Fourth of July Donut Hole Fruit Skewers

We decorate WAY in advance for holidays around here.  Partly that's because I have no idea how to decorate "normally" (as in, not by theming around a holiday.)  So our house looks really bare if there is no holiday decor up.  I usually pull out the 4th of July decor on June 1st and leave it up until September when I start decorating for Halloween.  (It's okay for you purists to be cringing right now.  Just don't come over to my house, um, ever.) 

I've thought about this a lot, and I think probably this is entirely not my fault and is due to a gaping hole in our education system. Obviously they need a major in college that's like Adulthood 101, where they teach you how to argue with cell phone companies, set up retirement accounts, make curtains out of bedsheets, put together a decent-looking flowerbed and make a PB&J that won't get soggy within two hours. (Annd decorate your house, of course.)

These are the real things one needs to know in life.

Due to the lack of this major at my college I have successfully kept the "For Dummies" book series in business single-handedly for the last five years. But since there's no pictures I haven't really learned much.

I've gotten way off track but the point is that my world pretty much revolves around holidays and I couldn't wait to share this 4th of July breakfast idea with you.  I saw donut hole fruit skewers on Pinterest and thought all the red and blue fruits would be perfect for the 4th of July.   I cut some stars out of strawberries to be extra patriotic.  If you have kids, these are so easy they can even make their own.

 

We went to the zoo this morning, so excuse me while I go shower off elephant smell.

Happy Wednesday!

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Taffy Skewers

 

I've been meaning to post these for at least a year because I really love things on sticks and I really love things that are cute and easy. Kids go crazy for them and they make darling centerpieces for parties as well.

Pink and brown skewers are my favorite for girl baby showers and blue/white for boy showers.  If I can ever find some Fourth of July taffy, those will be happening soon!

I've gotta say it.  Be careful.  I may or may not have put a skewer sliver right through my finger while making these (as in... in one side... out the other... I almost fainted when I had to pull it out.  It wasn't the size of the entire skewer but it was about 1/3 as thick- which is pretty darn thick to be threaded through your finger, thank you very much!)  

If you have a taffy that's sticking, wrap a clean dishtowel around your hand and use that to jam the taffy down the stick, not your bare hands!  If you use fresh taffy this really shouldn't be a problem. They are usually pretty easy to thread.

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Valentine's Candy Skewers

Candy skewers are one of my faves. The jist is that you throw a bunch of candy on a stick and call it good.  Taffy skewers are particularly cute for showers and parties with color themes.  Kids LOVE them.  (And not just kids... I'll eat pretty much anything off a stick.)

And guess what.  There's no recipe.  You get a bamboo skewer... slide a bunch of candy on.  Serve.  I usually buy my candy from the bins at Winco.  (LOVE going through the checkout line with like fifteen bags of candy with only 3 candies per bag.  It makes my day.  I'm pretty sure I am the definition of hell for WinCo employees.)  I don't really love it.  It actually kind of makes me cringe, but I DO love feeling like I'm buying all this stuff and then the bill coming to  a dollar and thirteen cents. 

I love these for Valentine's day, especially if you have a school district that lets you bring homemade treats to school... Do those still exist? Cause I'm willing to move.

In other news, I spent alll night last night working on a new Recipe Index tab.  (See it up there?)  I wanted to make it easier for you to browse my recipes.  I have it organized by categories, and then holidays, and even seasons of the year  (apologies for the OCD freakness).  I really hope this will make your life and my life easier! (Plus it was a really good excuse to watch six episodes of Psych in a row.)

Have a great weekend!

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Frozen Choco-Banana Skewers

All you need to know is,  "There's always money in the banana stand."

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