I just can’t help myself.  We don’t even have a fire pit but somehow I couldn’t stop my hands from adding these scrumptious s’more supplies to my cart last week.  Of course, once I got home I had to think of a way to use them.  I thought to myself, hmm…rice krispies are good with marshmallows, graham crackers are good with marshmallows, and everything’s good with chocolate…maybe I could mix it all together.  Luckily I had a box of generic rice krispies in my pantry so this impromptu rice krispie concoction was easy to create.  The end result looked something like this…

I’ve always been a rice krispie treat fan, but this variation was down-right delicious.  I’m sorry I don’t have pictures of the process but I was just throwing things in as I went so I didn’t have time to measure or grab a camera.  Honestly, it’s so simple you don’t really need a tutorial.  Here’s the basic idea (keep in mind I’m estimating the quantities I used so feel free to adapt the amounts to your liking).

Ingredients

3 tbsp butter

1 regular bag of large marshmallows

5 cups of rice krispie cereal

1 1/4 cup roughly smashed graham crackers

1 Hershey bar coarsely broken into pieces

Directions

• Roughly smash your graham crackers in a large ziploc bag (my kids used a rolling pin).  The goal here is to get small chunks (about the size of a dime or less), not just crumbs.
• Break up your Hershey bar while it’s in the wrapper.  Again, you’re going for small chunks.
• Melt your butter in a large saucepan on low heat.  Add marshmallows and stir until melted.  Remove from heat.
• Add rice krispies and graham cracker chunks and stir until evenly coated.
• Add chocolate pieces and stir (the chocolate will melt into the mixture)
• Press the mixture into a 13″x9″ baking pan coated with cooking spray and allow to cool.

My family devoured these…literally.  We didn’t even wait for them to cool – we just dug right in to the chocolately, gooey goodness.  If you’re looking for a sure-fire way to usher in summer (without actually building a fire) you should definitely give this recipe a try.  Just thought I’d pass it on.

Hungry for a few more S’more ideas?  Check out these fabulous sites…

Homemade By Holman: Smores Cupcakes

Smitten Kitchen: S’more Pie

The City Cradle: Roast & Toast Party

I checked my site statistics the other day expecting to find that I’d lost a bunch of readers during my hiatus.  Much to my surprise, you were all still there – diligently checking the site each day in hopes of a new post. So, to say thanks for sticking with me over the last two months, I’ve decided to make it up to you by upping my posts over the next few weeks.  I’ve got loads of back to school ideas to share, some great home organizing tips and a big giveaway in the works.  You won’t want to miss it.

I hope you had a fabulous summer, everyone.  Thanks for your patience.   It’s great to be back!

P.S. If you haven’t yet, you may want to subscribe to my FeedBurner email list.  That way you’ll get all the new MeckMom posts emailed directly to your inbox.  It’s totally free.  You can find the subscription link up at the top right of the page,  just under the search bar.  Just thought I’d pass it on.

If your kids tend to invite the outdoors into your house, try this cheap and easy solution. Instead of bellowing from the next room each time your kids head out for some sunshine, just add one of these little adhesive-backed alarms to your door. Place one side of the alarm on the edge of the door and the other side on the wall or moulding (they don’t have to be perfectly flush – just within 1/2 inch of each other). When the door is opened and the two parts are separated, the alarm will sound.

Each alarm is equipped with two settings: alarm and chime. If your kids just need a little reminder now and then, you’ll want to set it to chime so it will beep twice each time the door is opened. The beep is pretty loud so in addition to helping your kids keep the door closed; the chime feature is a great way to know when your kids are going in and out. If your kids are like mine and need more than a reminder, you might want to change the setting to alarm.  That way, when the door is opened, the beeping will continue until the door is closed again.

You should be able to find alarms like these at most major retailers like Target, Lowes and Home Depot. I found mine in the lighting section of WalMart. I paid $10 for a pack of two. If you consider how much it’s saving me in air conditioning and extermination costs, it’s well worth the price. Just thought I’d pass it on.

So for today’s Talk to Me Tuesday post, I’m hoping you’ll pass along your favorite summer reads.  What book have you read lately that you couldn’t put down?  Is there a particular author that you can’t resist?  Is there a book you loved so much that you immediately passed it on to a friend?  I hope you’ll share a few of your favorites as well as a word or two about why you loved them.  I’m heading out on a 20-hour road trip soon so any suggestions for a fabulous, make-the-time-fly-by book would be greatly appreciated.

While we’re on the topic of summer reading, I thought I’d pass along a few of my favorite book sites, in case you’re in the market for a great read yourself:

GoodReads.com
This clever site is like a literary version of allrecipes.com (my favorite recipe site).  It’s a place for you and your friends to get together and rate, share, and review books.  It’s also a perfect spot to set up a virtual book club or join in on a discussion about your latest read.  Simple, easy to use, and totally free.  I highly recommend it.

SwapTree.com
Wondering what to do with the pile of paperbacks from last summer?  Don’t store them on a shelf, swap them!  SwapTree lets you trade in your old books, movies, games and CDs and use your credit to request new ones.  Whether you use it with the general public or just as a way to exchange books between friends and family, it’s a convenient (and free) way to rotate your collection.

Audible.com
Let’s face it, when you’ve got little kids, finding time to curl up with a good book can be tough.  However, it’s amazing how much ‘reading’ you can squeeze in when you’re listening instead of looking.  Trust me, mundane tasks like laundry and mopping are far less tedious when you’ve got a great audio book to keep you company.  You can listen to the audio books on your laptop or download them to any mp3/iPod device.  It’s not free, but in my opinion, their vast selection, ease of use, and impeccable sound quality make Audible well worth the price.

In addition to your favorite summer reads, if you’ve got other literary sites you love, I hope you’ll share them with the rest of us.  As always, to those of you that comment, thanks – in advance – for passing it on.