Candy Train Party Favors

These little candy trains were among my favorite touches for my son's 5th birthday party.  He had a Thomas the Train theme, and I thought these would make cute favors.  The idea I found online called for rolls of Lifesavers to serve as the main body of the train.  But if anyone has looked for those rolls of Lifesavers lately, you’ve probably seen that they just aren’t readily available anymore.  After going to five stores, I gave up and found these push pops instead.  I thought they worked absolutely perfectly.  And with the wonders of a hot glue gun, these fun little favors didn’t take long at all!

Wonderful Blueberry Muffin Recipe

Here is a recipe that I think is definitely worth sharing.  My kids love blueberries, and I mean meltdown in BJs because they can’t get the carton open love blueberries.  So I always liked making them blueberry muffins for breakfast.  The problem was that the packaged blueberry muffin mixes never turned out well for me.  I have tried different oven temperatures, different rack positions…they always get burnt on the edges and barely cook in the middle.  So a couple of years ago, I went on a quest to make an awesome blueberry muffin batter.  Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
8 Tbsp butter
2/3 c sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c buttermilk (or 1 c milk with 1 Tbsp white vinegar, let set for 5 minutes before adding to batter)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 c blueberries

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a bowl.  Beat butter and sugar in a separate bowl from dry ingredients.  Add vanilla extract and egg to butter mixture.  Beat well until smooth.  Add flour mix and buttermilk alternating, ending with flour.  Bake 20-25 minutes.  When muffins are done, melt 4 Tbsp butter.  Dip muffins in melted butter and then in a mixture of 1/3 c sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon.

 

These are wonderful with or without the extra sugar/cinnamon topping, but I love that added sweetness.  The kids tear into these every time.  And I have never had an issue with the edges burning or the middle not cooking through.  These are also very versatile…the blueberries can be replaced with any flavor you like.  Happy baking!



 

Oh, and one side note, I’ve learned it never hurts to pray before cooking anything.  I got cocky with chocolate chip cookies once, and God put me in my place very quickly.  Not sure to this day what went wrong, but those cookies were horrible!  Our Heavenly Father is very good at reminding us that everything good we do is only with His help!

Easy Summer Recipes

The radishes were ready to harvest this week!  I am so incredibly excited to start eating the veggies from our garden.  Nothing can come close to topping the feeling of having and raising kids, but my second favorite thing is watching a garden grow into happy, healthy vegetables without pesticides.  So I figured, in honor of the first harvest, I would post a couple of my favorite quick and easy summer recipes.  Hope you enjoy!

I used the radishes and some of the lettuce and spinach from our garden for one of my favorite salad recipes, Cranberry Spinach Salad.  The original recipe is:

Ingredients
1 lb. spinach or mixed greens               1/2 c white sugar
3/4 c sliced almonds                            2 tsp minced onion
1 c dried cranberries                            1/4 tsp paprika
2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds               1/4 c rice vinegar
1/2 c vegetable oil                               1/4 c cider vinegar

Directions
Toast almonds in oven at 350˚ for about 8 minutes.
Combine spinach/mixed greens with almonds and cranberries.
Whisk together sesame seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, vinegars, and oil.
Toss with spinach mixture just before serving.
In this particular salad, I added radish and substituted raisins and pecans for the cranberries and toasted almonds.  It was still good, but I far prefer the cranberries and almonds.

Bacon Wrapped BBQ Pork Chops

Love, love, love this recipe.  It’s so very quick and easy, so it’s perfect for making when I get home from work.  Hubby and the kids love it, too.  Start by seasoning the pork chops with salt and pepper.

Then wrap in bacon (I’ve used turkey bacon for this, too, and it’s wonderful).  And sear in a skillet, about 3-4 minutes per side or until bacon starts getting crispy.

Place in baking dish and lightly cover with BBQ sauce. (I usually use Jack Daniel’s original BBQ).  Bake at 350˚ for 20-30 minutes.  That’s it!  Easy and delicious!

Lemon Garlic Chicken

Here’s a fun and yummy recipe for a Monday!  I made this lemon garlic chicken and potatoes last night, and it was a hit.

Ingredients:

4-6 skinless boneless chicken breats                            3 c diced potatoes (I used Russett)

Juice and zest from 1-2 lemons                                    1 Tbsp oregano or Italian seasoning

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped                                     1/4 c olive oil + 1 Tbsp

3/4 c water                                                                  salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to350°.  Heat about 1 Tbsp olive oil in a skillet.  Season chicken with salt and pepper.  Sear chicken in skillet, transfer to baking dish.  Add potatoes to skillet, season, cook about 10 minutes, coating with olive oil.  Transfer potatoes to baking dish with chicken.  Combine lemon juice, zest, oregano, 1/4 c olive oil, water, garlic, salt, and pepper in bowl.  Pour over chicken and potatoes.  Bake uncovered about 30 minutes.

I paired this with something I call a country salad.  It’s fresh greens from our garden mixed with a chopped hard boiled egg, cooked corn kernels, and shredded carrots.  This recipe goes beautifully with any salad or veggie side dish.

Enjoy!

Three Uses for Those Really Ripe Bananas

Happy June, everyone!  So, today I was having the usual dilemma of what to do with those bananas that are reaching the beyond ripe stage.  And I thought banana recipes might make a good post.  There is always the stand by banana bread.  This has been my mom’s recipe for as long as I can remember, so I have no idea where she got it from.  It’s my absolute favorite banana bread…light, fluffy, and really yummy.

Banana Bread

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c flour                             1 c granulated sugar

3 1/2 tsp baking powder          3/4 c milk

1 tsp salt                                  1 egg

2 Tbsp vegetable oil                 2-3 medium bananas

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix all ingredients thoroughly (I have never had to put them in in any specific order, and the bread turns out great).

Pour batter into ungreased 9″ loaf pan

Bake for one hour or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Now, I love banana bread as much as the next person, but sometimes, I just get tired of making the same things with those brown bananas.  Another of my go-to banana recipes is the banana crumb muffin.

Banana Crumb Muffins

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c flour                   1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda           1/2 tsp salt

3 bananas, mashed         3/4 c granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract         3/4 tsp cinnamon or allspice

1 egg, lightly beaten        1/3 c butter, melted

1/3 c brown sugar          1/4 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbsp flour                   1 Tbsp butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix 1 1/2 c flour, baking soda, baking powder, 3/4 tsp cinnamon, and salt.

In a separate bowl, beat bananas, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, and melted butter.  Stir banana mix into the flour mixture.  (I usually just mix it in my stand mixer.)  Spoon batter into baking cups.

In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, 2 Tbsp flour, and 1/4 tsp cinnamon.  Cut in 1 Tbsp butter until the mixture becomes coarse.  Sprinkle mixture over muffins.  (If you don’t have much of a sweet tooth, omit the topping…the muffins are still good without it!)

Bake 18-20 minutes.

Today, I decided to try a new recipe that I found on the Taste of Home web site and modified to my own tastes.  So here it is…

Banana Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1/2 c unsalted butter, softened       1 1/2 c sugar

2 eggs                                           3 medium bananas, mashed

1 tsp vanilla extract                        2 c all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp baking soda                       1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt                                    1/2 c buttermilk*

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Beat in bananas and vanilla.  Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, ending with flour.

Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full with batter.  Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes in pan, then remove to cooling rack.  (Of note, I always check baking items about two minutes before the prescribed baking time, in this case at 16 minutes.  Some of the recommended times will lead to overbaking.)

*If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, as I usually don’t, measure 1 Tbsp vinegar into 1 c milk and let it sit for 5 minutes.

These are light, moist, and delicious.  They can be paired with pretty much any flavor of icing, but I love them with lemon, chocolate, strawberry, or a nice fluffy Italian buttercream.

Happy baking and God bless!

Introduction

Hi!  Thank you for stopping by my new blog!  This is going to be a work in progress for a while, but I hope that one day, this will grow into a wonderful resource for all parents, especially my fellow mothers who work outside the home.

My name is Jen, and I am the proud mother of two beautiful children, a five-year-old boy and an almost-3-year-old girl.  I am employed full time as a speech and correspondence writer/editor.  I have a wonderful hubby who is supportive, helpful, and very handy at DIY projects around the home.

Two things prompted me to start this blog.  First, the searches I've conducted on the internet for any sites devoted to the concerns of working moms are sparse, and many have not posted in several years.  I know full well that this conspicuous lack of working mom blogs is due to our busy schedules, but I also find it sad that this group of our population is so inadequately represented in the blogosphere.  Let's face it - we can definitely use support groups!  The second thing I noticed is that all of the blogs I love that focus on kids crafts and homemaking are run by stay-at-home or part time work-from-home moms.  I don't think that really represents the amount of time working moms devote to their children...and it sort of left me feeling like working moms can't do all of the fun, crafty things with their kids the way stay-at-home moms can...not true!

To be very upfront, I know that my situation is not as challenging as many working mamas - partly because my job as a writer lends itself to flexibility and partly because I was already well established in my career when I had my first child at 28 (I do believe that makes a difference.  It's much easier to ask for flexible hours and schedules when you have already proven your work ethic and abilities than if you are just starting your career).  My husband lost his job four months before our son was born, and I have been the breadwinner in our family ever since.  I am blessed that my office has allowed me two days of telecommuting per week and has worked with me on my hours so that I leave my house at 4:30 for my morning commute and am able to leave the office at 3 p.m. to get home by about 5 (yes, I work in D.C. and have a monstrous 2 hour commute).  It's still painful at times (a lot of times), but it's the flexibility I need to spend time with my kids, and that makes it well worth it.  And I know that I am very blessed that my hubby is able to stay at home with our children and work (very) part time on nights and weekends.

There's no doubt about it, juggling the demands of motherhood, homemaking, and a career is not easy by any stretch of the imagination.  But I don't want this site to become a place for whining and complaining about my lot in life.  I want to celebrate the many blessings of motherhood, encourage others who are in the same situation, and offer tips that will help other working moms find a delicate balance between family and work.

I hope you enjoy the posts!  God bless!

Sewing Projects

A close family friend gave me a bunch of sewing kit projects a while back to make sundresses for Kaitlyn and a Veggie Tales growth chart.  So I took part of the afternoon and dedicated it to sewing.  Here are the results:

   

I'm not a huge fan of sewing kits...mostly because I don't tend to like the fabric they use.  But they are nice and easy.  Bonus that this one was free and my friend had already cut out the pieces.  So I just had to sew it together...nice!  It'll be a great spring and summer church and play dress for Kaitlyn!

This dress was my first time using a button closure.  I can't say it's something I enjoyed, but at least it's working.

My second project was the Veggie Tales growth chart.  This one was super simple and literally took about 15 minutes to cut out, pin and sew.  This will be great for tracking the kids' height!