You know how your kids say and do the most adorable things that are so incredibly precious you're certain there has never been another child as brilliant and wonderful as they are. And how everyone says, "Be sure you right those things down!" And how you are so impossibly busy that it never happens.
Any of this sounding familiar?
I've come up with a solution! There are very few things I'm consistent about...but I am pretty consistent at updating my facebook statuses...especially with all the cute things our kids do. Probably annoyingly so. So I took a little notebook, went to my profile, and clicked on "Show More Posts" until I got back to the very beginning of all facebook time. Then I copied down all of those cute statuses into the notebook for safe keeping.
It was so much fun to look back on all of our kids' precious moments! They've said some pretty hilarious things. A few highlights were:
8-13-09- Micah picked up the toy phone- "I'm calling the garbage man and telling him to come pick up Liliana." Nice.
1-30-10- I put Micah to bed tonight and said, "Goodnight sweetheart! I love you!" and turned to walk out the door. He shouted after me, "You forgot to say GO TO BED RIGHT NOW!!!"
10-9-10- We're at a hotel with Jeremy's parents and Liliana wanted to go in the hot tub, but she put her foot in and said it was too hot....so then she asked me to blow on the water to cool it off.
It was also interesting to see the random things I felt were important enough to mention...particularly while potty training Liliana. Two weeks worth of twice daily updates about her bathroom habits. Sorry friends! It was hugely exciting at the time...I promise.
In any case, if you are a frequent facebook updater I highly recommend this as a way to keep track of those milestones and memories so you don't have to rush off to find their baby book every time something mildly entertaining happens. Update and then later when you have time, copy it down!
Monday, September 26, 2011
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
I LOVE my husband!
I love my husband for many reasons. Including the fact that I came outside one day to find him doing this with our kids...
We have a bunch of random PVC pipe from one of those ladder golf games, and so Jeremy had the kids connect the pieces, place a marble inside and put the hose in one hand. They covered up different pipes to change the pressure and try to get the marble to come out of different tubes.
It was an awesome physics lesson, and a lot of fun! And he came up with it all on his own! He's amazing. It's official.
We have a bunch of random PVC pipe from one of those ladder golf games, and so Jeremy had the kids connect the pieces, place a marble inside and put the hose in one hand. They covered up different pipes to change the pressure and try to get the marble to come out of different tubes.
It was an awesome physics lesson, and a lot of fun! And he came up with it all on his own! He's amazing. It's official.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Displaying Kids' Art
Micah has been on an artistic rampage lately. I think he's gone through half a ream of paper in the last week. His subject, of course, is Army Men and Star Wars guys. And of course, EVERY picture must be proudly displayed. We may have two refrigerators, but it just isn't enough room! I had intentions of hanging a rope around the basement walls and using clothespins to hang up his artwork. But in the process of searching for clothespins, I found these drapery hooks I used to use to hang blankets over the windows last year when I was doing daycare so the kids would sleep better.
Since we had extra rods too, the end result is this:
I'm pleased with it for now, but someday....oh some glorious day...when we have a house for keeps, I will buy really pretty drapery rods, make some wooden letters that spell "ART" on a little shelf above them, get track lighting to hang a few feet away- shining at the display, and have it hung on a beautiful taupe painted wall. Until that day, at least our fridge has some breathing room!
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Liliana Ballerina
When we decided to go to seminary...to give up our jobs, sell our house, uproot our family...I had two conditions.
1- The money we had saved up for a family vacation would be kept for that purpose, and we would take a trip together sometime over the four years.
2- Our children would not miss out on opportunities we would have given them had we not chosen to go to seminary. This included preschool, class field trips, and extracurricular classes.
This has meant sacrifice...we watch every penny we spend, the kids wear clothes from rummage sales, get Christmas presents bought on clearance and wash their hair with shampoo I couponed for. BUT, they get to take gymnastics and swimming, soccer and dance! So it is totally worth being frugal!
Tonight was Liliana's first dance class! This is a moment I dreamed about since the day we found out we were having her. She was soooooo excited (and I was too)!!! All day long, she asked how many more minutes until dance. She's worn her tutu for the past week. And she's been telling everyone she sees about her dance class.
She did FABULOUS! Technically, she was too young for the class. It was for 3-5 year olds and she turns 3 in November. But she was definitely one of the best kids in the class as far as listening and mimicking the teacher. I was so proud of her! AND more importantly she was so proud of herself and beaming the whole time!
1- The money we had saved up for a family vacation would be kept for that purpose, and we would take a trip together sometime over the four years.
2- Our children would not miss out on opportunities we would have given them had we not chosen to go to seminary. This included preschool, class field trips, and extracurricular classes.
This has meant sacrifice...we watch every penny we spend, the kids wear clothes from rummage sales, get Christmas presents bought on clearance and wash their hair with shampoo I couponed for. BUT, they get to take gymnastics and swimming, soccer and dance! So it is totally worth being frugal!
Tonight was Liliana's first dance class! This is a moment I dreamed about since the day we found out we were having her. She was soooooo excited (and I was too)!!! All day long, she asked how many more minutes until dance. She's worn her tutu for the past week. And she's been telling everyone she sees about her dance class.
She did FABULOUS! Technically, she was too young for the class. It was for 3-5 year olds and she turns 3 in November. But she was definitely one of the best kids in the class as far as listening and mimicking the teacher. I was so proud of her! AND more importantly she was so proud of herself and beaming the whole time!
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Best Finger paint Ever!
I will never be buying finger paint again! This recipe is awesome! (Thank you Pinterest) Not only is the paint the same great texture as store bought, but you can easily customize the color and it costs pennies to make!
3 T. sugar (I accidentally used 3 t. sugar and it still turned out fine)
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. cornstarch
2 cups water
(I added in a squeeze of dish soap to make for easy clean up)
• Combine ingredients in a pan and heat until thickened.
• Cool.
• Put in containers and add food coloring as desired. Love these custom colors!
•Paint!
I've made homemade finger paint before, and it was a disaster...it turned out all weird and jello like. I'm so glad I tried a new recipe. Easy, cheap and fabulous! Enjoy!
3 T. sugar (I accidentally used 3 t. sugar and it still turned out fine)
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. cornstarch
2 cups water
(I added in a squeeze of dish soap to make for easy clean up)
• Combine ingredients in a pan and heat until thickened.
• Put in containers and add food coloring as desired. Love these custom colors!
•Paint!
I've made homemade finger paint before, and it was a disaster...it turned out all weird and jello like. I'm so glad I tried a new recipe. Easy, cheap and fabulous! Enjoy!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Korkers!
Making hair clips for my daughter was always on my list of things I thought I must do in order to be a good mom. Now- PLEASE keep in mind that this is MY list of things I (major emphasis on the I) think I need to do. This in no way indicates that I think other moms have to do these things. They're just things I've always pictured doing for my kids and if I don't do them I feel like I'm not living up to my expectations for myself. Okay, now that the disclaimer is out of the way...also gracing the list of my ridiculously high expectations for myself are:
• Making pie crust only from scratch (I cringe if I use the Pillsbury kind and feel like I've ruined the whole meal even though I really can't tell that much of a difference).
•Scrapbooking (turns out I don't enjoy scrapbooking at all, I forced myself to do it for each of the kids' first years because I figured I'd regret it if I didn't and now I'm doing digital photo books instead and love it!)
•Sewing dresses and Halloween costumes (which is funny that I idealize this so much because the only time I curse is when I'm sewing, even though I enjoy it...I just get insanely frustrated when it doesn't go right...I once mentioned sewing a bedspread for our room and Jeremy said he didn't know if our marriage could survive that kind of a project. He was kidding. I think.)
•Baking cupcakes, not just for special occasions but on any ordinary day. I really love this one although I will say I dislike putting the batter into the liners, it seems I never fill them consistently and then my perfectionism rears it's ugly head when they don't turn out all the same size. Compulsive much? Yep.
And finally, making hair clips. When Liliana's hair started to grow longer, I freaked out because I didn't have a clue how to make hair clips and I was missing out on valuable clip wearing time. Thankfully a couple of websites helped me out a ton!
Hip Girl Clips is one. You have to register (free!) and then you have access to their forums which includes a lot of free instructions. Wait until you've mastered a few basic clips before navigating this site or you'll get overwhelmed.
This site is a better starter one. Pay special attention to their "How to line an alligator clip" section. If you do nothing else, you can create very basic alligator clips by simply lining them with a pretty ribbon and you'll still feel like you accomplished something crafty for the day.
So after making a few clips and mastering the basics (and really enjoying it!), I had to try Korkers. Korkers are those really cute curly ribbon things that you see at craft fairs and farmers markets for like $5+ a clip. Which is just ridiculous because you can make them for really cheap and you know if you spend that kind of money on a hair clip, your child is going to lose it within 15 minutes of leaving the house.
Enough rambling...here's how to make them!
1. Buy GROSGRAIN ribbon. Not Satin! I know the satin is soooo much cheaper. Wait until there is a sale and then stock up on Grosgrain. It says on the spool what kind it is. Grosgrain is the ribbed kind and holds shape and seals better. I recently stocked up at Hobby Lobby when it was $1 a spool, so you can get it cheap! Oh, and when buying ribbon...be sure you look at how many inches/feet it has. You may think it's really cheap and then find out there isn't enough for even one clip when you get home.
2. Buy a couple of wooden dowels, thin ones. They're like 49 cents at Menards. Cut them to the right size to fit in your oven. The width of the dowel determines the size of the curl, so pick accordingly. Something like 1/4 inch works good.
3. Use a wooden clothespin to secure the ribbon to one end of the dowel. Then wrap the ribbon tightly around the dowel, not overlapping and sort of angling it a bit. When you reach the end, cut the ribbon and secure with another clothspin.
4. (OPTIONAL) Spray with starch. I've done it with and without and haven't noticed much difference. I have it, so I use it, but don't worry if you don't have any.
5. Bake at 250 for around 35 minutes. Be sure to put tinfoil on the oven rack so you don't get grease on your ribbon. The timing/temperature doesn't need to be exact...everyone has their own preference, so use that as a starting point.
6. Cool, then slide off the dowel. If it doesn't slide off right away, that's okay, you can untwist it off and it will just curl right back up. The heat has set the ribbon, so you don't need to worry about it going straight.
7. Cut into the length you want, all the same length. This is also personal preference. I cut mine to about 2 1/2 inches.
8. Usually when working with Grosgrain on other clips, I run it over a flame to seal the ends (so they don't fray), but with Korkers, it's really hard to do that since they're all curled up, so instead I seal the ends with clear nail polish (or clear sparkle nail polish if I'm feeling fancy.) You can also buy special "fray check" stuff, but that seems silly to me.
9. Using a needle and thread, poke each ribbon piece in the middle and stack them up, turning them so they're at different angles. This is definitely a two person job, one person adds each ribbon section, the other person stretches them out and holds it so they don't all curl up. You want them to be flat in the middle where you are sewing them. After you get them all on, push the needle back through the other way and knot it so they are sewn together in the middle. Some places will have you just stack the curls and wrap elastic or ribbon around the middle. DON'T do it that way. I did mine that way at first and they all fell apart after one time wearing them. Sewing may take longer initially but they hold together great!
When you let go, it should all spring together into a beautiful pile of Korker-loveliness. You shouldn't be able to see where they are sewn together.
10. Hot glue onto a lined alligator clip. A note about alligator clips. You can get HUGE boxes of them at Sally Beauty Supply for super cheap. Same with online. Most craft stores will sell you 6 of them for the same price as 100 online...so don't just run to Micheal's without checking prices first or you won't be saving any money by making your own.
11. If you want to, you can clip the alligator clip Korker bow onto a crocheted headband for babies and switch out the clips for different colors. Then later on, you can use it as a regular clip when baby gets hair.
So there you have it! And while you're feeling all pumped up about ribbon making...here's a few others I've done for Liliana. (Ones that she hasn't lost yet. Seriously it's like every time I put one in her hair it vanishes!)
• Making pie crust only from scratch (I cringe if I use the Pillsbury kind and feel like I've ruined the whole meal even though I really can't tell that much of a difference).
•Scrapbooking (turns out I don't enjoy scrapbooking at all, I forced myself to do it for each of the kids' first years because I figured I'd regret it if I didn't and now I'm doing digital photo books instead and love it!)
•Sewing dresses and Halloween costumes (which is funny that I idealize this so much because the only time I curse is when I'm sewing, even though I enjoy it...I just get insanely frustrated when it doesn't go right...I once mentioned sewing a bedspread for our room and Jeremy said he didn't know if our marriage could survive that kind of a project. He was kidding. I think.)
•Baking cupcakes, not just for special occasions but on any ordinary day. I really love this one although I will say I dislike putting the batter into the liners, it seems I never fill them consistently and then my perfectionism rears it's ugly head when they don't turn out all the same size. Compulsive much? Yep.
And finally, making hair clips. When Liliana's hair started to grow longer, I freaked out because I didn't have a clue how to make hair clips and I was missing out on valuable clip wearing time. Thankfully a couple of websites helped me out a ton!
Hip Girl Clips is one. You have to register (free!) and then you have access to their forums which includes a lot of free instructions. Wait until you've mastered a few basic clips before navigating this site or you'll get overwhelmed.
This site is a better starter one. Pay special attention to their "How to line an alligator clip" section. If you do nothing else, you can create very basic alligator clips by simply lining them with a pretty ribbon and you'll still feel like you accomplished something crafty for the day.
So after making a few clips and mastering the basics (and really enjoying it!), I had to try Korkers. Korkers are those really cute curly ribbon things that you see at craft fairs and farmers markets for like $5+ a clip. Which is just ridiculous because you can make them for really cheap and you know if you spend that kind of money on a hair clip, your child is going to lose it within 15 minutes of leaving the house.
Enough rambling...here's how to make them!
1. Buy GROSGRAIN ribbon. Not Satin! I know the satin is soooo much cheaper. Wait until there is a sale and then stock up on Grosgrain. It says on the spool what kind it is. Grosgrain is the ribbed kind and holds shape and seals better. I recently stocked up at Hobby Lobby when it was $1 a spool, so you can get it cheap! Oh, and when buying ribbon...be sure you look at how many inches/feet it has. You may think it's really cheap and then find out there isn't enough for even one clip when you get home.
2. Buy a couple of wooden dowels, thin ones. They're like 49 cents at Menards. Cut them to the right size to fit in your oven. The width of the dowel determines the size of the curl, so pick accordingly. Something like 1/4 inch works good.
3. Use a wooden clothespin to secure the ribbon to one end of the dowel. Then wrap the ribbon tightly around the dowel, not overlapping and sort of angling it a bit. When you reach the end, cut the ribbon and secure with another clothspin.
4. (OPTIONAL) Spray with starch. I've done it with and without and haven't noticed much difference. I have it, so I use it, but don't worry if you don't have any.
5. Bake at 250 for around 35 minutes. Be sure to put tinfoil on the oven rack so you don't get grease on your ribbon. The timing/temperature doesn't need to be exact...everyone has their own preference, so use that as a starting point.
6. Cool, then slide off the dowel. If it doesn't slide off right away, that's okay, you can untwist it off and it will just curl right back up. The heat has set the ribbon, so you don't need to worry about it going straight.
7. Cut into the length you want, all the same length. This is also personal preference. I cut mine to about 2 1/2 inches.
8. Usually when working with Grosgrain on other clips, I run it over a flame to seal the ends (so they don't fray), but with Korkers, it's really hard to do that since they're all curled up, so instead I seal the ends with clear nail polish (or clear sparkle nail polish if I'm feeling fancy.) You can also buy special "fray check" stuff, but that seems silly to me.
9. Using a needle and thread, poke each ribbon piece in the middle and stack them up, turning them so they're at different angles. This is definitely a two person job, one person adds each ribbon section, the other person stretches them out and holds it so they don't all curl up. You want them to be flat in the middle where you are sewing them. After you get them all on, push the needle back through the other way and knot it so they are sewn together in the middle. Some places will have you just stack the curls and wrap elastic or ribbon around the middle. DON'T do it that way. I did mine that way at first and they all fell apart after one time wearing them. Sewing may take longer initially but they hold together great!
When you let go, it should all spring together into a beautiful pile of Korker-loveliness. You shouldn't be able to see where they are sewn together.
11. If you want to, you can clip the alligator clip Korker bow onto a crocheted headband for babies and switch out the clips for different colors. Then later on, you can use it as a regular clip when baby gets hair.
So there you have it! And while you're feeling all pumped up about ribbon making...here's a few others I've done for Liliana. (Ones that she hasn't lost yet. Seriously it's like every time I put one in her hair it vanishes!)
 |
| 4th of July and School Spirit/Halloween Korkers |
 |
| Flower clippies...so SOOOO easy to do! Please don't buy these premade, they are so simple, quick and cheap to make yourself! Just pull the flower apart, then hot glue each layer back together, hot glue on a gem and glue it to a lined clip. |
 |
| Belle, Ariel and Tinkerbell...I LOVE these ones, Liliana doesn't really care yet. |
 |
| Not sure why it's facing the wrong way, but castle, butterfly, turkey and Christmas tree |
 |
| These are my favorite kind of clips to make! Super easy, doesn't take much ribbon, and they don't get in the way of her playing. Instructions are found at The Ribbon Retreat. They're called Mini Clippies. Target $ Spot often has a box of six small spools of ribbon for $1, and it's just enough length to make a pair of Mini Clippies in each color! |
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Back to School Project Time
I've been majorly slacking on the kiddo's craft time lately! We've been busy playing, enjoying the nice weather, and doing stuff around the house and had absolutely no motivation to make stuff. So today I decided enough is enough, and spent all of 2 minutes cutting out some pieces for them to glue together. Easing myself back into it with something super simple...a construction paper pencil to celebrate Back to School time this week.
I handed the kids the pieces and showed them the order they went into and they glued it themselves. Micah wrote his own name and Liliana traced letters I had written on for her. It was her first time tracing! I helped her do the first LI and she did the rest herself. She did really well on the second LI but then seemed to get bored and just kind of scribbled over it.
Hopefully we'll do something a little more labor intensive soon, I have my eyes on some egg carton school buses. And in a few more weeks, we can start fall projects, which I adore! Leaves, apples, pumpkins, acorns...way more fun to craft than beach balls and seashells in my opinion!
Hope everyone's Back to School time is going well. Micah starts on Thursday and I can't wait to get some routine back into our lives!
I handed the kids the pieces and showed them the order they went into and they glued it themselves. Micah wrote his own name and Liliana traced letters I had written on for her. It was her first time tracing! I helped her do the first LI and she did the rest herself. She did really well on the second LI but then seemed to get bored and just kind of scribbled over it.
Hopefully we'll do something a little more labor intensive soon, I have my eyes on some egg carton school buses. And in a few more weeks, we can start fall projects, which I adore! Leaves, apples, pumpkins, acorns...way more fun to craft than beach balls and seashells in my opinion!
Hope everyone's Back to School time is going well. Micah starts on Thursday and I can't wait to get some routine back into our lives!
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