Things I Do All Day

A Mom Blog

The Easiest Fudge Recipe Ever

by Leave a Comment

Easiest Fudge Recipe for the microwave and with two ingredients!

I love easy, simple recipes and I love recipes that I can easily do with my young kids.

My four year old LOVES to bake and is always asking to make things in the kitchen.

However, sometimes I just want to do something quick with little mess– and something everyone will love to bake and eat too!

So, here’s the Easiest. Fudge. Recipe. Ever.

Super Easy Fudge Recipe with only two ingredients for the microwave for 15 minute fudge

First, take one can of condensed milk and a bag of chocolate chips.

Dump the can of milk into a microwavable bowl and pour the bag of chocolate chips over the milk.

Cook in the microwave for one minute.

Stir.

Cook in the microwave for one more minute.

Stir.

If the chocolate chips have not melted yet, put the mixture back in the microwave for 30 second intervals until combined smoothly.

Grab a 8×8 pan and add parchment paper to the bottom.

Note: I didn’t have parchment paper so I used tinfoil, but parchment paper is preferred!

Pour mix into the pan.

Place the fudge in the fridge for one hour or more.

Cut and Enjoy!

Easiest Fudge Recipe

Super Easy 2-Ingredient Fudge Recipe
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Total Time 1 hr 10 mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 14 oz Condensed Milk
  • 12 oz Chocolate Chips

Instructions
 

  • Dump the can of condensed milk into a microwavable bowl and pour the bag of chocolate chips over the milk.
  • Cook in the microwave for one minute.
  • Stir mixture.
  • Cook in the microwave for another minute.
  • Stir, and then microwave if needed for 30 second intervals until chocolate chips are completely melted.
  • Put parchment paper on the bottom of an 8×8 pan and add mixture to pan.
  • Place pan in fridge for one hour or more until ready to serve.
  • Cut and enjoy!

This is such a super easy and fun activity with kids or a delicious treat for childless adults too!

Happy Baking!

Easy Salt Dough Ornaments with Kids

by Leave a Comment

Easy Salt Dough Ornament Recipe with Kids

I love making ornaments with the kids to give as gifts and every year we do Salt Dough Ornaments!

Salt Dough Ornaments are pretty easy but still very hands on and fun for kids to get involved!

I’ve done this every year since my child was around 20 months, so any age is good!

Just keep in mind you may lose a few over the years because they are somewhat fragile.

Here is a super easy recipe for Salt Dough Ornaments:

  • 1 Cup of Flour
  • 1/2 Cup of Salt
  • 1/2 Cup of Water

Mix together Flour and Salt then add the 1/2 cup of water. Stir in water until dough forms. You may want to use your hands to knead the dough– or have your kids stir or knead it!

It may take a few minutes (5 mins or so) until the dough forms!

Roll dough with rolling pin on parchment paper and add some flour to the paper to make it easier to roll out!

Once the dough is nice and flat (with around 1 inch thickness, or whatever you desire), use cookie cutters to cut out fun shapes!

I use Christmas Cookie Cutters (affiliate link) on my Salt Dough Ornaments, but you can even just use circle jars and make snowmen! Or just stick those little kid hands in and use their hands as a mold and an ornament!

You may need to continue to add flour to the dough to make it less sticky or more water if the dough gets to dry. Either or neither may happen!

Don’t forget to use a pen or another sharp tip to make a small hole on the top so you can add a ribbon to the ornament for later!

Bake at 200 degrees for 2 to 3 hours.

After baking, feel free to paint and decorate your salt dough ornaments!

*You can also double the recipe if you want to make a lot of ornaments for gifts and such, but this recipe still makes a bunch!

These do make great gifts and are fun to make with the kids!

Enjoy!

You May Also Like: Christmas Bucket List with Kids

Christmas Bucket List with Kids

by Leave a Comment

Christmas Bucket List with Kids for fun ideas of fun things to do this holiday season

Are you looking for some fun things to do this Christmas Season with kids?

Well, you make want to check out my Christmas Bucket List with 40 Ideas to do with kids this holiday season!

I definitely want to do SO many things with my toddler and preschooler while they are so into the Christmas Magic!

I’m going to try to do as many Christmas-y things as humanly possible but needed to make a Christmas Bucket List to keep track of everything! There’s so many fun things to do and so little time!

Also, don’t forget to check out 15 Christmas Traditions to Start with Your Family to get some good ideas of traditions to do ever year with your kids!

Here’s 40+ items on this Christmas Bucket List with Kids this Holiday Season:

  1. Write a Letter to Santa
  2. Take a Picture with Santa
  3. Chop Down a Christmas Tree
  4. Decorate the Christmas Tree
  5. Make a Popcorn Garland
  6. Decorate the House for Christmas
  7. Make a new ornament for the Christmas Tree
  8. Find The Elf on the Shelf
  9. Drink Hot Cocoa by a Cozy Fireplace
  10. Listen (and dance) to Christmas Music
  11. Watch Christmas Movies with Friends and/or Family
  12. Build a Snowman
  13. Go Sledding
  14. Drive around and look at Christmas Lights
  15. Go to a Tree Lighting
  16. Go to an annual Holiday Event
  17. Donate a Toy to Charity
  18. Volunteer your time to Spread Holiday Cheer
  19. Make a Christmas Gift this Year
  20. Make a Gingerbread House
  21. Bake and Decorate Cookies for Santa
  22. Deliver Cookies to a Neighbor or Friend
  23. Make an advent calendar and count the days ’til Xmas
  24. Go Caroling
  25. Go Ice Skating
  26. Read Polar Express
  27. Go on a Christmas Train Ride
  28. Go on a Sleigh Ride
  29. Send Christmas Cards to Family
  30. Make Gingerbread Playdough
  31. Make a Holiday Craft
  32. Wear Christmas Pajamas
  33. Make reindeer food for Rudolph
  34. Take Family Holiday Pictures
  35. Leave milk & cookies for Santa
  36. Wear an Ugly Christmas Sweater
  37. Wrap Christmas Gifts with Music in the background
  38. Send a Care Package to a Loved One
  39. Read the “Night Before Christmas” on Xmas Eve
  40. Do a Random Act of Kindness

What’s on your Christmas Bucket List with kids this year?

15 Christmas Traditions to Start With Your Family

by Leave a Comment

Annual Christmas Traditions to do every year with family and kids

The Christmas Season is full of memories and traditions and such a special time of year– especially when you have little ones!

Here are 15 ideas of Christmas Traditions to Start with your Family and enjoy every December:

*This post does contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy if you have any questions.

Count The Days ‘Til Christmas

Count down the days until Christmas with a fun calendar! Make your own calendar as a fun craft with the kids or buy a traditional advent calendar!

I buy the .99 chocolate advent calendars from Trader Joe’s because it’s easy.

However, there are a lot of non-food advent calendars that you can easily buy if you don’t want to give a piece of chocolate to the kids each day and don’t want to make one:

There’s also the Melissa & Doug Countdown to Christmas Wooden Advent Calendar or you could make your own advent calendar!

Here are 35 DIY Advent Calendar Ideas to give you some inspiration of ways of counting down ’til Christmas!

Find “The Elf” Every Morning

Elf on Shelf Relaxing in Florida Palm Trees on Vacation

The Elf on the Shelf is a fun tradition to do with the kids each year– one you probably didn’t have growing up yourself!

The Elf keeps an eye out for Santa and flies back to the North Pole each night and reports to Santa whether a child was naughty or nice.

The Elf will return in a new spot each night and kids love to find where the Elf ends up!

Some elves are VERY naughty and will get into mischief, but our elf is sort of boring. He usually just stays up high so my little ones aren’t tempted to touch him– since he can lose his flying magic if he is touched.

Here are 70+ creative Elf of the Shelf ideas for some inspiration of fun things to do with your Elf!

Send a Letter to Santa

Write and send a letter to Santa and let him know what you’d like for Christmas!

You can even use a free printable Santa Letter and just fill in the blanks if you have a young or timid writer!

While you are writing your letter to Santa, it’s a great time to make your Santa wish list– an annual tradition!

Make and Decorate Cookies for Santa

We leave out milk and cookies every year for Santa, but we also make and decorate the cookies together!

I usually do a big batch of sugar cookies on the 23rd and we will decorate it then or on Christmas Eve! We make the cookies from scratch and then use our holiday cookie cutters to make fun shapes!

We will then decorate the cookies together as a family! Sometimes when I host Christmas Eve, I’ll leave the cookies not decorated and have the kids decorate the cookies at the party as an easy activity! It’s a hit!

Making and decorating Christmas Cookies is a family favorite! We usually play Christmas music while we bake too!

Make a New Ornament Each Year

Easy Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments for an Annual Holiday Tradition

We try to make a new ornament together each year to put on the Christmas Tree!

We will also use make a few and give them out to family and friends as a fun present!

We’ve done Salt Dough Ornament for the first few years but I think as my kids become older and more engaged we will decide on an ornament craft together and do a new one each year!

It will be fun to look at back and see how our ornaments grow each year in skill as our kids grow!

Decorate the Christmas Tree Together

Christmas Music. Hot Cocoa. Christmas Tree Decorating!

I love decorating the Christmas Tree together as a family with Christmas music, hot cocoa and family!

We usually decorate the Christmas Tree and the inside of the house at the same time!

We love decorating the Christmas Tree together as well as putting some homemade ornaments on the tree too!

Read Christmas Books at Night

Switch out those nightly favorite books for Christmas books for the month of December.

I know some people have a tradition of having kids unwrap a book every day in the month of December leading up to Christmas.

We don’t do that specific tradition, but I try to break out the Christmas books that we do have and get some others at the library for a good variety.

Some favorite Christmas Books for kids are:

Also, don’t forget to check out your local library to check out Christmas Books to help save some money!

We always make sure to read The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve, but I pull out some Christmas Books for the season.

Decorate a Gingerbread House

My kids will usually decorate a Gingerbread House with Dad while I’m out Christmas shopping or doing something else!

I’ll usually just buy the Gingerbread House box kits at Michael’s or Trader Joe’s but maybe we will make better Gingerbread Houses when the kids are bigger!

Family Christmas Traditions to Start With Your Kids and Family

Take a Photo with Santa

We always try to take a photo with Santa… at least attempt it because with two little ones it doesn’t always happen perfectly– or at all!

We like to find free photos with Santa since we never know how they are going to go. Bass Pro Shops or a local event are good places to look for free photos with Santa– although Bass Pro Shops can have long lines, especially my local one.

A few malls near me, surprisingly, offer free photos with Santa so do some research to see if you can find a free option first! We did PetSmart one year too so our dog could come too!

It’s always fun to meet Santa– even if it doesn’t go perfectly!

Drive and search for Christmas Lights around Town

Make driving around and searching for Christmas Lights a family tradition!

Check the local paper and local boards to see if you can find recommendations of local Christmas light displays too!

We love watching the Christmas Light battles on TV too and wish we had some of these amazing displays in our neighborhood!

However, my kids are so little, they love all the lights and Christmas displays!

Visit an Annual Christmas Event in Your Town

Do you have a Town Christmas Tree Lighting? A Christmas Pageant? Toy Drive?

Find a fun Christmas event and do it every year as a family!

A store near us does a free Christmas display and we see it every year– we even meet Santa there!

Watch Christmas Movies as a Family

Stay in one night and watch a Christmas movie as a family!

You can watch the same Christmas movie each year or discover a new favorite each year!

Open a Gift on Christmas Eve

Family Christmas Eve Tradition: Open a present the night before with family

As a child, we always opened a gift on Christmas Eve and something I now do with my kids!

I will sometimes put a gift to the side for Christmas Eve if I have something in particular I’d like them to open– usually Christmas Pajamas! If I don’t have Christmas Pajamas, I’ll have them open a box of their choice– with some mom approval first.

I love opening a gift the night before Christmas is a favorite family tradition in our house!

Sponsor a Child in Need

If you can, consider sponsoring a child for Christmas and grant some wishes on their Christmas list!

You can also donate toys to Toys for Tots or a local charity to help make a Christmas a little brighter for a child!

We always looked for a “giving tree” at a local church, mall, etc. and selected a child and gift from the tree.

If you can’t sponsor a child, but want to give back this Christmas, you can make it a family tradition to volunteer at a soup kitchen as a family, wrapping presents at a toy drive, or another act of kindness.

Giving back during the Christmas season may be an annual tradition that you’d like to start as a family!

Put Baby Jesus out on Christmas Day

We had a Nativity set in our dining room growing up, and before we started the Christmas morning festivities, one of us would put out Baby Jesus and add him to the Nativity scene.

My kids are so little, I have the Fisher Price Nativity Set, and will upgrade when they can handle a more fragile set.

It was a family tradition that we did every year and it was a reminder what the holiday season was really about.

What Christmas Traditions do you do with your family each year?

You May Also Like: How to Watch Hallmark Christmas Movies Without Cable

How to Watch Hallmark Christmas Movies

by Leave a Comment

How to Watch The Hallmark Channel without cable

Are you looking to watch Hallmark Christmas movies but don’t have cable? How do you get the Hallmark Channel through streaming?

I love a good Hallmark movie, especially a Hallmark Christmas movie, but unfortunately the Hallmark Channel is one of the harder channels to watch without a cable package. (And I’m far too frugal to pay for cable!)

Hallmark Channel does offer their own streaming service, Hallmark Channel Now, but unfortunately, it only includes older movies and does not include new and live movies.

Hallmark Movies Now is $5.99/month but is not an option if you are looking for new Hallmark Christmas movies or looking to stream current programs.

Also, some of the biggest streaming providers don’t offer any Hallmark options.

I already had access to the biggest streaming options, but I still couldn’t access the Hallmark Channel.

Here are the popular streaming options I currently have access to:

  • Amazon Prime
  • Hulu
  • Netflix
  • YouTube TV

Unfortunately, none of the options above offered the ability to watch new Hallmark movies or stream live– especially 2019 Hallmark Christmas Movies!

I found some old Hallmark and Hallmark-ish movies on Amazon Prime and Netflix, but unfortunately the selection was very limited.

You can get When Calls The Heart and The Good Witch on Netflix but the latest season usually isn’t available until a new season starts.

So, how can you stream the Hallmark Channel live and watch Hallmark Christmas Movies this year?

*This post does contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy if you have any questions.

How to Watch the Hallmark Channel Legally Without Cable

There’s a few different streaming options to watch the Hallmark Channel (and other channels too!)

  • Frndly: Package options vary between $5.99-$9.99/month, Free 7-Day Trial
  • FuboTV: Options starting at $54.99/month for 70+ channels, Free 7-Day Trial
  • Philo: $20/month for 58 channels, Free 7-Day Trial
  • Sling TV: Packages starting as low as $25**/month (but you would need to add on Hallmark Channel to a package for $5/month). **There’s a 40% off deal currently, making it $15 month + $5 add on = As low as $20/month. Free 7-Day Trial.
  • Playstation Vue: $54.99/month for the Core package, but $65.99 for the Elite package to get all 3 Hallmark Channels. Free 5-Day Trial.
  • AT&T TV Now (Formerly DirecTV Now): Packages start at $50/month

You can always sign up for a trial and then cancel it before the trial ends. You can try a few and see what you like best. The free trials may even get you through the Christmas season!

Keep in mind that not every option below may work for you and not every streaming option will take every streaming device. You’ll want to research further to make sure you’ll be able to stream with your Smart TV, streaming device, and/or online.

You will also need a streaming device and/or a Smart TV to stream from your TV. Here are some of the most popular streaming devices:

There are other streaming options as well, so make sure to research to see what would work best for you!

I have a Firestick and Smart TV and have no complaints with either and perfect for streaming Hallmark Christmas movies and other favorites this Christmas season!

I'm Watching Hallmark Christmas Movies Socks, Hallmark Channel Inspired Socks

How Do I Stream the Hallmark Channel?

Frndly. After all the options, I decided to do the free trial for Frndly and so far so good.

I decided to do the $7.99 option because I’d like the DVR option and have the ability to record Christmas movies and watch it whenever I want!

It’s so nice to be able to watch Hallmark Christmas movies live AND to record for later!

I also didn’t want to pay $50/month for a streaming service because I don’t want or need a bunch of different channels at this time since I’m pretty much covered with other channels with other services.

I may try Philo at some point though because it would be nice to watch Lifetime Christmas movies, but I may just wait a little closer to Christmas to do so. We will see.

How do you watch Hallmark Christmas movies without cable? What’s your favorite Hallmark Christmas movie?

Fun Marshmallow Building Activity for All Ages

by Leave a Comment

marshmallow and toothpick building toddler and kid activity

Building with marshmallows and toothpicks is a classic activity.

I remember in middle school building with marshmallows and toothpicks to see what team could build the strongest bridge and then in high school, the biggest tower.

I even built and played with marshmallows and toothpicks as a grown adult for team building exercises in college and work.

Building with Marshmallows and toothpicks, and other variations too, is a great activity for any age… even toddlers and preschoolers!

My 4 year old was looking for something to do and I wanted to get a few things done on my computer.

My husband was complaining earlier in the day that nobody was eating the marshmallows and they were getting stale… and viola! An easy activity was born.

I gave my building loving boy toothpicks, marshmallows at the table and he went to town while I worked for my laptop.

He LOVED it.

It kept him so busy building and he was learning at the same time.

He actually did pretty good building and it kept him busy for well over 30 minutes.

I always did this activity when I was older, but you can really do this activity at any age.

(My two year old just ate the marshmallows though and made me nervous with the toothpicks so maybe not so young, but my four year old was so great with this activity!)

Marshmallow Building Activity for Kids: Supplies and Instructions

This Marshmallow Building Activity is quite simple.

Here is the supplies needed for this easy kid activity:

  • Marshmallows (the regular size worked better for my 4 year old then the mini ones, but we’ve done both!)
  • Toothpicks

That’s it.

Put the marshmallows and toothpicks out, and let the kids (or adults!) play and build.

You may want to put some paper towels down or tablecloth down first for easy clean up but this wasn’t that messy, so you don’t have to if you don’t want too.

You can also give some instruction or leave it totally up to them to lead the activity.

I personally just set left toothpicks and marshmallows out on the table and let my 4 year old go to town.

He needed some instruction and showed him how to make a box, and then after that, it was all him.

I occasionally held something here and there for him, but it was such a simple and self play activity. A great activity for toddlers– or any age!

However, if your audience is a little older or with groups you could:

  • Create the tallest building without falling
  • Create the sturdiest bridge without breaking
  • Structure that can hold the most weight
  • Create a variety of 3-D shapes

This is such a fun STEM activity for any age and you could create a challenge to it or just leave it open for creative play.

More Ways to Build

You also switch up the supplies if you don’t have marshmallows and toothpicks or switch it up to add a little variety to the activity.

Here are some ideas you could also do to expand on the basic activity:

  • Gum Drops (instead of Marshmallows)
  • Peeps (instead of Marshmallows)
  • Jelly Beans (instead of Marshmallows)
  • Play Dough (instead of Marshmallows)
  • Clay (instead of Marshmallows)
  • Spaghetti (instead of toothpicks)
  • Pipe cleaners (instead of toothpicks)
  • Popsicle sticks (instead of toothpicks)
  • Pretzel sticks (instead of toothpicks)
  • Straws (instead of toothpicks)

You can switch up any or all the supplies or try them all!

There’s so much this little activity can do!

I love introducing marshmallow and toothpick building to my four year old– and he had so much fun with this as a preschooler!

I also did spaghetti and playdough with my two year old, and that was a hit for a younger age!

However, I’m sure I’ll add some new supplies and new challenges as my kids get older! This is such a versatile activity for toddlers to adults!

What is your favorite way to do this simple activity?

You May Also Like: 13 Things I Do Every Day as a Stay At Home Mom