How To Make Heart Cinnamon Rolls With Your Kids

Last week, Luke and I walked through the baking aisle at the store on a specific hunt for sprinkles. He had his shopping basket on one arm, like always, and carefully inspected each container.

"Hmmm... I fink we should get this one!" he said, pointing to a large canister holding six types of pink and red sprinkles. He triumphantly transferred them from the shelf to his basket, and was ready for checkout. I impulsively threw some conversation hearts into the basket, mainly because they now have phrases like, "on fleek."

This great confectionary quest was for one mission: decorating our heart cinnamon rolls!

Since the days have been colder and rainy, we've been doing more quality activities indoors. The number one thing on our list is baking. This time around we decided to take our canned cinnamon rolls up a notch by forming them into shapes AND adding toppings.

We opted for heart cinnamon rolls with Valentine's Day approaching. They were quick, simple and fun! I totally suggest this activity if you're looking for something to do indoors and are fresh out of ideas and energy.

Here is how to make heart cinnamon rolls with kids:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. Open a can of Pillsbury™ Grands! Cinnamon Rolls, and let your little helper pop it open with the spoon. Remove them and form each one into a heart by pinching the bottom into a point, and using your finger to make an indent at the top to form the two ridges. (Take note that they do puff up and rise significantly, so they will lose a bit of their form once they are baked.) Place them on a greased baking sheet and bake for 22-25 minutes.

3. Remove from oven and ice them while warm. Add desired sprinkles and toppings and enjoy with a big glass of milk. Don't forget to cheers!

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by General Mills through their partnership with POPSUGAR Select. While I was compensated to write a post about Pillsbury™ Grands! Cinnamon Rolls, all opinions are my own.

10 Valentine's Day Treats To Make With Your Kids

I'm 90% sure my favorite holiday after Christmas and Thanksgiving is Valentine's Day. And not for the commercial aspect where it is another lame excuse to spend money and buy cheesy gifts like those horribly awesome stuffed bears that sing Elvis Presley songs. And I definitely don't think we need a specific day to tell others we love them—we should do that every day!

BUT. I do love it for the colors, and fun activities for little kids. Pink and red is a color combination that makes me happy. And who doesn't like to splatter hearts on every surface? Okay, a lot of people, but this lady lives for it.

You know what else is awesome about Valentine's Day? The treats! Now, if you don't agree that it is the best holiday for baked goods, you are definitely off your rocker. Nothing is cuter than heart-shaped cookies. NOTHING.

Naturally, I wrote a blog post roundup of 10 Valentine's Day treats you can actually make with your kids. No overly complicated recipes and instructions in sight. And they are all guaranteed to be delicious. Check out the post here!

Also, add my food blog, The Butter Half, to your reading list for more Valentine's Day goodies ideas this month. I have a heart pie I am posting later today. It's adorable and I think you all should make one.

Bon appétit, mes amours!

Image from my Swig sugar cookie recipe on the Butter Half

10 DIY Holiday Ornaments Kids Can Help You Make

It's almost that time of year to pull out all your Christmas decorations and deck the halls like you're Buddy the Elf. Unless you're Costco, and in that case Christmas came before Halloween. But that's neither here nor there!

The true meaning of this post is to share some great ideas for making Christmas crafts and ornaments with your kids. We have all sorts of fun activities planned to keep us busy and creative. I'm mostly excited about making these DIY clay ornaments!

Come see the entire list of DIY ornaments in my article on Parenting.com! Happy crafting, kids.

Image via Kelli Murray

6 Fun End Of School Year Traditions To Do With Kids

School's out for summer! Or it almost is.

I remember how excited I would be for summer vacation when I was a kid, and I can't believe Luke will be starting school in just a couple of years. It's weird how quickly time passes, and might I add, a little freaky. My memories of elementary school are crystal! How do we make time stop?

Anyway, I wrote a cute, little roundup of fun end of school year traditions to start with your kids on Parenting.com. (Hint: it includes water balloons and the cutest summer reading list packet you will ever see.) Come read it here!

I can't wait to start these with our boys. Happy summer vacation!

Image sources 1 & 2

Painted Easter Egg Balloons

We made painted easter egg balloons for tot school yesterday. It is an incredibly easy and pocket-friendly kids craft (inspired by this post), and these balloons are perfect for playing the balloon pop game during your Easter egg hunt! Do you remember that game from the birthday parties of your childhood? It usually ends in tears for some and bruised ankles and shins for others, but it is a classic!



To make these adorable painted easter egg balloons and to play the balloon pop game you will need:

-Balloons in the color of your choice
-Paint and brushes
-Markers
-Washi tape
-String (about 2 feet for each kid)

Directions:

1. Blow up two balloons per kid, or however many you would like. Paint your balloons in any patterns or colors, doodle all over the surface with markers, or get creative with the washi tape.

2. Allow the painted balloons to dry for an hour or two. You can accelerate the drying time by using a hair dryer on the cool setting if you so desire.

3. Tie a foot of string to each balloon end and securely tie around your child's ankles.

4. Line everyone up and count to three. Let the kids run like crazy animals and attempt to pop the other balloons while keeping their balloons intact. The child with the last balloons standing wins!

I would like to note that I think this game is appropriate for kids ages 3 and up. I also feel like this game isn't only for kids. I could actually see this balloon pop game being more fun for the adults at an Easter egg hunt, or anytime for that matter! 

If you need more ideas on how to ramp up your Easter egg hunt, be sure to check out this list of creative ways to supercharge your hunt this year! 

Happy painting and popping!

P.S. This is what the painted balloons look like after they have been popped. I think they are so cool! Also, please be sure to keep a close watch if you have little ones playing around the balloons. They can be a joking hazard and should be removed if they try to bite the balloons or put them in their mouth.

Encouraging Creativity In Toddlers

The worry that I am not encouraging creativity within my boys to its full potential is a constant one. Are they playing with the wrong toys? Do they spend too much time watching mindless television? Do they get outside enough and use their imagination to invent their own fun? It's one thought missile after another of doubts and fears.

But, that is silly mind talk. I shouldn't listen to that anxious parenting voice inside my head. You know, the one that says you aren't doing an adequate job or that your kids are going to be irreversibly screwed up and in therapy for not getting the chocolate cake for dessert. Or in therapy because they did get the chocolate cake. Anyway, the point is that that voice is ridiculous and sometimes it is best to get our of your own head, and just do what feels right.


I think a lot about that concept in regard to my overall parenting style, and that includes encouraging Luke and Wesley's creativity. We obviously live in a world where tablets and smartphones and gadgets are the new norm for learning, and I want to teach them how to responsibly use technology to further their knowledge and education. But, I also want them to learn how to entertain themselves in the good, old-fashioned way using simple toys and objects around them, or the sheer power of imagination. We have been working on all those forms lately, and I just wanted to share what we are doing.

Luke thinks farms and animals are ALL the rage lately. It's barn this, and cow that, and cluck-cluck here and a moo-moo there. He has a set of basic farm animals, a fence, a truck and a small barn. It has been absolutely fascinating and fun to watch him and Wes play. They teach each other animal sounds and the hay bales go on grand adventures. Yesterday the spotted cow provided play dough milk for all the other farm animals and the farm truck tried its hand at racing the tractor. It is all silly and simple, but they are learning about animals and work and putting their imaginations to good use.



As far as apps go, we always mainly to educational ones (with the exception of Star Wars Angry Birds). We are enormous Disney fans, and are doing our Disneyland annual passholder duties by getting Disney apps. We just downloaded Mickey's Magical Arts World from Disney Imagicademy and Luke is obsessed. It's an interactive, curriculum-driven type of experience which incorporates the characters he knows and loves so dearly. Luke is learning more about shapes, colors, textures and music through it. His favorite is painting this little cat in orange cheese and sprinkles and making car tracks over it. He gets this deep belly laugh every time it comes to life. They have an Imagicademy Parents app too, which allows you to monitor your kid's progress on their projects activities. I love taking a look at what Luke makes. Mickey's Magical Arts World is designed for kids ages 3-8 and is exclusively available for the iPad, which you can download here. I highly recommend it!


Luke just started getting into imaginary play. Just last night he and Matt were pretending our bed was an island and that the ground was covered in lava and sharks. They had to sprint and dodge to grab "food" without getting eaten. I felt like I was overhearing an Indiana Jones adventure between all of the drama and action of the forbidden fires and depths of the oceans. Then suddenly Luke decided they were puddles. His cute, little voice said, "Hmmm... Dare are puddows! We gotta jump in them!" And then the thumps and booms of his jumping onto the floors echoed through the hall.


I love witnessing all of these playful moments and feel immensely blessed that I am able to be present. Inventing imaginary planets and landscapes, coming up with goofy stories, learning about horse poop according to a three-year-old, and seeing Luke's creations (both on paper and on the iPad) are the moments I live for. All of these little things are what excite me as soon as a I open my eyes in the morning, and what I reminisce about at night before I drift off to sleep.



Creativity is power and gives life, and I hope I am encouraging it in my boys as much as possible—they deserve all the best this world has to give.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own. Thanks for supporting our sponsors!

DIY Halloween Slime

We made the spookiest, ooziest DIY Halloween slime the other day. It was a fun science experiment of sorts, and Luke loved mixing it all together and playing with the textures. (Not gonna lie, so did I!)

It's the easiest recipe! All you do is mix equal parts liquid starch and school glue, and then add in your choice of food coloring. Head on over to What To Expect to see the complete instructions and measurements if you want more details, and have fun squishing and squeezing your slime!

Build A Washi Tape City Using The Best Toys

This post has been sponsored by Collective Bias, Inc. in partnership with Target. All opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting our sponsors! #CollectiveBias #TargetToys

The upside of having bare walls is the opportunity to create amazing play spaces with its wide open canvas. We haven't bothered putting anything on the walls or tried to completely furnish our place because a) we are renting and b) buying huge pieces of furniture stresses the bejeezus out of me! Anyway, we decided to utilize those sad, lonely walls to build a thriving metropolis from washi tape and this awesome block set, which I think are some of the best toys for little creators.



Like any good mother, I found this KidKraft block set from the toy emporium available online from Target, because Target makes dreams come true. They have different themes to choose from for whatever type of play you want to focus on, and we were honing in on move and imagine.

What better way to move and use your imagination than building a city from washi tape!

Here is what you need:

KidKraft block set
3-4 rolls of different colored washi tape
Toy cars








The directions are pretty straight forward. We started by making an outline for the entire city by taping it off on the ground. (Sidenote: if you have carpet, lay down a large piece of cardboard up against the wall.) From there we created skyscrapers on the wall with three different colored tapes, varying them in height. Next, we made the road by zigzagging black tape, and then finished with making buildings and parking slots with the remaining colored tape. (Remember to add the little details like windows and road dashes to make it more dimensional and fun!) Lastly, we assembled buildings and tunnels with the blocks to complete the construction of Luke City. (For the record, Luke is an excellent mayor and strictly enforces no pants and 3-day weekends — he's got my vote for life!)

This activity was waaay high up there on the fun charts for Luke. He played and scooted around for the longest time, rearranging all his little cars and blocks, thinking up different ways to drive them back and forth. I suggest adding this one to your list! (Especially for those rainy and winter days coming up!) Cheap, adorable, and will keep the kids entertained for hours.

Here are some other fun ideas from the toy emporium in case you would like more inspiration! Happy building!