Celebrating Saint Patrick

I was grouching my way through a sleepy early morning when a phone call with Ashley put a smile on my face and new purpose in my day. "Happy Saint Patrick's Day" she said. "I just painted shamrocks on my kids and I don't think it is going to come off!"

Ashley almost always makes me smile. :)

So I resolved to celebrate St. Patrick with the boys, and we certainly enjoyed it! First we colored and cut out three leaf clovers (not four) and talked about how God is Father, Son/Jesus, and Holy Spirit. Three but one God, just like the clover has three leaves but is one plant.





We ate a very green lunch:



And hung up Jonathan's clover masterpiece. If you look closely you can see the "frame" that he drew around the clovers.



Then we made bread dough. The boys had so much fun - making bread is really a great activity for preschoolers and toddlers (as long as you don't mind taking all day to do it!)



Here is the result (sorry it is sideways; blogger is always doing this to me!) My original thought was just to make the "three leaves", but Jonathan decided that they needed stems, too. I think they turned out really well.



After nap time we decorated the table.



They are so proud of their work!



I made a very green dinner (recipe to follow).



It was a very good day.



Clover Rolls

2 cups warm milk
2 T. butter
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 T. yeast
1/4 c. warm water
3 c. whole wheat flour
3 c. white flour

Add milk and butter to a microwave safe dish. Warm for 1 minute or until butter melts. Add salt and 1 tablespoon sugar to milk mixture. Add to mixing bowl. Blend in 3 cups flour.

Add 1/4 cup warm water to a bowl and add 1 tablespoon sugar and yeast. Let sit 1-2 minutes then add to mixing bowl. Blend in 3 remaining cups of flour. Take out of bowl and knead several minutes. Add 1 tablespoon oil to your bowl and place bread dough inside. Cover with a towel and let rise 1 hour. After 1 hour roll dough into small balls. Add 3 balls into a muffin tin to resemble a three leaf clover. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Broccoli Bites

Approximately 20 oz. frozen chopped broccoli, steamed.
2 cups crushed seasoned stuffing
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 c. butter, very soft
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper

In mixing bowl add cooked, chopped broccoli. Crush stuffing with meat mallet or rolling pin. Add to broccoli. Stir in cheese, eggs and soft butter. Season with salt and pepper. Stir together until well combined. Shape broccoli mixture into balls. Place each ball on a greased baking pan. Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.