Page 30 October 2014 Kid-friendly topiary craft with unlikely key component By Lisa Weisenburger Why is crafting with kids so enjoyable? They are unpredictable, messy and they usually come up with something crazy and unique. Often kids surprise you with their creations and when the project is completed, they are pretty darn proud of their brilliance. Crafting with boys is all of the above, times 10! I like to think of this creative time as controlled chaos. Being prepared may be the Boy Scout motto, but it works in this situation too. My plan is to gather all the supplies, set aside a specific time when I am willing to give up the kitchen table for a few hours, or occasionally a few days, present the idea and perhaps some guidelines that will eliminate frustration, and get crafty! Considering the season, I had to go with a pumpkin craft. But instead of surprising me with their creative genius, I treated them to a little kookiness of my own. Imagine the look on the sweet cherubs when they arrived at our crafting table playground and there was a pumpkin, a pot and a plunger. Whoa, back up! Yep, a plunger! Just this visual set off a round of giggles, jokes and a few clearly identifi able noises. I had stopped at the dollar store for most all of the supplies, pulled a dusty pumpkin out of the decorations closet and apple heated up the glue gun (low temp and lots of supervision, please). Once settled in, following step-by-step instructions ultimately led to a pretty awesome end result. Our topiary has a righteous spot on the island in our kitchen, but we are already scheming about what a great gift this would be for the hostess of our neighborhood Halloween party, or how much Aunt Lora would appreciate it for her Thanksgiving table. Perhaps we should make a pair for the mantle? Although the plunger, pot and pumpkin are the perfect trio, what about a plunger covered in glitter, a bright red pail and a Styrofoam ball covered in red and white peppermints for the Christmas season? Oh, I can see the possibilities are truly endless. Get busy! What you will need: • Brand new plunger • Floral foam for dry arrangements • Clay pot or other weighty container • Bag of sheet moss • Craft pumpkin • Collection of silk fall leaves, berries or flowers (You can get creative here. There are so many options.) • Ribbon or raffi a • Glue gun with three or four glue sticks The process: 1. Start by covering the rubber part of the plunger by gluing on the sheet moss. 2. Put the floral foam into the clay pot or container so that it is very snug and doesn’t show above rim level. 3. With the moss-covered rubber end pointing up, push the handle of the plunger into the floral foam forming the stem or trunk of the topiary. 4. Center the craft pumpkin and glue it to the plunger. 5. Decorate with fall leaves, berries or whatever you’ve chosen. 6. Cover the foam in the pot with moss. 7. Finish by tying ribbon or raffi a to the plunger handle just below the moss covered rubber part of the plunger under the pumpkin. PUMPKIN TOPIARY Complete Building and Design Services for All Residential Remodeling Projects Residential Remodeling General Contractor Designing and building in Central Phoenix and Arcadia for over 20 years 7120 N. 12th Street www.arcadiadb.com 602.577.5005 Free Estimates • Free Professional Designs Room Additions • Guest Houses • Major Remodeling • City Ready Blueprints 20% OFF all windows and doors with any size room addition Bonded • Insured Licensed ROC #237983

Page 31 October 2014 apple pie pops By Lisa Weisenburger Serves 10-12 ingredients • Use your favorite pie crust recipe or a store-bought crust works too! • 2 large granny smith apples, diced 1/4 to 1/2 inch • 2 tablespoons brown sugar • 2 tablespoons white sugar • 1 tablespoon fl our • 1 teaspoon cinnamon • 1 tablespoon lemon juice • 1 egg white plus 1 teaspoon water • cinnamon sugar • butter, melted • 10-12 Popsicle or lollipop sticks preparation • Preheat oven to 375 F. • Prepare pie crust. • In a medium bowl, add finely diced apples, white sugar, brown sugar, fl our, cinnamon and lemon juice. Stir to combine. Set aside. • Flour a work surface and roll dough out until it is 1/4 to 1/8 inch thick. • Use a small cookie cutter to cut out 10 to 12 circles. • Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Place half of the circles on the lined baking pan. • Insert a Popsicle or lollipop stick firmly into the center of the circles. • Place a dollop of the apple mixture in the center of the dough circle. You may have extra filling. • Stretch out a dough circle for the top crust so that it overlaps the bottom circle slightly. • Use a fork to create a ribbed edge, sealing the pie pop firmly. You may need to add extra dough at the base of the stick to ensure a firm hold. • Mix egg white and water together. Brush the pie pops lightly with egg white mixture and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. • Cut a few vent holes in the top crust. • Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden. • Remove from oven and lightly brush with butter. • Let cool completely before handling. Additional options: Try these with any of your favorite pie fillings, fresh or canned. Eliminate the stick and wrap one up for your lunch box or coffee treat at work. Slip a cellophane bag over a pop and tie it with a ribbon; it makes a great gift or party favor. On November 4, cast a vote for educational excellence. Re-elect Pam Kirby to the Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board. A Passion for Education. A Vision for the Future. A s parents and residents of the Scottsdale Unified School District, we we want and deserve a quality education for our children. We must ensure our schools have the tools and resources to create an exceptional learning environment for our kids. This means we must constantly advocate for small class sizes so teachers can teach and students can learn. It means scrutinizing every aspect of the budget so we can balance the interests of taxpayers, parents and educators to make sure our children get the best our dollars can pay for. It also means making sure we attract, retain and reward the best teaching talent. Pam Kirby has a track record of accomplishing these goals and making sure Scottsdale Unified School District is focused on results in the classroom. She has been a tireless advocate for fiscal responsibility and holding administration accountable for educational excellence and responsible use of our taxpayer dollars. WWW.PAMKIRBY.NET Paid for by Pam Kirby for SUSD Governing Board Editors Note: Last month we ran the recipe for Apple Pie Pops with our Kids’ Corner column. The recipe was incorrect. The correct recipe is below.