Prayer board

I decided the other night to make a board that I could hang all the prayer requests I come across from friends and family.  At my Bible study we do weekly prayer requests and this is an easy way for me to remember!  That way I can hang it in a place I often go (the kitchen)  

routine chores for kids

I decided I was going to make my little kiddos start REALLY helping me out around the house now.  I made little cards (the size of business cards) to put on a chart.  I didn't get around to actually making the chart quite yet but I am working on it.  I will post on that later!  I am introducing them to the cards slowly so they aren't thrown into and then end up freaking out about it.  Since they can't read I have been explaining each picture and what the job is everyday so that way when I start their charts they will know what the jobs are. 

They are not ALL chores but I made some cards with things they already do regularly like brushing teeth, getting dressed, and picking up toys.  I did that so when I make their chart it isn't just all WORK but more of a routine chart with chores throughout the day.  

How to....? not difficult I think you can figure it out!

• paper/card stock in whatever color you want
• packing tape or laminater (Is that a word? auto correct says not oh well you get the hint!)
•  scissors or paper cutter
• magnets, sticky tac, or velcro.  Use whatever works with what you are sticking it to. 

 I used a business card template. Thought of chores and routine items and  picked out some clip art that seemed to fit each thing.  This took me forever to do!  I couldn't think of toddlers jobs!

After I finally did that I printed them out I only had regular printer paper but I would suggest card stock instead to make them stronger.  

After I cut them all apart I used packing tape because that is what i had around here.  They came out really nice with the packing tape I just wish I used card stock instead (NEXT PROJECT!) 

I plan on using sticky tac or velcro for my board 

My ideas...

•  clean backroom sink (with something like vinegar that won't kill them)
• feed cats
• make your bed
• put toys away
• mate socks
• help with laundry (my kids love helping put things in the washer or dryer)
•  put silverware away
• clean table (again with something like vinegar)
• clean bedroom
• vacuum floor
• get the mail 
• put books away
• water plants (my kids love this)
• help with groceries
• help cook
• gather small trash bags
• brush teeth
• get dressed
• dust

More nutella: strawberry, blueberry, and nutella pizza

I was trying to use up some pizza shells that I had but wasn't in the mood to heat up my kitchen by turning the oven on so I resorted to a fruit pizza.  My kids loved it, I was surprised they even tried it they never eat new things EVER! >.< but they ate the whole thing so I was happy!

Ingredients:
Whole wheat pizza shell, fruit of your choice - I only had strawberries and blueberries, and of course the best part NUTELLA!

Strawberry and Nutella French Toast

Yesterday we had an amazing time at our bible study cook out.  We had pizza mountain pies and for dessert we have strawberry and nutella mountain pies (my idea).  

Today I made french toast for lunch and decided it would go amazing with the left over strawberries and nutella I had.  Well it was amazing I enjoyed it.  I layered french toast, nutella, and strawberries. 

kids say the darndest

My daughter just recently started going number 2 on the potty and by potty I mean an actual plastic potty chair.  Today at my moms without saying a word she used the toilet for the first time (for number 2) We were all sitting outside and she runs outside and tells me she pooped.  I was shocked because there isn't a potty at my moms house so I was slightly worried.  I go inside to check it out and sure enough she actually went on the toilet! With that story in mind.....


Julie tells me it is a poopy fish in the toilet, no idea where she got that from we never talked about fish being in the toilet but she called her poop a poopy fish.                                                                                                                                          

The baby shower gift

 While I was making a diaper cake for my friends baby shower  I decided to cover it with cloth diapers to make it look neat and "clean" since Luvs diapers aren't exactly diaper cake worthy.  While doing so I thought of ANOTHER idea to do with the many many cloth diapers I had.  I decided to have a tissue paper free gift bag.  I used cloth diapers (burp cloths), they stick out of the bag just like tissue paper, who knew right?! THEN guess what...  I decided to dye them!  I made them different shades of VERY light pink.  I will warn you in the pictures it is hard to tell since some shades are super light and the flash is bright. SIGH! -.-  Also I used egg dye because that sadly was all I had that would actually stain the fabric because apparently the food coloring I have doesn't stain.  >.< 

hanging out in some egg dye

my slightly pink burp cloth

You can just barely see the different shades the lightest is on top and gets slightly darker at the bottom

my finished gift

Sushi rolls peanut butter style!

Getting my kids to eat is sometimes a hassle, so I decided to make things somewhat fun and time consuming on my end.  I often make my son peanut butter sushi rolls, I am allowed he is Asian ;) When I am not making sushi rolls I am making some other sort of time consuming shape.  Today though I am posting how to make peanut butter sushi rolls, mostly for my sister because my poor nephew tells me all the time that my sister messes it up! 

Okay lets get started!  

You will need:

• bread (wraps will work too and you will be able to ignore half of this) 

• peanut butter

• knife/butter knife

• rolling pin (my husband flattens it with his hands but it isn't the same)

1. roll out bread

2. cut off crust

 Roll out the bread first and then cut the crusts off so the edges will be "pretty" 

You have to put a VERY thin layer of
peanut butter or it will be hard to 

roll.  I actually put too much on it 

this time.

3. spread thin layer of peanut butter

The fun part is rolling them up.  My daughter prefers me to stop here, she calls them "map" from Dora the Explorer.  

4. Roll!

Finally you get to cut them into little sushi rolls!  

5. cut sushi rolls

There is my happy son eating his sushi!

Corn on the cob anyone?

It's corn on the cob season SOMEWHERE.  At our grocery store they had some amazing looking corn on the cob so I bought some for my kids and for our Memorial Day party.  I am one of those people who never think about corn on the cob holders until I have some corn and realize I don't have holders.  I improvised and used wooden skewers. 

We broke our corn in half but it would work whole, the skewers are long enough.  It is easiest to put the skewers through the cob while they are super hot right out of the pot.  I used tongs to help with the hot factor. 

Now it is time to enjoy the yummy corn on the cob ;)  My kids sure enjoyed it.

You can also put the stick in half way and eat it like a corn cob pop, my daughter got a kick out of that.

My plants (kind of on the long side!)

This year I decided to actually plant something in our planters that have been growing weeds for years now.  It all started at Easter when I bought my kids teenie little pots that had seeds in it to grow.  My daughter got marigolds and my son got 3 leaf clovers.  The marigolds didn't make it too much longer after this picture was taken, I was so sad!

clovers on left marigolds on right. 

My seeds

I expanded my planting horizons and decided to go for some fruit, vegetables and herbs.  That has been a learning experience.  I started my plants indoors since we were still getting frost, which was not fun, they weren't getting enough light and it was just a nightmare!  I had to replant them several times because they were just not thriving.








Fast forward a month and I started more plants outdoors in my planters.  I bought strawberry plants already started so those weren't difficult!  I also planted rosemary and green beans, with the help of Julie. 

She was so excited to help me!

Fast forward a couple more weeks and I bought more pots and more seeds! 

I didn't get a before picture of these but I am happy I didn't. 

My rosemary got attacked by an evil squirrel, so I had to restart them.  

Anyways, I bought cucumbers, mixed greens, and basil.  

Now that it is staying warm at night my plants are doing so well I love it!

strawberries

Ok before you wonder why they are covered and wrapped with plastic fencing, let me explain!  The darn squirrels wouldn't stop digging up my plants so as a last resort to save my sanity I decided to wrap and cover them with fencing. 

My cucumbers I will have to move to bigger pots here soon and hope and pray the squirrels don't kill them.  They have grown too big to keep the fencing over them so hopefully they will survive until I move them!

 In these pots are my basil and rosemary.  You can't see the rosemary because well the squirrels dug them up, and if you have ever grown rosemary you know how depressing this would be since it takes WEEKS for them to spout.  Before the squirrel got them they were almost an inch tall (and that took about a month or more to just get to that point!)  My basil you can just barely see some green in the pot on the left. 

Here we have green beans, my sons clovers are hiding in the corner (YES THEY LIVED!), and celery on the far right.  I found on Pinterest that you can grow celery from a left over celery base thing.  Well it worked!  I soaked the base in a bowl of water over night and then out into the planter it went and its doing awesome!   In the bottom picture we have my mixed greens, you can see the bare spot where the squirrels dug in it that WAS completely full of green!

Overall my green beans have proved to be the most difficult plant to deal with!  I have had to replant them several times.  The wind would blow them over and not to mention my excited son going up to them and snapping them.   So now I have them tied to grilling skewers so they wont fall over in the wind.  I will have to upgrade to bigger sticks when they get a little bigger but for now the skewers are working amazingly You can slightly see the skewers in this picture.  

That's all for now hopefully I wont have to post killed cucumber plants tomorrow.