Signs of Learning!

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www.signsoflearning.com

If you are looking for something fun and educational to do with your little one, check out Signs of Learning a Raleigh based American Sign Language (ASL) school for babies and small children.  Yes, babies!  If you have never seen a baby use ASL it is an amazing and adorable sight.  

So check out their latest Class Schedule and like their Facebook Page for updates.  You can register for everything from a free informational session to Sing & Sign Playtime!  If you aren't in the Raleigh area, they also have great self-directed teaching aids.  Jess is an amazing teacher, you and your little one will just love her!

Pregnancy Tip for The Clueless Chick: if you are pregnant this is the perfect opportunity to learn a few signs before your bundle of joy arrives!

Personal Note:  As someone who was once fluent in ASL, I have signed to my little ones since the day they were born and they LOVE it!  Signing has helped my little ones communicate before they could talk and learn to spell.

Homemade Easter Play-Doh

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If you've never tried to make your own Play-Doh, you should!  It is super easy and requires just a few ingredients you likely already have in your pantry.

Ingredient:
2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1 cup salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon cream of tartar
food coloring

Complete instructions can be found on the Instructables website.

Tips:

• To achieve these pastel colors I divided each batch into quarters and added the following drops of food coloring:
• Blue and Green = 2 drops food coloring
• Yellow = 3 drops food coloring
• Pink = 5 drops food coloring
• Create a toddler friendly Easter Treat:
• Divide each color into eights 
• Roll each piece into a small ball and place inside a plastic egg (the cuter the better!)
• Wrap each egg in a small bag adorned with a favor tag or simply fill an Easter basket with your homemade Play-Doh eggs

You Can't Bring Baby Home Without....

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In the seemingly endless sea of pregnancy manuals, websites, blogs, tips, etc. Pregnancy Tips for The Clueless Chick is the only pregnancy guide that "cut[s] through the noise and let[s] you focus on the important things that you have to do!” -Deidra P.  One of the most valuable tips in Chapter 4 "Shopping and Showers" is the list of Baby Registry MUST Haves.  The Clueless Chick narrows down the list items to register for to a manageable size and highlights what you absolutely have to have before you can bring baby home.  As a first time expectant Mom who is a bit overwhelmed preparing for baby, there is nothing more helpful than a short list of what you absolutely have to do - once you've checked off everything on that list, the rest is just gravy :-)

Happy Reading!

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What Can't You Do With a Mason Jar?

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One of my favorite parts of Spring is breaking out iconic warm weather gear like shorts, sun screen and mason jars.  Yes, mason jars :-)  I am The Clueless Chick and I love Mason Jars.  What is more refreshing or relaxing (or southern) than a nice cold drink in a mason jar?  Recently I took my love of mason jars to a new level and used them as the packaging for these adorable Afternoon Tea Sprinkle Favors.  These Cupcake Mason Jars were lined with a cupcake wrapper and an adorable cupcake note card, filled with a variety of tea and Lindor truffles, and adorned with pink raffia and a cupcake favor tag designed to match the adorable Sprinkle invitations.  The favors were a huge hit!

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The best part of creating favors using functional containers is knowing that guests will be able to enjoy the favor, and remember the wonderful party, for years to come.  It is even better when you can give guests ideas for how to up-cycle their favor or packaging.

Cupcake Mason Jar Favors

 (1) Pint size Mason Jar with Lid

(1) Cupcake Note Card

(1) Colorful Cupcake Wrapper

(4) Varieties of Tea, individually wrapped

(3) Lindor Truffles

(1) Personalized Favor Tag

Raffia

Simply place the cupcake note card inside the mason jar so that design shows behind the "Ball" logo, add the cupcake wrapper followed by the tea and truffles.  Screw on the lid, tie your colorful raffia around the neck of the jar, add the favor tag, tie a bow and voila! 

(if you're feeling extra ambitious add iced tea or sun tea instructions to the jar, along with a few up-cycling tips)

What else do I love to do with Mason Jars you ask??  One of my all time favorites is dropping a few frozen strawberries into mason jars for serving Strawberry Pink Lemonade.  Not only does this make a super cute table display at a Spring Time party, Shower, or Backyard BBQ, it is fun and functional.

www.CluelessChick.com 

Cooking Class Bridal Shower

The Clueless Chick has also served some very yummy adult beverages with a southern twist (Whiskey Sours and Dixie Cups) in mason jars at A Very Christmas Cocktail Party.  At the Casual Co-ed Baby Shower we served milk in mason jars to compliment the super yummy Oreo cake!

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Casual Co-ed Baby Shower

You will also find flatware displayed in mason jars at most casual Clueless Chick parties.  We also have a few more Mason Jar tricks up our sleeve that will be featured at a very special little man's 1st Birthday Party next weekend - stay tuned!

One Last Mason Jar Tip:
While mason jars are not expensive and can be found in a number of different shapes and sizes at your local Wal*Mart, you can save yourself a few bucks by saving spaghetti sauce jars, or really any glass jar.  This is just one more way to do a little up-cycling!

Lasterday

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From the mouths of babes...love it!  You can't beat the adorable words a little one will make up to suit their own needs or fill a void.  If only we all could tap that innate ability to blaze our own paths and redefine the world around us.

Trailblazing Tips for The Clueless Chick:

• Discover what you are passionate about and do it.  Whether full time or in your spare time, make the time to feed your passion.
• Be your own woman.  Do not live up to other's expectations, define your own expectations.
• Be the best at everything you do, no mater what it is.
• Follow your gut and make your own rules.

Your destiny is your own - own it!  Now get to it!

Top 5 Cake Decorating Tips

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One of our favorite Chicks, Lisa, recently posed a great question on our Facebook page www.facebook.com/TheCluelessChick:
Do you have any recommendations on how to decorate a cake and make it look like a professional made it?
Here are our top 5 cake/cupcake decorating tips:

1. Have the right tools on hand

Invest in the right tools for the job, it will make life soooo much easier.  You can pick up a decorating spatula at your favorite kitchen store or your local Target.  If you plan to frost both cakes and cupcakes, buy both a large and small spatula (you should be able to find both for $20). http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=124981

2. Let the cake cool completely and the frosting come to room temperature before frosting

Allow your cake to cool completely before frosting to avoid a crumby mess.  If possible, allow the cake to cool in an airtight container overnight.  Also, make sure that your frosting is at room temperature so that it is smooth enough to spread easily.

3. Add powdered sugar to store bought frosting

Adding up to ¼ cup of powdered sugar to store bought frosting will allow you to create a smoother and firmer look.  This will also make your frosting easier to spread.

4. Cover a crumb-laden cake with a thin layer of “under frosting”

If your cake did not pull away from the sides of your pan while baking, or you have cut it into an adorable shape, you may find yourself dealing with crumby edges.  Simply start by gently applying a layer of what I like to call “under frosting”.  Just like you would prep a wall with primer before you paint, apply a thin layer of frosting over your cake to pick up all of the crumbs.  Then simply place your cake in the refrigerator long enough for the crumby frosting to harden.  Once the under frosting has hardened, apply your top layer of frosting and voila, you have perfect crumb-free frosting!

5. Use a warm knife to correct any imperfections

Just like you dip your ice cream scoop in hot water before you dive into a carton of frozen ice cream, If you are trying to correct any imperfections after your frosting has hardened simply dip your decorating spatula in hot water to warm it up a bit.  This will warm the frosting just enough to re-spread it.

Happy Cake Decorating!

Toddler Friendly Valentines!

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It can be tough to find an easy and inexpensive way to create unique Valentines for Toddlers (especially when you have to make 31....).  When I saw this Heart Shaped Chalk I grabbed as many as I could!  I spend a good bit of time each year agonizing over Valentines for my little one's classmates because I can't bring myself to give them candy and no one is getting pre-printed Disney character Valentine from The Clueless Chick :-)  I also have to settle on something cute, fun and at least a little practical that won't take hours upon hours to create.

I stumbled across this fantastic Heart Shaped Chalk last year the day after Valentine's Day.  One of my all time favorite Penny Pinching Tips for The Clueless Chick is to buy all of your holiday decorations and non-perishable items the day after the holiday when everything is 50% off (it is even better if you can scope out a low-traffic store that still has inventory a week later for 80-90% off!).

Since these Valentines are from both of my sons the tag (a 3"x2" sticker) reads:

We hope your 

Valentine’s Day is 

“chalk” full of

Hugs and Kisses!

Behind each piece of Heart Shaped Chalk is a piece of red card stock which is blank on the front and on the back reads:

Heart Shaped Chalk

I’m washable!

Instructions:

1.   Open package

2.   Remove chalk

3.   Find chalkboard

4.   Learn to spell

5.   Write a love note

You can use just about any size cello bag that your chalk fits in, I prefer a short bag that I can fold over and seal with the sticker.  I also considered printing the Valentine greeting and instructions on opposite sides of a gift tag so that I could use just about any bags that were handy.  The best part about small gifts like these is that your imagination (and budget) are your only limitations.  So have fun with it!  And if you don't have a creative bone in your body, or you find yourself remembering the day before Valentine's Day that you haven't made anything, head to Walgreens and pick up a box of Mickey & Minnie Valentines ;-)

Happy Valentine's Day!!