Ice excavation

Ok so somehow or another I didn't publish this. I don't know how that happened. Anyway it's a little late but oh well maybe idea for you all to use next summer.

Since it's so hot here I decided to do an activity that would keep them cool. We can't do sprinkler or pool or things like that because of the drought. So I went searching for ideas on the internet. This is what I came up with. 

ICE EXCAVATION!!

Things you'll need:

small toys or other small items

plastic container(s)

water

food coloring (optional)

freezer space (this was the problem for me lol)

toys for excavating (I let the kids choose most of those I gave them water bottle full of warm water)

salt (optional, to help the melting go a little faster)

I got some of the toys we used for this at the dollar store. I wanted to put some new toys in there to help keep them excited. I figured if they were working for new toys they'd keep working more so than if I used all toys we already had. I did use some of the toys we already had. I divided the toys into 3 groups (1 for each of the 3 containers I had).

I started by freezing a little water on the bottom of each container.  Once the water had set I put half of the toys in the container and filled the container a little over half full of water. Once that was frozen I put the rest of the toys in and filled the container completely up with water. This whole process took 2 or 3days. So this is a plan ahead activity.

Since we are only going to be living here for a few months then moving on again we didn't put sand in our sand table. Since it's been empty we've used it many times for water activities. This activity seemed like a really good one to use our table. So that's what we did. I put the containers filled ice in the table and let them have fun. I had to help them get ice out of the container. 

 Once it was out I sprinkled a little salt on the ice. They started out with using just forks to try to get the toys out. NOT A GOOD IDEA. No one got hurt but they were a few near missed before I took the forks. Lesson learned LOL. 

 They had fun trying out all kinds of different things. 

They eventually gave up with using the tools. They moved to the patio. Where they dropped their ice chunks a few times to break them up. Then they started drawing pictures with the ice and then watched their drawing disappear. 

After some time they finally got out all their toys. They enjoyed playing with their new and old toys alike. 

Here is a picture of the toys and some of the tools used. The toys are on the table. The tools are in the plastic container.

This activity took up one whole hot afternoon. It was a great way to keep cool when it was so hot.

Hope this gives you some inspiration to get out in the yard and have fun with your kids!

Vegetable Chowder

Today was a chilly rainy day. So I decided today would be a perfect day to try out a new recipe I came across somewhere on the internet. Well the recipe gave me the idea but I changed a good bit of it. I have been wanting to do a soup and salad day for a long time and finally it was cool enough outside to do it. My husband isn't usually happy with a non-meat meal but we garnished our chowder with bacon, so it was all good. I made up a simple garden salad and baked up a fresh loaf of bread and it was a perfect meal. 

For my salads I don't toss the stuff together because we all like different things. I bought a bag of lettuce from the store. I chopped up some tomatoes, fresh broccoli, and green onions. Then I grated some cheddar cheese and carrots. I also chopped up and fried a package of thick-sliced bacon. The cheese, bacon and green onions serve the dull propose of salad toppers and soup garnishes. 

Then for the bread I cheated. Yep that's right I went the short cut way and used frozen bread dough. I have 4 kids so I think I am entitled to cheat now and again, LOL. Plus I haven't found a regular bread recipe that I like yet.

Now onto the soup! This was incredibly easy to make. So with out further ado here is the recipe!

2 lbs red potatoes (I left the skin on but you can peel them)

1 lb. fresh broccoli florets, no major stem pieces

1 lb. fresh cauliflower, same as broccoli

1 lb. fresh carrots, peeled and sliced

leeks (optional), cleaned and sliced

2 TBS minced garlic

64 oz. chicken or vegetable stock

1 quart half and half

12 oz. cream cheese

Chop all the veggies into chunks. It doesn't matter what they look like because it will all be mashed up later. Put everything except the half and half and cream cheese into a stock pot or a crock pot. I cooked mine on the stove for about 4 hours on low. You can also do this in the crock pot for about 8 hours. Then after all your veggies are soft take a potato masher and mash it all up. I did this right in the pot. 

Let your cream cheese come to room temp or pop it into the microwave a bit so that it's easier to work into your chowder. After you have mashed it all up add your cream cheese and half and half. Let it cook just until it's warm. You do not want to cook your chowder much after you've added the half and half because it will curdle and ruin your chowder. This makes about 15-20 servings depending on what size bowls you use. 

This does feed a crowd so this is good meal to invite some friends or family over to help you enjoy!

From my table to yours I hope you Enjoy!