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they really like it

It can be quite difficult to find food other than Cheez-Its and goldfish crackers to please my kids. Thankfully, broccoli, strawberries and watermelon are welcomed. However, it would be nice to mix it up a bit. I found a recipe for chicken and asparagus with peanut dipping sauce. My kids love peanut butter sandwiches and now love the sauce too.

This recipe is from Family Fun magazine. I marinated chicken (did not marinate the asparagus- less is more) instead of pork tenderloin the first time. The second time, I halved the recipe and used it only as a sauce.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin & Asparagus with Peanut Dipping Sauce

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• Rated by 12 members

In this recipe, half the marinade is used to flavor the meat and vegetables. The other half is whisked with peanut butter to create a tasty dipping sauce -- a fun job that kids can lend a hand with. You can also enlist their help preparing the asparagus: show them how to gently hold an end in each hand and then bend the stalk into an upside-down U until the tough part snaps off.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon peeled and grated fresh ginger

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1 pound fresh asparagus, rinsed and snapped
• 1 pound pork tenderloin
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)

Instructions

1. Make the marinade by whisking together the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, honey, ginger, garlic, and lemon pepper in a bowl, and reserve 1/2 cup of the mixture in a separate container.

2. Place the asparagus in a ziplock bag and pour in 1/4 cup of the marinade from the bowl. Work the bag gently with your fingers to distribute the marinade. Do the same with the pork tenderloin, using a second ziplock bag and the remaining marinade from the bowl. Let the meat and vegetables marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a charcoal fire or heat a gas grill to medium-high, and oil the grates.

3. Add the peanut butter to the reserved marinade and whisk the mixture until smooth.

4. Grill the tenderloin for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, rotating it a quarter turn at a time, until the internal temperature registers 145º in the center. Remove the meat from the grill and let it rest for about 5 minutes (the internal temperature will rise to 150º). Meanwhile, grill the asparagus spears for 2 minutes per side.

5. Slice the pork diagonally into 1- to 2-inch slices. It should be juicy and slightly pink inside. Serve the meat and the asparagus with the peanut dipping sauce. Serves 4.

Nutritional Information:

Per serving:
Calories 431
Protein 35g (71% DV)
Carbohydrates 14g (5% DV)
Total Fat 27g (42% DV)
Saturated Fat 6g (31% DV)
Cholesterol 75mg (25% DV)
Sodium 1141mg (8% DV)
Vitamin C (50% DV)
Vitamin B6 (38% DV)
Vitamin E (21% DV)
Vitamin K (85% DV)
Iron (16% DV)
Percent daily values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

doing science

If Sean watches and episode of "Sid the Science Kid" it is usually followed by a request to "do science". The fastest activity I can produce is a pie pan filled with cornstarch and water (glop). Both kids love that it oozes slowly and stiffens up if you try to stir it. They can play with that mess for at least 30 minutes. I tried to explain that it acts like a non-Newtonian fluid but...

Here's the answer to the hows and whys.

hip huggies

No way. My sister just spotted a new trend- denim diapers. The hip Huggies have hit California and are coming to Kmart on May 23rd for a limited time. Further research shows that they have been available overseas for a couple of years. Here is the photo from Huggies' Facebook page:

ABCs

I want these cups but can not figure out how to order them. Try here.

cake pops

As soon as I discovered Bakerella's blog, I was determined to make her cake pops. Easter was on it's way so I went for the chickies. The instructions are here. I've already been dreaming of a Hello Kitty birthday party for Kate just to make these. Or maybe the owls. I can not even stand the Sesame Street pops- they are amazing! Bakerella is so talented that a book is coming out in the Fall with pre-orders taken by Amazon.

Be prepared to spend time and money gathering items to make the pops but you will have extras for the next batch. I made the flower pops a few days later with the extra candy melts. The basic instruction is to bake a cake in a 9"x13" pan, let it cool, mix it with frosting (I recommend only 1/2 of a tub if using prepared.), roll into the ball and chill. Then you add the stick, dip and decorate. I used red velvet cake mix and cream cheese frosting- all from a mix and tub as a short cut. The chicks were made with a brownie mix and a block of cream cheese. YUM.

The kids were able to help by rolling the balls and sorting the candies for the decorations. When left to decorate on his own, Sean made aliens by dotting the cake pop with Skittles. As far as reactions go, my family was impressed but I didn't see many of them actually eating one. The kids gobbled them up.

Easter egg hunt

It is Easter Egg Hunt season. If you plan smart, you can hit at least 6 different hunts during the 3 weekends before Easter. Lowe's Garden Center, Eagle Creek, Breezewood Gardens, Bainbridge/Howard Hanna, Aurora, Solon, and Chagrin Falls are just a sampling of the event locations. There is even a helicopter drop in Macedonia. The eggs are really dropped from a helicopter! And the bunny waves to the kids from high above! I know this because I attended the first annual helicopter egg drop last year. Both children and parents (ridiculous!) stormed the field like a scene from "Braveheart". Sean was 2 years old and Kate was in the stroller. Needless to say, he did not get one egg. The mayhem was enough to scare me from returning for the second annual. To boot, they are dropping 100,000 eggs this year, an increase of 94,000 eggs compared to last. I must admit, it was a thrill which I do not regret witnessing.

We were going to pass on the public Easter Egg Hunts this year but Saturday was just beautiful and we had no plans. Which one do we pick? I have heard horror stories about parents coaching kids and reaching over boundaries to grab eggs at the local garden centers. The discount coupons inside random eggs are as enticing to parents as chocolate bunnies are to children. So, no hunts sponsored by a local business. I wasn't about to watch Sean get trampled again. We also had to plan around Kate's morning nap so Chagrin Falls Riverside Park was the winner.

Perfect choice. We walked into "Pleasantville". There was a crowd but it was organized and reserved. There were 5 age groups. The children patiently waited for their turn. The parents casually watched as the kids grabbed the eggs. Everybody was happy. Nobody over the age of 12 was in possession of a plastic egg. Every child went home with candy.

eggshelland

My brother, sister and I looked forward to the annual visit to Eggshelland on Easter. We were excited to see the Easter Bunny and to guess what the theme might be. In it's 52nd year, Eggshelland still is amazing and bright and admirable. It's the kind of place where you just can't stop smiling. And- it's all in a family's front yard in Lyndhurst, Ohio.

The Cedar-Lee hosted their documentary last spring. View the trailer here. Should I be embarrassed about shedding tears for some colored eggs?

We took the kids there on Monday. We saw Mr. Manolio arranging some eggs and he explained to us that his wife decided that they would base this year's theme on the lovely birds in the area.

I have got to dig through my storage to find some photos of us back in the 70's and 80's. I just love this place!

dr. martens 50th

Happy 50th birthday Dr. Martens! There are plenty of styles for kids. Do you think 18 months and almost 4 are too young to clomp around in these classics?

Kate's spring

Find me on Polyvore

peeps!

The results are in for the fourth annual Washington Post Peeps Diorama Contest. Check it out here! Notice the children's books that inspired the peeps- "Up", "Goodnight Moon", "Where the Wild Things (Peeps) Are", "Madeline" and more. Here's the winner from last year:

freebie day

Today is both Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's (noon-8PM) and Free Pastry Day at Starbucks (until 10:30AM- print out the coupon at the link). Just to make your day a little bit sweeter!

boxing day

A cardboard box, laundry basket, empty diaper box, and even a full toy chest tends to provide more entertainment for Sean and Kate than Thomas or Dora. They just want to climb right in. Sean's nightmare is when a box is broken down to go to recycling. At this point, the box is a ramp for his Hotwheels or a makeshift Radiator Springs. It's a dance floor/marching mat for Kate.

Clever books have been written about the allure of the box. Antoinette Portis' "Not a Box" and Leslie Patricelli's "The Birthday Box" are both favorites.

happy st. patrick's day!

snowball

Snow Ball

I made myself a snow ball as perfect as could be
I thought I'd keep it as a pet and let it sleep with me
I made it some pajamas and a pillow for it's head
Then, last night it ran away
But first -- it wet the bed.

Shel Silverstein

Malley's factory

Chocolate! As soon as you get out of the car, the smell of chocolate surrounds you. It lifts you inside just like the scent of a pie left on the windowsill carries your favorite cartoon character. Malley's on Brookpark Road is decked out for Easter with chocolate rabbits and eggs in different flavors and colored wrappers. The Oompa Loompas are chanting "oompa loompa doompety dee, if you are wise you'll listen to me" on six tv screens in the back of the retail shop.

We went for the self-guided tour. We walked through the door and saw chocolate bunnies as large as Kate getting decorated with frosting. The factory is all to the right behind glass. Up close on a ledge are posters, books, molds, cookbooks and memorabilia from the past all meant to teach you about where chocolate comes from, how it is made, and how Malley's came to be. Behind that are conveyor belts and industrial mixers. The employees waved to the kids and looked like they were enjoying their jobs.

The latest Malley's treat is a chocolate covered Twinkie. We saw a group of employees unwrapping individual Twinkies and placing them on the belt to get drenched in chocolate. Caramels were cut and broken apart, carried to another belt where they were married with a marshmallow and also covered in chocolate. I wondered if the employees ever quickly throw a caramel into their mouth. I would. The tour was like watching an episode of Unwrapped (which I enjoy even though my husband claims that every show is the same- he's right but I still love it). You can spend 5 minutes walking the tour hallway or 30 minutes if you read everything.

- Cameras are not permitted on the tour.

to market, to market

Daddy dropped us off at the West Side Market while he had to give a presentation at work on his day off. We split a hot dog from Johnny's, a butter and sugar crepe from Crepes De Luxe, and a cone of cheese a popcorn from Campbell's Popcorn. We took our treats to the balcony and watched the hustle and bustle.

It was actually pretty quiet this Monday compared to the Saturday crowds. Many vendors weren't open which helped me to resist the temptation to buy something from everybody. We went home with some candy and new spices and rices.

Walking through the market is thrilling to me. I imagine it must be sensory overload if you are walking or being strolled by the cases at eye level with the food. Lucky! Sean pointed out pigs feet and cheese and beef tongue and loaves of bread.

The real excitement came when Sean pointed to a cart and asked the butcher, "What animal is that?" It was an entire lamb! "Baaa!" said Kate so I strolled on over to the case of cupcakes.

kate's snowman

While the boys rested inside, Kate and I ventured outside.

Here's a poem meant to be acted out as you get ready to go out to play. I found it on a preschool website.

The day is cloudy and the wind is bold.

Dress up warmly, you mustn't get cold!
Put on your coat and zip it up tight,

put on your left boot, put on your right.
Put on your scarf and put on your hat,

put on your mittens and clap-clap-clap!
Go outside and play and play.

Come in again, and then we'll say-
Take off your coat that was zipped up tight,

take off your left boot, take off your right.
Take off your scarf, take off your hat,

take off your mittens, and then take a nap!