Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Our Family Favorite Taco Bake

You know when you get in a meal rut and you sit down to think about meals that you have prepared in the past or look for new recipes to try?  That happened to me recently and the family favorite Taco Bake came back to mind!  How does one forget about a family favorite?  Well, it happens to the best of us.  Parenting isn't easy and things get "lost". Ha ha.

Well, Taco Bake was "found" again and made the menu plan not one, but two times in the past few weeks!  This really is a favorite for the kids and adults.  Cut up some lettuce and serve to the side with some taco sauce and it is perfect.  You can also fancy things up and serve with all of your favorite taco fixings; tomatoes, black olives, extra cheese, etc.

When I was making the Taco Bake, I wasn't thinking about sharing the recipe with you.  But once the pan was emptied at the end of supper, I decided I really should!  An empty pan means I don't have any leftovers to eat for lunch this week (which it makes great leftovers), but it also means there were hungry kids whose bellies are now full and happy.  That is so much better than when you place something on their plate and they quietly pick at it and try to eat it.  Am I right?


The recipe is super easy, which makes it a win-win in my recipe book!

Our Family Favorite Taco Bake
1 lb hamburger
2 tsp of your favorite taco seasoning
2 tsp water
14 oz sour cream (we always use light)
14 oz cottage cheese
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese
1 bag of Doritos (will be a few handfuls left)
Lettuce and taco sauce or other taco toppings you want - to serve with the taco bake.

Directions:
Preheat oven 375 degrees. Brown hamburger, drain.  Mix in taco seasoning and water.  In separate bowl mix together sour cream and cottage cheese.
Crush 2 large handfuls of Doritos and spread in the bottom of 8x8 pan.
Sprinkle 1/2 of taco seasoned meat over top of crushed doritos.
Spread half of sour cream mixture over top of hamburger.
Sprinkle thin layer of cheese over top of sour cream layer.
Crush 2 large handfuls of Doritos and spread over cheese layer.
Do all layers one more time: meat, sour cream mixture, cheese.
Crush a few handful of Doritos over top and sprinkle in some cheese.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until sour cream layer bubbles a little.

Enjoy!  May you find smiling faces and full bellies too!

Tuesday, April 30, 2019

One Day Only: Culver's Frozen Custard Scoop $1

We live near a Culver's restaurant, that we drive by on our way home from most destinations.  My 4 year old son is always asking me what the "flavor of the day" is!  He likes to dream through flavors of the day apparently. Ha!  If you too are a fan of Culver's frozen custard you will want to keep reading!

Culver's is hosting Scoops of Thanks Day on Thursday, May 2, 2019.  You can stop in store on Thursday and grab a scoop of frozen custard for $1. 

Your $1 donation will go to a local area FFA Chapter or other agricultural organization, with each scoop purchased on May 2.  

You can read more about Scoops of Thanks Day on the Culver's website.

Yankton's Culver's is participating.  If you are located elsewhere, you can find your closest participating restaurant here.

Friday, April 26, 2019

Summer Movie Camp: AMC Classic Yankton 5

Select AMC Movie Theaters offer a fun Summer Movie Camp, that consists of several kid-friendly movies.  Each scheduled movie costs just $4 + tax to attend and comes with a KidsPack.  The KidsPack includes a kid's size popcorn and drink and a pack of AMC Frooti Tootis. Tickets are available at the box office.  Yankton's AMC Classic 5 Theater is a participating location.

Here is this summer's line up of movies shown each Wednesday morning (time of showing TBD):

June 12
Wonder Park - rated PG

June 19
Hotel Transylvania 3 - rated PG

June 26 
Rascal Rebel Rabbit - rated PG

July 3
Smallfoot - rated PG

July 10
LEGO Movie - rated PG

July 17
Teen Titans Go to the Movies - rated PG

July 24
The House with a Clock in it's Walls - rated PG

July 31
Trolls - rated PG

August 7
How to Train a Dragon: The Hidden World - rated PG

Find more information and showtimes on the AMC website.

Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Yankton Bowl - Summer Bowl Pass

Yankton Bowl is part of the Summer Bowl Pass program this summer.  You can grab a couple different passes that cover your bowling fun for the summer. Bowling is a great activity to do at any time, however is a great indoor activity for those rainy or too-hot summer days!

Check out the pass offers!



The prices shown are only good through April 30, 2019.  Prices will go back up after this date, so be sure to grab your pass now so that you can save an extra $30!

Monday, April 22, 2019

Half Off Wild Water West Day Tickets!

Wild Water West is a fun water and entertainment spot during the summer months!  From a lazy river, wave pool, baby pool, activity pool, water slides, go karts, bumper boats, mini golf, batting cages and more, there is sure to be something fun for everyone!

Through Keloland Spotlight, you can grab half off Wild Water West day tickets through April 22, 2019 at 11:59 PM - so if you want them, be sure to grab them now before time elapses.

Day tickets are usually $26.45 for those 48" or taller or $15.85 for those under 48" inches and those 60 or older.  You can grab day tickets now for $13!

You may purchase an unlimited number of tickets, however vouchers must be used by September 2, 2019.

To read more about the deal and to purchase your tickets head here now.

Thursday, April 11, 2019

Kids in the Kitchen: Best Cookie Bars

I have never been a patient cookie baker, so when the kids are asking for cookies I am tempted to take the easier way out with cookie bars.  Make the batter, put it all in a pan and wait one time for the oven to beep and you are done!  Anyone else with me?

Recently I found the following cookie bar recipe and it is now our go to recipe!  This thick battered recipe truly does turn up the Best Cookie Bars!

The recipe is easy enough you can get the kids involved in the kitchen, even if a stool is needed.

Cracking eggs, mixing the batter, dropping in the chocolate chips and more.

The bars are great for throwing in the school lunch box, taking along for a quick snack at sporting events, car trips and more.

May you find this to be one of your favorite go-to recipes as well!

Best Cookie Bar Recipe
1 cup Butter, room temperature
1 cup Brown Sugar
3/4 cup White Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla
2 eggs
3 cups Flour
3/4 tsp Salt
3/4 tsp Baking Soda
1 cup Chocolate Chips

Directions:
Cream butter, sugars and vanilla together.  Add eggs.
Mix in flour, salt and baking soda until well combined
Fold in chocolate chips (can add nuts if desired)
Spread in greased 9x13 pan (batter will be thick, so may need to use hands to gently spread evenly)
Bake at 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until lightly brown on top

Tuesday, April 9, 2019

Spring Cleaning 10 Minute Challenge: Kid's Books



This is the third of the 10-Minute Family Spring Cleaning Challenges, as I partner with Lisa Soma, Sioux Falls organizing expert and owner of Organizing by Lisa.   A Spring cleaning challenge will be provided, to spend 10 minutes in the designated challenge area.  Together, Lisa and I will provide some guidance, support and tips.  Maybe 10 minutes is all you need, or maybe 10 minutes will provide you a great start, where you can come back and truly transform your space.  Completely up to you!  Grab the kids to help or head in alone, the call is yours. Have fun with it!  If you missed the previous challenges you can find the Entryway Challenge here and the Board Games Challenge here

This week the challenge is....

Challenge: Spend 10 minutes on kid's books



How to Spend 10 Minutes:
*Remove all books from the shelf 
Remove all books from the shelf that they are stored on.  To assist with this challenge, you can place all books in a small laundry hamper in case you run out of time while organizing and you come back to them at another time.

*Discard Books
Determine which books your child no longer uses or has outgrown and place these in a discard box. Organizing expert, Lisa Soma, suggests that reducing the overall number of books on hand for your child to approximately 20 books will reduce the mess and allow your child to feel like they can keep up during pick up time.  She further suggests setting up a book rotation system to rotate books in and out when kids get bored with their current set.

*Store Books
If there are seasonal books, such as Christmas books, you can remove these and place them in storage until the season/holiday rolls around again.  Lisa Soma suggests that holiday books can easily be stored along with corresponding holiday decor!

*Organize Books
I find it helpful to organize books by size and favorites.  I place all favorites (the ones that your kids pull off the shelf more frequently) in one pile and then organize the rest by size.

*Place Books On Shelf
Now that you have spent a few minutes discarding books that are no longer needed and organizing the remaining books by size, it is time to place them back on the shelf.  Placing larger, more bulky books laying down will make it easier for kids to grab and return these books.  Also, I find that placing the favorite books at the center for easy access helps kids in finding them (instead of digging through all the others to find them - we know what happens then). 

Additional Tips:
*Board Books
Lisa Soma suggests putting board books in with toys, as "they are sturdy and can withstand being tossed around".

*Storage Ideas
If you don't have a shelf to designate for book storage, Lisa offers a couple additional book storage ideas.  Try a basket for storage, or a wall shelf.  A "wall shelf is a cool way to decorate with books".

*Discarding Books
If books are ripped or binding is broken, you can toss them.  However, if books are in good shape, there are several options for re-purposing instead of tossing.  Find more information about donating to REACH Literacy or your child's school here or Lisa suggests considering donating to daycare providers, church nurseries and doctor offices.  You can also find opportunities to sell your discarded items here via a rummage sale or the Just Between Friends of Greater Sioux Falls sale coming up in May and more.

That's it!  By now, you are probably finding what an amazing difference just 10 minutes of decluttering and organizing can make!  Look at your newly organized kid's books, awesome!  Providing a more functional space for little hands will hopefully reduce the time needed to step in and help place books away, or even helping locate special books.  Congratulations on your hard work!

*Like the tips that organizing expert, Lisa Soma shared?  Be sure to follow her Facebook page, as she shares more organizing tips and provides encouragement to declutter.

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Easter Egg Fillers

Candy, candy and candy!  The kids enjoy finding candy in their plastic Easter eggs, however, there are so many other things they would enjoy finding in their Easter eggs as well.  Candy is great and my kids will definitely get some, but it is also fun to fill those eggs with some other fun items that they will enjoy!

Tip: When we hide plastic Easter eggs at our home, we typically assign one color to each child.  Blue to one kid, green to the other and so on.  There are some great advantages to this: 1) We can gear the items tucked into their eggs to their likes and age as 2) They each get the same number of eggs, because we fill and hide the same number of each color 3) We can make the older kid's eggs a little harder to hunt.

The list below is in no particular order of egg filler ideas!  I have tried to include items that touch different age groups and gender.

*Pony tail holders
*Scrunchies
*Cord hair ties
*Barrettes
*Plastic dinosaurs
*Water balloons
*Key chain
*Ear buds
*Bath fizzies
*Mini bath bombs
*Lanyard
*Punch balloon
*Bouncy balls
*Stickers
*Tattoos
*Eye blacks
*Arcade tokens
*Rings
*Earings
*Necklace
*Dog tags/chain
*Mini nail polish
*Stampers
*Cord and beads to make a necklace
*Balloons
*Nail stickers
*Slap bracelet
*Coins
*Dollar bills (a $2 bill is special!)
*Foam animal growing capsules
*Legos (could do small sets in multiple eggs or do single legos)
*Barbie doll outfits/shoes/accessories
*Redbox promo code written on paper (movie or game rentals)
*Band-aids with fun characters (you know how many of these they go through! 😄)
*Culver's ice cream token
*A piece of paper with a number on it to match a corresponding bigger "prize" that doesn't fit (butterfly net, sidewalk chalk, a gift card to an adventure, etc)
*Clues that help them find their hidden Easter basket
*Paper coupons (activity of choice, an ice cream cone when they choose, extra screen time, etc)

For the bit bigger eggs:
*Army guys
*Toy cars
*Expandable washcloths
*Lip glass
*Eye shadow singles
*Blind bags (so many different ones to choose from at the store)
*Undies (great for kids who are potty training!)
*Seed packets for the garden
*Small slinky
*Bubbles in small bottles

Other food item ideas:
*Sunflower seeds
*Fruit snacks
*Yogurt covered raisins
*Pretzels
*Teddy grahams
*Animal crackers
*Goldfish
*Crystal Light drink mix packet
*Gum

I would love to hear your ideas as well, leave a comment!

Happy Easter!

Monday, April 1, 2019

Giveaway: Mead Cultural Educational Center Tickets!


Has your family been in to visit the Mead Cultural Education Center since it's opening in Yankton?  So much history to learn and explore, including in the Children's Transportation Museum where children of all ages can climb on and experience the different types of transportation of years past.  For a little extra fun, kids can dress up in clothing from the time period as well. How fun is that!

Lots of great things going on at the Mead Cultural Education Center and lots of great things yet to come.

You can visit and help support the Mead, Saturday and Sunday 1-4 PM and weekdays (closed on Wednesday) 10 AM - 4 PM through April 30, with new hours starting May 1.

The cost is $8 for Adults, $5 for Kids (3-17) & Seniors, Free for Kids under 3.  Or check out an Annual Family Membership for $50, which includes 2 adults and up to 6 children.  Find additional membership offers here.

Guess what!  Thanks to the MEAD Cultural Education Center, I am giving away 4 tickets for one lucky family to enjoy a visit.

Here is how to get entered for a chance to win:
1 - Completely fill out the form below by April 4, 2019!
2 - Want a 2nd entry?!  Head over to the Your Next Adventure - Yankton Facebook page and follow the steps on The Mead giveaway post!

Good luck!


Monday, March 25, 2019

Spring Cleaning 10 Minute Challenge: Board Games


This is the second of the 10-Minute Family Spring Cleaning Challenges, as I partner with Lisa Soma, Sioux Falls organizing expert and owner of Organizing by Lisa.   A Spring cleaning challenge will be provided, to spend 10 minutes in the designated challenge area.  Together, Lisa and I will provide some guidance, support and tips.  Maybe 10 minutes is all you need, or maybe 10 minutes will provide you a great start, where you can come back and truly transform your space.  Completely up to you!  Grab the kids to help or head in alone, the call is yours. Have fun with it!  If you missed last week's challenge you can check it out here.

This week the challenge is....

Challenge: Spend 10 minutes on board games

I've mentioned at other times that we are definitely a board game family.  This has lead to a collection of several board games.  And if I am going to be totally transparent, I must admit that we have more than one location for board games in our house. There.  I said it.  Ha!  Please tell me that we are not alone.

For the purpose of the 10 minute challenge, I chose to focus on just one board game location.  I will give the other location it's own 10 minute challenge at a later time.

Check out this game closet!  No.  Look away.  Oh my!  This closet has obviously been neglected longer than I would like to admit.

But look at what 10 minutes accomplished!  Amazing, right!  I know that you can do it too!

How to Spend 10 Minutes:
*Clear the Storage Area
Remove all games from the storage area to create a clean space.  To assist with this step, I utilized a small clothes basket to place a majority of the games inside.  I knew I only had about 10 minutes and wanted to be able to easily move the games out of the way, if I did not get through them.

*Replace Loose Pieces
If there are any fallen pieces outside of boxes, be sure to place them back in the original game box.

*Repair Broken Boxes
Organizing expert, Lisa Soma suggests that simply repairing corners of game boxes with tape will help them last longer.  If you have any boxes broken beyond repair, Lisa recommends considering baggies to store games in.  I have been able to locate large sized baggies at the Dollar Tree store.  This is a much better deal than the more expensive name brand ones.

*Organize By Size
While returning games to shelving, arrange by size.  Lisa Soma also suggests heavier ones on the bottom and lighter ones on top.

*Reduce
Be sure to determine the use and need for each game before placing it back into your storage area.  Don't be afraid to get rid of games that have not been used in several months, or have not been opened at all.  Lisa suggests keeping only games that are age appropriate for the family, if you have teenagers, it may be time to get rid of Candy Land.

Additional Tips:
*Card Games
Lisa suggestions storing card games in baggies.  This is a great way to keep all cards together.  If you don't have baggies, a rubber band is another option.

*Basket for Storage
When storing card games, Lisa suggests a tote or basket.  We utilize the basket pictured here in our board game closet.  It is a great place for kids to place loose game pieces as well, when they don't know where they go.  

*Limiting Access
To preserve the integrity of board game boxes and pieces, Lisa suggests to keep board games out of the reach of younger children.  Additionally, one game out at a time keeps games organized and prevents pieces from getting lost or intermixed.

*Storage
If you do not have room on shelves for your games, you can also utilize an empty dresser drawer or even an under the bed storage tote.

*Selling or Donating 
While decluttering your board game collection, you can easily set aside those games that you are discarding into a small clothes basket.  This will allow you to come back to them when you have some additional time to prepare them for sale or donation.  You will want to account for all the game pieces and fix boxes, as needed prior to discarding, unless you are discarding to the trash.  If you are looking for ways to donate or sell gently used items, you will find several Sioux Falls area local ideas in my article, Organizing the Kid's Room.

I have already given myself a pat on the back for the 10 minutes I spent decluttering this board game closet!  Now you need to as well!  It is amazing what just 10 simple minutes can do to change the appearance and the ease of use of an area!  Congratulations on your hard work!

*Like the tips that organizing expert, Lisa Soma shared?  Be sure to follow her Facebook page, as she shares more organizing tips and provides encouragement to declutter.

Monday, March 18, 2019

Easter Adventures 2019


Find Easter themed events in the Yankton area compiled below. 
As events come to our attention, we will add them to the list. 
For a full list of Kid-Friendly events in the Yankton area, check out the Kid-Friendly Event Calendar.

This post is sponsored by Matt Hoefs, Nutritional Systems Consultant of Yankton.
Contact him at Gluerboy@hotmail.com for more information.



Ongoing Easter Themed Activities
*Yankton Community Library has several Easter themed books on display for fun holiday reading.

*Yankton Family Ceramics Studio has Easter themed ceramics available for painting

April 6
Must Register - $20 per child

April 13
*Avera Sacred Heart Majestic Bluff Egg Hunt (ages 7 & Under) 10 AM
Outside if nice, otherwise will be inside


April 14
Egg hunt at St John's Lutheran Church (ages through 5th grade) 1 PM (Indoors if inclement weather)

April 16
Easter Egg Hunt at Sanford Health Care Center, Vermillion 5-6 PM

April 18
*In the Water Egg Hunt at Summit Activities Center 10 AM - 1 PM
Must Register - $4 per child

April 19
*Showing of the Movie, Hop at the Vermillion Public Library 3:30 PM

*Elks Lodge Hunt at Fox Run Driving Range with sign up at the Elk's Lodge prior to hunt 4 PM

April 20
*Sunset Manor Egg Hunt, Irene 10 AM

*Utica Egg Hunt at the Old School 10 AM


*Hartington Chamber of Commerce Easter Egg Hunt at Felber Park in Hartington, NE 1 PM

*Centerville Care & Rehab Egg Hunt 1 PM

*Teen Easter Egg Decorating at Vermillion Public Library 1 PM

*Lesterville Easter Egg Hunt at the ballpark 3 PM


Other Fun Easter "things"
*Egg My Yard - a fundraiser being put on by Crofton students, where they will place candy/toy filled eggs in your yard the night before Easter so kids wake up to Easter eggs to hunt.  They are charging $1 per egg and will complete Yankton area yards with a minimum of 30 egg purchase (min 20 egg purchase for Crofton yards), with funds going towards the students' trip to Washington, DC.  Complete the pictured form and mail by March 31st.

Spring Cleaning 10 Minute Challenge: Entryway

Spring is upon us!  Can you say, phew!  It has been a rough winter and we all deserve some true Spring-like weather before we start complaining about how hot it is! 😉

I am excited to partner with Lisa Soma, Sioux Falls organizing expert and owner of Organizing by Lisa in providing a series of 10 minute Spring cleaning challenges.  A Spring cleaning challenge will be provided, to spend 10 minutes in the designated challenge area.  Together, we will provide some guidance, support and tips.  Maybe 10 minutes is all you need, or maybe 10 minutes will provide you a great start, where you can come back and truly transform your space.  Completely up to you!  Have fun with it!  And here we are on to our first challenge!

Challenge: Spend 10 minutes in your entryway

I know that I cannot be the only one with a busy household, that feels like they are tripping over boots and shoes, fallen snow pants and random toys in the entryway.  Need I mention the constant cleaning up of "boot mess". You know, those little wet puddles that somehow only your clean, dry socks find!

Here is the big decision.  Grab the kids to help or not?  If you can include the kids, it is always great to include them in tasks that match their abilities.  Picking up items, throwing away trash, rolling up rugs, hanging up bags, etc.  Why not put the kids to work to teach them the value of being a responsible member of the home and help make your 10 minutes go further!

How to Spend 10 Minutes:
*Clear out the Entryway
Remove all items from the entryway, creating a clear space to work.  This is a great task for the kids to help with!

*Trash/File/Donate
Remove any items that are no longer of use as you clear the space.  Throw away garbage, file or prepare to display the kid's artwork from school and any items you are looking to get rid of, place in a donation box.

*Shake Rugs
Take your rugs outside and give them a good shake. Find a dry spot to let them hang outdoors for some fresh air while you work.

*Quick Wipe of the Floor
Sweep and then do a quick wipe down of the floor. A wet rag or wet paper towel provide a great option for quick washing.  You can get on your knees to wash another time. 😃

*Put Items Away
Place items in their space, putting all items away.  Don't forget the rugs that are setting outside sucking in the fresh air.

*Additional Organizing
Make a list of items that may need some additional organizing and then make a plan to finish organizing the space.

Tips for Organizing:
Photo Credit: Organizing by Lisa
*Hooks
We added a set of hooks to the entryway to encourage our kids to hang up their coats, backpacks and lunch boxes.  This allows them to complete the task of putting these items away on their own, rather than tossed on the closest chair or even the floor.  They aren't always perfect at this task, but it gives them an easy way to help out! Organizing expert, Lisa Soma suggests that hooks are not only a great option for children but for adults as well, as many adults don't like using hangers.  I think we need to add a set of hooks in our home! 😉

*Drawers/Baskets
We added a simple plastic 3-drawer container inside our entryway closet for the kids to put their extra sets of gloves, scarves, shoes, sports water bottle, umbrellas, etc.  Each kiddo has their own drawer.  Another great option, suggested by Lisa Soma, is a basket or tote for each person in the family to collect these items.  She further suggests shelving is a great option for the entryway closet.  Simply measure out the space in the closet below hanging coats and add shelves to this bottom space to place extra items that do not below in the entryway.

*Boot Trays
Boot trays in our entryway help collect those little wet puddles from the shoes as they come in from the elements.  They also provide a specific space in the area for frequently worn shoes, rather than having them spread all throughout the entryway.

*Shoe Hooks
We recently installed hooks on the wall to collect extra shoes.  We have really found this helpful for the adult shoes, as we did not have a specific location for our extra shoes.

Photo credit: Organizing by Lisa
*Over the Door Shoe Organizer
Lisa recommends an over the door shoe organizer to work well for shoes, hats, gloves, etc. All the small pockets are great for storage.

*Storing the Extras
A great reminder from Lisa, store winter gear in totes once winter is over to create a nice clean space.

Donating Items:
If you are looking for ways to donate gently used items, you will find several Sioux Falls area local ideas in my article, Organizing the Kid's Room.

Selling Items:
Don't forget that the Just Between Friends sale is coming up May 4-5!  Click here for a few other ideas for selling your extra items.
Whether you just spent just the challenge time of 10 minutes or you found yourself diving in for longer in your entryway, you will be sure to see a difference!  Turn around and take a nice look and enjoy all that you have accomplished.  Amazing what even 10 minutes can do, isn't it!  Great job!

*Like the tips that organizing expert, Lisa Soma shared?  Be sure to follow her Facebook page, as she shares more organizing tips and provides encouragement to declutter.

Sunday, March 17, 2019

First Day of Spring: Free Dairy Queen Cone


Dairy Queen is celebrating the first day of Spring this Wednesday, March 20 by offering a free small vanilla cone at participating locations!

Check for your non-mall participating location here.  Yankton's Dairy Queen is participating!  They are located at 1917 Broadway Ave.

Tuesday, March 5, 2019

FREE Teach Your Monster to Read App

By heading over to Google Play or Itunes, you can currently download the highly rated Teach Your Monster to Read app for free (regularly $4.99).  This is a limited time offer, so if you want it, be sure to grab it for free while you can.

I have heard great things in the past about this award winning app. Time to grab it at this unbeatable price!

In the app, kids will learn to match letters and sounds. A great app for kids ages 3-6.