Homemade Pop Tarts

Lets just say YUM! Really. One of my goals this last Christmas season was to do a lot of fun things throughout the month. Pack it full of fun activities leading us up to Christmas Day. One of our activities was Homemade Pop Tarts. It wasn’t something I would have thought about making myself but a friend was so excited about we just had to try it out. I am SOOO glad I did.

What to do:

1. Make pie crust dough. And please…Use butter. Divide in half and let it chill in the fridge to make it easier to handle.

2. Once chilled roll out half in a rectangle.

3. Visually divide your dough into 6 rectangles. Get your favorite jam (we used raspberry and blackberry) and put a nice sized TBSP in the center of each rectangle. Spread it out a little but leave a 1/2 in edge to seal it.

4. using your finger or a pastry brush put some water around the edges of the tarts.

5. Roll out your second dough in the same shape and size and put it on top of the first.

6. Use a pizza cutter to cut out your tarts and crimp the edges with a fork. Poke some steam holes in the top.

7. Put on a cookie sheet and bake at 425 degrees doe 7-8 minutes until golden brown.

8. Cool and drizzle with a powdered sugar/milk glaze if desired.

(Note: Let me know if something doesn’t make sense. There were a few, lets say, interruptions during the making of this post.)

Here is a picture midway for all you visual people. And what did the kids think?

All thumbs up

And one index 🙂

Jan 18

Winter has arrived

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The snowman hat is one I knitted a few years ago. I started it while pregnant with Ezekiel and finished it after his 2nd birthday. It was my first and last hat. It’s huge. Really huge. But it fits this snowman perfectly. His head was made from a 3 gallon bucket.

Winter has finally arrived! Monday Zoe was outside all day. I was mean and made her wait until it was light outside before she went out. About 8am she was in the snow and stayed out until 2:00pm. At one point I served up some hot chocolate and asked her if she wanted some. She hesitated saying “I do but….” I assured her she could go back outside when she was done but she asked if she could have it outside. Sure, why not. Zeke was even enjoying it this year which Zoe enjoyed greatly. What a difference snow pants make. Oliver played outside for a little bit but was also happy in our nice warm house. Tuesday gave us more snow and Zoe was out in it again trying to use up all the snow. She started using a bucket to pack the snow in and made a tall snowman and Snow City complete with sky scrapper. And what did Abigail decide she needed to do while I was outside taking some quick shots?

Oct 21

A Day at the Park

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A friend called the other day and said “I need to practice with my camera in Manuel. Can I use your kids?” Of, course! I’d love it. And off we went to get awesome pictures. OK, so it wasn’t quite that smooth. First, we had to discuss when the weather would be best and where it would be best to get all the great fall colors. Then there was the last minute plan change. But, the outcome was beautiful.

As you can see I loved so many of the pictures taken. And trust me, this isn’t all of them but don’t be surprised if you see more later. Thanks again, Ruth, for using my kids. Anytime, anywhere 🙂

Sep 19

Building with Dad

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Zoe has been wanting to build houses for the birds. Sounds like a great dad project to me! She and Greg made a great little birdhouse that now decorates our backyard.

Sep 15

Happy Birthday Ezekiel!

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Today Ezekiel turned 3 years old. He has become such a handsom little man. At the annual measuring he gained a full 3 inches this year. He loves all things trains. When outside he is always on the search for worms and bettles. As soon as he woke this morning Zoe showered him with gifts. My favorites were a book she wrote about a train (his favorite thing) and a Pooh coloring book she made herself.

His cake was of course a trian that I tried my hand at. Thankfully he has a great imagination. Anything in a line (blocks, laundry baskets) is a train to him.

Many times throughout the day he was sung Happy Birthday. He got to like it so much he asked we sing it three times for bedtime.

Abigail even got to get in on the fun with a ride around the house.

Sep 05

The Last…

Baseball Fever

When Grandpa T was visiting we headed to a Mariners game. We were only there for a short time but I was surprised how much of it they took in. The following day this is all the boys wanted to do.

They made a great team. Zeke was all about the hitting and Oliver (our running man) would run after the ball and throw it back.

Aug 23

Grandpa T

Visitors!

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July was the month of visitors. I was so excited when I heard my sister and niece were coming up our way. She and Greg were going to keep it a secret from me and just have her show up but for many of the same reasons I usually get my birthday gifts early, Greg told me 🙂 Many of the days they were here were filled with rain. They loved it (coming out of the insane heat of Texas) but it did put a little bit of a damper on outings. One of our nice days found us at Birch Bay. I always seem to forget how much we all enjoy a day at the beach.

Zoe and my niece Marlys

Zoe, Ezekiel, Oliver and Sis (aka Marsella)

Zeke absolutely loved looking for crabs. He was always so gentle picking them up. Into his shovel they would go usually with a rock or shell to hide under. This one went all the way to the picnic table to show dad.