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What a Mom Really Wants for Mother's Day

So Mother’s Day is next Sunday. Have you figured out what to get your mom/wife/sister/friend? Sure, breakfast in bed is sweet (especially if it includes something more than a cold bowl of cereal from your toddler). Flowers are nice. Who doesn’t like jewelry? But I think I speak for many moms that all we really want is a day (or night) to get away. Some “Me” time. A couple of uninterrupted hours to do anything for MYSELF. I got a taste of the good life when I joined a group of Boston Parent Bloggers last week for a Blogger Art Night at Palettes in Natick.

Co-owner Liza talking about Palettes

To be inspired

When I arrived at Palettes Art Studio in Natick Center, I immediately felt relaxed and happy just from the mere sight of colorful art on the walls and blank canvases beckoning me to get creative. The owners were friendly and made sure everyone had a drink and some food to start the night off right.

Great food and bubbly

Palettes has their own executive chef preparing menu items fresh every day. For Blogger Art Night, they had prepared a lovely spread of some their menu items. My favorite “nibbles” included the Gorgonzola Deviled Eggs, Tri Cut Italian Grinder and Grapes covered in Goat cheese and Pistachio. Every bite had a ton of flavor thanks to fresh, high-quality (and locally sourced) ingredients.

"Nibbles" in convenient containers for palette trays

My very own "palette" - cute, huh?

There is a fully stocked bar, featuring craft beers, hand-selected wines and their own infused water. Owner and bartender Steve was whipping up delicious cocktails, made to order. I had a vodka lemonade concoction that went down way too easily, followed by a strawberry and basil muddled drink. After a couple drinks, I was ready to paint!

Resident artist Ben also doubles as a mixologist at the Palettes bar

To be creative

Palettes assures everyone that “no experience needed, really.” I was nervous at first – the last time I picked up a paintbrush was to touch up some walls thanks to some rough toddler play. But they truly made it simple and fun. The painting that was chosen for us to create was this…

The evening's project: field of flowers

So what happens next can be pretty much boiled down to these three “steps”:

Step 1: Get your acrylic paint. There was a sheet with instructions on how many pumps of each color you will need to get for that particular painting.

Boston Parent Bloggers getting some paint

Step 2: Instructor guided painting. Seated at my blank canvas, Ben the resident artist led the group of nervous but excited group of mom bloggers on creating our own masterpieces. No one judged each other’s painting. When in doubt, Ben suggested you tell your neighbor, “I love how you used the blue!”

Ben showing us the first step to creating our masterpieces

Step 3: Have fun. This was really the best part of the night. Everyone was focused on experimenting on how to make their painting their own, while chatting away about blogging, pop culture, life, etc. Music was playing. Women were laughing (and nibbling and sipping). Yeah, I think a good time was had by all.

photo courtesy of Charlene Chronicles

A great gift (and giveaway!)

So skip the breakfast in bed, flowers and baubles (okay, maybe not the jewelry if it includes diamonds). Give your mom, sister, friend, wife the gift to get away and to eat, drink and paint at Palettes. And offer to take the kids for a couple of hours. It really is a great gift, I promise.

**The giveaway is now closed. Congrats Christy and happy painting!**

>> Palettes is offering one lucky umommy reader a chance to win a gift certificate for a class for two people ($70 value). To enter, leave a comment on what inspires you by Saturday, May 12, 2012 at 11:59pm EST. A winner will be selected at random by random.org. Good luck! <<

Disclosure: Thanks to Palettes and Charlene Chronicles for hosting the Blogger Art Night, which I received free of charge. I have no material connection to the brands, products or services mentioned. I was given a Palettes Gift Certificate in exchange for sharing information with my readers. As always, opinions are my own.

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In asparagus, Boston Brunchers

Boston Brunchers Review: Scollay Square (Boston)

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In Jamie Oliver, milk

Milk Awareness Day (Part 2)

Student enjoying white milk

What happens when you bring in three pediatricians in white lab coats, 391 cartons of free white milk, and a group of enthusiastic parents with milk mustaches to an elementary school?

On March 7^th, 2012, the Lowell Elementary School in Watertown, MA devoted an entire a day to promote the health benefits of white milk. With the support of the school administration and Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates (the local pediatrician office), the goal of Milk Awareness Day was to help kids make healthy choices, starting with choosing low-fat, white milk over flavored milk. A seemingly impossible task when almost 80% of the kids buy flavored milk over white milk at lunch everyday.

It was going to take a lot of planning, coordination and creativity. Here’s what happened:

“Let’s Talk Milk” School Assembly

Milk Day School Assembly

Milk Day began with an assembly in the school’s library. Students from grades PreK-5 gathered to hear three pediatricians from Harvard Vanguard talk about the benefits of choosing pure white milk instead of flavored milk. The kids were attentive as the doctors gave a presentation on the importance of calcium and other essential nutrients and vitamins found in milk. Then came the bait.

“Raise your hand if you drink chocolate milk at lunch” asked Dr. Dan Slater. A sea of hands flew up in the air.

Drs. Slater, Mitchell and Stepanian went on to explain the effects of sugar and why consuming too much sugar is bad for kids’ health. But how much sugar is in a carton of flavored milk? To demonstrate, they played a video clip of sugar being poured into a school bus from Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution. Students and staff gasped as the bus began to bust at the seams with sugar.

To further demonstrate sugar consumption, the pediatricians had the students guess how many cups of sugar are consumed at the Lowell school in one day. One by one, students came up to pour one cup of sand (representing sugar from flavored milk) into a clear storage container. The room grew increasingly agitated as over 18 kids gathered on the small stage.

“You guys drink 19 ½ cups of sugar more than you would if you drank regular white milk. That converts to 4 ½ added pounds of fat. And that’s not healthy.”

Kids are sometimes told too much sugar is not good for you, but it often doesn’t mean anything without the proper context. The Milk Day assembly was a great opportunity for the school doctors to explain this in a way kids could get and hopefully remember.

Harvard Vanguard doctors and students

Lunch

At the end of the assembly, the various grades began their lunch periods. Thanks to the generous support of Harvard Vanguard, children were offered free white milk with lunch. In addition, milk mustaches and white silicone bracelets with “MOO” imprinted on them were given to all the kids for choosing white milk. Nearly all the kids grabbed white milk over the flavored stuff. Only a handful of kids chose chocolate milk or water. Kids chose to show off their white mustaches and bracelets. It. Was. Awesome.

Pledge & Photo Opp

After kids finished their lunches, they were encouraged to sign a pledge to drink white milk and to have their pictures taken with milk mustaches. Lunch period is usually boisterous time, but more so on this particular day. Kids clambered to sign the pledge and showed off their milk mustaches. By the end of all the lunch periods, it was difficult to find space to scrawl a signature on the pledge. The goal was to make it a positive day. And based on the mood at every lunch period, there was no doubt we had achieved that goal.

And as a bonus, parent volunteers also collected the empty milk cartons to be used later for planting seedlings later this month as part of a wellness fair. How cool is that?

Principal Kaplan watching students sign pledge

Students could not wait to sign pledge to drink white milk

Milk Day was a hit with everyone

But wait, there’s more work to be done!

Months of planning and support paid off in spades. Except our efforts can’t be isolated to one day a year. School principal Elizabeth Kaplan has made it a priority to meet with parents to figure out ways to reduce the consumption of sugary drinks and snacks at school. Even though Massachusetts has passed regulations that will eliminate flavored milk by 2013, the Lowell school is trying to get a jump-start. And by all accounts, is well on its the way.

Check back to read the final installment of my “Milk Chronicles” after our follow-up meeting with the school principal later this month. Wish us luck!

This post was originally published at jamieoliver.com on April 20, 2012.

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, by umommy

Little Fingers: Dr. Panda Teach Me! App Review and Baked Flatbread Chips Recipe

Ever since Santa left us an iPad under the tree, I’m kind of obsessed with finding the perfect apps for our device. I have this inexplicable urge to hoard memory. As a result, I have become very choosy when it comes to buying apps, because God forbid I run out of memory!

When it comes to educational apps, I look for the following: positive editorial and user reviews (awards are a plus), price (under $4.99 is ideal), interactivity (cool animations that really leverage touch technology), games that make learning fun, and is an app the kids do not grow tired of. I’m not asking for too much, right?

So we decided to give Dr. Panda Teach Me! app by TribePlay a spin. Dr. Panda Teach Me! is designed for the preschooler/early learner (ages 2-5) in mind. Dr. Panda leads the user through four different landscapes and over 10 educational activities such as colors, numbers, and puzzles to name a few. Activities are reward-based vs. points based. It is also free off links, ads and in-app purchases.

My 3-year-old immediately went to town, tapping everything in sight to see what would happen. He giggled with each cute animation and instantly knew how to maneuver his little fingers to get from landscape to activity quickly. The educational activities were appropriate for his learning level and he enjoyed making his own landscape when he completed an activity.

Some things to note if you are considering to buy this next time you are at the App Store. Because there are so many different animations hidden in each landscape, Dr. Panda Teach Me! is better suited for an iPad than a smartphone given its larger screen size in my opinion. Also, this is really geared toward a preschooler. My 6-year-old played with it for less than five minutes and declared it was too easy for him. My 3-year-old played with it for 30 minutes and asked to play with it again the next day. A sign of a good app in my opinion!

For $1.99 (Free Lite version is also available), this is a good app for my youngest. Plus the fun music makes me feel as if I’m in some 70s game show – which is not a bad thing.

But before you get those little fingers all over your expensive personal electronics, why not put them to work to help make a healthy and tasty snack! My kids love making these Baked Flatbread Chips. They are super easy to make, not to mention delicious.

Baked Flatbread Chips

INGREDIENTS

4-6 whole wheat flatbread rounds (I recommend Trader Joe’s Middle Eastern Flatbread)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Kosher Salt

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
With a pizza cutter or kitchen shears, cut each flatbread round into 8 wedges
Place wedges onto a rimmed baking sheet. Using a brush or fingers, lightly coat wedges with oil, then season with salt.
Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until crisp and lightly browned
Enjoy warm from then oven. Serve with your favorite dip.

Disclosure: As a member of Boston Parent Bloggers, I was given the opportunity to participate in this sponsored campaign. I received the app for free to offer a review. As always, all opinions are my own.

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Recipe: Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

With Easter quickly approaching this weekend, I've been looking for a sweet treat to share with the boys besides the usual suspects of jellybeans, Cadbury Creme Eggs or chocolate bunnies. I wanted to find something a bit more healthier that we would all love: Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting.

I think I may have found the mother of all recipes based on smiles after we made a batch. And the vitamin-rich carrots, antioxidant-rich raisins, and walnuts that are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids make this a treat I feel good about serving my family. Plus having the kids help make these have now become part of our family Easter tradition. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Easter. Okay, Cadbury Crème Eggs are a very close second.

Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Adapted from Joanne Chang’s Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston’s Flour Bakery + Café

INGREDIENTS

· 2 Eggs

· 1 cup packed light brown sugar

· ¾ cup canola oil

· 3 tbs lowfat buttermilk

· ½ tsp vanilla extract

· 1 cup plus 2 tbs unbleached all–purpose flour

· ½ tsp baking powder

· ½ tsp baking soda

· ½ tsp kosher salt

· ½ tsp ground cinnamon

· ¼ tsp ground ginger

· 2 cups shredded carrots

· ½ cup raisins

· ½ cup chopped walnuts

Cream Cheese Frosting

· 12 oz cream cheese, at room temperature

· ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

· 1 2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

2. In a large bowl or using a stand mixer, beat together eggs and brown sugar on med-high speed for 3-4 minutes, or until mixture is light in color and thick. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk, and vanilla. On low speed, slowly pour the oil mixture into the egg-sugar mixture.

3. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger. Using a rubber spatula, fold flour mixture into egg-sugar mixture until fully incorporated.

4. Add carrots, raisins, and walnuts and continue to fold until well mixed. Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

5. Bake cupcakes for about 50 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool in muffin tin on wire rack.

6. Meanwhile to make the frosting, beat cream cheese (with paddle attachment) on medium speed for about a minute until smooth. It is important cream cheese is at room temperature or the frosting will be lumpy. You can microwave on medium power for 30 seconds to soften (be sure to remove foil wrapper!).

7. Add the butter and continue to beat for another minute. Then add the confectioners’ sugar and beat for one more minute until well mixed. Chill frosting in the refrigerator to firm it up before using.

8. Remove cupcakes from muffin tin and frost cupcakes. Decorate with shaved coconut, carrot strips or lemon zest.

This post was originally published at MomItForward.com on April 3rd, 2012.

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In cooking with kids, dining out with kids

Foodie in the Making

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In kid-friendly, pasta

My Go-To Weeknight Dish: Pasta with Sausage, Rosemary and Tomatoes

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In day off, delivery

Mom's Day Off (Foodler Review)

As a mom food blogger whose goal is to raise adventurous eaters, there’s a good chance you will find me scouring cookbooks and the Internet for new recipes to try with my brood. But yes, there are days when after a stressful day of work, kids and lack of sleep, I want nothing more than to have dinner magically appear on the table. And with Foodler, this actually happened.

What is Foodler?

“Foodler is a website for ordering delivery and takeout from restaurants around you. Foodler is more reliable than using a phone, since all orders are transmitted and confirmed electronically. Foodler is faster than using a phone, since we remember your address and payment preferences. Foodler tells you what's popular and what's highly-rated so that you can find the best food near you. Foodler has negotiated exclusive discounts with our partner restaurants, and passes the savings on to you.” (Foodler website)

Cut to Thursday afternoon. It had been a rain/snow mix for over 24 hours. Our fridge consisted of a half gallon of milk, a bag of carrots, half a carton of eggs and a sundry of condiments. I decided this would be the PERFECT time to take Foodler out for a spin.

Step 1: enter your location on the Foodler home page. Search results sort restaurants by cuisine with “Best Bets” first. “Best Bets” are based on customer ratings, past order history and distance. You can sort results by cost, rating, distance, and delivery fee.

Step 2: Select a restaurant and browse full menu. Organized by dish, you can select quantity/size and even add specific requests. Best Bets are offered up on the side along with a running subtotal of your order.

Step 3: Submit your order directly to the restaurant. Once you’ve reviewed and submitted your order, you get an order summary and email confirmation.

Step 4: Eat! Our order arrived within the time frame specified. In fact it came only after 30 minutes of receiving the order confirmation. And it was piping hot on a snowy evening commute.

We had a great experience with Foodler. It was easy to navigate and our food was exactly as I had ordered it. Since we don’t have food delivered often, it is hard for me to compare prices. My one gripe about Foodler is the restaurant selection was pretty limited for my area. And... the name Foodler. As a marketing professional, it just doesn't sit well with me. It's not very intuitive or very memorable. But now I'm just being a branding snob. Overall, I’ll gladly trade our draw-o-takeout-menus for one-stop-ordering.

Disclosure: Foodler.com offered me $15 in Foodler bucks to conduct this review. As always, all opinions are my own.

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In cooking school, Jamie Oliver

How to Keep a Good Thing Going

Last June, my son's elementary school joined over 300 groups in celebrating the first Flavored Milk Dayof Action. With support from the school principal and the local pediatric medical office, students were given free cartons of white milk and white bracelets imprinted with “MOO.” Our goal was to help kids make healthy choices in a positive environment. If kids mooing and drinking white milk is any indication of success, then it was a great day.

At the Lowell School, we are taking our early success and running with it. With the continued support of the school principal and pediatric office, we will be celebrating Milk Awareness Day for a second time on March 7^th, 2012. But this time, it will be bigger than before:

Everyone loves FREE: As we had done last year, we will be giving out free white milk to all the kids during lunch

Accessorize: We are also giving out free white silicone wristbands with "MOO" imprinted on them

Make it fun: We will be giving out white milk mustaches to the students to wear after lunch

Make it memorable: There will be two school-wide assemblies featuring the school principal and pediatricians. The assembly will feature a demonstration on sugar consumption and why it is important to make healthy food choices.

Healthy partners: The school is also partnering with ChopChop Magazine, a children's cooking magazine focused on combating childhood obesity and making healthy food choices

Make a statement: Students will help create a giant milk carton and sign a pledge in art class. The giant milk carton and student signatures will be on display in the cafeteria

Share at home: Students will be sent home with an informational flyer to share with parents a week prior to Milk Day

The goal is to continue to raise awareness in a positive way, but also to prepare the community for the Massachusetts regulations that will take effect in August (changing what is on school menus, including the elimination of flavored milk in August 2013). Massachusetts is taking steps to fight childhood obesity. And it’s a welcome change, but we think we can do better. At the Lowell school, we hope to set an example for other schools in the community and surrounding towns. Why wait when change can happen today?

Stay tuned to find out how Milk Awareness Day turns out and our plans to keep the momentum going!

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Pages

The Healthy Lunchtime Challenge & Kids’ “State Dinner”

What a Mom Really Wants for Mother's Day

Boston Brunchers Review: Scollay Square (Boston)

Milk Awareness Day (Part 2)

Little Fingers: Dr. Panda Teach Me! App Review and Baked Flatbread Chips Recipe

Recipe: Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Foodie in the Making

My Go-To Weeknight Dish: Pasta with Sausage, Rosemary and Tomatoes

Mom's Day Off (Foodler Review)

How to Keep a Good Thing Going

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