Welcome poem for new women at church

Hello!

I love summertime! It sure is getting hot but I just love the fun atmosphere of summer and I also love that the population of my town goes down by about 30,000 during the summer and the traffic is gone! Wahoo to that!

Anyway, I have been asked to serve as the Secretary of our Women's Group at church and we are using a little poem that was sent to us. (I am so excited to be serving in this calling, I love the women who I go to church with and I have missed them the last year and a half that I have been helping with the children's class) The poem is attached to a little bag with all the highlighted words included in the bag. Its like a "welcome to our group" and "here is your starter kit" kind of thing but its got this cute poem attached to it and I thought I would share it. We give these to women who just join our church and to women who are graduating out of high school and entering the women's group that we call Relief Society. Its a Sisterhood of women!

Anyway, here is the poem. We printed it out and matted it on cute decorative card stock and tied it to their bag. You could also use a basket or substitute items as needed.

When you come join us, we'll be glad to welcome you,

Into our WORLDWIDE SISTERHOOD, and to a group that's new.

So here's a little something to help you on your way,

As you head off for Relief Society and to a brand new day

You'll need a lesson manual with precious truths inside,
The lessons strengthen testimonies as they are taught worldwide.

Now when you find the meeting great and need to remember what you heard
Just use the pad and pencil to write down every word.

The tissues are for wiping tears when lessons touch your heart,
And we know you will love them all, right from the very start!

Here's a bookmark for your scriptures.
Please take them every week.
We'll study them together, as guidance we will seek.

You'll benefit if you will "CHEWS" to mingle with the flock,
By attending Enrichment Activities, you'll find
Relief Society really ROCKS!

And last, an invitation in which every word rings true,
"Cause you should know that Relief Society
Has a special place for YOU!

With Love,
Your Relief Society Presidency

Recipe: Wilted Spinach Salad

My mother has made this salad ever since I was a little girl. Its yummy!

Wilted Spinach Salad

1 Recipe of Wilted Spinach Salad Dressing (see below)
1 cup of sliced fresh mushrooms
1 cup of fresh baby spinach greens
2 slices of bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled or use bacon bits
1 green onion, finely sliced

You can also add a cut up boiled egg, French's fried onions, or nuts, if desired.

Prepare salad dressing, set aside. Place mushrooms in bowl. Pour half of the dressing over the mushrooms, microwave one minute. Prepare salad by placing spinach, onions, and bacon in a bowl and top with warm salad dressing. Add more dressing as needed to lighlty coat salad.

Wilted Spinach Salad Dressing
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1/2 cup of salad oil or olive oil
1/2 cup of sugar
1/s teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of prepared mustard
1 Tablespoon of grated onion
Mix all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth

Keeps for 3 weeks in the fridge

Recipe: Peanut Butter Bars

I love peanut butter and these bars are like Reese's peanut butter cups in flavor. My friend Melissa used to make these at her house when we were in high school and I loved them then as I do now. I am not sure if this is Melissa's exact recipe, but its simple and doesn't require an oven so it can keep the house cool during those hot summer days.

Peanut Butter Bars

12 whole Graham Crackers, rushed
1 cup of butter softened
1 cup of peanut butter
3 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
1 12 ounce package of chocolate chips (use whichever kind you prefer)

Combine crushed Graham crackers, butter, peanut butter, and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Pat firmly into a greased 9X13 inch pan. Melt chocolate chips in the microwave in 20 second intervals, stirring in between, until they are spreading consistency. Frost bars with chocolate and refrigerate. When chilled, cut into small squares. You can also just spread the bars with chocolate chips and pop them in a hot oven for a few minutes until they melt and spread it that way, but that requires heat and we are avoiding making the kitchen hot!

These are so yummy. I am sorry to all the people out there with nut allergies, nut allergies are such a bummer.

Be beautiful!
H

HFPE Idea: Summer Cooking

With the heat getting turned up and summer coming at us full throttle, I think its a great time to offer a summer cooking class for your Ladies club nights for church. Slow cooker and crock pot recipes are great because they are easy and don't heat up the kitchen. Cool summer treats like sorbets, sherbets, and ice creams help keep you cool, and great food on the grill all make good summer food. These make for fun cooking classes and poolside parties. I will be sharing recipes this week that are great summer foods and ideas for easy foods and cooking classes.

Stay tuned for great Summer foods!

Every summer I pull out my ice cream maker and experiment with different recipes. So far I have made strawberry sorbet and a low cal peach ice cream (where I used half and half and 2% milk to cut some calories). The difference between these and ice cream is texture. The sorbets are almost like a frozen snow cone since there is no cream. Sherbets use milk instead of cream so they are a little creamier but not as rich. The peach low cal ice cream, which may be closer to an ice milk, was very tasty and had a consistency more like the ice cream we made from snow when I was little. It was very good....and I can hardly stop eating it and my guests loved it....but its not overly creamy like a good quality ice cream....but it probably has more than half the calories and I have really enjoyed it. I am willing to give up the creaminess so I can save some calories and the taste is just as good. I will post that recipe soon!

I hope you all have a fun and healthy summer! Stay tuned for yummy recipes this week!

Simple can be beautiful!

Heather

Happy Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day to all. Its been a really fun and relaxing weekend for us with time spent with family, gardening, yardwork, and naps! I would like to send out my thanks to all the service women and men out there past, present, and future, who sacrifice so much for us to live the lives we do and have these freedoms. I also truly appreciate the families of these individuals who also sacrifice so much. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Recipe: Lentils with Fresh Chiles and Cilantro

Happy Friday and Memorial Day Weekend!

I love me a good 3 day weekend! I have no huge plans, just some gardening and work around the house....with no timeline whatsoever....I am excited about that. I also need to buy groceries....the cupboard is bare!

So anyway, I have a yummy recipe to share with you that is from my friend Lori. She made this for a healthy eating HFPE Night at church and it got rave reviews!

I hope you enjoy it!

Lentils with Fresh Chile's & Cilantro

2 cups split red lentils (Our local grocery store has them on the bread isle in the Indian section)
1 16oz can Garbanzo Beans or chick peas, drained
3 Tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic-pressed
2 tsp fresh ginger root-pressed
2-3 fresh Anaheim green chilies, seeded and chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
4 cups warm water
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves-chopped

Wash lentils and let soak for 30 minutes. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan, preferably nonstick, over medium heat and add the onion, garlic, ginger, and chilies. Stir fry the mixture until it begins to brown.

Drain the lentils and add to the onion mixture together with the cumin. Reduce the heat to low and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, then pour in the warm water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes.Stir in the salt, cilantro. Serve garnished with the strips of chile and tomato. I serve this dish on top of basmati or brown rice.

Recipe: Strawberry Banana Sherbet

I started making this years ago and love it because it is light and fresh tasting and not too high caloried. I got this recipe from a Martha Stewart show I watched one summer.

Strawberry Banana Sherbet
Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

4 cups (2 pints) strawberries, stemmed
4 medium, very ripe bananas, peeled
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup (about 4 oranges) fresh orange juice
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, (about 1 1/2 lemons)
2 cups whole milk

Directions
Place strawberries in a large bowl. Using a potato masher, mash strawberries, and set aside.
Place bananas and sugar in a medium bowl. Using the potato masher, mash until smooth.
Add banana mixture to strawberries, and mix well. Stir in orange juice, lemon juice, and milk. Divide the mixture among four metal ice-cube trays, about 2 cups per tray. The sherbet can also be poured into a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish and placed in freezer. Stir every 30 minutes until frozen, about 4 hours.

And also, Dreyer's is doing a contest for 1,500 free ice cream parties for your neighborhood. I thought this was a fun idea and who can beat a free ice cream party? You just have to write a paragraph. Here is the link http://edys.neighborhoodsalute.com/

Each ice cream party will include:

Door-step Delivery of ten (10) cartons of Dreyer’s/Edy’s Slow Churned ice cream and thirty six (36) Dreyer’s/Edy’s ice cream snack size cups
One (1) “Party In A Box”, which includes:
* 100 bowls/cups
* 100 plastic spoons
* 10 plastic scoops
* 200 napkins
* 1 disposable camera
* 1 yard sign
* 1 marker
* 100 name tags
* 2 table covers
* 25 door hanger invitations
* Commemorative ice cream scoop
* Wipes for sticky fingers

Recipe: Pizza Roll Ups

My sister just sent me this recipe and it sounds great. It has her stamp of approval and I think I may make it tonight for dinner!


Two summers ago she helped to put together a family Recipe Exchange & cookbook for her family reunion. Well, last week she tried this recipe & LOVED it.


Pizza Roll-Ups
Submitted by Lynae E.

Crust:
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 cup warm water
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons oil
3-3½ cups flour

Mix yeast in warm water in large mixing bowl. Add sugar, salt and oil. Stir well. Add flour and stir until well combined. Knead for 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth. Cover and let raise at least 30 minutes (and up to an hour) in a warm place.

Filling:
½ of 6 oz can Italian tomato paste
Garlic powder
Parmesan cheese
Shredded mozzarella cheese, about 2 ozs.
Small amounts of one or more of the following: Broccoli, pepperoni, olives, bacon, ham, etc.

Roll crust into large circle on well floured surface. Spread with tomato paste and sprinkle with garlic powder, Parmesan cheese and other toppings. Using a pizza cutter, cut circle into 16 pie-shaped pieces. Roll up from outside into center. Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy.

Random Thoughts--Yay for Fridays

Fridays are fun....even when I know I have to work on Saturday, I am always glad to get to Friday.

This weekend we are going to visit some of my hubbie's family and I am excited to see them and get a change of scenery....and hopefully have some really yummy food!

Bootcamp Week 3 just ended and next week is the last week of my 4th bootcamp. I have to tell ya that I feel great. Honestly, I feel so good. I feel healthier and stronger and it really is empowering. I was the ultimate couch potato for years and boy do I think that was silly. I should have done this years ago.

Have any of you seen "Wicked"? It is coming to San Antonio and Austin this summer and I am trying to work it out so I can go....I want to see it SO BAD! I already love it and know all the songs and the storyline, but I want to see it live and in person!

I am so pleased with our garden. I now cook on a regular basis with the squash and peppers from the garden and I can't wait for the tomatoes to start coming....and when they do I better have a huge basket and a big kettle so I can start canning and making hot sauce and whatever else I can think of, because it looks like we will have quite the harvest! I also have some cantaloupe and watermelons that the plants are getting huge on and I think they may take over that section of the lawn.

I have been asked to do a new "job" at church and I am thrilled. I no longer teach the 11-12 year old girls, I am back with the women's group (aka Relief Society) as the Secretary to the President. I am so excited to be back among the women and to be helping in this capacity. I truly love the women we have at church....even the ones who tend to drive me crazy at times....so I know that is Heavenly Father blessing me with the ability to love them in spite of what they might do to my nerves. :) Although, I must say that really happens few and far between, they are a lovely group of ladies.

I haven't posted very many Enrichment or Ladies night ideas lately...sorry about that....the end of the semester this year has been totally crazy and busy but things are quieted some now that finals are over. I will strive to be better! I went to a fun Enrichment night the other day where we took personality tests and got in groups so we could see who was like us. It was really fun! I am trying to get some of the materials from the leader and will post that when I can.

I made a yummy lasagna last night that I will have to post. It was a basic lasagna with and extra layer of roasted squash, onions, and peppers and it was just fabulous. I have also been working on my whole wheat bread recipe for sandwich bread and I learned that after its all mixed, its best to knead it for about 7 minutes, I use my mixer, then let it rise twice.

I do not have any huge plans for this summer...except hopefully seeing "Wicked"....but it is already in the 80s here and we will be in the 90s soon. When I work out in the mornings, I turn into a sweat monster. Literally I have sweat dripping off my nose and down my face....that is what 100% humidity and 84 degrees will do to you....I am sure it will only get worse! But, I feel so good when I am done that it is so worth it. And, I believe I have now lost about 2 dress sizes....so that is awesomeness in a bucket!

So, I hope you all have a lovely weekend and relax a little and get some things done. I will try to get everything done tonight before we go visit tomorrow!

Be beautiful!

Heather

Random Thoughts:A post Mother's Day greeting

I hope all those nurturer's and wonderful women had a great day in your honor. Whether you are a mother or not, its a day to honor women! I know as a wife without kids, I thought Mother's Day was a little silly when people would tell me happy mother's day....but now as a mother, I see all these wonderful women in my life who help me get through it all and I realize, you don't have to have your own kiddos to still have a mothering spirit!

I worked out at boot camp this morning and I am so pleased with my progress! While the workouts seem harder, some of the things I hated to do because they were so hard are now much easier....and clothes fit better and I just generally feel great. Sure, I am tired by the time 10pm rolls around and I am in bed earlier than EVER, but the feeling I have after working out and sweating profusely (especially these days when its already 80 here at 5:30am) is worth it.

So, do something nice or maybe hard for your body. Challenge it today to do something you didn't think you could do and work toward getting good at it. Repetition is the key and doing it over and over again with good form will eventually make it easier and easier.....and then you have to step it up a notch!

Be good and be beautiful!

Heather

Happy Mother's Day

I hope all the nurturer's out there have a wonderful Mother's Day!! You don't have to have given birth to be honored on Mother's Day...its for a those women out there who nuture and care for others.

I hope you feel beauitful today!!!

Heather

Recipe: Pretzels

Well, it seems that I only talked about the pretzels I made a while ago and never posted the recipe! Shame on me!

Here is the recipe....and like I said earlier, I would roll the dough out so its slightly thinner than you think it should be before you make a pretzel. These are yummy and fun and I think it would make a fun Ladies Night lesson at church or a fun kitchen project with your kids. I know my son thought it was oodles and gobs of fun to play with the dough!

I have pictures at home I will post as soon as I have a free 20 minutes! For the original recipe from Smitten Kitchen, go to http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/02/knotted-and-stacked-disappearing-acts/

Soft Pretzels
Adapted from Martha Stewart

Updated with a few tweaks 2/20/2009

Makes 16 full-sized or 32 miniature

Ingredients:
2 cups warm water (100°F to 110°F)
1 tablespoon + 2 tablespoons sugar
1 packet active dry yeast
5 to 6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons canola or other neutral oil
1/4 cup baking soda
1 large egg
Coarse or pretzel salt
Vegetable-oil cooking spray

1. Pour warm water into bowl of electric mixer fitted with a dough hook*. In a small bowl, combine water and 1 tablespoon sugar, and stir to dissolve sugar. Sprinkle with yeast, and let sit 10 minutes; yeast should be foamy.

2. Add 1 cup flour to yeast, and mix on low until combined. Add salt and 4 cups flour, and mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Beat on medium-low until dough pulls away from sides of bowl, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup flour, and knead on low 1 minute more. If dough is still wet and sticky, add 1/2 cup more flour (this will depend on weather conditions); knead until combined, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a lightly floured board, and knead about ten times, or until smooth.

3. Pour oil into a large bowl; swirl to coat sides. Transfer dough to bowl, turning dough to completely cover all sides. Cover with a kitchen towel, and leave in a warm spot for 1 hour, or until dough has doubled in size.

4. Heat oven to 450°F. Lightly spray two baking sheets with cooking spray (parchment paper, ungreased, also works). Set aside. Punch down dough to remove bubbles. Transfer to a lightly floured board. Knead once or twice, divide into 16 pieces (about 2 1/2 ounces each) or 32 if making miniature pretzels, and wrap in plastic.

5. Roll one piece of dough at a time into an 18-inch-long strip. [I find the pretzels much easier to roll on an unfloured board, oddly enough, but see what works for you.] Twist into pretzel shape; transfer to prepared baking sheet. Cover with a kitchen towel. Continue to form pretzels; eight will fit on each sheet (you may need a third sheet if making miniatures). Let pretzels rest until they rise slightly, about 15 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, fill large, shallow pot with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil. Add baking soda (and step back, it foams up quickly) and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Reduce to a simmer; transfer three to four pretzels to water. Poach 1 minute on each side. Use slotted spoon to transfer pretzels to baking sheet. Continue until all pretzels are poached.

7. Beat egg with 1 tablespoon water. Brush pretzels with egg glaze. Sprinkle with salt. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on wire rack, or eat warm. Pretzels are best when eaten the same day, but will keep at room temperature, uncovered, for two days. Do not store in covered container or they will become soggy.

Note from Smitten Kitchen * These days, I mix all of my bread doughs by hand, with a wooden spoon. I find it a fantastically easy process, and not very hard to stir by hand. No need to mix for several minutes, just a minute or so after it looks combined. To save even more dishes, I rinse out the bowl, oil it and use it for proofing the dough. And you thought making bread wasn’t simple!

Gifts: Teacher Bags

I made these bags for the teacher's at my son's school for Teacher Appreciation Week. They were simple and easy, just a little time consuming if you have to do a lot but really not too bad. I stamped their names on with Stampin Up Craft Ink and then did iron on flowers and dragonflies. I think they turned out super cute! They probably work out to be around $3.50 per bag, I think but you could do it for less if you use different decorations or smaller bags.

They came in a 3 pack with denim, pink, and green.

Here is the full shot of one bag.

Here is what it looked like once I rolled it all up and put a thank you card on it that I stamped.

This is just the overhead shot once they were all done.

And a front shot. The 2 denim ones in the back were for his two teachers who are with him the most so I put apples, oranges, and pears in theirs as an additional treat.

It would probably take me 2 hours, start to finish, to do all these, make the cards, roll them up and completely finish. And.....they are so cute!

I think I will make one this weekend that will be my new lunch bag!

Random Thoughts: The Runner's group

Well, I have moved up to the runner's group in my boot camp. I am certainly not the fastest...in fact I am the slowest probably.....but you know what....I feel GREAT and I just plain feel good and healthy! This morning as I drive to work the thought crossed my mind...."I wonder if there is a 5K this weekend that I could run in?" Whoa.....

This boot camp has changed me, its changed my life, and I am such the better person for it. I feel better, I am happier, and dog gone it...people like me! (Ooops, sorry, I digressed to Saturday night live in the 80s there for a second)

But truly....if you are sitting there thinking you can't do it....then you are probably just being a Negative Nellie and you really probably can....start slow....but work hard. There is nothing easy about it, but the pay off is great. I can truly say that I didn't know that I was feeling that bad before until now I feel this good and think how sluggish and tired I always was before.

So do it....get up....walk the neighborhood....then after a few days....jog a bit....then walk for 2 minutes and run for 1 minute....then lengthen the run and lessen the walk. It IS baby steps but they are baby steps with weights on your feet and they are hard.

Stop telling yourself that you are the fat sister and you are okay with it. That has been me for a long time. I will no longer be the fat sister. I have 2 beautiful sisters who are both smaller than me and I will not be the fat one any longer. ( I can probably out do them in push ups as we speak) Don't be complacent, don't be a complainer....don't be less than you are capable of being. Its all a waste of effort....turn that effort into a jumping jack and burn some calories and you will see that you start to eat better and feel better.

I love ya....now love yourself and be beautiful!

Recipe: Pie Lemorange

Sounds Fancy doesn't it? Pie Lemorange....say it with a French accent and you sound very culinary.

This is actually one of the simplest pies I have ever heard of. I received a cookbook that was my grandmother's, the one who passed away last year, and I love the simplicity and frugality of the recipes. It is a local church cookbook from her community and it is printed on "ditto" sheets and put in a three ring binder. As I first started to look through this book, I found things amusing, like using "oleo" instead of butter....and one of the recipes was how to make your own salami! But as I looked at each recipe, they are simple and inexpensive. I think today we are a little spoiled with the Food Network at our fingertips. These women had ingenuity and stretched their budgets to accommodate growing families, friends, and funerals...whatever they and the people in the community needed.

I saw this recipe and thought it sounded too simple....I didn't even know you could whip evaporated milk! Anyway, I made this and took it to an office party and it was quickly gobbled up. I also like it because it is light and not heavy on the calorie count either.

The original recipe called for orange jello, but I had lemon so I used it instead. I am fairly certain you could use any flavor of jello and it would work.

Ingredients:

1 cup of evaporated milk
1 cup of orange juice
1 small box of lemon jello (I used sugar free, and again, I think any flavor would work)
2 tablespoons of lemon juice (I used the stuff in the little plastic lemon)
1/3 cup of sugar
1 graham cracker pie crust, 9 inches

Chill the evaporated milk in the refridgerator for at least 20 minutes but I put it in overnight and it worked great! I think longer than 20 minutes would be better.

Take the cup of orange juice and microwave it until it is warm. Dissolve box of jello into the orange juice and add the sugar and lemon juice. Stir all together and let sit for 20 minutes to thicken and kind of gel.

Once the gel is thickened, take the evaporated milk and place in a mixing bow and mix with a whisk beater until stiff peaks form. Once they are formed, gently fold in the gelled mixture until the jello mixture is thoroughly mixed throughout the milk. Pour into a pie crust and chill for 2 hours. Garnish with a sprig of mint if you like.

EASY!!! Without the waiting and such, the total work time is like 5 minutes. Its a light, smooth, and a fairly health conscience pie!

Enjoy!

National Teacher Appreciation Day! And Cinco De Mayo!

Today is National Teacher Appreciation day and Cindo De Mayo! So, tell your teachers thank you and go have a burrito!

We celebrate Cinco De Mayo every year at our house!

Make it a beauitiful day!

Heather

Recipe: North Texas Student Union Coffee Cake

I made some of this coffee cake for Mom last night to see if it was like the "real thing" that she loved when she was in college and she said from the looks of it, it was! So, thanks to my grandmother and her Bridgeport Methodist Cookbook, we now have the recipe....it also helps that I must have guessed right on a few of the vague instructions, like add vanilla....didn't say how much, just to add it!

So, here is the recipe for one and all....

North Texas Student Union Coffee Cake

Cake Ingredients:
4 cups flour
4 Tablespoons of Dry Milk
4 teaspoons of backing powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 1/3 cup of sugar
12-14 Tablespoons of shortening (I used the butter shortening because I had it open)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons of vanilla (I used the real vanilla, not imitation)
1 1/2 cups of water

Topping Ingredients:
1/2 stick of butter
3/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of flour
1 Tablespoon of cinnamon

Combine flour, milk, baking powder, salt, and sugar.

Add shortening and cut in as you would a pie crust.

Add eggs, water, vanilla, and beat (I used my paddle attachment on my kitchen aid and barely had to mix it, just mix until it is incorporated nicely.) The mixture will be fairly thick.

Pour into a greased (I greased my glass 13X9 baking dish with butter because I was out of Pam) baking dish.

Melt butter and pour or brush it on the top. Mix the sugar, flour, and cinnamon for the topping and layer on top and pat down a little. You can top with chopped pecans if you like.

Bake for about 55 minutes until a toothpick in the middle comes out fairly clean. This puffs up pretty tall, so it take a while. My instructions said to cook for 35 minutes but I found it needed a lot more, so just keep an eye on it.

This is a great cake for breakfast or a brunch. I am sure it is good with coffee as well but I don't drink coffee so I had it with milk!

Recipe: Pretzels

Howdy all....YEA for FRIDAYS! Our semester here at the university is drawing to a close and finals are about to start for the students.....which means glorious and lovely summer is almost here and about 30,000 of our students go home and traffic is so nice! Love it!

Anyway, we had a torrential downpour here earlier this week and it was on a day I took off to go down to Houston for the day but there was flooding from here to Houston so our trip was cancelled.....and since I already had the day off, I did a little baking and made these pretzels from Smitten Kitten. They are good. Mine turned out a little too chewy but I think the humidity....all 10000000% of it made it a little chewy. My only advice would be to make the little "snakes" that you roll out thinner than you think they should be because once they rise and such, I didn't have any holes in my pretzel!

But anyway, I thought this would be a fun thing for kids. My little boy pulled up a chair to the counter and stood on it and "helped" me roll out and make the pretzels.....and by help I mean that he played and played with the dough of one to two pretzels and had a blast!

Happy Pretzeling!