Our Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipie

Hot cocoa chocolate chip cookies

I make this with or without the hot cocoa mix. 

Ingredients:
2 and 1/4 cups All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup powdered hot cocoa mix
1 Cup (2 sticks) Butter, softened
3/4cups packed brown sugar (minus 1T)
3/4cups granulated sugar (minus 1T)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 Cups white or regular chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together butter and both sugars. Add cocoa mix. Add Eggs 1 at a time. Add vanilla. Slowly add in flour alternating w/salt and baking soda. Stir in chips.

Refrigerate batter before spooning or cookies will be flat. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls spoonfuls onto baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake 10-13 minutes. Allow to cool for 2-4 minutes on cookie sheet before removing to cooling rack. Makes about 3-4 dozen depending on size.


Make Mistakes, breathe, reflect, bake cookies, and Laugh.Out.Loud. at the flour all over the floor.

What do Kids Really Want? Shockingly Simple Reply. These are go to activities to make part of the everyday routine, because they already are.

What do we really want? What do our kids want? Love, comfort, food for my younger son. Recently a very nice list came out on Lifehacker for what kids really want. I was surprised and It may me make sure these items made it to my daily mommy list of things to do!

Here is a list of the top ten things students around the world said they remembered and loved most about their mothers. WOW, just WOW! Can you imagine, being able to have a list of things that you KNEW would make a positive impact on your kids and their childhood memories? Yes please! 

The following list has been incorporated into my daily, and I am happy to say some of these things have been my parenting sanity thru these years. I linked through to my blog pages on things we do already. . . 

Happy Reading! Happy Changes!! 

• Come into my bedroom at night, tuck me in and sing me a song. Also tell me stories about when you were little. (and when YOU were little...)
• Give me hugs and kisses and sit and talk with me privately. (yup, big one.)
• Spend quality time just with me, not with my brothers and sisters around.
• Give me nutritious food so I can grow up healthy.
• At dinner talk about what we could do together on the weekend.
• At night talk to me about about anything; love, school, family etc. (my older son and I talk EVERY NIGHT, I can't believe I haven't blogged about that yet!)
• Let me play outside a lot. (2 separate links.)
• Cuddle under a blanket and watch our favorite TV show together.
• Discipline me. It makes me feel like you care. (3 links, this is a big one for us.)
• Leave special messages in my desk or lunch bag.

As Simple as going for a walk together. Often!
Here younger son takes a few minutes to check out some ants
(this is before our bug collecting journey began.)

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/the-top-10-things-children-really-want-their-parents-to-do-with-them.html

Make Mistakes, breathe, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud.

Follow me on Twitter to see more of our (Mis)Adventures

Suddenly I See that I am a part of this amazing world, and my job is to raise my two Gentleman and a Lady to the best of my ability. I share our adventures, bug collecting, and general mom at home joys.

The @Minstr0Interior part? I am the "Minister of the Interior" (of my home), of our lives. Until my kids grow up, I am in charge of doing my best, and teaching them everything I know and I'm learning, so they have an (as) excellent as possible example on how they can do it all in their own lives.

We had a nice conversation with friends about life as a stay at home mom, money, life with kids, running a business and all that comes with these life roles rolled into one. Just like a department, in the Ministry, with many sub-jobs helping the Minister run the Interior.


Follow Us on Twitter

I'm still fun, mostly funny, and ALWAYS enjoying time with my kids. We bug collect in Chicago and during all of our explorations of this Amazing World.

   


And see lots of Pinterest Options for some of my Inspirations and Creations at 
My Pinner Name: Are You Sure About That
Pinterest/com/areyousureaboutthat

Make Mistakes. Breathe, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud

My Daughter was Inspired by a Beading Game...so we made One at Home

We found an easy toddler inspiration at my young sons preschool. While waiting to pick up younger son, we helped ourselves to the game shelf in his classroom (which his teacher said was okay for us). The teacher had great ideas, including this one. Simple pipe cleaner, and a bag of beads. We replicated this activity at home.

The simplicity of it is genius, and I am amazed that months later this beading fun is STILL exciting at our home. I created a bin, similar to the teachers, and baby girl has access. She lets me know when she warns to play (and while I'm reasonably not afraid shell eat the beads, I make sure I'm with her when we do this activity), and we start. My older and younger son even love this game and they play often. And the boys have added, on their own, patterning ideas, counting, and other ways to change up the beading. 

You can see the teacher had number labes on the pieces of pipe cleaner as a counting game.

So fun, so easy. Made with supplies and Tupperware we had on hand at home.

Just paying attention to what my little toddler wanted, and her interests, inspired all of us, including her two older brothers. Kids CAN teach us about what they like to play, learn about, an where their ability levels are.

Make mistakes. Breathe, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud