Food & Dining

I love to bake and cook and host and be in the kitchen ... so much so that I've started baking semi-professionally ('cause I don't have enough to do)! My son regularly hangs out in the kitchen with me and asks to help, and for fear of spills or burns or messing something up I rarely have tasks for him other than "watching mommy." But that has never really been good enough of a job for Henry... About a month ago, my tune changed. He really was showing interest in what I was doing and showing some toddler-sized abilities to listen and take direction. So, last night I decided to embark on a baking project with him! We made chocolate...

With Lent upon us, two things are in my foreseeable future. The first, something I will give up for the next 40 days. Something that will be a sacrifice for myself but will likely do me some good (last year was sodas!), and the next thing in line is meatless Fridays.  What exactly does a "meatless Friday" entail? Well, growing up in a Catholic family that owned a fishing camp, that meant fish fry events every. single. Friday during Lent. Thats about NINE freaking meals of fried fish in a little over a month's time?! Craziness. Honestly, I'm not a huge fried food person and Lent can be hard for me. With fried fish specials lurking around every corner in our prominently Catholic...

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few years you've heard the term paleo. Recently "Paleo" has become a buzz word across the internet, gyms and health food stores alike. While highly popular among Cross Fit enthusiasts, the Paleo Diet has become more and more popular among moms searching for healthier eating habits and increased energy. The Paleo Diet is short for Paleolithic Diet and is commonly referred to as the caveman diet. This diet, while not totally intended for weight loss is more of a lifestyle change which transitions one to eating mostly vegetables, fruits, roots, nuts and seeds, healthy fats and meats. Like many mainstream diets the Paleo lifestyle encourages decreasing intake of sugar,...

Editor's Note: This post is NOT sponsored by Hello Fresh. Neither Red Stick Moms Blog nor Cassie received any type of compensation for this article -- she simply wanted to share with you how much she loves the service for her family! Hey Mamas, Cassie here! Today I want to share (read: GUSH!) our love for Hello Fresh. Not only its convenience but how it truly has saved our dinner routine and kept us healthy and happy! I'll start with this: I am a mom to four boys -- four very active and involved little boys. I am also a wife to a husband who works a ton of hours. At some parts of the year we are scrambling to shuffle...

We all know that these are controversial times in America. There are so many things to disagree over that sometimes it seems there is nothing to agree on. We see it everywhere we turn. On social media there is constant expression of people’s opinions. Around the water cooler co-workers are going at it over the election result. It can be depressing and quite overwhelming. Oh how I long for the days where our heated discussions were the Kardashians' latest scandal or our disbelief at the Jolie-Pitt split. I believe that we are all long overdue for some fun lighthearted discussions. So, to keep your family gathering merry and bright, here are a few topics you may want to stay...