New Year's Day Breakfast

I probably should have posted this earlier, but better late than never.  Happy New Year already to my family throughout Asia and my USA east coast family and friends. We're still waiting here on the west coast. 

So what's for breakfast for New Year's Day?  Whip up a fun and easy breakfast with food you probably already have in your kitchen that will appeal to both the grown-ups and the kids.

Kids' Meal With the New YEAR:

What you need:

1) Your favorite Pancake Mix.

2) Eggs

3) Bacon

What to do:

1) For the "2" & "4,"

pipe the numbers on a grill or pan.

The picture above is from last New Year's breakfast, hence the "3." I filled a big Ziploc bag (gallon size) with the pancake mix. I also attached a piping tip because I wanted a cleaner piping, but you can just cut the tip off the plastic bag. You don't have to, but I actually piped the numbers backwards because it gave a cleaner look when flipped over. Before you think "that's too much effort"...remember you just only have to pipe enough per child and maybe a little extra in case you mess up. I know I did some "backup" numbers.

TIP#1:  Mix the pancake mix the night before and place it in a sealed container overnight in the fridge.  It will be one less thing to do in the morning.

TIP#2:  If you REALLY want to save time, make the numbers ahead of time, refrigerate/freeze (depending on how far in advance you make them), and just reheat in the microwave the morning of.

2)  For the "0,"

scramble some eggs.  Use a cookie cutter or something similar, like a glass/cup, to form the 0. If your child prefers, you could also do a "sunny-side-up" egg.

3)  For the "1,"

use a strip of bacon.  Eat...I mean, cut to size. ;-)  If you don't like regular bacon, then you can also use alternatives, like turkey bacon.  You just want a line.

Here's a closer look with it all together.

Super Easy Grown-up Meal:

"Bacon Cheese Pull-Aparts"

I found this recipe last year on Pinterest.  I like it because you can prep it the night before and just pop it in the oven in the morning.  Effortless but yummy.  Click here for the recipe.

Ingredients you will need:

1)  egg

2)  milk

3)  biscuit dough

4)  cooked bacon
5)  shredded cheese

6)  green onions

(I forgot to add the green onion last time.  See picture below.  And I forgot...again this time.  I thought it tasted just fine without it.)

Before

After

Super easy and yummy.  Happy New Year's!

Have a Happy Day,

Arlyn

Street Cred Mama

Milk & Cookies for New Year's Eve

Do you want to create a fun and simple treat that everyone can enjoy for New Year's Eve?  Try the following...cookies and milk in fun celebratory glasses.

What you need:

1)  Milk 

(whichever you prefer)

2) Chocolate Chip Cookies with M&Ms

You can make them from home or buy them from a store.  Last year, we had bought some frozen chocolate chip cookie dough with M&M's from a fundraiser.  This year I think I'll just buy them from the grocery store, like Albertson's, because I'm pressed for time.  Getting the M&M ones will be your pop of color for this treat.

3)  Plastic Wine Glasses

I suggest "wine" glasses opposed to "champagne" glasses because the diameter is smaller.  You want the cookies to sit and hang over the top.  You don't want to cookie to fall in.  You can also use real glass wine glasses, but I wouldn't if you're serving children and/or really intoxicated people. ;-)

I bought my plastic wine glasses last year at Smart & Final.  A lot came in a package, but I saved the unused ones for this year.  Dollar Tree also sells plastic wine glasses (6/pack) like the ones below:

4) Serving Tray

You can find an inexpensive, pretty silver one at the Dollar Tree or 99 Cent Store.

How & When to Serve Them:

It IS New Year's Eve, so you want to enjoy the party too!  

1)  Set-up the tray with the empty glasses beforehand and set it aside.  Place it somewhere where people won't take an empty glass to use for their drink for the night.

2)  Have the cookies ready.  Either bake them the day before or the morning of OR just BUY them!  Remember think...EASY!

3)  At about 11:30pm as the excitement is building for Midnight, fill up the glasses half way with milk.  Then, place a cookie on top each glass.  Last, serve them to your guests.  While guests are enjoying their goodies, pass out the noise makers and other favors.  Before you know it, it will be 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

Happy New Year!!!

For more fun New Year's Eve ideas, see my other posts:

Countdown Bags for New Year's

Keep Your Tree for New Year's

Have a Happy Day,

Arlyn

Street Cred Mama

Keep Your Tree for New Year's

It always seems like Christmas creeps up on us.  We're lucky to get our tree up long enough to enjoy it.  I think one year, we bought a tree on December 23rd!  I know some people who take down the decorations right after Christmas, but I like to enjoy them as long as possible.  So last year, we decided to keep our (real) Christmas tree up and decorate it for New Year's.

How to decorate your New Year's Tree:

1)  Take down (and store) all your Christmas decorations,

except for your tree topper and lights.

2)  Decorate using New Year's decorations

(hats, noise makers, glasses with the new year, etc.)

I just bought a New Year's party box of various items for 10 people.  There are 4 in my family, so I kept enough hats and things for us.  The rest went on the tree.

3)  My favorite part...add your "Year in Review" ornaments.

The year seems to go by so quickly, especially if you have kids.  Making "Year in Review" ornaments was a great way to reflect on all the GOOD stuff that happened.  Below, I made one that said "started 'pinning' on Pinterest." LOL

 

"Year in Review" Ornaments

I just made circles on a Word document.  Each circle had the year and each family member had their own color.  Then we had a color for "family" events.  Each member wrote down a special moment that happened to them this year.  I wrote about Pinterest (more of a joke since people thought I should have been pinning a LONG time ago).  My husband wrote about how he spent more time with his dad and took him to a baseball game.  My oldest wrote about how she started Kindergarten.  A family one was when we took a trip to Sea World.  We each wrote 3, but you can write as many as you want.  They can be sentimental or silly just meaningful to that person or the family.

See my future post on how to start "Year in Review" ornaments in January,

so they'll be ready for next New Year's.

How to make "Year in Review" ornaments:

1)  Print on card stock paper the circle ornaments.

2)  Cut them out.

I used a circle cutter, but you can cut by hand.  It just takes a little longer.

3)  Use a hole puncher to punch a hole on top.

4)  Tie string or ribbon to the ornament.

5)  Write your memorable moment and hang it on the tree.

So before you take down your Christmas tree, transform it to your New Year's tree. :-)

Have a happy day,

Arlyn

Street Cred Mama

Countdown Bags for New Year's

Happy almost New Year!  And happy VERY FIRST POST for me!  I've been wanting to start a blog for quite some time (way over a year), and I'm FINALLY starting one.  The New Year seemed to be a perfect time to start my NEW blog.

Like most parents of little children, going out on New Year's Eve isn't always possible.  So last year, I decided to make New Year's Eve a fun experience at home.

I made countdown bags for each hour.  Each bag had fun but inexpensive items to keep the kids busy.

My girls (ages 2-1/2 years and 5-1/2 years old at the time) LOVED opening a bag each hour, and it seemed to keep the time moving.

New Year's Eve Bag Schedule:

8:00pm - New Year's coloring sheet

that I just printed free from online.  Click here for some examples.

9:00pm - (air) blowers...not sure what they're really called.  

Those things that are curled up and when you blow they flap out straight.

10:00pm - New Year's eyeglasses with the upcoming year

11:00pm - plastic Hawaiian leis

The reasons I used these were:

1)  I wasn't sure if the kids would make it until 11pm, so if they didn't get to this time then they wouldn't miss much.

2)  It was extra stuff from the New Year's box I bought, so I wanted to just use them up.

11:30pm - cookies & milk in celebratory glasses.

See my post Milk & Cookies for New Year's Eve.

Right before 12:00am Midnight - LAST bag filled with necklaces and noise makers.

You can truly fill the bags with anything.  Each bag had enough per child, so since I have 2 kids, there were 2 of everything.  Each girl alternated to open the bags.  

Supplies for Countdown Bags:

- 5 paper bags

(More if you want to start earlier.  They can be as simple as brown paper lunch bags or get decorative ones)

- colored construction paper (optional)

if you want to mount the clocks to them.  Just an added pop of color to make simple bags more pretty.

- clock picture for the face of the bag

You can draw one or print the one below that I used.  Then just draw in the time.

Here's a closer look at the bags.

As the year is coming to a close, I hope we all reflect on the many blessings of this past year and look forward to the adventures of the upcoming year.

Have a happy day,

Arlyn

Street Cred Mama