Christmas time has arrived! We're excited to present these favorites of the season that you'll enjoy with your little ones! For ease in ordering, affiliate links are included for each recommendation.

If you’re like me, you started off the gardening season with high hopes in the spring. You dutifully prepared your garden beds and planted your seeds, dreaming of the healthy plants and perfect vegetables you’ve seen on websites and in magazines. But by midsummer, the inevitable battles with Texas heat, drought, plant-munching insects, and various blights and diseases dampened your enthusiasm for gardening. And by Labor Day you were relieved to pull out the shaggy, overgrown, not-so-perfect-looking plants, hang up the gardening tools for winter, and plan for better things next year!

Although this desire to "call it a season" after fighting your way through summer's gardening challenges is certainly understandable, there's good reason to press on and plant a fall garden.

When I was little, I used to want to make homemade ice cream, but I never knew the science of it. So I would mix my ingredients, throw everything in a bowl, and place it in the freezer for hours, only to end up with a rock-solid frozen concoction that nobody wanted to eat.

Cut to me decades later, and I’m older, wiser, and now I know how to make soft, fluffy ice cream that’s creamy and delicious! The best part? There’s no need to purchase an ice cream maker, and the kids will enjoy making this – from start to finish – in 13 minutes flat.

You’re going to flip when you see the ingredients list. It’s super simple, but trust me, the ice cream tastes SO good. The only item that you’ll need that you might not already have at home is rock salt. You can buy it from Walmart or pretty much any basic needs / grocery store. Some stores sell it near the ice cream makers; other stores sell it near the regular table salt.

So here you go. Are you ready? It’s probably the simplest recipe you ever made!

You’ll need:

• One cup of whipping cream
• 1/8 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 2 Tablespoons of Sugar
• A pinch of salt

Here’s what to do:

1. In a small resealable plastic bag, combine whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla. Push out excess air and seal.
2. Into a large resealable plastic bag, combine about 5 cups of ice and salt. Place small bag inside the bigger bag and shake vigorously, 7 to 10 minutes, until ice cream has hardened. WARNING: You'll need oven mitts or gloves to keep this up for 10 minutes! The bag gets extremely cold! 
3. Remove from bag and enjoy with your favorite ice cream toppings.

The science behind making ice cream in a bag is that when salt is added to ice, it lowers the melting point of ice to below freezing. This allows you to shake the bag long enough (before the ice in the larger bag completely melts) to get the ice cream in the smaller bag to solidify. So your concoction gets really cold really quickly (mere minutes), much colder than what it would be if you were just using ice without the salt. And because you’re shaking your bag continuously, the mixture is creamy and the perfect consistency of ice cream!

Feel free to experiment with different topics and different base ingredients. (Some recipes use half & half instead of whipping cream.)

Has your family taken time to find the art benches in The Woodlands?

There are 24 unique public art benches located along The Woodlands Waterway and on the shores of Lake Woodlands in Hughes Landing, and they're all beautiful and fun to take photos with! 

Pictured above is the "Family Tree Bench" sculpted by Don Lawler. This bench is located on the Waterway behind The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel. 
Pictured below is "Bean" by Valerie Theberge. This bench is located at Town Green Park. near the children's literary maze.

For a bit of daytime fun, take your family and friends on an Art Bench Hunt to find 11 of the 24 total art benches! CLICK HERE to visit The Woodlands Art Council website to access a fun Art Bench Scavenger Hunt just for this purpose! The route includes riding The Woodlands Trolley for free. Enjoy!

A hobby can bring tremendous joy and satisfaction to moms, especially during stressful seasons like the one we're currently in! Do you have one? If not, here’s how to choose one--or possibly more than one--that suits you.

A hobby should be something that when you get up in the morning on your day off (whatever being "off" means to you), you will relish in saying "Hurray! Today I can enjoy my hobby," or "I can't wait to get the kids in bed”, because your hobby is waiting for you. You should be so absorbed when doing your hobby that you might even lose track of time!

Finding the right hobby takes a little thought and experiment. Start by making a list of all the possible hobbies you even think you would be interested in. Search your mind back to when you were younger too; maybe you decorated a vintage dollhouse as a child and really enjoyed it. Maybe your drawing or painting was hung in the hall at your grammar school because it was so good. Also have a look at the activities your friends and loved ones enjoy as their hobbies. At this point, you just want to list some possibilities, no matter how odd they may seem.

Ask yourself these questions about each hobby on your list:

Enjoy our first installment of Stories in the Woods as local mom, Emily Fulleylove, presents "Jungle Jamboree" by Jo Empson. We're so grateful to Emily for reading this delightful story to our readers and their families! To find Emily online, visit her on Facebook & Instagram at @fullybe. Emily also offers classes at Breathe Pilates Studio in The Woodlands! For this story, she's joining us from Pondera Park located at 9090 Creekside Forest Dr., 77375. 

Summer break is here! And if you're not careful, you'll rip and run and do ALL the things for the kids, while at the same time neglecting your own self care. This list is just for YOU, to give you some ideas for resting, relaxing, and feeding your soul this season:

1. Get a mani/pedi at the local spa. 

2. Enjoy early morning coffee or tea on the porch.

3. Try a new restaurant.

4. Go dancing.

5. Take a nap on the sofa.

6. Start journaling. 

7. Color in an adult coloring book. 

8. Make homemade bread.

9. Treat yourself to your favorite cocktail / mocktail.

10. Go on a bike ride.

11. Pick up fresh flowers for your nightstand.

12. Enjoy a day at the spa - massage, facial, steamroom... the works!

13. Take a hike.

14. Watch a grown-up movie or binge watch your favorite Netflix show.

15. Sleep in.

16. Purchase a new sundress.

17. Get your hair colored / cut / profesionally styled at a salon.

18. Read a novel or self-help book.

19. Indulge in a new hobby.

20. Take a day trip with friends.

If you have a baby who is born too early or has serious health problems, he or she may be admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), a hospital unit that provides around-the-clock specialized care to newborns.

If you or someone close to you is pregnant, understanding what to expect if a NICU stay is required can help you focus on taking care of the new baby and yourself. 

Learn the ins and outs of the NICU with information from March of Dimes, the nation’s leading nonprofit that advocates for the health of all moms and babies, which partners with hospitals across the country through its NICU Family Support^® program to provide in-person and online support for families with babies in the NICU. 

It’s time to add something new to your table! With a range of ingredients from broccoli to bacon, this easy quiche that features bacon (YES!), broccoli, and mushrooms is a brunch hero. While baking, the cheese gets all melty, and with every bite, the mushrooms add texture and earthy flavor. The ingredients combine together to make something warm, hearty and delicious.



Quiche recipes and generally simple and fun to make, and we love how quickly this one comes together. The frozen broccoli & cheese shortcut is genius!

Find more brunch recipes and cooking ideas at Culinary.net.
 

Easy Brunch Quiche

Serves: 12

1          package (10 ounces) frozen broccoli with cheese

12        slices bacon, chopped

1/2       cup green onions, sliced

1          cup mushrooms, sliced

4          eggs

1          cup milk

1 1/2    cups shredded cheese, divided

2          frozen deep dish pie shells (9 inches each)

• Heat oven to 350 F.
• In medium bowl, add broccoli and cheese contents from package. Microwave 5 minutes, or until cheese is saucy. Set aside.
• In skillet, cook chopped bacon 4 minutes. Add green onions; cook 2 minutes. Add mushrooms; cook 4 minutes, or until bacon is completely cooked and mushrooms are tender. Drain onto paper towel over plate. Set aside.
• In medium bowl, whisk eggs and milk until combined. Add broccoli and cheese mixture. Add 1 cup cheese. Stir to combine. Set aside.
• In pie shells, divide drained bacon mixture evenly. Divide broccoli mixture evenly and pour over bacon mixture. Sprinkle remaining cheese over both pies.
• Bake 40 minutes.
• Allow to cool at least 12 minutes before serving.

Note: To keep edges of crust from burning, place aluminum foil over pies for first 20 minutes of cook time. Remove after 20 minutes and allow to cook uncovered until completed.

Some women are natural conversation starters, and some of us need more help. If you want to know how to make small talk with strangers,  WoodlandsMommy.com has some tips for you! Here are 5 mommy-friendly ways to strike up a great conversation with just about anybody, whether you're super shy or bursting with confidence.

Conversation Tip # 1: Introduce Yourself.
This is one of the simplest ways to strike up a conversation. Be straightforward yet friendly. Walk up to the person with a smile and introduce yourself. Relax and let everything else follow. This strategy works even for those who are not as confident as others. Just make sure you know what to say next before making your move. For example, once the person introduces himself or herself back, you can ask them a question like "So how do you know the birthday boy?" or “How long has your daughter been dancing here?”