New Cooking Blog

I love love love this new blog I found. It is a cute one and I don't think I have spolighted it before. If you need some good tips, good new recipes, and a great source for more websites, go to www.thegrubery.blogspot.com
Right now she has a Pumpkin chili that I am going to try.

Spelling

So are we getting tired already of doing spelling every night with our kids? Change it up and go to this website and let them do a word search. Totally easy and very fun.

www.puzzlemaker.com

Stop Pronography

I got this email from a neighbor and thought it was so great that I would pass it on.

I often wonder how I can help in the fight against pornography and other evils of our society. I was led to this site "OneMillionMoms.com" several months ago and have been very impressed with how they do things.

Approximately 2-4 times a month, I am sent an email. The email explains something that OMM is fighting against and offers you a way to add your name to the list of moms that don't agree (I think it's like signing a petition). I follow a link to a page with an email already typed up ready to go - I just add a subject line and my name and email. That's it. Occasionally, they send out emails like the one below letting us know when we have won a battle! Often we confront advertisers of bad programming asking them to pull their ads from that time slot. Many have been willing to comply and inappropriate shows have been cancelled!

If encourage you to investigate further if this is something you feel you should do!

Thanks!

http://www.onemillionmoms.com/issues.asp

OneMillionMoms.com is Making a Difference - Here's Proof
June 29, 2011

Dear friend,

OneMillionMoms.com is taking a stand by protecting our children from the media in a God honoring way. OMM is one of a handful of groups fighting back in an organized fashion against the exploitation of our children by the entertainment industry, and our voice is being heard.

OMM continues to stand up for Christian values which we have been commanded to do by God. We will not stand on the sidelines while our culture is destroyed. Here are just a few examples of what we have accomplished with God's help:

1. MTV announced there will not be a second season of "Skins" because of lack of advertisers! Praise the Lord! After OMM contacted sponsors for this irresponsible program they pulled their financial support immediately.

2. OMM warned parents of Gay Days at Walt Disney World on June 4. Success was measured by the very low attendance of families in the Magic Kingdom that day. A team from the Florida Family Association estimated that attendance by mainstream families was down approximately 50% to 60% over the average attendance of the last ten years.

3. After OMM contacted the Disney Channel concerning the inappropriate movie "Little Manhattan" being aired on their network, it has not aired again. Since you emailed Disney, there have not been any promotions or commercials for this film to be aired in the near future.

OMM continues to fight for the moral values that served our country so well for so long. We do so without apology. We continue to ask you to forward these action alerts to your friends and family. The more people we can get to join us, the more influence and victories we can have.

Please consider making a financial donation to support our efforts. OMM is one of the few organizations being effective in the culture war. To be successful in this war we need prayer, financial support and supporters who are willing to be the hands doing God's will by taking action and making your voice heard.

In return for your gift of $25 or more, you will receive a gift with free shipping. The DVD "THOU SHALT LAUGH 5" is the fifth in a series that just keep getting better! Christian comedians filmed in Nashville and hosted by the Award-winning "Queen of Clean" Chonda Pierce. THOU SHALT LAUGH 5 presents returning fan favorites Bone Hampton, Gilbert Esquivel, Taylor Mason and the hilariously funny Joey I.L.O., Leland Klassen, and Daren Streblow.

Thank you in advance for your donation to support the work of OneMillionMoms.com!

Sincerely,

Monica Cole, Director
OneMillionMoms.com

ksl.com - Read with kids during summer break, expert advises

I read this article on KSL.com and was very impressed. As I talk to Moms this Summer, I am so surprised that some just don't care about Summer Learning for their kids. I really liked this article and the fun ideas they put in.

ksl.com - Read with kids during summer break, expert advises

To take it one step further: They mentioned Utah history, why not go to some of the great Utah history sites. In fifth grade they do US history. Why not go to another state and save pamphlets and info from your state. Such a great idea. I have always loved the cooking and reading with kids. Anyway I hope you like it as well.

Paper Rockets

We have done these in scouts twice and they are sooooooooooooo fun. It is fun if you are old or young. Anyway check it out and we are doing this as a family for the fourth of July! Pictures will be added later.

Needed:
Paper Rocket Launcher (can be made for less than 30 dollars)
Paper Rockets (you can buy them or make your own)
Air Compresser

Paper Rockets:

Make Your Own:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Paper-Rocket-with-Launcher/

Buy It:
http://www.itsablast.com/

Launcher:
Make Your Own:
http://www.nasa.gov/ (/audience/foreducators/topnav/materials/listbytype/High_Power_Paper_Rocket_Launcher.html)

Buy It:
http://www.itsablast.com/

One of my favorites!

Dr. Jean is one of my favorites of kids music! You can see her stuff at her website http://www.drjean.org/ She also has activities, ways to purchase individual songs, or whole cd's, utube links, etc!In Dr. Jean Sings Silly Songs, my favorites are: Bubblegum and Katalina Matalina Dr. Jean and Friends has these as my favorites: Tooty Ta, Macarena Months, Days of the Week.

But now I want the Math is fun CD, Nursery Rhyme one, and a few others. Anyway if you are looking for some new music here are some ideas. Also you can get these on I-tunes!

More Conference Websites To Try!

First one is this one:

http://preparednotscared.blogspot.com/2011/03/few-conference-ideas-are-on-way.html

The next one is this one:

http://www.brownpaper--packages.com/2011/03/general-conference-treat-buckets.html

Thanks Nicole for telling us about them!

Conference Week!

So it is conference week again! For those of you who aren't LDS, it is a weekend where all our leaders get together with us and teach us and guide us to do what we need to be doing. It also is a time to fill your cup (spirit). More information can be found at http://www.lds.org/

Anyway it is time to plan ahead and get everything copied and ready for conference. I love sugardoodle and she has teamed up with another lady and they make great packets. I like them because they are big enough to last for all four sessions of conference. My kids LOVE them. I actually saved them, because they were so cute. Here is the link for that:

http://www.sugardoodle.net/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7399

Now I have a few ideas that we do, these might make Conference fun and more make lots of memories for your family. Here they are:

1. To say it again: Have packets and make them early in the week with their names on them.

2. Sunday Treats! Always have special treats for each child. I do M&M's or Skittles and place them in baggies for each child. They get one bag per Sunday conference session.

3. Saturday Morning Session: We listen to conference as we up date our 72 hour kits. Each kid and parent has a backpack filled with 72 hour supplies. I rotate them every 6 months. I take out the food and then I let the kids eat all the food, candy, and gum, during the Saturday sessions of conference. I also make a list of what we took out (I do this earlier in the week so I can buy replacements for each kit). Then I have each kid update their backpack with new food, we check the clothes and make sure they fit, replace batteries, etc. Then I know everything is fresh and current.

4. Saturday Night Priesthood Session is a fun time for all. Instead of it being about the men and older boys, it is about the whole family. After dinner and sending the men to their meeting, the rest of us go to Grandma's house. Sometimes the kids play games, or play outside, sometimes we all goof off together, or we just visit. We hang out for those two hours and then have a Banana Split party as soon as the men are back. Some families just have the men have ice cream together after conference. I like my family's way better. I like doing it this way, because even my girls get to celebrate the priesthood. As they grow up and look for companions, they will know what to look for in a man, because they have seen great examples when they were young.

5. Sunday Morning Session for us is a big Sourdough Pancake Breakfast with all the extended family. My Mom sets up lots of tables and we all eat a yummy breakfast. Then we watch conference together until the first session is over, and then we go home to our own houses to watch the last session with just our little family.

6. Another thing I do is put a picture of the prophet up on our magnet board for the whole week. It is a silent reminder of what is coming and helps everyone get excited to hear what the prophet wants to tell us.

7. Reviewing who the prophet and the 12 apostles are is important. You can do this in a FHE lesson or you could put their pictures up one at a time for 15 days with something about them and their name. Also you can teach your kids the Apostle Song found here: www.mormonvidz.com/video/572/New-LDS-Apostle-Song-with-all-12-and-first-presidency you would be surprised at how fast they can pick it up.

8. I found this idea this year and I am going to do it. I found it here: http://creativeholidaygiftideas.blogspot.com/2008/09/kids-general-conference-baskets.html

Anyway that is what we do for Conference. Feel free to share your ideas.

FHE Website!

I was looking for a specific topic for FHE tonight and came across this website. I really like it and thought I would share with you. I will put it in the LDS section.

www.thegoldenseven.blogspot.com

Have a great day!

What can I do fun tonight?

With Silly Putty's birthday today, Dr. Seuss's Birthday today, Porky Pig's birthday today, and Elmer Fudd's birthday today, I think I can come up with something.

After School: A little Seuss music, maybe some cartoons of Elmer and Porky, and making Silly Putty. (recipe below)

Dinner Prep: While I am making dinner, they can play with the Silly Putty we made, Seuss coloring pages, and watch the Sneeches movie, or cat and the hat movie.

Dinner: Of course! Green Eggs and Ham!

Bed Time Reading Time: Of Course! Dr. Seuss!

What a fun little night we can have!

Silly Putty:
1/2 Cup Elmer's Glue
1/2 Cup Liquid Starch
Food Coloring

Slowly Combine the starch with the glue and knead the mass with your fingers. The longer you work with it the better the silly putty gets. Add food coloring to get desired coloring.

Go to this website if you want Dr. Seuss Printables, like this one, http://k2printables.com/seuss.htm

Another Friend, Another Blog!

Another one of my friends from childhood, has started a great blog. She has some really creative ideas, that make life better. She has a really good system for labeling socks. Now I do have my own tricks that I do with my kids clothes, but I have never known what to do with socks. So check it out.

http://www.why-because-i-can.blogspot.com/

Also my idea is that all my kids get a dot with a sharpie on the tag of their clothes. Oldest gets one dot, next oldest gets 2, next gets 3. Then I do the same thing for the boys. Oldest gets one dot, next gets 2. That way as they grow I can add a dot when they don't fit and pass down to the next child. It really is easy and makes it so even hubby can do the laundry. And when I pass them down to another family, they only have dots on tags and not everyone's names.

LeapFrog!

I love the LeapFrog learning dvd's and I also have people always recommending them to me. I went to their website today to buy one and saw a section for parents that are helps in teaching, divided up by ages. One activity was getting a U.S. Map and teaching states by collecting quarters. How fun is that? It also has lots of printables to go with the activities. Anyway that was an older activity, but there was lots of other activites for different ages.

www.leapfrog.com/en/leapfrog_parents/preschool.html

Black History Month

My sweet Sister-In-Law knows I celebrate Black History Month (which is this month) with my kids, and gave me these three links to check out. So if you want to take some time and teach your children about black history give these links a try.

www.preschoolrainbow.org/black-history.htm

www.kidactivities.net/category/Black-History.aspx

http://printables.familyeducation.com/tv/tvsearch/in=fe_printables&type=printable%7CPrintable&theme=black-history-month%7CBlack%20History%20Month&mode=-summary&n=10&fmt=2

The middle one is my favorite one. It had all sorts of interesting an amazing activities that you could do as a teacher, or as a family to teach diversity better. So cool. Thanks Nicole!

Science Fair Projects

So I figured out that all my kids will do a science fair project in elementary, and two in jr. high, and one in High school. So that means by the time I am done with raising my kids I will have helped with 20 science fair projects. CRAZY! Now the naughty person in me, wants to recycle the older kids projects to the younger ones. But I know that is wrong. So far we have done two. Weather Prediction, and What happens to fresh water plants when oil gets in the water. But sometimes I look to the future and think, what will we come up with next? So if you are in the same boat, here are a couple of websites I have found about science fair projects. I will put them on the right side under science, because I think all of us Mothers are going to need them eventually.

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/

http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/

http://www.super-science-fair-projects.com/

www.terimore.com

www.sciencefairadventure.com

check out these fun websites!

www.wmcraftgoodies.blogspot.com and I will put it in the mom section.

also www.theidearoom.net and I will also put that in the mom section. This one had such a cute idea about on voting day, give your child a voting ballet for what they want for breakfast. How cute is that?

I am impressed with both of these websites.

New Website!

I just found out one of my friends, has this fun website. She has lots of fun tips about cake decorating, organizing, gluten free, thrifting, food storage, etc. I will put it in the Mom area on the right side of the links. Hope you enjoy.

http://www.ldsmomtomany.blogspot.com/

Stressful Times

So I wish I could go back a few years and plan life a little better. I wish I could move all my November, December, and January birthdays to the Summer. I always wish I could go back a few months and prepare for Christmas earlier. Throw in family parties, other events, New Year's, Kwanzaa, and some sickness and that is why I don't post so much in the winter. Now it is all over, but we have had three trips to the E.R., the last leaving me recovering for a full week. So I am sorry for those who follow this blog, that I haven't been doing much lately.

Anyway here are a few fun new websites I have found that are so good.

This one is a preschool one that I like. I hate art that all looks the same and I love that this lady lets her kids be very creative. Check out all the fun ideas. www.preschoolplaybook.com

Another site I found is www.ittybittybookworms.blogspot.com go to the right side under From One Mother To Another and find really good information on healthy meal planning for your family.

The last one I am featuring is www.everythingpreschool.com It really has tons if you are wanting lesson plans, coloring pages, themes, etc.

A New Tradition!

We got an early Christmas present from my Sister-in-law, Nicole and her family. It is an elf that comes with a story. After you read the story, he hides all month long in high places in your house. The kids are never to touch the elf. Anyway my younger kids Love it, and my older child loves to hide the elf. It has made for lots of seeking the elf, lots of laughing, and lots of fun. If you are interested, then click on the website about it, below.



http://www.popinkins.com/

Check Out My "New" Dressers!

Here are my before and after pictures of all of the things I have refinished. I found out how to do these from the website http://www.allthingsthrifty.com/ I have really enjoyed seeing the finished product. I have been so frustrated buying new dressers made of low quality. I wanted 100% real wood, but that is so costly. So I found all these dressers for 125 dollars, bought paint for about 100 dollars, and Hardware for about 100 dollars. I figured out I probably spent the same as buying one dresser. I also redid my daughters bed and shelf in her room. And with all that money spent I got all this:

Before (Cracked top that husband fixed, Bright Yellow and White Dresser):

After (I painted red first, attached a vinyl ball on top and spray painted with white. Then I glazed with brown, new handles):Before (Ugly White, Warped top that my husband fixed, gold dated handles): After (Spray Painted Cream, glazed with brown, new handles):

Before (Parent looking nice dresser, with missing handles and pretty beat up):After (mirror spray painted purple, then glazed with black, Dresser spray painted white and then glazed with Black, new hardware):Bed After: Spray painted white, inside shelves purple, glazed with black):Shelf was red from a former lady bug room and I had never changed. Spray painted purple and glazed with black:Before (pepto pink with flower handles):After (Spray Painted blue, new hardware, no glaze):

I also did my kitchen table and chairs. I think it turned out great!

Table: Spray Painted White, Glazed with Black

Chairs: Spray Painted Cranberry, Glazed Black.

Children: I did nothing to, just their personalities!

The nice part about all of this is we don't have dressers falling apart all the time, because they are cheap. I also really like how each one, just fit each person so nicely. It has been really fun and lots of work, but mostly fun. My only suggestion is to go to a PAINT STORE and buy a 6 dollar mask to block out the spray paint. I didn't do this at first and had paint in my nose, lungs, mouth, etc. The right mask is a must!

Two new websites!

My cousin sent me this website to check out. Her little girl's school is learning the 7 habits of a happy kids. She checked out the website and it had lots of fun stuff for kids, but teenagers and adult as well. So check it out and see what you think! http://www.seancovey.com/kids.html

What I like about this site, is it is very fast at loading. I hate slow sites. Franklin Covey has done a really good job making this very kid friendly.

Also my sister in law recommended this website to get kids to do chores. She is loving it and so I thought I would add this website as well. It is www.myjobchart.com