How to Raise Up a Storm

How to Make the Bees Hum...

2009-09-18T11:07:00.000-07:00

There are lots of ways to make instruments with children. We do something like this once a week, generally Wednesday's, but sometimes Thursday's with Science day. This idea, along with many others, comes from a book called, Making Musical Instruments with Kids. I highly recommend it. The best part about a reference sort of book is that you pick the book, they pick the activity and then it's still inspiring because you are NOT requiring!

How to use a snack while traveling...

2009-09-04T21:13:00.001-07:00

Keep plenty of snacks on hand...

A bag of skittles can go a long way; and NEVER underestimate the power of baby food.

Kids love games. Always have, always will. You can make a 1/2 hour of good fun if you are willing to have your kids race to eat baby food off your big toes. There are many versions to this type of entertainment. Don't feel limited by a Cheerio. Even Cheerios have great potential.

How to Have an Art Party

2009-06-20T18:14:00.000-07:00

The difference between doing art, and having an art party is this: MORE PEOPLE

Kids do great being inspired by each other. Not in a competitive way. But, if you want your children to sit down and do art, invite some older kids, good ones, that will want to do art with you. It is SOOOO fun.

When their mommy came home we had an art museum in our foyer!

Another awesome way I have been wanting to do this is having an Art Share. Get the neighborhood kids together and have them bring their best/favorite art matted on black poster board. Make a display throughout the downstairs of your home. Invite the grown ups, have everyone dress up fancy, serve hors d'eurves and play classical music. Everyone enjoys each others art, and the children have an opportunity to share their ideas and works. I will do this SOON!!

How to Make the Hardest Choice...

2009-06-09T11:18:00.001-07:00

I do not presume to know the answer to this 'how to', but I have to take this opportunity to elude to a terrible problem we have among mothers. When we struggle, we feed each other 'victim' food. Then, we tear down the so-called 'perpetrators', instead of building them up. There is no Christian wisdom in this habit we have as women. Allow me to explain.

Today, I was at Ulta, buying my sister her birthday present. 'It took a lot of effort to get there with all 3 kids, and Norah had just had her 6 month shots, etc....' (this is how we elude to our victimization)... STOP HERE. Now, allow me to rephrase this: When I was at Ulta today buying my sister's birthday present, the woman at the cash register said, " Oh, what beautiful children... THREE and Another on the way?!!" (The woman looked at me and thought I was pregnant)

This REALLY hurt my feelings. Really hurt. I, ofcourse, am feeling dissatisfied with my physical appearance at the moment and it really cut deep. I really wanted to cry, crawl in a hole and give up.

THIS IS THE CHOICE:

#1) I could call my husband, my friends, whoever and tell them my sad tale of woe. I can set the whole story up as it truly was explaining why her comment totally destroyed my self-esteem. I can then rip apart the character of the kind woman who said that to me. I can call her an idiot for assuming I was pregnant when I already had three kids. I could say LOTS and LOTS of un-Christian but "true" things to "make me feel better". YEAH RIGHT!!!

OR

#2) I could pray. I could view myself the way God does, realizing appearances DO NOT matter. I could know within myself that I really am doing the best I can to care for my body, or if I am not, set some reasonable goals to help ME feel better about MYSELF. Rather than proving to this woman I don't know that I am not pregnant, because it does not matter to her.
Then, THIS IS KEY, my best friend would remind me of exactly what I just wrote, remind me to not be vain, and tell me that to God, I am fine just the way I am. My BEST friend would not FEED my victimization by saying "oh poor you". My BEST friend would not feel it necessary to cut down this poor woman who is probably suffering worse than I feeling guilty because I said, "no i don't" sweetly. My BEST friend would remind me that I am beautiful and to not care for the world who maketh flesh his arm. She would remind me to be grateful for what I DO have.

THIS choice (#2), leaves you feeling joyful and with the spirit. The other choice leads you to break at least three commandments, but probably more, + feeling horrible about yourself. So, why is it such a hard choice to make?

I have a lot of friends.

How many BEST friends do we have? Are you a BEST friend to those around you?

Think about it.

I realize now what it means to be a best friend.

How to Inspire Yourself... ( I am NOT an octopus)

2009-06-08T18:40:00.000-07:00

Each person is different, but all mom's need little motivations to help them along their journey of a day.

Let's face it. It's tough to get through those awful mundane moments of chaos, when no one is there to give face to.

Here is my personal limerick which sums up the need for this inspiration:

There once was a woman name me

Her children, she had only three

But arms she had two

So all she could do

Was hope that they'd take turns to pee.

Since I am NOT an octopus, and have limited patience due to the natural man, I now have created for myself a reminder list... soon to be made into vinyl lettering.

Be Greatful.

Don't Worry.

Be Present.

Don't Hurry.

Laugh Often.

Love Much.

Say Less.

More Touch.

Be Patient.

Don't Stress.

Give More.

Spend Less.

These are the antidotes to my most prevalent weaknesses that ooze out to destroy the tranquility of my day. In summary, have faith Jannah!

How to Make a Lily... with your Hand

2009-05-21T12:22:00.000-07:00

Some tissue flowers require A LOT of tissue and time. This one, is quick and adds the element of sentimental value, with very little tissue needed. Or you can use paper.

The petals are simply tissue cut-outs of your handprint. Or, the handprint of those you love.

The stem is simply a wooden BBQ skewer.

They make a great bouquet... OR a great magic wand!

How to Make Banana Soup

2009-05-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

Some fresh bananas with local honey... squooshed and smeared to gooey delight, then add:

pure peanut butter with crumbled up lightly salted Quaker rice cakes, and: Presto!

Fresh Banana Soup.

Invented at lunch by Callie consuming Norah's baby food (mashed bananas) instead of feeding her. Lesson learned. ;)
Callie proclaimed: "This is the best stuff on earth!"

So, I brought in the hearty additives that baby can't have.

How to Stop the Fighting...

2009-05-13T13:53:00.001-07:00

I recently spoke with a friend of mine who has four kids. She was run down weary from the fighting that has gone on in her house for a prolonged period of time. I felt sorry for her, went home to my kids and realized that I WAS TOO!! It's just been going on for so long that I hadn't realized it.... narrowed it down or whatever!! So, I did what I always should do... and called Emily. What do I do?

Here is her advice:

1. Have a rule... if you fight over it... the toy gets taken away. Period. (and be consistent or it won't work)

*Okay... this has changed my life!!! Not only do they TRY to cooperate... but one or the other is constantly seeking to sacrifice for the greater good. Not to mention the phrase I add, "If things become more important than each other... we don't need it." This helps me and them to realize that if something is making us fight... it's not worth having. SIDENOTE: I used to do this but decided against it because it's usually one person STARTING the fight and the other ends up losing out privileges... BUT THINGS are not that important. People are. And, unless it's blatantly one-sided (and it sometimes is) this trick works great.

2. Create diversions. For small children especially, diversions are a great thing. I have been trying it. My friend Emily's mother had her children wash windows, one on each side... a fun game to get out frustration or just have fun. I tried this to clean up the window markers. It worked great!!! A diversion works like this (screaming... fighting... yelling... crying, mom comes it, "hey girls wanna play a game!" and then leads them to the windows with washclothes. That's it!

Thanks Emily!!!

How to Tell the Time

2009-05-12T13:47:00.000-07:00

Now to any adult this seems rediculous. Why would I make a paper clock when their is one already on the wall.... that actually works! Well, Callie made this one... and wrote in the numbers herself for whatever reason... and then taped it to the wall by her room. She updates it whenever she thinks to look at a clock... calls it her clock and enjoys making it "on time". So, MOST of the time, the clock is wrong... but she has a constant hobby of updating it... thus she is always thinking about how it works and how to make it work for her. This would not otherwise happen. She is teaching herself how to tell time... and I am LETTING her. That's pretty easy. All I have to do is let her tape something to the wall.

How to Make a Pretzel

2009-05-11T13:43:00.000-07:00

You can follow a recipe... I used the one in the Better Homes and Gardens plaid cookbook. But, I will be honest... I will not be making these again! Not, worth the effort. Way too many steps and dishes dirtied. But, I am glad we did this. It was an awesome lesson on prayer. Did you know that the old saying "tying the knot" to refer to marriage referred to the pretzel knot? It was an old Catholic tradition, typically before easter. Each hole symbolizing the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. The knot symbolizes joining and becoming one in marriage. Fun! It also can be used to talk about prayer in that you 1) fold your arms, 2) bow your head... thus forming the pretzel. Wiki says that they may have been given to children for memorizing their prayers back in 610 A.D. There you go!

How to Make a Map

2009-05-10T13:39:00.000-07:00

There is a fun, and simplistic game to play with maps that teaches... well, lots of things really. I don't think its intended to get kids started on ratios or anything... but its great for teaching numbers and letters. Parent says: B1, kids says "LAKE!" Or kid says: "Mom go to the forest... and gives the steps. First, B4, then, B3. It's super fun. It led Callie to create her own chart of our house. All of the row A is the upstairs and D is ofcourse downstairs! :) Cute. Its a fun little game. It can be used all day. "Mom, can I go to D4 (outside)" Try it! It's great fun!

How to Color Glass

2009-05-09T13:34:00.000-07:00

Crayola makes some awesome window markers... fun anyway. But, beware... they are a beast to clean up. Use a wet rag with soap... dry and THEN windex. If you just use windex it will take forever... and look BAD. Kids love it!

How to Use a Dandelion...

2009-05-08T13:32:00.000-07:00

Most people do not know the wealth untold of dandelions. They get a bad rap always referred to as "weed". Did you know they are edible!! They have more vitamins than MOST vegetables. They are also a wonderful antiseptic. So, if you are at the park, your kids scrapes their knee, just rub the dandelion across their cut. (Remember the child's story where the pee goes down your arm... smeeeear) Tis better than neosporin. Don't eat the stem though... it's rather bitter. Dandelions have even more uses than what I mentioned. Look online!! It's amazing.

How to Grow a Strawberry

2009-05-07T13:29:00.000-07:00

Well, we did some good ole research for this one to make sure we bought a variety of strawberry plant that was particularly good for our region. This particular variety is Earliglow. We purchased a good group of plants from http://www.gurneys.com/ they arrived in the winter, we planted them and looky here! Strawberries a-growin'!

How to Make Beads of Scrapbooking Paper

2009-05-06T13:26:00.000-07:00

Simple really... just cut paper into triangles (not the right triangles, oblique) and roll them up starting at the fat end.
Glue the base, let try and string onto necklaces.

You can make the beads any size or pattern that you have!

Fun and easy... and different.

How to Make Rainbow Bubbles

2009-05-05T07:08:00.000-07:00

In Time of Silver Rain
The butterflies lift silken wings
To catch a rainbow cry,
And trees put forth
New leaves to sing
In joy beneath the sky
As down the roadway passing boys
And girls go singing, too,
IN time of silver rain
When spring
And life are new.

-Langston Hughes

Did you know that 'Dr. Suess' writing, The Cat in the Hat was terribly wrong in one sense? Rain does not mean that you are stuck inside all day. Being from Seattle you learn, or should, to love the rain. Many beautiful things can happen in the rain, that cannot otherwise... inside and out.

Today we discovered this simple truth... Rain makes beautiful rainbow bubbles.

Next time you feel cooped up inside your house... think again!!

Some ideas for the rain:

1. Dance in your underwear

2. Jump on the trampoline

3. Have a boat race in a nearby rain gutter

4. Catch raindrops (with buckets or with your tongue)

5. Make a mudbath or paint (My girls love to make paint with the clay soil in our backyard... and it actually makes a great wood stain... just mix dirt/clay with water and paint with dried up clumps of grass)

How to Make a Slushy

2009-05-04T07:23:00.000-07:00

My beloved little 'half-pint', as dear to me as Laura Ingalls is to Pa in the Little House series, has saved many a hot spring day from a lack of jubilee. These were some childhood gadgets of mine, handed down by my mother. They are amazing. Just a little ice cream maker. But, we disovered that you can put just about any liquid in there to create a slushy extraordinaire. We've tried soda, orange juice and cream, ice cream ingredients, lemonade... you name it!!! I don't know if they still make these in miniature... but I sure hope they do!! You freeze the inner cylinder, put it in the cup base, throw on the lid and the kids LOVE stirring it and watching it freeze. It's SOOO fun!!

How to Childcraft

2009-05-03T07:27:00.000-07:00

A little over a year ago, we (unknowingly) recieved one of the greatest gifts ever from Grandma. It was an old tattered box of 1978-1980 Childcraft books, like you find at the library. I thought, "Well, they will look good on the shelf I guess". Well, I thought again. These have been speechless treasures to our home. They literally are treasure chests of knowledge and joy that there is no replacing for. Every story, poem, ryhme and game within these books is captivation to the little ear. I learn more than a great deal as well. The children cannot put them down. They BEG me to read to them out of these books constantly!! And, my five year old spends 30 minutes each night looking through the pictures and bookmarking what to read the next day.

What a gift!!

How to Use a Garage...

2009-04-20T18:22:00.000-07:00

In our house, we are short on wiggle room. So, rainy days can be tough when we have a lot of energy. I am not sure why this took me so long to figure out... but back out the van... and you have a GREAT room for play. Granted it is a seasonal room for play. Nevertheless, we have had some fun in the garage lately. Callie has been holding a bi-weekly 'Basketball Conference', in which she performs her skills for us. She makes prizes and sets up a stadium and everything. But, it's big enough to ride bikes in there too. USE your garage. Don't move. Get creative with space. Sell stuff and simplify. No need to scrape for a higher mortgage.

How to Make a Moccasin

2009-04-20T18:21:00.000-07:00

This was one of those accidental, perfect projects. We have been reading about Kirsten, the American Girl, from her series and have been fascinated by Singing Bird. We also have read Little House on the Prairies which quotes, "The only good Indian, is a dead Indian". In which we have the opportunity to discuss how some people judge others wrongly. In our house we LOVE indians... or should I say Native American's. Just because Columbus had his geography wrong doesn't mean I have to continue the tradition. Anyway, we were reading in a 1980 edition of Child Craft today about all the different Native American groups. They are all VERY different. THIS particular moccasion was one worn by the Chippewa people, who called themselves "Anishinabe" or First Men. Other Indians called them the Ojibwa, which means, "to roast until puckered up". The name was not about food, the name was about the moccasins these people wore. The shoes with the puckered toes. I think they are rather stylish. And VERY easy to make. There are lots of patterns online. Ours was in a book so I cannot post it. :) Fun fun!

How to Paint a Cookie Sheet

2009-04-20T18:13:00.000-07:00

This is just a fun way to switch up art time if you have it as often as we do. We get all our art ideas, well not ALL of them, from a great book we found on Amazon.com. It's http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-Great-Artists-Hands-Children/dp/0935607099/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1240276317&sr=8-1. All you do is paint a cookie sheet... well, the kids paint a cookie sheet and when they are done, press paper on the painting and gently peel it off for the mirror image on paper. It's fun!

How to Make a Pretzel Cabin and Saltine Village

2009-03-24T10:47:00.000-07:00

Callie's log cabin inspired by Caleb...

Mariah's masterpiece inspired by the love of glue dispensing!

Steps:

1. Give your children the materials (pretzels, saltines, a cardboard plate and elmers)

2. Say nothing. NOTHING. Don't say, "Okay, so you just do this..." Let THEM figure it out. The variety is astounding.

It it interesting to note that some people think vertically and some horizontally... at least this project they did. :)

How to teach Guitar

2009-03-23T10:52:00.000-07:00

I pulled out my guitar today. I showed them how it works REALLY briefly... just defining stuff and why it's there. Then I gave them the rules, no turning the white knobs at the end and no hitting hard. Then, they were allowed the freedom. Callie instantly took like August Rush and started making overtones and drumming and strumming and testing it out. She took note of where it was louder, where softer, where higher pitched, where lower pitched. With pick... without pick. Up and down the bridge. She spent an 1/2 hour independently on it. It was amazing to watch! She can learn so much if I just keep my BIG OLE MOUTH SHUT!!!

How to Build a Horse Protector....

2009-03-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

As mentioned earlier, my kids were inspired to take some toys outside and play make-believe among the weeds. Their favorite outdoor friends were their Melissa and Doug horses. Unfortunately, they were easily lost among the late growing winter grasses before mowing season, thus when mowing season had begun... a little horse was mangled to its destruction. Callie, realized that something had to be done to protect her dear horses from the evil monster lawn mower. She build this incredibly detailed structure out of rocks and twig scaffolding, with a grass roof similar to the Little House dugout in Plum Creek. Now her horses have a safe dwelling away from the mower.
Note: When children have REAL motivation... they build and create AMAZING things. Had I said, "Callie, go build a house" she would have made a dinky pathetic little thing... for my approval.

How to Build a Log Cabin- part 2

2009-03-21T10:49:00.000-07:00

So, earlier on this year we posted about the log cabin we were building. It has sat half constructed for some time now... so I asked my husband if he could please fell the dead tree in the back yard. He watched a you tube video about how to get a tree to fall the way you want it too, but clearly, gravity is more powerful than the mind. Luckily, our chickens survived and we were able to reconstruct the damage. :) And, now the log cabin is done... and it's raining!

How to Make Chocolate on a Stick

2009-03-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

These are some slap happy testimonials of chocolate on a stick. All you do is melt some chocolate chips and pour the chocolate into your typical candy molds. I just happened to add craisins and marshmallows to make it not so thickly chocolate. Then, cool it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Voila! Presto! Yummo!

How to Make a Volcano

2009-03-19T10:41:00.000-07:00

The defacto volcano of sorts is certainly exciting, but probably isn't perfect, because it lasts all but a second or two. Anyway, here are my tips for enjoying volcano fun:

1. Let the kids build the volcano themselves... preferably outdoors with no limits to size and materials.

2. Let the kids pour the vinegar themselves... they get to feel confident in what they CAN do in this world where they feel limited.

3. Sing Jimmy Buffets song, "I don't know where I'm a gonna go when the vol- cano blows!"

4. Feed the kids chocolate afterwards. Then their mouths look like volcanoes too. ;)

How to Make Play Doh

2009-03-18T11:12:00.000-07:00

As you can see, the beautiful all natural ingredient of Cream of Tartar is the key. Yes, there are other variations, some that even include peanut butter. BUT... traditional play doh is a simple process using the ingredient Cream of Tartar. If you are wondering what Cream of Tartar is... but aren't curious enough to look it up... it is a substance created when one turns grape into wine. I.E. a by-product of wine making. (Name deriving from the chemical composition of potassium acid tartrate) It is all natural and is commonly used to make souffles and candies of sorts. I used almost the entire jar yesterday. Made four large batches of Play doh.

Here is the recipe:

3 cups flour blended with 3 cups water in pot on stove.
Add 1 cup salt.
Add 6 teaspoons Cream of Tartar.
Add 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
Food coloring (plan on using most of the tube for good color)

Heat on medium/high heat until it clumps up good enough to look sort of like playdoh.

Throw on a surface (I use a wooden cutting board) and knead until smooth and clumps are out/color mixed well.

Let cool. Let play.

We made green for St. Patricks day, yellow just because, purple for princesses and brown for monkeys. When I get out to get some more Cream of Tartar we will make pink, blue and orange. :)

Clay Happy!!!

How to Make a Fairy Crown

2009-03-18T11:03:00.000-07:00

Callie came in from outside yesterday with a big ole handful of weeds. "whatcha doin?" I asked. "Making a fairy crown" she says. "Oh" I replied. "Mom, do you have some duct tape?"
"What for?" I asked not thinking she would use duct tape to make a fairy crown.
She then explained that she planned to tape it together.
"Are you sure you want to use duct tape?" I asked.
"No... sigh" Callie looked disgruntled.
"Would you like for me to help you Callie?" I offered.
"YEAH!!!" she said relieved.
"Ok... I will go get some string".
So we proceeded to search out some embroidery floss, cut off a 20-25 inch strand... tied it around the first flowers stem... then wrapped it around and around adding a new week every inch or so.
Voila! A fairy crown. We made one for Mariah too, which she rejected and dad wore the rest of the night.

How to Discover Tones...

2009-03-16T19:13:00.000-07:00

After leaving my kids alone with the glasses and the water for a good 10 minutes, then sitting QUIETLY and observing... for another 20 or so; Callie says to me, "Hey, the smaller water makes the higher noise and the higher water makes the lower noise". Children need not be taught. They need the environment to learn... and they need to be left alone... guided when WANTED and free to experience all that is around them. How many adults do you know (ask yourself first) that know which would make the higher pitch?!

This was SOOOOO fun! I was in heaven. Mariah was learning her dexterity, balance (how to pour and how to spill) while Callie was discovering a whole slough of physics. The non-verbal questions she asked herself were: "If I put the spoon in the cup and make the water rise higher, will the pitch go lower?", and "If I put a paper towel in the cup, will it mute the pitch in the way the spoon just did", and "can I get ALL my cups to be the same pitch?" and "what happens if my cups are touching" and "why don't they ring the same when they touch" and etc. etc. etc. How awe inspiring. I just ordered a new AMAZING book. It is hot off the press and being pre-ordered right now... check it out. Already bought mine... http://www.amazon.com/Making-Musical-Instruments-Kids-Projects/dp/1884365485/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1237255980&sr=8-1

How to Stack Storm Style

2009-03-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

I believe in the power of the Dixie Cup. Great invention. I would never use it for it's intended purpose, drinking... although, I can see why others would. I have always been a drink out of cupped hand girl, or bend beneath the faucet type. Case in point, Dixie cups have many uses... my favorite of which is PLAY. Costco sells a big-ole pack of these. Give your kids some time with these, and maybe they can be like this little wonder... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQTS8wMnOpM

How to Encourage Creativity

2009-03-11T11:48:00.000-07:00

I could attempt to write a book on this topic. But, I will keep it short and simple today. If you struggle with your kids NOT wanting to be alone... or saying "I'm bored" all the time... you can probably blame it on TV and movies. I don't say that to sabotage the wonderful invention... I say that simply as matter of fact. Within two weeks of our cable being shut off to save finances, both my daughters stopped being bored... because they were given the TIME to learn to entertain themselves.

All children need time alone. Unfortunately, the world has convinced many that if you leave your kids alone... you are neglecting them. Society would make us think we have to entertain our children at all waking hours... or give them something else (TV) to entertain them when we cannot. Naptime anyone? Don't worry... I have been there too... and it seemed a little too idealistic to believe we could live without TV. I must say... YES... you can live without T.V. and what a better life!!!

When you see your children inventing things, creating stores, parties, cards, clubs, forts and the whole slough of other things they have the power to create... you will begin to see the value in what I am saying. They don't need to be entertained ALL the time by some outside source. They actually (and so do we mom's) have the ability to create fun for ourselves... regardless of financial means... or circumstances. Believe it or not, the pioneers had a good ole time, with making many uses out of a stick. That is not BOREDOM... that is genius. We are basically idiots if we can't make fun out of a stick or a box. (seen that book series)

Boring people are boring. Geniuses are Creative.

I, for one, am planning on raising geniuses... without the assistance of a T.V.

How to Enjoy a Sunday

2009-03-08T11:54:00.000-07:00

Sunday's are beautiful days... especially when there is beautiful weather. Sunday's are for pondering. Sunday's are for appreciation. Sunday's are for wonder and amazement at all of God's creations. Sunday's are for reading, writing, singing and resting. Sunday's are for reflection of all of life's joys and wonders. Sunday's are for service and charity. Charity in the sense that you grow your capacity for love of others. We had a wonderful Sunday this week. Although we were sad to miss church due to colds, we were joyful to formally (with spring dresses) breathe in the beauty of the natural back yard. Callie picked bouquets of "weed" flowers, and Mariah sang on the swing. Norah and I sat and felt grateful watching. What a beautiful day. What unlimited joy can be found!!!

What Sunday's shouldn't be: restrictive and limiting... once again... the disease of boredom. I know because I used to live that paradigm. Creativity with holier limits... for the benefit and bettering of all. Think about it.

How to Learn About Sewing Machines

2009-03-07T11:40:00.000-08:00

Callie wanted to learn about who invented the sewing machine. As with the computer, and many other inventions it is impossible to pin down ONE person to the creation of such a magnificent machine. You could read for hours on the topic (I did) and still not really know WHO to attribute it to. Singer made a whole bunch of money off his innovations, but certainly did NOT invent the machine... and was at least the 20th person down the line to tinker with the idea.

This idea is great though... and there is probably a mom and pop shop in your town that would have one of these older machines, but I happened to have one in my home. This was Justin's grandma's machine. It is incredibly complicated, hard to use and yet yields very simple results. It will only to a single straight stitch, but the effort to get it to do that straight stitch is extraordinary. It basically gave us a headache looking at the manual together and trying to get the bobbin in. But, once the power was working... the kids LOVED pushing the level to make the needle pulse and Mariah was LOVIN' turning the control wheel!! I am glad the machine was at least heavy duty steel.

It was a simple lesson. People have ideas... do the best they can... and then the next person can improve it a bit. All of us contribute a little to great things. The key is to keep trying. And the best successes come from failures. Not that this machine is a failure... but I am sure glad there were people dissatisfied with it. It makes me appreciate my Pfaff a lot more!!!

How to Learn the Senses

2009-03-05T11:33:00.000-08:00

What they love to eat... illustrated on gigantic tongues for dramatic effect!! :)

There are a lot of things adults take for granted. The senses is definitely one of them. We eat, touch, smell, hear and see so many things... really not recognizing how valuable they are to us.

I started this whole activity by making a gift bag, with tissue paper filled with 5 cut-outs. One hand, one tongue, one eye, one ear and one nose. Each kid took a turn picking a gift out of the bag. The idea is that all these wonderful senses are a gift from God, to protect us... to help us in this mortal journey. They not only protect us from harm, and teach us things... they can bring us great joy. So, each sense we had an activity that went along with it.

Sound: I had the kids close their eyes and listen to different things in the kitchen. I opened the fridge door, pushed buttons on the microwave, turned on the faucet etc. They had to guess what I was doing just by listening.

Sight: We mostly learned sight by all the ways its awful not to have it. The kids closed their eyes most of the time, because we truly rely on sight more than anything else. No wonder we are so slow to faith!! We talked about colors and knowing how far things are away from us.

Touch: I put a bunch of objects into bags and had the kids feel and desribe what they felt. Some pokey things, soft things, hard things, sticky things etc. They LOVED it. Then I showed them what it was. Sometimes, you can tell what things are just by feeling them... but kids are VERY slow to trust that.

Taste: This was a fun one... ofcourse kids love to taste everything... almost. They love treats anyways. I had them close their eyes and I put stuff like salty chips, squishy marshmallows etc, on their tongues and told them to describe it. Basically we talked about what "sour" means. What "spicy" means. What "bitter" means. What "sweet" means. My kids call toothpaste, soda, salsa and lemons spicy... so it was time to define things a little more. :) It worked pretty well.

Smell: Just like touch, I stuffed a bunch of smelly stuff into bags and had them guess what it was. Cleaners, deoderant, a diaper, chocolate etc. They knew chocolate boy!! :)

Anyway, it was lots of fun. You can try it any time!!

How to Have Fun

2009-03-02T11:21:00.000-08:00

Step One: Forget vanity.
Step Two: Live while you can.
Step Three: (Automatic if you follow 1 and 2) Never regret it.

How to Waterproof Gloves for Snow

2009-03-02T10:20:00.000-08:00

If you are like me... you live in a place where snow like this only happens once in a blue moon. Boy do we LOVE those blue moons!! But, because of the infrequency of such events, we are hardly prepared... adequately for long lengths of snow. Surely some of you have had a similar experience... 3o minutes getting dressed... 10 minutes outside... an hour wiping tears and doing laundry. Well, today was a new day. I was bound and determined to NOT let that happen. So, I pulled out my stash of Wal Mart bags and duct taped them to my children. Yes, Duct taped. You laugh... BUT 2 hours after dressing... they came indoors, all smiles, ready for hot cocoa. Just like the dream would illustrate. Happy days in the snow... thanks to duct tape!!

How to Eat Cheap Caviar

2009-03-02T10:10:00.000-08:00

There is really no art to this. No rules, no steps to follow for success. Which, I suppose is the rule. I come from a long line of snow eaters. As a child, I was taken to the slopes to ski at 18 months. All the way up in the sled, I had one hand in the sled for balance, and the other was scooping snow for consumption. Does it taste good? No, ofcourse not. Is that the point? NO. It's like caviar. It's the rarity of it that makes it divine... not the taste. Only this caviar requires no manners or etiquette.

Quote for the Day- Thus my entries

2009-02-27T11:00:00.000-08:00

"What most people need to learn in life is how to love people and use things instead of using people and loving things." -Unknown

How to Make Homemade Ground Wheat Bread

2009-02-27T10:52:00.000-08:00

All you need is some wheat berries, a wheat grinder and saf yeast. Yes, I realize that most people don't have those things lying around. That is why I start there. If you really want to do this, look into it... for the health and welfare of your family. It's a great idea for food storage and a wonderful way to bond with your family. (it was nice to throw some of my photography into my blog again... i've been posting lame pictures)

Here is the recipe I swear by. I prefer simple, quick methods to confusing ones. That is why I love this recipe. It turns out DELICIOUSLY and it only takes me about 15 minutes to put it together. Then, it rises for 45 in the pans and bakes for 35-40 min. If you have made whole wheat bread before, you may find that startling. :) Here is the recipe. Requested from the family blog.

2 3/4 C very warm water
1 tbsp salt (or a little less)
1 1/2 tbsp rapid rise dry yeast (saf instant)
Combine above ingredients.
Add 1/2 C oil, 1/2 C honey (tip: use the same measuring cup and the honey won't stick to it.)
Add 4 C whole wheat flour and 2-3 C whole wheat flour
Mix 7 minutes in Mixer.
Separate into 2 greased large loaf pans.
Rise approx 1 hour depending on weather until top of loaf is just higher than top of pan.
Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

When you pull it out of the oven, use a knife to pull the bread gently away from the pan, then turn the pan upside down, supporting the bread from the top with a gloved hand. Gently place the loaf on a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least an hour before bagging. Then, leave the bag open for a little bit to not choke the bread.

How to Plant an Orchard

2009-02-27T10:44:00.000-08:00

My Black Tartarian Cherry Rocket Root tree from Gurney's...

The Potting Mix I use for planting... it has some compost, sand and other great additives that work well in clay.
And the sticks I bought to support my trees... installing those tomorrow.

My Dwarf Bing Cherry from fast growing trees.com ... the cross-pollinater to my Black Tartarian.

My Golden Delicious & Red Fuju Apple trees (front) and my Elberta & Contender Peach (back)

I LOVE fruit, could not survive without it, worry that there may come a day when the grocery stores do not have all the imported fruit anymore, and I LOVE to work outside. That is why I decided to turn our backyard into an orchard. I started off thinking one or two trees, then learned about cross-pollination etc. Now we have two peach, two apple, two cherry, a persimmon tree, two grape vines, 3 raspberry bushes, 2 blueberry bushes and 25 strawberry plants. Believe me yet that I love fruit?! If you want to do a little like me, and I would assume just a touch of the Storm way, here are my tips:

1. Basically, find out what fruit trees can be grown locally. Purchase them at a local nursery or online, I recommend www.gurneys.com and then watch a you tube video on how to plant a tree. Make sure you research to see if you need to buy two for cross pollination. (my tip on this is if you do need a pollinater, buy a more mature tree and a younger tree to save money and have fruit sooner... I bought an instant orchard peach tree, and an instant orchard apple, then I bought $25, 2-4 foot trees to pollinate. Fruit trees usually take a few years to bear fruit. A lot longer than that if you start from seed. Frankly, I am not that patient.

2. Watch the you tube video on how to plant a tree. Essentially you dig a big hole, mix the soil from the hole with potting MIX from Lowes or what not, and fill in the hole leaving the base of the tree bulb above ground (do watch the video).

3. Plan on cedar rust. I have lots of cedars in my neighborhood, and 7 in my backyard... they are staying. So, my fruit trees leaves will be speckled. But, don't give into vanity. The tree will still bare fruit. It will just look freckled.

4. INCLUDE THE KIDS in the fun. If you need materialistic back-up, Lowes sells kids size trowels and gloves etc. But, all you need is some plastic kitchen cups and a sink to wash their hands in. Kids love the dirt. So much of tree planting is kid friendly. Callie watched the video and I had her teach others how to do it. The best way to learn is to teach.

5. Winter is for planting. NOW IS THE time. Go online today to buy your trees. You want them in the ground in the next week or two, or else wait until fall.

Have fun!!

How to Relive Your Childhood

2009-02-24T11:51:00.000-08:00

NOT through your kids... WITH them. We all hear stories of the casually depressive parents who feel like they should re-live thier lives; all the frills, glory days and moments of their own lives; through their children. How sad. It's like there is a subconscious belief that all humans are alike and are endowed with the same gifts, interests, opinions, likes and dislikes. How untrue this is! Each child is unique. So, what if there is something you LOVED about your childhood and you want your kids to have it too? Bad idea? No, I don't think so. So long as it is not forced upon them. The other day I grabbed some of Callie's ponies, and reminiscing of my days lying in the moss and rockery of my backyard with my Sylvanian friends, I began to play. My world was gigantic to my Sylvanian friends, and I loved escaping into their miniature version, which from a bird's eye view was so enchanting. So, I (ME, not them) escaped back into my childhood for a day. ME, not them. Ofcourse, they followed. But, whoever came up with the subtle messages that adults can't play was a nincompoop. Nothing could be more therapeutic. Mom's (myself included) are always so concerned about what they can teach their kids. I assert that rather mom's should NOT be concerned for a minute over that. If a mother is living right, learning herself, exploring herself and loving life... the children will learn by example. Society does not teach this. Society teaches that the only way to learn something is through force, coercion or manipulation. This is a fallacy that unfortunately takes a lot of the joy and peace and freedom from our lives. Message for the day: Play what YOU want to play mom's... craft what YOU want to craft mom's... read what YOU want to read mom's... and the kids... may... too.

How to Play Play-doh

2009-02-19T12:13:00.000-08:00

I had a conversation last night with a mom who told me she met some mom's who don't allow their children to play with play-doh. In protection of their homes. Perhaps the negative results come because the children are bored?! Meaning, do you sit them down with the gooey substance, but don't give them any ideas or tools to DO something with it? If the substance is solitary, they will experiment... and they should. SO, I would say... do it this way if you are one of those mom's that fears nastied carpet and clothes. First, cover your table with a cheap left-over party cloth. I have had mine over a year. 2 bucks. Then, I give them wipeable mats so they subconsciously think to keep it on the mat. Then, I cover the middle of the table with rolling pins, smooth edges knives, cookie cutters etc. Callie has figured out her sleeve makes a really cool design too. I, personally, am really happy about that discovery. Textures are great art methods. Anyway, they were there a good hour at the table. Even squirmy Mariah only got up once. I had music playing and they had their cookie cutter animals eating each other and their cookie cutter dogs playing fetch. What fun!! ( Tip: If you get some on the floor, wait till it dries, THEN sweep.)

How to Dress a Webkinz...

2009-02-18T12:05:00.000-08:00

My sweet Emily told me over the phone (after knitting me the most beautiful hat in the world for Christmas) that her style of knitting was EASY! Ha! I said. Yeah right. I followed her advice, and got myself a knitting loom. Well, it took me until yesterday to break it out and try it because I figured it would be a full day learning event. Not so. It 2 minutes I had the thing figured out, and in one broken up day made a cute little hat. But... what was better, was that Callie learned as fast as me. She was dying to "do it too"... I was not so confident... but, she picked it up right away and ended up knitting her Dolphin, John, a cute little sweater. Amazing. A five year old knitting a sweater! See what I am talking about. With inspiration, comes rapid learning!

How to Recylcle without Curbside

2009-02-17T11:59:00.000-08:00

It's a long going pet-peave of mine, that we have no curb-side recycle. Which is fine really... I just spend an extra 10 minutes a day peeling off labels, saving cans and driving them to the dump/recycle bins. I can't help it really being born and raised in Seattle. So, in one of my label peeling eye rolls, I realized... hey! I have two kids that love to take things apart! Let them remove the labels! As you can see in the pictures, one thing led to another and they made their own lessons in balance and weights. First they built towers, and then they checked to see how much stuff would fit on top. Actually, it started off with Callie trying to build a catapult, which frustrated her too much because the spatula kept falling off the cans... so she decided this was more fun. Me? I was just doing dishes and caught the tail end of what was a 40 minute experiment.

How to Disect a Flashlight

2009-02-17T11:11:00.000-08:00

Appearantly Da Vinci was one of the first, if not THE first to take animals and people apart and draw their many pieces to learn about them. We were studying Da Vinci today, looking at his pictures he made, from the Mona Lisa to his drawings of the bone structures of the arm. Callie is FASCINATED with medical stuff. So, she was begging for this. And, rather than disect a living thing, we decided to disect a flashlight. First we played musical chairs around the table each drawing the flashlight in whole from three different angles, then we took it apart and drew the insides. It was awesome. There were no rules or regulations, just free discovery. Usually they are not allowed to touch the flashlight because it wastes batteries, but today they were inthralled to touch it, examine it (how it works), push the buttons and draw what they saw. The Da Vinci method works great with kids. Next time, we may disect an orange or something. GREAT!!

How to Know the Land of Your Boyhood

2009-02-16T11:05:00.000-08:00

The Tree Swing. $25 swing at Lowes. A step ladder and 7 feet of 39 cent/foot rope. Installation time: 20 minutes.

Log Cabin. Still in progress. Junk wood from the side of Justin's work building. Some steel rods and some motivation. $5 tarp for roof.

The tree climbers kit. Junk wood. Nailed onto our trees. That way... they can climb at leisure and explore.

In the words of Louis L'Amore, author of The Walking Drum, "What boy does not know the land of his boyhood? Every cave, every doleman, every dip in the land and hole in the hedges, and all that lonely, rockbound coast for miles." In my margins I wrote an answer, "the 'boy' of the modern day, in front of his T.V." Is this not the truth?! Do we not isolate our children to our house most the time, or put little or no effort into giving them an outdoor environment? Are we not too afraid of strangers and spiders and injuries to let our children live?! Would we rather them die in front of the T.V. I am not sure we know what we prefer?! :) In two days our backyard has gone from a boredom with a broken trampoline to a wonderland of incessant inclination. I cannot keep my kids inside. Upset? Hardly. I love it. All it takes is a little time outside with them to see what they need. Callie has been begging me to lift her up to the tree branch for years. Duh mom?! Nail in some boards so she can do it herself whenever she wants!! Then they like to swing off the tree branches like monkeys... so we put in a swing. I think this will be used far more than the $1500 Rainbow playground version down the street. We have come ALIVE!!! What an exciting life!

How to Make a Fort

2009-02-12T11:12:00.000-08:00

If you are like me, you have forts found all throughout your home. No matter what room there is a pile of pillows from whatever lay nearby and a covering of blankets raided from my nicely folded linen closet. DRIVES ME CRAZY! I have enough to fold with all the laundry. Well, I decided one day that I needed to figure out an easy-assemble fort. Talk about Industrial Era mentality right?! So I got some old curtains, threaded them through some yarn/string stuff and made easy on/off handles that would attach over the drapery hook. And you can pull it off and roll in placing it in the wicker basket by the side of the couch. I LOVE this thing. However, I am sitting in my room now, in front of yet another lovely abode made from the blankets on my bed... which was for some reason superior to my creation. Why? Because it was MY creation. Point being... there is a place for manufactured forts... but MOM's what is wrong with us!? The point is to CREATE a fort, not use it! They don't always realize that either... but it is. And, once again... they feel pride in their work and USE it. (Ever seen those Dora forts?! Kids only use them when their friends are over)

How to Make an Impression

2009-02-12T11:05:00.000-08:00

I was going to call this entry, "how to make a smore", but that would lead you astray. You see, what this entry is really about is how to make a learning experience a positive one. What we came up with (Larin and I) is that each day of the week is a kid school topic. (Our kid schools is called Storm Academy) * I should interject here that Storm Academy takes place right after Storm Salon. We begin with a song, the Pledge of allegiance, a prayer and then a low key, FUN activity. This is NOT a force the kids to sit down time. They look forward to it. So, anyway, Monday's= Musicians/ Tuesday's=Artists/ Wednesday's= Women/ Thursday's= Inventors/ Friday's= Founders. So each day of the week we FIRST learn about a person in history and do an activity that coincides. Then we learn about the human body (ABC of the Human Body- Fort Benton Library book sale 05) , then we journal it. Sounds like a lot of work right?! Nope. It's not. Each Sunday, in the daddy/daughter time, Callie tells Justin what she wants to learn about. He then gives her a list I made off wikipedia of different inventions. She picks the one she wants to learn about. Then, I print out the one page about it off wikipedia on Sat or Sun before the week to coincide with the day (takes all of 15 minutes). It just so happened that Callie wanted to learn about microwaves this week. So, today I printed off a page about Percy Spencer and how the microwave came about. Then I ad-libbed the basic story about how he stood by a machine with a chocolate bar in his pocket... (I gave them each a bar to stick in their pockets) and HIS melted! Then he grabbed a handful of popcorn! And it popped. So we did an experiment of putting different stuff in the microwave to see what happened to it. Marshmallows grow gigantic. Popcorn kernels either pop or burn. And they softened their chocolate bars. They LOVED pushing the buttons and eating the experiment. And, mom learned something new!

How to Make a Sun...

2009-02-10T11:42:00.000-08:00

May I begin this entry by saying that MOST successful experiences, as the ones listed on this blog, do not begin with motherly genius or anything of the type. MOST successful experiences begin through the genius or curiosity of the child... once inspired. Provide an inspiring environment... But that genius or inspiration must be responded to correctly. For example, we have little pillows in the girls room with handles on them. Mariah's handle ripped off, exposing the inner batting. Callie has been hounding me to fix it. Well, it's taken me a while... and finally she said, "mom, can we sew this in Storm Academy?" I responded with "sure, YOU can". She was thrilled. SHE wanted to learn. Not ME wanted her to learn. BIG difference. Learning is best by responding to desire and inspiration, like a mentor... not by sitting them down and telling them to "like this now". Yes, this is hard to do. One's life has to be organized and relaxed to respond to inspiration when it comes. So, organize life right?! Right. Constant process... but that is right. Then, interests evolve. You see, we got out the thread and Callie fixed the pillow, meanwhile, Mariah was demanding to sew. So, I got my yarn needles out (which are not lethal) and some yarn, some scraps of drapery fabric and gave her the basics, which SHE asked for. (Imagine how the story would change if I had a major agenda of my own and had no time to respond) Then, Callie, finishing her pillow, wanted to sew with yarn too. I said, "okay, draw a picture of something simple, like a sun, and you can sew it". So, she drew a sun, and I helped her put dots on it and she sewed it. EVER NOTICE that when a CHILD does the work, they feel pride in it. You can say "THIS IS GREAT" a hundred times, but unless THEY were responsible for it, they don't feel pride in their work. We all work that way, it shouldn't be hard to understand. Anyway, then it evolved into Mariah coloring balloons in different sizes to match the people in our family. Her favorite project.

How to Dirty Clothes...

2009-02-10T11:29:00.000-08:00

I don't know any mom's who have trouble knowing how to dirty clothes. Usually we are looking for ways to keep clothes clean right? :) Well, after a long spell of freezing days, we finally got a warmer one where the two could play outside. What was intended to be 20 minutes ended up being almost 2 hours as they were ungulfed into a world of curiosty and exploration. Any mom afraid of letting their kids get a little dirty messing up the garden needs only to look into their eyes after a FREE adventure of their own outdoors. Not one YOU structure and force, but one of their own accord. They are the creators. They are the explorers. They are dirty, but they are ALIVE and living as they should be. We got a fence for this very purpose. It is a locked, unpenetrable fence that allows me to let them out in the open and play without me worrying about the street etc.

How to Have a Heart Attack

2009-02-06T12:47:00.000-08:00

It is a common misconception among Americans that the quickest way to have a heart attack is to eat lots of saturated fat and stop exercise. Au contraire!! My experience proves this method is much more efficient and inexpensive. We used doilies that were in the art drawer, as well as some paper cut outs we made. Then, the girls wrote on their hearts. I told them that if they wrote I love you to someone on each of their hearts, I would give them a piece of tape for each written on for hanging. So, Mariah drew circles (she can't write yet... she is only two) and said "I love Courtney" circle "I love mommy"circle "I love Becca" circle etc. Callie popped out an "I love God" which I thought was very spiritual of her. :) So, our door had a full blown heart attack in one day... and NO medical bills! But, the best part was that for 30 minutes are hearts will filled with the thoughts of those we loved. Several times they both giggled and yelled, "this is so much fun". Simply joys, profound learning.

How to Make a Rain Stick...

2009-02-05T12:30:00.000-08:00

The Aztecs, in times of drouth, would yearn for rain. Why? They were starving. So, they came up with a creative way to call to the heavens for rain. Anciently, rain sticks were made of dried cactus and hollowed and filled to REALLY sound like rain. Storm style, is taking some empty wrapping paper tubes, filling them with left over chicken wire, then adding a food storage item. Some used popcorn, some wheat, some rice, some oatmeal. Then, we had a REAL Storm.

Prior to the Storm we talked about water, why some clouds rained and others didn't (we used cotton balls to show saturation levels making rain) and also talked about what floats. That's an easy one. Fill a bowl and go around the house picking things to test. Have them run an experiment (make a hypothesis BEFORE dropping in the object) or the learning is foiled. :)

How to Make a Restaurant

2009-02-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

So, I read about this idea in the Thomas Jefferson Leadership Education book. Fabulous. Simply Fabulous. I made up a menu, which will be laminated shortly, and played waitress for my kids at lunch. I tied an apron around my waist, grabbed a notebook, a pencil behind my ear, handed them 50 cents worth of play money... and even though Norah was in my arms, proceeded as follows:

"Welcome to the Storm Cloud Cafe!
"Here are your menus...
"Can I start you off with a complimentary appetizer?"

They looked a little stunned then said, "sure".

I proceeded to make a smiley face on a plate out of cherry tomatoes and carrots. "We call this our happy treat. Enjoy!" (BY THE WAY... this is the best and only way to get their veggies in at lunch time)

"I NO LY GARROTS!"- Mariah (I don't like carrots) ofcourse.... screaming

I ignored and proceeded on as she stuffed her face with tomatoes.

Then, I explained the menu. I told them they may select one of each course, and showed them the item's cost. At the bottom, they had a choice of 'beverages'. You may have water, FREE of charge, milk for 5 cents. (if you save up your milk money for three days and have just water... then on the 3rd day, you get chocolate milk!)

Callie ordered a heart shaped PB&J, tomato chips, yogurt and Water. Mariah ordered a quesadilla, tortilla chips, yogurt and water. Each finished most of their meal. Both "got it". 'If I save my nickle... I'll get chocolate milk'.

It was fantastic how fun it was. And, to top it off... I carried their dishes to the sink FOR them. :) Usually, that's their job.

We will do this every day... teaching the difference in dimes, nickles and quarters... and SAVING your money.... with an added bonus of restaurant manners. Burdensome... NO... actually much more fun for mommy. I built the menu after things always in our cupboards... and easy to make.

How to Start a Salon

2009-02-04T11:01:00.000-08:00

One of the biggest tricks I find in parenting, is to make the menial tasks not so cumbersome. I find that as we try to DO everything... we enjoy very little. Instead, I am trying to find ways to make the simple life, extraordinary... and the complicated life, non-existent. So, we have our daily routine... but none of it is mundane. After the timer beeps for our 20 minutes of chores... we skip and giggle up the stairs to "Salon Time". This is where the girls enter my room with a penny to get their hair done. We made a chart of 9 hair-do's to choose from... and I will do whatever they pick. We made up fun names for the 'do's'. Mariah chose the licorice bow today. Callie chose the crown. Both paid a penny. But the main reason we do this is for conference time. As we play salon, we pretend that we are strangers. We then hold a kind of conversation that strangers do, such as, "so, how many people are in your family?" or "what's your favorite movie, and why?" We discuss all sorts of topics. You will be surprised at the answers given to strangers. They greatly differ from those asked by you. Even in a pseudo salon. :) (By the way we have an office chair that goes up and down like the salon, and Grandma is sending a clipper cape to suit!!)

Enjoying the Children's Museum... Pics

2009-02-04T10:49:00.000-08:00

How to Have a Deer Party

2009-01-31T10:53:00.000-08:00

Some of the best experiences come when the mommies leave and the daddies are left to make the magic. Caleb just recently memorized the ten commandments... so they had a deer party at a nearby Mountain park. Little did they know they would find a whole herd of deer and a waterfall with snow at the base! Daddy magic... no expectations... and fabulous results. And, since Courtney said her prayers reverently, they also had an ice cream party on the way home. Boy! We mom's missed out!!

How to Catch a Break...

2009-01-28T12:37:00.001-08:00

I am on my way to the west coast for a five day mommy excursion, with baby. The key is to find a seminar on becoming a better mother... then the vacation is justified. Justin is taking 3 days off work to watch the kids, while I vacation. SIKE!! Okay, I am going to a 2 day, change my life seminar... but with a nursing infant from 9-5. It will still be work people!!!! On my feet!

I will be back to blogging on Tuesday, February 3rd.

No one is probably reading this, but I will proceed as if they were. ;)

Under construction...

2009-01-28T12:01:00.000-08:00

Okay, the site isn't under construction... but clearly the author is!! What is that to start a blog... ONE day... then leave it to rest? Yes, it is intended to be a daily blog. But, I have a daily job as mother that has been different than my normal routine this week too. All that means is I did my job, but without a camera as much of it was off the premises of our home. Here is an accounting of the weeks adventures:

THURSDAY, January 21st: How to Enjoy Colonial Times

My friend Larin, NEVER ceases to amaze me. We arrived at her home around 3pm for our weekly playgroup. We entered her home to find four people dressed like the colonists... a total surprise to us. They greeted us kindly and then told us to follow them out to "the barn" to "milk their cow, Bessie". The kids were wide eyed and excited to see the new cow! So we went out on the deck and found Bessie, a play rocking horse with a white sheet over her and black construction paper spots. Beneath her abdomen was an inflated rubber glove for milking. The children each took turns milking the glove while Larin, the colonist, poured heavy cream into the pan. When the pan was full, or each child had milked, we went back inside and poured heavy cream into quart sized jars, filled 1/3 full. Then, each child dumped in some marbles. We had them replace the cap and then shook vigrously for a while until it no longer felt like liquid. We opened the jars to find WHIP CREAM! But, had we left the heavy cream to room temperature as intended, we would have found BUTTER! (we re-did this project yesterday with success) The cream eventually hardens, then separates into a hard ball of butter and buttermilk liquid surrounding. Then we washed and dried the sweat from the butter, formed it and ate it on homemade bread. AMAZING!!

The second project was making homemade ink out of strawberries. Back in the day when strawberries were not all hormones the pigment surely would have darkened. But, as it was, light pink, Larin brought out the feathers and the children colored/painted for quite sometime. We taught them then to appreciate the ease of inexpensive markers in the latter days. :)

FRIDAY, January 22nd How to lock a pantry

Okay, so this isn't really a tale of how to enjoy your kids... advertently, but inadvertently it is. You see, my 2 1/2 year old is in to EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING I SAY!! There are days where I want to give her a full day nap because I know she and her surroundings will be safe. So, my husband, working for Black and Decker, brought home a locking Baldwin nob to replace our pantry knob. Yes, locking. Am I wrong that the less distractions and less cleaning that needs to take place... the more play time?! Or maybe not PLAY time, but quality, positive time with the children. By the way, I don't think mom's have to play with their kids to enjoy them. Work is possibly even more enjoyable, gratifying and proven method for character building. That said, we attempted to eliminate THAT distraction, only to find Mariah with the key, a chair beneath the key holder high on the wall, and the pantry open. Creativity is an endless need and virtue. :) This girl is MacGiver in training!

MONDAY, January 25th How to Enjoy a Museum, 1) Bring friends, 2) Avoid a crowd

We have enjoyed our local children's museum many times, with our membership. But, never before with friends. This time it was 3 mom's and 10 kids. Age 2 months - 8 years. It was a blast. They just happened to have a bungi bouncer and tight rope for the mom's to play on, and the hands-on exploration was endless. My personal opinion, the key to a great day at a hands on museum is FRIENDS of good nature AND a small crowd. When the museums are busy... why go? You spend the whole time panicking over where the kids went. When its just you and your gang, they are free to explore and discover all on their own. To build and inspire each other with different ideas. When its just mom and kids, they get bored easily and quickly.

TUESDAY, January 26th How to Ruin a Day

There are many ways to ruin a day... but the quickest way for our family is to start the day running errands in a hurry. Well, let's face it, doing anything in a hurry will ruin a day. But going to Kohls to find a shirt for mom, and sleep and plays for babies seems as though it would be a quick task... but PLANNING on it going quick is a BAD IDEA. Frankly, planning on it at all is a bad idea. Shopping for mom should ONLY be done online or a mom's night out. Period. I also think a creative plan on executing shopping cart logistics is vital. How do you stick 3 kids in a 2 seat stroller cart? Or better yet, how do you nurse baby, discipline two year old, untie five year olds knot it a shoe and try on a shirt in the dressing room all at once?! I did it... but have NO IDEA HOW?! It was NOT worth it. That was my big discovery. HOW to ruin a day.

WEDNESDAY, January 27th How to Shop at the Grocery Store.

"Occasionally genius may strike, but will you practice it?" Today, as we left Wal Mart, I realized that my biggest challenge was simply getting Mariah to walk fast enough to keep up with us. She is a 'stroll-er'. Well, most of the time in the store I don't care what a doofus I look like. I try to be the ONE mom not angry at their kids. So, instead I am the doofus. Which, frankly works for me. :) Today, I was telling my kids "come and get me?!!" in a taunting voice. They then giggle, chase me and follow me through the maze of grocery aisles. But, Mariah doesn't stroll because she is chasing me. See?! So, today, she had a penny in her hand. She should have known better today because of her experimenting with balls in a large vat at the museum yesterday, but she apparently forgot. She dropped her penny which landed perfectly on its side in a large 5 foot circular rolling pattern. Ever seen a dog chase it's tail? Very similar to mariah chasing her penny. It was so funny that Callie and I were rolling in laughter. We kept saying "step on it!" or "stop" or "grab it" and around and around Mariah went... eventually stumbling over her own feet and biffing it. Oh, so the stroke of genius was that as we left and they tired of chasing me, we made a big train. I pushed the cart, Mariah held the back of my pants and Callie held the back of Mariah's. Train. They make a sound like "Choo Choo!!!" Now, mom's, they KEY to making a train effective is to ALSO make the choo choo. If you are quiet and "mature" it's not fun and will thus be ineffective. If you, on the other hand, rev up your engine for a crowd shocking "choo choo" you can be sure all your little train cars will follow. Become as a little child... remember the scripture?!

How to Stain a Thumb

2009-01-20T11:46:00.000-08:00

Expanding the mediums of art is a must.
Crayons becoming broken.
Markers dry out.
Paint brushes become stiff.
Expos stain.
Chalk looks like diaper rash cream.
(well, at our house)
Pastels are...yes, oil based.
Then there are thumbs...
which just happen to be opposable,
but are certainly not disposable.

How to Visit the Zoo for FREE!!

2009-01-20T11:45:00.000-08:00

Callie asked today, "Mom, when are we going to visit the zoo?" Yesterday she wanted to taste the pink fluffy stuff they sell there (cotton candy) Today, I was struck with genius and answered her, "Let's go to the zoo today! Here! In our own house!" Notice the tone! You can't argue with that kind of enthusiasm. If you can... you aren't good enough at drama. Then, I pulled her close for a secret whisper. "Let's invite our friends". Then, I gave her all the responsibility of creating a zoo. This builds great confidence. I left the creativity to her, then came and helped. Our entire downstairs is a zoo, and Callie... the zookeeper. We also plan to have a popcorn stand. Our friends are arriving at 3:00 for the tour. An hour and a half of creating towards a real goal. There is a sign on our door that reads, "Welcome to Callie's Zoo" only in phonetics. My opinion? Better than the real thing... at least for today.

How to Teach the Buck by Pretend

2009-01-20T11:37:00.000-08:00

All you need is an expensive plastic cash register, a fancy plastic kitchen, princess money, a real metal grocery cart and a purse from Prada. NO!!!!!
Actually, all you need is whatever's in your house.
We happen to have a grocery bag we got for free, Melissa and Doug learning money we got from Santa, a grocery cart from Grandma and fake food. But, all you need is plastic grocery bags, cans from the pantry, a stroller (for a grocery cart), a baby doll (for a sibling) a little bag for a purse and an imagination!!! They don't sell imaginations anymore. Sorry to break the news!! :)
First stop, was the bank. The girls came to me requesting some money. We enjoyed some good conversation, with her asking me "how long have you worked here?" Great people building skills. Then, Callie asked for 43 cents please. I helped her a little by explaining that groceries just might cost more than that. So, she went for 47 dollars instead. Their first shopping trip they spent $26.53 cents. Then, their second trip, to the bookstore and grocery store, was closer to $120. I explained that her $20 (she had left) was not sufficient for the bill and they went back to the bank. At the bank, I explained that her account was very low and she would soon be very poor. I asked if she was sure she wanted to withdraw all her money to buy those books. "Yes!" she said. In which I replied, "well, you better tell your husband to work hard this week and get that money in the bank pronto!" Then, they were on their way with 10, $10 bills.
Point being, play the bank when you play grocery. Allow them to withdraw 43 cents, then tell them "sorry" when they try and buy $26.53 worth of goods. This whole process teaches much more than you think.

A Day in the Life of A Storm

2009-01-20T10:44:00.000-08:00

Let me begin by saying this blog came about by means of inspiration. I was going about the home in my normal way; taking pictures of the silly and fun things we do. It was then that I realized what is to be done. As a person, I want to contribute. As a mother, I want to have fun. As a friend, I want to be inspiring. As a wife, I want to be progressing. As a daughter, I want to emulate. As a citizen, I want to serve. As an entrepreneur, I want to add value. This is humble attempt at fulfilling all those things, whilst creating beauty. To start something new, unique to me, that will be useful to others but will not be compromising to my most demanding role; that of being a mother. I certainly do not claim to know it all, or even a portion. But, this is me. This is our way of living. This is how we find joy and learning. Although this not the "one true way", I'd like to believe that somehow my personal uniqueness will be a source of good to someone, someday... out there.