Matcha Green Tea Cheesecake Swirl Brownies (Recipe)

Matcha Green Tea Cheesecake Swirl Brownies are just so yummy!  My kids have already eaten half of them. We love brownies and we love cheesecake so a combination of the two is too natural. I was sent a sample of Mocafe Matcha Green tea powder and asked to use it in a recipe. (I requested the sample via 5MinutesForMom.com, the samples are gone but you can find more reipces there.)  

My kids have been asking for cheesecake brownies so I thought I could take it to another level by adding the Mocafe Matcha Green Tea powder.  Sometimes as a special treat we go to Pho Tai Vietamese and buy the girls Green Tea or cantaloupe  Bubble Tea.  If you have never had bubble tea it is more like a Frappe with large tapioca pearls at the bottom of course the girls like it without the bubbles (tapioca). 

Ingredients:

Brownies:
Box of Brownies mix and the ingredients listed to make plain brownies.
Mine called for eggs, oil and water
(Note: I substituted milk for the water for extra flavor)

Cheesecake topping:
1/3 cup of white sugar
8 oz. of Cream Cheese
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 Tablespoon Matcha Green Tea Powder

 Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F

Make brownies as instructed on the box.
Pour brownies into greased pan (9x13 in)



Mix the cream cheese and sugar together.  Add the egg and vanilla extract.  Mix until uniform.  Mix in the Matcha Green Tea Powder.
 
Add the cream cheese mixture to the brownies by the spoonful. Evenly distribute the cream cheese mixture over the surface of the brownie mix.  

 Once all of the cream cheese mixture is on top of the brownie mix swirl with a knife.  Hold the knife perpendicular to the pan and go back and forth in a grid pattern in one direction and then the other.

Bake the Brownies for about 1 hour. Let the Brownies coll, cut and then enjoy!

Roller Skating (For Free)

We were able to get free passes to skate at our local skating rink through KidsSkateFree.com. Check and she if it is available in your area.

Enjoying a park in Troutdale, OR

We need to stop, stretch our legs and enjoy the weather. What better way than to try a new park while traveling.

Fun in the Sun

After spending the morning at Owen's beach we came home, rested and now after dinner the girls wanted to go on the water slide.

Homeschooling, the right choice this year

You may have noticed that I have not been blogging as much the last few months.  I have just not had the time because I have been homeschooling Princess A.  Her school year started out alright.  I did not feel welcome in her classroom when I volunteered, but Princess A said class was fine.  I would talked to her about it once in a while and discovered she was doing nothing but reading.  I don't mean reading school books, I mean reading novels.  Princess A is an advanced child and her teacher was chosen by the school because the teacher was normally a 4th grade teacher but was teaching third grade this school year.  The thought was she could give Princess A extra challenges in class if she needed them.  Well she needed them but was not given anything extra to do.  As soon as she finished her regular school stuff she was allowed to read.  She finished so quickly most of her day was spent reading.  She loved it!  I was finally able to meet with her teacher near the end of October.  It was a quick meeting where her teacher told be that, besides one thing with paragraphs, Princess A knew everything she needed to learn by the end of the school year and wasn't that great.  I was happy she knew so much but was more concerned with what she would be learning the rest of the school year.  Her teacher would not answer me and asked me to help Princess A at home with the paragraph thing.  It took me five minutes to explain to Princess A to always write in paragraphs at school and the 'paragraph thing' was mastered. (Her teacher never told her to write in paragraphs so she hadn't.)  I tried to push her teacher to give her more and that teacher informed me "I have a set curriculum and can not deviate from it." I was not happy with that answer and after trying to work with the school district (the teacher was wrong she is suppose to deviate for kids) I decided to home school Princess A in Reading/Language arts and Math, the two subjects she is most advanced it, and have her remain in the classroom for the rest of her subjects.  This took place around Thanksgiving.  It was horrible!
Her teacher became very hostile and began to take it out on Princess A in class.  After a very uncomfortable two weeks during which Princess A was expected to magically receive instructions while she was not present, I pulled her out of that teacher's classroom.  Princess A was sad to leave her friends but so happy she did not have that teacher.  We decided that Princess A would still attend music (twice a week) and library (once a week) with her class as there are other teachers teaching during those times.  The teacher did not handle it well, she berated me in the cafeteria and later after Princess A was no longer in her class, yelled down the hall after me. I will not repeat all that she said but it was unprofessional.  The teacher also refused to acknowledge my daughter when she would say 'Hello."  So right before Christmas I started homeschooling Princess A full time.  My younger daughter is still in regular school and three times during the week Princess A has 30 minutes of instruction at her old school so we do have time constraints.
  It has been wonderful and very different.  I now have at least one child with me all of the time.  I now have a kid to drag around to doctor appointments, grocery stores and errands.  The best part is to see how much Princess A is learning.  When she was in regular school she had been complaining that math was still review in November and couldn't wait to start multiplication.  She also started knitting.  We are homeschooling through a program with the state so all of the materials are provided and she has at least 2 online classes per week.  It has been a wonderful time but Princess A wants to go back to a regular school, she misses her friends.  We were able to get her into a gifted program in our school district for next school year.  She will have to attend a new school and is a little nervous.  She is very excited too.  I am excited for her but also a little sad, it has been wonderful having her all day, everyday for the last few months.  Well at least I will have the summer to spend with both of them before mommy is on her own again. Less than three weeks until school is out!

Pacific Northwest Ballet Nutcracker Tickets On Sale

We attend the PNB's Nutcracker every year.  We have attended opening weekend for the last 6 years.  Can you tell we love the PNB's Nutcracker?! Usually tickets go on sale in July, which is when we always buy them.  The sooner you purchase the tickets the better seats you get for each price.  I received an email this morning stating they went on sale this morning, and no service charge through the end of May!

  We purchased our tickets this afternoon.  This year they are having fewer dates so if you plan on attending the Nutcracker Ballet in Seattle I would look into tickets now!

WW: New Domino's Artisan Pizza

Last week I was lucky enough to win a free Artisan Pizza from Domino's during their Facebook promotion.  Today was the last day to redeem my coupon so the girls and I went for lunch right after school (they had a half day).  Princess A wanted to try the Italian Sausage and Pepper Trio (I ordered it with light banana peppers).  It was so yummy and the staff was so nice.  We ended up staying and eating our pizza right there.  Our new Domino's has 4 small stools and a counter for customers.  The girls really liked the pizza, minus the banana peppers.  They said that we have to bring Daddy next time.  The pizza was delicious but small since it is suppose to serve only two.  It was the perfect amount for the girls and me, but if Daddy had been with us we would of need two pizzas.  Have you tried the new pizzas from Domino's? What did you think?

Review: Natural House Cleaners

My husband does most of the cleaning in our house but I am the one who buys the cleaning supplies.  I am always looking for great cleaners that can do the job more naturally.  I get headaches from many cleaners, the fumes just make me sick which is why my husband handles most of that.  Of course with natural cleaners I could do more of the cleaning since they don't give me headaches but he is so good at it I will let him keep doing the cleaning.  The day after the Natural House cleaner samples arrived I burnt a batch of split pea soup and if you have ever done that you know it reeks.  The whole house just smelled.  I aired the house out two days in a row which really helped.  I kept smelling it in the kitchen though, a strong scent.  I realized that it was the smell of burnt split pea that I poured down my garbage disposal.  I tossed one of the sinky packets down the dispostal, turned on the water briefly and turned on the disposal.  The SMELL was GONE!  I was so happy!  Over the next few days I would still find little patches of burnt split pea scent in the house but I never smelled it from my sink again. I gave the rest of the cleaners, Trashy and Flushy to my husband to use.  I said he really liked them and they worked great.  I noticed that the bathroom and the trash smelled so much better.  The bathroom was missing that strong chemiocal smell and the trash was just not smelly.  In my book they all worked great!   If you would like to find out more information about these natural household cleaning products you can visit their site, facebook page or follow them on twitter.

If you would like to purchase these products you and buy them directly from Natural House or on Amazon.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Review: Elfishki and The Giant Cake iPad Book

We have an iPad and my girls just love using it.  I am always looking for great apps, especially books for them to use on the iPad.  Princess G (and Princess A) love reading (or listening) to books on the iPad and we have quite a collections.  One of their current favorites is Elfishki and The Giant Cake.  The pictures are just so bright and fairish (their word).  I like that the pictures are so detailed, it looks as though it is a very well illustrated book, not just some computer program slapped together.  I asked them why they like Elfishki and The Giant Cake so much and Princess A said "It is a great story about how with friendship you can do great and amazing things.  Plus it is fun to make the cakes!"
In addition to the great story they also have a cake decorating games which my girls play.  They have fun making these very elaborate cakes and sharing with us.  It is a very cute app and I would recommend it  for anyone with little ones, especially little girls.

I received  the product mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Review: The Beauty Book (for kids)

Princess A inhales books, so I am constantly trying to find quality books for her to read.  She is only in third grade but reads above a 6th grade level and even eigth grade or higher books on occassion.  My problem is the content of these books.  It is important that she reads books that are not too mature for her.  Princess A also wears glasses which luckily she loves.  She has not experienced any teasing for her glasses or anything else about how she looks.  I know that we might not always be so fortunate.  I know that in our society looks and beauty can sometimes define a person's self worth.  I want my girls to look their best but also not worry or obsess about how they look. 
I like that The Beauty Book talks about beauty and how to talk care of your self but from a point of view that shows you that the inside matters the most.  Princess A loved all of the little beauty tips and Princess A has already started following some of them on her own.  This is a great book for girls age 7 to 12.  Princess A is 9 so she is the perfect age.  Princess G is only 6 and has not shown any interest in the book.  She did like some of the tips her sister shared with her.  My niece is almost 13 but I still think that this book would still be a benefit for her so I will try and see if she will read it.
I reccomend this for any little girl that is headed toward tweens.  The book has great tips for beauty but does not leave the impression that beauty is the most important thing and I love that!

I received this book from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com, a book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

MedImmune RSV Prevention

One of the scariest things is a sick newborn.  A newborn does not have the robust immune system we have as adults or even as children.  Imagine how bad you feel when you get a bad cold, well that 'bad cold' if it is RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) could kill a newborn, especially if the newborn was also premature.  Every year in the US up to 500 infants die and more than 125,000 are hospitalized.  Every newborn is at risk but those born early have even less developed immune systems.  Almost 100% of all children will contract RSV by their 2nd birthday but the older a child is the better their immune system can fight off the disease.  As an adult when we get a cold most of us just keep going, we take some medicine, maybe a little extra rest but we still go out.  Visiting an infant when we are sick is a very bad idea.  My girls are out of the baby stages but it is still important for me to know about RSV.  Why?  Because I need to help protect all babies.  I never visit a new baby if am sick, my family is sick, or if I have been exposed.  When I had my first baby my mom was getting a cold so she did not visit us for a whole week and old saw her nanababy (yes, that is what my mom calls my kids) through pictures.  I did not even have to ask my mom not to come, she just knew it was a bad idea.  Not everyone is so considerate.  I don't remember knowing about RVS when my first was born but I still did not want to expose my new baby to viruses.  I told everyone to not come if they were sick and I did not want anyone over for the first week.  Lets just say my in laws went against both of those requests.  I did not let the sick person hold the baby at all, which is still a point of contention with in laws, but my baby did not sick so that is all I care about. 
If you visit a new baby (or any baby) please follow these suggestions:
Wash hands when you arrive and before holding the baby (yes, I made people do this!)
Leave toddlers at home (they are always getting sick.)
Don't even go if you are sick, or been around those who are sick!

Remember there is no cure for RSV, they can only support the body while the immune system does the work.  The only thing to protect a newborn is prevention.  Remember the longer you keep a newborn from catching RSV the better chance they have of it just being another 'cold'.  For more information and tips to prevent RSV please visit https://www.rsvprotection.com/

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of MedImmune and received promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Review: Read and Share: Stories About Jesus

This school year I am homeschooling my kids for catechism (or Faith Formation as it is called now).  I have the book that is part of the curriculum our church uses but it can be a bit boring.  The stories in Read and Share: Stories about Jesus are just the right length for short attention spans.  At this age my kids don't really understand a story read straight from the bible with out lots of explanation.  This book takes those well know stories of Jesus from the bible but uses language that is easy for them to understand.  My daughter is also reading on her own and the language in the stories is well with in her expertise.  This book is aimed toward toddler and babies, as it is a board book, but I find that it works well for older kids too.
Read and Share: Stories about Jesus By Gwen Ellis includes 13 well know stories about Jesus from the bible.  Each two page spread has one story and picture(s) to go with the story.  I like that the book also lets you know the exactly where the story is in the bible.  I was also very happy that they included the story of Jesus healing the blind man as it is one of my kids favorites.  A very well written version of bibles stories aimed toward kids and in words they will easily understand.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Review: Slice™ Safety Cutter - Great For Couponers

I am a coupon cutter!  I love using coupons so I spend less at the store.  What I don't like is cutting those coupons out.  Now I don't buy extra newspapers so I usually only have one or two inserts to clip coupons from but it if is a good week it can still be a lot of coupons.  My hand have gotten tired before, open and closing those scissors. So when I heard about the Slice Safety Cutter and I was intrigued.  The Slice Safety cutter uses a tiny ceramic blade that is suppose to last longer than steel and since it is ceramic it stays sharp and unlike steel can't rust.  The design also means that it is easily used by left and right handers.  My first thought was to use it for clipping coupons or cutting wrapping paper.  After I received the Slice Safety Cutter I found I have been using it for lots of other things too.  I really like using it on DVD and CD shrink wrap.  I have broken nails in the past or scratched the case when I tired using scissors to get that shrink wrap off.  My most surprising use was cutting those sticker pages out of books.  My kids are still little enough that they like receiving books that come with stickers.  The stickers are great but once they are used I have a blank waxy page in the beginning of a book.  I admit I damaged a few books trying to get those empty sticker pages out.  I damaged so many I vowed never to removing them again.  I decided to risk it and try removing those pages using the Slice Safety Cutter and I am happy to announce that it worked.  I went through a whole stack of books and successfully removed those stick pages and did not damage the books at all.  Can you tell I was a little excited?

One last thing I have to share is: it has a magnet inside!  Now that does not sound too exciting but it means I can keep it on the side of my refrigerator for quick access instead of losing it in the junk drawer. 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Review: AppliedLabels

When I was growing up my mom always wrote our names on our stuff using permanent ink pens.  It was a good thing she labeled them as it was how she was able to get back a few sweater of mine that were being worn by other kids.  I was sent some labels from AppliedLabels.com and used them right away.  I like that they are not going to fall off in the dishwasher or the laundry.  My daughter is allowed to have a water bottle at her desk but the one she wanted to use is one she and lots of other kids earned from a school fundraiser.  That means usually a few kids are using the exact same water bottle each day.  I wanted to make sure she knew which one was hers.  Since I put the label on her water bottle I have run it through the dishwasher many, many times (I wash it every other day during the school week) and the label still looks great.  Once you send your kid off to school, or anywhere else without you, things will be misplaced.  Having a label with your child's name on it increases the likelihood you will get it back.  It also helps if you buy your kids a popular item.  My youngest has an umbrella which last year was unquie.  This year at least 10 other kids at her school have the same one.  I know that since we have my daughter's name on her I know we are bringing ours home and not some other child's.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Piggy Mermaid

Princess A made a mermaid piggy in book club to go with the book, Mercy Watson. The book club is 3rd through 1st grade so both of my princesses can be in the same book club, well at least for this year. They both loved the book and are reading more from the series. Both of the girls had fun making and painting their paper mâché pigs.