H.O.R.S.E. with Daddy Teachable Moments Tuesday

       Tuesday is here already! We had a great weekend with family. We went fishing and sat around the campfire making smores and looking for shooting stars. It was a wonderful time. When we got back last night Pickle was very excited to be out of the car and to be able to play with his toys. 

       Tomato Papa and Pickle started up a game of H.O.R.S.E. with the little basketball hoop in our backyard. ( You know, take turns shooting the ball. If you miss you get a letter. ) While playing, Tomato Papa told Pickle that he got an H. Pickle ran to the magnetic letters ( that we still had out from this activity.)

Tomato Papa and Pickle got out the letters they needed and spelled out the words as they played.

        I think this idea is so great since little ones will understand the game better if they see the letters spelling out the word instead of keeping track in their head which may be too advanced for them. Great idea Tomato Papa and Pickle!

By the way, Pickle won the game. 

( Disclaimer: Please ignore or jungle of a backyard and the bad night pictures! We were tired after our trip! Give me a break:)

Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Sugar Pita Chips by Tomato Mama

      Looking for a quick and easy dish for your memorial day weekend? Fruit salsa with cinnamon sugar pita chips is always a hit, plus it is quick and easy! I brought it to our church small group this past week. It was a great mid morning snack and I was really glad to have an excuse to make a big batch of it! I'm so glad that we are coming into the spring/summer produce time of the year. So delish!

      Thanks to a great coupon from Driscoll's I found online ( see, coupons are not just for junk!) this was a pretty affordable recipe as well. 

You will need...

strawberries

blackberries

kiwi

pita bread 

butter (melted)

ground cinnamon

sugar

squeeze of lemon or lime ( I prefer lime. I think it tastes better with the kiwi.)

        Cut up your pita bread into triangles and spread on a baking sheet. Make sure what used to be the "inside" of the pita bread is facing up. I find it holds the butter and cinnamon sugar better this way. Brush the pita triangles with melted butter. 

      Sprinkle with come cinnamon sugar. Bake in the oven. I tried 300 degrees and they crisped up nicely after about 10 minutes. Bonus, the house smelled amazing!

     Chop up the fruit into fairly small pieces. I'm sure there is probably a faster way to chop it, but spending time in the kitchen is my zen time so I did it the old fashioned way. 

     Mix the strawberries, kiwi, and squeeze of fresh lime juice before adding the blackberries. They are so fragile that they survive better if you leave them for last. 

      Scoop the fruit salsa with the pita chips and enjoy! 

Sky Watching by Tomato Mama Teachable Moments Tuesday

       Pickle is an active little guy. He has been since before he was born. What a squirmer! Now he spends a lot of time running, jumping, spinning, and rolling. He loves to move. When my little guy decides that he wants to sit down and snuggle, I drop everything and enjoy it! You can't miss opportunities like that! After playing in the yard last night, he crawled up on my lap in my comfy deck chair. We snuggled with his "cubby bears" and looked up at the beautiful trees and sky. 

       We talked about how the trees are changing. We watched a bee buzz around lazily. We spotted a beautiful cardinal. Pickle thought he saw lots of alphabet letters in the clouds. We got to see lots of airplanes and talked about why they make lines. It was such a sweet moment. I tried to drink it all up to remember forever! 

       I had my camera with me and Pickle did some photography. All the pictures on this post are his work. Love them! 

Purple for a Cause by Tomato Mama

         I'm late in sharing this because it actually happened on May 12, but it's too cool not to tell you about! My sister, Zumba Girl, has an amazing blog about living with Fibromyalgia. May 12 was Fibromyalgia Awareness Day so she asked people to send her pictures of themselves or their pets wearing purple in support of those who suffer from this "invisible disease." 

         Go here to see the great pics she got and to check out her blog. Thanks again to the family and friends to contributed pics for her. 

Chocolate! (Got your attention didn't I?) by Tomato Mama

    

     Tomato Papa loves chocolate. When his birthday rolls around he always wants a chocolate cake, with chocolate icing, chocolate filling, chocolate ice cream on the side and chocolate anywhere else on the cake that I can think to sneak it in.
      This year I made him my version of a cake I saw in Martha Stewart Living. Mine is not as fancy. I'm no Martha, but it was cute! The problem is that I've got tons of M&M's in the house since then. I think they have been multiplying. Pickle also got many little packets of the mini ones in his easter basket. Pickle and I are not really chocolate people. ( I know! We are strange!) A little chocolate goes a long way for us. Tomato Papa is trying to ignore all the chocolate, but we need to use it up.
     Besides M&M cookies and maybe chocolate covered strawberries with the little M&M's are the only ideas I have come up with so far. Help!  Please send me your ideas for using up some M&M's! Send me an email or leave a comment ( it's ok to link to your blog) and let me know what to do! I would love to feature your recipe as well!

  

  

Wordless Wednesday, Sunny Day Excursion. . . by Duck Momma

Alphabet Excavation by Tomato Mama Teachable Moments Tuesday

      Here is a quick and fun learning activity you can do outside with your little one. Pull out those magnetic alphabet letters we all have living on our fridges and bury them in your sandbox. Have your little one go on a alphabet hunt. As the letters get "found" talk about their names and sounds. Spell words or your child's name together. Sort by color or letter. You can get creative with how you dig them up also. We started with the shovels but were soon using the toy bulldozers and cranes to "help rescue" the letters. It was a blast and it was a great way to spend the morning outside together.