Read With Me Wednesday: Come On, Rain!

I am keeping up with my Read With Me Wednesday, which I started right before our quarter-life-crisis/blogging break!  This Wednesday I choose one of my favorite summertime books.  It is a story about a little girl who is so hot and just wants it to rain. 

Come On, Rain!
Written by Karen Hesse
Illustrated by Jon J. Muth

Up and down the block,
cats pant,
heat wavers off tar patches in the broiling alleyway....

I stare out over rooftops,
past chimneys, into the way off distance.
And that's when I see it coming,
clouds rolling in,
gray clouds, bunched and bulging under a purple sky.

A creeper of hope circles round my bones.
"Come on, rain!" I whisper.

 

The poetry Karen Hesse uses paints such vivid pictures, you can feel the heat of the summer and the joy of the rain.  And did you know that Karen Hesse is a Newberry award winning author.  She won the 1998 Newberry award for her book Out of the Dust, which is also a great read, but have a box of tissues.  Hope you enjoy this great summer read!

Stuck In My Head

Do you ever see something and it just gets stuck in your head.  I have a few crafty/baking projects that I can’t stop thinking about.  I wish I had a reason to make them . . . The only reason I can come up with is my little one’s birthday is coming up, but I’m not sure they tie together . . .

 

Project #1

Found via Edible Crafts

Tutorial HERE over at Woman’s Day

Cutest cake I’ve ever ever seen!

I reminded me a lot of these cupcakes Bakerella did a while ago. 

 

Project #2

Again from Bakerella, what can I say the woman is a genius! 

She posted about these Cake Pops a few weeks ago and I have been obsessing over them in my mind since then. 

 

 

 

 

So what theme could I use for a two year-old girl’s birthday party in a month that would let me use these great ideas?

Coming Back With a Bang! Cafe Rio Sweet Pork

I have neglected this little blog, but have kind of missed it.  So I’m going to try to post more.  And as the title says, I am coming back with a BANG!

 

I love this place:

I tell my husband I could never move to Oregon (where he is from, where my child’s grandparents live, where he DREAMS of living) because they don’t have Cafe Rio.

But let’s be honest, we are on a budget and in reality cannot eat there EVERY night.

I have found a pretty great substitute for my Cafe Rio sweet pork cravings.  It takes some time a prep, mostly marinating and shredding the pork.  But is super simple and absolutely de-lish-e-ous!  I love to have it on Sundays because it’s a throw it in the crock pot kind of meal. 

Here’s the recipe courtesy of Favorite Family Recipes (which is a great blog, and would be even if it didn’t have this awesome recipe).

 

Cafe Rio Sweet Pork

2 pounds pork (we use boneless pork rib meat)  {Ash Note:  I used about 2 1/2 pounds and served five adults with quite a bit left over.}
3 cans Coke (NOT diet) {Ash Note:  My SIL said she uses Dr. Pepper and loves it.}
1/4 c. brown sugar
dash garlic salt
1/4 c. water
1 can sliced green chilies
3/4 can enchilada sauce (I use Old El Paso brand, medium spiciness but any will work)
1 c. brown sugar

Put the pork in a heavy duty ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours or overnight.

Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get TOO dry) or on low for 8 hours. Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork.  {Ash Note:  I do this part while we are at Church.  And I find the pork shreds better if it is cooled down.}

In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and remaining brown sugar (about a cup, you can add a little more or less to taste..). If it looks too thick, add more Coke little by little.
Put shredded pork and sauce in crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours. That's it!

 

We use the fresh tortillas you can by at Sam’s and Costco, my MIL in Oregon says she finds hers at Walmart, but I’ve never found them there here in Utah.  Also next time we have this am going to get those little tin/aluminum round disposable dishes Cafe Rio serves their food in.  I saw a three pack at the Dollar Tree the other day!

Read With Me Wednesday: Hey, Little Ant

I love to read!  As a school teacher I am always looking for and reading all kind of wonderful books.  So every Wednesday here on my blog I’d like to share some of my favorites.  And I would LOVE to hear what you are reading!

Hey, Little Ant
Written by Phillip and Hannah Hoose
Illustrated by Debbie Tilley

In 1992, Phillip Hoose and his daughter Hannah, then nine, wrote a musical conversation between an ant about to get flattened and the child about to squish it. It ended with the question, "What do you think that kid should do?" Their popular recording of the song "Hey Little Ant" led to the story's publication as a children's picture book in 1998, which has become a runaway success. Now the ant and the child – and their shared dilemma – are known by parents, children and educators throughout the world.

 

 

I love that it teaches about tolerance and respect in a way everyone can understand.  I let the kids discuss in groups what they would do if they were the kid and what they would want to happen to them if the ant and the kid reversed roles.  We have had quite the interesting discussions. 

 

Thanks for reading along with me on this fabulous Wednesday!

I {Heart} This Gorgeous Quilt

I saw this and instantly feel in LOVE!  It completely brightened my day.  I wish I was a quilter, or even that I could sew.  I can’t decide if I want to keep it for myself or make it for my daughter.  Maybe we will just have matching bedspreads. 

She makes it look so easy with a tutorial . . . Maybe some day.   

Ladybug Cupcakes

My friend asked me to make some ladybug cupcakes and a cake for her daughter’s first birthday.  I looked all over, but didn’t find anything that was simple enough or that I liked enough.  So this is what I came up with.

{What You’ll Need}
dozen cupcakes
1 can of vanilla frosting
1 can of chocolate frosting
black food coloring
red food coloring
ziplock freezer bags
mini Oreo cookies
edible eyeballs
black licorice strings

{How To}
Tint vanilla frosting red.  *What I learned:  Use coloring paste not regular food coloring.  These ladybugs turned out being pinkish red, and the picture makes them look orange.  Blah!

Add a few drops of black food coloring to the chocolate frosting.  Using chocolate frosting makes it so much easier to get your frosting a true black

Fill two ziplock freezer bags with black or red frosting.  Snip of the end of each.  Make sure you don’t take too much off of the black bag, you can always go back and make it bigger if you want, but you can’t go back and make it smaller!

Frost cupcakes with red frosting.

Add a head by making and oval outline with the black frosting then filling it in. 

Make a stripe down the back of the cupcake.  I used a piece of thread and laid it in the red frosting to give me a line to follow. 

Add edible eyes and spots.  Split Mini Oreos in half and push into frosting.

Snip black licorice strings and push into cupcake for antennae.  Sorry these aren’t in the picture, I forgot to buy them and then forgot to take another picture when I got back.   

Orange Chicks

I found this on a blog that I follow, she made them for her kiddos for Easter.  Brilliant!  I had a hard time thinking of what to put in my 20 month old’s Easter basket.  These would have been perfect.  You could use felt for the beak and feet.  Cloves for the eyes.  Ribbon for a bow.  Why didn’t I think of this.  I wonder if I could find an excuse to make some up anyway.