Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Summer Activities With the Kids: Go Berry, Apple, or Peach Picking!

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Go Berry, Apple, or Peach Picking!

I have the BEST memories of heading to orchards, farms, and friend’s houses in the summertime with my kids so that we could pick berries, apples, or peaches.

We live in small-town Nebraska, so we are blessed to have many neighbors and friends who have berry patches, gardens, and orchards. (Yes, we have a garden in our yard too. But we don’t have the space for planting in huge bulk like many of our country neighbors.)

For years and years when our kids were little, we’d take advantage of every invitation to “come pick!” that we were able to enjoy.

Allow me to take a walk down memory lane…

We had a friend with a huge strawberry patch, where we would all load our buckets! We got to do this for FREE. What a blessing! (They’ve since sold their farm and moved out of state. Happy for them, sad for us!)

We also have friends with a gorgeous apple orchard! In the late summer, we’d head out and get as many apples as we could, all for a tiny price per grocery bag. It seemed too good to be true!

One year, my friend Anne and I borrowed the orchard owner’s cider press. After picking apples at the orchard, we spent the afternoon with all of our kids experiencing the work and joy of making homemade apple cider!

Oh my babies!

One year, we headed to Michigan for a wedding, at the perfect time for fruit picking! As we drove, we noticed sign after sign advertising “You Pick!” farms. Matt and I decided to stop at several locations on the way and enjoy time as a family picking fruit and enjoying the experience. We all still talk about that trip as one of our favorite traveling memories!

Blueberries don’t grow well in Nebraska, so picking them during that trip to Michigan was a very special treat! (Also, as we ate berry after berry while we continued to travel, somehow I ended up sitting on some and staining/ruining my pants. Hahaha! The boys still remember that too! “Mom, remember how you sat in blueberries and ruined your pants?!” Good times.)

Mmmmm, peaches! While peaches do grow well in Nebraska, we still stopped at a Peach Farm during our Michigan trip to enjoy a wagon ride to pick peaches. Of course, we took advantage of their offer to “eat whatever you like!”

Why Go Berry, Apple, or Peach Picking

Truly, the fun and joy that come with picking fruit on a farm with your family is priceless.

Yes, there are bugs. Yes, it is hard work. Yes, it may be hot. So prepare yourselves, give the kids a pep talk, take water bottles, go before the hottest part of the day, and know that while you’d love the experience to be perfect, someone may still have a melt-down.

Through the years and beyond all the less-than-fun parts, our family found these fruit picking experiences to be wonderful because:

  • The kids got to learn more about where our food comes from.
  • The kids got to learn about the hard work it takes to put food on the table.
  • We got to take home loads of delicious, nutritious fruit to eat in a variety of fun ways. (Details below!)
  • It saved all kinds of money as we either had to pay very small prices per pound of fruit, or we were encouraged to take all we wanted for free!

Beyond Berry, Apple, or Peach Picking

Once the fruit is picked, then what? Well, the fun just keeps on keeping on!

Yes, the fun comes in the form or hard work. :)

After working hard to pick the fruit, of course, we eat as much fresh fruit as we can hold. NOTHING is more delicious than sweet fruit that comes directly off the tree or bush!

But next comes the fun and work of preserving what we can’t eat fresh. The hard work pays off for months as we enjoy homemade applesauce, frozen berries in smoothies, and peach cobblers in the middle of winter. We all work together to wash, cut, and process the fruit.

Here are some ways we preserve our fruit to enjoy all winter long:

What to make with Berries, Apples, and Peaches

You’re sure to come up with wonderful ways to use your freshly picked or beautifully preserved berries, apples, and peaches! Here are some of our favorite ways to enjoy the “fruit” of our labor. (Laura is punny.)

Ready to go pick fruit?

Now that our “first batch of kids” is older, if they are able to join us, we can really pick a lot of fruit since they are able to work like adults. And here we are again, starting the process with new babes God has put in our lives. We are excited to take our Bonus Boy on fruit-picking adventures as we know he’ll love it!!

Here’s to a great summer of fun with our kids! Here are other ideas we’ve shared so far:

Stay tuned for more fun Summer Kid Activity ideas!

 

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Summer Activities for Kids: Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles!

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles!

There are many glorious reasons to make smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles with your kids. What are these reasons, you ask? Oh, I am more than happy to share:

  1. Smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles are obviously perfect to enjoy on a hot day because they are so refreshing and cool.
  2. When you make food WITH your kids, they are much more likely to want to eat it.
  3. You can sneak all kinds of nourishing foods into smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles – so basically, you are making treats that are very healthy!
  4. Making smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles are a super simple way to get all your kids – from tiny to big – into the kitchen to learn some kitchen skills!

When our 5-year old Bonus Boy first moved in with us, one of the first fun activities we did together was to make “milkshakes.” (They are really considered smoothies, but he “doesn’t like smoothies – he only likes milkshakes.” Call them whatever you want! We load them with fresh greens, frozen strawberries and bananas, farm fresh whole milk, and sometimes even an avocado. He drinks these “milkshakes” right up! And he loves to help us make them, so we aren’t sneaking the healthy stuff in. He puts it all into the blender himself!

Below are 13 of our favorite smoothie, milkshake, and popsicle recipes. Take note that you can make a smoothie and then freeze it into a popsicle – a double good treat! Or look there at #13 – make homemade wholesome pudding, then freeze it into Pudding Pops! Creamsicles anyone? Yep! There’s a recipe for those too!

Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles!

  1. Pineapple Mango Smoothies
  2. Pineapple-Orange Slushies
  3. Creamy Orange Cooler
  4. Strawberry Peach Slushies
  5. Icy Cold Milkshake Treats
  6. Green Machine Milkshakes
  7. Easy Peppermint Milkshakes
  8. Fresh Peach Milkshakes
  9. Strawberry Milkshakes
  10. Strawberry Creamsicles
  11. Mock Frozen Yogurt
  12. Orange Creamsicles
  13. Homemade Pudding Pops

Sky’s the limit on the variety of milkshakes you can make with different fruits and fun combinations. The same is true for smoothies! Use whatever you have in your freezer or fridge. Use up odds and ends of leftover fruit that is starting to go bad. Use milk, cream, kefir, yogurt – whatever you have. There’s hardly a way to go wrong with these ideas!

HINT!

Do you think your kids would enjoy the taste of these milkshakes and smoothies? But they are turned off by the color of these goodies when you add greens to your blender? Yep, I hear ya. We’ve learned to pour the mixture into a solid cup so that it isn’t see-through. We top it with a lid and let the kids choose a fun straw. Ta-da! Problem solved. The kids can’t see the funny-looking mixture – they just know the contents inside their cups are delish!

Looking for the perfect blender?

Any ol’ blender will do. But nothing is amazing as a Blendtec or Vitamix if you want a perfectly smooth smoothie. Your family is much more likely to guzzle down their smoothies and shakes if they are seedless and chunk-less. :) Here are more details on why I love my Blendtec.

Looking for great homemade popsicle makers?

I just invested in the double-set of these. They are fantastic! Why the double-set? Well, because 6 popsicles just isn’t enough. Making 12 popsicles at once is much better, don’t you think!?

By the way, while the above 13 recipes are beyond great and extra full of nourishment, it is worth a mention that I often pour 100% juice into our popsicle molds to make simple fruit juice popsicles. Incredibly easy and a super money saver!

Looking for more help as you pull your kids into the kitchen with you?

And if you really want to go all in and teach your kids to cook this summer, I encourage you to invest in Katie Kimball’s Kids Cook Real Food eCourse. I used this course with Malachi and plan to use it with Brayden too. It is FANTASTIC!!! Get the details here.

Psst! Did you see our other Summer Kid Activity ideas so far?

Stay tuned for more fun Summer Kid Activity ideas!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Summer Activities with the Kids: Make Donuts!

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Make Donuts. Who can say no to that?

Here’s what’s great about making donuts with your kids (besides the fact that everyone gets to eat donuts!):

This activity gives you a chance to help your kids learn more about reading a recipe, measuring ingredients, rolling, cutting, and kitchen safety. Our favorite recipes are listed below!

Looking for more help as you pull your kids into the kitchen with you?

And if you really want to go all in and teach your kids to cook this summer, I encourage you to invest in Katie Kimball’s Kids Cook Real Food eCourse. I used this course with Malachi and plan to use it with Bonus Boy too. It is FANTASTIC!!! Get the details here.

Make Donuts ~ Read a Book

Summer is an awesome time to spend more time reading fun books with your kids!

Have you read Homer Price? It’s a great read-aloud for your family! There’s a great chapter in the book about Homer making donuts with his uncle’s donut machine – SUCH a fun chapter! The donuts got out of control!! After you read that chapter, you’ll have no choice but to get into the kitchen and make donuts with your kids!

Here are a couple pictures of my four oldest boys enjoying the donuts we made after reading Homer Price many years ago. Aw, they were so little! (And Malachi was apparently playing dress-up too!)

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He’s 14 now. But he still loves donuts.

Ready for some Donut Recipes? Here’s a classic favorite of ours!

Summer Activity with the Kids: Make Donuts

Whole Grain Cake Donuts
 
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Author:
Serves: 15-20
Ingredients
  • 3 ¼ cup whole grain flour
  • 2 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ⅔ cup sucanat or brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • ⅔ cup milk
  • ¼ cup melted butter
  • Oil for frying (I use palm shortening or coconut oil)
Instructions
  1. Mix dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
  2. Stir in eggs, vanilla, milk and melted butter.
  3. On a floured surface, roll dough to ½ inch thickness.
  4. Cut with donut cutter, biscuit cutter, or cookie cutters.
  5. Heat oil in skillet or electric skillet (enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet about ¼ inch).
  6. Place donuts into the hot oil to fry for 2-3 minutes on each side.
  7. Remove from skillet and place on a paper towel lined plate.
  8. Sprinkle a mixture of sugar and cinnamon, or powdered sugar over the hot donuts.

 

Want to make your donuts even healthier? How about adding a veggie – without anyone noticing? Whole Grain Pumpkin Donuts for the win! Truly, when you add pumpkin puree to donuts it not only adds nourishment but adds moisture and delicious flavor too! Find the recipe here:

Whole Grain Pumpkin Donuts

Need a little frosting for your donuts?

Here’s a high-sugar chocolate recipe. I will provide this recipe for you, but I will not be held responsible for giving your kids a sugar high. ;)

Simple Fudge Frosting

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup cocoa
¼ cup butter
¼ cup water
½ t. vanilla

Stir powdered sugar and cocoa together in a bowl. In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add water and bring to a boil. Pour boiling water and butter into powdered sugar and cocoa. Add vanilla. Beat with hand mixer until frosting is combined.

How about a donut glaze that is much lower in sugar!

Orange Honey Glaze

2 teaspoons orange juice concentrate
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons honey

Whisk ingredients together on the stove until smooth. Drizzle over warm donuts!

Get out the Cookie Cutters!

Regular circle donuts and donut holes are fine. But we can make donuts even more fun when we use cookie cutters to make them into fun shapes! Any cookie cutters will do. Make stars during the Fourth of July. Make animal shapes after a visit to the zoo. Make hearts and deliver them to someone you love. Oh the fun you can have!

You might also consider baking your donuts in a cool silicone donut making mold.

Share with Others

Did you see the sentence above about using a heart-shaped cookie cutter to make heart-shaped donuts to share with someone you love?

One of the best ways to spend time with your kids this summer is to SERVE others with them. Perhaps one way you can serve together is to make donuts and deliver them to someone who could use the blessing of friendship and fellowship!

Ready to have some summer fun with your kids? Head into the kitchen and make donuts! Take pictures and let us know how it goes!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

When You Adopt a Five Year Old and Start Teaching Him to Cook…

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I taught all of his brothers. It was well worth the effort as now our 14, 17, 19, and 21-year-old sons are quite proficient in the kitchen. It only makes sense then that we would take our 5-year old Bonus Boy into the kitchen and start teaching him to cook.

About the time I started counting down to the empty nest years, as I joyfully started to say “that’s the last time I’ll ever need to XYZ for one of my kids,” while I was beginning to eagerly look into the very near future of life with no more intense parenting requirements, God showed me that He clearly had other, better plans. He provided for us a Bonus Boy. This one with chocolate brown eyes and a giggle that fills our entire house with laughter.

I’m learning to balance the needs of my adult and teen children with the needs of a little one. I find myself juggling two seasons at once, paying college bills with one hand while wiping a nose with the other. Somewhere in there, I’m squeezing in Government and History lessons with my high school and middle school aged sons.

Once again, I have found myself pulling up the stool in the kitchen for the little guy, showing him how to crack eggs without getting it all over the…oops. Too late. Let’s clean it up and try again. Meanwhile, my high schooler is scrambling his own eggs over at the stove. He used to be the one smashing eggs onto the countertop. Now he is capable and resourceful – and if I need him to, he’ll make an entire meal for the family.

Aww, it’s our little Malachi. The same Malachi who now shaves and is taller than me. Here he is now —>

I know this will be the outcome for our newest one too. So I patiently clean up the egg slime with Bonus Boy and we practice again cracking an egg without making a mess. I show him (again) how to stir the muffin batter without flinging the…oops. Let’s clean up the flour mess on the countertop and try again.

The messes? They are worth it. The effort and time and energy it takes to teach a child how to cook? My adult and teen sons prove that it absolutely is all worth it.

Here’s our Bonus Boy, getting in on the Homemade Applesauce action last fall!

I never thought I’d again be teaching a little one to cook, but well, never say never. God’s plans are much bigger, much wiser, and much better than ours. My chocolate-eyed boy proves this to me daily, filling me with wonder at what else God has in the works.

I’ve said it many times but I’ll say it again: Teach your kids to cook.

Even if it’s just the basics, give them the know-how they need to be comfortable in the kitchen. It’s good for them, but it’s even BETTER FOR YOU!!! With all the major changes in our lives (fostering and adopting kids!), if my big kids didn’t know how to cook, there would be days we would be scrambling to eat because my time is so limited right now.

Need some resources to help you know where to start?

We have this great eCookbook package that is a huge help!

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Better yet,  I highly recommend this incredible Kids Cook Real Food eCourse! We used it with Malachi and it was a lifesaver!

Our foster and adoption journey

As soon as I’m able, I’ll share more details about how God has brought us to this surprising and beautiful time in our lives. My writing time is extremely limited now, and for some very sweet and tiny reasons. Whatever you do, don’t make plans. God makes plans. We simply get to learn to trust and obey Him as we walk our daily journey with Him!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Teaching Your Kids to Cook? Free Winter Recipes Pack for Kids!

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Have you been hoping to help your kids learn to cook? Are they eager but not sure what to make? Are you nervous about pulling them into the kitchen with you to get them started? I’ve got all kinds of resources to help you (see the list below). And today, we’ve got a brand new freebie! It’s a Winter Recipes Pack for Kids!

The recipes included in this pack are incredibly simple, and of course, super fun. From Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix to Homemade Graham Crackers, these simple recipes will prove to your kids that cooking is both easy and fun!
Yes, you and I know that not all parts of cooking are easy. Or fun. But around here, we always make it easy. And when it’s easy, it’s much more fun, right?

This Winter Recipes for Kids packet includes fun pages filled with these recipes:

  • Hot Cocoa Mix
  • Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins
  • Snowflake Quesadillas
  • Shortbread (just 3 ingredients!)
  • Homemade Graham Crackers

Here’s a sample page:

These recipes are perfect to make on long winter days. Click here to sign up to get this freebie pack. Grab your kids. Get busy making these fun, easy recipes together!

Click here to sign up to get this freebie pack. When you do, you’ll gain access to ALL the free family resources in our Learning Zone. It’s all free, it’s all fun, it’s all educational!

Looking for more help as you pull your kids into the kitchen with you?

And if you really want to go all in and teach your kids to cook this summer, I encourage you to invest in Katie Kimball’s Kids Cook Real Food eCourse. I used this course with Malachi and plan to use it with Bonus Boy too. It is FANTASTIC!!! Get the details here.

Now that all those little boys pictured above are very tall, big boys who can cook meals without my help, I am shouting even louder about the importance of teaching your kids to cook! Grab this free packet and get into the kitchen with your kids!

Some of these links are my affiliate links.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

5 Kids in the Kitchen Cookbook Collection

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One of the best things you can do this summer is get your kids in the kitchen. We decided to give you a little incentive in the form of a gorgeous pile of fun recipe books!

Kids in the Kitchen Collection

These books would cost $32 if you were to buy them individually. But we decided to give you the entire collection for just $20!

Now that my kids are 21, 18, 16, and 14 I cannot tell you how invaluable it is that they all know how to cook. Our kids MUST learn how to take care of themselves, feed themselves, and work hard. It is a tremendous gift that my kids are so capable in the kitchen. As an added bonus, my sons are all capable to provide their mother with chocolate as the need arises.

Here are my babies cooking when I could still get away with calling them babies. (Just kidding. I still call them my babies. Did you know babies can be 6’4″?)

No matter the ages of your kids, you’ve got to pull them into the kitchen with you. Not sure where to start or what to do? That’s what this fun eBook package is for!

Here’s what you’ll get for your $20 bill:

What to Do with the Kids in The Kitchen = One of the first eBooks we put together here. It includes 18 super simple, super fun and kid friendly recipes.

Malachi’s Favorite Cookbook = This one includes 17 of our son Malachi’s favorite recipes to make by himself. He helped me write this cookbook while he was learning how to cook a few years ago. These recipes can be read in cookbook form or can be printed to be used in recipe card form, which makes it extra fun!

Learn to Cook = A book that can be handed to older kids (ages 8 and up) so they can read and practice and learn to cook independently! And would you believe, this book also contains 55 easy recipes that kids love? 55!!!

Fill ’em Up! = This one is unique and we love it! It contains 7 recipes to use within 7 Bible lessons. The recipes have spiritual applications to go with them – so as you’re cooking, you are talking about scripture with your kids. The lessons apply to kids ages 4-18, providing great family devotional time with a practical purpose!

Teaching Your Kids to Cook = This is a favorite because you can use this to guide you through teaching your little ones to cook – beginning at age 2! This book includes games and activities to do in the kitchen with your young ones. And even better, it includes 48 kid friendly recipes to make with your kids as they are learning.

Get all 5 Kids in the Kitchen eBooks right now for just $20!

What a great set of resources for you to use this summer with your kids! (And/or if you really want to go nuts while teaching them to cook, I highly recommend this incredible Kids Cook Real Food eCourse!)

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Want a Kids in the Kitchen freebie for added incentive?

As if this 5 for $20 deal can get any better…

Get this set of gorgeous Kids in the Kitchen printable recipe cards with your purchase of this Kids in the Kitchen eBook package!

Seriously? Get 5 great cookbooks for just $20, plus get free printable recipe cards? AND YOUR KIDS LEARN TO COOK????

Yes. Yes. Yes.

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Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Peaceful Mealtimes: Kids with Knives (Yes, Really!)

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Here’s a fun kitchen freebie for you this week! After this, you’ll be able to hand your kids knives and enjoy peaceful mealtimes too. Knives and peace? Why, of course.

I’ve been checking out some tips from the teacher behind the Kids Cook Real Food eCourse, an online cooking class for kids. She’s got so many ideas about strategies for peaceful dinners, fostering healthy eaters, and dealing with picky ones, and she’s sharing them all in a (free!) live online event this week!

Join this free webinar

Katie Kimball, who is a teacher and mom of 4, will show you:

  • 7 Proven Strategies to Make Family Mealtimes Peaceful (even if you have picky eaters)
  • 3 Choices to Give Your Kids That Will Make Healthy Food a Reality in Your House — but They Still Think They’re in Control
  • 2 Way-too-common Ways Parents Sabotage Dinner Without Even Realizing it
  • The Snacktime Rule that will be your new best friend
  • The Biggest Mistake Parents Make when inviting their kids into the kitchen…and how to avoid it.
  • How to Make the Clean Plate Club Totally Unnecessary
  • How to Teach Kids to Use Sharp (or dull!) Knives Safely
  • Plus WHEN YOU ATTEND LIVE, you’ll get access to a free video teaching kids to use knives safely — for children of ANY age. Be ready for your kids to exceed your expectations!

Sign up for this fun, free webinar

Bonus Freebie!

For attending, you’ll also get a free knife skills video from Katie’s Kids Cook Real Food eCourse that you can use to teach your kids (of any age!) how to use dull and sharp knives safely, in a fun and kid-friendly way. (This video is usually part of a $20 set of 5 videos)!

I want peaceful mealtimes! When’s the webinar?

There are 4 times to choose from. Which one works best for you?

  • Thursday, Feb. 22nd, at 1PM Eastern (10AM Pacific)
  • Tuesday, Feb. 27th, at 7PM Eastern (4PM Pacific)
  • Tuesday, Feb. 27th, at 10PM Eastern (7PM Pacific)
  • Saturday, March 3rd, at 4PM Eastern (1PM Pacific)

It will be recorded and signing up is the only way to get the replay!

Looking forward to seeing you there!

These links are my referral links.

Sign up for the Free Webinar

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

My 17-Year Old Confesses How He Really Feels About How I Make Him Cook

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Remember this kid?

justuscookiesforsoccersm

justus_meal

justuscookingsm

Oh my goodness, this guy!!

At his very core, our Justus is the same motivated, hard working, creative, g0-getter that he has been since he was little. Now he is 17 and getting ready to be a senior in high school. Ahhh, the senior year! Here we go again…

justus 12

Recently, Justus and I were working on lunch together in the kitchen and out of no-where he said, “When I have kids, I am totally going to teach them to cook like you taught us. Why do people think this is hard?”

boys_making_hashbrowns

I’m not exactly sure what inspired his proclamation as it came without prompting somewhere between the steaming of the green beans and the grating of the cheese. But he went on with, “So many of my friends think cooking is hard, and I’m like, ‘Not really. It only takes 5 minutes to make scrambled eggs.'”

It hit me then that cooking with my kids from the time they were little became such a natural thing that they didn’t even know they were learning. To Justus, cooking is just cooking…a normal part of any day. There’s nothing hard about it for him because it’s just a fact of life.

Justus' Cooking Confessions

Sure it takes effort, and sure at any given time my boys would rather sit on the couch playing a video game. But when I say, “Justus I need you to brown the meat for dinner; Elias please make Guacamole; Malachi head on in and get the veggies ready…” they just do it.

What started with me “letting my boys help” in the kitchen has turned into my ability to turn them lose. During this on-the-run season in our lives, I’m really not sure how I would keep them all fed if they didn’t pitch in and help.

boysbreaddough15sm.JPG

Be still my heart.

Hearing these words from my 17-year old meant a lot to me. He gets it. He understands that the reason most kids think cooking is difficult and that eating out is the only option is because they haven’t been taught how simple it is. And apparently he’s on a mission to tell his friends, “Dude. Learn how to scramble an egg. It’s not even hard.”

malachi cooking1

My turn for a confession: I found it easier to naturally teach my older three boys to cook, but my youngest kind of got the shaft. Why? I think because by the time Malachi was old enough to truly be of help, I already had three bigger boys doing the jobs I needed done. Then when the older boys got busier and didn’t have time to help as much, I didn’t have as much time to focus on teaching Malachi the basics. Oops.

malachi pizza pie1

All that to say, I encourage you to try and make it natural to teach your kids to cook. Pull them into the kitchen with you as much as you can so they learn without even knowing that they’re learning. But if that doesn’t work or it isn’t coming naturally, consider doing what I did with Malachi…

He and I sat down together and went through the Kids Cook Real Food eCourse together. That was the magic bullet for both of us as it finally inspired him to want to get in the kitchen and gave him all kinds of confidence! And it helped me because the course did most of the teaching so my overloaded brain didn’t have to think so hard or work so hard. Why reinvent the wheel, right?

Check out the wonderful Kids Cook Real Food eCourse your entire family can enjoy together. Malachi and I can’t recommend it highly enough.

A Kids Cooking Freebie for All

Want a freebie? Get a FREE Kid-Friendly Real Food Snacks Recipe download. This is a lot of fun, and a great way to motivate your kids to get into the kitchen with you this summer. And it’s free, so why not?

Malachi's Favorite Cookbook small

If you get the Kids Cook Real Food eCourse, Malachi said he would be happy for me to email you a free copy of his cookbook. :) As you can see, it’s full of his favorites. (I promise he gave a big thumbs down to any recipe he didn’t totally love as I suggested various ideas –  ha!)

Here are a few of the recipes my kids like to make on a regular basis:

What are ways you’ve found to make it easier to teach your kids to cook?

Be sure to get the Healthy Kid Friendly Snacks Freebie here!

This post contains affiliate links.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Sometimes I Sit Around While My Kids Cook for Me

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Last week, my three younger kids (17, 15, 12) arrived home from events of the day at 7:45 pm and a weird thing happened. We realized that we were all home and that the rest of the evening was free.

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This happens so rarely these days that we all just stared at each other for a moment, trying to remember what we were supposed to do at a time like this. I thought going to bed early sounded like a good idea. But for some reason, no one agreed with me. Spoil sports.

We chose a movie to watch together but then everyone realized how hungry they were (as in, popcorn just wouldn’t cut it). As is the norm, they all looked at me. Unfortunately for them, I had clocked out of the kitchen, and most definitely forgotten which way was upright. From my comfortable position in my recliner, I offered hearty snack suggestions and said, “Go for it!”

Typically, my kids (who are awesome, but also normal) will choose the easiest options (like opening a bag of chips and a jar of salsa). But somehow, all three of them kicked it into high gear and decided to go all out and make a big snack buffet. Within fifteen minutes:

Matt and I made them get out the baby carrots and eat at least six each (because we care about them enough to be cruel like this). Malachi went all out and set up a table with juices and individual bowls of dipping sauce.

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While all this was happening, I just sat in my chair and watched. After all, I’d put in my time that day. It was my turn to eat their food.

We fixed our plates, then the movie night began WHICH I STAYED AWAKE FOR – please be amazed and proud.

The next morning, we decided to make Super Mama Waffles (which means instead of just waffles and syrup, we have waffles with sliced berries and whipped cream). I loved the idea, but said, “If that’s what you want, I’ll make the waffles while you guys do everything else.”

Man, having kids that can cook is awesome.

  • Justus washed and sliced berries.
  • Elias made whipped cream, then scrambled cheesy eggs.
  • Malachi warmed up his Homemade Fudge Sauce from the night before, deciding that would taste awesome with strawberries and whipped cream on a waffle. No one argued with this plan.

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I promised if I took a picture of our team-made breakfast, I would not include their bed-heads.

Well, I say all this to once again encourage you to teach your kids to cook. Nothing they made here was difficult, but for me, the best part is that they are all at a point now that I didn’t have to walk them through how to make any of it.

Oh the years of taking them through all the cooking steps, reminding them to crack the eggs carefully over the bowl (instead of down the front of their brother’s shirt), and helping them understand the difference between a teaspoon and a tablespoon. I no longer cringe when they use a knife or the stovetop.

Young moms, you too can enjoy this some day. Eventually, they won’t just make messes. They’ll make dinner. (And messes, but let’s just focus on the dinner.)

For everyone with kids, no matter their age, I encourage that you work with your kids to help them get around confidently in the kitchen. The extra work it takes has a huge pay off in the end (so says the mom who sat in her chair while her kids made her favorite dips).

Pull your kids into the kitchen with you, as much as possible.

Help them learn. Help them appreciate the work you do to get food on the table for them every day.

If you’re intimidated about the whole idea, have no idea where to start, or just need a kick start – I highly recommend the Kids Cook Real Food course. We used it for Malachi, our youngest, because I really did need a kick start by the time this task came around to the baby of the family. He knew some basics, but he definitely needed to know more. However, I was in the middle of graduating our oldest and I was dealing with some personal health issues, so the KCRF course was just what I needed to help Malachi finally become confident in the kitchen and actually like cooking.

You can check it out here. It is incredibly well done.

Here’s some extra good news: I got my hands on a free All-Access Membership to Kids Cook Real Food that I’m giving away to one of you this week. Who wants to win? Sign up in the Rafflecopter below. I’ll draw a random winner on Tuesday, April 11. Watch for an email telling who the winner is!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pssst! I just found out about this!

The creator of Kids Cook Real Food just came out with a brand new free download: 10 Snacks Your Kids Can Make! I just downloaded it for my boys. Go get yours!

Some of the links in this post are my affiliate links.

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What Are You Waiting For? (32 Recipes to Make With Your Kids)

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If you’re waiting for all the stars to align before you feel it is the right time to teach your kids to cook, stop waiting already. (After all, stars are prettier when they’re scattered about.)

Yes, there are moments you need to just get in the kitchen and get the job done without any helpers. But if you know your kids are ready to learn to cook, it’s time to stop making excuses about not doing it. It must be done. Now is the time. Stop making excuses. Don’t think I can’t hear you. ;)

32 Recipes to Make With Your Kids

Today I’ve made you a list of fun recipes you should look through and make with your kids. In no particular order, here are 32 easy-to-make recipes. I encourage you to click around and look at them with your kids. Let them help pick out something to make – then go for it! Helping to pick the recipe will likely make them a little more excited. :)

32 Recipes You Can Make With Your Kids

The Kids Cook Real Food eCourse made all the difference for my son Malachi. He became much more interested in learning to cook – and then learn he did!! I also recommend you grab a couple of our resources here: Learn to Cook and Teaching Your Kids to Cook books. Together, they offer 222 pages of activities, instruction, lessons, and recipes!

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Now that my kids are older, there are days I turn the kitchen over to them completely. They can make a meal from start to finish. How great for all of us!

Do your kids enjoy cooking?

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!