Monkey Munch

Photographs poorly, but tastes great!

One of Big Girl's "Summer Bucket List" items was to make Monkey Munch. She has been bugging me all last week to make it, since our summer list was "expiring" on Labor Day.

The snack recipe was one we first saw eons ago on "Jon & Kate Plus 8" and Big Girl has been a fan ever since she saw it on that TV show. After the recipe was mentioned on the show (I think it was in 2008? Doesn't seem that long ago!), we searched for the recipe and found it under another name: "Chex Muddy Buddies." It's also called "Puppy Chow" in some circles too, I believe.

But whatever you call it, it's really good. It doesn't look really good, but it is! And not that expensive to make. You don't have to use Chex brand cereal -- I actually use the generic version. It's kind of messy to make -- I would suggest that when you are mixing the melted ingredients with the cereal, divide up the cereal into two covered bowls or two large Ziplocs. It's just easier and less messy mixing everything, especially when you add in the powdered sugar.

Here's the original Chex recipe: 

Chex Muddy Buddies (a.k.a. Monkey Munch)

Ingredients:

9 cups any Chex or generic Chex cereal (or combination of rice, corn and/or wheat Chex)

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions:

1. Into large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.

2. In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.

3. Add powdered sugar. (It's a lot of sugar -- I just add it until I think it's "enough.") Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

It makes a yummy crunchy "movie night" snack 

that tastes like candy but isn't candy. 

Just be sure to have napkins on hand!

Halloween? Yes, Halloween!

We carved our 2011 pumpkin in the dark by candlelight!
Big Girl designs; hubby is the holder of the carving knife...

Halloween is less than two months away, and now is the time to start planning costumes for the kids. We all know that this holiday can break the bank when it comes to shopping for those costumes. New costumes can range from $20 to $50, on average, so it pays to try to find a way to save on this special "outfit" which is worn only once!

We've run the gamut of homemade to store-bought costumes in this house, so I decided to put my expertise into a new article for Yahoo Voices! contribute network, which was recently published. You can read all about saving money on Halloween costumes at this link.

Last year, our Halloween celebrations were squashed by the October ice storm here in the Northeast. We lost power and Halloween trick-or-treating was actually canceled by the local authorities. I was glad that I did not spend much on the twins' costumes because we didn't even know if they would wear them at one point during that long week. Big Girl luckily had her school party the week before the holiday, but Halloween week was basically a crisis point in our community; school was canceled and many people were living in emergency shelters. Our Halloween was celebrated in the dark, covered in blankets, because we had no heat and no electricity.

My kids during the one time they wore their costumes in 2011 --
at a campaign event in November for my father (he's involved in local politics).
The lady is Linda McMahon, who is running for the U.S. Senate in CT.
The event gave local kids a chance to "trick-or-treat" in their costumes.

Saving money on Halloween is a priority now, especially with three kids to dress. Last year, Big Girl wanted to be Hermione from "Harry Potter." I bought the Hogwarts robe, but not all the other gear. (She did wear a white shirt and black pants under it for her school party, unlike the photo above.) By not buying the entire Potter get-up, I saved some money. And ordered online, early, with a coupon to save some dollars on her robe. (It might get reused or repurposed by one of the little ones.)

Since the twins are too young to care about what they are wearing, I have put my selfish feelings of wanting to dress them in expensive, adorable costumes aside for the sake of saving money. It's only one night, right? Last year, Bunny Twin was a ladybug, wearing Big Girl's hand-me-down costume. Buddy Twin was a dragon, wearing a special Carter's pant-and-hoodie set my mom found at Costco pretty affordably. And he wore the pants from that outfit (which were a warm fleece) all winter long, stretching our dollars. (And although this above picture doesn't do justice, they still looked really cute!)

Twins on their first Halloween, 2010.
Simple coordinating monster shirt/pant sets from Target 
(and they wore them again later a few times)
with little hats -- Buddy Twin's is the "top" 
of Big Girl's pumpkin sleeper from her infant days;
Bunny Twin's witch hat is a headband she can still wear now! 

Once Big Girl is back in school (yesterday was her first day! sniff!) I know it's time to really start thinking about Halloween. I know the twins likely won't keep an elaborate costume and accessories on their bodies, so it has to be practical. I have put the seed in Big Girl's head to start deciding what she will be, so we can shop early again or create something.

Do you plan Halloween costumes early? 

Do you shop secondhand, make your own costumes, 

buy brand-new or use hand-me-downs? 

Share your knowledge in the comments.

TWINS TUESDAYS: Feeding Toddler Twins on the Go

It's me and my kitchen shears again!

Toddler twins can create double trouble when eating out at restaurants or at a relative's house. Parents usually have their diaper bag full of diapers and sippy cups, but don't forget to include a few important necessities for feeding your pair on the go. Here are some things I often keep in my tote to make sure mealtime goes smoothly when I am out with my twins. 

Booster Seats 

Don't expect a restaurant (or a relative) to have booster seats, let alone enough booster seats for your duo. Keep your own portable chairs in the car. Kids will behave better if they can sit up at the table properly, and you will be able to relax if they are strapped into their own seats.

Go Disposable! 

Keep disposable paper bibs in your diaper bag to protect nice clothing while out at dinner. Baby wipes are also a must for cleaning off messy fingers and faces. Disposable place mats are also great for putting down on the table. The plastic protectors, which stick to the table, give a sanitary surface for food that slides off the plate or out of a bowl. Most disposable place mats also feature bright illustrations to keep toddlers' attention on the table.

Kitchen Shears 

Kitchen scissors are a necessity in my house for cutting up food as quick as possible for my hungry duo, so I make a point of packing them in my diaper bag too. By the time the food arrives at a restaurant, the tots will be extra hungry, and Mom and Dad's food will be hot. Make the job of prepping a kid plate faster by chopping food up with scissors instead of the restaurant's butter knife. Just keep the scissors out of reach of your toddler! Secure them with an elastic band in your diaper bag so little fingers don't manage to pry them open and try them out.

Small-sized Utensils 

Pack a plastic bag with a a fork and spoon for each twin, or purchase two sets of travel utensils, which slide in a special protective case. Restaurants usually do not have smaller utensils, and the twins will be able to eat efficiently with tinier tools in their small hands. Just don't forget to pack them up when the kids are finished eating, and remember to wash them when you get home.

A Distraction 

Some restaurants offer crayons to little ones, but prepare for the worst. Never expect a relative or a restaurant to have toys to entertain your kids! Keep a small bag with special items just for restaurant use. Include small cars, magnetic writing boards like a Magnadoodle, board books or tiny plastic figures. A box of crayons is also a good distraction; just make sure they are the washable kind. You don't want the kids drawing their version of a Picasso on Aunt Edna's heirloom table cloth! 

A little preparation can keep toddler twins entertained and satisfied while eating on the go, and parents will be happy to enjoy a meal without worrying about their double duo.

End of Summer

Big Girl, NYC, July 2012.

Today is not only Labor Day, it's the last day of Big Girl's summer vacation.

School starts later than usual this year, although I have to confess that I enjoy the post-Labor Day start, which reminds me of my childhood school days. August is not a time for school, but September is!

Big Girl begins 5th Grade tomorrow. The big 5th Grade!!! Her last official start to an elementary school year. Where does the time go? She is 10 years old, a whole decade. And six years into school, almost halfway there, with seven to go. I don't want her to grow up. I love my Big Girl and her sweetness!

Tomorrow I will be packing a school lunch again. (Need help with saving on school snacks? Read this article I wrote recently!) But today I will enjoy a lazy day. When looking back to our summer of 2012, I originally thought we didn't accomplish much. Days with toddler twins can seem blurry and hazy and since we didn't embark on some fancy summer vacation, it feels like it wasn't a summer to write home about, as they say.

But it actually was! When I dissect our two months in my mind, we accomplished about half of our very long Summer Bucket List -- when I wrote it, I never expected to do it all (50 things in 77 days?? Too much.) But we did get through about half of it, which is something of which to be proud.

We went to Vermont, New York & Cape Cod; saw outdoor movies and an outdoor concert; had a picnic, enjoyed ice cream, and played mini golf; did craft projects; Big Girl had time at LEGO camp, learned about kids and safety at a babysitting course, learned a new pop song on the piano and entered a contest; swam in the pool and at the beach; went to the zoo and the PEZ factory; read books, enjoyed Big Girl's birthday, took walks and visited at our neighborhood block party. It was a good summer for us, with twin toddlers and a tween. As I look back, past summers had not been so good to us -- last summer we lost our beloved dog -- so I hope to definitely wax nostalgic for the summer of 2012.

I hope you are all are savoring your Labor Day, enjoying time with your families. I feel the impending insanity of school starting, with events, volunteer obligations, the impending holidays. But I welcome it all. As I've said previously, it's the little things these days.

Saving Money on Kids' Birthday Parties

When planning my daughter's recent birthday party, I really wanted to make it special for her. What mom doesn't? But there was one catch: Lack of major funds. I decided I really had to stretch a buck to make her party special to her, yet not a drain on my wallet.

I'm sure many moms are in the same predicament, so I decided to try and put all my ideas into an article on saving money for kids' parties for my content on Yahoo Voices! network. You can read my tips here.

I had originally wanted to have my daughter's party outside of the home, but it would have cost nearly $300 to do so. This party was much more affordable, casual, and my daughter had a good time anyway.

Since the theme of her party was so unique -- Percy Jackson/mythology -- I had to create many ideas myself. I tried searching online for ideas, but they were few and far between. Read about how to have a mythology party in another Yahoo Voices! article I wrote at this link. 

I'm already thinking ahead to the twins' December birthday. I'm thinking about themes and ideas. Luckily we don't have the traditional two parties -- family and friend -- just yet. Just family. But I still want it to be special, and I'm already "pinning" away on Pinterest! You can find my boards on this link! Feel free to follow along. :)

Thanks for clicking on my Yahoo Voices! articles and reading them. I am truly trying to write content that helps out families and is useful. I appreciate each and every "click!" I hope my experiences help you all out in some small way.

My Special House

Earlier this spring, I bought a framed print. I rarely by any "art." When your husband takes beautiful pictures, you don't have to fill your walls within someone else's creations.

I have rotating set of framed prints and photographs that I use in our home at different times of the year. There's only so much wall space to fill, so I don't have a need to fill any spot right now.

But this picture "spoke" to me. Does that make sense? It reminded me so very much of Vermont, where we vacation. Particularly for this:

See that slanted window? It looks like it's installed improperly, right? Well, in Vermont, on all those back country roads, there are so many houses like this, with a little window installed diagonally in a room upstairs. And the houses are farmhouses, just like this one. And they have apple trees in the yards, with bird houses and bird feeders, and flowers too.

I didn't know who the artist was until my mother returned from Vermont last week and mentioned that she saw it in another gift shop. The print is called "Spring Flowers," and the artist is a man named Fred Swan. And he is a Vermont artist, so when this shot reminded me of Vermont, I was totally right. He lives there and paints many scenes from that area.

The print was more than I wished to pay, but I happened to have a $20 coupon to the gift shop. And birthday money. So it was my little treat to myself earlier this summer. And now it sits above my couch in my living room. And makes me happy.

Isn't that what really matters?

A Visit to the PEZ Factory

Here in Connecticut we don't lay claim to much... But we are the home of PEZ! The little candy dispensers are manufactured in Orange, Conn., and the factory opened a Visitor's Center earlier this year. It's a great place to stop if you are ever in the area.

Big Girl is a big fan of PEZ, and has collected dispensers since she was just a tot. We have been dying to visit the PEZ factory ever since we found out that it was open to the public and it was on our Summer Bucket List. We finally had the chance to go last Friday and it was so much fun.

Friends had said it wasn't worth it unless you were in the area, but it was a perfect stop for us. It's small -- it's really one giant room with a loft lounge -- but there is a lot to see and do in that room! It was just right for the twins, with colorful displays and many hands-on/interactive things they could touch. And just the right size to enjoy before the little ones reached their limit.

There is an admission price, but it was worth it. Admission is $5 for adults and $4 for kids ages 3 to 12 years, and each admission receives a $2 credit to merchandise purchased in the shop during your visit. A PEZ dispenser costs $1.99, so you basically get a dispenser with your visit, and you can get free mini PEZ packets when you check out. Also, each admission ticket is on a PEZ lanyard to wear around your neck, which you get to keep. And if you take the PEZ trivia quiz, a certificate prints out with your name on it, which is another nice little souvenir. So I'd say you get your money's worth, right?

The center is like a museum to PEZ, with just about every dispenser and collectible imaginable. The history of PEZ is detailed in the displays around the room.

They have the Orange County Choppers PEZ motorcycle hanging in the entry:

I loved these vintage Santa PEZ -- so cute:

The twins had a lot to see during our visit:

You can see into the factory and watch the workers. On this day they were packaging Christmas PEZ -- I wonder how many stockings will be filled with these?

The little ones were fascinated by the numerous PEZ displays in the floor -- they were definitely intriguing:

There is an area when you can get a little tin pail and fill it with loose PEZ candy in every flavor imaginable for $4.99 -- Big Girl had a field day with this and picked several hard-to-find flavors, like sour raspberry and chocolate! The kids picked out dispensers and Big Girl wanted the PEZ collectible book to check out all the hard-to-find dispensers. (As you can tell, we didn't get away without spending extra!)

Upstairs is a lounge area, with many tables where you could enjoy a snack from vending machines, or bring a packed lunch. They have a sink available too. The lounge area also has a giant TV with a PEZ Jeopardy! program playing on it. You can see down into the visitor's center, which the kids enjoyed, especially since there is a great view of the giant PEZ man:

I'm glad we made a point to get here before school started. I found it fascinating, and it was a cheery place to spend a morning.