Great and Easy Snack - Ants on a Log

I was a Brownie (young Girl Scout) when I was in elementary school and I remember, among other things, a snack that was listed in the Girl Scout handbook (I still have a copy of it somewhere). It was called Ants on a Log and I still eat it even today!! So for those of you who were never a Girl Scout, here is that wonderful snack that is fun and easy to make and your kids will love it!!

SUPPLIES:
Bananas
Peanut Butter
Raisins

Very simply, you peal the banana (the log) and smother with peanut butter (the bark) and sprinkle on some raisins (the ants). It is that simple!!

This is a very yummy treat indeed!! Happy eating!!

*Variations: You can use celery instead of bananas or use celery with cream cheese and cranberries or peanuts. You could also use pretzel sticks and chocolate sauce.

Homemade Version of Lunch-time Favorite

So many kids in my preschool class would bring those yummy frozen round peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. You know the ones I am talking about. They don't have crusts on them, cut in perfect round circles and stay in the freezer. They thaw out by the time the kids hit the lunch table. But when you buy them in the store they cost so much. I mean we are talking like $4-5 a box for only 4 of them!!! WHAT!!!

Here is a GREAT idea instead. Make them yourself. My friend Maria and her son would have a fun afternoon activity of making PB&J sandwiches from the whole loaf of bread to be frozen and saved for later. This was a great opportunity for them to talk about food and what goes into the things we eat and also getting him involved in making his own lunches. Kids are more likely to eat something if they have a hand in the preparation of it. Here is how you make your own, assembly line style.

SUPPLIES
Loaf of bread (white, wheat, doesn't matter, whatever your kids like)
Peanut butter
Jelly (my favorite flavor is strawberry)
Cookie cutter or wide-mouthed glass (you can make different shapes as well)
Ziploc bags
fork (to seal the edges closed)

Simply lay out the bread and slather with peanut butter and jelly. You may want to use the jelly sparingly as it will seep out the sides of the sandwich. Then, just cut out the center of the sandwich with your cookie cutter or glass and crimp the edges down with the fork (to seal the sandwich closed). Place in Ziploc bags and freeze. After the sandwiches have been in the freezer for about an hour, squeeze all of the air out of the bag so they don't get frost bite.

These will freeze for months and will thaw out by lunchtime.

Also, Pampered Chef makes a really awesome tool to use for this as well called the Cut-N-Seal(pictured below). This will save a few steps when making your own sandwiches. Make sure that you label the Ziploc bags with the date and the flavor of jelly or type of peanut butter if using multiple kinds. Happy Sandwich Making!!

Have Old Broken Crayons?

If you are like most parents or child care providers, you have TONS of broken crayons all over the place. Most of them are broken into such small pieces that you can't use them anymore. Well, don't throw them away, put them into a plastic bag and store for a rainy day.

Make Your Own Holiday Crayons

Supplies:
old broken crayons (take off all paper)
plastic candy molds


Simply melt the broken crayons in the microwave stirring often so you don't burn them. Pour them into the candy molds and let dry. Pop them out and you have your very own fancy schmancy crayons in all kinds of shapes and sizes. You can even mix and match colors. Fill the bottome with one color, allow to dry fully and then add more colors.

These are great as party favors or just a great way to give new life to old broken crayons.

Invisible Ink

Ever wanted to be a spy when you were a kid? Ever wanted to talk or write to your friends but never wanted your brother and sister to know what you said or wrote? Here is a really easy way to make some invisible ink so that your kids can do just that.

Supplies:
Lemons (or pure lemon juice)
cotton swabs (q-tips)
paper

In a small bowl, squeeze a couple of lemons taking out any seeds (you can also use bottled pure lemon juice). Using the cotton swabs, draw a fun picture on your paper. Let dry completely.

Using a heat source (like a lamp that has been on for a while, or a toaster or hair dryer) reveal the "secret" message/picture.

The heat turns the lemon juice a dark brown color.

Homemade Applesauce

Homemade Applesauce is really yummy and easy to make so kids can get involved. Use this to talk about how foods are made and eating healthy.

Supplies:
apples (you can use any kind or mix to make different flavors)
sugar
water


If you peel the apples and core them first then slice them, the smaller kids can use plastic knives to cut them into really small pieces. If you have a corer/slicer or a peeler/corer (like the metal one that looks like orange slices and a circle in the middle, or the big turn-style peeler that slices, peels and cores the apple) then the kids can help with that as well.

Let the kids put the apples (the smaller the faster it cooks), sugar (remember that the sugar concentrates as it cooks) and then the water (enough to cover all of the apples completely and add the water last as it will help dissolve the sugar). Cook on medium temp stirring occasionally. This will become a sauce-like consistency (see diagram below). If you want it to look more like a traditional commercial-made applesauce you should puree this mixture after it has cooled. Put in small containers in the fridge to cool it down and then eat.

Oobleck with a Book

There is always the OOBLECK experiment to read with the book Bartholomew & the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss (here is a link to the book: http://www.amazon.com/Bartholomew-Oobleck-Caldecott-Honor-Classic/dp/0394800753). The Dr. Seuss book talks about Bartholomew and how he is attacked by a big sticky glob of oobleck.

Supplies:
Cornstarch
water
green food coloring

To make Oobleck you simply mix corn starch and water together until it is runny when you pour it but solid when you try to stir or pick it up. Add a few drops of green food coloring to go with the story. It is pretty cool because it is a solid and liquid at the same time. You can pick it up and then if you leave it flat it will puddle like water.

This experiment is a great way to introduce kids to science. You can talk about solids and liquids and the differences and how this is one instance where something can be a solid and liquid at the same time. There are also videos on YouTube where people have made a giant bathtub filled with "oobleck" and actually run across it (also featured on the TV Show Numb3rs Season 4 Episode 16).

Shake and Make Ice Cream

1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup milk or half & half
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Rock Salt (in a box, not the regular table salt)
Ice
Ziploc bag
plastic container with tight closing lid (can also use a bigger Ziploc bag)

Mix up ice cream (sugar, milk and vanilla) in a bowl or pitcher and then pour some in the ziploc bag and secure closed.

Add ice and rock salt (amount doesn't really matter, just enough to coat the ice) to plastic container with lid or larger Ziploc bag. Place ice cream mixture bag into the container and close lid tightly (if using the plastic container, I like to stick the top of the mixture bag so that it is hanging out of the container, especially if you are going to eat out of the bag, that way the lip doesn't get really salty and ruin the ice cream).

Shake until ice cream is frozen adding ice and rock salt as needed (when it melts). If you have individual sized portions in the bags (abt 1 1/2 cups or so) this should take about 5-10 minutes to turn to ice cream, depending on how hard and fast the kids are shaking the container.

Shake away!! I would also suggest wrapping the container with a towel as it gets REALLY cold!!