Tasty Tuesday - Dulce de Leche Cheerios Bars

Little Miss has a bake sale at her school on Friday. I love that they still are able to do bake sales of homebaked goods. I am, of course, baking for it, and I finally figured out yesterday what I'm going to make for it. I was sent some Dulce de Leche Cheerios and decided to bake with them because there are some pretty awesome looking recipes out there.

Of course, I had to adapt the original recipe because that's what I do. I was happy that I had all the ingredients for it in my pantry. Well, mostly. And as I made it, I didn't like the proportions they used (to be honest, I think the recipe is off a little bit as written on the site). And yeah... they turned out pretty well. They were super easy and quick to make and are one of those recipes where you can change it up to fit your needs and what you have in your pantry without worrying a ton about measurements.

Dulce de Leche Cheerios Bars

Ingredients:
1 sleeve graham crackers, plus 2 extra - crushed (a little over 2 cups)
1/2 c butter, melted
2 c Dulce de Leche Cheerios
1 1/2 c pretzels, crushed
1 1/2 c milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips (or white chocolate, yum!)
3/4 c shredded coconut
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

Directions:
Crush the graham crackers into large crumbles. I love using my food processor because it's fast and easy. Just make sure you pulse it and don't simply turn it on, or the crumbs will be way too fine. I break them into quarters before starting the food processor to help break them up quickly and evenly. You could also put them in a bag and just smash them there. Add the crumbs and the melted butter into a 13x9 pan and mix together until it's all incorporated, then press into the bottom of the pan. (Seriously, why dirty another bowl? <- my motto in life)

Crush the pretzels in the same manner. Add half the pretzels to the top of the crust. Add half of each type of chocolate chip and the Cheerios, then add the remainder of the Cheerios, pretzels, and chocolate chips before dusting with the coconut. The good news is that the exact amounts aren't particular. In fact, it's possible that I didn't measure at all but just estimated. And it totally worked.

Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk over the pan, covering it equally. You won't be stirring it at all, so do your best to spread it out by pouring it evenly across the top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes until golden brown. Let it cool fully, then cut into squares. Make sure you've run a knife or thin spatula around the edge of the pan to help release the squares before you try to remove them. Yum.

I have several giveaways going on now at Honest and Truly Reviews. The one I'd most love love love you to enter? A $25 American Express gift card giveaway. Pretty please go enter?

In the interest of full disclosure, the original recipe appeared on the Betty Crocker website, with significant alterations from me. The Cheerios were part of a sample I received courtesy Cheerios and General Mills via MyBlogSpark.

Enjoy this and more with Blessed With Grace and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday. Also posting now with A Southern Fairytale and her Mouthwatering Monday.

Cheerios Anyone?

I do my best to ensure that the wee ones eat healthfully. We don't eat out as often as many people I know. I (fortunately) like to cook from scratch, so the majority of our foods are not processed. I'm lucky that the wee ones like a variety of foods - including fruits and vegetables - and that they eat them at most meals.

Breakfast is a big meal in my house. I'm pretty insistent that they eat healthfully for breakfast. They rarely get sugar at breakfast in an effort to keep them as focused as possible throughout the day. I ensure there is always protein at that meal, too.

But some days, I go the easy route. I don't have the time (or don't make the time) or the energy to have a completely homemade breakfast. That doesn't mean I don't insist on something I feel comfortable feeding them. I have a few go to choices in the house - that the wee one are always offered even when I'm also offering up the choice of omelets and oatmeal or other more labor and time intensive options.

This morning was one of the days where the wee ones weren't getting the ideal breakfast. It was Mother's Day. And I'm getting a nasty cold and so am just wiped out. And my husband has been gone coaching all weekend, so he's not around to parent.

Little Miss woke me up this morning at 7:14 by singing "Happy Mother's Day to Mom" although I remained only half conscious for awhile after that. I just couldn't convince my body to get out of bed. As clock continued to march forward, I knew the wee ones were going to be getting hungry.

From downstairs, I could hear them playing Uno together... until they decided they were too hungry to continue. I groaned internally as I waited to hear the tromping up the stairs to beg my help. Instead, I heard almost silence. The refrigerator door opened and closed, and I could hear them whispering to each other.

Finally, I managed to drag myself downstairs to see what mischief they'd gotten themselves into.

Oh my wee ones have grown up! (And check it out - Little Miss got her protein in with the sushi left over from dinner the night before. Apparently that was the fridge opening and closing.)

Somehow, though, no matter how much they grow up, I don't see them ever outgrowing their love of a simple bowl of Cheerios. I may no longer be placing them on a high chair tray one by one or spooning the cereal into their mouths, but this is one house where there will always be a box of original Cheerios open and waiting. And two wee one who have learned that this is a breakfast they can make all by themselves!

In the interest of full disclosure, this post was written as part of the Cheerios Blogger Circle. I was not compensated in any way, and all opinions are my own.

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A Cheerios Valentine - For The Birds

It is cold here in Chicago. It's cold enough that we no longer have to send winter gear with the wee ones because they are no longer sent outside for recess. It's a mixed blessing.

On top of that - literally - came the blizzard that has buried everything. Driving home, a hardware store has a sign reminding us that birds are starving right now because their food supply is hidden. Little Miss had a great idea to help them.

With Valentine's Day around the corner, they've been crafting it up in kindergarten, and she's been trying to find ways to do something similar at home. She suggested that we make a valentine for the birds because they need someone to love them this winter.

After we discussed the inability of birds to read, we tried to figure out what they'd like. We decided to make a valentine for them out of Cheerios shaped like a heart - because we thought birds might maybe recognize shapes. After we scratched our heads for awhile, we hit upon it.

I found a white ribbon that we used to string Cheerios. We quickly discovered that it was far easier with our ribbon to use a piece of tape to make the end more conducive to stringing, just like a shoelace. Little Miss had a blast putting it together.

Once we'd strung our ... lots and lots of Cheerios (we started out counting, but we gave up after we lost count a couple times), we found an open place in our yard where we knew birds fly. We very carefully arranged it into the shape of a heart, and then we waited for the birds to come snack at their very special valentine.

So what are you doing special for Valentine's Day?

I am also giving away a Progresso Souper You Debut gift pack here.

Oh, and while you're at it, I finally set up a Facebook Fan page for my blog. It's way overdue. Go like me on Facebook if you would so I can get an official username - once I get enough likes. You can also follow me on Twitter, too, if you're so inclined.

In the interest of full disclosure, Cheerios sent me two boxes of Cheerios and a spring themed gift pack that really makes me wish it were spring now. There is no compensation involved as a member of the Cheerios Blogger Circle.

Cheerios: Thank Goodness I'm Home

I've been a stay at home mom (ha!) for almost exactly four months now. It's definitely been a learning process, and I keep waiting for "normal" to set in, for me to have a routine and a day to day that doesn't constantly change. I'm beginning to decide that this isn't something I will ever have, and I'm slowly becoming ok with it.

A big part of the reason I am ok with the inconsistency and the lack of routine is because of the fact that I can have inconsistency and things will still be ok. I look at this week as a perfect example of things that couldn't have happened were I still working.

On Monday, the wee ones had a birthday party immediately following school. When I was working, I needed them to come straight home, and I couldn't drive them - or their friends - places after school to do fun things. While my mom potentially could have covered for me and taken them, it was nice to go and to get to know some of the other moms in Mister Man's class better. Not having those relationships as much last year was a bit of a challenge.

Yesterday, Little Miss was sick. Instead of scrambling and trying to figure out who was taking Mister Man to school and what I was going to do with a sick Little Miss in the house while I tried to work and be on conference calls, I was able to drop everything to be with her.

When she's sick, she's needy, and I can't get anything done. I cuddled with her, played Uno with her, read books with her, worked with her on her homework, took her to the doctor, and more. I didn't write any blog posts. I didn't hang out on Twitter. I didn't even get the dishwasher emptied. I'm pretty sure that taking care of Little Miss is far more important, and I'm glad that I could be there for her.

With her being sick, she missed a gymnastics class. When I was working, we would have had to eat that class, as there was no way that I could find a time to get her to a makeup class. Gymnastics is her thing, and she loves it. The fact that she was willing to miss it was my huge clue that she was seriously sick.

Today was more of the same. I have a great person who carpools with me who was able to drive both ways, meaning I could let Little Miss sleep in and not worry about getting her moving and out the door. I again got nothing done - it's 7pm and I'm only now sitting down to write a post I had intended to write days ago - but my view of "nothing" has changed.

My getting nothing done means that I spend quality time with the wee ones and have a consistency in their routine - even if not in my own - that they thrive on. My getting nothing done means that we talk about all sorts of things, and I don't feel the need to rush to finish the conversation because I have to finish a project or get on a call. My getting nothing done means that I join my family for dinner every night instead of watching them eat while I edit a presentation or sit on a conference call.

I asked them recently if they liked it better when Mommy worked or when Mommy stays home. Hands down they were happier with me at home, and I'm happier, too - something no one should discount. My mom, especially, has mentioned that Mister Man seems to be so much more at peace and regulated than he was when I was working. While some of that is undoubtedly due to his getting older and the therapies we have him in - again, something that was a huge challenge to do when I waws working - I have to think that my being home and him having a consistent routine and parenting style makes getting through each day just a little easier for him.

I lasted six months when I tried the stay at home mom thing previously. I had the itch to do something - anything - way before then, however. Someone recently asked me if I was ready to go back to work. While I would debate whether or not I'm working raising the wee ones, the answer is a firm no. I'm not ready to take a job outside the home right now. I know where I'm needed, and my family is better and happier for it.

And that? That is worth more than any paycheck I could bring home.

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