Back to School with Rice Krispie Treats

Rice Krispie Treats are a favorite in our house so when I was asked by the Motherhood to be a Rice Krispie Ambassador I was thrilled.  

These marshmallow treats are my go to snack to prepare for every holiday and special occasion.  We have made Rice Krispie Valentine hearts, Christmas trees, Easter eggs, and Halloween brains. We have dipped them in chocolate, frosted the top, covered them in sprinkles, and of course enjoyed the plain old recipe from the box. Can you tell we love Rice Krispie Treats?!

Being an ambassador meant that I had to solve a puzzle with 9 other ambassadors in order to discover a theme to the Rice Krispie Treats recipe we had to create. We received an envelope with clues like scrabble tiles, flash cards, stickers, notepads, and before long Dylan concluded that our recipe must have something to do with school.  Inside the package there was a paper puzzle piece with the word "recipe" and through twitter discussions using the hashtag #ricekrispies, we ambassadors put all our secret words together to discover our Rice Krispie Treats recipe theme: 

"Make Your Rice Krispies Recipe An 

After School Conversation Starter"

Now I have to admit I thought I had a slight advantage being a teacher and all.  The kids and I started brainstorming and Dylan and I both immediately thought APPLES, cause after all apples and school go way back, right?  So here is our recipe.

Rice Krispie Treat Apples

• 3 Tablespoons Butter
• 6 cups of Rice Krispies
• 1 pkg of large Marshmallows
• all natural fruit roll-ups
• pretzel sticks

1. Melt butter in large saucepan over low heat.
2. Add marshmallows and stir until they are completely melted.
3. Remove from heat and add Rice Krispies cereal.  Stir until well coated. 
4. Let is cool for just a few seconds {don't let it sit long or it will begin to harden}.  Spray your hands with cooking spray so the mixture does not stick to your hands.  Grab a handful of the marshmallow cereal mixture and begin forming in an apple shape. Place on waxed paper and let cool.
5. Once "apples" are cooled, unwrap one sheet of natural fruit roll-ups and cover it.  The roll-up will stick to itself on the bottom.
6. Add a pretzel stick for the stem and cut leaves from green roll-ups if you wish {the green roll ups I used were not all natural!}
7. Enjoy your school snack!

After admiring the apples {and munching on them too...yummy} I started thinking about the clue to our recipe and worrying that while the apples were super cute and definitely school related, I wasn't quite sure that they were "conversation starters".  So I went back to the drawing board and created a second recipe.

Talk to Me Treat Mix

• 3 Tablespoons Butter
• 6 cups of Rice Krispies
• 1 pkg of large Marshmallows
• Dried fruit
• Mixed nuts
• snack size baggies

1. Melt butter in large saucepan over low heat.
2. Add marshmallows and stir until they are completely melted.
3. Remove from heat and add Rice Krispies cereal.  Stir until well coated. 
4. Using a spatula sprayed with cooking spray, spread the marshmallow cereal mixture on a baking sheet and stick in the refrigerator for about an hour or until the mixture breaks apart.
5. After the Rice Krispie Treats cool break into bite sized pieces and divide into snack baggies.  Add dried fruit and nuts.  Seal the bag and mix well.  
6. Tie a ribbon around the baggie and attach a "conversation starter" note.  {Teacher Tip: Make sure your question is open ended and does not allow a simple yes or no answer!!}
7. Enjoy your snack mix while chatting with your kiddo about their day!

So there you have it.
My brand new Rice Krispie Treat Recipes.
Now I need your help. 
Tell me. Which recipe do you like the best? Why? 


To thank you for sharing your opinion all commentators will be entered to win 2 super cute Snap, Crackle, and Pop cereal bowls {full contest rules}, perfect for enjoying your breakfast cereal! Winners will be chosen on Friday, September 3rd.  full Good luck and happy Back to School Season!


DISCLOSURE: I participated in the Rice Krispie Ambassador program through themotherhood.com. I received basic ingredients along with monetary compensation for additional ingredients and to thank me for my time to create and share my recipes.  

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Getting Cheesy with Weight Watchers {GIVEAWAY}

The other day Weight Watchers sent me an awesome snack basket so that I could try their new cheeses that are now available at local grocery stores.

Check it out.

I got Kashi TLC crackers, Back to Nature nut mix, Emerald dried fruit mix, a Frisbee, a cheese spreader, all 4 kinds of cheese wedges, and one block of the reduced-fat cream cheese all packaged in the Picnic Time collapsible picnic basket. It was sweet!

Once I unpacked the basket the family got busy sampling the new Weight Watchers Gourmet Cheese Wedges.  The package immediately make you think of Laughing Cow cheese as they are packaged in the wheel with the wedges inside.

There were four varieties to taste test: Original Swiss, Garlic and Herb, Parmesan Peppercorn and Jalapeño Pepper.  After tasting them all, the Jalapeno Pepper wedges was the one we thought had the most flavor with Parmesan Peppercorn running a close second.  We enjoyed spreading the cheese on crackers for afternoon snacks and the Jalapeno Pepper was fantastic on a grilled burger!  The Original Swiss was somewhat bland, but it worked for me when I spread it on an apple and on celery sticks.  I have to admit that I am not a big garlic fan though so I left that one to hubby who said it was good although not exactly bursting with flavor.

I did find that all the wedges were creamy and easy to spread and since each wedge only has 30 calories it definitely made for a low cal snack.  Weight Watcher Cheese wedges also contains more fiber than the leading competitor I mentioned above and comes with a POINTS® value of 1.  The wedges seem to cost between $2.99 and $3.99 at my local markets.

My basket also came with a package of the new eight-ounce Weight Watchers Reduced Fat Cream Cheese Spread.  Now I love cream cheese, but have to say I'm not really a cream cheese snob like some and seriously can't usually tell the difference between low fat and full fat cream cheese.  I found the cream cheese to be very smooth and creamy allowing for easy spreading on my bagels and celery.  In a taste test I honestly don't think I could pick which was Weight Watchers.  I do like knowing though that the spread boasts 40 percent less fat than regular cream cheese with a POINTS® value of 1 per serving. Finally I can feel a little less guilty about consuming my cream cheese.  The cream cheese spread is also comparable in price with my grocery stores selling it between $1.69 and $1.99.

Now for the best part of my whole review...I get to give one of my readers A SNACK BASKET JUST LIKE MINE! You get the picnic basket with all the goodies!!  All you have to do to enter is leave a comment telling me what you like to spread your cheese on. That's it. But hurry and enter because the winner will be chosen next Friday, August 27th. Good luck!!

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Safeway Supports Box Tops for Education {GIVEAWAY}

Being a teacher, I realize the importance of the Box Tops for Education program.  It's neat to see our school earn money for turning in box tops found on products we buy on our normal shopping trips at the grocery store. Did you know that Box Tops for Education has already given away over $320 million to help more than 69 thousand participating schools?  This year earning Box Tops is even easier with four new brands participating in the program: Progresso Soup, Totino’s Pizza, Betty Crocker Cake Mixes and Gold Medal Flour.

I was excited to hear that the Safeway family of stores (which includes Dominick’s, Tom Thumb, Randalls, Vons, and Genuardi’s) supports the program and is making it so simple to earn even more money for our schools with “2 Ways 2 Earn” cash for your schools, Box Tops for Education and the “10% Goes Back to Schools” program.

Earn money by collecting your box tops from the products you buy at Safeway and then to help your school earn even more money look for the “10% Goes Back to Schools” yellow school bus tags on over 2,000 of your favorite items throughout Safeway from August 11th – September 14th. When you purchase those participating products with your Club Card, Safeway will give 10% of the purchase price to the local school of your choice.

Here’s how it works:

• Check your receipt from August 11 – September 14. The total will be updated each time you shop.
• Beginning on September 18, a redemption code will be printed at the bottom of your receipt.
• Visit backtoschools.escrip.com before October 13 to choose your favorite participating local school, then simply enter your redemption code to make your donation.

To learn more about Box Tops for Education and Safeway’s “10% Goes Back to Schools” program, visit www.2ways2earn.com. And while you’re there, don’t forget to enter the Safeway Bonus Box Tops Sweepstakes for a chance to win 1,000 Bonus Box Tops for the participating school of your choice! 



Also, check out Box Tops for Education on Facebook today! Visit Box Tops for Education on Facebook to “Like” the program and keep up with the latest news from Box Tops.

GIVEAWAY - Want to get started earning money for your school right away.  I have a $25 Safeway gift card (also valid at Dominick’s, Tom Thumb, Randalls, Vons, and Genuardi’s) that I get to give one lucky reader to use to purchase your favorite Box Tops items. Along with the gift card you will also receive a Bonus Box Tops certificate with a value of 50 Bonus Box Tops!! To be entered to win leave a comment below telling me your system for collecting box tops.  At our house, we have a ziploc baggie attached to our fridge so we just drop the box tops in there as soon as we remove them and then send the baggie to school every few weeks.



Good luck with the giveaway and happy earning for your school! 


DISCLOSURE:  I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by MyBlogSpark on behalf of Safeway and General Mills. I received a Safeway gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Wordless Wednesday - In the Sand with Spongebob

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Only the Best Books at Little One Books

I have always enjoyed reading.  Growing up, mom would take us on frequent visits to the library and I would always try to negotiate getting more books than our 10 limit.  Half of them I would read within a day of lending them and within a few days I was anxiously counting down the days till our next scheduled trip. 


When I had kids, reading to them was a no-brainer.  I loved to stock up on books and then just cuddle with them while enjoying a good story together.  Now Dylan enjoys books on his own and Zoe is right on the edge of reading by herself too.  We love perusing book stores for a good story and watch out when the Scholastic Book Orders come home!


The other day I learned about Little One Books, an online store that sells books, music, and video for children birth through 5.  

Their website was very well organized by age making it easy to find products suitable for the children you are shopping for.  As I was searching through all their titles I couldn't help but notice how many of my favorite children books they had listed.  All of their products are carefully chosen by a team, so rather than just selling every childrens book under the sun they sell only the best. You can even read detailed information on a particular product in the "Why We Chose" section on each product page.


Zoe got to choose a book and she picked out "Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten" by Joseph Slate.  Since she is getting ready for Kindergarten in a few weeks she has had a blast reading the funny story about how some animals get ready for school too.  Her last name is even in the book {just by coincidence, it isn't a personalized book} which she thinks is hilarious. 


Shopping at Little One Books was a great experience and I will definitely shop with them again.  I have always been a fan of the independently owned book shops and I love how the internet brings them even closer to me!  If you have children under 5 or are looking for a special book to give to somebody who is expecting be sure to shop Little One Books!


DISCLOSURE: This is a sponsored post. I received compensation and Zoe received a free book in exchange for a post sharing our experience with Little One Books.  All opinions contained in the post are my own!

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

College For Moms {It's Not Too Late}

I can't believe that this will be my 6th year teaching.
How time flies by!

I often get asked if I always wanted to be a teacher and I do remember answering "teacher" to the age old question of what I wanted to be when I grew up, but I didn't go to college for my teaching degree right after high school.  I actually didn't start college until I was 21 and married.  Dave and I had moved to Delaware and during the winter things are really quiet around the beach and I was getting a bit bored.  I heard about a teaching program that allowed me to get a degree downstate and since I could go to school while living where we did it worked out perfectly.  I worked through my four years, actually 5 since I had Dylan right before my junior year, and graduated with my Bachelor degree.

My first year of teaching I was pregnant with Zoe so that year I also got a maternity leave.  Then the following year I began my Master's program.  I worked towards my graduate degree while working and having two kids.  Yes, it took determination, multi-tasking, extreme organization, and lots of support from my family.  But, I did it!

Why am I telling you this?
To let you know that if going to school to earn a degree is something you have always wanted to do, but are afraid it is now to late to accomplish...you are wrong.

Going to college is easier than ever with online courses now available from colleges such as American Public University. They have even developed special programs just so moms can earn the degree they have always wanted.  While I was earning my Master's I took many online courses since they offered the flexibility that I needed with my busy schedule.  I could attend my "classes" after the kids were in bed and I was in my pj's!

Attending American Public University offers many benefits such as flexibility, variety, affordability, quality, and credibility.

In August, APU has created "live chats" hosted by moms who have completed online courses to share how their experience with going back to school, including keys to their success and valuable lessons learned along the way.

Join the following conversations at www.studyatapu.com/moms

• Marie Raffey: Master of Science in Environmental Management - Today at 8pm
• Rebecca Roch: Master of Public Administration - August 19th at 2pm
• Helenjene Curtis: Bachelor of Arts in Psychology - August 24th at 8pm
• Jenn Deater: Bachelor of Arts in Hospitality Management - August 26th at 12pm

If going back to school and earning your degree has always been a dream of yours, then it is time for you to make that dream a reality!!

What are you waiting for?
Visit American Public University and start earning your degree today.

DISCLOSURE: “I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of American Public University. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Sensational Saturday

It seems like this summer I have blogged the same story: No time for blogging, enjoying life. 


This week was no different.
My brother and his family were visiting this past week so we were running here and there, hanging out on the beach, riding the boat, playing board games, enjoying yummy food. It was wonderful.


Yesterday the weather took a turn for the better as the humidity left and a beautiful breeze blew in.  The kids and I visited daddy at work for lunch and had some fun geocaching on the way there and back home (I'll be talking more about our geocaching adventures soon!).  Last night we took a family bike ride to a local nature center where we enjoyed the view together.  The kids played on a playground there while Dave and I enjoyed some stolen kisses and hugs.  It was a perfect family night!

Last night, we slept with the windows open and I think I slept the best I've slept in quite awhile!!  I woke up to sunshine streaming in my window, curtains blowing in the breeze, birds singing, cicadas buzzing and  Oh and my neighbor mowing, but moving on. I enjoyed my two cups of coffee and cereal on the front deck while watching Zoe ride her two wheel bike up and down the road.


Not sure yet what today is going to bring.  
Thinking a bike ride, picnic, and some more exploring in a local park.

Definitely a bbq for dinner cause this weather is perfect for grilling and eating on the deck.


We will see.
Life is good.
So I'm just going to enjoy this sensational Saturday and all it brings!

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter

Wordless Wednesday - Tall and Skinny

SUBSCRIBE to never miss a piece of chocolate

Be Sweet, Follow Mel on Twitter