Every Kid Loves Tater Tot Casserole and Campbell's Soup

I don't why I thought that when I had kids they would all be the same, or at least very similar. Turns out all five are extremely different, and that goes for their taste in food as well. Here's how they shake out:

• Joel is 12 now and will eat anything. His taste in food has changed a lot over the years, and he appreciates food with onions, tomatoes and any veggie these days. He likes to try new things and likes it spicy quite often.
• Michael is 10, and we've always joked that he's our vegetarian.
• Callie is 8 and can be picky, but has always loved things like broccoli, asparagus and any green veggie!
• Eva is almost 6 and is super picky because she would eat sweets all day if she could. Isn't a cookie/fruit pizza a meal, after all? She will eat green beans all day long if you let her, though!
• Samuel is 4 now and will shovel anything in simply because it's fuel for his energy streak that is nonstop.

Mealtime at my house this past summer. Party of 9 on this particular evening.

I like to use a lot of soups in my cooking because they are kid friendly. I use cream of soups to make gravies and sauces. They go great in a slow cooker with some chicken and rice and veggies. And, of course, you have my famous Tater Tot Casserole, which I know how to make over 30 ways! I love Campbell's soups because they have so many varieties of cream of soups that really help me to make my cooking creative and varied. And the kids eat it, which is major!

Check out some of these terrific recipes your kids won't be able to refuse ... I'll be trying them right along with you! And you can find fun, quick and yummy meal ideas for kids at WisestKid.com. This site is a hoot and features The Wisest Kid in the Whole World! If you are cooking-challenged with kids like me, Campbell's Kitchen will inspire you as well! And here's my basic Tater Tot casserole recipe, which sneaks in veggies if  you make it with cream of mushroom soup, or you can make it with chicken instead of beef and try a cream of broccoli or asparagus soup!

TATER TOT CASSEROLE

1 ½ pounds ground beef 1 14.5-ounce can evaporated milk 2 tsp. onion powder 2 10.5-ounce cans cream of chicken soup (or check out other options below, although the cream of broccoli is better with chicken or turkey) 2 tsp. garlic salt 2 c. shredded cheddar cheese 2-pound bag frozen tater babies

1.                   Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray.

2.                  In a skillet, cook ground beef on medium heat until brown. Drain the fat and put meat back in skillet.

3.                  Mix in onion powder and garlic salt, then put mixture in the bottom of the 9 x 13 pan.

4.                  Dump out the bag of tater babies over the meat and arrange them so the meat is covered.

5.                  In a bowl, mix the evaporated milk and soups. Pour evenly over the top of the tater babies.

6.                  Top with cheese.

7.                  Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes.

8.                 Take out of the oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving.

The Tater Tot Casserole Cookbook is available on Amazon.com for only $2.99, and you don't even need a Kindle to be able to enjoy the 30+ tater tot casserole recipes and the 7 dessert recipes!

Emilia Delizia Tours: Something for Everyone!

It's no secret that I love to travel. So does Mr. Kerrie, as long as it's not for work and he can be with his family. One of our dreams is to travel the country by RV. Another is to go to Europe. He'd love to go to Ireland and Scotland. I'd love to visit Germany, where I was born. We both would love to go to Italy.

Oh, Italy. How I would fall in love with it. I mean, I already fell in love with it when I read Eat, Pray, Love,  but I want a deeper relationship. I want to go on food tours and wine tours and cooking tours in Italy. I want to really get to know it.

That's where Emilia Delizia comes in. They asked me to check out their site and let my readers know what I think about it and I have to say it is verrrrrrrry cool. Allow me to demonstrate using their infographic:

I am salivating just thinking of all this amazing food. Mr. Kerrie would think he had died and gone to heaven during a culinary or wine tour. And I would be in homeschool heaven going on production visits with the kids to see how things like Parmesan cheese, balsamic vinegar and Parma ham are made!

This site is EXTREMELY informative. Check out this post on truffle hunts! And EEEEEE! ... they can arrange Ferrari test drives here!!!!!!

I have to admit I went to this site and got lost in it for a long time. The Big Family Dream after moving to the country here in the USA is to start traveling to cool places like Italy. Guess I'd better get back to work on that best-selling ebook, huh?

You can follow Emilia Delizia Food Tours on Twitter here. And on Facebook here. But whatever you do, check out this site ... you won't be sorry!

When Is the Right Time for a Cell Phone? (guest post)

Today is Black Friday, I'm taking a little break from the production of The Kerrie Show, and we have a guest post by HB Redbird. She also provided a great piece for me about doing back to school uniquely here. Check it out!

When Is The Right Time for a Cell Phone?

I think the hardest part of parenting is acknowledging that children are growing up in a different age than we are. This is apparent by parents who no longer allow their children to walk to school, or bike wherever their hearts desire. It is also becoming clear to me that parents have a harder time deciding when to let children branch out with technology.

My children range in age from one year to ten years. My children are better with computers than I am, and I thought I was good with personal computers. The older two, aged ten and eight, love computers and cell phones. We have a family computer to allow them the ability to email family members, and keep their own blog. So, when is it okay to allow children to have their own phones?

We see children in first and second grade carrying their own phones, and we feel that it is too young. My husband and I had originally planned to allow phones at the age of 13, but now I think that may be too old. My children are prolific on our Smartphones, playing games, sending text messages, and using the internet to research on the road. Are eight and ten year olds responsible enough to have a phone of their own? How does one keep them safe from those who have only evil thoughts racing through their minds? This is where we are not sure which direction to go.

Pros

·         Able to communicate with friends without stealing our phone

·         Can play games that expand brain power

·         Can call us when they are needing picked up after school

·         Call them when needed

·         Research on the go

These pros come from our current experiences with our older children. My daughter is very prolific with texting, and she loves communicating with my family. She also has a few friends and cousins that have cell phones, so having one would allow her to communicate with them. She is also always stealing my phone to play Draw Something, and other games that require her to think. We also regularly hand our phones over to both of the children to allow them to use Google to work on their homework on the drive home from school.

Cons

·         Increase phone bill

·         Access to evils on the cyber world

·         Unauthorized purchases or subscriptions

My pocket book screams when I think about allowing my children to have access to a phone of their own. Will they understand the limitations on usage? Will they purchase games or subscribe to text messages that will affect the bill? Will they get onto sites that they really should not be on? I understand that most of these cons come with both years of trust and parenting. We can let a child learn by experience that purchasing games require money by making them pay for it. Same with having them go over their minutes, but the OCD in me really has trouble with relinquishing that control.

Therefore, we are back to the beginning questions. When is it appropriate to allow your child to get a phone and join your family plan? We are beginning to think that eight years old is not too young. Are we wrong? My husband and I are not yet sure.