Toddler Chore/Good Habits Chart

This has worked well so far!  He gets a purple check mark for every chore/good habit he does and a red x mark for every one he fusses about (after a few warnings).  This is how it looked when I got it at the Dollar Store:

And this is how it looked after I added graphics and my toddler got some checks for good behavior.  I added pictures since he can't read yet. :)  I attached it to the refrigerator and we consult it several times daily (well, at least for the past 2 days).

Fruity Breakfast Cookies

Thank you to my friend Jennifer for turning me on to healthy breakfast cookies perfect for grabbing on the run.  I found two basic recipes online, combined them and added more healthy stuff (and more stuff for taste like butter and salt).  Here are the results, which are pretty tasty and, I think, healthy to boot:

Fruity Breakfast Cookies

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp. butter

½ c peanut butter

½ c unsweetened applesauce

3/4 c brown sugar

4 Tbsp. honey

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

3-4 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 c shredded carrots

1 3/4 c self-rising flour

1/4 c wheat germ

2 Tbsp. flax seeds

1 tsp. salt

2 c quick cooking oats

½ c raisins

½ c dried cranberries

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cream butter, peanut butter, apple sauce, sugar and honey.  Mix in egg and vanilla.  Mix in all other ingredients until well blended.  To make large cookies suitable for grabbing for breakfast, drop 3 Tbsp. portions on lightly greased cookie sheet and press down slightly.  Bake for 15-18 minutes at 350 degrees.  Makes about 16 large cookies.

Mexican Lasagna

My husband doesn't love Mexican food, but he loved this.  I started off by calling it Chicken Enchilada Casserole, but he renamed it Mexican Lasagna.

MEXICAN LASAGNA

Ingredients:

5 tortillas, 

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

½ c salsa

1 can enchilada sauce

½ c sour cream

1 ½ c shredded cheese (I used Monterrey Jack)

Assorted spices to sprinkle on top (I used garlic powder, salt, black pepper, red pepper and cilantro)

Directions:

Mix chicken with salsa and ½ can enchilada sauce.  In square greased casserole dish, spread 1/4 can of enchilada sauce on bottom.  Then layer in this order: tortillas, sour cream, cheese, chicken mixture.  Repeat until dish is almost filled.  Top with rest of enchilada sauce and sprinkle with remaining cheese.  Sprinkle with assorted spices.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. 

How to Communicate with a Toddler…

… who can't quite read yet.

Love Me Some Clothespins

I love clothespins and use them all the time - for various things including bag clips, hanging my son's art work on a ribbon tacked to his playroom wall, and for a makeshift toy when he gets bored.  I found a great way to store them within easy reach in the pantry (please don't judge me for all the junk food!):

Pretty Chicken Salad Plate

Since I was making bug snacks for the little guy, I made a nice, non-buggy salad plate for my big guy.

Bug Snacks

We got a stuffed frog ("Mr. Ribbit") today and discussed a typical frog diet of bugs.  So, naturally, my preschooler wanted to eat bugs.  Here are our bug snacks:

 Orange slices, marshmallows, pretzels and chocolate chips.

Not a very pretty bug, but yummy nonetheless.  Apples, raisins attached with peanut butter, and carrot sticks. 

 Our colorful bugs getting ready to be eaten.

Preschooler eating the bugs with Mr. Ribbit sitting nearby.