Artwork Display

Here's an idea if you don't know what to do with all of your child's school artwork.
The refrigerator fills up really fast!
We have a small loft area in our house.
That has become the designated artwork area.
I hung a few knobs on the wall,
then added string.
My kids painted wooden clothespins
and added their artwork to finish the project.

When they bring something knew home, they decide which piece will be taken down from the wall to make room for the new piece.
For a more sophisticated look, I've seen this done with curtain rods.
I prefer this way because my boys got to help with the project. It's not in a highly visable location in our house anyway.

I'm Famous!

OK, not really. But a photo of mine made it onto the cover of a book!

I really love photography. It's not something that I spend a ton of time on.

Between kids, pregnancies and life in general, I haven't devoted a lot of time to that hobby.

But a year or so ago, I started uploading photos to a stock photography website.

Every now and then, I make a little $. I rarely get to see when and how my photos are used.

But, it's fun for me and something that I can do on my own time table without pressure from real clients.

Well, last week, someone bought my photo for a book cover and emailed me to let me know how and where it was used.

It's a book about traveling with kids. I've never read it, so I can't recommend it one way or another, but I'm sure I'll order a few for myself, just because of the cover.

Here's the link if you're interested in checking it out:

The Mom's Guide To Traveling With Kids

I used to be lifeguard...

but it's different when it's your own child...

Sunday evening C & E were setting up a board game while I finished dishes.

I heard E coughing in the other room.

It quickly turned to gaging.

I left the dishes to find E barely breathing.

And, then it turned into only one tiny gasp of air every few seconds.

My husband ran into the room and grabbed the phone to call 911 while I attempted to do the

Heimlich Maneuver for a Child. I thought I was doing it just right, but it didn't seem to be working very well.

I just couldn't seem to get a good thrust.

That's when I realized that my gigantic belly was in the way! Duh! I had completely forgotten that I was pregnant.

I switched with my husband who said 911 was not answering???

I tried calling and got a recorded message???

My husband's attempt at the Heimlich finally dislodged the small chess piece that was causing the choking, along with some blood.

Don't ask me where it came from. I can't even remember how to play chess.

E seemed to recover quickly, with just a sore throat for about a day.

I think the chess piece must have cut his throat a little.

So, this got me thinking about 2 things:
1) What would I have done if 911 never did pick up?
And
2) What would I have done if E ended up passing out because of the lack of air?

I searched around and thought I would share the answers with you. These are things that every parent should try to be prepared for.

1) I decided to ALWAYS have the Fire Dept. and the Sheriff's Office phone #s on the refrigerator and in my cell phone.

2) Know the Heimlich & CPR. Like I said, I used to be a lifeguard and have been a swim instructor for years. But, if you don't keep current, you forget. And, I found out that the recommended guidelines have changed a bit over the years.

Sometimes I wonder how kids survive to adulthood!

One more thing I found out:

 the #1 choking hazard for children (after food) is

balloons!

Heavenly Peanut Butter Fudge

Or maybe it should be called, "Hellish."
It's probably a ton of calories...
I missed our annual family camping reunion last week.
Again, due to the hugeness of my belly.
I got to thinking about all of the awesome food I would be missing.
So, I gave grandma a call and got her Peanut Butter Fudge recipe, a staple item at the reunion.
You may want to share this with a neighbor, if you find yourself devouring the entire pan!

Ingredients:
1 cup 1/2 & 1/2 (i used whole milk cause i was too lazy to go to the store - not quite as rich, but still great)                         
2 cups sugar
pinch of salt
1 T. Light Karo Syrup
5 HEAPING T. of Peanut Butter (don't hold back!)
3 T. Butter
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla
1 cup Walnuts (I used peanuts)


Put the 1/2 & 1/2, sugar, salt & Karo Syrup  into a pot and heat until simmering. Let simmer and stir frequently for around 15-25 minutes.
After 15 minutes have passed, test to see if it is ready for the next step.
To test, fill a cup or shallow bowl with cold water. Add an ice cube or two to make it nice and cold.
Get a small spoonful of the simmering mixture and submerge it in the water. Then, use your finger to try and mold it into a little soft ball. If it doesn't work, try simmering for a few more minutes. Keep trying until you get that nice soft ball.
Remove from the heat, and add the remaining ingredients.
Mix it and whip it with a wooden spoon for a while.
Pour into an 8x8 greased pan.
Let cool before cutting into squares.

all about the boy

Don't Forget About the Game Closet!

Today was not going well. 
In the morning they went to a little community soccer camp for a few hours.
I did my best to make suggestions of fun things to do throughout the day.
But, in the afternoon, they watched movies, played video games, read books, and FOUGHT with each other!!!
I was trying to make dinner and each one of them earned a time out for various reasons. Just one of those days.
So, while I was waiting for dinner to cook, I decided to teach my oldest to play a card game, Crazy 8s. He really liked it. And, it helped to separate all of the boys for a while.
Then, I played a board game with the 5 year old.
Sometimes I just forget about all of the games we have in our hall closet.

Here are some of our favorites:

• Zingo (it's like Bingo, but w/ pictures - no reading necessary)
• Jr. Scrabble
• Guess Who?
• Memory
• Chutes & Ladders
• Slap Jack (played w/ face cards)  Directions
• Crazy 8s (played w/ face cards) Directions

*What are some of your kid's favorite games?

and,

What ages are they best for?*

CD Spinners

Saw this idea in a Family Fun magazine in a waiting room the other day.
I love easy, fast crafts. I typically don't have the patience for anything else.

Materials:

CD
Shooter Marble (the others are too small)
Glue
Water Bottle Top
Spinner Template (optional)

go HERE to download a template for the CD SPINNERS craft. The template will be on the front page under "Featured Ideas."
You can make these without the template. It just makes them more colorful and fun to watch.
You could also just decorate your Spinner anyway you want.

DirectionsColor the template and adhere it to one side of the CD.
Glue the marble on the center of the CD.
Glue the water bottle lid to the center of the other side of the CD.
Let dry.
Use the water bottle lid as a handle and SPIN!

Homemade Butter

Do you celebrate Pioneer Day? the 24th of July?
Growing up, my family would always celebrate with cousins, bbq and a rodeo.
This year, due to my very large belly, I think we'll stay home.
But, to give my kids a little taste of pioneer life, we made our own butter.
I used to make this while teaching school as part of a social studies lesson.
Here's how, if you'd like to give it a try:

Ingredients:
all you need is some
Whipping Cream & Salt

Put some whipping cream in a canning jar, or whatever jar you'd like,
(I put about 1/2 pint of whipping cream into a pint jar, so it would have plenty of room)
Shake, Shake, Shake until the cream turns mostly solid and separates
(took us less than 10 minutes of shaking)

looks a little something like this

Pour off the excess milk
Add a bit of salt to taste
And, you've got BUTTER!

No Bake Cookies

If you want cookies, but don't want to turn on your oven because it's a million degrees outside...
(ok it's really only 113 degrees!!!)
try these stove top cookies.
I'm sure most of you have had these before and there are many variations,
but here is our recipe just in case you've never tried them.

No Bake Cookies
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
Combine these ingredients in a medium sized pot on the stove top.
Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. (if you under or over boil, the cookies will be runny or break too easily)

Take pot off heat and add:
3 cups Oats
1 tsp. vanilla
3 T. Peanut Butter
1/3 cup cocoa powder

Combine and drop onto cooking sheet that has been coated with cooking spray while still warm.

Summer Houses

The holidays are just so crazy!
It's often hard to sqeeze in each and every fun tradition that you and your kids want to do.
So, I thought it would be fun to make gingerbread SUMMER HOUSES.
One more fun thing to do in the summer and one less thing to do at Christmastime!
Perfect!

Cardboard box fort

Had an odd shaped box laying around.
So, we turned it into a little playhouse.
They weren't too interested in decorating the outside to look like a real house, like I suggested.
But, it was very important to have a sunroof / lookout widow!
The inside did get decorated with a tv and video games though.
Only the essentials!

Decor. for the 4th

Here's what the boys made to decorate our house for the 4th of July.

They traced their hands (3 of each color) and glued them together into the wreath shape.

So simple, but it kept them busy for a while. I figure it's good for developing fine motor skills.

And, yes, my husband installed 2 peep holes in the front door.

One for me & one for the boys.

Happy Birthday America!

This is nothing spectacular or new.

I think you see this type of cake on every magazine around the 4th of July.

But, it was new for my boys.

And, we got to talk about our country and what the design of the flag means.

I LOVE angel food cake. Strawberry Shortcake is one of my favorite desserts.

So, we used a box of angel food cake mix and I cheated and used Cool Whip for the "white". It's almost against my religion to use fake whipped cream, but I let down a bit on my snobbish whipped cream standards due to time restraints. Nothing like real whipped cream if you ask me!

Here's what our cake would have looked like, but...

the 2 year old woke up from his nap while it was cooling and took a few handfuls out of various spots.

So, I cut out a few flag shaped pieces for the boys to decorate their own personal flags.

Sun Prints

Here's an easy science project for ya.
I know it doesn't look like much, but my boys were pretty impressed.

Get some construction paper
Lay it on the ground in the sun
Place various objects on top
Let sit in the sun for a while (ours were out approx. 6 hours)
Take objects off and see how powerful the sun can be!

                           BEFORE                                                                                 AFTER                            

This was such a simple little project.

My 7 year old (the "future scientist") loved explaining this experiment to his dad that night

and he's ready to do it again tomorrow with different objects.

Summer Reading List

Thought I'd pass this list along. It was complied by a friend of mine who is currently a reading tutor.
These are her recommendations. Some I've read, so I have not.
My kids love to read and be read to.
We try to hit the library about once a week. (There is one about 5 min. from our house.)
So, it's always good to have new ideas.

Picture Books
When Sophie Gets Angry
LaRue For Mayor
Skippyjon Jones
Click Clack Moo
Dooby Dooby Moo
Science Verse
Math Curse (has problems for the kids to solve)
Walter the Farting Dog
Squids Will Be Squids
Hooray For Diffendoorfer Day
Chicka Chicka 1 2 3
Chicka Chicka A B C
Piggies
Big Plans
The Touch of the Master's Hands
The Missing Piece Meets the Big O
Pricilla and the Pink Planet
How Do Dinosaurs...
The Giving Tree
Tuesday
Duck For President
Grace for President (great for teaching about elections)
Purplicious
The Day I Became a Pirate
Pirates Don't Change Diapers
What Pete Ate
I Can Be Anything


Workbooks
Summer Bridge series or Brain Quest Series
Primary journals (available at Walmart) to write an entry every day


Early Readers (30 minutes a day recommended)
Step Into Reading books level 1 (not Fancy Nancy though)
Hop on Pop
Fox in Socks
Cat in the Hat
Go Dogs Go
Easy Readers for Dr. Seuss series

Grades 2 - 3 (30 minutes a day recommended)
Junie B Jones series
Frog & Toad
The Magic Treehouse series
Step into reading level 2 and 3
Amelia Bedelia
Super Fly Guy

Grades 3 - 5 (30 minutes a day recommended)
Clementine
Star Girl
Matilda
BFG
James and the Giant Peach
Lemonade Wars
Lawn Boy
Hoot
Time Warp Trio books
Stink
Grades 5 -7 (30 minutes a day recommended)
Wrinkle in Time Series
Tuck Everlasting
The Bronze Bow
Prom
The Little Prince
Star Girl series

My 7 year old has gone through the Magic Tree House and Junie B. Jones series. Now he's onto Beast Quest, but he doesn't have many more of those left. We'll need a new series soon.

Are there any books or series that you recommend?

How Cool is This Guy?

Came across this blog a few days ago.

He has some really unique cutout things.

I love how everything is so simple yet creative.

Check him out.

We'll be making these to take when the boys need to sit still for a while and have something to do.

(car rides, restaurants, etc...) Did I just say restaurants? Hmmm... Can't remember the last time...

Building Discs

Are your boys into helicopters? This one looks and fun too.

One more. There are other fun things on his site. These were just some of my favorites.

This is a great tool for those learning their letters. You could really use it as a learning tool for almost anything your child needs to work on. And, it's practically free. It's made of rocks! This guy is clever!

We'll be working on something really fun this weekend.

If all goes well, I'll post an awesome boy project on Monday!

Disguise Kit

Found this cute printable on another blog.

The boys had fun being silly with these.

Print the disguise kit here.

Father's Day Idea

Father's Day is just around the corner (June 20th).
My husband always loves when I come up with a gift that costs, "$ free.fifty-free", or at least close to free.
I came across the idea a while back and decided it would be fun for the boys to do with their
dad and Grandpas on Father's Day.
This link has the idea for Mother's Day. I just adapted it a bit.

How easy is this:
Grab a bag of m&ms. Then attach this poem and the questions below.

You're one special FATHER and I'm one special son

Let's play a game with M&M's & have some fun!
Pick a candy, any color will do.

And we'll learn together about you & me!

Red- What is one of your favorite things to do with me?

Orange- Where would you want to go anywhere in the world with me and why?

Yellow- What do you see us doing together in 10 years?

Green- Name 3 reasons why you love me.

Blue- Ask me any question you like!

Brown- Hum a tune and see if I can guess it!

I'd like to try...

I LOVE sherbet!!!

Just found this recipe.
This look like the perfect no bake, summertime dessert.
I think I'm headed to the store right now!
If you love sherbet too,

Check this out...

I think I would be good to try with pineapple sherbet too.

Cheerios = Sanity

Who knew a jar of Cheerios could help me keep my sanity this summer?

I know plenty of moms who do things similar.

This is just my "I'm a cheapskate" version.

Take kids to the dollar store and let them pick a few prizes.

Go home and hide them in your closet.

Pick a behavior or attitude that you would like your child to improve on.

Everytime they display that type of positive behavior, put a few Cheerios in a jar.

When it's full, give them a prize.

Repeat.  

Either with the same behavior or pick a new one to work on.

Right now we are working on doing things the 1st time I ask!

I find it best to just work on one specific goal at a time. And, I don't take Cheerios out for bad behavior.

I try to keep it positive.

Sometimes I will say, "That could have earned you Cheerios, maybe next time,"

when they don't display the positive behavior I'm looking for.

Does anyone have a behavior changing idea?

GAK Attack

We liked making and playing with the OOBLECK so much, that I searched around for something similar.

This time we made GAK.

It's just 3 ingredients and not as messy as the oobleck.

I'm sure we'll make it again.

I even let the 2 year old play with it... outside that is.

Ingredients:
1 cup Elmer's glue
Food coloring (optional)
1 cup liquid starch (found near the spray starch & laundry detergent)

Mix glue and food coloring in a plastic container.
Add the liquid starch a little at a time. You can stir with your fingers or with a spoon.
Soon, the mixture will resemble putty.
If it's too sticky, just add a little more starch until it's a nice rubbery consistency.