Idea Queen Tips & News

So I usually don’t do this, but I thought this was one of those deals just TOO good to pass up. From now until October 20th, all Halloween costumes are 20% off. That’s quite the deal so I just HAD to pass it along.

Since this is at Nick, you’ll find all your favorite characters from hit TV shows. Character’s like Dora, Backyardigans, Avatar, Blue, Spongebob, and more. If your kids have requested being a popular Nick character for Halloween, now would be the time to grab it! But remember, the offer is only good until October 20th.

Take 20% off All Costume’s at Nick’s Halloween Shop at Shop.NickJr.com! > >>

Halloween is my absolute favorite holiday. Being not so fond of Christmas (personal reasons), I usually go all out for Halloween. Well, as “out” as I get anyway. I’m not too big on decorations for the simple fact I don’t have a lot of space, and have enough clutter as it is.

You may or may not notice tucked away at Idea Queen is a category set up specifically for all the Halloween ideas. There’s actually quite a few there, although I still feel the need to add more. It’s a bit late though, but I still might get some new pages up (I’ve been a webmistress for awhile now, trust me when I say it’s a bit late!).

Now regardless if I want to add more, there’s still quite a bit there. Recipes, crafts, activity ideas…….you name it, it’s probably there. Some of the pages I had actually forgotten about, so it’s been fun looking at them again.  Reminded me of some things I’ve been wanting to do this year.

I’ve made a few posts about Halloween crafts and Halloween recipes, so I won’t go far into that. But some of the other stuff I haven’t mentioned yet.

I’m debating if this year we can finally do haunted houses or not. I haven’t been to one since my kids were born, and I can’t say I don’t miss it. That’s one of my oldest Halloween traditions. I LOVE the haunted houses and hunted forests.  I think my son is ready (he’s 7), but I’m not so sure about my daughter (only 5 next week). It may be we figure out a way to set one up in the house, even though it’s somewhat of a “haunted house” all on its own. I digress though…

While I’m still debating the haunted houses, the pumpkins must be bought soon. While this year we plan to buy a few (I must have my pumpkin seeds, and my daughter has stated we must make pumpkin pie), I’m thinking next year that’s what will be put in our garden. I’m looking at my sad tomato garden right now, and thinking it’s time for a change.

Costumes are still on the list too - although my daughter has already picked hers out. She told me a few weeks ago she wanted to be a mermaid, and sure enough we found one already. Yes I grabbed it, I know better than to wait last minute! For the other munchkin, I’m thinking I’ll let him get creative with the masks and/or makeup. He’s got a heck of an imagination. As for me, well I don’t dress up. I know I love Halloween, but I’d rather just dress up the kids and call it good.

As for decorations, we usually just do pumpkins. Although I did see some black candles up at our local home decor shop. You know the kind without flames? I thought they were neat even though I’m not big on “stuff” around the house. The candles I currently have all over the house have a purpose, and that’s to make the house smell yummy. It’s time to break out the Pumpkin Pie scented ones that’s for sure!

Well I think that’s about it! A few last minute details and we are all set for Halloween. I absolutely LOVE this time of year!

Ok so this isn’t a freebie. Sorry!  I’m not allowed to! But I did want to mention it, since it’s pretty cheap.

The other day I was wandering around in evil Walmart, looking for last minute gifts for my daughter (I didn’t realize her birthday was THIS weekend, so now it’s a mad dash getting things together!). I saw some coloring books, and about died looking at the price. Even small ones were a few bucks. Holy cow! Weren’t those like 50 cents when I was a kid? Ah how times have changed…..

Now I wasn’t really planning to get her a coloring book for several reasons, but the price caught my attention. I was floored! Made me realize how cheap the printable coloring books up on Idea Queen really are. Granted they aren’t “bound” and in a “real book”…..but like our coloring books ever stayed in one piece to begin with.

I haven’t gotten a coloring book since we got this package. There’s so much for them to color (and color again for that matter), we just haven’t needed to. Just before getting it though, we use to look for free ones online. My computer ended up with so much spyware it wasn’t even funny. Needless to say I won’t be doing that again. Nor would I need to - this package has over 1200 different pages. Even if my kids colored every day, they wouldn’t need any more.

My daughter especially likes the cats and dogs, while my son really likes the car pages. He doesn’t like to color all that much either, but the cars interest him. It’s actually quite an interesting collection, and a lot could be done with it.

Anyway, something I thought I’d mention!

Have you ever visited a site for recipes or other ideas, but then forgot what you had read by the time you got to the store? Sure we could print it out or make sure we had a list, but sometimes we forget to do that as well.

Idea Queen has made it a bit easier to decide what’s for supper at the store, or make sure you don’t miss something when picking up birthday supplies or crafts. We’ve gone mobile! You can now access our brand new website straight from your mobile phone to see quick checklists and ideas on our three top categories - recipes, crafts, and birthdays.

Now I’ll admit when it comes to websites or email on mobile phones, I’m rather clueless. I have yet to make that leap and still have not gotten internet access on my phone. Although just because I’m behind in the times, Idea Queen doesn’t have to be! So for those of you with phones that can access it, be sure to hop on over to www.IdeaQuen.mobi to check it out. (Note for those on home PCs - the website can be seen, but it may look a little funny. Remember it’s built to be seen on a cell phone!).

Comments or suggestions are welcome!

Usually when I pull out my roaster, I’m planning to make a pot roast. This time I didn’t have a roast, but rather a whole chicken. I picked it up at the store on a whim, thinking it would be something different and fun. I’ve never cooked a whole chicken before, so why not?

I picked up some tips from some friends and relatives, and gave it a go. First I set the oven to 325*, but this proved to be a little high. I ended up turning it down to 250* for the last hour or two. So I would recommend 300* to start with so it doesn’t get dried out.

After mixing some herbs in a bowl with olive oil, I poked the chicken and rubbed the mixture in. I also placed a stick of butter on the top of it before tossing it into the oven. In all it was cooked about 6 hours, and checked on occasionally (I had to coat it a few times in juices so it wouldn’t get dried out).

The kids thought it was pretty cool to have a “whole chicken” for supper. After school when they saw what was cooking, they got excited. Just couldn’t wait to dig into it! And really it was pretty tasty….. both of them ate all there was on their plate. Even my son that’s rather picky, so I was pleased. The chicken was pretty tender too, literally falling right off the bone.

Something new, but turned out to be pretty good!  Plus of course it gave us some leftovers, which I’m sure I’ll be posting recipes for.

Getting kids to do chores isn’t always easy. After all, why do work when there are so many fun things to do? That’s why we have rewards set up to encourage getting things done. Because of this, we’ve even “caught” them doing chores on their own in hopes they’ll earn some money!

Setting up a chore system for kids must be done on an individual basis. You can grab some chore ideas from Idea Queen, but the system is a bit more tricky. Too complicated and it will be easy to lose track of. Too easy and not enough will get done. Either way you are most likely going to need a chart of some type.

The chart you can either make yourself, or buy. Amazon has some very nice chore charts. I especially like the magnetic ones (we’ve had sticker based in the past, and they just don’t work very well).

When setting up your system, you’ll have to figure out who can do what and when. Younger kids may not be in many activities, but as they get older you may rarely be home. In our house, we have a “take care of yourself” system. For extra money they do the “extra” chores such as putting away dishes from the dishwasher, and washing windows. Aside from those chores, everyone has their own personal responsibilities. Each put away their own clothes (mom is the only one that runs the washer and dryer right now), each take their plates to the kitchen after meals, and each take care of their own toys.

With chore charts, it’s easier to keep track of the extra chores in particular. This avoids the “I did it last!” arguments and complaints. You may or may not chose to do rewards, depending on your own set of beliefs and values. In our house, quarters and dimes are used based on the size of the job. Putting away only a few clothes would pay a dime, where as washing all the windows would be a quarter. If you use a chore chart to mark who has done what, you can use it as a base for weekly allowances or special treats.

Again I feel the need to say that chore systems really do need to be set up by YOU. Just be sure you keep it simple enough to keep track of!

Usually when we my little ones go online to play games, we pick sites like Noggin, NickJr, and PlayHouse Disney. In this house, we’re all about the education. All of them are very good sites, with Noggin pulling ahead for toddlers (easy for them to navigate, instructions at their level, etc).

Although in addition to online games, there’s also other games you can download which are absolutely perfect for toddlers. My daughter has latched on to two games from BigFish, featuring one of her favorite characters. These games are Dora’s Carnival Adventure and Doras Carnival 2 - At the Boardwalk.

Each work on a system of tickets. Dora goes to the carnival, and plays various games for tickets. It has a lot to do with following directions, matching and memory skills, along with games the kids will just fall in love with. I also like how tit encourages goal setting by collecting a certain amount of tickets for certain prizes. You could even go so far as to say these games are even good for early money skills (since they have to “buy” prizes with their tickets, and each prize costs a certain amount of tickets).

What I love the most about BigFish is you can try before you buy. Almost all games are free for one hour. If you don’t like the game, you aren’t stuck with the cost. MUCH better than spending money for a CD in the store, only to find out you don’t like the game.

In addition to the two Dora games, there are other great kids games (and adult games!) you can download as well. This is why we chose the membership option a long time ago, so we can get our games for less than half the price marked. If it’s just the one game you want, you can chose to just buy the game alone. Very simple either way.

BigFish has no spyware or viruses. Just very addicting, very fun games!

A few days ago I mentioned how I wasn’t so found of boneless skinless chicken breasts anymore. Although there is one recipe my entire family loves (including myself!) that starts with them. We’ve made these on a few occasions and the kids just love them.

To make spicy chicken strips, there’s actually two ways you can do it. You can either make the chicken spicy, or you can make a spicy dip. Although even if you have family members who don’t like spicy chicken strips, you can always fry up a few without the spices added.

Chicken strips are pretty basic. Just take your boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cut into strips. Take a gallon sized zip lock bag and add flour, salt, pepper, and spices (if you are making a few strips without the spices, do these first before you add the spice). For the “spice”, I use a mix I picked up from a gourmet food rep. You can use chili pepper or anything else you have that will give it a kick.

In a bowl, mix one egg with a bit of milk. Take your chicken strips and dip them in the egg/milk mix, then drop them in the bag. I usually do about 3-4 strips at a time in the bag. Zip it up and shake (or let the kids do this part - mine love to help in the kitchen!).

While you could probably fry them up on the stove, we use a deep fryer. If you are using a deep fryer, you’ll want to cook them until they float. Let cool before servering.

For a spicy dip you can use hot mustard mixed with honey, or your own personal favorite dipping sauce for chicken strips.

Be sure to see more fried chicken recipes at Idea Queen!

Witch Hazel is a key ingredient in many different bath and body products. It acts as a natural preservative when you are making bath products at home. On our money saving page, there are several different bath and body recipes that feature witch hazel. You can also find more recipes in the Homemade Bath & Body Recipes ebook.

Here’s a few recipes we pulled out of the book. Enjoy!

Herbal Astringent For Oily Skin
1 oz Chamomile
3 tb Witch hazel
1/2 ts Cider vinegar
1 oz Peppermint extract
8 oz Water
Few drops of peppermint extract
1/4 ts Boric acid — optional

Boil chamomile, witch hazel, vinegar, peppermint and water. Cool and strain. Add remaining ingredients in a spray bottle and shake. Keep refrigerated.

Basic Bubble Bath Recipe
Use only 100% pure soap flakes.
Almond Oil–2 cups
Distilled W ater–2 cups
Soap Flakes (or grated soap)–1 cup
Witch Hazel–2 Tbsp

Boil the spring water and melt the soap in it. In another container, mix
the witch hazel and almond oil together and shake well. (If possible, do
this in a blender.) Then slowly add the soap mix ture to the witch hazel and oil blend and again, shake or blend well. These amounts will make a large quantity of basic bubble bath mixture to which you can add the essential oils of your choice as and when required. For each 2 tablespoons of base bubble bath, use 15 drops of essential oil and mix well. Use 1-2 teaspoons of the final product in each bath.

Soothing Summer Body Spray
1 tablespoon witch hazel
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 teaspoon cucumber extract
1 cup water

For a refreshing cool feeling, make an after shower spray by combining all the ingredients. Place in a pump spray bottle.

You know those boxes of Pasta-Roni you find in stores? Back in my college days, I was a sucker for them. Granted I couldn’t ever eat one by myself, but I sure tried. The angel hair pasta was my absolute favorite - a week never went by that I didn’t have this one at least once or twice.

When my first kid came along, I started experimenting in the kitchen. I got the idea I could duplicate certain recipes. Some came out pretty good, some not so much. The angel hair pasta I did pretty good with, and has always been my son’s favorite meal.  The other night I nailed the recipe to a T, and it was a complete accident.

My normal way of making this angel hair pasta recipe was pretty simple. Once the pasta was cooked and drained, I used olive oil and butter to make it less sticky then added my spices. Most of the time I use basil, a little cilantro, and a whole lot of garlic salt.  I also a bit of powdered milk to pull it all together.

The other night I messed up. It was a stupid mistake really. There wasn’t enough water in the pot! I noticed this a bit too late, so added real milk to keep it from burning towards the end. I added my spices and other ingredients too. I couldn’t believe how much closer I was to the real thing! There it was, my absolute favorite recipe duplicated to a size that feeds my entire family. Perfect!

So the next time you are looking for a quick pasta recipe, have some fun with angel hair pasta. Use the tips above, or just use what you’ve got in the kitchen. If you need the exact recipe for my angel hair pasta, you can check it out on our easy pasta recipes page.

Have fun!