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If you have ever made bread, you know that kneading the dough is a vital step in the process. The harder you knead the dough, the better  the texture.  I have been thinking about this concept - baking bread - and how it applies to life.

In the hands of the Baker, dough is kneaded, shaped, molded, given time to rest and rise and finally sent into the heat of the oven. Without all those steps however, without the kneading, and shaping, and the application of heat - the loaf of bread will never turn out right, It will just be a flat, lifeless, burnt and crusty mess. Sometimes, I can feel deeply worked over, flipped upside down and all around by life. But in the end, I find that it's a necessary  part of my process.

But when it's right, a good loaf of bread is full of flavor and ready to be shared. This rightness, this process that turns out a delicious product, is what Panera Bread is all about. They have a whole section of their website devoted to sharing their passion for bread called The Baker's Table.




And the more I have been researching Panera Bread for this post, the more respect I have for this company. They tell a story with their baking. They savor and celebrate the process as much as the product. Panera Bread's commitment to fresh ingredients and incorporating healthier choices to their menu is something I appreciate, respect and admire and both consumer and advocate.

For more on Panera Bread, including where to find your nearest location, be sure to visit www.panerabread.com

One of my favorite parts when learning about bread baking is when they talk about in the "Fresh Ingredients" video about the baker setting aside the dough to rest and rise for a day. When was the last time you took a day to "rest and rise"?


 I was compensated by Panera for this post, which makes it advertorial content and not a review. But I think Panera is a company worth promoting and putting my influence behind and can't recommend it enough. I am among a group of bloggers who are taking part in a 3 month promotion for Panera Bread and will be getting to share more delicious goodness with you.

February is American Heart Health Month and this simple foam heart band-aids craft can help you and your child talk about the importance of physical and emotional heart health.

You'll need:
Band-aids, Construction paper, Large Foam Heart


Directions:
Glue a foam heart to construction paper, add band-aids at will
Talk about why some hearts need healing and what kinds of things you can do to be more "heart healthy"
*Age appropriate for 2 years and above


Don't forget that maintaining a healthy heart (or working towards that goal) involves making heart healthy choices about the food we eat, the activities we do everyday and even our minds and the words we use. Below are a few links to help you educate your kids about the importance of heart health.

Physical:
Simple Heart Healthy Exercise Game For Kids from Make and Takes
Heart Healthy Recipes from The Mayo Clinic
12 Tips For Increasing Children's Physical Activity from NAEYC found via We Teach
Bring Physical Activities Indoors During Wintertime with ABC/123

Emotional:
Emotions and Preschoolers One of a series from Let's Explore
Help Teach Emotions with Family Paper Roll Dolls An activity from Teach Mama
7 Ways to Help Anxious Kids from Let's Explore
Feel What You Want, Control What You Do from PBS Kids

Every Wednesday, Muffin Tin Boy brings home a library book. For the past eight weeks in a row, it has been science related.

What are your kids reading these days?

Happy Muffin Tin Monday everyone! If it's Monday, then that means around here we are celebrating all things Muffin Tin Meal!


What's a Muffin Tin Meal, you ask? Simply put, it's a meal (or snack or dessert) served in a muffin tin. It's a great way to introduce new foods to kids in a fun and interesting way. Have a little one who won't eat their vegetables? Then, Muffin Tin Meals might be for you!

To find out more about Muffin Tin Meals and Muffin Tin Monday visit the FAQ page.

We are no longer posting weekly themes, but that doesn't mean you can't get creative. Every month, I will showcase theme suggestions in the sidebar area of this blog.

Here's what we made today:


In this tin: star shaped mini PB and J sandwiches, green grapes, mozzarella cheese and fruit snacks, tangerine pieces, ranch dip and fresh broccoli 


Just as a reminder, please only post food served in a muffin tin, muffin pan, silicone cup or paper liner. Please no bentos or easy lunch boxes. I do not want to take away from those communities. For more info, read this post.

Now It's your turn! I would love to see what you made for Muffin Tin Monday! Link up by clicking the blue "add your link" button below. Email and RSS subscribers, I hope you will click through to see all the fun MTM ideas!

This week's links:

Zakka Life (photo credit above):  Check out this adorable super hero lollipop "bling" with free printable.
While made for Valentine's Day, these would be fun for any time!

Alisa Burke: love this unique painted butterfly wreath on old encyclopedias found via the Crafty Crow

The Cupcake Blog: Artist's palette cupcakes....so cute! And google "artist's pallette cupcakes" (with misspelling) and you get more great ideas.

Dr. Seuss's Birthday is March 2nd and you can celebrate his contribution to literacy, early childhood education, and children everywhere with this Dr. Seuss There's a Wocket In My Pocket phonics activity. This activity is geared towards kids ages 5-7 and early readers (see below for adaptations).

You'll need:

• Foam Core Posterboard
• colored mini envelopes (Mine came from The Dollar Tree)
• Word Strips (From the Dollar Tree)
• Black Marker
• Tape
• Letter Stickers (optional)

• Top in the mop
• Cat in the hat
• Ran in the can
• Star in the car

The Muffin Tn Kids matched the words according to their ending sounds.

...It doesn't have to make sense, the activity is to increase awareness of and teach ending word sounds like -ake, -an, -at, -en, -op, etc.


We reinforced the activity over dinner by talking about beginning and ending sounds...The word combos got pretty silly. I am sure Dr. Suess would be proud.

Tips, tricks and hints:

• Add photos to the envelopes to make it easier for pre-readers to participate
• Adapt this activity for pre-readers using only letters on the alphabet or numbers

Welcome to Muffin Tin Monday. Today is Valentine's Day and you would think it's Christmas what with all the anticipation. The kids have been cheerily counting down to today's festivities and I for one couldn't love it more.

Here is the love-ly Valentine's Day themed MTM I made.


In this "tin": Strawberry yogurt, with heart shaped sprinkles, craisins, heart-shaped toast, bananas with heart shaped picks.

Heart shaped cups are made by Wilton. :)

Now it's your turn. Did you make a Muffin TIn Meal? Won't you share it with us? Click on the blue "add your link" button to submit your blog post or photo.

The Nuggetus Dinosaurus peacefully enjoyed a nice leafy healthy snack before they were engulfed in hot lava Ketchup.

"Return To Dino Island" Starring:


Broccoli as the Low Lying Indigenous Vegetation.
String Cheese and Spinach as The Tree
Cheddar Cheese as The Sun
Grapes as Dangerous Coconuts That Might Fall On Your Head
Ketchup as Hot Lava
Dino Chicken Nuggets as Nuggetus Dinosaurus

I can neither confirm nor deny that dinosaurs ever lived on tropical islands.

Does anyone else's child eat fresh spinach leaves like their chips? No? Just mine then? Well, I count myself blessed and am wondering who's cloth she is cut from because spinach was (and dare I say is) the only veggie I absolutely will not eat unless it is in a dip or disguised in a salad.

**Important Info** We are going to stop doing official weekly themes indefinitely. It doesn't mean you can't still do them. In fact, I will be posting monthly theme suggestions and creating a theme suggestion page for those of you who enjoy the challenge. It's just something that has gradually been in the works and well, it's just time. I am also going to spending a lot more time on the "back end" of the site, categorizing posts, creating more MTM info pages, etc....

**Another Important Reminder** While I enjoy all of the submissions received each week, some participants have been posting bento box meals, Easy Lunchbox meals, and food served on a divided plate. While this is sooo awesome and I know your kids are loving it, for our purposes here at muffintinmom.com, please only post meals in an actual muffin tin, cup, or paper liner. Please email me at vistamommy(at)yahoo(dot)com with any questions or see the faq page.

Now, it's your turn! Did you make an Muffin TIn Meal? Won't you share it with us? Click on the link below! (Note, we are going back to Inlinkz thumbnail format. :) yay!

I'll keep this short today. In case you miss the Superbowl (in America), I thought you might enjoy this little commercial sneak peek:



Here's the link, you are viewing this in email format. It's so cute!

And for links I have been collecting this week, be sure to visit my tumblr page.

Super cute Cupcake Mosaic Craft kit found at Michael's Arts and Crafts this week!

I can't get enough of it. I smile as I put it on each morning. And if you follow Muffin Tn Meals on facebook, you will know that I have been gushing about this necklace for some time and was so excited when Muffin Tin Dad surprised gifted me with for my birthday.


If you love Muffin Tin Monday as much as I do, I know you will want one of these for yourself. Recently,  I shared with Tambra of Luxe Adornments about MTM and how I thought my readers would love her exceptional jewelry as I do. Well, I am pleased to announce and welcome Luxe Adornments as a sponsor to Muffin Tin Mom! You'll see their spot on my sidebar now and I hope you will check them out.


Luxe Adornments has so many other gorgeous pieces of jewelry. You should know that all of their pieces are handcrafted and yet are affordable enough you won't break the bank. Their tagline of "Little luxuries for everyday life." is so true! I love that I can transition through my day - from play dates to dinner dates wearing these pieces without sacrificing on style.



Luxe Adornments doesn't forget those fine finishing touches and attention to detail. Each piece is delicately wrapped in beautiful packaging that is perfect for gift giving or receiving on Valentine's Day or any occasion!

 With a few extra items like scissors, craft paper, and glue, we had a bunch of Valentines made in no time!


More Valentine's Day ideas:

• Make a clay heart necklace
• Valentine's Dinner Conversation Starter Craft
• Valentine's Candy Heart Preschool Activity