v 5 issue 6: Monster Mash

Who doesn't love a cute little monster? This issue contains fun products ideal for friends of monsters everywhere.


Cover by Lisa Roberts










1 Peek into the head of the Cherry Red Monster Backpack to find a spacious black & white interior. At 8" x 10", this bag is just right for tot toting. Not too scary...way too cute. Choose the monster of your liking at mickandmack.com. Enter code: TTWSHIP for Free Shipping, excludes furniture.

2 Nowali, Inc. scares up comfort for the feet with monster moccasins. A leather no-slip sole is secured to a stretchy knit stocking with heavy gauge stitching. Quality and character simply ooze from the monster riding on the toes of this black moc decorated with blue stars. Enter code: HAPPYFEET for 10% off your purchase.

3 The metal side of the monster mash thunders onto the scene with the Chopper Bot tee from Little Thieves. A raging robot with loud pipes is screened in shades of gold & green onto a great, form-fitting black tee. Enter code: LOVETTW for 30% off your purchases, WOW!

4 A green monster is polka-dotted blue and stitched onto a tee of brown, blue, pink or white. Bearing a grin and a cupcake, this monster only frightens parents with the thought of sugar shock. Available in sizes 6m to 8 years @ squeeze hugs. Enter code: TTW10 for 10% off all purchases.

5 Ward off unwanted nighttime visitors with Monster Go Away! Spray. For 10 years this spray has aromatically kept monsters and aliens out of closets, corners, and dark places under the bed. Only $10.00 for a bottle of beautifully scented spray which gently eases fears and makes bedtime a soothing experience.

6 Kids will love the sharp-toothed smirk and bright eyes of this blue monster tee, while grown-ups are sure to chuckle at the message on the back. Mommy's Little Monster tee can be found @ Psycho Baby in sizes to fit mini monsters and the bigger ones too.

7 Kiddies will love the Monster Bowling Set from Melissa & Doug. Colorful weighted bowling pins are decorated in silly monster smiles and soft textures with hand-stitched details. Sure to inspire a growling good time.


How To Tweak Recipes For More Nutrition


With a few tweaks you can dramatically improve the healthfulness of your recipes. Just keep the following tips in mind.

Cut the sugar
You can often cut the sweetener in a dessert or snack recipe by one third to one half without sacrificing the taste too much. The next time you make homemade cookies for the kids, reduce the sugar by one third and see if they notice. Replacing white flour with Sucanat (dried cane syrup) or Rapadura is also a way to reduce the refined sweeteners. Honey, brown rice syrup and agave nectar are also superior to white sugar because they have some vitamins and minerals to fortify the body. Honey in particular is good for your immune system and contains important enzymes.


Watch your fats
Many older cookbooks feature margarine and canola oils in recipes. These are inferior to higher quality fats such as organic butter (especially from pasture raised, grass fed cows), flax, coconut and olive oil. Fake fats contain hydrogenated oils and an unhealthy ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 fatty acids. Ideally your balance of Omega 6 to Omega 3 should be one to one. Eating too many cheap salad oils such as canola and soy and margarine may explain the rise of such diseases as asthma, heart disease, cancer, autoimmune and other diseases because they lead to inflammation in the body.

Replacing these inferior fats with higher quality, nutritive fats is one easy way to help your family eat healthier without them really noticing it.


Make mine grass fed
There is still much debate about whether vegetarian diets are superior to omnivorous but one thing is sure: where your meat and animal products come from is very important. Pasture raised, grass fed animals are far healthier and leaner than their factory farmed peers. Eggs from free roaming chickens are tastier and much more nutritious than conventional as well. All pastured animal products have more vitamin A and D and healthy essential fatty acids as well as less bad cholesterol.

Make an effort to locate local farms and buy your meat from people committed to feeding their animals their native diets and treating them humanely. You may find that you spend a little more money but not much, especially since you’ll likely be buying your meat in bulk. It’s worth the small investment. The taste can’t be beat either.


Replace white with brown
If your recipes call for white flour, replace it with whole grain flour. For muffins and breads, it will be necessary for you to add more liquid to the recipe. If replacing all of the white flour with whole grain makes the final product too heavy, buy whole wheat pastry flour at the health food store, or experiment with alternative grains like spelt, oat, buckwheat and other flours.

The same goes for pasta and rice. Use brown rice instead of white to put more fiber and vitamins in the finished product. Since brown rice takes twice as long to cook, you may have to steam it before adding it to casseroles and other dishes in order not to overcook the other ingredients. You will also have to add more liquid to the recipe to compensate.

Thankfully there are many whole grain pastas available on the market now. These add a delicious nutty flavor to the recipe. Be sure to cook these pastas “al dente” for best results.


Your Funny Kids
Kids say the funniest things, don't they? You sent us your funny kids' sayings and we had to share!



My 5 year old daughter Mackenzi told me she wanted to plant something in the garden.....so she planted herself.
-submitted by Jenn


My 5 yr old (Braxton) always has a messy room. When his papaw came for a visit he led him into his room. After he left I said " Braxton, what did papaw think of your room?" He replied, “He is old and has squinty eyes. He probably thought it was clean!"
-submitted by Dodi

My five year old son Hudson and I (and my 8 year old daughter Catherine) were in the pool, when Hudson started asking me for some ice cream. I said "no, we've already had some ice cream today." He narrowed his eyes and said "Mommy...you're so mean...you're....KIM JONG IL!" This made me absolutely hysterical. (We occasionally listen to talk radio, and I think had to explain to the kids who this person was who the guys on the radio were talking about). Maybe you had to be there, but it sure gave me a chuckle.
-submitted by Alexandra

I wanted to share a funny lil' statement from my son Calvin, when he was 5 years old. While getting dressed, Calvin, pointed at my bra and said, "Mommy? What is that?" I explained that it was called a "bra" and that "mommies" wore them under their clothes. His face lit up with a smile and said, "I know why mommies wear those!" Since his smile was so immediate and somewhat mischievous, I probed, "Why?" "Otherwise, all the babies would come running up to them saying, Waaa Waaa, I want milk!'"
So, there you have it! Apparently, we wear bras to keep wandering children at bay from nursing!
-submitted by Karen

My miss 4 said to me..." I want to be a rock star when I grow up, I want to sing that on the radio ( pink was playing ) .. but mummy where do I have to go to get my voice on the radio !! ?? or shall I put my voice on a cd !! "
Chelsea 4 yrs old
-submitted by Tash

My four year old son recently said, "Mama, I love you and I love Papa, and I love sister. I have a lot of love in my heart." It made my heart melt.
-submitted by Suzanne

My 5 year old daughter told me the other day: “Mom, I am so sorry to have to say this, but, you have bags under your eyes!”
-submitted by Marcelo

Elliot is my oldest. He is 4 1/2. Sometimes he just cracks us up. Today, my husband was watching TV with Elliot and there was a cartoon where a bird got ran over by a car. Elliot said that he bird was dead. Jeff tried to take the bite out of it, soften the blow so to speak, and said that the bird was probably just sleeping. Then, Elliot told him in a firm but knowing voice, "If a car steps on you, you're DEAD." I would agree with him on this one.
-submitted by Kim NC

We love hearing about and seeing your funny kids...submit your kid's comment or photo to contact@tottrendsweekly.com