Fairs, Festivals, and Fun!

Did you go to any fairs or festivals this summer? We hit our share this year: various local festivals and fairs and the state fair. They're all a little different. There was a lot of the traditional booths and some new crazy ones!

LOCAL & CHURCH FESTIVALS
We have a lot of local and church festivals near us. Each one is slightly different, although they always have food and games. Here's what we saw this year.

• Traditional:
• Duck Pond.
• Sucker Pull. This is one of my kids favorites because you always win.
• Soda Bottle Ring Toss.

Duck Pond

• Crazy:  
• Duck race complete with a 15 foot long table running water race track. 
• Candy Booth. You placed your bet on the number you thought the spinner would land on. If you won, you got to pick from the shelves of candy. 
• A wine bottle ring toss for the adults! I didn't win. :(
• Dunking booth (no one got dunked while we were watching).
• A golf driving range.
• Slot machine booth. Just like the real casino, I left with a lighter wallet.
• An ice cream truck that served ice cream and frozen chocolate covered cheesecake. Yummy!

Candy Booth

Dunking Booth

Slot Machine Booth

Driving Range

Wine Ring Toss

STATE FAIR
The state fair is always an adventure. We have to drive a couple of hours to get there, but the kids have a blast. There is a lot to see, do, and of course eat.

• Traditional:
• Pony Rides.
• Petting Area. You could also feed the animals if you bought the food.
• Items for Sale.
• Food. There is always plenty of deep fried food, hamburgers and hot dogs, fries, lemonade, etc. There is a local restaurant that is there every year and they serve huge cream puffs!
• Free samples. Hubby was especially happy with the free bacon they were handing out.
• Pig races.
• Demonstrations.
• Fire safety and driving safety information.
• Crazy:
• Deep Fried Kool-Aid. I admit that I was curious but I was scared too. The scared won and I didn't try it.
• Mobile trailer with Wii games the kids could play for free.
• Make your own cookies! This wasn't super crazy, but it was the first time we had seen it. The kids got to decorate their own cookie (and eat it). It was a big hit with the boys.
• Milk a cow. They have this every year, but I put it in the Crazy section, because where else are my kids going to be able to milk a cow?
• Inflatable fire safety house and an adorable black lab to pet.
• Teeth brushing station. That's right, a teeth brushing station. Sensodyne was giving away a free toothbrush, container, and 2 toothpaste samples. However, you had to brush your teeth at their station to get the freebies!

Deep Fried Kool-Aid?

Making cookies at State Fair

I'm not sure which was our favorite. The boys love seeing the animals at the state fair and the free samples (Who knew they would be so excited to get a pen just because it was free?). They get to play more games at the local and church festivals though, and they love playing games.

Did you go to any fairs or festivals this year? Which was your favorite? What was your favorite part? What was the coolest thing you saw?

Identify This: Part 26

If you think you know what it is, or just want to guess, post in the Comments! For the answer, scroll down to the bottom!

STOP! ANSWERS BELOW!

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes

Love cinnamon rolls? Love pancakes? Have them both! These are an awesome decadent breakfast.
Total Time: 20 minutes

Cinnamon Swirl:
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Mix ingredients together and stick in a Ziploc bag. Seal and let sit to thicken.

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons milk
Heat ingredients in a saucepan. Mix until sugar is melted and everything is mixed together well.

Directions:
1. Make Cinnamon Swirl and let thicken.
2. Mix up the pancake batter. I used a just-add-water pancake mix.
3. Form round pancakes on griddle/skillet and cook on medium heat until bubbles start to show (about 2-3 minutes).
4. Snip the end of the Ziploc bag off and pipe on a cinnamon swirl. Don't pipe too close to the edges or it will melt off.

5. Flip the pancake quickly and cook 2-3 minutes on the other side.

6. Make and drizzle glaze over the pancakes.

HINT: Wipe pan clean with paper towel in between pancakes.

Firefly Fun

The first thing I look for when summer starts are the little blinking lights of fireflies in the yard. Summer is winding down and will be over soon. Why not keep the spirit of summer going inside with these cute little fireflies!

For these cute little bugs, you will need:

• Easter egg(s)
• Pipe Cleaner(s)
• Permanent marker
• Scissors
• Tea Light(s)
• Thick needle or thumb tack

Directions:

1. Use thumb tack or pin to poke holes in the egg. Poke two holes on top where the head is for the antanae. Poke three holes on the bottom on both sides for the legs.

2. Color on eyes with permanent marker (or use round stickers).

3. Draw on the mouth.

4. Cut pipe cleaners to desired length and insert into holes.

5. Cut a piece of duct tape and fold almost in half. You want some sticky part showing so you can stick it to the egg. Cut rounded edges. Make two wings and attach to top of the firefly.

6. Turn on the tea light and place in the egg.

7. Close the egg, turn off the lights and enjoy!

Bacon Dogs

Bacon Hot Dog served with a side of pita chips, green
pepper half filled with yogurt and a berry smiley face.

As I was doing some reading on other blogs, I came across hot dogs wrapped in bacon! I had to try it!

You will need:

• Hot Dogs
• Bacon (about 1 piece per hot dog)
• Slices of cheese, optional

Directions:

1. If desired, cut a slit in the middle of the hot dog and place a piece of cheese inside. Make sure not to cut all the way through.

2. Wrap the bacon tightly around the hot dog. Make sure to cover the entire hot dog. 

3. Place bacon on a cooking sheet with the loose ends of the bacon down. I found it best to use a pan with edges, like a loaf pan or a pizza tray. Otherwise, the bacon grease could drip to the bottom of your oven and make a huge mess.

4. Cook on Broil until bacon is cooked, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side.

5. Serve and enjoy! Add on your own sides to make it a great lunch. I added a pepper bowl filled with yogurt. I made a smiley face on top of the yogurt with blueberries and raspberries.

Where Were You The Night Of...

Every message we hear tells us that we can (probably) keep our kids safe and drug free if we simply talk to them, know who their friends are, listen to our kids (really listen, not just listening with one ear), set clear rules and consequences, praise good behavior, and eat dinner together. Sometimes it iseasier said than done. I saw a quote the other day, which of course I can't find now. The general idea was don't get so caught up in raising good kids, that you forget that you have good kids. I thought about it and I do get caught up in correcting the bad behavior and not praising enough of their good behavior.

I also have boys, which I have been told don't like to talk to their parents as much as girls do, especially as they get older. I'm trying to encourage my boys to tell me about their day and answer questions while they are still young. I figure that if I get them used to talking and answering questions now, it won't come across as interrogating them when they're teenagers. I came up with a list of questions: 

• Who has been your favorite teacher? Why?
• Do you remember your dreams? What was your favorite dream?
• What do you want to be when you grow up? 
• What don't you want to be when you grow up?
• Is there something you wish Mom/Dad did better?
• What is your favorite thing Mom/Dad does?
• Why is the sky blue? (This is especially fun to ask the kids that are always asking you why and what questions!)
• If they don't know, ask them why they think the sky is blue.
• What is the nicest thing someone has said to you?
• What is the nicest thing someone has done for you?
• What is your favorite time/part of your day?
• Where have you always wanted to go?
• If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?
• Who is your favorite classmate? Why?
• Who is your least favorite classmate? Why?
• What is your favorite class?
• What is your least favorite class?
• What are the five best things about you?
• If you were sad or having a bad day, what dinner would cheer you up?
• If you could change three things about yourself, what would they be?
• What are the five best things about Mom/Dad?
• If you could change three things about Mom/Dad, what would they be?
• What makes a good friend?
• What is the best thing we have done as a family?
• What is the thing you have done that you are most proud of?
• Have I ever not noticed that you were upset or sad? What are some of the things I should look for, so I know when you are upset?
• Has someone ever hurt you that you didn't tell me about?
• What is your best memory?
• What is your first memory from when you were little?
• What is the coolest thing you have seen? What made it the coolest thing?

You could learn a lot about your kids by asking them questions. For example, they might not like math class because they mix up 2 and 5. They might have trouble in school because they are getting headaches and need glasses. You can also think of it as your performance review, just like at work. Kids, especially young ones, are usually brutally honest. You might find out things that you can work on too: maybe they think you yell too much or spend too much time at work or on the computer. 

Let them turn the tables on you and ask you questions too!

LINKS:

Center for Missing Children

www.theantidrug.com

This Day Is For The Dogs!

Today is National Dog Day! Celebrate by taking your dog for a walk or playing a game of fetch.

I grew up having a dog and I wanted to have my kids grow up having a dog too. When I was a kid, I had friends who were afraid of dogs because they didn't have much exposure to them. I think a dog is a wonderful family addition: you can play with them, they provide companionship, they provide security, and they can teach responsibility.

Higgins wanted to feed the dog. Apparently, she was very hungry!

My husband surprised me after our first year of marriage by taking me to local shelters to find our first dog together. She is a mutt and is the most patient and good natured dog we could have asked for. We both favor medium to larger sized dogs, so we now have a 60 pound lap dog. She is great with our boys and their antics. She puts up with a lot. The only downfall is that she is so lazy she sometimes doesn't want to go get the ball or stick they throw for her. She doesn't bark much, except when protecting us or the house.

Bernardo "playing cars" with our dog.

Higgins using the dog as a step stool  to get on the couch.

Halloween time

The boys love the dog. When we went on vacation, my parents watched her for us. Higgins cried when they picked her up. They lay on the floor together and watch TV, they love to give her snacks and pats on the head. I think she tolerates them (after all she was an only child for a few years), but they adore her.

In honor of Dog Day, I have some links to dog breed sites and dog products, along with a dog themed Word Find!

LINKS:
Wiki
Animal Planet
AKC
ASPCA

Fun Dog Products:
Dog House (We have an inside dog, but if I were to get her a house it would be this one.)
Collar
Leash
Toys: Kong Wobbler, Nylabone, Stuffed Toys






Now for the Word Find! (You can print it or click on it to make larger.)

STOP! ANSWERS BELOW!

What Is Round, White and Blue?

Easy fruity waffles!

For these super easy waffles, you will need:

• Frozen waffles
• Blueberries
• Powdered sugar
• Syrup, optional

Directions:

1.  Toast the waffles.

2.  Place a blueberry in each square of the waffle.

3.  Dust powdered sugar over the waffles. (I put the powdered sugar in a mesh 

     strainer, held it over the waffles, and gently tapped on the top of the strainer 

     to sprinkle the sugar around.)

4.  Top with syrup, if so desired.

5.  Enjoy!

More Recalls!

Here's some new recalls:

Food:
What: Red Vines Black Licorice Twists (American Licorice company)
Hazard: Lead
Look For: Best Before Date of 020413, 1 pound (16 oz) bags
Contact: American Licorice consumer support at 886-442-2783
Source: FDA

What: Cantaloupe
Hazard: Salmonella
Look For: Chamberlain Farm Produce, Inc. cantaloupes grown in Indiana
Sold At: Retail and grocery stores in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,
            Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin
Source: FDA

What: Dole Salad, Italian Blend
Hazard: Listeria
Look For: 10 oz. Dole Italian, Use-By Date of August 20, UPC 7143000819
Sold At: Alabama, Florida, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania,
            South Carolina, Virginia
Contact: Dole Customer Support (800)-356-3111
Source: FDA

Product:
What: Care Bear Pacifiers by the IDM Group*
Hazard: Choking
Look For: Care Bears on pacifier, TCFC copyright mark, silicone nipple
Sold At: Discount and dollar stores, Walmart, some children's clothing stores from
            10/2009 to 6/20012
Contact: (212) 686-5221, www.pacifierrecall.net
Source: CPSC
*I received the Care Bear pacifier recall in my email from the Consumer Products Safety Commission. However, I could not get their link, nor the company recall link to work. There may be a lot of traffic on their sites causing problems. I wanted to pass on the information, but I have not been able to verify it yet.

Busy Busy Bees

Are you looking for new things to do with your kids? (Especially free or inexpensive things?) Check out your local parks! Many of our local parks offer free nature programs for kids throughout the year. There is a pretty big variety of events: story times, nature walks, holiday events, animal encounters, nature activities.

One of the ones we went to was about honey bees. The park has their own honey bees; they collect honey and sell it at the event. They also sold honey sticks there. If you've never had honey sticks, think of a Pixy Stick. The wrapper is wax and you bite/cut the top off and suck out the honey that is inside. The boys had a blast!

There was a station where they could see a honeycomb and the bees. 

Another station where they could look at an empty bee hive box. They learned about how the bee keepers wear special hats with netting and use smokers to get the honeycombs out of the hive. They also learned that besides making honey, bees help spread pollen to lots of different kinds of plants, which helps the plants grow food we eat (like apples, grapes, etc.).

Higgins' favorite part was the play station that showed the different jobs of the bees, including a vacuum for the worker bees to clean up the hive. 

And finally, a station for the kids to press out the honey into a jar that they could take home (aka buy).

Bernardo and Grandma pressing out the honey

For some bee themed crafts, check out my Fingerprint Bee Hive and Toilet Paper Bee posts!

BEE FACTS:
Bees have 4 wings and 6 legs.
The buzzing sound comes from the bees wings.
Bees smell using their antennas and taste with its tongue and front legs.
Many people think bees are yellow and black, but there are some that are green, blue or red!
One hive can have up to 70,000 bees living in it!
The queen bee is the biggest bee in the hive. She lays the eggs. She can live up to 5 years.
Other female bees are worker bees. They live up to 8 weeks when working.
Male bees are drones. After mating, they die.
Once a honey bee stings you, it dies. Only girl bees have stingers.
Bees live all over the world, except where it is very cold.
Bees go through 4 stages of growth: Egg, Larva, Pupa, Adult.
If a bee finds pollen, it does a dance to tell the other bees where it is.

School Time: A Word Find

Because all the schools are starting back to school, I made a School Time Word Find for today!

HINT: Punctuation and spaces are removed from words in the puzzle.

STOP! ANSWERS BELOW!

Fruity Yogurt Flowers

These are super easy to make and are a great healthy snack or dessert. They take about 35 minutes (from creating to freezing).

For these fun snacks, you will need:

• Yogurt
• Raspberries and/or blueberries
• Parchment paper, cookie sheet (I used a flat Tupperware type of lid since I did not have enough room in the freezer for a cookie sheet.)

Directions:
1.  Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2.  Fill a Ziploc bag with yogurt. (I used strawberry.) Seal and cut the tip off the bag.
3.  Pipe the yogurt onto the parchment paper. You want to make circles about the size of a quarter.

4.  Add on berries.

5.  Freeze for about 30 minutes, or until firm.
6.  Enjoy! Warning: they can melt fast! (However, they didn't even last long enough to melt even a little bit in our house!)

Wind Chimes

Summer is fast coming to an end, and I wanted to make something that would spread some of the summer cheer into the rainy days of Fall. We made a wind chime!

For this craft you will need:

• 1 clay pot
• Clear string or fishing line (make sure it can hold the weight of the pot)
• Metal Bottle Caps
• Buttons (small ones to fit on top of the buttons, and 1 large one. The large button needs to be larger than the drainage hole in the pot.)
• Bells
• Hot glue, glue gun
• Paint (make sure it is for outside use if you are hanging your wind chime outside)

Directions:

1. Paint pot and bottle caps (optional) and let dry.
2. Cut 18" pieces of fishing line.
3. At the end of each string, tie a bell. (If your string is the kind that loves to untie itself like mine turned out to be, place a dot of hot glue over the knot to keep it in place.)
4. Place a dot of hot glue on the top of a bottle cap, place string on top, and then place a button.

5. Make about 5-6 caps on each line.
6. Thread all the strings through the large button and tie into a knot.

7. Push strings through drainage hole in pot and tie another knot at the top (to hang the wind chime).
8. To make sure the strings don't all hang in the middle, hot glue the string to the inside of the pot. Make sure to space evenly around the pot.

Laying strings out to glue on

NOTE: I found some really neat vintage type of bottle caps at the local flea market (10/$1). You might be able to find some at garage sales (you never know what people will collect), local antique type of stores, or just save your bottle caps from your drinks! You can also check out www.bottlecapco.com; they sell a lot of different kinds of bottle caps. (I haven't bought from them before, but it looks like they have a large variety.)

I used some bottle caps from adult type of beverages. For those bottle caps, I glued the button/string to the top of the cap. On the vintage type of caps, I wanted the tops to be seen, so I glued the button/string to the back of the cap.

Identify This: Part 25

If you think you know what it is, or just want to guess, post in the Comments! For the answer, scroll down to the bottom!

STOP! ANSWERS BELOW!

Put A Stick In It: Fruit Kabobs

I try to get the kids to eat new foods regularly. On our last trip to the grocery store, I picked up a starfruit (aka carambola), which we had never had before. I did some reading on the starfruit before I bought it to tell which ones were ripe (feel firm, brown ridges, should be a yellow color. Whoops, I think ours was too green!) and what they would taste like (pear/apple/citrus combo). Lately, the kids have enjoyed eating anything on a stick, so I thought if I placed it on a fruit kabob it would be a success.

The kids ate the rest of the fruit (peach, apple, blackberry, banana, strawberry, cantaloupe, cherry, blueberry). They took a few bites of the starfruit, but didn't eat all of them. I think that is partly my fault; when I bought it I only remembered that the ridges were supposed to be brown, but forgot it should be a yellow color too. The fruit was still pretty green and was probably not as sweet as it could have been. Oh well, I learned and we'll buy a yellower one next time!

Kabobs in a basket. Place foam block
in bottom of basket and cover with
tissue paper. Poke in skewers!

Starfruit slice

Starfruit

LINK:
Wiki, Carambola

World's Largest Entertainment McDonald's

Both hubby and I went to Florida when we were children and decided that this was the year we would take our kids. While we were there, we stopped at the World's Largest Entertainment McDonald's. We saw some ads for it and decided to try it. After all, how often is it that we were going to be in Florida and get to go to the Worlds Largest Entertainment McDonald's? The kids were super excited because McD's is a "sometimes treat" in our house and the play area is an even bigger treat. (I had a friend who worked at the golden arches in high school and I heard stories about the play equipment. Even though I wash the kids' hands at the end, the thought of all the germs makes me shudder, so they don't get to go to the Playplace very often.)

Anyway, back to the post. This McDonald's had some pretty cool features: automated trash cans, an arcade and game area (complete with prize redemption center), a birthday room, a stage, a picture booth, plus a play area. They sold regular McDonald's fare, as well as "gourmet bistro" food, pizza, and cakes for dessert.

Trash Can

Bowling

Play area

There were some cons too. Ordering was confusing if you had never been there before, as there were no signs directing where you needed to go. First you placed your order at the ordering station. If you placed a bistro order, you received a buzzer. Then you walked 4 feet forward to the real cash registers to pay. If you ordered regular McDonald's menu items, you got them here (for example, Big Mac or Happy Meals). If you ordered bistro items (chicken quesadillas, cakes, pasta, philly cheese steaks, pizzas), you had to wait until your buzzer went off and then pick it up at the Bistro counter.

There can be a long wait for the bistro food. I received my quesadilla and peanut butter explosion cake within 5 minutes. However, my father in law ordered a philly cheese steak and chicken alfredo pasta and had to wait about 15 minutes. He later ordered a chocolate corruption cake (which comes pre-sliced and prepackaged) from the Bistro menu and had to wait a long time for that too. I received a metal fork with my dinner, but my in-laws received plastic forks, even though we both ordered off the Bistro menu.

Chicken Alfredo Pasta

Chicken Quesadilla with Peanut
Butter Cake

If you are in Orlando, Florida and your kids need to burn off some energy, this might be the place to stop. While the ordering was slightly confusing and the service/wait time inconsistent, everyone had a good time. The food was pretty good (not sit-down-and-relax-restaurant good, but definitely better than the normal McDonald's fare) and there were lots of things to keep all ages of kids entertained.

Chillin' With Ronald

Chocolate Cake

Philly Cheese Steak

LINKS:
World's Largest Entertainment McDonald's
History of McDonald's
Wiki, Ronald McDonald