kid friendly craft

One of my favorite activities to do with the kids is craft projects, but it can be really hard to find ones that are engaging for 3 at a time (who are different skill levels) and that don't require a lot of prep and clean-up work. Today I managed to create one that went well. I had cut out the butterfly shapes ahead of time but the rest I could do as they colored. The butterfly wands are two sided, simply glued together with a dowel stuck in between. The turtles/ladybugs are flat craft sticks that I slipped through a slit and then taped the back to give it dimension.

fall crafts

The girls all seem to love craft projects as much as I do, so we've doing working on lots of them. It can be tricky to find things that 2 1/2 year olds can manage. Here are a few that came out nicely.

easy peasy

There must be a harder way to make macaroons. But why look for it when this insanely simple recipe is also insanely good? I whipped up a batch for my friend's birthday late last night. Recipe comes from Ina Garten.

Preheat oven to 325F
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 bag (14 0z) sweetened coconut
2 egg whites at room temp.
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

In a large bowl, combine the coconut, condensed milk, vanilla and salt.
In the bowl of your mixer whip the egg whites until medium stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture.
Using 2 spoons, scoop the batter onto sheet pans lined with parchment paper (this is a must!) leavning a small amount of space in between. Bake for 25-30 minutes (usually 25 is right for me).
Makes 25-30