It’s finally the beginning of Spring. Everyone has a little bit of cabin fever and wants to get outside in the sun. A great activity for kids is growing some flowers and veggies. Even if you don’t have a yard or place for a garden, try planting a few things in containers. Your kids will be amazed at how things grow and they might just eat more veggies because of it!

Starting seeds is easy enough for kids to do, but you’ll want to make sure to supervise. After all, you may be surprised at what children will put in their mouths when left to their own devices. This is a good reason to get organic potting soil or organic seed starting medium. You can get seed starting trays that have soil disks that get big when water is added to them. Kids love to watch that!

First make a few invitations and make sure to invite the parents too. You can never have too much help at a crafty party like this. You’ll want to plan out a few treats for snacks. Try to include some of the fruit or veggies that you will be planting that day. Dress up a salad with fresh strawberries, blueberries and nuts. Then serve it on a unique square dinnerware plate to get the kids even more interested. Make lemonade with pureed blueberries. It’s just as colorful as the sugary drinks you can buy, plus you control how much goes in it.

You can buy peat pots and seed starting medium or get seed starting kits. The kits will cost more, but can be used again next year with new refills for the soil. If you are having a slew of children, peat pots will be the most cost effective. Have boxes or waxed paper bags to send the planted seed pots in so the plants actually make it home in the car.

Lettuce is a great plant to grow and can help kids like salad more. Don’t forget tomatoes, basil, pumpkins and fun flowers. One of my first gardening memories is plating a petunia plant in a milk carton in the first grade. This party is the fancier version, plus in a few weeks, everyone can re-pot the seedlings into their own container garden.

Posted by Myriam under Children & Spring Entertaining | 1 Comment »

There is such a thing as too much snow. After the novelty wears off, you may find yourself stuck inside your house with bored children who simply don’t want to play in the cold anymore. It can be more irritating than a tantrum if you have a week snowed in with your family.

Plan ahead so you aren’t caught off guard. Have a few things hidden in the back of your closet to delight your little ones. Coloring books and special crayons or markers can usually start some projects for the very young. Pick up a few board games when they are on sale at places like Barnes and Noble or Borders. They often have them 75% off for months after Christmas. An origami book and pack of paper can keep them occupied all day. I recommend keeping a shelf just for surprises like this. It works great for last minute birthday parties you may need gifts for too.

It’s a great time to get the whole family too work on that cleaning project that you’ve been wanting to do. You will have to make it fun to get everyone’s cooperation. Think of a few rewards and prizes for different portions of the task. The kid finishing first could get to chose what movie to watch or as each one finishes their task they could choose one dish to have for dinner that night.

Keep a tube of frozen cookie dough on hand for impromptu cookies. They can be easily made with almost nothing to clean up afterwards. Another option is to involve the kids in making lunch or dinner. Older children can be taught easy knife skills, while the little ones tear lettuce for a nutritious salad. Give yourself a break and make a big pot of soup or everyone’s favorite mac and cheese. After all it’s your snow day too.

Posted by Myriam under Children & Hostessing & Winter Entertaining | 2 Comments »

Earlier in the week I talked about throwing a no work dinner party. Are you ready for another type of party that you don’t have to clean your house for? Try throwing a craft party for your friends at a local craft store. Some places allow you to rent  space and include materials in the price, in others you will pick out a class and they will provide a teacher. Either way you get to have a private class just for your party.

For my birthday this year some of my friends and I took a soldering class. We learned to make little charms enclosed in glass, how to solder on jump rings, and make a charm bracelet from our class work. None of us had done anything like it before so it was fun for all of us. Remember that it’s really good to laugh at yourself when trying something new. Believe me, with my friends around there was plenty of laughter, not to mention friendly teasing. Being around friends to support you through your new learning experience is a great feeling.

First you need to do a little research to find a craft store or classes in your area. Many places will cater to children as well as adults. There is a place called the Scrap Exchange where I live. They are the ultimate reuse center. And best of all they teach you to turn recycled materials into art! They take donations from the community, as well as businesses including factories. They have everything from fabric to paper, and you’ll always find the unexpected. They have a party menu and even allow you to bring in food.

Some places will let you bring a birthday cake for before or after the class. Make sure to ask if that’s something you feel strongly about doing. If you are doing a craft that involves chemicals, or extreme heat, chances are you will not be able to bring food or drink into the classroom. It’s for your own safety.

Make sure to find out all the class details ahead of time. You will need to let your guests know if they need to buy anything ahead of time, or if they will need to bring money to buy supplies on site. Depending on the event you can split the cost with your guests or take care of it yourself depending on your budget.

Everyone is sure to have a great time and there’s no cleanup after. At least not for you! Plus your guests will have something they made with their own hands to keep as a souvenir.

Posted by Myriam under Hostessing & Occasions | 1 Comment »

I don’t know about where you live, but surely it will be raining somewhere Halloween night. You may be the home that entertains all the ghostly kiddies before they go trick or treating. If it rains - are you prepared? The same goes for a snow storm. This year some of the cities in the far north have already had their first snow.

If you are already planning a party, you’ll have a house full of kids already. If not, you could call other parents on your block and have an impromptu one. That way everyone can enjoy Halloween, even if they can’t go door to door due to bad weather. Make sure to make a few alternative plans, just in case. That way no one will spend the night disappointed.

If it’s just lightly raining (or snowing), you can still go out. Ask each parent to bring an umbrella for their child. You could also keep a stash of dollar store ones, for this and future group outings in the rain. I promise you will use them again in the spring. Small children love to carry their own umbrella - especially while they jump into puddles! Of course, you need to gauge the ages of the kids at the party. If they are too young to carry their own, a parent will need to carry it for them.

An unexpected solution is to create candy stations in most of the rooms. Each one hosted by an adult, who will make sure no one’s getting more than their share. This works great if you’re having all the families on the block over. It helps if you have some decorations for each of the rooms you use, and you can ask each parent to bring some to the party. Also adults in costumes make it seem more like ‘real’ trick or treating. This idea would work very well with young children. After they have gone to all of the houses (rooms), they can sit down and trade candy just as if they had gone out. A bonus is that they are not soaked to bone or cold from the elements.

Maybe you don’t have the space or the adult help to pull off indoor trick or treating. Make up some party goodie bags ahead of time. Put in age appropriate toys, cards, even wax vampire teeth if you can find them. You can always have the parents to check the bags ahead of time, to make sure they are ok with everything in the bag.

Have a costume fashion show. It’s less pressure on everyone than a contest. Plus everyone gets to show off all their hard work. Have each kid (and adult) get into character as much as they can. Everyone will be laughing before you know it.

This would also be a great time to make up a batch of sugar cookies. The kids can help cut them out with Halloween cookie cutters, and then decorate them with different colored icings. Anytime of the year cookies are a big hit.

You could turn down the lights, sit around the fireplace, and tell scary stories. Even roast marshmallows and make smores, if you have a wood burning fireplace. Make sure the stories are not too scary for your age group. Plan an alternative activity for kids who don’t want to participate. You could set up a coloring station with copies of pumpkins and the children can create their own jack-o-lanterns with crayons.

If the kids are still ready for more after you’ve done all that, games are the next step.

Here are a few links to sites that have tons of ideas:

Posted by Myriam under Fall Entertaining & Halloween & Holiday Entertaining & Hostessing | No Comments »

No cool weather gathering is complete without a toasty drink. Kids and grown-ups alike love a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

Having 20 children over for a pumpkin carving party? Get ahead of the game by making a batch of hot chocolate in your slow cooker. You can make large amounts, and it’ll be ready when the thirsty herd is.

For a smaller gathering you can still prepare it in advance, just use a thermal carafe to keep it warm or use a little dipper sized slow cooker. I do this before a fancy sit down dinner with coffee and tea. It lets me enjoy the company of my guests instead of staying hidden away in the kitchen.

Let the kids add their own touch to their drink. It’s amazing how easy it is to have so much fun. Create an area filled with little bowls of goodies to add to their cocoa. Decorate the table with a tablecloth and a few mini pumpkins.  You can also use flame-less candles to add a special touch with no danger to the little ones.  My hot chocolate goody bar usually includes whipped cream, chocolate shavings (milk, dark, and white), crushed peppermint candy, mini peppermint patties, mini marshmallows, and anything else I have on hand that seems like a fit.

If you will have older kids or adults around, try a mixture of ground chili, ginger, and cinnamon for a taste similar to what the Aztecs drank. It can have a kick, so keep an eye on the kids when you let them use this topping. Also try infusing the hot chocolate with a cinnamon stick and some cardamom pods when you make it for a delicious drink that needs no topping at all.

Flavored syrups like vanilla, hazelnut, and almond are another great addition. You can use them in fancy coffee drinks you make at home too. If there will be a lot of adults, bring out the liquors. Bailey’s, Amaretto, Frangelico, Grand Marnier, and even spiced rum make great grown up additions.

Make sure to ask the parents if any of the children have food allergies, before you decide what to put on your topping table. For someone with a milk allergy make your favorite hot chocolate recipe and use vanilla soymilk or almond milk in place of the dairy. Most mixes contain dairy, so you will need to make yours from scratch. It’ll be worth it and you may find yourself doing that for all your cocoa parties. It doesn’t take much time or effort, but it has a huge party payoff!

Posted by Myriam under Drinks & Fall Entertaining & Hostessing | 2 Comments »