Start your own tradition.

Invite a friend, neighbor, mail carrier or a family member to join you for a heavenly cup of HOT CHOCOLATE:

HOMEMADE HOT CHOCOLATE MIX

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate

½ cup water

pinch of salt

1 cup sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup of skim milk INSTEAD of heavy cream

dash of cinnamon (optional)

In a heavy saucepan or in the top of a double boiler, combine the chocolate and water over low heat, whisking occasionally until smooth.

Add a pinch of salt and sugar and continue to cook and stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves, 3 to 4 minutes.

In a bowl, whip together the skim milk, vanilla and cinnamon. Store this mix in a covered container. It will keep up to 5 days in the refrigerator. This mix makes about 15 cups depending on how you use it.

*1 Serving*

In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm 1 cup skim milk and pour into a mug. You can also warm the milk in a microwave oven. Stir in 2 tablespoons of hot chocolate mix.

For FAST and LESS Caloric HOT CHOCOLATE

Buy 365 organic hot cocoa mix from Whole Foods Market and follow directions

*Garnish with marshmallows, whip cream, CINNAMON.

Stay tuned for more fun details on Cinnamon!

This winter I participated in a basketball camp. I learned and practiced how to handle the basketball better while dribbling. I also learned some new basketball drills. One basketball drill is to do a spin move while dribbling the basketball. It is easier than you think.  All you have to do is pass the ball to your other hand and spin your body around with it. Another fun basketball drill that I learned was passing the basketball to your other hand behind your back while dribbling. This is a little harder to learn, but if you look between your legs while doing it to see the ball bounce behind you, this might help. The last basketball drill I learned was passing the ball between to your legs to your other hand while dribbling. This was hard at first, but I got the hang of it after awhile.

That was one the fun things I did this winter. I hope to sign up for the basketball camp again soon!

Winter time is rough and often very windy.  Sometimes, you want to
stay in the house because it's cold outside.  This doesn't help you to
be more healthy - it actually does the opposite.  You might want to
stay in the house and play video games or play on the computer.  I
have a solution for that.  I have a video game that is fun and helps
you be more active it's called "Just Dance 3".  You get to learn all
of these different kinds of dance moves and learn the song because the
lyrics are at the bottom of the screen.   It's good to use Just Dance
3 instead of a normal video game where you just sit down.  The whole
time you play you are dancing - no sitting!  You can't sit when you
are dancing!!  So you will sweat!

Snow ball fights are fun when it snows and they keep you active!
Building snowmen helps you with your strength because you have to pick
up enormous balls of snow.  You also get to design your snowman.
Sledding is very good because you have to climb up the hill.  It might
be hard to climb. If it's too easy to climb when you sled down it
won't be that fun.  I also ice skate.  I took lessons when I was
younger.  I'm pretty good at it and I like it.  I have a couple of
friends that skate too - it's very fun to do it with friends!

I like to eat warm soup in the winter because it keeps me warm!  My
favorite kind is chicken noodle.  It has healthy ingredients like
chicken, celery and sometimes carrots.

Keep being active and eat warm foods and I think you will have a great winter!

*Please note, this is not my snow fort, just a cool snow fort I found on line!

I always look forward to winter, because the kids in the neighborhood build a big snow fort at the corner of our yard.  We live on the corner, and when the plow trucks clear off the loop they pile lots of the snow right there.  Sometimes there’s so much it’s over our heads!

We have built in windows and benches in the forts, and always have big snowball fights!

This winter there has not been very much snow here in Central Ohio, though.  Snow plows have not come by the house.  We haven’t even gotten to go sledding yet.

So, my siblings and I have had a couple “camp-outs” in our playroom this winter.  We build forts out of the couch cushions with chairs and blankets and sleep in the “tent”.  We like to eat popcorn during our camping adventure.  Of course, when you really go camping you don’t have to vacuum up the popcorn you drop.

Anyway, winter isn’t over yet so I’m still hoping to build a snow fort out front.

My Girl Scout troop is going tubing soon at Mad River, a ski place nearby.  Last time I went tubing we were camping in Pennsylvania, it was autumn and not snowy.  They had a special surface the tubes can slide on!  But it will be great to tube on snow.

Until next time!

In the winter time three activities I like to do are basketball, playing the kinect, and playing on the wii fit. I like these activities because you have to use your mind, use skill, you have to move which means using some physical activity, and you have fun while playing them. With basketball I like it because I get to have fun and I get to be around people. Every time I go to basketball practice I learn something new whether it’s about the game or it’s about the people I play with. It’s also a great opportunity to make new friends. Also to play you have to have skill and you have to use your mind and I love things where you have to use your mind and think about what you’re going to do. I love mind games. With the kinect you get to play a whole variety of games. It’s a great way to have fun and to burn calories, also it’s a way to try something new. That also goes for the wii fit….it’s got the same concept except those games you have to use your mind a little bit more. In a nutshell, that’s what I do during our long winters to stay active.