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2-Minute Strawberry Vinaigrette Recipe

Are you creative in the kitchen? For as long as I can remember, I have always loved experimenting with different recipes.  All of the women in my family are fantastic chefs and cooking is something we've always done together.  I really want my sons to be comfortable in the kitchen too, so I have them help whenever possible.  This Strawberry Vinaigrette Recipe is so unbelievably easy.  It truly only takes about 2 minutes to complete, which makes it perfect for your kids to watch you make or help make it with you.

Here is how to make Strawberry Vinaigrette:

• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 1 cup strawberries cut in half
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon white sugar

Place all of the ingredients into a blender.  Then, blend until smooth.  That's it! You've got homemade Strawberry Vinaigrette.

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This vinaigrette went perfectly with a baby kale, gorgonzola, chicken and strawberry salad. It was so good!  Also, quick and easy recipes like this prove that salad dressings can be made from scratch with very little effort and only a few ingredients.  

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Come back on Monday to check out more summer recipes with my first ever Backyard BBQ Bloghop. I'll be teaming up with some fabulous bloggers to host a link-up with lots of wonderful recipes, activities, and crafts that you won't want to miss!  See you then!

National Public Gardens Day: Friday, May 10 2013

Are you celebrating National Public Gardens Day? This day raises awareness of America’s public gardens. It's a chance for you to teach your children the importance of environmental stewardship, plant and water conservation. Join the celebration by finding a local garden near you:  http://www.nationalpublicgardensday.org/

Read about some of our past garden adventures:

A Day at Longwood Gardens 

Our Winterthur Garden Adventure

Spring Is In the Air!

Hello! 

I'm going to keep this post short and sweet!  After a long cold winter, it's incredibly nice to have vibrant spring blooms and warmer weather, but my allergies are really bad this week. Instead of having a little pity party for myself, I'm going to focus this week's linky party! 

This is an all new edition of the Kid's Co-op.  I hope you find some inspiration for the week ahead!  If you try any of these ideas, leave me a comment and let me know how it went!

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Stocking Up on Family Necessities #ScottValues #Cbias

My sister smiled when she heard that I was working on a blog post about Scott Products, because she knows how loyal our family is to this brand. My parents always bought Scott toilet paper, and when I finally bought a house of my own, naturally, I did the same. We have always believed that Scott provides quality products at a good price. Plus, their new incentives with the Scott Shared Values program make it even better to be a loyal Scott customer.

I support small local businesses almost daily, but sometimes, a trip to Walmart is a must.  Just this past weekend, while picking up some groceries for our recent food drive, we also stocked up on some our favorite Scott toilet paper and paper towels.

If there's is one thing you don't want to run out of, it's toilet paper. Right? That's why I like buying these big packs of Scott Toilet Paper.  My parents always liked the Scott 1000, but I like the Extra Soft too.  I never feel guilty having too much t.p. in the house!

There was a nice selection of Scott products at Walmart and it was really easy to find exactly what I was looking for, thanks to the bright colored logo. I was also excited to see a $4 Vudu coupon on the Scott Extra Soft package. 

Over a year ago, we decided to cancel our cable account and use instant internet video and public t.v. instead, so, I'm always interested in learning about new online streaming services. Vudu is a high definition video library where you can rent, buy and watch a vast selection of movies and TV shows, on a variety of devices. This is really cool for us because we can get instant video streaming to our t.v. via our computer.

After stocking up on our Scott products and a some other items, my little guy was getting tired. He looks like he could have comfortably slept on those paper towels, but it was time to check out!

The next day, I let my son choose a movie from Vudu. He chose Madagascar 3 which we all loved! 

Have you ever used Vudu? If you want to check it out, pick up select packs of Scott Extra Soft Bath Tissue, 24 pack, double roll, or Scott Towels, 6 pack, mega roll for a $4 vudu coupon.

Also, don't forget to sign up for the Scott Shared Value consumer rewards program which offers unique deals, coupons and rewards to members.  It's totally FREE and only takes a minute to join on the Scott Shared Values Website.

 Thanks for reading!

You can check out the rest of my shopping trip in my Google+ album here.

Recycled Robot Preschool Craft Using Cereal Boxes

It always amazes me how much paper and plastic waste there is in modern packaging. Our many recycle bins are always overflowing and I'm pleasantly surprised when I see companies that make an effort to downsize their packages and reduce waste.  It's also nice to see more and more crafts for kids made with recycled products.

One thing we always have in our recycle bin is thin cardboard boxes and they seem to accumulate. My son came home from preschool one day with this really cute recycled robot craft. I have always been impressed with some of the art projects my son does at preschool.  This one is really easy and I love the results.

Craft Materials:

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