Milkshakes and Margaritas — a blog for the modern mom

The Other Moms May Hate You, But Your Kids Will Love You

My son Cash and I sit down together every year to make our own Valentine's Day cards for his class. I'd like to say that we come up with the ideas on our own but we usually take them from one of the parenting magazines I get, like Family Fun or Parenting or Parents.

This year we made mini rockets.The ones that we saw in a magazine said something like "You Blast Me Away" but Cash didn't like that. It made him nervous, thinking that he would blast off into space, so we brainstormed and came up with "U Rock It!"

 

The craft called for wrapping colored paper around a roll of Lifesavers but Walgreens didn't have any rolls so I got little packages of candy bracelets. While they weren't exactly round, they worked fine. Cash cut out the paper to go around each one for the 19 kids in his class and his teachers. The rockets are supposed to have flames coming out the back, so Cash cut out little hearts with pointy peaks and we taped them to the bottom. I flattened out the top of each and we used a glue gun to fasten Hershey kisses for the rocket tip. They came out great and were fun to make. So if you need a last minute idea, we made these during one quarter of the Super Bowl!

I once blogged about doing this for my son's preschool class and attracted a ton of hateful comments from parents who said that I should just go out and buy Valentine's Day cardsbecause I was setting the bar too high for other parents. I don't fault parents who don't have the time or inclination to make Valentines with their kids but my son and I love to do crafts together. Although I do often come off as the uber mom, it isn't out of some competition, it is because I love doing stuff like this. Yes, my kid's birthday parties are over the top but I love the event planning side of it and the obsessive attention to details. So I'm not trying to make you look bad!

Valentines Day - Ticings

Looking for a modern way to decorate your next cake, or valentines treats? Want to turn your home baked cake easily into a more professional looking dessert? Check out ticings. They are decorative, edible sheets of icing that you peel and press onto your own buttercream frosted baked goods. They are gluten-free and kosher certified.

 
 

Family Traditions Will Be Remembered More than Presents

The "Pfefferkuchen" have arrived from Germany and the fight is on in my family.

My aunts (and my grandmother when she was alive) have made these special cookies every year of my life for Christmas and their arrival is eagerly anticipated. We bring out three boxes and very carefully divide the cookies evenly. You aren't even allowed to eat them during the division or it counts against your final bounty. It sounds crazy, but for me it isn't just about the cookies, but the family tradition. We only get these once a year and even the good-natured fighting over the cookies is part of what brings us closer.

Family traditions are important to me and I am trying to pass them on to my sons. My mother made apple Santa men with me every year and I do it with my sons to give out to teachers and friends. I love when I see other families and their traditions. 

More Holiday Gifts by Color — Yellow

 

Clockwise from left: Yellow Clutch from JCrew, Bang Olufsen earbuds, Keels Diary, Measuring cups from Anthropologie, Giraffe Letterpress Print, Alphabet Tape, Dr. Seuss Puzzle Story

Give the Gift of Garbage for the Holidays

Like a lot of little boys and girls, my 1-year-old loves the garbage and recycling trucks. We run outside when they rumble up our street and stop to watch whenever we see them on our outings. I had a hard time finding a play truck for him that did not have a warning about choking hazards but finally when I was at Target, I found this adorable recycling truck that is also a MEGA Bloks set.

 

He loves lifting the loading arm but also just repeatedly taking the little recycling pieces out and putting them back in. It comes with stickers to turn the Mega Bloks into different pieces of recycling materials, bottles, cans and plastics. And there is a driver and a dog to go along.

My friend Christine also sent him a board book called I am a Garbage Truck that is in the shape of a truck. It walks the reader through the garbage man's job, picking up trash and recycling.

Together they would make a great gift for the holidays.

Advent Calendars

Every year my parents gave me an advent calendar, and I'd count down the days until Christmas (while eating chocolate). Sometimes I could barely keep myself from peeking at the day ahead to see what goodie was inside. I tried this with my kids last year, and frankly, they are too young to have chocolate every day. Or maybe I'm too old. Anyways, I did a little search on advents... here are a few favorites I found — with, and without treats.

 

Brooklyn, Mini French Bags (stuff em' with your own treats), Candy Cottage, Tree Mobile Calendar, Lego City Advent Calendar, Eric Carle Pop Up Calendar

Holiday Gift Guide - Brown

 

Ruffles Pillow from Urban Outfitters, Patina Silver Bowl, Jeweled Earrings for mom, Boys Girard Old Sun Tee, Kenana Knitter Baby Leopard, Cardboard Rocket, Log Rocker by 10 Grain, Lincoln LogsCommemortaive Edition

Holiday Gift Guide - Red

 

Teddy Bear Tights from the Gap, Banjo from Plan Toys, Strawberry Chew Toy from Under the Nile, Traffic T from Glug Baby, Vintage Owl Bank, Dump Truck from Green Toys, Manhattan Toy Red Sports Car, Lego Radio, This Is For You by paper cut artist Rob Ryan, Platform Shoes from Anthropologie, Fuelco Manchester Cycle tee for dad

Holiday Gift Guide - Blue

 

Milk & Cookie Love Tee Shirt, Vintage Tool Box on Etsy, Cement Mixer from Bruder, Turquoise Earrings, Black Bird Camera from Flight 001, Noahs Ark Print on Etsy, Knit Dress from Mini Boden, Fleece Lined Jeans from Old Navy, Stitch Kit from Egg Press, Duck! Rabbit!, Tea Party Game by Eboo, Lined Wellie Boots from Lands End

Holiday Gift Guide - Black & White

 

Girls Deco Dress from Crew Cuts, Missus Monogrammed Mug, Plates by Casey O'Connel, Apple Chalkboard Wall Sticker by WallCandy Arts (and designed by Danielle), Radios Tee,  Havana Photography from Etsy

Thanksgiving Craft Round-Up

Just incase you're looking for a last minute Thanskgiving craft, I've rounded up a few from around the web that look pretty fun to do with the kids.

 

From Left to right: Martha Stewart placecards, GiveThanks Banner from Parents, Leaf Place Settings from Make & Takes, Boat Centerpiece and placecards from Martha Stewart

How to Get Rid of all that Halloween Candy

Once everyone is finished eating gross amounts of chocolate and Smarties, and you still have a big pile of candy that you don't know what to do with, send it overseas. You can mail Halloween Candy to the troops in Iraq through Operation Gratitude. You only pay to ship it to California, and an extra $11 donation covers the overseas postage. They also have YouTube video. You can also visit halloweenbuyback.com. There you can find a dentist near you that is buying back candy from the kids - $1 a pound and sending to troops.

A few other ideas friends have shared with me:

- Pumpkin fairy. Leave out the candy and a surprise is left in its place.

- Design with it. Use it for art projects. Smarties take the place of macaroni pictures. 

- My method... I let my kids pick 10 pieces each. about 5 of those disappear, somehow... and they eat the rest over the next 2 weeks. Then we're done. No arguments so far!

Operation Gratitude/California Army National Guard
17330 Victory Boulevard, Van Nuys, CA 91406

Holiday Dresses for Mom

Mommies have parties too! Check out these gorgeous new vintage inspired frocks and accessories from J.Crew.

 

 

 

Silk Taffeta Bow Dress, Leopard Watercolor Dress, Luxe Bracelet, Petit crystal drop earrings, all from J.Crew.com.

Holiday Dresses

Halloween is over so it's on to the next set of holidays. Time for holiday dresses! Here are a few adorable dresses for the little one.
 

 

 

 

Pop dress and Tippa Dress from Magpie Lovely. Glittered flats and cake dress from CrewCuts

A Gingerbread House for Every Season

In our house, we love gingerbread houses in any form. So when we found a kit for a haunted mansion gingerbread house at Cost Plus, Cash and I were ecstatic.

It comes complete with the pre-cut gingerbread pieces, frosting mix, and candy decorations. Cash drew a cool spider and web on the roof and made adorable skeletons with the candies.

With a little research, you can find a gingerbread house idea for any holiday, including Easter, Valentine's Day and even St. Patrick's Day. The I found a great selection of inspiration on about.com

For the Christmas season, check out the Wonka Gingerbread Kit, or if you are a real do-it-yourself-er, check out The Gingerbread Architect.

And the best thing about gingerbread houses, of course, is that you eat them at the end!

It's Almost Halloween

Witches are brewing and eyeballs are rotting. Time to get in the mood. One of my favorite ways is to have a movie night with The Nightmare Before Christmas with my boys.

 And don't forget all the great halloween stories out there. Check out our Halloween book round up up for ideas.

Delicious and Spooky

If you are having a little halloween gathering this year. Try out this easy cake decorating tip from Country Living. Simply cut out the shape on the stencil, lay on top of your cake, and sprinkle colored sugar.

Etsy Halloween Round Up

Clockwise from top left: Reversible Super Hero Capes, Ogre Toes (cookies), Skeleton Baby Leggings, Glow in the dark kids tie