Cooking with your child - WACKY CAKE
Well the dog lovers among you will be pleased to hear that the whippet we rescued on Friday has been reunited with his delighted owners. It turns out the poor dog was attacked by a German Shepherd dog and ran off and got lost. He was very happy to go home!
I was happy that he was safely back with his family, but sad to say goodbye, so to cheer us up we made...
Monicka's "Wacky Cake" recipe:
(not quite sure where the name came from, maybe because it is so, so simple to make) ages 10 and up
1 1/2 cup cake or pastry flour
1 C. sugar
3 T. cocoa (unsweetened like Hershey's)
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
6 T. applesauce
1 T. white vinegar
1 t. vanilla
1 C. cold water
If you aren't fussy, you can make this as a "snack cake", mixing, baking and serving from the same pan. No need to oil the pan.
Sift dry ingredients into pan. Add liquids, covering with water. Mix thoroughly.
Bake at 350 degrees (moderate oven) for 25 to 30 minutes.
Makes one very moist chocolate cake. Frost as desired or dust on confectioner's sugar.
Cooking with your child is a great bonding activity and very satisfying - especially when you tuck into your creation at the end!
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Kids and Pets - Family Pets
Kids and Pets
Do you have a pet in your family? We have a dog and a mouse. And yesterday we seemed to have acquired a second dog! A stray whippet with a collar but no tag followed my husband home last night. He's a very timid creature, very like a fawn with huge brown eyes, delicate legs and a slightly nervous disposition. He does love cuddling on the couch though, where he snuggles up as if he's lived with us forever.
Of course we will report the dog found and if his owners are searching for him we hope to reunite them. In the meantime we are enjoying having an extra pet in the family!
A dog is a big responsibility, and if your child wants one of his very own to look after it's important that he knows what is involved. One way you might approach this dilemma is to visit a local animal sanctuary and offer to foster a dog for a period of a few weeks. If your child rises to the challenge and enjoys every aspect of looking after the visitor, then the arrangement could become permanent, or another dog could join your family for good! If on the other hand your child finds that he can't cope with all the extra chores that owning a dog entails, then you have all had a valuable experience and the sanctuary has had the benefit of a temporary foster home!
Article on kids and pets: The Family Pet
Do you have a pet in your family? We have a dog and a mouse. And yesterday we seemed to have acquired a second dog! A stray whippet with a collar but no tag followed my husband home last night. He's a very timid creature, very like a fawn with huge brown eyes, delicate legs and a slightly nervous disposition. He does love cuddling on the couch though, where he snuggles up as if he's lived with us forever.
Of course we will report the dog found and if his owners are searching for him we hope to reunite them. In the meantime we are enjoying having an extra pet in the family!
A dog is a big responsibility, and if your child wants one of his very own to look after it's important that he knows what is involved. One way you might approach this dilemma is to visit a local animal sanctuary and offer to foster a dog for a period of a few weeks. If your child rises to the challenge and enjoys every aspect of looking after the visitor, then the arrangement could become permanent, or another dog could join your family for good! If on the other hand your child finds that he can't cope with all the extra chores that owning a dog entails, then you have all had a valuable experience and the sanctuary has had the benefit of a temporary foster home!
Article on kids and pets: The Family Pet
Friday, February 01, 2008
Forigiveness cont....
On Wednesday's blog I wrote a bit about the importance of teaching your children forgiveness, and how crucial it is to put past hurts aside so they can move forward. Forgiveness is powerful stuff and the discovery workshop I took last weekend emphasized just how important it was to forgive others who have let you down and hurt you, but in actuality the most important person to forgive is yourself. How many times have you let yourself or others down and then felt guilty about it. Teach your children that guilt is a very toxic emotion and one we need to rid ourselves because it keeps us from truly loving others and ourselves.
Kids can be so hard on themselves and tend to blame themselves when things are not right in the family and this chips away at their self esteem. It is imperative to sit down with your children and teach them how to set the guilt free and forgive and love themselves. I learned a very powerful exercise in the workshop I took, but teaching your children to drop the guilt and forgive themselves can be as simple as substituting guilt with motivation by emphasizing and calling attention to what your children are doing right, not what they are doing wrong. Praise them every chance you get and also make sure to give them lots of hugs!!!
Happy Parenting,
Monicka
Kids can be so hard on themselves and tend to blame themselves when things are not right in the family and this chips away at their self esteem. It is imperative to sit down with your children and teach them how to set the guilt free and forgive and love themselves. I learned a very powerful exercise in the workshop I took, but teaching your children to drop the guilt and forgive themselves can be as simple as substituting guilt with motivation by emphasizing and calling attention to what your children are doing right, not what they are doing wrong. Praise them every chance you get and also make sure to give them lots of hugs!!!
Happy Parenting,
Monicka
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