Kiddos and Cupcakes (Sprinkle Me Pretty)

If you haven't had a chance to stop by my cupcake blog, Sprinkle Me Pretty well let's just say today is your lucky day.

I decided to share my favorite post with you. 

*Background story* 

In 2011 I started my own cupcake business from home. I temperately hung my apron up and turned the oven off to move our family to South Korea to be with my husband. Though I couldn't easily find all my staple supplies (such as sprinkles and edible glitter) I occasionally  whipped up a batch for my family and I. 

           This is a post I did in Korea about making cupcakes with my babies. I hope you enjoy it!

Kiddos and Cupcakes

Whenever I work on a cupcake order I tend to kick my family out of the kitchen while I'm baking.

So to keep my kids from having a love/hate relationship with cupcakes, I try to give them those sweet moments every once in a while.

This time I decided to assist them with their own batch.

As much as it goes against what I do, I bought a simple boxed cake and canned frosting, I pre measured all the ingredients and let my kids do all the "work" from there.

Next to add a little pizzazz to our cakes we added sprinkles. A whole bunch of sprinkles!!! 

Next was my time to shine. I filled the cupcake liners then off into the oven they went!!!

(...but not before they stole some batter from the bowl!)

 After what seemed like a million "Are they done yet???" and "Mommy go check the cupcakes!!!!", we were able to take them out to let them cool.

Before long we were moving on to the best part, DECORATING!!!!!

I gave both of my little ones a Dixie cup full of frosting and a small spoon to do as they pleased.

To no surprise most of the frosting ended up in their tummies instead of on the cupcakes. No worries, MOMMY TO THE RESCUE!!!!!!!

With piping bag and tip in hand, I finished frosting the cakes and decorated them with sprinkles and chocolate chips.

Sweet!!!

What a great day!

Leaving on a jet plane

The school year is coming to an end and the weather is getting warmer. For many families this means
...vacation time!!!!!

Whether you're road tripping or hopping on a flight, keeping your little ones entertained and calm during the trip is just as important as packing sunblock and clean undies! 

Here are some things I did on our flight to Korea that made the multiple flights a little more bearable. 

______________________________________

Before you go, I highly suggest you know what the weather will be at your destination. When we arrived in Korea it was snowy and as cold as ...snowballs. Before we left the states I purchased a snowsuit for both of our little ones. (Pretty obvious, right?) Well, when you're crazy busy making sure bags are packed with everything you need, plus trying to keep your sanity, simple things like this get over looked. 

Not only did I buy the snowsuits, I also invested in a somewhat cheap double umbrella stroller. It wasn't the prettiest or most high tech, but it was lightweight, easy to fold and got us from point A to point B. 

 Imagine, if you will, being on multiple planes for 20(+) hours, with a 4 month old, a 2 year old, and a 4 year old. Yeah I must be CrAzY, right? 

Well, I am!

But the real question is, how do I keep an infant, toddler and a preschooler that love to always be on the move or doing something, anything, calm for the whole trip? Well, me being the wiz kid I am and by the grace of God, I found a way. 

I can't explain the wonders of God, but I can tell you what I did. 

I made sure our carry on bags were ready for it all. I had a total of three carry-ons. Mikey's (4 years old at the time), Izzy (2 years old at the time) and my own (age not included), which had more stuff for them in it than for myself. 

In the kid's carry on, I packed: 

• 1 Magna Doodle per chid
• 1 coloring book, per child ~Mickey & Minnie (familiar faces are nice when things are chaotic)  
• 1 dry erase activity book (Crayola)
• 2 packs of dry erase crayons (Crayola as well, in Primary and Bright colors) *I put the crayons in a travel baby wipe container, so I didn't have to deal with the boxes or trying to find a place to put them. 
• Stickers and a book for them to put them in
• Sparkly pipe cleaners (to keep those little hands busy)
• Headphones for both kids, way better than using the ones supplies by the airline
• Travel pillows
• Snacks

The snack bag consisted of:

• Graham crackers (or as my kids call them, "Sweet Crackers")
•  Packs of apple sauce and bananas (such as these)
• Chedder & cheese crackers
• Gum 
• Suckers

It doesn't sound like much, but it made a world of difference!

In my bag, I had:

• Travel sized Clorox wipes
• Individually wrapped hand sanitizer wipes
• Baby wipes
• Diaper bags- to put dirty diapers, trash or soiled clothes in
• LOTS and LOTS of diapers for both kids. (Mikey was already potty trained but for the trip and only the trip, he wore pull ups. That way we didn't have to deal with the stress of accidents.)
• Tray liners- like these. (I cleaned the trays off first, then put these bad boys on. They stuck on perfectly and helped keep messes to a minimum. Parents and flight attendants were very impressed by it. *Proud Mommy moment for me!!!* Yay!)
• A book for me
• Nintendo DS with a Sudoku game 
• A journal
• Ear buds
• Colgate Wisp (after those in flight meals)
• A change of clothes for the kids and I (footie pj's for the kids + extra pants and shirt for all of us)
• Cash
• Our family binder, with passports and whatever other important papers we needed

As for the 4 month old (my nephew), his mommy took care of his bag. I don't know much about what she packed but I do know you need: 

• Lots of diapers and baby wipes 
• Bottles with water (buy extra bottled water once you get past security.)
• Formula 

*I am a huge advocate of breastfeeding and I strongly suggest doing it if you can (for so many reasons, to include ease on a flight), but if your baby takes formula, look into buying the individually wrapped packets. You'll be glad you did. 

OK, so in hind sight, I may have over packed, but I was and still am happy with everything I had and how smooth things went. 

I hope this post will help you or someone you know on your future travels. 

Do you have something special you use to entertain your little ones on trips?

Feel free to comment below or ask questions. 

Bon Voage!!

Sloppy Philly

It's time again for another recipe. No it's not low carb, but it is a must try! 

My Sloppy Phill sandwiches or also know as a loose meat Philly Steak sandwich.

This meal is a definite hit in my house. My husband likes it and no complaints from the kids. What more could a mommy ask for?!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb of beef (I used 80/20)

1 large onion

1 large green pepper
1 Tbs oil

1/2 c. quick oats 

water

1 tsp garlic powder 

1 1/2 tsp salt 

 pepper (to taste)

hoagie rolls

mayo

provolone cheese 

Directions:

Slice onion and green pepper and saute in oil until onions begin to turn clear. 

Set veggies aside, in a medium bowl (because we have picky eaters we set aside our veggies that have been cut in bigger pieces and minced half of the peppers and onions and added them to the beef. The kids had no idea they were eating they're most hated veggies!!! MWA-HAHAHA!!!)

Brown beef with seasonings and salt.

Once browned add oatmeal. Allow oats to soak up grease and water. 

Add water until your mixture reaches your preferred  consistency. 

Cook for 5 minutes, or longer if you need to cook off excess water.

At this point you can toast your hoagie, add mayo, peppers and onions and provolone cheese. 

Add a side salad and a handful of chips and you have yourself a meal!

Enjoy!

...that looks like this-->

Healthy Girl pt2 (Healthy Eats)

(Have you read Healthy girl pt1? If not click here!)

If you follow this blog or have read at least one other post, you can probably tell two things about me right away. I am a list maker and I love to share things I love.

To keep this post from falling short, I present you with a list of healthy foods I love!  

1. Dasani Sparkling Apple water. Yes Yes YES!!!! I absolutely LOVE this water. With Zero carbs and a ton of flavor this is, with no doubt, my go to drink. 

2. Tumaros- Low in Carb Multigrain Wraps. I love pairing these wraps up with my meat of choice, a ton of veggies and some kind of dressing to make a restaurant worthy wrap. Coming in at 4 carbs per wrap, these are a must have in my pantry!

3. Cheese. On the packages of most cheeses we buy the carb count reads, 1<. 

A good source of calcium and protein makes cheese the perfect snack with a bit of fruit. 

4. Veggies (Leafy greens). You can't go wrong with the leafy greens. Salad, cabbage, greens and even brussel sprouts will keep you on the low side of carbs.

Sorry vegetarians, #5 goes to MEAT!!! It's important that I get in plenty of protein. Grill it, bake it, Crock Pot it, whatever. Just make sure you bring the meat!!!

6. Peanuts. Not the lowest in carbs, but it's a good source of protein and fiber. 

7. Quest Bars. High in protein, low in carbs, easy to take on the go, plus ...they're yummy!

Chocolate Chunk Cookie Dough

Cinnamon Roll

White Chocolate Raspberry

...just to name a few   

There are many more flavors at GNC, if you're interested.

8. Gold Standard Whey Protein. I drink these only after running or lifting weights. There are many debates on the pros and cons of drinking protein shakes.
I say, If it's not for you, don't drink them, but if you're like me and the pros outweigh the cons I suggest finding flavors you like. This brand has Chocolate, Strawberry and my favorite Cookies and Cream. 

9. Skim Milk. Milk is another one of those things that are debated, upon in the fitness world. I only use skim milk to mix my protein shakes because I don't want my body to absorb the fat from 2% or whole milk during my post workout routine. (I'll explain all of that in a future post.)

10. Fiber. Not my favorite to eat because of flavor but to keep my body in check. With all the protein I take in, things begin to slow down. 

It's not only uncomfortable but unhealthy too. 

Unflavored fiber is definitely the way to go. 

...and saving the best for last #11 Twizzlers. Fat free candy is my "BFF" when it comes to candy, for my post workout. I need that sugar to spike my insulin right before I drink my protein shake. Talk about a "sweet" treat at the end of a workout!!!

Don't like Twizzlers? Try

Gummy Bears

Gummy Works 

or even

Jelly beans!

Do you have a go to food or drink that makes your fit journey a little more bearable? Do tell!!! I would love to try it!

~Note, I am not a nutritionist or personal trainer nor was I paid to endorse any of the products I just mentioned in this post. I am simply a mommy on a personal journey to become a "Healthy Girl".