Trials of the DIY Basketball Lines & a Holiday Well Spent

Over Memorial Day, we decided to jump in feet first and add some fun to our huge driveway.  I mean what is the point if you aren't going to do something cool, right?
I had mentioned it to my husband since the new house has a really nice basketball goal and all of this space.  First, let me say, I do not like doing projects with my husband, Phil.  He gets cranky if you can't mind read. With this being said, after nearly 17 years of marriage, I was preparing myself mentally. This turned out to be, literally, one of the easiest projects even though it was grueling in some ways because of the accuracy needed for the lines of our do-it-yourself-on-a-budget basketball court.  Thank goodness for Phil and his ingenuity. We do not have lots of money; we have to things on a budget and you totally can, too.  The kids were just excited as if we'd had professionals come in to do one...that's what matters.

This was a great way to spend the holiday, remembering those fallen for our freedom, enjoying the beautiful weather and spending quality time making memories with our kids, making something the whole family could enjoy. My husband is sort of a genius with putting things together, of course that comes with his job so he has the right mind-set to build.  We needed all hands on deck to complete this task, so it was good to have the kids participate since we love basketball from a quick game of HORSE to 1 on 1 or 2 on 2, we play.  I didn't do a whole instruction thing with this as there are lots of resources out there for this.

Here is the short version: Phil got the measurements and we got spray paint; we used a chalk line to make the lines before painting. We outlined the chalk line with painter's tape. Note- do it fast because the heat makes the tape not stay sticky long. We sprayed in between the tape and got near perfect lines.  Phil made a cardboard stencil for the arch. Again, genius, no money needed to buy anything fancy. He is pretty impressive sometimes.

I want to make the kind of memories that don't cost money.  You can buy things, but you can't buy memories. I bake with them, play with them, take them to the beach; things like this will last in their heads and mean more in the long run.  The time I spent with them will live in their hearts long after I'm gone. These little yellow lines you see below will give us hours of family time...quality time.
This court was simple for now.  We are already thinking of exploring ways to add on to it for more detail.  For now, they can work on their free throws, three pointers and such at high school regulations.  Hey, if you can make a basket here, you can do it on any little league team, right? This is where you dribble for hours, shoot til your fingers ache. You perfect your game, Championships are made at practice they say.  I can not tell you the hours and hours where I did this. It gets them outside, like we used to be.  Who doesn't want that? And you know what? It is perfect they way it is and I am so proud of my husband for making this for our family. It can be more detailed (I'm sure it will be), but for now...it is AWESOME!

We spent the majority of this long weekend outside.  No electronics. We played and grilled and enjoyed s'mores over the fire pit.  This is real life and what is important to us right now.  Life is coming at us pretty fast with our oldest daughter. I can't slow down time, nor do I want to. It is her time to become a young adult and make something of herself in the world. Later this year we are planning college visits for her, but for now, let's just get in a quick game of HORSE against your old man. They talk trash and have the best time.  It seems like it was just yesterday, she was four and putting in a basket on daddy's shoulders.  This summer is one I want to remember.  The next one won't be so calm.  Senior pictures, college admissions and the like will rule my world.  I have my kids here for just a little longer, and I want them to remember the fun we always have and the fact that this is the stuff money can't buy.  Memories...they cost nothing, but are priceless.

This is our finished project, the dog approved. Not bad for a $15 dollar project that made my son feel like an NBA MVP.

Go make yours!

Trials of Parenting...We are not your friends.

I have heard some people pride themselves on being friends with their kids. Okay, I get it, I love going to hang for a girls' day and get our nails done and maybe stopping for ice cream, but I am not your friend.  I am your parent, and worst of all...I am your mother.
I will gladly ask how the big test in Chemistry went, but I will also tell you your shorts are too short, give you curfews and bedtimes and follow up with consequences if you don't follow my rules.
Rules are done out of love, not to be mean.  I have two teenage daughters whom I love dearly, but I will crack the proverbial whip if you are not ready on time and I refuse to engage in having boyfriends over at inappropriate times, wearing shirts with too much cleavage and enforcing general hygiene (this list could go on for days). Parents who cave in to their kids every whim so that they will like them are not doing the kids any favors.
Oh, don't get me wrong, I am all about a quick bribe to get me through a long day of shopping with my little guy, but if you have a full on meltdown, then, no you will not be getting zip.
I have never been a fan of the "Johnny, now don't you do that", said 42 times with no emphasis or consequence while little Johnny rudely interrupts, knock things over and the like.  You act like that, you are getting into trouble.  We are leaving, conversation over and expect to lose privileges.
On special occasions, I let up on bed time, and by doing this I show that when you follow my rules you get treated with respect and a reward.  If you text when you aren't supposed to, miss curfew (which we have had happen with our oldest daughter now that she is dating) or don't do your chores, you are not getting to go to a friend's house, or you are losing phone privileges, and the dreaded worst of all...getting grounded.
They are called consequences people. Teach them boundaries.  They need to know how to serve themselves properly away from the home, how to ask for things politely and how to respect other's property.  I have even started having them define their own consequences so that still feel that they have a voice and are heard and can have a say as we are a family unit even though I am ruler of the roost. These rules are in place for safety as much as teaching them from an early age what proper behavior is acceptable for dinnertime. There is a whole article devoted to how important rules are by noted expert, Marianne Neifert, M.D  (Parenting Magazine).
More importantly, we all parent differently.  It is certainly not for me to judge what works in your house, but with that being said, don't you dare step into my strappy sandals without that same courtesy.  Our parenting comes from trial and error. I want to raise respectful, caring individuals that are well liked and get along with others.  I DO NOT have to be well liked by my kids.  I must be doing something right if I get an eye roll or exasperated sigh.  These children are the most precious thing on this Earth to me, and I will be dipped in dog doo before become their bestie. Kids embrace rules; it gives them stability and security.
To sum it up, this is not a democracy in my house, this is a parentocracy where I set the rules, enforce them and encourage independence and respect by setting these parameters. I will pump up the music in the kitchen, make cookies and sing along to some crappy Justin Bieber song, but if I look over and the dishwasher hasn't been emptied, it is game over. We are done with  that for now and you will do what you need to do, and we will continue afterwards. Just without the music as a reminder to do what is expected at 13 years old.
There are lots of different opinions on this, but again, what works in one house may not fly in another. Find what works for you, but let's not have your crazy pants kid screaming over you while we try to talk and never offering to help pick up when they come over.
Don't like my style, that is okay, too. But I will tell you this, my kids won't run willy-nilly through your house, stealing candy and breaking other's irreplaceable valuables without a second thought.  So passive parenting and worrying about being the "perfect parent" comes with a cost. You can take that to the bank.

Trials of the Tin Foil Curls

In the after math of Prompocalypse, just in time for summer weddings and reunions, I have the perfect hair do to add to your arsenal without fail.  We loved the tin foil curls. I will not lie, it took me about 2 hours to do it, but my daughter has very long hair.  Plus, this was the first time I had ever done it. This is a great "how to curl your hair" technique that anyone can do. I am hair do challenged, and can not do all of these intricate styles I see on tutorials, but this I could do.
Get your foil ready by pre-cutting 3 in. by 3 in. squares.  I didn't count, I just made a LOT of them.  I still had to cut more out.  You will also need a flat iron.

Directions:

Section your daughter's hair out in a manner easiest for you. I did ear to ear and pulled the rest of her hair in a low ponytail, concentrating on the top section of her head.
Place a small strip of hair around your finger, wrapping it.
Take your finger out...carefully, and pinch while you get the foil square around it.  Fold over and fold over again once more.
Clamp the hot flat iron down over it at a couple of different angles for around 30 seconds total. That will ensure you heat all of the hair inside the packet. Leave it and move on to the next strip.
This is a great way to get lasting curls for the girl with hard to curl hair.  It stayed for days. She has a lot of, but very fine, hair; her hair curls great, but doesn't seem to have the staying power.  This was not Prom, so I was not going to pay to have her hair done when I am perfectly capable of doing since we were not doing a major style. This was for Homecoming, but I am posting now because you can use this technique for any event where you would do your own hair, but want it to be fabulous!
This is what the first one looked like that I tried:

Be very careful not to stretch out the curl, or pull her hair when removing the packet.  They seemed to come out pretty easily.

Once done, remove them from the top (or whatever was the first section) to the bottom (or last section).

I used my fingers to gently work her hair out; I did so while having her flip her head over.

Style...and you are done!

Great volume. She looked like she had a head full of thick hair!

This is a great way to have fabulous hair without the salon price tag. I recommend it and will use it again for sure. Beautiful, long lasting curls that will make your daughter the belle of the ball!

My First Vlog- Twitter Growth and What I Did

My fist vlog.  I am very self conscious even though public speaking has always been my thing. I am trying my own Beta test to see how this goes and what response I get.  I wanted to share some great info I found from the following folks below.  Enjoy!

Post Planner

Sam Hurley

Socially Sorted

Design Feed

Relay That

Breakfast a Go Go- Sweet Morning Smoothies

This is is the second of two posts I was writing about just a few smoothies I had made.  Lots of people always ask what I put in them. I have a board on Pinterest if you go to the bottom of my site, you can follow me, but I tweak most to cater to what I like. I TRY to cut the calories as much as I can where possible.
These are some of my favorites for a breakfast smoothie, but the blueberry based one below can be used anytime.  Really they all can. It depends on your mood. I switch it up a lot so that I don't get bored with the flavors.  I went on a 21 day cleanse of my own making where I used these smoothies for breakfast and lunch and ate a smart dinner with a protein serving (around 100-200 grams), a veggie and a fruit.  Most of my plate consisted of colorful veggies.  I have certainly done the research because let me tell you, dropping 80 pounds was the hardest thing I ever did.
This cleanse I did for 21 days to just freshen up my metabolism; I lost about ten pounds and kept it off with exercise and proper eating habits.  My skin looked amazing. Diet is a four letter word to me. Adopt a healthy lifestyle- that is what you have to do.  I want to be around for my children and their children and enjoy life.
Let's get right to it!

First up is a little Orange Crush! That name just makes it sound cooler.

Ingredients:

In blender add:
1/2 cup of a low calorie orange juice
1/4 cup water*
1/2 banana
2 tsp silken tofu
Ice enough to make cold and creamy
Sprinkle in chia seeds
Blend well
NO SWEETENER!
I ruined my first one by adding truvia.  Too.  Much.  Sweet.  The orange juice is enough.
*You could sub in the unsweetened vanilla almond milk for a creamier base.

Which brings us to the breakfast bliss in a cup!
Seriously, so much deliciousness in here,  I can't. The Cinnamon Roll Smoothie, the Goddess of all Smoothies.

Ingredients:

In blender add:
1/2 cup of a unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup water
1/2 banana
2 tsp silken tofu
A tsp of brown sugar (worth it)
1 tablespoon vanilla Greek yogurt
1 tsp cinnamon (or to your liking)
An extra dash of vanilla extract
1 packet of Truvia
Ice enough to make cold and creamy
Sprinkle in chia seeds
Blend well
You are welcome in advance.  This is the best thing this side of heaven I can assure you.  It does not make you miss having a cinnamon roll at all.  Perfect for the morning when you do offer something warm and sweet for breakfast.  This will make ensure you don't feel left out. Your taste buds will be so glad you made this.

Lastly, we have the Blue Banana. If you aren't thinking of Kit and Vivian right now from Pretty Woman, I am pretty sure we can't be friends.

There is another delightful change that you can make as is and it is beautiful. You can also go big or go home so to speak, by adding a large handful of spinach. Let me warn you, it becomes the ugliest thing you have ever seen,  Still tastes amazing, but it is an eye sore.

Ingredients:
In blender add:
1/2 cup of a unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup water
1 banana
2 tsp silken tofu
1 handful of fresh blueberries
Ice enough to make cold and creamy
Sprinkle in chia seeds
Blend well
Spinach for extra boost if you desire! I made this at work for breakfast regularly, but it was so disgusting looking with spinach that if I did add it, I put in a container that was not see through.

Sometimes I switch and use the brown colored, unprocessed coconut palm sugar in my smoothies. Truvia is a natural sweetener that is so much sweeter than regular sugar; I love that you don't have to use but one packet per smoothie to make it taste good.

I hope you like the six smoothie recipes from this week. Remember, you can add whatever fruit you want.  I love kiwi and strawberry flavor, but I am allergic to kiwi so try that if you can eat it.
Use whatever you want.  Just go easy on the citrus because even though it is natural sugars, citrus has a lot of calories that will sneak up on you.

A note on the Kale debate:
I hate it.  I even tried the baby Kale and it is so bitter that it ruined my drink and I could not use it. That is my opinion only. Try it for yourself.  I am just going to give a hard pass on that one.

Whatever fruit you use is what you taste; the spinach flavor is wiped out entirely by the fruit.
Mix and match to your heart's content and enjoy!

How I Define Myself as a Mom Blogger

When I first started writing years ago before Sex and the City even came out, it was a fun hobby. Then Sarah Jessica Parker made it seems like this was an actual job that I could do. I kept it on the sideline. Then came marriage, a baby, another baby and so on.  It was put on the back burner while I pursued a career in Operations Management running other people's companies for them. I reveled in the fabulousness of Carrie Bradshaw until she went off the air and enjoyed reruns and movies and pretended one day when I grow up (then at age 40 in 2014), that I would do this thing they call writing.  I had been sitting on a book idea for a while and thought this needs to be told.  Friends were told about it, loving it, and I was encouraged. I started writing on paper in a notebook in July of 2015 and have been ever since.  I have also tried my hand in the past few months at blogging. Blogging is way harder than you think. I want to make some money doing what I love, being available for my kids while my husband travels for work, and gaining a presence online that will be helpful in getting a book deal. Let's face it though, I 'm no Carrie Bradshaw.

I feel like most people I know think it is a passing hobby, or that they could do better.  So therefore they won't like your work just to be spiteful. The worst thing people do is just plain ignore the fact you are trying at all. None of which makes sense. I like everyone that sends me a Facebook professional page request, proud for them of putting themselves out there.  I worked for two national speakers and I have learned one thing from all of this...I am tired of making money for other people. I am really good at what I do. What I did, to be more exact, is build business plans, develop and execute strategies for growth and prepare manuals and communications protocols.  Why couldn't I do that for myself? Guess what? I can.  But my head is spinning from the different formats for blogging for twitter promotion and all of the trends and opinions. 

So far in the past two days, I have read to put hashtags in your Twitter bio and then read not to. Which is it? What makes someone right or wrong?  This brings us to today's post---Trial and error. What I did read consistently from twitter content experts like Sam Hurley or Donna Moritz is that you have to try what works.  I read content, not just share it without learning from it. Just like I learned today that you have to have several different angles on query letters to literary agents to see what works, you have to see what your audience wants. There is a massive amount of research that goes into this and I have implemented some of these big time Twitter and visual content experts ideas. I now use words like, "content marketing" and "visual marketing" in a much bigger capacity and understanding then when I outsourced people to handle social media for the company I worked for. I have now increased my presence on Twitter, gained more followers in 36 hours than I did in a week, so something they are doing is working. People are engaging.  I know because I am proof.  I can do this! I used to think 25 new daily followers daily was incredible; now I am up to almost 100 a day. 

What else am I learning as mom in the chapter of life?
1. You must learn something new weekly if not daily.
2. You must find a niche. Key word in our business.
I was struggling with that until I saw that a lot of mom's blogs and how to build these blogs, but in a mom blog over saturation, most can't be heard above the noise.  It is the retelling of the same old thing. First time mothers are looking for support everywhere, I did.  But those like me now, with three children...that's really not where I am. I love talking with other moms, finding what works for them and trying it for myself. A lot just..aren't. They didn't invent the wheel and aren't going to gain my readership because they aren't giving me new information where I can grow as a parent. How to build a successful readership? Experts all say, "Define your audience." Words like, "niche marketing" are everywhere. What I am closing in on, is the growth hacking mom. I myself want to read articles that teach me something or shed new light on a subject.  You can write about diaper duty all that you want, but why should we listen to you? Most are not defining that. They crank some articles out with some success, but in the long run can you make that switch to the Big Time? They aren't honing in on what specific tip makes them better.  I think I can combine my success in my growth hacking blog and cross over into my mom blog universe. If DC and Marvel can do it, then so can I. This is my world for right now, and even though I struggle for my place in the online world, I am evolving. Listening. Participating. Learning. I can shed some light onto this mom blog arena. I think I can be of use,  not in writing every little family antidote, but helping shape others into powerful bloggers with a few growth hacking tweaks into their niche, to market themselves better.

I am a long way from being a blogging niche marketing success story. I have lots to learn, and I want to be involved in writing so I can be present for my children. I may not sit at my lap top with a view out of a brownstone like Carrie, wondering if I should call my editor back yet or go for cocktails, but I have a great view of my backyard with my son and my very own Mr. Big, playing baseball.  That call from the editor, it will come.  I will make it happen.  And when I do, I will be wearing my Manolo Blahniks just like Carrie. I'll be posting things about my agent and editor and discussing latest trends like a boss.  Those who weren't so supportive of my "hobby" will be the ones trying to get my attention the most.  I just may be pondering whether to call them back, or go for cocktails. Who am I kidding? Being the fun loving, encouraging person I am, I'll invite them.  Because they need to see when you have a dream, you make a dream come true. You do that by making the dream a reality, and make that reality a goal. Make this life we are given count. I want to do what I love. What I love, is to tell a good story, offer some advice and encourage those who can't find it in themselves to push forward in their struggles. I can make a difference the same as anyone else. I even have two articles on motivation published at an online magazine Inspire Us that I am very proud of.  Now I am on here, on The Huffington Post. I plan writing the way I have been doing it so far... one story at a time. Making the money at writing will come.  I may be on to this whole niche marketing thing; then again it may be a bust. However, I have some huge social media influencers with over 130K follower that are taking note and retweeting my growth blog posts. One even suggested this niche market for me. Right now I am more proud of what I do than any multi-million dollar I ever closed. The best part? I am not making a dime, but I am rich in self worth.  I am here for my children and someone else isn't raising them for me. Now that, is something far more valuable than money.

Trials of the Smoothies, the good, the bad and the yummy!

This weekend was a whirlwind of events, baseballs games, sleepovers and getting a shelf finally put together for the kitchen with storage for the kids and all their stuff.
I have some wonderful friends that I have been lucky to have since 4th grade from my hometown. One of these friends in particular asked me about smoothies; I was so thrilled to hear she was the loving the blog overall, that I told her I would dedicate a whole post to smoothies.  I have become a bit of a Smoothie Queen.  I got several co-workers hooked a while back and even the kids have their favorites.  The thing to remember is protein and what are you using for...snack or meal? Let's break it down and I will share a few of my personal recipes I have made up and most, as I have mentioned, I tweak what I find for what works for me.  I try to keep it as natural and non processed as possible for maximum health benefits.

FOR THE KIDS:
I usually make this a fun snack after school or if we are headed to a practice.  There are two versions.
1. The Ogre Smoothie (got to make it fun for the little guy)

Ingredients:

In blender add:

1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1/4 cup water

Add a large handful of fresh baby spinach and blend

Then add 1/2 a banana (can add other fruit of your choice that your child prefers

 (ex. 3-4 strawberries)

1 tsp of silken tofu

1 packet Truvia

Ice enough to make cold and creamy

Sprinkle in chia seeds (if you think your child will handle with out refusing the whole thing)

Blend well

2. Banarama (yep my favorite 80's band)

Ingredients:

In blender add:

1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1/4 cup water

1/2 banana or whole if you prefer

1 heaping tablespoon of PB fit powder already made (my preference), but you can use any type you prefer

1 packet of Truvia

Ice enough to make cold and creamy

(chia seeds if your child won't freak out, my 6 year old son has yet to embrace these)

Blend well

For the adults:

I have several; today I will post three and three more in another post later this week.

These are many versions of basically this same smoothie (ogre, original and stay juicy)

Note: I have a friend who is concerned about extra protein and having kidney stones, so please use your best judgement.  I don't use protein powder hardly at all anymore.  I use the silken tofu as an alternative. Please talk to your health care provider if choosing a protein supplement in a meal replacement shake.  Otherwise they can be made sans protein for a healthy snack.

Version one:

The Original

See the Ogre Smoothie ingredients from above

For fruit, I prefer a 1/2 banana for the flavor but switch up my fruits often so as not to get bored.

Version 2:

The Juice Based One

Stay Juicy

Ingredients:

In blender add:

1/2 cup (I break down bottle into thirds) Suja Brand Juice* of your choice. (1 bottle=3 smoothies)

My preference is Berry Nana or the Sweet Beets

No extra fruit is required. You may add 1-2 strawberries or raspberries if you prefer.

For Sweet Beets, I do add 5-6 red raspberries because I find this one not as sweet and I do want to love drinking it. The raspberies make this seet and tart. It is a fan favorite.

1/4 cup water

Add a large handful of fresh baby spinach and blend

1 tsp of silken tofu

1 packet Truvia

Ice enough to make cold and creamy

Sprinkle in chia seeds

Blend well

(SWEET BEETS IS MY ALL TIME FAVORITE MIX)

*Please read on Suja juice and why you should use vs regular processed juice. Remember, I do the dirty work and you get to reap the benefits)

Version Three:

Morning Blast

My breakfast go to drink

In blender add:

1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1/2 cup coffee of your choice

2 tsp silken tofu

1 packet of Truvia

Ice enough to make cold and creamy

Chia Seeds

Blend well

Goes well in the to go cup to take with me when I am out the door in the mornings. Perfect for the weekends when running out early. 

I hope you enjoy.  I have another pick me up for the mornings and two other regulars for later this week.  I want to deliver as promised. Healthy living is not easy, I am trying to make it simple.  I lost 80 lbs 4 years ago with hard work and really immersing myself in what to eat.  Please link to the Suja brand I provided to read and educate yourself on why things work and why they don't.  I am passing this education on to you. I did the work...you enjoy! We are all in this together...one trial at a time.

Trials of Organization - t-shirt folding in drawers

I am a simple mom with a simple blog. No muss no fuss, but I get to the heart of the matter for us moms. So you know I try the things we all see on the web and on Pinterest; the ones that I think are most useful to myself or to other moms like me, I give it a go.  This week's trial is the whole t-shirt folding into upright position in drawers to save space and clearly see your shirts. (WHEW! That's a long explanation!) I watched some tutorials and here are my findings with pictures that you can check out what I did and follow along.
First, I do not have, nor will I purchase, the t-shirt or shirt folding tool.  I have a large home, but seeing as it is an old farmhouse, there is just no storage.  Maybe if I had a larger laundry room, I might purchase, but truthfully, if you aren't an absolute perfectionist, then it is not needed.  I pulled out all of my husband's t-shirts and removed his shorts from the bottom drawer of his armoire.  You could not tell what shirt was what, and I agree this method is amazing for seeing what you want to see any time and it also can be made even easier by color coding.

1. I start by laying the shirt face down.



2. Next, I take the side on my left and fold over to the middle, making sure the sleeve is neatly folded down.



3. Then, you do the same thing with the other side folding to meet in the middle.



4. Almost done...we then fold the bottom halfway up to the middle and then fold the top back to you so you can see the shirt's front for the end result.



This is the finished result below...his new drawer!

Previously, his shirts took up a two foot high gap on a long shelf in the armoire and only had two columns across; they were jammed in there.  You could not see any of what you wanted, and the problem is that shirts don't get rotated.  Here, you are always perfectly organized and more likely to wear different shirts if you can access them all easily. He has some really cool band t-shirts to sports apparel. He really could not wear the same one for months if he could access them more easily. Now we can see if he does!

Time of project:
35 minutes or so and this was  a LOT of shirts.  I could then put my hubby's shorts on the shelf vacated and you CAN see all of them as well now as they are flat and viewed now from top to bottom. Before, they were all buried in the one big, long drawer that now is home to his t-shirts.  I also opened up a whole drawer on the side because I had the space to add his white shirts to the drawer (they are on the far right and not seen in the last picture).

Things to consider:

The only thing that I don't do that some tutorials show you, is that they fold the shirt in half yet again.  My husband wears XXL shirts...not happening in this scenario to work well enough for me. What an amazing space saving idea this is, plus you can ACTUALLY SEE YOUR SHIRTS!!

I find that the dry fit shirts and the super thin, cotton ones that are flimsy or a little unstable do not do as well. Other than that, if you pull one out, they ALL STAY STANDING!!!

No need for fancy tools when you can do it nicely yourself.  It may not be spot on accurate and perfect, but it is certainly working for me.
I could not believe the shirts he has that we have not seen in AGES because they were always hidden in the pile. Once at the bottom, they likely stay there. Game day, no problem... find all of your collegiate or professional sports wear easily.

I love this idea and I give it TWO THUMBS UP!

Trial of the Week- Homemade Brownies

Happy, Monday!
I have a short blog post today for the homemade brownies that my daughter made over the weekend.  I didn't even get a picture as the kids had them all gone before I could take one.  True story.  I have issues with most recipes in one way or another.  For example, I feel that sometimes there is not enough of one thing or too much of another.  I also know what my family likes and I will adjust accordingly.  So I basically wing it and write it down in case it works and make adjustments if needed.
We made brownies that were so moist, they were like a little party in your mouth!
We used a small glass pan (greased) and cooked at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Oven times may vary.
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2/3 c melted butter
1/2 c boiling water*
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c flour
1 1/2 c broken dark chocolate pieces**
*I had read that boiling water breaks down sugar and mixes everything well and this is first time incorporating into a recipe. I thought this was a dose of pure craziness and not sure if that is even the real reason.  It worked well!
**We had mini dark chocolate bars left over from Easter.  I put in a Ziploc bag and smashed with a hammer. Baker's chocolate squares or chips would do.

I never do what recipes call for unless I am totally unfamiliar with what it is I am making, so I just mix it ALL together at once. 
I placed in the pan and cooked until a knife came out clean.  These were absolute heaven.  I took a tiny pinch of one; what I wanted to do was eat the entire pan as quickly as possible, but I can't do that and I was able to walk away.  I have learned from my healthier lifestyle that I can enjoy a bite and walk away.  You do not have to pig out on it, and then feel bad. It would be awful for my weight to have just one so I don't.  I have learned what I can and can not do in a trial by fire I guess you could say.  If you haven't, then you need to read some of my blog posts on how to control this sort of thing.

I wish I had a photo; they were beautiful.  Apparently, they were downright irresistible to teenagers running around on a Friday night.

I enjoy baking with my kids.  It is a good lesson for them to learn how to cook and we put on music and sing and dance, and just plain have fun! Sometimes you need just enough crazy to keep you sane. So in honor of Prince, we played some rocking tunes while we cooked.  I am so glad my kids love all kinds of music.  They would be missing out on so much if all they knew was Justin Bieber.  They love real music from blues to country, and rock to pop. I am a trendy mom, and this is just another of our trials that we face in creating well rounded kids.  Be the mom that makes the memories.  Even when all you want to do is sit, do so, but take the time to build Lego cities or make brownies or do cool Pinterest nail art. This is what they will take with them when we are gone...the memories that were made, not the things we bought them.