Jersey Global Momma

OK so I'm taking the plunge and making the commitment to writing a blog. I've wanted to do this for years... So here she goes. What I have to tell you is it is easy to be the Global Momma in Jersey. It is my goal to teach my kids about the world we live in and there are a lot of great resources here in Jersey.
For example this week we learned that searching for a new playground doesn't always mean a better playground when we went from one my kids told me was "BORING" to one that I would have thought was better but was still reported as "Lame". Please someone explain to me where my 4 year old picked up the word Lame it is.... Lame!

Out and about in NJ:


We have had a fun packed summer so far so my plan is to write a little bit about everything we've done.
Clementon Park- Liked it, priced fairly, we got the membership. Crowds are minimal, the water park is great for toddlers and small children. It is a bit run down, the food is over priced and the bathroom with the changing room is not up to par. The kiddie riders are great and again, the price can not be beat. This is a great thing for a family on a budget, instead of rides on the boardwalk you can do Clementon Park over and over again for around the same price.


My sister and I took the kids last weekend to Coco Keys water Resort. All in all it was a great day. I will say we were lucky we had an aunt who won free passes because at $27- $32 a person that makes one expensive day. It was very clean, the staff very attentive, the pools well kept and in working order. The food was Nathans or Pizza Hut and a great value. Parents of older children could enjoy the adults only hot tub or bar. Me, being obsessively worried Momma that I am, was right there with the kids. The only down side of our whole day was that many parents left children too young to be unattended to "fend for themselves". We befriended a 2 year old in a 3 foot pool whose mother seemed never to even notice him even after he came upstairs with us to where she was reading her book. The water park was warm with very clean water. The Lazy River was fast moving. The kids have been begging to go back.

Favorite Tools:

The last few days I have been cleaning! Trying to get 10 tons of laundry done! Honestly, where does it all come from? I also did the crazy clean out the couch thing. I have to say for the millionth time I love my Dyson. We bought it pre-kids when I was really just Lint obsessed. Now, I know how good it is. This vacuum sucks! Just like it's supposed to! I loved it when I bought it but now several thousand miss-sucks later I love this thing! When you have kids things are places they never were before so imagine my surprise when sucking up right near the edge of the couch when I got a whole marker sucked up. But it is a Dyson so you can take it all apart and get to it. Finally, someone made a vacuum that is like a copier. If it jammed check here, then here, then here, then voila- unclogged. I actually ran over a toy and had a mini melted thing stuck in the brush once. All I had to do was quickly pull the brush out from the side compartment and it was cleared. The other day I noticed a new feature. I have a hole in the seat of the of and all kinds of things get down there remote controls, toys, pretzels, can't find the phone, it's probably down there. Anyway I took all the attachments off and I could stuff the hose like a soft snake down in there sucking up all the debris. These are the things that make me happy!

Free Day Out:

Check out Red Bank Park and Battlefield. We went again the other day and it is such a nice place. Throw rocks in the Delaware from the beach. Walk out on the pier. Take a nice little stroll along the river. See the Cannons. Watch ships pass by and planes land. Play in the cute little play ground. If you are particular you may want to bring wipes to wipe down picnic tables. Make sure you have tissue in case they are out in the bathroom because sometimes that happens in parks.

Food Stuff:

Tomatoes are so beautiful this time of year. I eat them with everything.  I have here included some of my favorite Tomato recipes:

Tomato salad


2 pts. of grape tomatoes

1 red onion

6-7 leaves of basil

1 clove garlic

½ cup Marsala wine

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp lemon juice


Dice red onion and finely chop garlic

1 saute red onion and garlic in olive oil

When browned throw in chopped tomatoes, shredded basil, lemon and Marsala wine

Allow to simmer 3 minutes



Tomato Mozzarella salad


Leave most tomatoes whole chopping only the bigger ones chop onion instead of dicing it toss in round fresh mozzarella. Serves nicely as a side dish or over a bed of greens, also add croutons or olives if wish.



Tomato Basil Pasta

Prepare tomato salad above and top your pasta with it.



Regina’s Chicken Parmesan

4 boneless chicken breast

Packaged Oven Fry (near breading)

1 egg

1 tbsp olive oil



Tomato salad- see above

Whole Milk Mozzarella (I prefer Sargento Artisan Mozzarella)

Butterfly (slice through it to make it thinner) chicken and cut each breast into 2 pieces.

Wet chicken with egg and dredge through oven fry. Coat pan with olive oil. Cook 20 min on 400. Pull out of oven top with tomato Salad (Tomatoes and onions should be diced for this) and Mozzarella- cook a few more minutes until cheese melts.



Tomato Appetizer

½ lb package Panchetta

1 lb Fresh sliced Mozzarella

1 loaf French or Italian bread



Prepare tomato Salad with chopped tomatoes and onion. Spray or lightly drizzle olive oil over thinly sliced French or Italian bread. Toast in oven at 400. Lay Panchetta flat over a baking sheet and bake in oven about 5 minutes until crispy. Layer the toast with Panchetta, tomato salad and Fresh Mozzarella. Serve open faced. Or allow guests to assemble (especially nice for Meat & Vegan dinners).