Forest the Fox's Indoor Playbox

Our friend invited us for a play date to Forest the Fox's Playbox in Westchester located inside the park district.  It is an indoor play place with some tube slides and climbing stuff.  My girls had a blast. It was perfect for their ages (4 and 5). You must wear socks and it costs $3 a kid. Make sure to bring exact change because the woman at the front desk wasn't the friendliest when I came in with a $20.
They have two rooms attached to the play place you can rent for birthday parties.

We had a very nice experience and the price can't be beat. I would definitely recommend this place. 

http://www.wpdparks.org/facilities/mayfair-banquet-facility

It is open daily from 10am-7pm

Cost $3

Rainbow Swing Set Superstore

I discovered this indoor playground while doing a Google search. It is less than 10 minutes from my house so we decided to give it a try.  It was a Friday afternoon at 3 30pm and my kids were getting stir crazy and had to get out of the house, but it was way too cold outside.  So I started my Google search and called this place. The man I spoke with was super nice and told me that they close at 5, but that we could still come by for an hour at a discounted rate.

Basically this place is a warehouse for the Rainbow play sets. There are between 10-12 large swing sets as well as 2 picnic tables. We walked in and we're greeted by the man on the phone. He was very happy to see us. We signed a waiver, paid him $5 for both girls for the hour, and the girls were off.  I believe it is normally $6 per kid, but since it was close to closing time the nice man just asked for $5 to pay for his coffee the next morning. 

If you know anything about Rainbow sets, they are amazing. Strong, durable, and so many configurations. The girls had a blast and that hour went very fast. They have been asking to go back ever since.

I highly recommend this place for kids ages 2-10.

http://swingsetswillowbrookillinois.com/

Rainbow Swing Set Superstores, Willowbrook, IL
800 West 79th Street
Willowbrook, IL 60527
(630) 887-7799

Superstore Hours
Monday: 10 - 5
Tuesday: 10 - 5
Wednesday: CLOSED
Thursday: 10-5
Friday: 10 - 5
Saturday: 10 - 5
Sunday: 11-4
Directions
I-55 to Route 83.  Go north to first light and turn right.  Make immediate right on Frontage Road and follow around curve .

Soy Glazed Pheasant

Soy Glazed Pheasant

My husband is a hunter.  He hunts mostly pheasant and deer.  He didn't get a deer this year, but has brought home many pheasants.  Since pheasant has almost no fat, it is a very difficult meat to cook well.  The best solution is to marinade the breasts.  Here is what I made for dinner the other night.

Ingredients

• 5-6 small pheasant breasts cleaned and trimmed
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup Kikkoman teriyaki
• 2 tablespoons of Kikkoman ponzu 
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

Pour all ingredients into a zip top bag and add pheasant breasts.  Zip the top and mix around to make sure all pieces are coated.  Place in the refrigerator at least 1 hour.  Heat a large heavy bottom skillet over medium high, and drizzle with olive oil. Turn down heat to medium and cook pheasant until juices run clear.  Pheasant is a dark meat so don't expect it to look like chicken or you will dry it out.  Cook 3-4 minutes per side.  Meanwhile, pour all the remaining marinade into a sauce pan and reduce by half over high heat.  Brush the sauce over breasts before serving and serve some on the side for dipping.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries and Balsamic Reduction

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries and 

Balsamic Reduction

I absolutely love Brussels sprouts, I try to make them as often as possible.  Especially since Costco and Sam's Club started selling the 2lb bag of fresh ones for under $5.  Here is a recipe that my whole family loves.  I have adapted the recipe from here but made a healthy version completely cutting out the sugar.  Here is my version of Roasted Brussels Sprouts.

Start by trimming off the end of the Brussels sprout and cutting in half removing any of the tough outer leaves.

 

While you are trimming the sprouts, preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.  I like to use my cast iron pan for this.  Make sure your pan is oven safe if you do not have cast iron.  Once all sprouts are sliced, coat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss sprouts to make sure they are all coated.  Place in oven and roast 40-50 minutes stirring every 20 minutes until they are caramelized.

While the sprouts are roasting, put vinegar and agave syrup in a sauce pan and cook on medium low until it reduces by half and coats the back of a spoon.

When the sprouts are done roasting and still have a bite to them (not mushy), take out of the oven and pour vinegar reduction and toss sprouts.  Sprinkle with dried cranberries and toss again.

Ingredients

• 2lb fresh Brussels Sprouts
• 1 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup agave syrup
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

 Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Trim off the end of the Brussels sprout and cutting in half removing any of the tough outer leaves.  Once all sprouts are sliced transfer to a heavy bottom pan, coat with olive oil, salt and pepper.  I like to use a cast iron pan for this, just make sure your pan is oven safe. Toss sprouts to make sure they are all coated.  Place in oven and roast 40-50 minutes stirring every 20 minutes until they are caramelized.  While the sprouts are roasting, put vinegar and agave syrup in a sauce pan and cook on medium low until it reduces by half and coats the back of a spoon.  When the sprouts are done roasting and still have a bite to them (not mushy), take out of the oven and pour vinegar reduction and toss sprouts.  Sprinkle with dried cranberries and toss again.  Enjoy

Healthy Biscuits and Gravy

I am a HUGE fan of biscuits and gravy.  If possible, I would probably eat them a few times a week for breakfast.  I never make them at home and pretty much only get them anytime I am down South.  I decided to try a healthy version of this fabulous dish and they turned out delicious! 

Start by browning the turkey sausage in a heavy bottom pan on medium high heat.  I use a cast iron skillet for pretty much everything.

Once the sausage is browned, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Since the turkey is so lean there won't be much fat, add butter and olive oil to the pan. 

Sprinkle in flour and stir until there are no more clumps.  Cook for 1-2 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.

 Add the milk slowly, constantly stirring to remove clumps.  Lower heat to medium low and cook for 10-12 minutes until the gravy had thickened and coats the back of a spoon.

 Add the sausage back to the gravy and add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve over warm biscuits.  I used store bought this time but have made this healthy version.
I also like LOTS of pepper in my gravy, but since I was making this for my young kids, I added a little pepper to the whole batch, and added more to my own serving.

Ingredients

• 1lb of breakfast turkey sausage
• 3 cups of skim milk
• 2 heaping tablespoons of whole wheat flour (I like King Athur)
• salt
• pepper
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• 2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• 8 Buttermilk Biscuits (store bought or homemade like these healthy ones here)

Directions
Brown the turkey sausage in a heavy bottom pan on medium high heat.  I use a cast iron skillet for pretty much everything. Once the sausage is browned, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Since the turkey is so lean there won't be much fat, add butter and olive oil to the pan.  Sprinkle in flour and stir until there are no more clumps.  Cook for 1-2 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.  Add the milk slowly, constantly stirring to remove clumps.  Lower heat to medium low and cook for 10-12 minutes until the gravy had thickened and coats the back of a spoon.  Add the sausage back to the gravy and add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve over warm biscuits.

Pear orange kale smoothie

My Morning Green Smoothie

 

Ingredients

2-3 heaping tablespoons Light & Fit vanilla yogurt

1/4 english cucumber

1/2 pear

1 orange

1 carrot

1 cup kale

Directions

Put all ingredients into a Vitamix.  Add a handful of ice and water if needed and blend until smooth 

Cute Tooth Fairy Ideas

My 5 year old daughter had to have her front lower baby tooth pulled to make room for the new adult tooth coming in on the lingual side.  With my husband being a dentist, we knew she was in good hands.  She was super brave and did amazing (so did daddy!).  So last night the tooth fairy paid her a visit.  My daughter woke up screaming ecstatically this morning and came running into my room, so it was all worth it.  Here is what she left.

To make the glitter money, I simply painted Elmer's glue onto the bill then sprinkled with glitter and let it dry and repeated on the other side.

I found some great tooth fairy printables from this website from pinterest
I printed them on heavy cardstock.

We filled out these 2 together the next morning.

This receipt is super cute and great to go in the scrapbook so we can remember.

 A friend of my mom's made these adorable tooth fairy pillows for my girls when they were born.  It matches their baby blankets she also made for them.