Spinach Artichoke Chicken Pasta Bake
Raise your hand if you love casseroles! I’m such a fan. To me they are total comfort food and a symbol of home cooking. We may call them “bakes,” “pies” or other nicer sounding names, but a casserole is still a casserole. This recipe for a Spinach Artichoke Chicken Pasta Bake takes is really a very easy recipe. While the pasta cooks, the oven preheats and the sauce ingredients are combined. Toss it all together in a pan and 30-ish minutes later, dinner is done. Bonus: this pasta bake uses ingredients you probably keep in your fridge and cupboard anyway.
So let’s do a quick run down of the ingredients, plus you’ll find helpful tips about substitutions, etc.
…DIY: You Light Up My World Valentines — with Free Printable!
First of all, are you familiar with fingerlights? Basically, they are a tiny colored light with an on/off switch and an elastic band so you can wear it on your finger. A couple of Octobers ago, a neighbor gave them out to trick-or-treaters and I made a mental note of their awesomeness. I know they are just tiny little lights, but I find them quite irresistible and thought they would make wonderful candy-free valentines!
…DIY: You Light Up My World Valentines — with Free Printable!Read More »
DIY: Heart Pom Pom Bookmarks
Tada! Here’s a tutorial for insanely cute heart pom pom bookmarks. You can make these with your kids this weekend. They would be adorable as classmate valentines, but be sure to make an extra one just for you. Because they are almost too cute to give away.
I’ve got full photo instructions for you below. They are easier than you would guess. I promise!
…Dessert For Two: Lemon Curd Tarts
I adore lemon desserts. In fact, I would choose this over a chocolate dessert any day. And this recipe for Lemon Curd Tarts couldn’t be easier, with simple ingredients and very little prep — it takes maybe 10-15 minutes tops, not counting chilling time.
…New Year’s Resolutions + Kids
I adore making goals and resolutions. I love having a plan — even if the plan falls through. And I love having a handy list of goals and daydreams where I can focus my thoughts when I’m discouraged or distracted. Goals and Resolutions function as a map for me as I head into the foggy unknown of the new year.
Our family keeps a journal where we record our resolutions. To help our kids get started thinking about the coming year, they get a short reminder (read: lecture) about what resolutions are for — to become better people. Then, Ben Blair and I offer them prompter questions to get them started:
…8 Secrets to The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie
Chocolate chip cookies. Could there be a more perfect cookie in the world? And in my book, knowing how to bake them — and get a consistent outcome every time — is a basic life skill.
There are chocolate chip cookie variations. Thin and crispy with loads of butterscotch flavor. Soft and cake-y, dotted with a few chocolate chips. Or a fan favorite: irresistibly chewy and chock-full of dark, gooey chocolate.
For this tutorial, we’ll go with chewy chocolate chip cookies. But it will also include tips for creating different kinds of cookies (as mentioned above) and include troubleshooting advice as well. In no time at all you’ll be confidently playing around with your own recipe to make The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie.
…Living With Kids: Jacey Prupas
I know you’re going to enjoy Jacey’s story. She’s a mom working as an attorney, trying hard to reconcile her innate style and decor leanings with the reality of living with tiny stain machines! Her family is also living in a home affected by the burst of the Reno housing bubble, but they’re just fine staying put. With their family close-by and their children attending the very same preschool as Jacey did, they’re certainly not stuck. Such a wonderful way to view an often stressful situation, isn’t it?
Friends, please help me welcome Jacey and please enjoy this tour around her home.
…What To Stock In Your Art Supply Cupboard
I received an email from a reader that said: Hi Design Mom, I would LOVE it if you would consider doing a post about art supplies. I always wonder what staples I should keep on hand.
If you’ve never set up an art supply cupboard before, it can be intimidating. Craft stores and art supply stores are huge! How do you know where to start? But it’s a good answer to figure out, because a well-stocked art supply makes it a thousand times easier to get creative with your kids.
So here’s a list of 15 Art Supply Essentials + 4 Helpful Secrets. Keep your cupboard stocked with these suggestions, and you’ll be ready for pretty much any idea your budding artists come up with.
…Measuring the Impact of Ejaculate Responsibly
One of my big overarching goals with the Ejaculate Responsibly book, is to see it make a wide and deep impact. I understand it’s an ambitious goal, but I really want this book to help shift the unproductive conversations we’ve been having about abortion for decades, and focus them on something more concrete and practical.
I know it takes time to truly and accurately measure impact, but I’m impatient, and I’m a visual learner, so I thought it would be really neat to try to visualize the impact the book is having, or is going to have. So I’ve come up with a few “impact measurement goals” that I’d love your help with.
Impact Goal Number One: The Supreme Court
My first goal is getting the book into the hands of every Supreme Court Justice, all nine of them. And not just one copy. I want them to receive a bunch of copies. I’m thinking about their staff, their interns, their clerks — and want all of them to receive copies too. I’m thinking that if a Justice’s office receives a lot of books, with a lot of personal notes from people impacted by the Supreme Court’s decisions, the Justices are more likely to pay attention to the book and more likely to read it.
So, I kicked things off by ordering a book for the five justices who voted to overturn Roe: Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Coney-Barrett, and Thomas. And you’re invited to send books too!
…Gift Guide: Ten Books!
Here are ten books that came out in 2022 from people I know and love in real life. Great reviews on each. Highly recommend! Available in print, kindle, and audio.
…34 Gift Ideas for Tweens (Ages 8-12)!
For this Tween Gift Guide, I had in mind the big kids — in the 8-12 years old age range. Me and my kids came up with a ton of great ideas for you. There are 33 gifts on the list, and thirteen of them are $15 or less. Many things on the list would make good stocking stuffers too. Ready? Here goes…
…Design Mom’s Favorite Christmas Books
Tis the season to read holiday books while snuggled up on the sofa. Here’s a list of our top family favorites — and a few new-to-us titles too.
Some of these books are good for older readers (even grown ups) and some for the littlest listeners. Some are religious and sentimental, others are completely secular. But altogether, I think they make a really good collection.
For each title, I’m including links to Bookshop.org — it’s an online option that supports local independent bookstores. I’ll also include an Amazon link for each title, because I know some of you have credit there you’d like to use.
A great book-related idea: My sister-in-law Erin wraps up 25 Christmas books and uses them as an advent calendar — her kids unwrap one each day and read it as a family. (If you don’t have 25 Christmas books, you could start with what you have and borrow some from the library.)
You’ll notice this list is focused on Christmas books — because that’s the holiday my family celebrates, and it’s the one I know best. But obviously, there are lots of winter holidays that are celebrated across the world, so if you have recommendations for non-Christmas holiday books, I’d love to learn about them. Feel free to add links or titles in the comments.
…Holiday Prep Supplies
This is a great week to gather holiday supplies. I start by assessing my ribbon and wrapping and gift box stash, and filling in any gaps. (I stock up now for the whole year because prices are best this time of year.)
As for decor, we’ve been gathering it over 25 years of marriage, so in general, we have plenty. But I do notice that every year when we unpack the storage boxes, there’s an item or two that’s beyond repair or looking too shabby and needs to be replaced. So I like window shopping the holiday decor displays so that I know what’s out there, in case I need to pick something up.
Here are some of my very favorite sources for holiday prep:
…Making Handmade Gifts — 15 Very Cool Projects
Let’s talk handmade gifts. My tendency to focus on handmade gifting seems to wax and wane over the years. Sometimes I’m really into it — gathering ideas and supplies for weeks and then setting aside several days to work on the projects. Other times I’m perfectly content to buy something ready made.
For those of you who like to make gifts for the holidays, I’ve collected 15 really good ones that I think you’ll love. It’s a wide range of projects, and so many of them are great to make with kids. Especially 4, 5, 9 and 10.
…Scotland Travel Advice From Readers
During Fall Break, while our kids had time off school, we spent three days in Scotland! We loved it so much. We spent time in Edinburgh, and spent a day on Isle of Skye doing three famous hikes — The Fairy Pools, Old Man of Storr, and The Quiraing (the image above is from The Quiraing hike). You can find a full report from our trip in the Instagram Highlights called Scotland and Scotland 2.
When we were planning the trip, we received so many helpful DMs with advice and recommendations, and I thought I would share them here for anyone else planning their own visit to Scotland. Note: Our trip was the first week of November, so the advice below may or many not apply depending on when your trip is scheduled.
…Dessert For Two: Tiramisu
I’m a big fan of Dessert for Two recipes. They’re designed to help you make a treat just for you and someone you love — your spouse, your best friend, your teenager who is up late hitting the books. Here’s a Dessert for Two recipe for for delicious, mouth-watering Tiramisu.
…Apple Votive DIY
Let’s make apple votives! This is the ideal fall project. It’s simple, it’s easy, and you probably have everything you need to make these in your house right this minute. They’re the first Martha Stewart project I ever tried (way back in 1997!). And they’re still one of my favorites.
Making apple votives is super easy and doesn’t take much time at all. The finished display is so pretty and festive it makes for a really satisfying project.
…Living With Kids: Anne McGraw
There’s often a little internal struggle when all of our life’s dreams don’t look exactly like they did with our eyes closed. Even if the reality is just as wonderful and just as ideal, it takes a moment or two of growing pains to adjust! So I completely understand when Anne talks about her reticence to fully embrace suburban life for a while. Homes all on top of each other and neighbors knowing when you’re leaving and when you’re coming home wasn’t how she envisioned her life, but their location and all the lovely friends they’ve made in their neighborhood turned out to be a huge factor in the happiness levels of her family! Eyes closed or open, that is just heavenly.
Friends, I hope you enjoy the bright colors and bright ideas in this tour. I sure did! Welcome, McGraw family!
…Recipe: Easy Meatball Stroganoff
Creamy, protein-filled sauce poured over noodles or rice? It’s a universal favorite at our house. And this is hands down the easiest version ever, because it’s made with frozen meatballs instead of stew meat or hamburger. Even your pickiest eaters will want to gobble this right up. (Even if there are a few mushrooms pushed to the side — you can’t win them all.) I’m confident you’ll declare this recipe a winner.
Usually stroganoff includes buttered noodles or homemade spaetzle or even rice. And a perfect side dish to pair it with is braised red cabbage — find the simple recipe in the notes below in case you want to make it too.
Okay, so let’s get into how easy it is to make this meatball stroganoff!
…How to Make a Book Cover
As a high-school student, covering my textbooks was always something I looked forward to, (so that I could fill the blank covers with I-heart-Morrissey). With a new school year, it’s the perfect time for a little refresher course on covering books, don’t you think?
…