use for kids, only a little bit comes out, and you can stack the cookies together once they have dried.
Just looking at these make me smile! Some as you can see from the tops of the Christmas trees broke in the decorating process. Love seeing the girls creative juices get flowing.
Another rack of delicious gingerbread cookies, decorated with love! 🙂 Thankful for those quiet afternoons that we can spend relaxing and decorating cookies together.
Next time I need to do better about taking pictures of the kids too. I only have a couple of pictures of the girls just starting to make the cookies that didn’t really turn out. Once we got into the cooking and decorating I got swept away with the fun that I didn’t pull the camera back out until all the cookies were done. Hopefully, next time I will have more kid pictures to share. Does your family like to decorate cookies, if so what kind is your favorite?
Halloween Rice Krispie Treats
Green cat with a “K” on it….wonder who that one is for? We also found a purple cat with a “B” on it too! 🙂
While Grandma Penny and Great Grandma Willa were here visiting we made some delicious rice krispie treats. I made regular rice krispie treats and cut them out with Halloween (pumpkin, ghost, and cat) cookie cutters then the kids and Grandmas decorated them. It was a lot of fun making these tasty treats together.
Pumpkin Rice Krispie Treat
Someone ate a Black Cat…….Karlie!
Brina enjoying one of the rice krispie treats after she finished helping decorate!
Colorful pumpkin!
Spooky green rice krispie ghost!
Decorating rice krispie treats with Grandma Penny and Great Grandma Willa. The decorating team was MUCH faster than the cookie cutter, ha! 🙂
A plate full of decorated rice krispie treats!
Another tray full of pumpkins, ghosts, and cats…….
After the girls got a chance to taste test one cookie we sent some of the treats home with the Grandmas, 1 went into each of the girls lunches for the next day, and the rest we brought to Community Group to share with friends. This was a fun and easy Halloween activity for everyone to do.
Kids in the Kitchen: Fruit Cars
Apple Cars
The kids loved these fruit treats. It was a fun snack and craft to do at the girls birthday party too. At their party we set out a bowl of apples, oranges, grapefruits, and grapes so the kids could put together their own cars. The cars we’re a lot of fun and you could even drive them (so cute with their wobbly wheels).
Orange Car
Cute little fruit cars made by the kids. All it takes is some fruit and toothpicks (broken in half for the wheels). If you have smaller kids you may want to help them put them together and take out the toothpicks for them before they eat their fruit car.
Kids in the Kitchen: Ham & Pasta Casserole Recipe
The girls made dinner for us this week. They wanted to try a casserole so Jake found a recipe from Better Homes & Garden and adapted it for the girls. They got the items out of the fridge and pantry, measured, and added them to the casserole. I did help with getting it in and out of the oven but otherwise they put the casserole together on their own. It turned out really well!
Ham & Pasta Casserole:
- 1 1/2 cups Milk
- 1 can Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup (10 3/4 oz)
- 2 cups diced cooked Ham
- 1 cup dried Elbow Macaroni
- 1 can sliced Mushrooms (4 oz)
- 1/2 cup chopped Onions
- 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
Grease a 8 x 8 pyrex dish and preheat oven for 375 degrees. Mix the milk and cream of chicken soup. Stir in the ham, macaroni, mushrooms, and onions. Cover the casserole and bake for 40 minutes or until the noodles are tender. Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the casserole and bake uncovered for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Let stand for 10 minutes prior to serving.
