The Malleable Brains and The Technology

Our brain is the most important organ in our body and therefore it requires the most meticulous care. Unfortunately, our kids are not getting the care they deserve, thanks to the escalating technology and less parental control. Technology has made its permanent place in our lives, hence, making it difficult for us eliminate it from our kids' life. We can't eradicate it completely, but we can, however, limit its use to protect the younger minds.

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13 Awesome ways to keep kids happy while traveling

As the mom of three boys in a family that travels frequently, author Liz Cowen Furman knows a thing or two about keeping kids entertained while traveling.

Airplane travel tips

“On long plane rides we brought little presents wrapped to give one every hour. It might be a non-sugary snack, coloring book and colors, small puzzle or game, small toys, all inexpensive but fun,” Furman says. “The key is to wrap them, as it takes time to unwrap, thus burning part of the air time. On a few occasions we would use the next gift as leverage to keep them behaving until we passed the next one out.”

It would feel like Christmas on that plane ride! You can also put together an airplane travel kit, such as this one from Keeps Me Smiling that contains crayons, finger puppets, a magnifying glass and more.

Image: Keeps Me Smiling

For older kids, this travel kit contains magnets and puzzles that will keep your child entertained.

Image: Natural Famlly Today

For the book lover, you can’t go wrong with a travel kit like this, which also contains cards and LEGO packs.

Image: Natural Family Today

Of course, technology is often a life saver on an airplane. “In addition to activity books, an iPhone filled with fun free or 99 cent educational games goes a long way,” says Pixie Vacations owner Steve Griswold. “For $99 or less, a portable DVD player and some movies to make the ride more enjoyable is a great option.”

Which apps are the best? My kids are a fan of Minecraft; however, there are so many to choose from. “Mobile apps help entertain and educate kids of all ages during a long journey: Super WHY!, based on the popular PBS Kids program, features a collection of four literacy games that help preschoolers practice the alphabet, rhyming, spelling, writing and reading,” says Verizon technology insider Kate Jay. “For older kids, Angry Birds Space, the latest addition to the Angry Birds series, is a physics-based puzzle game featuring zero-gravity space adventures and more.”

Cards are another fun way to keep kids entertained while traveling. Pick up Uno cards, Go Fish or the super fun Loaded Questions card game.

What about road trips?

Bring along their phones, handheld gaming devices or an iPad and load it with movies to help pass the time. If you have a portable DVD player, Griswold says to stop at a Redbox along the way to drop off movies and pick up new ones. “This is a great way to break up the trip, get out of the car, and also have the family pick the next movie for the next leg of the trip,” he says. “There are Redbox vending machines at most grocery stores and drugstores, making it easy to pick up and drop off movies along the way.”

You can also pack up some fun road trip travel kits for the kids. If you have a LEGO-obsessed kid, this DIY Portable LEGO travel kit will be right up their alley.

Image: Fun at Home With Kids

We also love these “Busy Baskets” that are personalized for each kid. Blogger Staci from Lizard & Ladybug went to the dollar store and filled them with window markers, magnets (and a cookie sheet for them to stick to), activity books and more.

Image: The Wilson World

Don't be afraid to stop for a learning adventure with your kids. There are some awesome apps that will help you find unique historical sites, monuments, museums and more on your journey,” says Griswold, who lists Road Trippers and Roadside America as his favorite apps.

To get some fun conversation going on those long car rides, I love the idea of these "Conversation Cards."

Image: The Measured Mom

Head on over to The Measured Mom to print out these free conversation cards that are so much fun for the entire family.

Lastly, know that you won’t break any road trip time records with kids. “With kids, you need to plan on some breaks," says Griswold. "So plan on stopping for bathroom breaks, and to get out and walk around. Also, packing some snacks and drinks (carrots, bottled waters, trail mix, and a few of your children’s favorite treats that you can pull out as a surprise is a great idea. It's difficult to eat healthy when traveling, so bringing healthy snacks really can help you cut down on the junk food stops along the way.”

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Ashley Conrad's Clutch Life: Day 24

It's time for your second strength workout of the week. Step it up, suck it up, and get strong today!

1 In 7 cars in the U.S. is part of the Takata airbag recall

Takata, which you've probably never heard of before this week, is a Japanese company that makes auto parts and is the fourth biggest manufacturer of airbags in the world. Turns out it has been making airbags that can explode, shooting shrapnel into drivers' faces and torsos, and has already been blamed for killing at least five people in the U.S. alone. An additional death in Malaysia has also been connected to a faulty Takata airbag.

Police and medical professionals who arrived at the scenes of what they thought were everyday car accidents were perplexed when victims looked like they had been either shot or stabbed. Those injuries were later traced back to exploding shrapnel from Takata airbags. There's at least one report of an airbag exploding spontaneously rather than as the result of an airbag being deployed in an accident.

Now, finally, after mounting pressure and more than $1 million in fines for its lack of cooperation with the safety investigation, Takata announced a sweeping recall of its airbags. This could be the largest consumer recall in history — so far about 34 million cars. But that number is likely to climb as car manufacturers sift through their records to tally exactly how many cars are on the road with these deadly airbags.

U.S. car manufacturers that install Takata airbags include a hefty slice of cars on the road, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's site dedicated to the recall. Ten carmakers, including BMW, Chrysler, Daimler Trucks, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru and Toyota, have vehicles on the road with potentially deadly Takata airbags.

Here's a VIN search tool, where you can add in your specific vehicle's information and find out if you and your family are at risk. But again, carmakers are continuing to add vehicles to the recall all the time as they go over their records, so you might want to go back a couple of times to make sure your car is safe to drive.

Here's a video showing exactly what happens when a Takata airbag explodes.

Takata airbag recall

Takata airbag recall

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4 Important tire safety checks you're skipping
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Fried chicken and doughnuts: 3 Ways to eat this savory-sweet mashup

What a cute couple this pair makes, and your taste buds will think so too. Here's some finger food to the max that will energize your breakfast. Take these glazed doughnut and fried chicken sliders, for example.

There's even a touch of cinnamon and sugar in the mix for good measure. And you'll never guess what these quick and easy doughnuts are made of — biscuit dough. The premade kind that's sold in a container shaped like a tube.

Glazed doughnut and crispy fried chicken breakfast sliders recipe

A unique breakfast slider made with homemade doughnuts and fried chicken, then topped with drizzled glaze.

Serves 5

Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 35 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

For the doughnuts

• 1 (7.5 ounce) 10-count can buttermilk biscuit dough
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

For the fried chicken

• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 5 dashes salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
• 1 egg, white part only
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup canola oil

For the glaze

• 1-1/3 cups powdered sugar
• 1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

For the doughnuts

1. To a small bowl, add the sugar and cinnamon. Mix together, and set aside.
2. Poke a hole into the middle of each biscuit, and stretch them out just a bit to form the doughnut dough. Set aside for a moment.
3. Heat a medium-size pan on low to medium heat, and add the canola oil.
4. In small batches and staggered (with a little time in between), add the biscuit dough to the pan.
5. When the bottom sides of the doughnuts turn a light golden color, use a skewer (or tongs) to gently turn them over (put the skewer into the hole of the doughnut). They will cook fast, so make sure to watch them very closely. If they are cooking too fast, turn the heat down a little.
6. When both sides of the doughnuts are a light golden color, remove them from the pan, and set the doughnuts 1 by 1 into the sugar mixture. Coat all sides, and set aside.

For the fried chicken

1. To a medium-size bowl, add the buttermilk, water and egg. Whisk together, and set aside.
2. To another medium-size bowl, add the flour, and set aside.
3. Cut the larger chicken breast into 3 equally sized pieces widthwise. Cut the other chicken breast in half widthwise.
4. Add the salt and pepper to each side of the chicken.
5. Heat a medium-size skillet on medium heat, and add the canola oil.
6. One piece at a time, dip the chicken into the flour, then into the buttermilk mixture and then back into the flour.
7. Take a pinch of flour, and drop it into the pan. If it bubbles, then add the coated pieces of chicken to the pan. If not, wait until the pinch of flour starts to bubble before adding the chicken to the pan.
8. When the bottom sides of the chicken are a golden color, turn them over. Let cook until the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

To assemble

1. Serve with a piece of fried chicken in between 2 doughnuts to make the slider.
2. To a small bowl, add the powdered sugar and milk. Mix together to form a glaze.
3. Drizzle the glaze on top of the sliders, and serve.

Yes, there is chocolate on this doughnut and fried chicken kebab. But it's only just a drizzle or two.

And everything tastes better with chocolate, right?

What's a couple of drizzles of chocolate anyway, even if it is on top of fried chicken?

The doughnut holes are really good, and you'll never guess what they're made of. You guessed it — those premade, tubed biscuits again. Yum.

Doughnut holes and crispy fried chicken kebabs with chocolate sauce recipe

Doughnut holes coated in sugar and cinnamon are placed on a skewer with fried chicken and topped with a drizzle of chocolate sauce.

Serves 5

Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 35 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

For the doughnuts

• 1 (7.5 ounce) 10-count can buttermilk biscuit dough
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

For the fried chicken

• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts, each breast cut into 5 equally sized pieces
• 5 dashes salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
• 1 egg, white part only
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup canola oil

To assemble

• Doughnut holes
• Fried chicken
• 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup

Directions:

For the doughnuts

1. To a small bowl, add the sugar and cinnamon. Mix together, and set aside.
2. Roll each piece of biscuit dough into a ball. Set aside for a moment.
3. Heat a medium-size pan on low to medium heat, and add the canola oil.
4. In small batches and staggered (with a little time in between), add the biscuit dough to the pan.
5. When the bottom sides of the doughnut holes turn a light golden color, use tongs to turn them over. They will cook fast, so make sure to watch them very closely. If they are cooking too fast, turn the heat down a little.
6. When all sides of the doughnut holes are a light golden color, remove them from the pan, and set them into the sugar mixture. Coat all sides of the doughnut holes, and set aside.

For the fried chicken

1. To a medium-size bowl, add the buttermilk, water and egg. Whisk together, and set aside.
2. To another medium-size bowl, add the flour, and set aside.
3. Add the salt and pepper to each side of the chicken pieces.
4. Heat a medium-size skillet on medium heat, and add the canola oil.
5. One piece at a time, dip the chicken into the flour, then into the buttermilk mixture and then back into the flour.
6. Take a pinch of flour, and drop it into the pan. If it bubbles, then add the coated pieces of chicken to the pan. If not, wait until the pinch of flour starts to bubble before adding the chicken.
7. When the bottom sides of the chicken are a golden color, turn them over. Let cook until the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

To assemble

1. Add 2 pieces of chicken and 2 doughnut holes to each skewer.
2. Add a light drizzle of chocolate sauce over the kebabs, and serve.

What's fried chicken without macaroni and cheese? Here's a unique doughnut and fried chicken slider made with mac and cheese. Yum again.

And a few drizzles or so of honey to sweeten the deal. More finger food to the max for breakfast.

Doughnut and crispy fried chicken sliders with macaroni and cheese recipe

Baked doughnut sliders made with crispy fried chicken and macaroni and cheese are topped with drizzled honey.

Serves 5

Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 30 minutes | Total time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

For the doughnuts

• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 dashes salt
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 dash ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon butter, softened (for greasing the pan)

For the fried chicken

• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 5 dashes salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
• 1 egg, white part only
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup canola oil

For the sliders

• 2 cups prepared macaroni and cheese, warmed
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon honey

Directions:

For the doughnuts

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. To a large bowl, add the flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, eggs, sour cream, milk, vanilla extract and nutmeg. Whisk together until incorporated.
3. Using a paper towel or cooking brush, grease the inside of a doughnut baking pan.
4. Spoon the batter into the baking pan to make 5 doughnuts, and bake until the doughnuts just start to lightly brown around the outer edges (about 8 to 10 minutes).
5. Remove from the oven, and transfer the doughnuts to a rack. Set aside.

For the fried chicken

1. To a medium-size bowl, add the buttermilk, water and egg. Whisk together, and set aside.
2. To another medium-size bowl, add the flour, and set aside.
3. Cut the larger chicken breast into 3 pieces widthwise. Then cut the smaller one in half widthwise.
4. Add the salt and pepper to each side of the chicken pieces.
5. Heat a medium-size skillet on medium heat, and add the canola oil.
6. One piece at a time, dip the chicken into the flour, then into the buttermilk mixture and then back into the flour.
7. Take a pinch of flour, and drop it into the pan. If it bubbles, then add the coated pieces of chicken to the pan. If not, wait until the pinch of flour starts to bubble before adding the chicken.
8. When the bottom sides of the chicken are a golden color, turn them over. Let cook until the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

For the sliders

1. Cut each doughnut in half widthwise.
2. Add a piece of chicken to the bottom side of each doughnut.
3. Top the chicken with macaroni and cheese.
4. Add the top side of the doughnut to make a slider.
5. Drizzle honey on top, and serve.

For tons of great recipes, like our I <3 Comfort Food page on Facebook.

More fun fried chicken recipes

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29 Fresh and flavorful recipes to make before May is over

If you're feeling like I'm feeling, then add these must-make recipes to your list, and start enjoying the delicious flavors of the season.

Breakfast

1. Mexican breakfast hash recipe

I would definitely be willing to wake up 25 minutes earlier to make this Mexican breakfast hash.

2. Easy coconut-kale breakfast smoothie recipe

As someone who does not love kale, even I have to admit that this green smoothie with tons of coconut and pineapple sounds pretty darn good.

3. Lavender whole-wheat muffins recipe

Get out of your herb rut, and add fresh lavender to your whole-wheat muffins for some unexpected spring flavor.

4. Tie-dye waffles recipe

Nobody will even think about Eggos with these homemade tie-dye waffles on the scene.

Main dishes

5. Gluten-free veggie burrito bowls recipe

Move over, Chipotle. This burrito bowl is giving you a run for your money.

6. Artichoke heart grilled cheese sandwich recipe

You might think this ridiculously cheesy sandwich is the best part of the recipe, but you haven't seen the smoked Gouda dipping sauce yet.

7. Slow cooker skinny supreme pizza mac and cheese recipe

It's pizza and mac and cheese combined. And it's skinny. Winner.

8. Low-carb, low-calorie fish taco lettuce wraps recipe

Make some swaps to traditional fish tacos, and you're chowing down on these beauties that you don't even have to feel guilty about.

9. Strawberry raspberry jalapeño gazpacho recipe

Branch out with your gazpacho — sweet and spicy is the new way to go.

10. Penne with pesto, potatoes and peas recipe

This penne looks like the perfect use for the fresh peas sitting in my crisper. And that runny egg isn't hurting my feelings either.

11. Open-faced garbanzo bean salad sandwich recipe

Open-faced garbanzo bean salad sammies are the perfect option for Meatless Monday lunch.

12. One-pan Thai basil chicken recipe

No excuses for not making dinner tonight. This Thai basil chicken is a one-pot wonder and takes only 30 minutes.

13. Triple melon mozzarella salad with lime dressing and mint recipe

This melon-mozzarella salad only looks like a fancy dish you'd get at a restaurant. It's actually super easy to make.

14. Baked tilapia with olives, red pepper and feta recipe

Tilapia is such an underrated fish, and this one-pan meal with tons of fresh Mediterranean flavors is a delicious way to try it out.

15. Tabbouleh-stuffed peppers recipe

These stuffed peppers are the perfect recipe when you need to use up all those herbs you have no clue what to do with.

16. Oven-baked orange-soy pork ribs recipe

For those of you in areas where it's still too cold to think about grilling, these Asian-style oven-baked ribs will satisfy your barbecue craving.

17. Raspberry spinach salad wraps recipe

So many good things in this lunch wrap: fresh raspberries, candied walnuts, blue cheese, spinach, oh my!

18. Fresh mango chicken tinga recipe

Mangoes and jalapeños give tons of sweet and spicy flavor to this easy chicken dish.

19. Easy tea sandwiches

Brunch season is in full swing — you're going to want to bookmark these easy but impressive tea sandwich recipes.

20. Spicy grilled shrimp kebab lettuce wraps recipe

It's totally acceptable to eat with your hands when it's grilled shrimp lettuce wraps with spicy corn salad.

21. Healthy veggie power bowl recipe

Pick from three tasty homemade salad dressings to really amp up the flavor of this veggie power bowl.

22. Hawaiian pizza pita pockets recipe

Pizza night twist — serve Hawaiian-style toppings (with plenty of cheese) in a pita pocket.

23. Strawberry avocado goat cheese panini

Strawberry and avocado might sound like an odd flavor combo, but don't knock it till you've tried it. It just might become your new favorite sandwich.

24. Grilled chicken with kiwi salsa and coconut rice recipe

This grilled chicken meal brings the flavor — big time. And it's pretty easy too.

Dessert

25. Chocolate-espresso cupcakes with fresh raspberry filling recipe

These decadent cupcakes have a fresh fruit surprise inside. (But really, I just want to lick that frosting off the top.)

26. Strawberry mojito cupcake recipe

Cocktails turned into cupcakes sounds like a fantastic idea to me.

27. Homemade boozy Dole Whip recipe

No need for a trip to Disney for this adults-only version of the luscious Dole Whip.

28. Triple-layer margarita ice pops recipe

The next best thing to margaritas has got to be spiked margarita pops.

29. Pineapple-coconut no-bake cheesecake recipe

Any cheesecake that takes only 10 minutes to prep is fine by me. Even better when it's no-bake.

More must-try recipes

Chocolate-sour cream Bundt cake is a foolproof homemade dessert
Healthy turkey burrito wraps swap tortillas for fresh greens
No-bake strawberry cream bars you won't believe are vegan