Spiced Up Cornbread For Red Gold's Summer Grilling Event {Through 7/23/14}

**Disclosure: We received products in order to facilitate a review and recipe. No compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

While shopping at the grocery store and picking up a few things for the kitchen, I am sure that you often see cans of Red Gold. Well, did you know that Red Gold is from Indiana? Red Gold is a family company launched in 1942 that has been packing Midwest tomatoes ever since. Pretty neat, huh? Well, this summer Red Gold is holding its second Summer Grilling Party over on Facebook with recipes and giveaways! Many winners will win a festive Red Gold apron and one lucky winner will win a Big Green Egg Grill and a Red Gold grill pack! Awesome! The giveaway is going on through July 23!

Red Gold did provide me with some delightful tomatoes to try out--- Red Gold Diced & Green Chilies, Chili Ready, Basil Garlic and Oregano, Lime & Cilantro and Diced Tomatoes. Bet you didn't know they had so many varieties! The Red Gold Diced & Green Chilies inspired me to make an amped up cornbread. I have seen a number of spicy cornbread recipes in the past but have never tried one myself. This week seemed like the perfect opportunity and the result was a lovely cornbread with a nice bit of edge!

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10 ideas to get yourself organized for {summer break}

When the bell rings on Wednesday, parents in my neighborhood will be greeted by a stampede of exuberant children. While the kids will be scurrying home, some of the parents will likely be walking back a little deflated. Summer can sometimes be a challenge when it comes to keeping the kids busy and even a little productive. However, if you do some research and planning beforehand, you can make sure that your kids have fun and are productive instead of staring at the TV or playing video games ad nauseaum. Here are some ideas to help keep your sanity intact:

1.) Designate specific cleaning days: You may want to pick a specific day of the week when you would like kids to clean their rooms. If you have a larger cleaning project, you may want to warn the kids ahead of time. My daughter seems to do better with cleaning if she is aware ahead of time. If I spring it on her, no dice!

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How to Make it through Winter Break

Here it comes---two solid weeks of no school. I love, love, love having my daughter home from school. However, I need to prepare a little bit ahead of time in order to have enough activities to keep her busy while keeping her mind stimulated. Since I am a list maker, I have generated a list of ideas to keep us busy. Below, you will find my ideas for keeping the kids busy:

• Check with the library: Libraries are great resources and may have special activities during the break like storytimes, game events, and winter reading programs. Don't restrict yourself to your town's libraries. Others in the area may have events that you can participate in.
• Park district: Make sure that you are up on your park district's offerings for the break. Once again, remember to check the park district's in neighboring towns as well.
• Museums: Museums are a good way to entertain while learning. Be sure to check with your library because they sometimes will also have free passes. Also, some of the smaller, local museums may have interesting activities specifically for the break period.
• Skating rinks: Check your local ice skating and roller skating rinks. Skating can be a great physical activity and a way to get out of the house!
• Indoor pools: Don't forget that you may be able to hit an indoor pool! It is another great way to expend all of that energy!
• Crafts: I stockpile crafts for breaks. I try to have a mix of new crafts as well as tried and trues. There are a bunch of awesome websites that can inspire you. I particularly love Kaboose!

 

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