First Post

This is now going to be our homeschooling blog. I decided to take down everything with pictures of my kiddos for privacy sake. Nothing was wrong, it's just that once those pictures are up and public, you can't control what happens to them. So after some careful thought, I decided to keep up the homeschooling part of the blog, because I like the idea of exchanging ideas and what works for us with other families.

If you are trying to get to our family blog, email me and let me know!

Weekend project

I hadn't really planned on a weekend project, but little Bubby's "standin' upper" seat had torn and was getting to be unsafe. So I took it out, cut it apart to make a pattern, and tried to make one like it. I got some fabric at WalMart that matched the colors on it so well, I think I like it better than the old one. I laid the old one on a piece of paper to make a pattern, then cut some fabric and batting. I did some machine quilting on it, the old one did not have that, but his boucy seat is made like that and I think it is nicer that way. Then I sewed it together and bound the edges with some bias tape, which was much too narrow. I definitely needed it to be wider! Oh well.

There were some little plastic snap pieces to hold the fabric seat on and they had broken. I think that was part of the problem with the seat tearing, so we attached it back on with cable ties. You can see them, so I must have made the openings in the wrong place. But I was mostly pleased with the way it turned out.

Ants

The other day we were talking about ants, and I told Peanut, "You know, the Bible talks about ants..." She said, "I know, I know, 'Go to the ant, thou slugger!"

Hallelujah Nuns

I am pretty sure these are not real nuns. But this is the coolest thing! Stay with it until the end.

Punny Cartoon

Sorry for so much absence. Things are busy around here and have gotten worse since the baby has been sick. He has to have breathing treatments, and besides that is not sleeping well, so naptime isn't too dependable. I'll be back soon, I think.

WFMW: Another use for baking soda

Baking soda has got to be one of the most useful things on the planet. It seems like I am always hearing or reading about a new use for baking soda.


Now I have another one. I read it in Paula Begoun's Don't Go To The Cosmetics Counter Without Me. When you feel like your face could use a little exfoliation, do not reach for something harsh like a ready-made scrub. Instead, put your normal amount of liquid cleanser in your hand, then add about a teaspoon or so of baking soda. Wash your face as usual.

I find that this smooths out the places that tend to get a little rough, but it never leaves my face red or feeling irritated.

And here are more Works-for-Me tips!

How cute is this?

I saw something on the Internet this weekend, called a Wubbanub. This is just the cutest thing, and they're not too expensive if you get them from the right place. I think I'm going to order one, but of course I had to try making one for myself. It is not "safety approved" but it's a temporary thing. Peanut donated a little stuffed bear and I sewed one of his pacifiers onto it's head. It works great! Bubby was not a paci boy at first, so he did not really learn to keep one in his mouth. Now that he is teething, he likes to have one. But you have to sit there and hold it in. He chews it and works on it so that it doesn't stay. Now he can hold this sweet little bear and the paci stays right there!

Whoever came up with this was a complete genius!

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Two funny comments:

Peanut was trying to teach Junior a new tongue twister. He was supposed to repeat it back to her, but he said, "Betty Botter bought some butter to make her bottom bigger." True. I think I like that one better.

Dad walked by Junior's room the other day after bathtime and overheard this: "Underwear, prepare to Do Your Duty!" We didn't even ask...

Reading

I am trying to put a column on here that would show what we are all reading, but I never get more than a handful of minutes at a time. Peanut and I just got finished with Strawberry Girl, and now we are reading Pippi Goes On Board. We love those Pippi books! By herself, she read a book called Cora Frear. Junior is reading a few pages at a time in Grasshopper on the Road by Arnold Lobel. He wrote the Frog and Toad books. I didn't know if he'd like the Grasshopper book, but he finds it quite funny, and that is his requirement in books.

Works-for-Me Wednesday - Tiny Recipes

I have certain recipes that I use often, but not often enough that my little mind can get them memorized. I ended up getting out the recipe book just to remind me whether that was ½ tsp. of salt, or 1 tsp. of salt.

I finally had a brainstorm. I opened up my Word program and wrote out my most used recipes in the smallest font possible. I posted these recipes on the inside of the cabinet door that is closest to my stovetop. Later, I improved this by making a table in Word and typing each recipe into one of the cells. To save space, I often just write the list of ingredients.

To do this yourself, just tell your word processor program to create a table. I’ve found that three columns works best. Set your viewer to 100% and pick a font. You can make it as small as you want, just make sure you can see it on the screen without difficulty. Start typing recipes, one recipe per cell, adding a row to the table when necessary. If you have the recipes on your computer already, you will only need to cut and paste, then select the text and shrink the font.

I think you could also do this with a spreadsheet program, like Excel.

WFMW: Potty-training Idea

When my older son was a little over two and a half, I was trying hard to think of some kind of reward to use while potty training. One of the things he loved, and still loves, was to be told how something worked. He would ask over and over again the way some children ask for their favorite bedtime story. One day I asked him if he would like for me to show him how the toilet worked. He was very interested in that, so I told him the next time he went potty, I would take the lid to the tank off and show him what was inside. If he wanted to, he could flush the toilet and watch it work.

This worked very well for him. Each time, after he went to the bathroom, we would reward him by taking off the tank lid so he could see inside. Sometimes he wanted an explanation of what was going on, and other times he just silently watched the “show”.

We found an added benefit to this when we were visiting away from home. Our friends and family almost always gave their permission to remove the lid to their tanks. Toilets basically work the same way, but the internal parts are often slightly different. This was exciting to our two-year-old, and helped him not to forget a trip to the toilet when he was having fun away from home.

This should be a good tip for those who have children with a bent towards things mechanical. It worked for me and my little guy! For more tips, visit Rocks In My Dryer.