Snow Ice Cream on a Snow Day

Yes, we had a snow day today! Well, rather, it was a cold day. The snow hit on Monday, we had school on Tuesday, and then today was cancelled for the -35 windchill. Brrrr!

So, what to do on a snow day. Have you heard of snow ice cream? A friend shared a link on Facebook for fun activities to do on snow days, and it included a link to the Sugar Pie Farmhouse Blog on making snow ice cream. It's literally ice cream made from snow! 

It calls for 8 cups of snow, 1 can of sweetened condensed milk, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.

After making this recipe (if that's what you'd call it!), I can tell you the snow measurement is pretty subjective! I think it has to do with how hard you pack your measurements and what kind of snow you have. We needed a lot more than 8 cups! We could tell as we stirred because it was very liquid-like until we added extra snow.

We split ours into two bowls so each of our kids could mix. I gave them each 1 teaspoon of vanilla in their half batches, and I think that was a good choice. Also, I figured out why the original post didn't include very many "before" pictures. It doesn't look very appetizing at first, does it?

Sure enough, after some stirring and adding in more snow, we had ice cream! It came together so quickly that I didn't even get pictures of the kids stirring it up.

It didn't hold its ice-cream consistency for all that long. This is really something you'd want to eat right away. But how cool and fun! It's very easy to do with little ones.

...and a blurry shot of my snow ice cream (I tossed in a few chocolate chips. Shhh).

Father's Day 2013

...Where to begin? Today started with some grumpy kids, got better with an ice cream cone and boat ride at the park, and ended in the emergency room (everyone's OK now!).

I got up with the kiddos, and we went out to get McDonald's for Andrew. Oliver woke up on the wrong side of the bed. He was mad about everything! Unfortunately, that mood spilled into what was supposed to be a nice breakfast in bed. We took the kids to Chatfield State Park to play at the reservoir, hoping to improve the day. It was fun, but Oliver was still a Grumpy Gus!

It cost $8 to get in, which would have been worth it if we'd stayed longer. We weren't prepared for the heat and sun. Photos from Chatfield:

After a stop at the grocery store, we went home for lunch and nap time. Oliver was in a much better mood after having some quiet time. We went out to ice cream at Bonnie Brae. Their ice cream is so good! We ate it outside, which completes another item on our summer bucket list.

Oliver wanted "pink ice cream."

We were near Wash Park, so we decided to go play and explore. Oliver saw people on boats and really wanted to ride on one. We decided to go try it out without even thinking about prices. I mean, we've rented paddle boats in Evergreen before, and they are $8. We went up to rent one, only to discover the 4-person paddle boat was $30! We got a two person one for $20, and the kids sat on our laps (which was a better idea anyway).

Oliver had the time of his life! This kid is usually so timid and doesn't much like anything that involves risk. He seriously loved the boat ride, though. We got to see geese, ducks, and herons.

These pictures were taken moments before the incident. I'll tell you what happened in a moment...

So, right after these pictures were taken, Oliver ran off on that path behind us. You can see in the photo how the path winds. It winds right into a parking area on the street. When he first took off, I said, "No, no, no." He kept going, which is so unlike Oliver! I screamed bloody murder, "STOP!" Oliver froze and immediately started to cry (he hates yelling). I'm so glad he listened when I yelled, though.

I was embarrassed for yelling (even though I did the right thing) and distracted by Oliver crying. I didn't even notice when I walked into a tree limb.

It was almost exactly my height. It didn't hit me in the forehead but sliced right into the top of my scalp. It hurt so badly. It wasn't like a throbbing pain from when you run into something. It was a sharp, stinging pain that didn't stop. At first, I tried to hold myself together. The pain kept increasing, and I just crawled into the car and cried. After a minute, I got the courage to touch my head. My fingers were all bloody. Andrew drove a few blocks, but when the pain got worse, he stopped to assess the damage. He just saw a cut and blood and told me I'd need stitches. I started crying all over again! I felt what I thought was blood running down my head, but it was clear liquid. Andrew told me it was probably plasma.

We called his mom, who let us know of an urgent care out by her. I didn't even want to drive two extra miles, so we stopped at an urgent care I know of right by my parents' house. I called my dad. The poor guy, I swear. I tried to stay calm, but I was crying and clearly upset and hurt. I told him I'd be there in five minutes, and he said he would come right away. He's the best dad in the world. (I'm sorry for scaring you, Dad. Happy Father's Day!) My parents were already at the urgent care when we arrived. They grabbed the kids out of the car while I went into the urgent care.

The nurse at the reception took one look at my head and said they couldn't treat it there. She said I had to go to the emergency room. I have a high deductible, and so we'd be responsible for any and all hospital costs. Dang it! It sucks to be hurt and also worrying about whether or not I can afford to go get treated. Andrew told me we'll make it work, and so we went.

The people at Sky Ridge were fantastic. I had a nurse, a physician's assistant, and an MD all check on me. The pain started to finally subside after getting shown into a room. It faded from a sharp, stinging pain to a dull, throbbing pain. The bleeding stopped, too. The physician's assistant asked me if it was OK to numb the area. I was confused why she asked. Is there some reason I shouldn't be numbed? Is there a chance of allergic reaction or something? Nope, she just wanted my permission before giving me an injection. Oh, geez, I hate needles. I mean, I put up with them when I have to, but I hate them. I started to cry all over again! I told her I would rather get treated without getting numbed. She told me they could clean the wound out without numbing, but, if I needed staples, they would revisit the idea of numbing my head.

A nurse washed my head with sanitized water. She had to scrape off some of the scabbing to see how deep parts of the wound were. It started to sting again, but it wasn't as bad as before. A doctor came in and checked me out, followed again by the physician's assistant. She told me the wound was puckered open a bit, but it wasn't deep enough to require stitches or staples. I was so relieved!

...and then I realized I'm probably going to get a $500 bill for nothing! Well, not really. I know I am paying for expert opinions and for taking the time of the emergency room. But, still, I can't help but wish I'd toughed it out. Better safe than sorry, I guess.

So, that's how Andrew spent Father's Day evening, and that's how we ended up at the emergency room. We picked up the kids. My little Ollie Bear ran up to me when I walked into my parents' house and asked, "Mom, do you feel all better?" He's so sweet. My head was feeling so much better--just a slight pressure headache and swelling. We went back to his parents' house, where we're staying for a bit. His mom gave the kids a bath, and I took some ibuprofen and rested a bit. We made a quick dinner (and I helped Oliver make smoothies), and then we put the kids to bed.

What a day! Father's Day didn't go exactly as planned. Next week is Andrew's birthday, and I hope to make it up to him then! Happy Father's Day, Andrew, and thanks for taking care of me at the hospital.

Kid Friendly: Ice Cream in a Bag!

You can make ice cream with your kids by having them shake it in a bag! I must have seen this idea on Pinterest: kids can "churn" ice cream by shaking it in a bag full of ice. I looked online for a recipe and found a simple one on Disney's website. In a Ziploc bag, you add:

*1 cup of half & half
*2 tablespoons of sugar
*1 teaspoon of vanilla.

We made this recipe a few days ago, and that bag leaked a little. So, this time, we put that bag into a second one. Then, take one of those gallon-sized Ziploc bags and fill it about halfway full with ice, and add approximately half a cup of rock salt. Place the smaller bag with the ice cream mixture into the bag with the ice. Then, let your kid go crazy shaking it for about five minutes. Voila! Ice cream!

It's supposed to make a single serving, but we found we got two small servings out of it (perfect for our little kiddos). We did two of these each time. Each time, one came out pretty well, and the other didn't. So, this recipe is kind of hit-or-miss, but it's a lot of fun regardless!

This is our attempt on Tuesday night. One of the bags didn't churn well, but the other did fine.

Oliver actually lost his ice cream on Tuesday night for pushing his sister, so we tried again on Thursday night. The process was a lot better the second time, especially since I had Andrew to help me. Here they are loading the large bags with ice and rock salt:

Here are the kiddos shaking their ice cream bags. It took about 5-10 minutes of shaking to churn some ice cream. Oliver was so excited this time around, and he declared that he wasn't going to push Jo!

Just like Tuesday night, our attempt last night had one winner and one failure. The one that worked turned out perfectly!

I think the kids enjoyed it!

Well, it looks like we're making some progress on our summer bucket list. This past weekend, we went to the splash park at Centennial Center Park, and, today, we made ice cream!

Our updated summer bucket list:

* Watch a fireworks display on the Fourth of July.
* Bake a berry stars & stripes cake with Oliver.
* Run through the sprinklers.
* Go to a splash park.
* Play in the "creek" at the Children's Mordecai Gardens at the Denver Botanic Gardens.
* Watch our first parade.
* Ride the outdoor train at Belleview Park.
* Visit a petting zoo.
* Take the kids for a swim.
* Have a real outdoor picnic on the grass with a picnic basket.
* Watch a sunrise.
* Go for a hike in the mountains.
* Go on a road trip.
* Go out for an ice cream cone, and eat it outside!
* Make our own ice cream, and let Oliver choose the flavor.
* Pick and eat vegetables out of the garden we're growing at Grandma Judy's house.
* Eat cherry tomatoes right off the vine at Aunt Bonnie & Uncle George's house.
* Throw water balloons.
* Go tent camping overnight.
* Look at stars in the sky.
* Visit Andrew at work for lunch.
* Take the train downtown to visit Grandpa Larry for lunch.
* Go to the Fireman's Museum.
* Use sidewalk chalk.
* Blow bubbles.
* Take Father's Day photos with the letters that spell out "DAD" again.

First Annual Kid's Day

Andrew and I scrapped our plans to go to the mountains to look at changing leaves in favor of having a day to do all things "Oliver." First, we took him to Costco, which is one of his favorite places to go because there's so much going on! If you've never been to Costco, let me quick tell you about it. It's a giant warehouse filled with bulk items at cheap prices. They also have tables set up at the end of almost every aisle that offer free samples. Well, today, they had a table of waffle sections. Oliver was thrilled!

After Costco, Oliver needed a nap. He woke an hour later, and we took him to the park. Andrew pushed him on the swing, and then we explored the lake shore and the early autumn leaves. We followed up the park with a stop at the ice cream parlor. I got a baby scoop of dairy-free mango sorbet for Oliver to try. He loved it, but he was more interested in Andrew's ice cream. Andrew had coffee ice cream, so we didn't dare let Oliver have a taste for fear he'd be up all night!

I needed to pick up some groceries, so we stopped by Safeway on our way home. We let Oliver hold and sample many of our groceries. He punctured the pomegranate, ate some of the cucumber, and got the package of cheese slices open!

Hurray for a fun and successful first annual Kid's Day!