kids

Tasty Chewy Brown Sugar Oatmeal Cookies!

Abby H.2 Comments

Screen Shot 2016-05-31 at 6.11.51 PMDuring a recent pantry clean out, I discovered 3 pounds of brown sugar.

So, I unleashed my google fu to find a recipe to use some of it up. I discovered this recipe from The Pioneer Woman, but it didn’t quite meet our needs (aka what was in the kitchen). So with some changes, I whipped up a batch of chewy, yummy, spiced oatmeal cookies that are sure to please even the finickiest cookie monster!

 

I had to make 3 batches because they just kept disappearing!

Spiced Brown Sugar Oatmeal Cookies (Adapted from this recipe )

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) Salted Butter, Softened
  • ½ cup coconut oil, room temperature
  • 1/2 Cups (packed) Brown Sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
  • 2 whole Eggs
  • 1-1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 2 teaspoons each: Cinnamon, allspice, ground ginger, nutmeg
  • 3 cups Old Fashioned Oats

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Beat together the butter, coconut oil, and sugars until fluffy. Beat in vanilla and eggs.

Mix together the flour, salt, baking soda, and spices in a separate bowl. Add it into the wet ingredients, mixing it until just combined. Mix in the oats until just combined. Don’t overmix!

Drop scoops/spoonfuls of dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet, spacing them a couple inches apart. Bake for 12-13 minutes or until dark and chewy.  These cookies spread when you bake them, so make sure to give them room to grow!

Let them cool slight on the pan after removing from the oven, then transfer the cookies.

Makes 24-36 cookies (depending on the size cookie you make)

 

How to organize the dreaded toy mess!

Abby H.

One of the things I pride myself on is how we are able to quasi-control the toy mess in our home. It’s a lot of work, but we have a pretty good system, and it might work for you too.

Stage 1: Contain the mess! First of all, a few years ago, hubs bought a bunch of 20 quart Steralite containers with snap on lids at an auction for a song. So, we separated all of the toys by type and put them in boxes with a lid.

IMG_5483Obviously the Legos and Thomas the Tank Engine toys go into larger boxes because, well, we have tons  more then will fit in the 20 quart containers. We also re-use random plastic containers, like these plastic jugs that hard pretzels come in, the large bottles that Nesquik powder comes in, and dishwasher tab boxes.

Stage 2: Label! We label everything. All of the original totes have Kidecals labels, but the newer /larger containers have different labels. I try to do labels that have drawings of the toys too, so it’s easier for non-readers to know what’s in the box without opening them.

I used the terminology that Lil’ Man uses for his toys. The box marked “Guy Men” has action figures and little toys (like his Sesame Street “guys”), and “Mean Animals” (Plastic/Vinyl animals of various sizes).

IMG_5486_2Some of the toys that don’t get a lot of play (or annoy me), are stored in the closet. I rotate the less frequently played toys through, so that all of the toys get loved.

IMG_5485_2Stage 3: Limit Access! Another thing that helps is that we have a three toys at a time rule. Lil’ Man can have three types of toys out at a time. Right now, it’s guy men, mean animals, and cars.

 

 

Jump into Fun at Rockin’ Jump San Diego!

Abby H.

With summer coming, I know moms and dads will be on the hunt for fun, frugal stuff to do with the kids. I was stoked to learn about Rockin’ Tots at Rockin’ Jump San Diego!

Henry LOVES trampolines! It’s a great way to burn off energy and get some wiggles out. Rockin’ Jump San Diego– is the Ultimate Trampoline Park! Fun for kids of all ages! Rockin Jump has a massive main trampoline jump arena and slam dunk zone. The trampoline dodgeball arena provides something for everyone along with more fun attractions! Rockin Jump also offers the perfect Birthday Party Venue and a healthy family activity!  I can’t wait to take him!

Right now there are some special Deals at Rockin’ Jump – Come jump, flip, bounce and climb at Rockin’ Jump, San Diego’s Ultimate Indoor Trampoline park. Not only do they have a huge trampoline arena, we have dodgeball, a stunt air-bag, Joisting, rock climbing, basketball slam-dunk, a tots-only arena, mini-golf and a cafe’.  There are discounts off the Ultimate Birthday Package, Jump Time and Jump and Mini-Golf combo’s! Find all the great deals here.

We’ll be visiting soon to check out all of the fun and the party package! I’ll be sure to report back with details and tons of pictures!

@usfg

Celebrate Earth Day with a colorful pinwheel craft!

Abby H.

**The links in this post are affiliate links and I will receive a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on my link.

April 22nd is Earth Day. Explore the power of wind with a colorful pinwheel craft!

Wind power is a great topic to explore with kids on Earth Day and can easily be demonstrated with a simple craft. Little Passports has teamed up again with Brandy (from Gluesticks) for her Little Passports’ DIY Earth Day Pinwheels Craft.

These pinwheels come together fast and spin in the wind even faster! Celebrate and Explore your Earth!

If you are looking for other fun crafts, check out my post here about crafting frugally.

Legoland California: Special $35 tickets this weekend only!

Abby H.

unnamedCommunity Days This Weekend!
$35 Admission to LEGOLAND

Support our local science, arts and after school programs this Saturday and Sunday!

Specially-priced $35 LEGOLAND tickets include admission with Park hours extended to 8 p.m. for even more family fun!

Buy your tickets online here. You can also get tickets to the SEALife Aquarium at Legoland for just $9!!

This event is very crowded, so please remember to be patient!

Review: #KABRITA Toddler Formula (Thanks #MomsMeet!)

Abby H.

Screen Shot 2016-04-13 at 5.39.47 PM

Recently I received a neat little box on my porch from Kabrita and Moms Meet.

It contained a canister of KABRITA Goat Milk Toddler Formula and fruit & yogurt pouches.

Immediately, Lil’ Man snagged one of the three pouches (well, not until I got this photo), and he retreated to the table to enjoy it. I gave the mixed berry to Itty Bittums, and she gobbled it up!

In the afternoon, I gave her a bottle of the Goat Milk Toddler Formula after she had some puffs and banana slices. She loved it, and I loved that it didn’t give her a rumbly tummy or gas. She’s got a sensitive tummy, and we had tried countless formulas to find one that made her tummy happy. Now that she’s getting older and is branching out to table foods, we are finding that some cow’s milk based products don’t agree with her.

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Someone did not want their photo taken today while enjoying her “milkies” as we call them

That is not the case with the KABRITA Goat Milk Toddler Formula! She is a happy little girl, and I’m a happy mommy! It’s super easy to mix up- Just one scoop per ounce of water. There is a handy little scoop in the canister.

What I love about the fruit & yogurt pouches is that they are great cold, frozen or at room temp. They come in three yummy flavors:Banana and Natural Vanilla Bean, Mixed Berry, and Mango Peach. I toss them in the freezer and slip one into Lil’ Man’s lunch bag, by lunch time, it’s nice and slushy! A perfect, healthy way to finish up lunch.

Did you know that Kabrita has a trial offer? You can learn more about it here.

Disclosure: I received this product for free from the sponsor of the Moms Meet program, May Media Group LLC, who received it directly from the manufacturer. As a Moms Meet blogger, I agree to use this product and post my opinion on my blog. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of May Media Group LLC or the manufacturer of this product.

How to make money: 6 tips that really work (because I do them!)

Abby H.

money-coins
So last week I wrote about ways to save money without coupons, today we are talking about ways you can actually make money.

These are all things that I do. None of them are iffy, weird, or involve you selling your blood.

  1. Surveys online. Here are two fer shure, legit companies that I use. Pinecone Research (they are always looking for 12-24 or Hispanic demographics) pays $3.00 paypal per survey! My other favorite is PaidViewPoint– They only send you surveys that you qualify for, so there is no wasted time. Payout is only $15.00, so I make payout about every other month. It’s not tons of work, and every little bit helps!
  2. I use cashback apps. My full list of favs can be found here. No lie, I cash out about $50.00 a month between all of the apps downloaded onto my iPhone!
  3. Recycle... Return your bottles and cans for their deposit money. You aren’t really making money so much as you are getting your deposit back. Depending on how much soda/bottled water you consume.
  4. Secret shopping. There are tons of apps and websites that will help you find secret shopping gigs. I recommend checking out Volition.com for a listing of secret shopping companies (and reviews). A few of my friends recommend jobslinger.com as a great resource. I earn about $25.00/week doing secret shopping and that’s for less than 1 hours work! Oh, and I can take Bitty Bird along with me!
  5. Clean out your Closets! About once a month, it seems the kids have grown out of something. Whether it be clothes, toys, or gear. I clean it up and take it to the resale shop. I can either get store credit or cash. There are resale shops for adult clothing, sporting supplies, even furniture!
  6. Turn your Junk Mail into Cash! I’ve been doing this for YEARS, and I love it. You can learn all about Small Business Knowledge Center here.  I just got another $20 Visa GC in the mail yesterday! My second this year!

There are other ways to make money: Have a garage sale, Drive for Uber or Lyft (our friend Brittany does it. She loves it driving for Lyft- she makes her own hours, and gets to meet all kinds of people).

 

How do you make extra money?

50% off at Schoola!

Abby H.

14_MAR_SpringBreak_HERO_Blogger

SQUEE! It’s back! 50% off at Schoola!  Just use Coupon Code  SPRINGBRK at checkout. And in addition, if you are new to Schoola, they are offering $20 free and free shipping when you sign up here.

In addition to offering awesome gently worn kids clothes, Schoola also gives a percentage (40%) of each sale to a school. So you can feel good twice: Once while your saving $$, and again because you are helping support a school in need.

To get started, click here. And I can’t wait to see what you have scored!

My trip to Target, or how you can find savings everywhere!

Abby H.
Seriously, this little face loves to shop!
Seriously, this little face loves to shop!

Last night, Bitty Bird and I headed over to Target to pick up a few things. Armed with my smartphone and a fistful of coupons, we were determined to save some dollar bills!

While browsing the aisles, checking the Cartwheel app for more savings, I was stopped by two college guys (they were wearing SDSU basketball jerseys) who asked me about bacon (why was the bigger package cheaper? Answer- it was a loss leader for the week! Come in for cheap bacon, fill your cart with full price groceries). Then they asked me what I was doing scanning everything with my phone.

Thus began a quick lesson in the middle of the grocery section of Target on how to save money.

First I told them basically everything I mention here.

But really, I told them, what you need is Cartwheel. Target Cartwheel is any Target shoppers best friend. It’s the best app! With that app, I can scan products and it will tell me if there is a discount available for that item. If there is, with one quick swipe, the discount is added to your cartwheel account. At checkout, present your smartphone to the cashier, with the Cartwheel app open, the barcode is scanned, and the savings is instant!

One thing not mentioned in my previous Target post is that Target now has these awesome text coupons. There are signs all over the store so you won’t miss out if you keep your eyes open. Like this week text CARE to Target (827438) to save $5 off a $20 or more purchase on personal care items. These text coupons work just like cartwheel. Pull up the text, click the link, and present the barcode to the cashier at checkout. These coupons are stackable with store sales, manufacturer paper coupons, and cartwheel deals too.

They ended up saving about $25 between Cartwheel, the text codes they found while in the store, a couple coupons found on products (and a few I gave them), and the rebate apps I hooked them up with (you can see my favs here).

Saving money doesn’t have to involve tons of work, hours of clipping coupons, or being “that lady” (or guy, there are couponing dude too).

And for what it’s worth, after my coupons, codes and Cartwheel, I saved over thirty bucks! My bill went from $86 for $53! It’s not sorcery- It’s smart shopping. It’s your money, spend (and save) it wisely!

 

Recipe: Honey Lemon Ginger Syrup

Abby H.1 Comment

P1050863I’m no doctor, but I do know that when we don’t feel good, nothing is more soothing than lemon and honey.

IMG_3602I recently made a very soothing syrup, and I had to share it with you. I put 1/3 cup of the syrup in the bottom of a coffee mug and pour boiling water over it. I have been drinking a mug full twice a day.

It’s quick and easy to make!

Ingredients:

  • 2 C honey (real honey, none of that honey flavored syrup junk!)
  • Juice of 10-12 lemons (reserve two lemons and chop them up)
  • A Thumb sized knob of ginger, peeled and sliced

Directions:

  1. In a saucepan, combine the honey, juice, and ginger.
  2. In a jar with a screw on lid, pack in reserved chopped up lemon pieces.
  3. Cook on low for about 20 minutes. Do Not boil!
  4. Pour honey mixture over lemons.
  5. Screw lid on and let sit on counter until it reaches room temperature.
  6. Store in the fridge.
IMG_3603
Waiting for yummy syrup!
IMG_3601
Hunks of ginger

If you’re looking for the science behind all of this, Lemons contain a lot of vitamin C! Honey is very soothing and coats a sore throat. Remember that honey should not be consumed by anyone under 12 months of age. And ginger contains anti-oxidants.