Just Add Stickers

   At the beginning of the summer when we were talking about all the activities we would do my little man said that he wanted to make a cooking show and that I should put it on TV. He came up with the idea that in each episode he would dress up as a character and make a snack having to do with that character. Since he has a closet full of costumes of characters ranging from Angry Birds to Darth Vader. He decides which recipe he wants to make with very little help from me. He is passionate about this and it makes me happy to support him in his creativity. Since the last week of summer vacation is coming up, I finally uploaded the first installment of Cooking With Characters onto YouTube. Hope you enjoy!   

Summer is in full swing and with it comes the time for ice cream treats. This is an idea for a healthier version of the traditional ice cream sundae in an edible bowl. Ingredients: Tortillas (one per serving) Cinnamon and Sugar Frozen Yogurt (any flavor) Fruit (fresh or frozen) cut into bite sized pieces Cookie pieces (crush up any cookies you have on hand) Cherries   To make the edible bowls:   Preheat the oven to 350 Arrange small oven proof dishes bottom side up on a cookie sheet Place the tortillas on the dishes wrapping the sides of the tortillas around the dish and pressing down to make an upsidedown bowl shape Sprinkle the tortilla bowls with cinnamon and sugar Bake for 15 minutes or until the tortillas are crispy Let cool      Prepare bowls of toppings, you can use any fruit you have on hand fresh or frozen, cookie pieces and cherries. Once the tortillas have cooled place them in a small bowl. Fill t...

These monogram signs are the perfect outdoor painting project for little and big artists. Take a walk outside before painting to collect flowers, pinecones, sticks and rocks that would make interresting stamps for your artwork. Material: Canvas, wood canvas or wood sign (I used a wood canvas and a wood sign I found at the Dollar Store) Acrylic paint  Sponge brushes (or sponges) Masking tape Pine cones, flowers, sticks, grass etc. Marker (I used a silver sharpee) Step 1: Paint the canvas with a neutral back color and let dry Write a letter in masking tape (the first letter of your family name or your children's name) tape a border around the canvas. Step 2: Using sponge brushes or sponges paint the canvas. Sponge paint around the masking tape letter. Step 3: Using the pine cone, flower, stick and other nature made paintbrushes to stamp and make patterns on the canvas. Step 4: Let the canvases dry in the sun. Step 5:...

This is a fresh, light dessert with just a little bit of chocolate and lots of summer fruit. It's a great  recipe to get the kids in the kitchen. Ingredients: Cherries (pitted and halved) Blueberries Cantaloupe (cut in chunks) Mini marshmallows Melted chocolate  (about 1/4c of chocolate chips melted in the microwave or in a double boiler) You will also need muffin papers Step 1: Fill the muffin papers with the fruit starting with the larger pieces. Any fruit combination works for this dessert. Step 2: Top the fruit with a couple of marshmallows and drizzle with the melted chocolate  Tip: prepare this dessert in a muffin tin and refrigerate until dessert time. Bon appétit!

Not all superheroes have capes... some are called Dad! Happy Father's Day to all the  superheroes !

Making a fairy garden is a great family activity that promotes creativity and introduces kids to gardening. You can create a fairy garden in a corner of your flowers garden or in a planter, as we did with this one. Material: Planter 2-3 plants  (I chose plants that do not flower and look like little trees) Stones Fairy house and accessories  (we made a house out of a small terracotta plant pot) Step 1: Fill the planter with dirt. Plant your chosen plants in the planter, leave enough space between each for them to grow out and to accommodate the fairy house.  Hint: after you add the dirt place your plants and fairy house in the planter to decide where to place them. Step 2: Add the fairy house. We used the one we made  here . Add the fairy fishing pond. Step 3: Add the finishing touches,such as a path of stones from the house to the fishing pond and a clothes line made out of sticks and twine. We also added some...

These are simple little houses you can make to add a little magic to your garden or use them to make a fairy garden. They are easy, fun to make and affordable. The little terracotta pots are 3 for $1.50 at the Dollar Store and the rest can be found around the house and  outside. Material: Small terracotta pot and saucer Stones Sticks blue beads or stones Black marker Yellow paint Glue gun Directions: Turn the pot upside down. To make the roof, glue one stick at a time to the pot. Secure all the sticks together at the top with glue. Draw windows on the pot with a black marker. Using a toothpick add yellow paint to the windows. Choose two rocks or pieces of wood or bark for the front and back doors, glue onto the pot. Glue the blue stones to the bottom of the saucer to make a fairie fishing pond.  Place in your garden and keep an eye out for fairies!