We spent the weekend being mermaids floating down the Comal River this weekend. So, when I was getting my little love's lunch together for Monday morning I asked her if she preferred 'macaroni' noodles or 'shells' - to which she responded, "Rainbow shells! ... With sprinkles!"
Well, of course sprinkles don't go too well with pasta, but... rainbow shells it is! And to make it even more fitting, let's make them in some fun 'under the sea' colors...
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With the new school year fast approaching, I've decided to do a whole 6 weeks worth of healthy lunch box ideas for the kiddos... and the parents! My little girl is in pre-k this year, and just like all parents out there, I too have struggled with brown-bag lunches.
It doesn't help that my little mini-me is still in the midst of a rather finicky food phase. She is as close to being a vegetarian as she can get without actually being a vegetarian. I can't blame her at all either. I was the same exact way when I was her age.
You reap what you sew, yeah?...
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I was contacted quite a long while back by Bluechai, an organic tea company based out of Thailand. They wanted to send a free sample packet of their loose Bluechai tea to me to try out. All natural and organic blue... tea? Amazing!
I was in not compensated by Bluechai, and all of the opinions and views expressed here are my own.
The tea is made from some beautiful blue butterfly pea flowers and is the world's first and only blue tea. It's caffeine free (which means that I can give it to my little blue-loving princess without a bit of guilt) and has some amazing health benefits to boot!...
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A big heaping bowl of irish oatmeal for breakfast almost always hits the spot for me, but I haven't had any for quite a while now. I guess I have it in my mind that oatmeal isn't exactly a summer sort of breakfast, so I tend to brush it aside for these grueling few months of 100 degree weather.
However, oatmeal was a specific request on the part of my grandmother, and since it's getting down to her last few weeks here... I thought I would finally oblige!
I didn't want to make the same irish oatmeal that she had before when she was here last summer to visit. No, no. I wanted to try something a little different.
Blueberries and bananas anyone?...
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Baking bacon is a handy trick that I picked up a few years ago and quickly fell in love with the idea.
So, why bake your bacon?
Baking your bacon will save you the usual mess in the kitchen (or your microwave.) Plus, it cooks evenly and crisps up nicely while a vast majority of the grease is discarded! Another bonus? You can make a rather large batch of baked bacon rather effortlessly as compared to pan frying. Baking your bacon also tends to keep it from curling up, leaving your bacon straight and perfect!...
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I needed a bit of a lift today after the exceptionally long weekend of festivities. Not only was it the 4th of July, where I was busy BBQing and roasting in the Texas heat... but, it was also my mother's birthday. Happy Birthday Mom!
Now, I feel as if I should start off by saying that I am generally not a smoothie fan. I would much rather indulge in eating my calories rather than drinking them (unless they are in the form of wine, of course - hah!) Plus, the task of actually making a smoothie always seems incredibly daunting to me... That is until I got my new handy emersion blender for my birthday!...
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