Whimsical Easter Napkin Rings

I came across a package of 4 plastic games at the dollar store. Seeing that they were cute spring characters with a hole in each of them, I thought they would make cute Whimsical Easter Napkin Rings. After their meal, give them the middle part and let the kids use them as a design drawing tool. They are a small version of a Spirograph. It is where you insert a pen or sharp pencil into the small piece and move the inside circle around the hole.

Whimsical Easter Napkin Rings   grandparentsplus.com

 

Here’s what to look for…..

Whimsical Easter Napkin Rings  grandparentsplus.com

These came in a package that was just noted as a “drawing toy”.  They came 4 to a package for just $1!

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA Whimsical Easter Napkin Rings   grandparentsplus.com

When the kids finish eating, give them the center circle and a pad of paper to experiment with designs. Just the basic form alone makes a great tracing tool, too. This will keep them busy.

Sometimes you need to think out of the box for napkin rings. Look in the kid’s toy section and you may find something to use as a fun napkin ring.

I like to make my table kid friendly, yet elegant for adults. Don’t you think the kids will like these?

Whimsical Easter Napkin Rings  grandparentsplus.com

Happy Easter!

Phyllis

Look for more Easter ideas under “holidays” at the top.

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Posted in Decor, Easter, Holidays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet

This Vintage Washboard redo and re-purposed project was made by my dad. He surprised me by making this for our cabin. We have now sold our cabin, but I couldn’t part with this piece. Now, we are enjoying this  Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet hanging in our guest bathroom at home. I thought I’d share this special piece with you. My dad made a simple box and attached the washboard to it. If you’re handy with wood, this is an easy DIY project.

Vintage Washbord Wall Cabinet grandparentsplus.com

 

A bit of light stain brought out a lot of the detail on the washboard.

Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet

The box measures 12 1/2″ wide and 17 1/2″ long.

Small door hinges on one side attach the box to the washboard.

Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet   grandparentsplus.com

Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet   grandparentsplus.com

A simple latch keeps the box closed.

Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet   grandparentsplus.com

A stained dowel added between the legs of the washboard makes a nice place for a hand towel.

Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet   grandparenttsplus.com

 Inside I place soap, lotion, cotton balls, extra toothbrushes, Q-tips and any other items that my guests may need. This Vintage Washboard Wall Cabinet is perfect in a bathroom or a laundry room! I love this piece and the memories that go with it.

Were you inspired to make one of your own?

Thanks for stopping by,

Phyllis

 

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Easter Devotionals for Kids

This post is a recommendation and I’m in no way compensated. I just wanted to share some Christian tools to use with your family for Easter.

If you’re looking for an “Easter Devotional for Kids” to use with your family, Creative Communications has several booklets for kids. They are very inexpensive and some have digital downloads available. I served as a Children’s Pastor for many years and used many of these booklets for families in our church. They have both a Catholic and Protestant version of each booklet. Kids enjoy them as they are colorful and include many activities along with teaching the important truths of Easter!

Easter Devotionals for Kids   grandparentsplus.com

There are digital versions available for download of several of the booklets. Here’s just one sample…

Easter Devotionals for Kids   grandparentsplus.com

If you are looking for Lent or Easter Devotionals for your family, you may want to check these out. They have several preschool booklets along with devotionals for ages 6-12. Remember, this season is about Jesus who paid the penalty for our sin.

 CreativeCommunications

 

Blessings,

Phyllis

 

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Butter Pecan Angel Pie

You may notice that when I post a recipe, it has to be easy and fairly quick! With today’s busy life-style, I like to entertain, but making it difficult means I do it less often. Having people over for cards or an easy dinner and serving a lovely dessert is all that is needed for a fun evening. This Butter Pecan Angel Pie fits the requirements for an easy and elegant dessert! It is one that you can have ready in the freezer for company or family!

Butter Pecan Angel Pie   grandparentsplus.com

Butter Pecan Angel Pie Ingredients…….

Meringue:

2 egg whites

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

 

Filling:

Butter Pecan Ice Cream,  Butter Brickle, or Coffee flavored 

Hot Fudge Topping

Caramel Topping

Whip Cream

Extra pecans!

 

Directions:

Beat together egg whites, vanilla, salt and cream of tartar. Beat until stiff peaks form!! Don’t underbeat this! Gradually, beat in a little sugar at a time until very stiff peaks form and sugar is dissolved. Fold in chopped nuts. Spread in well buttered 9 inch pie pan, building up sides to form a shell.

Butter Pecan Angel Pie   grandparentsplus.com

 

Bake @ 275 for 1 hour. After baking, turn off heat and leave in closed oven for one more hour. Remove from oven.

Butter Pecan Angel Pie  grandparentsplus.com

Cool and fill with softened Butter Pecan Ice cream. Cover with tin foil and place in freezer until ready to serve.

Cut pie and spoon over hot fudge sauce along with a little caramel sauce. Top with whip cream and a sprinkle of pecans.

Butter Pecan Angel Pie  grandparentsplus.com

 

Enjoy!

Phyllis 

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Valentine Straws – quick and easy

Here’s a quick, last-minute, easy idea for Valentine’s Day. Make Valentine Straws to make a drink for kids special! It makes drinking milk or juice extra fun! Imagine coming home from school to this Valentine treat! YUM!

Valentine Straws   grandparentsplus.com

 

 

You can make these in 5 minutes! Surprise the kids or have them make the Valentine Straws for their Valentine dinner.

Materials Needed:

Fun Foam (pink or red)  Use fun foam as it doesn’t tear or get messy with drinks.

Stickers – self stick

Scissors

Straws

Single Hole Punch

 

Directions:

Draw a heart or use a cookie cutter as a template on the fun foam. My samples measured about 3 1/2 in. wide by 2 1/4 in. tall.

Optional:  Decorate with stickers or a cute saying, “Be Mine”, “Love you”, “You are Special”

Valentine Straws  grandparentsplus.com

Punch hole near the top and one near the bottom. The holes are about 1  1/2 inches apart.

Valentine Straws   grandparentsplus.com

Push straw through the holes.

Valentine Straws  grandparentsplus.com

 

Serve Valentine Straws with Valentine Flavor Cookies for a great after school treat!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Enjoy! 

Phyllis

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Valentine Breakfast

On February 14, set the tone and start the morning right with a Valentine breakfast! Hearty oatmeal, orange juice and a heart-shaped cinnamon roll will be a perfect start to a great day. Everything is quick and easy to make and will delight your family with this special Valentine breakfast combination!

Valentine Breakfast   grandparentsplus.com

 

I used store-bought refrigerated cinnamon rolls and fashioned them into a heart shape. It worked best to unroll them and twist each end to form the top of the heart and then pinch the dough together for the point at the bottom. 

 

Valentine Breakfast   grandparentsplus.com

 

When ready to frost, add a bit of red food color to the prepared frosting. The oatmeal is given just a drop of food color to make it pink and chocolate chips added to form the heart!

 

 

Valentine Breakfast   grandparentsplus.com

 

 

Another variation is to add strawberry preserves and a gummy heart in the middle.

Valentine Breakfast   grandparentsplus.com

 

 

Valentine Breakfast   grandparentsplus.com

 

Your family will love this quick, easy Valentine breakfast!  Make Valentine memories! 

 

Enjoy! 

Phyllis

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Posted in Holidays, Valentines | Tagged , , , | 25 Comments

Valentine Decorations with Pringles Lids

Valentine Decorations with Pringles Lids is a reuse and recycle craft! It is very inexpensive and fun to make as well.

I like the Pringles Lids because they are clear. All the other plastic lids on cans I have found are translucent; not clear. This clear lid makes a great project for Valentines (as well as other holidays) as a window decoration or for hanging from a chandelier.

Valentine Decorations with Pringles Lids   grandparentsplus.com

When making as a window decoration, you only need to decorate one side. ( This is easier for young children.) I’ve decorated both sides and repeated the same design matching each of the stickers on the back side, but you only need to do this if you are going to hang them from a chandelier.

Valentine Decorations with Pringles Lids  grandparentsplus.com

 

 

By using sparkle foam self-stick stickers or any Valentine sticker, the application is easy. A few glitzy, rhinestone stickers add a little sparkle! I happened to get a red rhinestone ribbon 70% off after Christmas so I used that for the edging. Just cutting a row of two wide and applying it to the edge with a glue gun, finishes it off nicely. If you don’t have this, glue the edge with a tacky glue and roll in pink, white or red sparkle glitter to finish it off or a 1/4 ” seasonal ribbon works, too.  Younger children will find it easier to roll the edge in glitter.

 

Valentine Decorations with Pringles Lids   grandparentsplus.com

 

Punch a hole in the lid and add fish line or ribbon for hanging. Now, hang your “Valentine Decoration” creations in the window or from a chandelier.  

Valentine Decorations with Pringles Lids   grandparentsplus.com

Enjoy! 

Phyllis

 

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Snowball Cake

Having a party with a winter theme? This Snowball Cake is showy and delicious! Everyone will wonder how you did it! The recipe I used is found on allrecipes.com. I included two variations and the links to the recipes. I’ll, also, explain how I’ve varied the recipe a bit.

Snowball Cake grandparentsplus.com

I like both the chocolate and angelfood versions. The chocolate version has a hidden cream cheese surprise, while the angelfood version is lemon-pineapple flavored.These two versions of the Snowball Cake will not only impress your guests with the presentation, but with the taste! They look hard, but I promise they’re easy to do!

The angelfood version is much lighter, but both have a “wow-factor”!

 

I’ll show you both versions…..

Click on the link for the complete recipe of each version!

Snowball Cake Chocolate Surprise Version…..

For this Snowball Cake, I followed the recipe except for two exceptions. First, I didn’t bake it in the bowl that I mixed it in. I poured it into another bowl which I sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. It came out so much easier! Second, I used a different frosting.

The directions are very easy. You mix the chocolate cake mix according to the package directions. Next, add the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter and bake.

For the frosting, I used a pint of whip cream and 1 package of instant vanilla pudding or instant chocolate pudding instead of the whipped topping and coconut. I whipped the cream and pudding together until it formed peaks and then iced the cake. The frosting is a creamy color and not white, but I liked the flavor better. Also, I left out the coconut as several guests preferred it without that addition. It still made a great looking cake and was impressive to serve.

 

Snowball Cake  grandparentsplus.com

Add cream cheese mixture to the center of the batter. No mixing, just place it on top of the cake batter. Don’t worry, it works!

 

Snowball Cake  grandparensplus.com

 We used this version as our Jesus birthday cake at Christmas. My granddaughters decorated it with cherries and cut green leaves from some fruit flavored gummy snacks. The girls wanted  baby Jesus in the middle so they made a bed of hay (corn flakes) and added a baby (two mini marshmallows with eyes from a toothpick dipped in blue food coloring and a mouth from the red food coloring). The halo was a Cheerio!

 

Snowball Cake  grandparents.com

 

The second version uses angelfood cake and is much lighter in calories. 

Snowball Cake I 

I , also, changed it just a bit. 

 

Snowball Cake grandparensplus.com

 This is the store-bought cake and how I lined the bowl with parchment paper.

Snowball Cake  grandparentsplus.com

 For the mixture, I substituted Sugar Free Lemon Jello, 1  3/4 cups boiling water and 1 cup of pineapple juice drained from the can of pineapple plus 1 tsp. of lemon juice. After cooling a bit, I added the drained pineapple. When starting to thicken, add the whipped topping. I eliminated their amounts for sugar, water, lemon juice and unflavored gelatin.

Snowball Cake grandparentsplus.com

 Add cake and pineapple-lemon mixture in four layers. I did 1/4 cake and 1/4 mixture. It is very important to let this set in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours before removing from the bowl. When set, invert onto a serving plate, peel the parchment paper off, frost with whipped topping, and decorate. Return cake to the refrigerator to keep cool. Again, we decorated it without the coconut. Either way, it looks fantastic! 

Snowball Cake   grandparentsplus.com

So delicious! 

 

Snowball Cake   grandparentsplus.com

 The cake slices easily for serving! Light, lemon-pineapple, and luscious! 

Snowball Cake grandparentsplus.com

 

This cake would be great in the summer, too. Just don’t mention the “snowball” name! 

Snowball Cake grandparentsplus.com

 Won’t your guests be impressed? While the presentation will draw Ooh’s and Aah’s, they will love the taste, too!

Enjoy! 

Phyllis

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Posted in Desserts, Recipes | Tagged , , , | 23 Comments

Valentine Box Ideas

The next holiday, Valentine’s Day,  is just around the corner and hopefully these Valentine Box Ideas will get your creative juices flowing for your child’s own Valentine box. I remember making my Valentine box for school so many years ago.  Do you?

40+ Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

 

 

If you’ve saved a few cereal, oatmeal, kleenex, shoe, and gift boxes, you’ve got the makings for your creations. Add a few cardboard tubes, egg cartons, duct tape, google eyes, construction paper, paint, yarn and perhaps a mop and see what you can create. These 40+ Valentine Box Ideas will be great inspiration! Some are easy and some are more involved. Pick your level and create! It’s a fun project for you and your child or grandchild to work on together.

For each creation, I’ve linked to the blog where it can be found. A few pictures were unidentified and no blog was found so those are left blank.  Enjoy all these fun ideas…..

 

Valentine Box Idea grandparentsplus.com

   Angry Bird Valentine Box Ideas:  juliedavison.blogspot.com

 

Valentine Box Ideas - Pokemon

Pokemon Box

vivaciouslyvintage.com

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

Alligator Box

crayonboxchronicles.com

 

 

Valentine Box Ideas castle grandparentsplus.com

What girl wouldn’t love to create a castle?

mommylessons101.com

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

Rapunzel Box …. Notice the child’s picture as Rapunzel.

jungeberg.blogspot.com

 

Sports Boxes……..

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

worthpinning.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

I’m sure you could take this idea and make a hockey one, too!

littleilluminations.blogspot.com

 

Here’s a few animal creations…..

Isn’t this dog cute? Got a mop?

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

mymixofsix.blogspot.com

 

Next, a darling raccoon.

Valentine Box Idea grandparentsplus.com

procrastistamper.blogspot.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

www.daniellesplace.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

A baby wipe’s box was reused for this idea…

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

atozandj.blogspot.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com Found on...amysdailydose1.blogspot.com

 

Monsters of all kinds…….

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

ourunexpectedjourney.blogspot.com

 

VAlentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

myhomespunthreads.blogspot.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

www.upcyclethat.com

This Frankenstein box is actually a Halloween Treat Holder, but it would work as a Valentine Box Idea, too!

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

paulastamps.blogspot.com

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

This site has lots of other ideas for Valentine boxes, too!

www.daniellesplace.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

simplykierste.com

I guess all monsters have to have sharp teeth, right?

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

This polka-dot monster is more feminine with only one set of teeth!

www.faith-love-hope.com

 

 

Yes, Frozen makes its way into the Valentine Box Ideas.

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

www.oneartsymama.com

 

Now, some more ideas…….

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.om

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

 

the5cundicks.blogspot.com

 

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

www.my719moms.com

 

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

from www.joplinexpressions.com

 

Robots!

Small…..

  Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

And BIG!

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

 Cute shark!

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

mypaperlust.blogspot.com

 

Here are ideas for “things that go”!

 

 

Valentine Idea Box grandparentsplus.com

www.babble.com

Valentine Idea Box grandparentsplus.com

stockpilingmoms.com

Valentine Box Idea grandparentsplus.com

trailteach.blogspot.com

 

Valentine Box Idea grandparentsplus.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

thedoodlespot.blogspot.com

Doddlespot has some other creations as well….

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

utah.todaysmama.com

Utah.todaysmama, also, has a few other Valentine box ideas.

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

lifewithfingerprints.com

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

1stgradefantabulous.blogspot.com

Wouldn’t these heart people be a cute classroom project?

Next. is a very simple idea to do. Got a bunch of bottle caps? This might be the easy idea for you!

 

Valentine Box Ideas grandparentsplus.com

thecraftycrow.net

 

Now, which of the Valentine Box Ideas was your favorite? I found it hard to choose, didn’t you?

Lots of cute ones, right?

Thanks for stopping by and have fun creating!

Phyllis

 

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Posted in Art Project, Crafts, Holidays, Valentines | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Broccoli Cheese Soup

As the temperature goes way down, a great soup seems so appealing for a cold evening.  I had a bunch of broccoli left over, so I quickly make this Broccoli Cheese Soup the other night. What I like about this soup is that it is low on calories, easy to make, takes very few ingredients, and freezes well! You can add chicken or ham, if you wish.

Broccoli Cheese Soup  grandparentsplus.com

 

 

Ingredients:

 32 oz. chicken broth

Broccoli (sorry, but I just add what I want, I don’t measure perhaps 1 cup to 1 & 1/2 cup chopped)

1 can Rotel ( 10 oz. ) diced tomatoes –  (mild or however hot you prefer) or just add regular diced tomatoes for a very mild version

10 oz. Velveeta  2% Milk ( for the skinny version) or regular Velveeta

Add onion salt and garlic salt to taste.

Add cooked chicken or ham (optional)

 

Directions: 

Cook broccoli in chicken broth until just tender. 

Add Velveeta in chunks so it melts faster.

Add Rotell or other diced tomatoes

Add spices to taste…

Add chicken or ham, if desired.

Heat and serve. 

Serves 4-6

Broccoli Cheese Soup  grandparentsplus.com

 

 

I just made a big batch and froze this soup in individual portions for taking to work for lunch. You’re going to like this easy recipe for Broccoli Cheese Soup!

Enjoy! 

Phyllis

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