Music

I think we all know that using music helps facilitate learning- such as the ABCs as a child or learning the 50 States in grade school. My son is now learning the states and their capitols to the tune of Tukey in the Straw. Check it out!

Family on a Budget

I'm all about saving money and finding the freebies. Just thought I'd post a couple of my favorite ways to save $$.
* THE LIBRARY is one of our favorite places- not just for the books, but the MOVIES! Every Friday night we watch a movie we haven't seen before- and Blockbuster hasn't seen a penny from us.
* Free Zoo and Museum days. I'm a big believer in the annual family passes- however, we currently live too far from the zoos or museums to go very frequently. Instead, we enjoy (along with the masses) the free days. Most zoos, art museums, botanic gardens, and science center have free days or hours. Check your local listing. It will be well worth your time. We made great memories just this week at our local zoo's free day!
* My new favorite way of preserving family memories is digital scrapbooking. I have been AMAZED at the freebies out there. The following blogs list freebies: digifree and ikeagoddess.
Check them out! You won't be disappointed!
* I'm always good for games- board, field, word, card- but that could be another whole entry.

Winter Vegetable Chowder

This is an old favorite recipe in our family. Not only do my kids love it, but it's a great way to get veggies into them on these cold, wintery days.

1/2 c chopped onion
1/2 c sliced celery
2 TBSP butter
Saute the above until the vegetables are soft. Then add the next 7 ingredients:
2-3 potatoes, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 c peeled, sliced carrots
2 c water
1 tsp beef bouillon
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp crushed basil
1/4 tsp pepper
Heat to boiling. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
Stir in 1 cup each of sliced zucchini and frozen corn.
Combine 1 TBSP flour with a small amount of evaporated milk. Then, add the rest of 2/3 c evaporated milk to the flour mixture. Pour that into the soup. Cook and stir over medium heat just until boiling.
Remove from heat and add 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese until melted.
Sprinkle each serving with additional cheese, if desired.

I LOVE DIRT!

Not really- but as I was doing laundry tonight, I realized that I love what dirt and dirty clothes mean. It means my son has been running around playing soccer. My daughter was enjoying her lunch, and my other daughter got a little messy with the stamps. I'm grateful for the good experiences they are having. I'm also grateful for modern conveniences, like Shout!

Today is NOT Forever!

Remember that during those frustrating, overwhelming parenting moments, which we all face, that this is not forever. It, too, shall pass.
During those wonderful, endearing moments, remember also, that it is not forever. Cherish those moments.

Don't forget to DOCUMENT it!

I worked in a hospital in my early married days. One thing we were constantly reminded was, "If it's not documented, it didn't happen." That idea kept me scrapbooking and journaling the lives of my little ones.

I am grateful tonight for those memories I preserved. I was filling out a form to "spotlight" one of my daughters. Opening her journal, I was able to find a sweet memory of her, at age 2, putting her arm around her brother saying, "I love my brother."

It reminded me how quickly we forget it happened, if it's not documented.

Snowman Party!

On these cold wintery days when we're in between holidays,
have a snowman party! Family Fun magazine featured a family that had this as a tradition each year. You can adapt their idea as you'd like. Maybe try this recipe: We were given these wonderful snowball cookies that would tie in great for the event.

Eggs

I would really love it if my kids ate more protein. Eggs are such an easy form- if they would just eat them. I've tried scrambled, fried, hard-boiled, and soft. They aren't fans of either. I've just found one that gets them asking for more.
It is a take off of a popular recipe I learned while living in Spain- the Spanish Tortilla.
All I do is cook up hash browns- usually 2 shredded potatoes (with salt and pepper to taste) cooked in a well-oiled fry pan for about 20 minutes. Once the potatoes are nice and soft, pour 2 beaten eggs evenly over the hash browns. Allow the egg to cook on the one side. Now- the trick of turning the tortilla- slide the entire mix onto a clean plate. Then, flip the ingredients back into the fry pan. Allow the eggs to cook through on the second side. Serve with ketchup.

Glitter

Nothing spruces up a wintery craft project like glitter. It is a great addition to snowflakes, snowmen, or a winter scene. Whether your child uses computer paper, construction paper, or paper towel tubes, glitter is a must. Of course, glitter glue is a much less messy alternative, but I love the good old-fashioned bottle of white glue with the sparkles sprinkled on.

Humorous thought of the day

"Of course I'd like to be the ideal mother, but I'm too busy raising children."
- from the comic strip "The Family Circus" by Bil Keane

Home-made books

Does your child enjoy writing stories and drawing pictures? Here is a great way to preserve those stories in a fun, durable, home-made fashion.
This is something my husband did back in grade school. It's a pretty simple home-made book- simple enough that he made some with our kids one morning.
1. Cut 2 pieces of cardboard about 6.5" x 9".
2. Cut a piece of material about 14" x 19"- large enough to cover both pieces of cardboard, laying short sides together- but about 1/2" apart (this will be the binding where the typed pages are sewn in), with 2-3 inches extending over the edges to wrap around.
3. Hot glue cardboard to material. Glue a coordinating piece of cardstock into the middle. This will give you the complete cover to the book.
4. After the story is written, type it out, making sure to line up pages correctly. (The first pages will be paired with the last page of the book. Page 2 will be on the back of page 3 sharing paper with the last and 3rd to the last pages on the opposite side.)
5. If the child wants to draw and color pictures to go with their story, now would be a good time to do that.
6. Fold pages- and sew them right into the book- down the middle of the pages- where the 1/2 inch space was left.
7. Enjoy reading their story over and over- knowing they'll enjoy it for MANY years to come!

Unbored-Board

I was tired of hearing my kids say, "I'm bored," in hopes I'd let them watch TV. Instead, we created an unbored-board. They gave us suggestions. Now, we just refer to the list in a moment the "B" word might arise.
Our list included: coloring, crafts, reading, games, playing boat or house (imaginary play), puzzles, scooters, bikes, soccer, frisbee, trampoline, writing stories, playing the piano, playing with the babies, and, of course, doing chores or otherwise helping mom (reward follows!).

Healthy New Year

Who doesn't try to start each new year living healthier
and getting your kids to be more healthy ?
One treat my kids LOVE is this WHOLE WHEAT bread recipe.
It makes 3 loaves: 1 to freeze, 1 for the week, and 1 for fresh-out-of-the-oven.

5 1/2 c whole wheat flour
1/3 c gluten flour
2 TBSP yeast
1 TBSP dough enhancer
Mix the above ingredients, then add 3 3/4 c warm water. Mix for one minute, then cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
Add: 1 TBSP salt
1/2 c oil
1/2 c agave nectar * (or sugar or honey)
2 TBSP lemon juice
Mix these ingredients for 1 minutes, then add enough flour (4-5 cups) until the dough pulls away from the bowl. Knead for 6-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 for 1 minute, then turn off oven. Turn dough onto an oiled surface and divide and shape into greased loaf pans. Let dough rise in warm oven 10-15 minutes. Without removing the loaves from the oven, turn it back onto 350 degrees and bake for 30 minutes.
* Agave Nectar is a great sweetener. It keeps the bread more moist than sugar and has a thinner consistency than honey.