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25 Must Try Chocolate Recipes

Hey everyone! How are you? Today I’ve been slowly trying to get my house back together after last month’s crazy busy schedule. Everything is in dire need of organization and I am definitely someone who gets easily overwhelmed! I’ve been fighting a head cold that’s been going around too, so my energy level has been less than it should be lately.

The kids have been busy at school this week and today we went to Emma’s school and attended Family Math night. The girls are also going to do a little cheer-leading clinic tomorrow and will perform before the High school girls’ basketball game next Tuesday.

Speaking of sports – my little Emma has told me she doesn’t want to do soccer this spring. Am I shocked? No. but it will definitely be a little slower kind of spring. Anika wants to do soccer, but I’m still trying to figure out when her club will start. Emma did tell me that she really wants to do T-ball, which is fine with me because I’m pretty sure Anika will not play softball this year. Poor Noah on the other hand is just itching to start something, and I’m sure he’ll begin playing sports this year.

Oh the life of a mom. 🙂

In other news, Valentine’s Day is coming up soon! Have you begun filling out your cards yet? We’ve been slacking but I’ve got to make that happen this Sunday. When I think of Valentine’s Day the first word that comes to my mind is: chocolate. I love it. In fact, I made a yummy chocolate mousse last night (I’ll share the recipe next week!) and while I was looking for recipe inspirations I decided to make a new Foodie collection…and ended up collecting 25 different chocolate recipes that I really want to try and make sometime.

25 must try chocolate recipes #foodie #foodiebymode #foodiebyglam #sp

What are your favorite chocolate recipes? Do you prefer milk or dark chocolate? (Or perhaps white?) I personally used to dislike dark chocolate, but I guess maybe it’s because I’m getting older, but I’m really getting into a little more of a dark and bittersweet taste vs. extra sugary.

Are you making any chocolate treats for Valentine’s Day?

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

February 6, 2015 3 comments

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25 Scrumptious Smoothies

written by Melissa Kaylene

Hey everyone! So I’ve found myself kind of on a roll on here
the past 24 hours sharing stuff with you! I think it’s because I know that the
next 72 hours I’ll be busy working my “other” job and won’t be at my computer
quite as much.

In the summer time one thing I love to do is make smoothies.
I know we are still quite a ways away from the warm weather, but with all of
the extra hours I’ve been working at my ‘real’ job the past couple of months, I’ve
been thinking that I really should be making more smoothies now too! (I’m
talking about the kind with the protein powder and vitamins, not the rum!) J I’m not a huge
breakfast person and on busy or early mornings it would come in handy to just
have a big smoothie to drink for extra energy.

I love smoothies because they can become a healthy meal, or
can turn into a delicious treat (or cocktail!) I’ve been browsing at Foodie.com
for some smoothie ideas and I’m thinking about taking a couple different smoothie
recipes and measuring out all of the ingredients and putting them in a zip lock
bag so all I have to do is add the ice and liquid portion of the smoothie to
the blender, making it even easier to create.
Have you ever done something like this? I’m thinking it would obviously
work better with some recipes versus others, but it sounds like a good idea
anyways.

I’ve collected 25 different delicious looking recipes that I
wanted to just pass along and share with you (there are even a couple of my own
smoothie recipes that I create a couple of years ago in there). If you have any
smoothie recipes of your own please feel free to share them and link them in
the comment section! I love to see everyone else’s favorites.

Okay, off to bed for now, 5:15 comes way too early!

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

January 20, 2015 7 comments

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The Best Christmas Cookie Recipes

written by Melissa Kaylene

Good morning! I just dropped the girls off at school (we have a late start Monday which I LOVE because I get one more day to sleep in!) and Noah is sitting next to me at the kitchen table, both sipping our ‘coffee’ and planning for our day. My day is going to include a trip to turn in recycle and donating a bunch of old toys and outgrown clothes. I’ll clean the house a bit more and then get an early dinner ready so we can all eat before Anika’s choir and band program at 7 pm. She is pretty nervous (as anyone would be!) but I’m excited because this is her first performance in middle school.

Before Noah and I head out to run errands though, I’m browsing around online collecting Christmas cookie recipes so I can pick up any extra ingredients I may need in town today. I love making holiday cookies every year and I’m planning on starting my baking frenzy tomorrow. There’s something so pretty about handmade and hand-decorated treats, each one a different flavor and color.

I like to have a variety of cookies, from intricate ones that take me a bit of time to make, to easy ones that the kids can pretty much do themselves – like the Rice Crispy Treat Trees I found while looking at Foodie.com. We are definitely making those together!

Different shapes and sizes are another thing I take into consideration – I love a good chocolate chip cookie or sugar cookie, but I don’t want all of the cookies to look the same! Thumbprint cookies are fun to make because they are visually different, as well as macaroons or snow ball cookies – after all I think cookie boxes should be little works of art, right? 🙂

The Best Christmas Cookie Recipes #foodie #sponsored

Lastly I want to make sure I have multiple flavors when I give my holiday cookies – not too much chocolate or too much peppermint. I like a good balance between traditional holiday flavors and a few surprises like orange or raspberry flavors.

So, here are a few cookie recipes that I’ve found so far, and I’ll be looking for a bit longer before heading out. Are there any Christmas cookies that you just can’t live without? How many different kinds of cookies do you make each year?

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

December 15, 2014 3 comments

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15 Festive Appetizers

written by Melissa Kaylene

Happy Friday everyone! I can’t believe it’s the final weekend before Thanksgiving and the official start of the holiday season! This year has to have flown by faster than any other year I can think of. We will be celebrating Thanksgiving a little early, opting for a family dinner at my Dad’s house this Sunday and then at my Mom’s house on Monday. They both live 3-4 hours away so we don’t travel down to see them very often with the kid’s busy school schedules.

I’ll still be doing most of the cooking, and then on Thanksgiving we will be back up at home and have been invited to my friend’s house to feast – and I’m planning on bringing a variety of appetizers to snack on, so I’ve been collecting recipes on Foodie.com. Who doesn’t love munching on meats and cheeses? Appetizers are sometimes my favorite thing from a holiday feast!

15 festive appetizer ideas from #foodie #sp

There are a several staple ones that I make every year, like the bacon wrapped Lil’ Smokies and meat and cheese pickle wraps, and of course a big meat and cheese platter, but then I like to find a couple of others to serve as well – I make the stuffed sweet peppers one year and it was a huge hit! Sometimes I feel that everyone is so busy prepping for the ‘big’ meal that appetizers get a little bit forgotten, and they shouldn’t be! I think it’s because in some cases they are tiny bites of art pieced together into a pretty presentation.

What are your go-to appetizers to make? Do they differ during the holidays versus the rest of the year? (More festive?) I’d love to hear!

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

November 21, 2014 1 comment

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14 Fun Halloween Treat Ideas

written by Melissa Kaylene

Hey everyone! Today is a VERY rainy day in Oregon…. the rainiest day we’ve had in a long time. Luckily for us we have no plans this evening and I’ve already got my sweats on, cozy socks on my feet, and a apple cinnamon candle burning on the table. The kids just got home from school and I still have no idea what we are having for dinner tonight because I’ve been happily looking up Halloween things to help get me in the spirit of things. Can you believe that its only 9 days away?

Ever since Anika was born I’ve loved Halloween. We never celebrated it when I was a kid, but I think it’s fun to let the kids dress up and create crafts and treats – we don’t do much spooky stuff around here (yet!). I’ve still got to buy candy and make trick-or-treat bags for all of the little ghosts and goblins that visit our front door. If you’ve followed along for a while now you know that we get a whole lot of trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood. It’s one of the nice things about living in a small town, everyone knows your neighborhood, all of the kids know each other, so it’s almost like a big block party. I’ll be making 300 goody bags this year.

I’m also working on a little cake project that I’m going to share on here next week, and I needed a bit more baking inspiration so I collected 14 different Halloween treats from Foodie.com and decided to share them with you too in case you needed a little more inspiration yourself!

What I love about all of these treat ideas is that they are all so simple to make and the kids would be excited to see any of them out for a party! (Okay, maybe I would too!)

Tomorrow I’ll continue my October celebrations by attended not one, but two Pumpkin Patch field trips with the kids. At least they overlap and are at the same Pumpkin Patch so the day isn’t split up. Time to break out the rain boots and hats – I think it’s going to be a wet visit!

What are your plans for Halloween this year? Are you having a party? I’d love to see Halloween food or party ideas that you’ve done – if you want you can link up your photos and posts in the comment section!

Until tomorrow –

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

October 22, 2014 2 comments

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12 Fun After School Snack Ideas

written by Melissa Kaylene

Today the girls headed back to school – in opposite directions. Anika headed off to 6th grade at the Jr. High and it’s Emma’s first year of school all day in 1st grade. I, along with thousands of other moms out there, was full of mixed emotions. Happy. Sad. Excited. Scared. Noah doesn’t start preschool for one more week, so this week the two of us are buddies. He goes from 9-11:30 three days a week, so this will literally be the first time in my adult life that I have 2 1/2 hours to myself routinely – and next year Oregon will be making Kindergarten mandatory all day, so it will be a huge change for me to have so much time without the kids right by my side. I’m not quite sure what to think yet…except that I’m going to cherish this last year with my little man as much as possible.

I know yesterday I was on a cleaning kick and talked about ideas on keeping the house picked up quick, but today I’m trying to organize my brain around after school snacks. I’ve never been too good at actually making school snacks and having them prepared – my kids just usually raid the snack cupboard, but I’m feeling pretty Suzy-homemaker lately and would like to start making certain snacks to have ready for them when they get home, and some that are easy to take for the evening when we have games or practice.

If my kids had their way they’d sit down and eat a box of graham crackers every day when they get home! I can think of worse things for them to eat, but I do feel like there should be a bit of variety for them, so I’ve found 12 after school snack ideas that I’m going to try and make them this year – and I’m going to keep my eye out for more.

12 Fun After School Snack Ideas #sp #foodie #foodiebyglam

In addition to these, some things I think make great snacks are:

String Cheese

Carrots and Ranch

Popcorn

Cheese Quesadillas

Honey Butter Toast

…and that’s about all my brain can think of right now. How about you? Do you have any awesome snack ideas that your kids love?

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

September 2, 2014 3 comments

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12 Quick Weeknight Family Meals

written by Melissa Kaylene

Things have been so busy this past week with the county fair
going on that I seriously didn’t even realize until I sat down last night that
August is already here – and that means school is already just right around the
corner! I can honestly say that this summer has flown by faster than any other
summer that I can remember and I’m honestly quite sad. I’m not ready to get
back into the full swing of routines and schedules with the kids.

One of the things that I have been slacking on a lot lately
is having a dinner plan ahead of time and prepping meals before, oh like 5 pm! I
have always done a pretty good job in the past, but lately you’re lucky if I
know what we are eating an hour before dinner! I know that I can’t keep doing
that when school starts back up and soccer season begins, so last night I began
searching through new recipes at Foodie.com to get some inspiration for new
quick weeknight dinners that weren’t just the same thing that I get bored with
making.

Yes, I know, I should
have been in bed asleep. If it’s any consolation though, we did have an
amazing thunder and lightning storm around one am that was quite a show – so I
just listened to it while searching for recipes. J

There are a few recipes on here that you could make a double
batch and freeze half of it for another weeknight meal too. I try to do this
quite often because sometimes I feel like I don’t even have 30 minutes to make
dinner, so I can take out the meal in the morning and then warm it up in the
evening. Enchiladas, mini meat loafs,
fajita mix, and some pastas work really well. I’m hoping to take one afternoon this month
and just cook up a bunch of meals and then freeze them for September. I’ve been
talking about doing it again but really just need to schedule one day a month
and do this again. When I’ve finally got it all figured out you’ll be the first
to know!

What are some of your favorite quick dinner recipes to make
for your family?

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

August 1, 2014 2 comments

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12 Delicious Drinks You Should Be Sipping on This Summer

written by Melissa Kaylene

I love making cocktails. Years ago it started out with an obsession for Pina Coladas. Then I transitioned into Strawberry Daiquiris. Last summer I finally tried my hands at making a Mojito (which was delicious!!), and many times you’ll find me shaking up a Lemon Drop or two.

12 Delicious Summer Drinks #FoodieByGlam

Last Sunday I created a Marion berry Green Tea Arnold Palmer that I still have to write up and share with you, but today I thought I’d share some of the most delicious looking drinks recipes that I’ve collected at Foodie.com to create at least once this summer!

Fruit flavored cocktails are a must in the summer and I tend to lean towards berries and citrus flavors. Some of my favorite drink flavors include:

Raspberry
Strawberry
Lemon
Orange
Blueberry
Mint
Coconut
Peach
Mango

Source

Everyone has different tastes, but I think that a light refreshing cocktail is a must for summertime, and I prefer to use vodka and rum for liquor bases, and a Prosecco or Riesling for a wine based drink. Those are just my personal favorites.

Source

What are some of your favorite summer time drinks? Do you get stuck in a rut (like me) and tend to stick with a staple drink for periods of time before becoming adventurous?

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

June 29, 2014 1 comment

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15 Frozen Desserts on a Stick

written by Melissa Kaylene

Hey everyone! How is your weekend going so far? Last night we took the kids down to our city park where they are holding a Friday nights event every Friday through Labor Day. The restaurants have specials, there’s a cruise in, music in the park, and it’s just a fun gathering where kids play in the park and games of basketball and eat ice cream cones and cotton candy. I love small towns.

Afterwards Anika’s best friend stayed the night and then this morning we had a t-ball and softball games back to back. Wayne left to work for a few hours and I’ve been puttering around the house… getting excited for summer. All of the neighbors are working in their yards and we even had an ice cream truck drive by, playing the nostalgic music down the road.

One of the best things about summer is the summer food. BBQ’s, salads, cold beverages and sweet treats are some of my favorite things. Last month on Foodie I shared 12 Scrumptious Salad Recipes, and the month before that I shared 16 Sunday Dinner Ideas to Serve. This month I’m sharing 15 Frozen Desserts on a Stick – 15 recipes that I’ve collected to try this summer. From Popsicles to ice cream bars, these all look simplify delicious for hot summer days!

15 frozen desserts on a stick #foodie #foodiebyglam @Melissakaylene

The best part with frozen desserts on a stick is the sheer combination of flavors you can create! The sky’s the limits. I know personally I get stuck in a Popsicle rut – eating the same strawberry, orange and lime ones. Even though I love those flavors, I’d like to try and make a bigger variety to have on hand!

What are your favorite frozen treats in the summertime?

~Melissa

Compensation was provided by Foodie via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie”

June 1, 2014 5 comments

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#ad Easy Grilled Chicken BBQ Pizza

written by Melissa Kaylene

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This Grilled Chicken BBQ Pizza shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiserI can’t believe the Memorial weekend is already nearly over. Anika had such a fun time yesterday at the Seattle Mariners game with our family friends (even though they lost), and the rest of us have enjoyed a much needed low – key couple of days at home.

May 26, 2014 8 comments

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