Two Family Favorite Recipes

Hi Friends,

You may have seen the recent article in The Ladera Times written by the lovely Vimy Nesmith. The article just happened to feature my daughter's Haley, Coco and I :) We had a fabulous day in the kitchen making two of my families favorite Thanksgiving recipes. Both of these recipes are not only great for a holiday, but are also wonderful anytime during the Fall season. The day we shot photo's for the newspaper I made both, The Twice Baked Potato Casserole and The Butternut Squash Bake along with a crock pot of shredded BBQ chicken and sandwich rolls, yummy! I have been making these two dishes for many years, since my girls were babies. They are easy to make, which is important because I am not a gourmet cook! I hope you try them and that your family enjoys them too :)

xoxo,
Mama H

Butternut Squash Bake
Ingredients:
1/3 cup butter or margarine softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 - 5oz. can evaporated milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups mashed cooked Butternut Squash

Topping:
1/2 cup crisp rice cereal
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans
2 Tbs. butter or margarine, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, milk and vanilla. Stir in the squash. Pour into a greased 11"x7" baking pan.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 min. or until almost stiff.

While the squash is baking, combine all the topping ingredients. When the casserole has baked for 45 minutes sprinkle the topping over the casserole and return to the oven for 5-10 minutes or until bubbly.

makes 8 servings


Twice Baked Potato Casserole

Ingredients:

8 large russet baking potatoes
8 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
3/4 pound bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
1/2 pound sharp white Cheddar cheese, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3/4 pound mild Cheddar cheese, grated (3 cups)
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

Scrub the potatoes, dry with a paper towel and prick with a fork in several places. Bake the potatoes for 1 and1/2 hours. I always wrap my potatoes in aluminum foil to bake, my grandfather who was a chef did it that way, my mother did it that way so I do too.

When the potatoes have cooled enough to handle, cut each potato in half and scoop out the flesh with a spoon and place into a bowl. Add 1 stick of butter, the sour cream, heavy cream, salt, and pepper and mash until chunky smooth. Add the bacon, cubed white Cheddar, half of the grated Cheddar, the green onions, and eggs and mix thoroughly by hand or with a mixer.

Butter a 9"x13" casserole with the remaining tablespoon of butter and reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees.

Place the seasoned potato mixture in the prepared casserole and top with the remaining grated Cheddar. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until bubbly around the edges and heated through and the cheese on top is melted.

makes 12 servings

Fun Halloween Ideas

I love Fall, even if it is 80 degrees in Southern California! I love the warm sunny days and the cool crisp nights. I love putting up the fall wreath on the front door and a variety of pumpkins on the front porch. I live in a great community of young families and although my kids are older now, I still strive to make the season fun for them.

If you have teens that are past the trick-or-treating age or you just like to keep your kiddos home on Halloween, have a pumpkin carving party. You can have a pumpkin carving night as a fun family activity or you can make it into a party!

Send a fun invitation on cute pumpkin paper or choose a pumpkin themed evite, and ask your guests to bring a pumpkin. Supply some carving tools, which you can find at your local party store. Make sure you have plenty of trash bags available for cleaning out the pumpkins. You will need plenty of table or counter-top space for carving. I like to have a pumpkin carving contest and give prizes for the scariest pumpkin, the largest or smallest and the most creative.

I always make a big crock pot of chili with toppings and cornbread with honey-butter. You can serve pumpkin pie, caramel apples or hot cider.

A few more things that I think add a fun decorative touch, dry ice in the pool for a spooky fog. I use miniature pumpkins hallowed out and filled with tea lights around the party for atmosphere. Decorative glass jars filled with candy corn or cookies, adds color and easy snacks. I think it's fun to end the night with scary movies.

I have also been to an adult pumpkin carving party, where the adults had just as much fun finding their creativity by carving pumpkins. I also think the men at the party enjoyed the competitive nature of carving the best pumpkin.

I mentioned that I live in a great community of young families. One of the fun things my neighbors do every October is "Boo" each other. Yesterday I opened my front door to find a plastic pumpkin filled with goodies on my porch. Inside was a bottle of wine, some delicious candy and a few fun things for the girls. There was a picture that said Boo, a fun little poem and instructions that read: Enjoy the treat, place your "boo" on your front door, now you have 24 hours to copy this twice, make 2 treats and 2 "boos" and secretly deliver to 2 neighbors who do not have a "boo" on their front door. Even if you don't know your neighbors this is a fun tradition to start in your neighborhood.

No matter how old your kids are, you can begin fun traditions and making memories that they will talk about for years to come.

Happy Pumpkin Carving
Mama H. ;-)

Momager part 2

Hi Friends,

I promised to share a few of the organizational tools I use as Momager. I always want to be prepared! Because the girls and I spend so much time in the car driving to auditions, I keep a few things in the trunk of my car at all times. Here's my list of supplies.

1. The Binder - The binder has several tabs and contains all the important documents that I need when my girls are auditioning or working. I keep copies of there work permits, coogan accounts, birth certificates, passports, headshots, resumes, a log of jobs booked and miles driven. I also keep blank paper for notes.

2. The Office box - The office box contains the things I need if I have to crop resumes last minute or attach resumes to photos, leave a note or take notes. The things I have in it are scissors, tape, stapler & staples, post it notes & note cards.

3. The Stylist Kit - My kit contains fashion tape, a double sided tape which I use for hems or hiding bra straps, spot remover pen, breath mints, visine, tummy medicine, bandaids, safety pins, bobby pins, hair bands, tissue, masking tape ( I use this to label hangers with their name) sharpie, baggies (to hold jewelry), hand sanitizer, hand wipes, makeup remover wipes, makeup items such as mascara, lip gloss etc.

If we are going to a job that requires that they take their own wardrobe, I take everything in garment bags. Every hanger is labeled with their name. If they have several wardrobe changes I have a photo on my phone of each outfit. I will lay the outfit out and write on a 3x5 card the scene name or description of what the outfit is for.

I always take a few healthy snack items such as nuts, apples and water. I want to make sure they keep up their energy and are hydrated. You never know how long you will be stuck in traffic or waiting on set. My girls think I'm a bit crazy but I also always have a million vitamins on hand. They have regular blood work done and I know what they need daily. For example Coco is a vegetarian and needs vitamin B, she tends to be anemic so I have Iron on hand. Haley has asthma so I keep her inhaler on hand.

The other two items I always have are my datebook and laptop. I don't think you can ever be too prepared. I have had stylists on set thank me for being so prepared, and for helping them make their job easy. I have pulled a rolling rack and hangers out of my trunk and help an entire cast label their hangers, hang wardrobe and organize in garment bags because there was no stylist on set. A director is more likely to cast your child in the next project if they have proven to be organized and easy to work with.

I hope a few of these ideas are helpful to you. If you are prepared as the mom and manager of your child's career your child can focus on their job. If you are prepared ahead of time you are not rushing at the last minute and everyone is calmer.

Happy Planning,

Mama Almighty ;)

Haley's performing at The Playground Festival 2011

Enter Haley as the promotional code and save $10!!!
Purchase tickets at www.playgroundfestival.com
Check out www.HaleyHmusic.com (We're still working on this site)

"Momager"

Everyone's heard of the Kardashians... right? Then you know who Kris Jenner is, and you have heard the term "Momager". If you have been living without TV, magazines and social networking, Kris is the mother to the famous Kardashian sisters. She also happens to be their manager and has coined the term "Momager" for herself. I am not neccessarily comparing myself with her and her family, but I do understand and relate to "managing" my family.

My girls are in the very begining stages of their professional acting/modeling/music careers. They have been performing their entire lives, but in different way. Haley played Baby Jesus in front of 10,000 people when she was just two months old. It must have been a taste of what was going to come, because at the age of seven both her and Coco began performing on stage in musical theater. They went on to perform in 3 shows a year for the next ten years, approximately 30 shows! They were always on stage, rehearsing for a show or getting ready for an audition...and they loved it!

For many years both girls would ask me to get them into film and TV. My answer was always the same, "I don't have connections in the biz, and I'm not sure you both are ready for the brutal world of show business." Community theater wasn't lacking in "stage parents", but still it seemed mild compared to the rejection they would face in Hollywood. After many years of begging and comments like, "Mom, you're not letting us fulfill our dreams!" or "Mooom, I'm getting too ooold!" My husband and I have decided to help the girls follow their dreams. They are older, more mature and we have given them a good foundation at home to handle different situations they may find themselves in. I decided that I would rather be by their side helping them, supporting them, and filtering what gets to them before they leave my nest.

I have had many mom's ask, "How do I get my kids an agent?" or "How do I get my kids in the business?" My answer is not simple or easy. It is hard work, this is a business and it takes a lot of time, research and money. I am going to share with you what we have done. This may not be the way everyone has done it and I am sure there are many ways to pursue a career in the entertainment business.

The first thing you need to do is decide what aspect of the business you want to pursue: acting, modeling, etc. Then you need a good headshot. The type of headshot you have is based on the type of work you want to pursue: theater, TV, film, fashion modeling, etc. Let the photographer know what aspect of the business you are pursuing and look at their book of work. If you have friends in the business, ask for referrals. If you don't know anyone, look at the agency websites, some of them will have the names of photographers they recommend. The photographer that you use will then send you to a photo lab for retouching and print outs. Don't make too many prints, the agent you eventually sign with may want different photos taken.

I also do a lot of research on line, it is so easy to find information on the internet. A few of the sites I read regularly are www.bizparents.org and www.childreninfilm.com. These sites will give you information on child labor laws, agents etc. My friend Roy Turner has a site www.thebusinessofacting.net I love Roy and his wife Marie's perspective on parenting/managing a child actor, check out his site.

The third thing you need to do, after you have a headshot, and you're doing your research about the business, is to send out your child's photo to agents. The web sites I listed will have lists of agents, again do your research on them. Look at the agency's web site for specific instructions on submissions. Send a photo with a cover letter, you can find samples of cover letters online. Then, wait for a call, expect it to take a while because they are busy people. If you don't hear back it may be because they already represent someone who looks like your child or they aren't taking new clients. Try again in a few months and try other agency's. Also, while you're waiting your child can be learning new skills. They can try out for the school play or take an acting workshop, dance classes, voice lessons. There are so many opportunities to grow and I always tell my girls, "Be ready when your time comes" ...that means being prepared!

I hope this gives you a bit of insight and information.

In the next bog I will share a few of the organizational basics that help me manage my family.


Mama Almighty ;)

Yikes! I'm going to drop something!

Have you ever been carrying a large load? Your arms are so full, but you are confident that you can manage it all. And then it happens. You drop something or worse, you drop everything that you are carrying!

Anyone who has ever been to my home has been greeted by my Maltese, Lacey May. Lacey is 3 lbs. of ferocious barking, barking, barking. Lacey barks when the doorbell rings and when the phone rings. Lacey barks when someone walks into the room, even if she saw them five minutes prior...she barks! So on this particularly stressful week about a year ago, my mother seeing that I had a migraine coming on, offered to take Lacey May for a few days.

As my mother was getting ready to leave my home with her arms full of Lacey's traveling arsenal: leash, kennel, dog food and Lacey herself, it happened... Mom dropped Lacey! Lacey landed on her back, rolled over, stood up, tail wagging and... barked. Lacey was unharmed and fine.

I was thinking about this incident and how it mirrors my life. So many times I think I can handle picking up one more thing. My arms are full, but I am confident that I can carry more. I'm sure I'm not the only woman who does this. I have many friends who volunteer at their children's school, serve in their churches, work outside the home and are active in the community. After all, we are mom's and we believe we are Mama Almighty! Aren't we? The truth is, I cannot carry the load on my own for long before I drop something.

I am coming to the realization that I have perfectionist tendency's, but I am not perfect. I strive to be Mama Almighty who can conquer any challenge put in front of me, the mom who can take on anything... the mom who has it all together, but I'm not almighty. The perfect mother with all the answers for teenagers to toddlers. Perfect children, perfect home, perfect life, but it's not perfect. Hah! The honest truth is, it's hard being a wife and mother. The truth is, I am not perfect and I cannot carry everything at once. The truth is sometimes it's important to put something down before I drop what is most important. There are seasons in life. I now realize, I don't have to do everything at once, maybe this is the time to focus on what is most important for this particular season.

In the past I have done a million different things, chaired events, been on boards, ran school music programs, ran a business, etc. etc... But this past year, I decided to take time off from everything. I took time off from everything... except my family. I focused on my family's needs. It has been the best year, supporting my husband and spending time with my girls, and helping them fulfill their dreams has been so much fun! We have had great times & discussions going back and forth to L.A. for auditions, which will be another blog post :)

Life is too short and they grow up too fast. I only have a couple more years with them in my home. I don't want to have any regrets of not spending enough time with them or not instilling the character and values that will make them successful. I'm so glad I put some other things down to focus on what is most important for this season of my life, my family.

What is too heavy in your arms? What has you distracted from what is really important to you? What is stopping you from pursuing your purpose in life? Maybe it's time to put something down.

Susan
Mama Almighty ;)

Proud Mama

Both of my girls will be appearing in the Independent Christian film, Abide In Me which will premiere April 14, 2011!