Back on track with the Cooking Rocks Challenge, my son Nol and I decided to try a fun dessert - and what kid wouldn't like one called Fun-due. We made two sauces for dipping fruit instead of the suggested shortbread cookies. Not that I'm a anti-sweet freak...I just didn't want sugar overload so close to bedtime.

Nol's getting really good at measuring ingredients. He handled this task for the semi-sweet dark baking chocolate, unsalted butter, light corn syrup sugar and heavy cream. He also tossed all in these ingredients in a small pot while I handled the stirring on the hot stove. At the same time the chocolate was cooking, I made a peanut dip using the same ingredient but substituting peanut butter chips for the dark chocolate.  It took about five minutes to melt and viola, dipping time. We used strawberries, blueberries, pineapple and cantaloupe. The chocolate was clearly better than the peanut butter, but the dessert  was a perfect treat after a day stuck indoors thanks to continuous rainy weather.

Total prep and cooking time: 13 minutes for both sauces, including time to chop the fruit.

Next week: Mexican Rice Bowl and Cookie and Ice Cream Fill-Your-Handwiches.

After last week's fiasco, the Cooking Rocks Challenge resumed this week to test out Monte Cristo and Elvis French Toast Sammies. Since Nol was on Spring Break, we picked this recipe for a lunch treat instead of the suggested  breakfast or breakfast for dinner.

Nol really enjoyed this dish because he was able to help out more than usual. After I sliced up the bread, he assembled the sandwiches. The Monte Cristo sammies were first - a blend of swiss cheese, turkey and ham. Next up, the Elvis sammies - peanut butter and bananas (sliced by Nol). We grilled these up an pour a touch of warm syrup on them.

Total prep and cooking time: 10 minutes

Overall, this recipe was too sweet for mom, but a hit with my son. Other suggestions that we'll try include using peanut butter and jelly or peanut butter and bacon as ingredients. But very easy to make and a nice variation from the regular grilled cheese or PB&J.

Next up: Fun-due Dips for Cookies, Fruit or Cake

I was surprised to find out today that Martha Stewart's magazine, Kids: Fun Stuff to Do Together, has ceased publication as of the Spring 2006 issue. And just when the editors were starting to include crafty activities I could actually complete. Damn. Rest assured, you can still can get previous MS Kids content online. I also received a nifty postcard in the mail today sharing the news and letting me know that Kids magazine subscribers will be receiving Everyday Food for the rest of the year. Can't say I'm all that excited.

As many of us begin preparations for Passover or Easter, we'll be sharing stories about traditions, tips and activities on how to take part in these celebrations with children.

 But we also want to hear from YOU.

Have a fun Easter Egg hunt idea? Tips on how to color eggs with preschoolers? How do you teach your children about the Sedar Meal or Good Friday? How will you be celebrating Passover or Easter? Did your kids have to give something up for Lent?

If you'd like to share your story with Blogging Baby, send us the details through our Tip Line. Or if you have a blog, write a post with your story and send us the link along with some details. The Blogging Baby team will review every submission and determine if we can include your story on our site.

We're looking forward to hearing from you!

As I've told my Blogging Baby colleagues, daylight savings sent my family into a sleep tailspin this week. Besides sleeping in too late, nap (or no nap) insanity, and general crankiness, both of my boys have been going to sleep as early as 6 p.m. - which is not a bad thing. But it did limit the crazedparent household from participating in Week 11 of the Cooking Rocks Challenge. I had to turn to some old reliables this week. In place of  recipes from Cooking Rocks,I thought I'd share a favorite I made from an old copy of Bon Appetit : Black Bean Vegetable Burritos.

The chopping of bell peppers, tomatoes and an onion is quick. To speed up the prep time, I chop the carrots in my mini food processor. I also omit the the hot peppers from the recipe to eliminate any possibility of Nol claiming the burritos are too spicy. After a quick saute of the veges I added the spices and black beans. While the beans warmed in the veges, I heated up the flour tortillas in a cask-iron skillet. When ready, I layered on the black bean filling and topped it with Monterey jack cheese, avocado, cilantro and sour cream.

Here's the secret that ensures Nol will eat the Black Bean Vegetable Burritos every single time I make them: I wrap them in aluminum foil, restaurant style. He loves peeling back the foil after each bite and showing me the empty wrapper when he's done.

What I really love about this recipe is the leftovers...enough to make burritos for lunch or dinner the next day. Instead of using flour tortillas, I substitute corn tortillas and make a quick taco.

Next week I'll be back with our second attempt at Week 11 of the Cooking Rocks Challenge with Monte Cristo and Elvis French Toast Sammies and Fun-Due Dips.

Something happened to my brain when I gave birth to my second baby. That little chip that used to help me maintain a meticulous family calendar apparently moved on.  In its place is nothing but an empty space that's caused me to miss doctor's appointments and a birthday party, and overschedule myself to no end. I've always been a big fan of the Franklin-Covey day planners, but it wasn't working for me this time around. I've tried different tools, like Yahoo! Calendar, but I'm a paper gal. I want to hold the calendar in my hand and have it available for quick notes or additions.

The folks who make the family organizer, Busy Body Book, recently contacted Blogging Baby and I signed myself up to test out the product.  It's a week-at-a-glance calendar that includes five columns to keep track of family members, activities, or something like meals slated for the week. It's light enough to keep in medium size purse or diaper bag.

I'm on week three with Busy Body Book and it's been incredibly useful in keeping track of the fam. I have a column for me, my husband and my two sons. I used the last column for family activities, like birthday parties, road trips or dinner parties (well, maybe just dreaming of the day we can resume dinner parties). I put bills that need to be paid in the back pocked of the book and jot down their due dates in the calendar. And, I keep the Busy Body Book in the kitchen where I can easily spot it.

I recently wrote about calling cards for moms. One commenter asked if we knew of any calling cards for stay-at-home-dads. It turns out that the folks at Event Bliss had Papa Calling Cards already in the works. Marlynn Jayme Schotland, the mama of Event Bliss (and a son), let me know that the cards are now available in three styles - the Ethan, the Alain, and the David. I can't see a dad handing out the David design but I do like the Ethan and the Alain. And like the mom calling cards, these are also pricey, starting at 100 cards for $50. But they have a simple, clean design.

Stay at home dads  - what do you think of papa calling cards?

Earlier in the week I wrote about an apparent surge in teenage fight clubs, which included some statistics showing that young girls are increasingly showing signs of aggressive behavior. I initially was appalled at many comments that encouraged this type of unsupervised fighting. I spend my days teaching my preschool son that hands are not for hitting. Why would this change all of a sudden when he's a teenager? Surely we could find other ways for youths to express their emotions. Yet I couldn't deny one thought - throwing a good punch is definitely a stress reliever.

Teenage angst is troublesome. But motherhood angst? Sometimes insufferable. Mom cliques, mommy wars, just being mom day in and day out - often never leaving the house for 24 hours straight.  If anyone needs to get rid of bad juju, it's a mom. I started to wonder, would a little time in the ring make moms feel better about themselves? I asked a few of my friends if they'd be interested in starting a Mom's Fight Club - not a back door, dark alley fight club, but an organized club using a professional facility where we could spare with each other to release a little crankiness. The rules - only those invited could come;  no sharing the deets with the husbands; and no photos or digicams allowed. The consensus? Hell yeah.

Prekids, I trained as a kickboxer and studied Kung Fu (Sung style), so I contacted my "sifu" and asked if he'd let us use his facility in the evening for a few rounds in the ring. I also asked if he'd spend some time showing the moms a few basics of boxing and let us use the safety gear. He was game, and so on Thursday night the Mommy Fight Club had it's first gathering.

Only dessert could save Nol and me from our dinner fiasco in this week's installment of the Cooking Rocks Challenge. The obvious pick was Absolutely Fabulous Five-Minute Fudge. What could be better than chocolate fudge? In five minutes?

This recipe is easy peasy. Nol prepped the cake pan by covering the surface with softened butter while I started on the cooking since it required stove time. I mixed sweetened condensed milk with my new favorite - Nestle Toll House Swirl chips...this time semi-sweet chocolate and white chocolate. The recipe called for a mix of butterscotch chips and chocolate chips, but I'll never use butterscotch again so I opted for the swirls. I cooked this on the stove until the chips melted. While this was happening, Nol covered the leftover can of milk with plastic wrap and put it in the middle of the cake pan.

When the chips/milk mixture was thoroughly melted, I added nuts and raisins, then poured the mixture into the cake pan. We then let it chill in the refrigerator until the fudge was firm, then pulled the can out.

Calling it Five-Minute Fudge is misleading. It takes five minutes to make, but about 30 to fully chill.

Total prep and cooking time: 45 minutes, including the wait to eat the fudge.

The can in the center is not necessary - it's more for presentation. Next time we'll leave this step out.

Next week: Monte Cristo and Elivs French Toast Sammies and Fun-Due Dips

RoseArt is voluntarily recalling its Magnetix Magnet Building Sets in the U.S. since 30 children fell ill -- and one died -- after swallowing small magnets that fell out of the toys

I wrote about the toddler that died as a result of ingesting two Magnetix pieces back in December. Since then, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, three children, ages 3 to 8 years, "had intestinal perforations that required surgery and hospitalization in intensive care." The added that.a 5-year-old child aspirated two magnets that were surgically removed from his lung.

The CPSC also added: "Tiny magnets inside the plastic building pieces and rods can fall out. Magnets found by young children can be swallowed or aspirated. If more than one magnet is swallowed, the magnets can attract to each other and cause intestinal perforation or blockage, which can be fatal."

The CPSC suggest that if you have a Magnetix Magnet Building Set, you should visit the RoseArt website for more information about returning the product. But as of 3:37pm EST, the company had no information about the recallposted to its Magnetic-specific site. Contact RoseArt customer service at 1-800-272-9667.  [via CNN.com]

[Thanks to Thordora for the tip!]