August 2010

4 Ways to Fake a Headboard

August 26, 2010 at 1:16 pm , by Beth Roehrig

Check out this great project from the folks at ScotchBlue painter’s tape—I love how the simple white lines mimic old-fashioned wall frame moldings, creating a focal point behind the bed. It’s a perfect solution for any bedroom (especially a kid or teen’s room, or a guest room) where you don’t want to spend a ton of money on a fancy bed frame or headboard. To get this look, all you need is paint, tape, a level and a straightedge. Get the full instructions after the jump.

This project got me thinking about other fun, low-cost ways to fake a headboard. Here are a few of my favorites that you can easily accomplish for less than $100. Read more

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How To Reform Your Picky, Junk Food Eater

August 26, 2010 at 6:50 am , by Tara Bench

It’s so green. I hate vegetables. I want meatballs, only!  Does any of this sound familiar? Then you may be one of the many mothers out there who think pleasing the picky eaters at your table is next to impossible. And, be assured, there are lots of you.  In fact I just spoke to TV stations across the country – from Atlanta, to Kansas City, to Salt Lake City – to share the good news:  every picky eater can be reformed! Here are a few great tips to turn “eww ” into “mmm” in healthy and budget-friendly ways.

Try new, healthier varieties of old favorites. Kids are more likely to dismiss something because it looks foreign to them. A great trick is to replace foods they already eat with the whole grain variety. Chef Boyardee, for instance, now offers some of its most popular pastas in whole grain, so you can serve up a wholesome meal that includes protein, a full serving of vegetables and now whole grains.

Make meals look mini. Smaller serving dishes or bowls are a great illusion.  Kids will think there’s less of a particular serving and it makes it more manageable, when in reality the bowl might just be deeper or the meal piled on.

Decorate your food. Think about throwing a bit of shaved cheese on top of the meal.  It can help divert attention from what the cheese is supplementing, and add flavor.

Get kids involved in preparation. Kids are more likely to eat something they’ve helped prepare. Set them up with small tasks, like peeling or measuring (or shaving that cheese!). Cooking with kids teaches them a skill, gets them invested in their meal, and is time well-spent together. Also, let them have ownership over some of their food decisions.

Make snacking smart, healthy and fun. It’s tempting to go for the cookies and sweets for that after school snack, but that can make kids hyped-up on sugar and too full for dinner.  Try to offer snacks that pack in protein and flavor like Sabra Hummus’ 2 oz servings paired with SunChips multigrain snacks (18 grams of whole grains per serving) or Tostitos Scoops (8 grams per serving). The dipping and scooping add an element of activity to these perfect sized snacks.

Don’t break the bank.  Remember that eating healthy doesn’t have be a financial burden. In fact, the free site ShopAtHome.com has the largest collection (over 1,200!) of printable grocery coupons, as well as coupons to your favorite restaurants and even free products samples.

If you have a picky eater, what are some of your tricks?

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The Official Duncan Hines Cupcake of the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards

August 25, 2010 at 1:04 pm , by Tara Bench

Ah to live like the stars…Well you can definitely indulge like the stars by eating the very same cupcake they will be dining on at this years’ Primetime Emmy Awards Performers Nominee Reception. It’s a mouthful, but sounds so swanky!

Duncan Hines became the official dessert sponsor of the Emmy’s and created a cupcake contest. The online Duncan Hines Red Carpet Cupcake Challenge winner was Katie Rousonelos of Madison, WI. Congrats Katie! She won a trip for two to Los Angelos to attend the Fans in the Stands red carpet event. Lucky!

The top 10 finalists baked their way to the final judging in New York City where 5 judges (myself included!) devoured and critiqued the delicious creations. Our winner was the Red Carpet Glamour cupcake with a raspberry flavored cake filled with chocolate ganache and topped with cream cheese icing and fresh raspberries. It…was a winner! Check us out here in our judging glory!
Make the winning recipe yourself and check out all the top 10 recipes (there are so many great ones!). You’re sure to feel like a TV star! Catch the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards this Sunday (August 29th) on NBC.

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Jeans That Fit. Really.

August 24, 2010 at 2:54 pm , by Sue Erneta

I have a hard time finding jeans that fit. I know, I know…we ALL do. I get it—jean shopping sucks for everyone. And I’m not really fond of giving advice that says “this particular style is great for pear shapes” or “this brand is good for big thighs” because let’s face it:  YOU. JUST. HAVE. TO. TRY. THEM. ON. Lots of them. In fact, I once wrote in the pages of LHJ, “Be prepared to try on 10 pairs of jeans before you find the right one.”

Then one day, I went to a presentation to see Levi’s new Curve ID line that promised a great fit on the first try. “Sure,” I thought. “I’ve heard this before.” Levi’s SVP of women’s design and merchandising, You Nguyen, explained how jeans need to hug a woman’s curves in order to fit. So Levi’s developed a formula that takes into account a woman’s waist and hips in order to determine which type of curve she should wear: Slight Curve, Demi Curve, or Bold Curve. A Levi’s rep took my measurements and they told me I was a Slight Curve. (This was no surprise – I don’t have much of a waist.) Then I got to choose between several washes and styles to try. (And there are tons of options. I can’t imagine someone not finding one they liked.) I picked an ever-so-slightly-faded skinny style and headed to the fitting room. I couldn’t believe it when I pulled them on. They zipped and buttoned effortlessly. Where was that too-tight-in-the-waist feeling I’ve become so accustomed to? And even my leaves-a-lot-to-be-desired butt was magically supported. Editor after editor came out of the fitting room with the same reaction. “They fit,” we all said dumbfounded.

There are very few times in my career when I have heard about a product so wonderful that I want to scream it from the mountaintops. This is one of those times. Go to a Levi’s store* and get fitted. You will thank me.

*Yes, you can order them online (take the quiz here to determine your curve) but I recommend getting an initial measurement at a Levi’s store so you’re sure about your fit. Happy shopping!

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Weeknight Cooking with ‘High Flavor, Low Labor’

August 24, 2010 at 2:54 pm , by Rachel Shippy

It’s the end of the summer, and it feels like back-to-school time for ALL of us, especially in terms of re-adopting our weeknight routines.  Weeknight cooking can be a stressful addition to the schedule after 3 months of laid-back grilling and seasonal salad-making, but help is on the way! From the National Food Editor for the Associated Press, J.M. Hirsch, comes High Flavor, Low Labor: Reinventing Weeknight Cooking, a great cookbook for anyone trying to get food on the table quickly after a long workday – it not only helps you cut corners to save time, but it also helps you avoid the ruts we all fall into (ahem, that means you, boring grilled chicken!). J.M.’s eclectic recipes are largely driven by seasonings and bold ingredients in order to pack the most punch into minimal prep time. “I never have the luxury of planning dinner on weeknights,” says J.M. “so I end up using what I have in the pantry or refrigerator – that’s how real people cook.”

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaiednGxT3M

J.M.’s Tip Sheet:

1. Bold ‘Go-To’ Ingredients: prosciutto, parmesan, jalapeño, and balsamic vinegar.  By adding just one of these items, your dish has already taken a bolder direction (away from boring!)

2. Incorporate Your Kids Into Shopping and Cooking: my son mixes seasonings based on what looks and smells good together which is how we should all approach seasoning (don’t over-think it!). Plus it keeps kids occupied…

3. Re-Purpose Your Spice Rack: One of my favorite African-influenced techniques is using cinnamon as a savory ingredient rather than in a dessert.  Just a simple switch can lead you to a brand new dish.

4. Broaden Your Grocery Shopping Horizons: Next time you are at the grocery store, stroll down the international aisle – you’ll find a surprising amount of extremely affordable and very flavorful foods that you might not ordinarily cook with.

5. Build from the Pan Up: When experimenting with a new dish, start with some olive oil and chopped onion in a pan. Add your seasonings and let them start combining, or “blooming” which means drawing out their essential oils.  Toss in a “blank canvas” ingredient like pasta, protein, or vegetables and see where the meal takes you…

High Flavor, Low Labor is on pre-sale now and will hit stores September 7th.

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How to Get Your Tween Boy Interested in Reading

August 20, 2010 at 12:41 am , by Louise Sloan

How can you get your tween boy interested in reading? Well, how do you get any boy interested in anything? The answer is pretty consistent: Scare ‘em or gross ‘em out! (Preferably both.)

My friend Sally is the kind of “auntie” that kids adore and mothers cringe over. (That’s her on the right, in the middle of a pillow fight with my 4-year-old son, Scott.) Young boys worship her, because she’s super fun and engages them on exactly the kinds of topics they’re most interested in, like poop. Thanks to Sally, Scott has learned all about coyote poop and has spent time on an educational website that helps him differentiate between ostrich poop, zebra poop and giraffe poop.  Poop, poop, poop, poop, poop. Fascination, peals of laughter, you get the idea. She also juggles and plays a mean game of sidewalk hide & seek. When the three of us are together I may as well not exist, as far as Scott is concerned.

When Sally is not leading my young son astray, she’s drawing cool pictures. And last week, her first two children’s books hit bookstores: The Rat-Brain Fiasco and Curse of the Bizarro Beetle, #1 and #2 in an illustrated children’s book series called Splurch Academy for Disruptive Boys, aimed at ages 9-12. She produced it with her sister Julie, a writer who, as it happens, is mom to four such boys.

The sisters are currently hard at work on the latest book in the series about a boarding school where the teachers are really monsters. Sally (Sally Faye Gardner) draws the pictures and Julie (Julie Gardner Berry) writes the words, but I’m sure both of them are a bit to blame for all of it. They took a break to visit the Ladies’ Lounge. Read our interview after the jump.

What was it like working with your sister?

Sally Faye Gardner: Collaborating with Julie was the best part of this project. Because we are litter-mates, we already think the same things are funny. Having someone snort and giggle with you at every step made the work fun, and I hope it made the books funnier. At least we made each other laugh, so that’s something.

Julie Gardner Berry: We never had to waste time on politeness or manage each other’s feelings. That made us very efficient. Sally would call me on any given afternoon, and I might be chauffeuring kids, and she’d say, “On page 57 we need to shorten the dialogue so it fits in a speech bubble, and we need a better excuse for so-and-so’s disappearance.” I’d say, “Hold on,” pause to pay for my drive-through takeout, suggest some shorter dialogue, and say, “How about … oh, body snatchers?” “Perfect,” Sally’d say. “Oh, I’m getting a call. Talk to you later.”

Can you give us a snippet from the weirdest work conversation you had about Splurch Academy?

SFG: Hmm, it’s hard to choose.

“This Were-squid transformation just ain’t working. Let’s lose the moon.”

“Quick, I need some humorous names for an old vampire’s bathroom products!”

“What happens if our real middle school teachers recognize themselves in this?”

Sally, you’re a favorite, bad-influence kind of aunt. Do you secretly like disruptive boys?

SFG: It’s no secret; I PREFER disruptive boys. Disruptive kids are more creative, playful, funny, and adventurous than mild mannered obedient kids. I wish I were more like them.

What about you, Julie? Is Splurch Academy fiction, really, or is there an element of memoir?

JGB: These books bear no resemblance to my own angel boys. Honest. I swear.

Seriously, as the mom to my sons, I’m forced to play teacher and lawgiver and disciplinarian, but I think I can empathize and imagine enough to picture what it must be like to be a young boy, full of energy and curiosity and mischief, with all these dragonlike authority figures telling you to hold still, be quiet, and suffer boredom patiently.  In some sense I see these books as letters to my own boys. Maybe someday they’ll read them and know that Mom was on their side, too, at least more than they probably think.

What do you hope your young readers will take away from these books?

SFG: We mostly just want these books to be fun for the all the disruptive little guys we know. We also hope that reluctant readers will be motivated to keep reading because they’ll like the comic-hybrid format.

Final question to Sally: Scott loved playing with the model rats when you were working on the Rat-Brain Fiasco. What gross toys will he have access to when you’re working on book #4?

SFG: That’s proprietary information, I’m afraid. You don’t have the appropriate clearance level. Have Scott call me directly.

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A Shoppable Video Storybook from Ralph Lauren

August 19, 2010 at 3:47 pm , by Sue Erneta

I love children’s books. Who doesn’t, right? Luckily my daughter, Sophia, and I tend to like some of the same themes: a little fashion (like Birdie’s Big Girl Shoes), great art (like Abuela), and imaginative kids (like Olivia). So, when I saw The RL Gang, A Fantastically Amazing School Adventure, I know she’d be as smitten as I was.

But The RL Gang is no ordinary book, it’s a completely shoppable video storybook featuring Ralph Lauren childrenswear. It’s a treat for the eyes (thanks to live action kids—adorably dressed, of course—against an animated background) and the ears (it’s narrated by Harry Connick, Jr. who my singing, piano-playing family just loves). It begins: “This is the story of a not so ordinary group of children who came to school and had a not so ordinary day.” The children go on an adventure thanks to “an incredibly incredible book” brought by their teacher, Professor Randolph Lattimer.

And here’s the bonus, after you enjoy the great fantasy story (and I’m sure you will), you can click to buy any of the kids’ clothing featured in the book. (I’m thinking about Zoe’s purple dress for my girls.) Love it so much you want a hard copy? No problem. You can order one here. Enjoy the story!

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