Home made chocolate chip cookies are my favorite! I am partial to the recipe my mom got years ago. Perhaps you’ve seen the recipe as well. The story goes someone asked for Mrs. Fields cookie recipe and was told it cost two fifty. Upon receiving the recipe, she learned it cost two hundred and fifty dollars rather than two dollars and fifty cents. Outraged, she went on to share this recipe with the world to get back at them for charging so much.
I recently discovered a way to entertain and delight my children, while also getting some help in the kitchen. I let them wash dishes in the sink by hand.
I don’t give them anything fragile. But at almost 3 and almost 5, they are quite capable of scrubbing pots and pans or large bowls…things I can’t squeeze into the dishwasher. They beg me for the opportunity and it keeps them content for up an hour.
I don’t remember what magazine or book I read it from, but a few years ago I found an idea for having a wise man celebration. For some reason I recall it being on January 6th. And I decided it was a good idea. But that year my entire family got struck with the stomach virus, so we skipped it. But last year and this year we celebrated, thus making it a tradition at our house.
After years of research in my test kitchen, I have found that Krusteaz sugar cookie mix tastes better than any of the “from scratch sugar cookies” I have made.
And not only do they taste good, but literally, you pour the mix, add water, and stir!!
This is crucial for me, because with my three preschoolers, Mommy needs to spend her time managing the flour and cutting out of the cookies, not measuring and mixing.
Crafty, I am not. But, I was an elementary education major, so I do know how to use scissors and glue. And, I have found that I really enjoy doing simple arts and crafts projects with my children.
But, the circus life can get rather busy. And as with most things, if I am not intentional, the opportunities and the moments pass me by.
So, this year I have designated Tuesday as “Crafty Tuesday.
Trekking out and about about with a toddler can be tricky enough, but running errands with a potty training toddler, her into everything ever curious, little sister and her energetic older brother is down right difficult. Those bathroom stalls were not meant for four people! But what do you do when your potty training toddler has to go and hasn’t learned how to hold it?
This genius idea is courtesy of my dear friend Rebecca.
Last week the kids and I were looking for something fun to do during that difficult time of day between nap time and dinner. We went in the yard to collect some leaves for leaf rubbings and I got another idea of what to do with the leaves when we were finished with our rubbings.
We gathered leaves of various colors and types from the yard. I then took some strips of clear contact paper and peeled the backing off of the contact paper, leaving it sticky side up on the table.
A few weeks ago my hubby and I were shopping for a big purchase. We aren’t the type to make big purchases on the fly. They require lots of research and thinking and looking and more research then finally purchasing. Cameras, cars, computers, TV’s… they’re all the same drill.
But with three kids under 4, it’s not quite as easy as it used to be.
We made two trips to the store in one weekend and I totally felt like a traveling circus.
Many of you know, that my hubby and I are big Pittsburgh Steelers fans. Sadly, many of the games are not televised here. We didn’t want to miss the big opening game on Sunday, so we took the kids to Glory Days restaurant to watch the game.
My hubby and I were a little nervous about how well this would go down. How would we keep 3 kids entertained sitting at a restaurant table for 3 hours?
I didn’t used to be a procrastinator, but now that I have 3 kids, I tend to take care of the urgent first. This means that sometimes my really good plans get altered when real life sets in. I have found that if I want to tackle a large project or extra thing (extra being not laundry, groceries, cleaning, cooking… those necessities of life) I need to make a self-imposed deadline in order for it to happen.