Quick recipe for afternoon snacks

Bread cut into triangles, spread peanut butter and put banana slices on top.

Easy and fantastic!

Sorry, in the picture the sandwiches are squares and not triangles.  Hint:  to cut triangles, just cut diagonally across the bread. 

How you know your kid is a genius.

I know all of us think our kids are smart. In fact, most of the time we think our child is the smartest. Never mind that she enjoys rolling in the mud or farting at the dinner table, she has some kind of inner intelligence other kids don't have. She has that, as the French say,  "I don't know what".  Everyone believes their kid can draw better, run faster, read better and speak more fluently than the next. 

We all hear parents trying ever so hard to be humble but coming out with statements to articulate how different their children are from others like:  "My daugther is so self-aware."  Right, cause she has a tendency to scream "jesus the christ give me what I want " when you go to the drug store? I have heard other parents say things like:  "My child has an excellent capacity for non-conflict resolution with her peers and it is remarkable to see this in a one year old." Yeah, drooling in the corner with a playmobil, definitely a candidate for UN peace keeping missions. 

But how do you really know when your child is a genius?  No parent can really be objective so how do find the lens with which you can see your child for what they are? 

I'll tell you how:  let them play with their food to see what they come up with. 

Below is some food art made by my two year old.  He even used salmon and beet root! 

Taking a mom time out!

Feeling the need for some non-mom activity?  I find it is really important to have some time out to just be myself, take my mom hat off and get out of the house and away from the laundry.  So, this week, I signed up for an adults only activity:  winterizing your garden and canning your goods.  This is my teacher who, as you can see, is obviously a first-generation immigrant.  I was so disappointed!    Not only did he have trouble speaking English, he seemed to smell like onions.  He kept saying things like:  "a compost" or "the raining season" and at one point he even said:  "I have a very weedy weed".  He even used "gardening" and "asylum seekers" in the same sentence!  Much to my disgrace, he continuously inserted foreign words into his lecture such as "moratorium" and  "bigamy".   I can't believe they let this guy teach this course! Next time I sign up for non-mom time recreation I will make sure it is with someone who speaks English! 

Losing your children while shopping?

I don't know if this happens to you or not but I am constantly losing my kids when I go shopping. Luckily, I have been able to use the store's loud speaker system to get my kids back every time.  The other day I was at the mall and realized that my smallest son had gone missing (he just turned two but he can run like nobody I know).  I had been trying on dresses while he played in the shoe department.  By the time I finished, he was nowhere to be found.  I immediately went to the mall help desk and had them make an announcement.  I guess he is still too little to know how to find the information desk so after two hours of waiting, I decided to go to the mall police who used a CCTV to track him down.  Luckily, they have over 148 cameras throughout the mall so they were able to find him in the mall Papa John's eating a pizza.  I have to say that I am now a CCTV convert and cannot imagine going shopping without knowing the CCTVs are there.

CCTV helped save this little monkey who was lost in Ikea just the other day.  Imagine if that was your baby?  You'd say, "good thing the little guy was standing there in front of the CCTV wearing a warm coat."  That's what you'd say and you'd be damn glad they put a CCTV in at Ikea.

Recycling for Christmas

Ideas for recycling: 

Take your advent calendar that you used last year and use it again this year. 

If you don't have Christmas stockings for the children yet, use an old sock and glue cotton balls or pine cones on it. 

Have old jars?  Fill them with water, place an action figure inside the jar and submerge it in the water and sprinkle some sugar or glitter or white flour inside to make a Christmas globe. 

If you have old cotton balls, put them in a bowl and use marbles or even coins and intersperse them to create a winter wonderland.

Is your recycling bin full of aluminum foil and plastic yogurt containers?  Re-use the aluminum foil by spreading it out flat.  Next place the yogurt containers up-side down on the flattened aluminum.   

Home made salt dough ornaments

We're making salt dough ornaments today!  So simple: salt, flour and water and you have the recipe for a great afternoon with your kiddos!

The trick about salt dough is making sure you knead it well (at least 5 minutes).  Then, you want to make sure to role to dough smoothly to get the best looking ornaments.

Sometimes, after letting the boys knead the dough, I can escape and watch a movie!  They're so into it!

Helping hands makes light work!  Now it is time to get out the cookie cutters and delight the kids with the chance to make their favorite shapes.

It takes a lot of patience and kind-hearted teaching to help little ones understand how to use a cookie cutter.  Expect frustration!  It is a sign they are learning !  See below for proof!

He's learning….

He's not dumb, he is just learning…

Once you have a dozen or so shapes cut and ready to go, place them on a waxed paper lined baking sheet.  They should bake for close to 45 minutes at 200 degrees.  Don't they look cute?  I used white flour so that they would be white.

 Ready for the oven!

And they're done!

Take a fruit breather!

It is time to tie string or yarn on so they can be ornaments. I forgot to say, before you bake the cookies, be sure and poke a hole in each one so that they can be ornaments.  Tip:  use a sharp pencil or nail.   You could use colorful string or yarn.  Hint: String = emphasis on the color.  Yarn = emphasis on the ornaments.  Another hint:  Yarn against dough = nice contrast.  

These ornaments are just precious!  They are true family treasures and hold such memories for all of us.  Here is a look at some home made ornaments that we have kept over the years - true treasures!  Make them and keep them!