Looking for a Wedding Gift? Colin Cowie, Jeff Leatham and Daniel Boulud team up to launch Dom Perignon's new "Wedding Case" today in NYC



Today I had the pleasure of attending a launch party for a genius wedding gift. Dom Perignon designed a bottle that can be personalized with your friends names, for any occasion. The DP unique and famous shield is engravable, something never before done, with the exception of Prince Charles and Lady Diana's wedding. Good company to be in, if you ask me.

The PR force, Nadine Johnson, along with DP communications director, Nicole Ruvo, pulled together a dream team of designers to launch the delicious gift. Colin Cowie created a bubbly, beautiful table with vases of mirror, inspired by the DP bottle itself. Floral designer, Jeff Leatham, dreamed up gorgeous calla lilies and Chef Daniel Boulud designed a menu paired with the champagne to bring delight to all guests.




Jeff Leatham (look for his show Flowers Un Cut on TLC March 5)





Daniel Boulud's amazing wedding cake dessert







Colin Cowie was a true gentleman and gracious host



The table had clear glass "bubbles". The details were perfect.

The case of champagne is only available at select stores. It can be found at Crush Wine and Spirits. Click to purchase. The special bottle takes about two weeks to engrave. This gift is great if you decide to go in with another couple to afford. It is a little over $160 a bottle for a full case, including an additional bottle with the special engraving on the the iconic shield.

D-I-Y Indoor Fun with kids of all ages







D-I-Y Stay at Home Fun
For more info and other kid friendly ideas go to www.celebrateeveryday.tv

As featured on GOOD DAY NY Monday, February 14th around 9:40 AM EST

http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/good_day_ny/fun-kid-crafts-100215




Activities
AGES:
3-5
Indoor Picnic Puppet Theatre
Items needed for picnic:
Picnic blanket, old sheet or large towel
Snack items: Popcorn, Annie’s bunnies, carrot sticks and veggie dip, homemade cookies and Zen Soy pudding www.zensoy.com
Recycled utensils/plates/cups
Puppet Show Items:
Socks
Paper bags
Construction paper
Yarn
Self-adhesive Googley eyes
Glue
Scissors

Inspiration:
You will need a few books. Use a book about Presidents or story from one of your favorite bedtime books. Since it is President’s Day we decided to take a trip thru history and make Abe and Mary Todd Lincoln puppets.
Make the puppets together with the stories in mind. Create characters that your kids really enjoy reading about. Have the puppets act out a story line in the book.

Serve snacks at this festive, indoor picnic show hosted in your own living room!


6-8
Hands on activities

Make your own hot chocolate stand-indoors
Using boxes or pre-made stand from cardboard design www.cardboarddesign.com you can create your very own hot chocolate stand.
Items needed:
Stickers
(We used dot stickers from www.giggle.com)
Acrylic Paint
Brushes
Cardboard boxes or design from Cardboard design
Hot chocolate
Cups/mugs
Fake money and a shoebox cash register

How to Make A Recycled Shoe Box Cash Register
Paint the shoebox desired color, and let dry or cover with a large sheet of construction paper found at www.Michaels.com
If covering with construction paper, use a ruler and pencil, measure and trace a gray piece of paper to fit the sides, top and bottom of the box. Use a piece of card stock and create a triangle to fit on top of the shoe box. Attach with double stick tape. Cut out the cash register numbers by tracing a circle. (Use the bottom of a small glass to trace perfect circles). Write in your numbers 0-9 and glue onto the box.
Cut letters to spell cash register from magazines and glue to these letters next to the opening of the shoebox
Use crayons to draw dollar signs on the top center of the shoebox.
For this activity kids can learn about the exchange of goods and services and denominations of money.

Activities 9-12

Science experiment--LED Flowers
Compliments of Sony Wonder Lab
http://wondertechlab.sony.com/

Items needed (found at hardware store)
High intensity LEDs (one per project)
6-8 fiber plastic cable (mimcs fiber optics) shrink tubed to each LED
Colored cellophane sheets
Scotch tape
3V battery holder and connector
Wire strippers and wire cutters
Pipe cleaners (preferably green)
Scissors
Plastic cups with precut hole in center of bottom base
Electrical tape

Begin project by having kids choose which color flowers they’d like to make. Cut 8x 10 sheet in half-length wise into 4x5 sheets. Fold 4x5 sheets in 4 and snip the corner edge to reveal a hole in the center when the cellophane is unfolded. Children may also opt to add leave on the base using the same process with green cellophane.
Explain the structure of the LED/ fiber optic assembly. LEDs are an energy efficient and “green” light source lasting infinitely longer than incandescent light and requiring far less energy to power. Electricity in an LED flows from the anode (positive end) to the cathode (negative end)- the longer leg of the LED is usually the anode making the shorter leg the cathode. You can use this configuration to connect the power source accurately. Red wire is anode while black is cathode.
Have kids carefully slip LEDs into the hole at the base of the cup. LED leads should be positioned straight down neatly so as to slide easily into the hole. Put the cup aside.
Have kids take a wire stripper to strip the battery connector wires and wind them around the appropriate legs of the LED. Before wrapping ensure the LED leads are spread far apart from each other and that the battery wires are not touching- or the circuit may short and burn out the LED. Make sure kids work neatly and carefully here as the LED leads can snap off easily if they are bent back and forth too frequently.
Give each kid 2 AA batteries and have them insert them into the battery holder. Be sure they follow the indications for positive and negative terminal placement.
Connect the battery holder to the LED to see if it works and the light turns on. If there are issues- check to make sure the connection is correct and that the wires are making good contact with the LED leads. Sometimes the wires are marked incorrectly on the battery connectors so try switching the connections. Other issues may be that the batteries are dead or improperly placed in holder. Also damage may have occurred to the LED leads or the LED itself may have shorted or malfunctioned.
Once the LED is connected and lit properly- tape the battery holder with the connector side facing down to the inside of the cup using electrical tape. Cover the base of the cup with a piece of cardboard or poster board cut in a circle and tape to the sides of the cup.
After the base is properly positioned you may want to wind a piece of pipe cleaner around the base to keep the fiber optics from falling over. Tape can also be used in place of pipe cleaners. If leaves are desired thread them through the top of the fiber optic cables to the base and then wind pipe cleaners around to hold them in place.
Now to make the flowers- choose two fiber optic threads and slip the cellophane pieces over to the desired spot. Have some scotch tape strips ready and tape the base of the cellophane to the fiber optics. Cellophane can be folded any way desired. Repeat for all fiber optic cables using 2 per flower.
The final step is to clip the ends of the fiber optics per flower. One suggestion is to make them varying lengths. Kids can also take their scissors and gently press the cables in varying spots (without fully cutting them) to allow light to pass. In essence this is “damaging” the cable allowing light to escape before it reaches the tip. TIP: When cutting tips of cable- try to create a clean flat cut (no angles) so light passes through easily.

Eat Your Heart Out...






Here are a few crafty edibles that you can make this weekend with your honey, sweet child or best friend in celebration of Valentine's Day and the Chinese New Year.
As seen on WNBC's LXTV Monday Segment

Gifts don’t always have to be expensive, just thoughtful. And, with these crafts I encourage you to partner with a friend or your child to create. Sometimes the true gift is time spent together one-on-one. Food for thought...

Heart Shaped Brownie or chocolate cookie pops on a "bed of roses". Take brownie mix and use a cupcake mold. Once cupcakes are cooled and taken out of mold add baker sticks and that's all you need for this quick indoor treat.

Roses Picture Frame- hand made using an old frame and dried flowers left over from Valentine's Day. I took a hot glue gun, and after I trimmed the rose heads off the stems, I attached them to the frame.

Crazyoleez heart crayons- This is great new gift idea instead of a cards. It is multi purpose and super fun. It is all the colors of a crayon box in one crayon. We used it to make our hand made cards. www.gocrazyoleez.com

Pink and Red Mini Heart Shaped Sugar Cookies in a mason jar (great for a gift to give to teachers). I found a super tiny heart mold and we made sugar cookies and sprinkled them with red and pink sugar crystals. We placed them in a mason jar and tied a red and white ribbon around the lid.

Hand Made Cards from ribbon and paper. We used the 3-D foam tape to give our hearts a true lift. Also, we took some left over holiday decor and made new cards for this Valentine's Day.

The Be Mine Card is a heart collage of family photos –it is so easy now to print out your digital photos and this is a great gift for the grandparents and friends.

Personalized photo stamps from www.zazzle.com add a nice finished touch. They have Chinese New Year Heart stamps too. Zazzle also creates almost anything in a personalized form. Check out the iphone cases! Super cool.


Michaels Arts and Crafts sells the Frog mail box for cards.


A rock and roll heart bedazzled jacket that kids and moms can do as a fun craft together with just beads and glue and an old jean jacket. The one here is from Nimbus Nine Fashions in Long Island.


Heart Sandwiches with heart healthy bread- Williams Sonoma makes a heart shaped sandwich cutter that is a treat! We used Spelt and walnut, cranberry bread.

And, as we celebrate our love for family this Valentine’s Day, send some love to others in need:
in the spirit of love I thought I'd mention some really awesome local things kids can do to give back more love to their community.

The comedy hall of fame is based in Long Island and teaches laughter in underprivileged schools, they need donations.
http://www.comedyhalloffame.com

Www.MaxCure.org based in New Jersey- Their mission is to underwrite a one of its kind cell therapy lab at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center dedicated to treating and researching pediatric cancers. The Max Cure Foundation was established in honor of their then four year old son Max who was diagnosed with cancer in 2007. Thankfully, Max is in remission today, but the crusade of The Max Cure Foundation has just begun. If you would like to donate to Team Max Cure, please go to Maxcure.org.

And to find out some places your children can volunteer please check out

http://mommypoppins.com/ny-kids/how-to-volunteer-with-your-children-in-nyc
http://www.volunteermatch.org/volunteers/resources/
http://www.newyorkcares.org/ (they are a great organization!)

(Almost guilt free) Valentine's Day Desserts

Make me a great dessert and I’ll show you the way to my heart! Here we have a decadent dessert list that will steal your heart, but not your waistline this Valentine’s Day.
Decadent Desserts (that are not so decadent) as featured on E! News.

Two Layer Chocolate Pudding Cake with Zen Soy Pudding Icing
(125 calories per slice or if you use a pudding layer between each cake 135 calories) VS 235 per average chocolate cake with chocolate icing

The SECRET:
There is no dairy in the recipe, this cuts calories. And, we used zen soy pudding to ice and layer the cake.

Ingredients
1 1/2 Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon vinegar
6 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup cold water
6 four packs of ZenSoy Organic Chocolate Pudding for layers and on top of cake.

Preheat your oven to 350°F.__Measure all the dry ingredients into an 8 or 9-inch round or square cake pan. Blend these together thoroughly with a fork and scoop out three holes, or indentations.__Pour the vanilla into the first hole, the vinegar into the second, and the vegetable oil into the third.__Take the cup of cold water and pour it directly over everything in the pan. Stir all the ingredients together with your fork until they are well blended.__Bake for 30 to 40 minutes.
Once cooled, Use 6 four-packs of super-rich, low-fat ZenSoy Organic Chocolate Soy Pudding to create dramatic layers & ice the deceptively sinful cake!



Irresistible Dulce de Leche Cheesecake
200 calories per slice vs range of 257-582 calories for regular cheesecake

The SECRET:
We used Reduced Fat Cream Cheese and Splenda instead of sugar.

Ingredients
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3 (8 ounce) packages reduced fat cheese
1 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 eggs
1/2 cup reduced fat milk
1/2 cup dulce de leche

Serves: 1 (9 inch) cheesecake
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 1 Hour 5 Minutes

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Mix crust ingredients together, and press into a 9-inch springform pan. Place pan on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.
Reset oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
Beat cream cheese, SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener and flour together until well mixed and smooth. Add vanilla and mix until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix until smooth. Add milk and mix until well blended.
Measure _ cup of the cheesecake batter and pour into a small bowl. Add dulce de leche and stir until well combined.
Pour plain batter over crust. Top with dulce de leche batter by placing rounded spoonfuls over the cheesecake batter and gently swirl into plain batter with the tip of knife or spatula.
Bake 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set. Remove from oven and gently run metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cheesecake (this helps prevent cracking). Let cool 20-25 minutes before covering and placing in the refrigerator. Refrigerate 4- 6 hours or overnight before serving.

Almost No Fat Tiramisu
265 calories per serving vs 602 in a normal tiramisu

The SECRET:
Coffee and Vanilla yogurt are used in place of the traditional recipe's egg yolks.

Ingredients
Coffee Low Fat Yogurt, 8-ounce container
Vanilla Low Fat Yogurt, 8-ounce container
Whipped Cream Cheese, 2 ounces (half of a 4-ounce container)
Confectioners' Sugar, 1 tbs
Sponge type Ladyfingers, 3-to 4 (1/2 ounce package)
Coffee Flavor Liquor (optional), 2 tbs
Instant Espresso Coffee Powder, 2 tsp
AMARETTI Cookies, 3/4 cup (6 pairs of cookies) coarsely crushed
Frozen light whipped topping, 1-1/2 cups thawed (about _ of an 8-ounce container)
Unsweetened cocoa for garnish

Directions
In small bowl, with rubber spatula, mix coffee and vanilla yogurts.
Place large paper coffee filter in small metal strainer set over small bowl.
Spoon yogurt mixture into coffee filter; place in refrigerator.
Let yogurt mixture stand 2 hours (whey will drip into bowl and yogurt will be slightly thickened).
Remove yogurt mixture from refrigerator and discard liquid in bowl.
Spoon yogurt mixture into bowl.
Stir in whipped cream cheese and 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar until well blended. Set aside.
Separate ladyfingers into halves.
Cut each half crosswise in half and place in jelly-roll pan.
In small bowl, stir together coffee-flavor liqueur, instant espresso-coffee powder, 1/4 cup hot tap water, and 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar (if not using coffee-flavor liqueur, increase hot tap water to 1/3 cup and espresso-coffee powder to 1 tablespoon).
Brush ladyfingers on both sides with espresso mixture.
In each of six 8-ounce parfait glasses, layer 4 pieces of ladyfinger, 1 scant tablespoon crushed amoretti cookies, 2 tablespoons yogurt mixture, and 1 heaping tablespoon whipped topping.
Repeat layering one more time.
Sprinkle with cocoa if you like.
Refrigerate at least 30 minutes or until ready to serve.



Banana Delight
140 calories per serving vs Bananas Foster at 355 calories
Ingredients:

The SECRET:
Portion size. We used half a banana and kept it simple. This is a big favorite from the Weight Watchers Diet Plan used by big name celebrities.

1/2 Banana
1 Tablespoon of your favorite light butter
1 Teaspoon of Sugar
Vanilla, caramel or rum
Melt the butter and sugar in a fry pan until blended (but not burnt).
Cut the banana in half long way and sauté each side until just light brown.
Put the sautéed bananas on a plate.
In another plate mix the sauce and add 3 drops of vanilla (or caramel, or rum) to the sauce.
Pour the sauce over the banana.

If you can, this Valentine's Day, give your loved ones the gift of a home made dessert. It is thoughtful, often less processed and can be heart healthy, especially if you make it with your kids!

Please share your favorite Valentine's Day food stories with me, both past and present! I'd love to hear them. Bon Appetit!

Backwards Birthday Idea


Start the party in your PJ’s. Guests get a wake up call to arrive for this early party. And, you don't have to actually sleep over. I suggest a 10am beginning, so you can end by 1pm!
On your special day, have your cake and eat it too--first! This is a chocolate butterfly pudding cake (recipe compliments of Susan Howard, my down south aunt) It is a Devils Food Cake Mix Box –1 cup water, half a cup oil and add a small package of instant chocolate pudding. It makes the cake very moist. Here I'm serving it with mini puddings and whipped cream. It is a great way to start your day once a year:)
For our mini moguls we have some fun activities like “decorate your own airplane” or “make your own rocket”. These are environmentally friendly cardboard toys you can put together then personalize just for you. Sisi, my designer, painted the airplane, I have stickers for the rocket. You can find these items at cardboard design.com or at giggle in NYC. Anytime you can encourage a child to create or express themselves with art it empowers them and helps their self esteem.
What would a reverse sleepover be without pillows? So, I have a few pillow cases some glitter, felt, fabric glue, stencils, and fabric markers for everyone to make their own personalized pillowcase. No snoozers here at this party!
The movie of the day is... (choose your child's favorite) and everyone gets gourmet popcorn. I have truffle oil, chocolate, Italian, Parmesan cheese, and nacho cheddar. Something for everyone!
And, last but not least, we will end the day with a mini breakfast pizza. I’ve taken frozen mini pizzas baked them with potatoes, eggs and bacon bits and a little extra cheddar cheese for a yummy way to finish off this backwards day:)

This was shown on NBC's LX TV Live on their Mommy Monday section.

Let me know your favorite children's birthday ideas!






Keep it SIMPLE this New Year

If you are like me and try to squeeze every last drop of time out of the day then let me give you one more thing to make life easier in this new year. When I entertain I pre-batch my cocktails. I try to make them earlier in the day or the evening before my parties, but that's not my secret. My secret is Stirrings Simple Syrup. I discovered it at Fairway this holiday season, and WOW, is it awesome. Sure, simple syrup is just sugar and water, but the time it takes for me to make it on the stove adds up. I also squeeze my limes with a citrus press. My fresh pomegranate Margarita's are now even better, because they take less time to make.

1 1/2 oz Tequila
2oz Pomegranate liquor
1/2oz Grand Marnier
2-4 limes for fresh squeezed lime juice
1 1/2oz simple syrup


My tip for this New Year is to keep it simple in every area of your life!



Cheers and Happy New Year!



Send me your "MOM" time saving tips for me to share on LXTV's Mommy Mondays segment!

New Year's Party Style

Do you ever find yourself in search of the perfect dress or blouse to wear? Well, I want to share my new discovery for "instant party style" compliments of designer Rickie Freeman for Teri Jon.

From day...


to night...







Her versatile styles are fashionable, functional, affordable, and most of all comfortable! I had the great pleasure to wear these fun and festive looks for my WNBC LXTV segment during the Rockefeller Tree lighting ( a personal dream come true, so thank you LXTV team), the Inside Edition segment on holiday office parties, the Better TV episode on cost saving tips for home entertaining and the Riva Events' produced bash on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for the Founders Club. Thank you Ms. Freeman for helping me look and feel so fabulous from day to night!

35 Christmas Money Saving Ideas For Moms


Happy holidays everyone! Melissa Chapman-Mushnick wrote an article on a few money saving tips for moms, so please check out www.SheKnows.com

You’ve got just a few days left to pull together stocking stuffers for the family, decorate your lackluster home with some festive trimmings and cook up some sanat-licious dishes. Instead you’re hyperventilating because frankly you’ve been too busy with your day-to-day mommy obligations to tackle your holiday ones! That being said we’re intent on helping you cut through the circulars and have put together a list of some last-minute budget friendly stocking stuffers, toys, food dishes and decorating tips so you can focus on keeping the holiday spirit alive and well!

COST-CUTTING FOOD PREP
Splenda (www.splenda.com) offers these tips for stress-free, easy on your budget holiday cooking and baking:

Be organized and plan ahead. Sit down for 30 minutes and think through all the aspects of your party. Make shopping lists and create to-do lists. By creating a successful routine and sticking to it you will avoid impulse purchases
Accept help from family and friends. Organize your tasks and when a friend or family member asks what they can do to help in preparation of a party or meal – let them be responsible for a project or dish.
Prepare foods ahead of time that can be warmed. Many appetizers, entrees and desserts can be pre-made, which will save you time and stress.
Simplify holiday beverage offerings to include coffee and apple cider as after-dinner drinks. Add a tray with creamer, SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener and cinnamon to allow guests to customize.
Use those holiday leftovers. Make a great appetizer spread – little tea sandwiches with turkey or ham are always a hit.
BUDGET FRIENDLY DECORATIONS
NYC-based event planner Cathy Riva (www.rivaevents.com) offers these tips for stress-free holiday entertaining:

Use materials you have around the house. There is no need to run out and purchase decorations. Get creative and use what you’ve got. This year’s trends include neutral and wood tones with items such as pine cones and pine needles. Consider incorporating these into the centerpiece you create.
Instead of involving kids with polishing the silver or something mundane, offer them a chance to own a project, such as setting the table or making homemade centerpieces. When guests arrive, highlight your children’s work so they feel appreciated.
Now is the time to recycle. Get rid of old holiday cards you have been saving for years, but use them in a special way. Cut place cards out of them so you will have one white side and one side with your card décor. You can also use scraps of gift-wrap to make place cards too.
Lisa Reynolds, RedPlum’s Mom Saver-in-Chief, recommends borrowing from friends. Instead of buying enough place settings for your party, borrow extra plates from parents or a friend. In need of a specialty serving dish? Ask if anyone you know has one.
Create a pleasing aroma without the expensive potpourri. Put a pot of water on the stove and add cinnamon, lemon, orange rinds or ginger. Simmer on low heat throughout the day, suggests Reynolds.
Wedding and event consultant Cheryl Jablow of Social Frog Designs suggests using candles of all sizes or colors to add elegance and a festive look and feel to a home. For safety, place candles in glass containers such as drinking glasses, flower vases, or even glass jars and keep them out of reach from children. Fill larger containers with holiday ornaments, balls, or pinecones.
Add a bit of texture and additional color by gathering small branches and twigs that have fallen to the ground or ask your local Christmas tree selling stand if you can have, free or at a small price, loose evergreen branches and scatter them around the base of your glass containers, suggests Jablow.

KIDS TABLE THANKSGIVING IDEAS


I hope you can use one or all of these ideas to connect to your child this Thanksgiving. My two-year-old and I made the hand print, turkey tablecloth together and we had such a blast! It was fun to release my inner child and get messy with finger paints.

My team prepped the table on Sunday and we used all the ideas for LX TV, the new LIVE show on WNBC Monday. I hope they can help you have a little more joy this Turkey Day too. Thanks Jackie and Sam for your help.



-KID HAND PRINT TURKEY TABLE CLOTH OR RUNNER
Craft paper table runner or cloth. Use finger paint to create orange hands for turkey’s and glue feathers and googley eyes on for fun. They key is to stick to one or two colors that match your grown up decor to keep it looking complimentary.

-FELT PLACE MATS
Use pre-cut felt squares found at www.michaels.com . Make thanksgiving themes with ric rak, fall leaves, turkeys stickers, so your kids can make their own design. Another idea for place mats is to use construction paper and real photographs of your guests and laminate them for use year after year.

-FALL CENTERPIECE
The centerpiece is made from fall leaves. This can be a fun family activity if you plan in advance. We went to central park and gathered leaves and then pressed them overnight in a book or magazine. Add the leaves branches or add the fallen leaves to floral wire and stick in floral foam, those green bricks you can find at any most craft stores.


-PINE CONE PLACE CARDS
We glittered pine cones in a ziplock with glitter and glue and added a personalized card with every child’s name for the place card. These pine cone place cards can be used for the grown up table too and are great for family gatherings because they allow you to mix up your guests who always are used to sitting in the same places every year. And, when the kids see their crafts at the adult table they will gain self esteem when everyone comes in and says oh wow these are great!

-CANDY APPLE STATION
The candy apple station is just a fun way to keep kids occupied while you enjoy a quick bite. Take slices of apples place in a small bowl, then place caramel dipping sauce in a matching bowl next to the apples. Add a buffet of choices for dunking, such as candy sprinkles, coconut, mini m&m’s, whipped cream etc. The secret to great apples is coating them with LIME juice (not lemon) for a delicious tangy taste that works well with the caramel.

-VERTERRA PLATES
The kids table is set with environmentally friendly Verterra plates made from pressed leaves you can find them Whole Foods or Fairway or online at Verterra.com. The great thing about these plates is if you do not have enough plates to accommodate all of your guests for the holidays these look stylish and sophisticated, but are just a little more than the cost of plastic disposable.



-VOTIVE HOLDERS
I added votive holders we covered with burlap and raffia and filled with battery powered votives for an added touch.

-CORNUCOPIA BASKET
And, for additional décor I found this great cornucopia basket which I filled with fresh fruit and vegetables and mixed in my leftover leaves.

-TURKEY PUMPKIN
I have an orange pumpkin left over from Halloween I make a Thanksgiving Turkey out of a wooden kit I found online at Etsy.

-HARVEST FRIENDS PUPPETS
We also made a few felt harvest friends puppets. These we found half off at Michaels! Thanksgiving items are on sale so its not to late to grab a few great finds for less.

-TO SUM UP THE SPIRIT OF THANKSGIVING: GRATITUDE BUCKET
And, finally to sum up the spirit of thanksgiving I suggest a gratitude bucket. Allow the kids to go around and ask every adult to place what they are grateful for in the bucket and have the kids do this too.



THE BEST PART IS YOUR CHILDREN CAN HELP MAKE THEIR OWN SPECIAL TABLE FOR TURKEY DAY AND AS A PARENT YOU CAN SPEND SOME QUALITY TIME WITH YOUR KIDS AND GET SOME WORK DONE TOO.

Last Minute Family Fun Halloween Ideas




Here are a few of the Family Fun Halloween ideas I presented on WNBC's LX TV this week. My designer Sisi Soestrisno created the delicious brain gelatin and place cards shown here.

Napkin ghosts with googly eyes
Mini pumpkin candle
Personalized bat place cards
Brain Jell-o with pomegranate blood
Bloody finger painted doilies

Serve up Monster Sandwiches, Scary Pizza and, cut down on sugar by serving Graveyard Cupcakes made with Splenda.

Chocolate-Chocolate Graveyard Cupcakes Serves: 18
Preparation Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 37 Minutes
Ingredients
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 cup SPLENDA® Sugar Blend
1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine cocoa and boiling water, whisking until blended. Set aside.
3. Combine flour, SPLENDA® Sugar Blend, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture with a fork or a pastry blender until crumbly. (This procedure may be done with a mixer at the lowest speed. Cover mixing bowl with a clean tea towel to prevent spattering).
4. Combine eggs, milk, cocoa mixture and vanilla in a small mixing bowl; add 1/3 of the egg mixture to flour mixture. Beat at low speed of an electric mixer until blended. Beat at medium speed for 30 seconds or until batter is smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of the bowl. Repeat procedure 2 times.
5. Spoon batter into paper lined muffin tins.
6. Bake 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan; cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with powdered sugar or frost with Rich Chocolate Frosting.
Submitted by: Maker of SPLENDA® Sweetener Products
Nutrition Info (per serving)
Calories 180 | Calories from Fat 80 | Fat 9g (sat 5g) | Cholesterol 45mg | Sodium 160mg | Carbohydrate 21g | Fiber 1g | Sugar 11g | Protein 2g
Note
Serving Size: 1 cupcake
Nutrition information does not include frosting.


Happy Halloween everyone!

Just In Time For The Holidays... An Apron We Can All LOVE!

Finally, someone has created aprons worthy of a modern 2010 woman with a retro feel. Sophisticated, Flirty, Fun and Fabulous! Check out www.SusanandVeronica.com. Their slogan, "Style Begins at Home", is so true. When I wear the Sugar Bomb apron, my personal favorite, it makes me happy to be in the kitchen. Bring on the holiday dinner parties. In fact Riley, my two-year-old, and I had a little fun mixing up some winter recipes together in our aprons. You can view below. This is the PERFECT holiday gift for any woman who has a zest for life, both in and out of the kitchen!



Family Fun with a Mouse!




This weekend we were in San Francisco for my cousin's wonderful wedding. My two-year-old was a rock star! She enjoyed both flights-to and from. She adjusted to the time difference and approached all of our scheduled activities with joy. Our last day, we went out for brunch to a wonderful diner in Sausalito, Lighthouse Cafe, we ordered the Mickey Mouse pancake for Rye as a treat. I love this photo because her expression. She had no idea what to think about the pancake, was it a toy or was it food? It was just one of many great family moments we had this weekend that I wanted to share. You'll be seeing this pancake concoction made soon on www.celebrateeveryday.tv !

Many thanks to my husband who played an equal part in making this a wonderful family weekend.

Next, I'll blog about travelling tips with Riley on an airplane! I'd love to hear your special tricks to entertain your children on long trips too! Please send your comments.

David Stark's Inventive Event Idea...Post-Its





Tonight I had the honor of accompanying my friend and colleague Selda Bensusan, of DeBeers, to the New Yorkers for Children benefit in NYC. This benefit raises money to support and educate the 17,000+ foster children living in New York. David Stark was again the event designer. He is famous for his inventive ideas and creative masterpieces disguised as events. Tonight he and his team did a spectacular job. The slogan of the evening was MAKE IT HAPPEN. As you can see by the photos. The New Yorkers for Children's event did just that. David Stark re-purposed Post-Its as event decor. He created a MAKE IT HAPPEN tree in Cipriani's famous Bellini Bar and adorned walls with the slogan, all made out of Post-Its. Bravo. I've been inspired to MAKE IT HAPPEN. Thank you Selda for including me in the festivities.