Chocolate Mousse & Tuiles

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

My FMM today is a delicious recipe that I tried out this weekend. We were invited to a friends house for dinner and asked to bring a dessert. I sat racking my brain trying to come up with something that would be easy and fast, and finally turned to Kraft, my go-to website for quick food. I found this delicious recipe for chocolate mousse using Toblerone candy bars. This was super easy and super quick to put together. With your supervision, a child could easily make this. If not, your kids will love licking the mixing spoon with this dessert.

The only problem was that this mousse was a little bit rich. I started thinking of ways to balance the richness of the chocolate, and decided to try making some mild cookies to go along with the mousse. I decided to make a tuile- a thin, mildly sweet cookie that can be shaped however you like while still warm from the oven. I found this particular recipe here. Your kids will love making these cookies into little cups, rolling them into little cylinders, making them look like waffle cones, or simply draping them along a rolling pin to create a pringle shape like I did. If you want to go one step further, you can dip, or drizzle the cookies in melted chocolate once they are shaped.

Toblerone Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients:
· 8 triangles (2.5 oz) Toblerone Chocolate
· 2.5 cups Cool Whip, thawed [I used about 4 cups, it made it a little less rich.]

Directions:
· Microwave chocolate about 1 minute or until mostly melted and let cool about 30 seconds.
· Add in Cool Whip and stir until well blended.
· Chill in refrigerator for at least 1.5 hours. [The longer it chills, the better it tastes, and the more mousse-like a consistency it becomes.]

Belgian Tuile Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 c butter, softened [I used margarine]
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 c all-purpose flour

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375, grease cookie sheets.
• Beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
• Add egg white, vanilla, and salt
• Gradually add flour until well blended.
• Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheet, and flatten slightly with a spatula. [These spread when they cook. The original directions say to place them 4 inches apart on the cookie sheet, but I did them about 1 inch apart and they were fine.]
• Bake 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Pull them out of the oven, as soon as you are comfortable handling them, take them and place them over a rolling pin to create "pringle" shape.
• Let cool about 1 minute before removing from rolling pin.

Family Moment Monday - Track Santa

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

This Christmas, check out the Norad Santa website to track Santa as he travels all over the globe. This is such a great website for kids that still beleive, and maybe for the older ones too. They can explore the Santa's North Pole Village, learn the history behind Santa Claus, learn "technical" data about Santa's sleigh, and follow a tally on how many cookies Santa has eaten on Christmas Eve. I think this is a great little project that NORAD is doing, and sure to keep the magic of Santa alive and well.

P.S. Check out Santa's Village. It's probably a little late to plan a trip for this year, but there is also a place where children can write to Santa and get a letter back from him in return. There is also a link with some great Christmas stories.

Family Moment Monday - Christmas Traditions

I am participating in a special edition of Family Moment Monday. Visit Motherhood for Dummies to read about other Christmas traditions, or to post your own.

There are a lot of Christmas traditions in my family, but one of my favorite was the placing of baby Jesus. We used to set up our Nativity Scene every year underneath the Christmas tree, but we would not put baby Jesus in the manger. On Christmas Eve every year, after we had returned from midnight Mass, one of us children would be able to put baby Jesus in the manger. I always would look forward to when it was my year to do it!

Speaking of midnight Mass, that was also a great tradition in my family. We would go to midnight Mass, and somehow Santa would have visited our house while we were gone. I still don't know how my parents did it, because I don't remember them ever taking separate cars!

My dads side of the family has never been huge gift givers. For the adults, we do a Secret Santa, which we call a Cherry Pie (because originally we put all the names in a little plastic cherry pie). The adults just get a gift for the one person they pick, usually under $20. As children we always had presents, but we usually didn't get tons of the hottest and newest toys. My grandma would get us things like socks and towels. To be honest, we loved them! In fact when I was 11 or 12, my grandma got me these two pairs of flannel pajamas that I have worn every single winter until this year, when I decided to let them go. Of course, I ran out to Walmart and got an identical pair because I loved them so much!

How about you, what are your Christmas traditions?

Family Moment Monday - Christmas Letter Tips

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

I know there are some really good, organized families out there that already have their Christmas cards written, stamped, and mailed. I'm pretty sure though that there are other procrastinating mommies like me, absolutely determined to get those cards out as soon as possible. I always seem to have writers block, so this year I did a few google searches to see if I could get any help. Here are some of the most common suggestions I've seen:

*Start positive - Always start your letter on a positive note. Nobody wants to hear about how sad you are that the year has already come and gone.

*Keep it Simple and Short - While family and friends do want to know about the highlights of your year, they don't want to read through 2 or 3 pages of it. Try to keep your letter to a page or less for maximum family enjoyment.

*Restrain the Adjectives - I myself am 100% guilty of this one. "Our wonderful family had a fantastic year doing many amazing things, etc." Try to use your normal every-day conversational voice. Use adjectives sparingly so that when you do use one, it has a real impact.

*Include Photos (But not too many) - A photo is worth a thousand words, use them to add to your letter without making it longer. On the other hand, cramming thirty tiny thumbprint pictures from your last family vacation is just going to make your letter look sloppy. If Grandma really does want to see all those pictures, consider adding a CD full of photos for her to peruse at her own leisure.

*Use White Space - Make your letter visually appealing by leaving plenty of white space around the borders and in between paragraphs. Also consider using italics and bold to really highlight the main points of the letter.

*Be Creative - Consider using an alternative format for your card this year. I found so many neat ideas like making your letter a quiz, writing a comic strip, and rewriting a classic Christmas poem or song. I also found this great form letter, for those who have no time, but still want to make it fun.

*Read it Out Loud - Before you hit print, read your letter out loud. Most grammatical, punctuation, and vocabulary errors can be found by reading out loud. If the letter sounds awkward, it will also read awkward. (See Philip, I used my English degree for something!)

If all else fails, and there is no way that card is going to go out in time, consider sending out New Years cards! Happy letter writing! :)

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

Thanksgiving is all about gratitude and spending time with your family, but preparation can be very stressful and time consuming. Here are a few tips to help you get through it faster so you can spend more time with your family. :)

*Casual Buffet - Instead of going all out with fancy table settings and centerpieces, set up an area to place all the finished food, drinks, plates, and other items needed for dinner. Have people serve themselves and then sit and visit where they are most comfortable.

*Paper/Plastic - Although this is not as environmentally friendly, try using paper or plastic plates, cups, and utensils. This will allow you to skip a big portion of clean up time so that you can spend more time with your family and friends.

*Make ahead - A lot of the side dishes and desserts can be made ahead of time. Pies can be made and stored several days in advance, while many side dishes can be prepared ahead of time and reheated on Thanksgiving day.

* Use a Roaster - If you have limited oven space, use an electric roaster to cook the turkey in. Then you can cook the side dishes in the oven, and not be stressed out about not having enough time to cook them.

*Split the Responsibility - If your guests ask if they can help, don't hesitate to ask if they can bring a side dish or a dessert. My sisters and I split the responsibilities so that no one is stuck making the entire meal by themselves.

*Be a Duck - Many times, bickering and arguing are ways in which some people deal with the stress of the holiday. When something goes wrong with the meal, or you hear an unwelcome comment from a family member, try to remember that getting upset will only make it worse. Roll with the punches and you may find that your peaceful attitude is contagious.

Does anyone else have any Thanksgiving tips?

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

I've been trying to think of various Thanksgiving crafts when I remembered an activity that I used to do with my housemates in college. We wanted a fun and visual way to show what we were grateful for, so we came up with this neat little craft.

Get a posterboard or large piece of butcher paper and draw or paste the body of a turkey on it. Cut out several small leaves out of various colors of construction paper (brown, yellow, red and orange are the prettiest). These will be the feathers for the turkey. If your kids prefer, you can use feathers made out of traces of their hands instead.

On Thanksgiving, before your guests arrive, tape or tack the turkey to a wall and set up a small table or stand next to it with the turkey feathers, markers, and tape. As each guest arrives, have them write their name and what they are thankful for on the feather and tape it to the turkey body.

This is not only a fun craft to make ahead of time, it is also a fun conversation piece. Remember to take a picture after everyone is finished so that you'll have a visual momento!

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

If you are like me, then your leftover Halloween candy is both a desired indulgence and an unwanted temptation. So other than eating a handful of chocolate every hour for the next several days, what are some other ways to deal with all the candy?

*Make an Advent Calender! Count down the days to Christmas by placing a piece of candy for every member of your family for every day in partitioned drawers, plastic cups, and fabric. For an example Advent Calender, go here.

* Donate your candy to Operation Gratitude. This program sends your leftover candy to the troops stationed overseas in care packages. For more information go here.

*Crush up your candy and separate the different kinds into different Tupperware and refrigerate them. For the next few times you eat ice cream, you can add in these special mix-ins for an extra treat!

How do you plan on using your extra candy?

Family Moment Monday - Scavenger Hunt

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

When was the last time you went on a scavenger hunt? If it's been awhile, you are missing out! There are so many variations that make this a great activity to do for all ages. Below are some of the most common types of scavenger hunts.

Backyard Scavenger Hunt - This is a great variation for even the littlest ones in your family. Make a list of items that can easily be found in the backyard andgive each person/team a bag to collect those items in. Examples: a blade of grass, a circular rock, a leaf that has started to change color, etc.

Newspaper/Internet Scavenger Hunt - Want to play with family/friends that live far away? Gather a list of pictures and articles or websites that can be found online or in a newspaper.

Tourist Photo Scavenger Hunt - If you are visiting a new city, make a list of touristy things to see and do . Take a photo of each item (this is a litle easier to play with a digital camera). Examples: Standing in front of the Golden Gate Bridge, standing on Broadway, etc.

Food Scavenger Hunt - Go to a local grocery store or farmers market and try to find a list of exotic or interesting foods. If you want, you can even have your family help you grocery shop by making it into a game of who can find the most items the fastest (while still being courteous to other shoppers of course!)

The best part about scavenger hunts is that they are free! You can play any of them as a race, or just for the fun of it. Any variations that I missed?

Family Moment Monday - Messy Scrapbooking

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

Scrapbooking is something that it seems that every mother wants to try to do, at least while their children are young. The problem is that finishing (or starting!) that ever allusive baby book tends to get lost in the hustle and bustle of round the clock feedings/diaper changes/meal making and other general chaos that is life as a mom. It is actually a little bit ironic that scrapbooks are meant to be a way to record your children's lives, but at the same time are supposed to be perfect, beautiful creations that in no way reflect the hectic reality that we often live.

So I am a big supporter of messy scrapbooking. There are lots of ways that you can scrapbook, both in the traditional sense, and by thinking a little outside of the box, without having to sacrifice large chunks of time and energy (not to mention expensive supplies.) Here are a few ideas:

*If you don't have time to scrapbook now, but would like to try in the future, don't rely on your memory. Keep a running word file with all the things you would like to scrap, and any ideas for layouts you might have. This will make the actual task of scrapbooking much more manageable and enjoyable in the future.

*Instead of a scrapbook, try a scrapjournal. Keep a nice journal in an accessible area and whenever something important or cute happens in your family's life, record it there. Anyone can contribute: you, your husband, children, aunts, uncles, grandparents. You can even make sections for firsts, funny things family members said, etc. If you wanted to use a large 3 hole binder you could also insert page protectors to put in pictures and children's artwork or school certificates.

*If you want to use a traditional scrapbook, try simplifying a bit. There is no need to use a million little pieces of embellishment, in fact some of the most beautiful scrapbooks I have ever seen are simple layouts on white pieces of paper. Use special paper sparingly to add a decorative punch and remember that the most important things in a scrapbook are the pictures and the writing.

*Speaking of writing, for those of you who have horrible handwriting (like me), don't stress about buying stamps or sticker letters to keep your scrapbook looking perfect. Employ child labor and get your little ones to write headings or decorate pages. It will add a special touch and the messiness will be part of the charm.

There are lots of other ways to preserve memories with little fuss. Our blogs in a way are a great way to do this also. What is another way that you "scrapbook" your family memories?

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

For me, Labor Day = camping. It's not always possible to go though, and even if it were, the campsites are usually overflowing with people and noise on this holiday weekend. So what's a camping lover to do?

Go backyard camping! Pitch a tent in the backyard and set up a campfire. Use your BBQ Grill to make dinner and use the campfire to make smores for dessert. For entertainment you could set up a horseshoe pit, play board games, and later gather around the fire to tell ghost stories. It would help keep everyone in the camping mood if some sort of rule were established to limit access to the house, perhaps only for bathroom breaks and getting ready for bed.

This is a special treat for the whole family and will feel like a mini vacation even though you're at home!

Family Moment Monday-Go Fly a Kite!

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

As summer draws to a close the weather (at least here in New Mexico) is starting to bring us cooler temperatures and more breezes. One fun way to get the most out of these days is to go fly a kite! I don't know about you but there is something about flying a kite that always makes me feel young and carefree.

Don't have a kite? Try making one using straws, sticks or flower wire to make a frame. Tissue paper and plastic grocery bags would probably make good flying material. Or check out this site for more detailed instructions! Here is another site with ideas on how to play various games using a kite.

Have fun, if anyone actually does this, please take pictures, I would love to see them!

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

It is so easy at night to get caught up in the hustle and bustle and to forget to take a little time out for family. Going for a walk is an easy and fun way to connect on a deeper level with your family, away from the distractions of TV, phone calls, work/homework, and all the other little things that keep us from just being with each other. Whether it's a walk to the park or just down the street, it is a nice chance to talk about each others day and get in touch with nature, not to mention getting some exercise to boot!

Sorry it's a short one today, I got home just in time to participate! I promise tomorrow I will upload pictures and give an update of our trip to San Francisco!

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

Here in New Mexico, green chile is our staple food. We put it on everything including eggs, enchiladas, hamburgers, pizza, and so much more! People that live outside of NM don't understand, mainly because green chile doesn't really exist outside of NM. It is not a jalapeno, not a bell pepper, not a myriad of other green peppers that my friends outside of NM try to compare it to. It is wonderful and delicious though, and right now it is on the verge of being in season.

You know how when it is Christmas time, tree lots suddenly start popping up on every street corner? Well every year toward the middle of August, green chile vendors start popping up in NM. My family (and by family I mean my parents and my sisters with their families) get together and buy several 40# bags. Then we take the chile over to my dad's large kitchen and spend an entire day peeling the skin off the chiles and preparing them for freezing by putting them in portion sized freezer bags. It is a lot of work, and at the end of the day my feet and back are definitely ready to quit! But in that day of work there are also endless hours of laughing, storytelling, and sharing of our love for each other. It is one of my favorite days of the year.

Now I understand that not everybody lives in NM, and that not everyone lives near extended family. But try getting your own family together to harvest any crop (I know berry harvesting is big right now in some parts of the country), or even just getting together to prep casseroles to freeze for dinners or give to a charity. I promise the time you spend together that day will more than make up for the amount of work.

Family Moment Monday

Motherhood for Dummies hosts Family Moment Mondays, check her out to get more ideas on how to spend time together as a family!

As an avid bibliophile, reading has always held as special place in my life. Now with a little one, I want to make sure that she inherits this same love of reading. Now that Philip, who is a teacher, is getting ready to go back to work, he looks at reading as a special way of connecting with Michaela when he gets home from work. Michaela and I find a time during the day to pick out a special book, and when Philip comes home from work, Michaela and her daddy read the book together (while I get dinner ready!). Although technically we are not all spending time together at the same time, it is nice that Michaela is able to share a part of this special time with both her parents. As she gets older (and the books get longer) I look forward to sharing this reading time together each night.